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+Charles Perrault (/pɛˈroʊ/ perr-OH, also US: /pəˈroʊ/ pə-ROH, French: [ʃaʁl pɛʁo]; 12 January 1628 – 16 May 1703) was a French author and member of the Académie Française. He laid the foundations for a new literary genre, the fairy tale, with his works derived from earlier folk tales, published in his 1697 book Histoires ou contes du temps passé.  The best known of his tales include Le Petit Chaperon Rouge (Little Red Riding Hood), Cendrillon (Cinderella), Le Chat Botté (Puss in Boots), La Belle au bois Dormant  (The Sleeping Beauty) and Barbe Bleue (Bluebeard).[1]
+
+Some of Perrault's versions of old stories influenced the German versions published by the Brothers Grimm more than 100 years later. The stories continue to be printed and have been adapted to opera, ballet, theatre, and film. Perrault was an influential figure in the 17th-century French literary scene, and was the leader of the Modern faction during the Quarrel of the Ancients and the Moderns.[2]
+
+Perrault was born in Paris to a wealthy bourgeois family, the seventh child of Pierre Perrault and Paquette Le Clerc. He attended very good schools and studied law before embarking on a career in government service, following in the footsteps of his father and elder brother Jean.[citation needed]
+
+He took part in the creation of the Academy of Sciences as well as the restoration of the Academy of Painting. In 1654, he moved in with his brother Pierre, who had purchased the position of chief tax collector of the city of Paris. When the Academy of Inscriptions and Belles-Lettres was founded in 1663, Perrault was appointed its secretary and served under Jean Baptiste Colbert, finance minister to King Louis XIV.[3] Jean Chapelain, Amable de Bourzeys, and Jacques Cassagne (the King's librarian) were also appointed.[citation needed]
+
+Using his influence as Colbert's administrative aide, in April 1667 he was able to get his brother, Claude Perrault, appointed to a committee of three, the Petit Conseil, also including Louis Le Vau and Charles Le Brun, who designed the new section of the Louvre, the Colonnade, built between 1667 and 1674, to be overseen by Colbert.[4] The design was chosen over designs by Gian Lorenzo Bernini (with whom, as Perrault recounts in his Memoirs, he had stormy relations while the Italian artist was in residence at Louis's court in 1665) and François Mansart.[5] One of the factors leading to this choice included the fear of high costs, and second was the personal antagonism between Bernini and leading members of Louis' court, including Colbert and Perrault; King Louis himself maintained a public air of benevolence towards Bernini, ordering the issuing of a royal bronze portrait medal in honor of the artist in 1674.[6] As Perrault further describes in his Memoirs, however, the king harbored private resentment at Bernini's displays of arrogance. The king was so displeased with Bernini's equestrian statue of him that he ordered it to be destroyed; however, his courtiers prevailed upon him to have it redone instead, with a head depicting the Roman hero Marcus Curtius.[7]
+
+In 1668, Perrault wrote La Peinture (Painting) to honor the king's first painter, Charles Le Brun. He also wrote Courses de tetes et de bague (Head and Ring Races, 1670), written to commemorate the 1662 celebrations staged by Louis for his mistress, Louise-Françoise de La Baume le Blanc, duchesse de La Vallière.[citation needed]
+
+Perrault was elected to the Académie française in 1671.[citation needed]
+
+He married Marie Guichon, age 19, in 1672; she died in 1678.[citation needed]
+
+In 1669 Perrault advised Louis XIV to include thirty-nine fountains each representing one of the fables of Aesop in the labyrinth of Versailles in the gardens of Versailles. The work was carried out between 1672 and 1677. Water jets spurting from the animals' mouths were conceived to give the impression of speech between the creatures. There was a plaque with a caption and a quatrain written by the poet Isaac de Benserade next to each fountain. Perrault produced the guidebook for the labyrinth, Labyrinte de Versailles, printed at the royal press, Paris, in 1677, and illustrated by Sebastien le Clerc.[9]
+
+Philippe Quinault, a longtime family friend of the Perraults, quickly gained a reputation as the librettist for the new musical genre known as opera, collaborating with composer Jean-Baptiste Lully. After Alceste (1674) was denounced by traditionalists who rejected it for deviating from classical theater, Perrault wrote in response Critique de l'Opéra (1674) in which he praised the merits of Alceste over the tragedy of the same name by Euripides.[10][citation needed]
+
+This treatise on Alceste initiated the Quarrel of the Ancients and the Moderns (Querelle des Anciens et des Modernes), which pitted supporters of the literature of Antiquity (the "Ancients") against supporters of the literature from the century of Louis XIV (the "Moderns"). He was on the side of the Moderns and wrote Le Siècle de Louis le Grand (The Century of Louis the Great, 1687) and Parallèle des Anciens et des Modernes (Parallel between Ancients and Moderns, 1688–1692) where he attempted to prove the superiority of the literature of his century. Le Siècle de Louis le Grand  was written in celebration of Louis XIV's recovery from a life-threatening operation. Perrault argued that because of Louis's enlightened rule, the present age was superior in every respect to ancient times. He also claimed that even modern French literature was superior to the works of antiquity, and that, after all, even Homer nods.[citation needed]
+
+In 1682, Colbert forced Perrault into retirement at the age of 56, assigning his tasks
+to his own son, Jules-Armand, marquis d'Ormoy. Colbert would die the next year, and Perrault stopped receiving the pension given to him as a writer. Colbert's bitter rival succeeded him, François-Michel le Tellier, Marquis de Louvois, and quickly removed Perrault from his other appointments.[citation needed]
+
+After this, in 1686, Perrault decided to write epic poetry and show his genuine devotion to Christianity, writing Saint Paulin, évêque de Nôle (St. Paulinus, Bishop of Nola, about Paulinus of Nola). Just like Jean Chapelain's La Pucelle, ou la France délivrée, an epic poem about Joan of Arc, Perrault became a target of mockery from Nicolas Boileau-Despréaux.[citation needed]
+
+Charles Perrault died in Paris in 1703 at the age of 75.[citation needed] On 12 January 2016 Google honoured him with a doodle by artist Sophie Diao depicting characters from the Tales of Mother Goose (Histoires ou contes du temps passé).[11]
+
+In 1695, when he was 67, Perrault lost his position as secretary and decided to dedicate himself to his children. In 1697 he published Tales and Stories of the Past with Morals (Histoires ou Contes du Temps passé), subtitled Tales of Mother Goose (Les Contes de ma Mère l'Oye). (The spelling of the name is with "y" although modern French uses only an "i".) This "Mother Goose" has never been identified as a person, but used to refer to popular and rural storytelling traditions in proverbial phrases of the time. (Source : Dictionnaire de l'Académie, 1694, quoted by Nathalie Froloff in her edition of the  Tales (Gallimard, Folio, Paris, 1999.- p. 10).[12]) These tales, based on European popular tradition and often translated from originals by the Brothers Grimm, became very popular in France. Of all his abundant literary production in verse and in prose (odes, epic poetry, essays, etc.) these little stories for children are the only works still read today, and he is often credited as the founder of the modern fairy tale genre.[13] Naturally, his work reflects awareness of earlier fairy tales written in the salons, most notably by Marie-Catherine Le Jumel de Barneville, Baroness d'Aulnoy, who coined the phrase "fairy tale" and  wrote tales as early as 1690.[14][15]
+
+Some of his popular stories, particularly Cinderella[16] and The Sleeping Beauty, are still commonly told similar to the way Perrault had written them, while others have been revised over the years. For example, some versions of Sleeping Beauty published today are based partially on a Brothers Grimm tale, "Little Briar Rose“, a modified version of the Perrault story,[17] but the Disney version is true to the original Perrault tale.
+
+Perrault had written Little Red Riding Hood as a warning to readers about men preying on young girls walking through the forest. He concludes his fairy tale with a moral, cautioning women and young girls about the dangers of trusting men. He states, "Watch out if you haven’t learned that tame wolves/ Are the most dangerous of all".[18] Perrault warns the readers about the manipulation and false appearances some men portray: "I say Wolf, for all wolves are not of the same sort; there is one kind with an amenable disposition – neither noisy, nor hateful, nor angry, but tame, obliging and gentle, following the young maids in the streets, even into their homes. Alas! Who does not know that these gentle wolves are of all such creatures the most dangerous!"[19] Indeed, the girl gets into bed with the wolf and is devoured. There is no happy ending as in most current versions of the story.[20]
+
+He had actually published his collection under the name of his last son (born in 1678), Pierre (Perrault) Darmancourt ("Armancourt" being the name of a property he bought for him), probably fearful of criticism from the "Ancients".[21] In the tales, he used images from around him, such as the Chateau Ussé for The Sleeping Beauty, and the Marquis of the Château d'Oiron as the model for the Marquis de Carabas in Puss in Boots. He ornamented his folktale subject matter with details, asides and subtext drawn from the world of fashion. Following up on these tales, he translated the Fabulae Centum (100 Fables) of the Latin poet Gabriele Faerno into French verse in 1699.[22]

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+Charles V[c] (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519, King of Spain (Castile and Aragon) from 1516, and Lord of the Netherlands as titular Duke of Burgundy from 1506. As head of the rising House of Habsburg during the first half of the 16th century, his dominions in Europe included the Holy Roman Empire, extending from Germany to northern Italy with direct rule over the Austrian hereditary lands and the Burgundian Low Countries, and a unified Spain with its southern Italian kingdoms of Naples, Sicily, and Sardinia. Furthermore, his reign encompassed both the long-lasting Spanish and short-lived German colonizations of the Americas. The personal union of the European and American territories of Charles V was the first collection of realms labelled "the empire on which the sun never sets".[1][2][3][4][5]
+
+Charles was born in Flanders to Philip the Handsome of the Austrian House of Habsburg (son of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor, and Mary of Burgundy) and Joanna the Mad of the Spanish House of Trastámara (daughter of Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon). The ultimate heir of his four grandparents, he inherited all of his family dominions at a young age, due to the premature death of his father and the mental illness of his mother. After the death of Philip in 1506, he inherited the Burgundian Netherlands, originally held by his paternal grandmother Mary.[6] In 1516, he became co-monarch of Spain with his mother Joanna, and as such he was the first king of Spain to inherit the country as dynastically unified by the Catholic Monarchs, his maternal grandparents.[7] The Spanish possessions at his accession also included the Castilian West Indies and the Aragonese Kingdoms of Naples, Sicily and Sardinia. At the death of his paternal grandfather Maximilian in 1519, he inherited Austria and was elected to succeed him as Holy Roman Emperor. He adopted the Imperial name of Charles V as his main title, and styled himself as a new Charlemagne.[8]
+
+Charles V revitalized the medieval concept of the universal monarchy and spent most of his life defending the integrity of the Holy Roman Empire from the Protestant Reformation, the expansion of the Ottoman Empire, and a series of wars with France.[9] With no fixed capital city, he made 40 journeys, travelling from country to country, and it is estimated that he spent a quarter of his reign on the road.[5] The imperial wars were fought by German Landsknechte, Spanish tercios, Burgundian knights, and Italian condottieri. Charles V borrowed money from German and Italian bankers and, in order to repay such loans, he relied on the proto-capitalist economy of the Low Countries and on the flows of precious metals from South America to Spain, which were the chief source of his wealth but also the cause of widespread inflation. He ratified the Spanish conquest of the Aztec and Inca empires by the Spanish Conquistadores Hernán Cortés and Francisco Pizarro, as well as the establishment of Klein-Venedig by the German Welser family in search of the legendary El Dorado. In order to consolidate power in his early reign, Charles suppressed two Spanish insurrections (Comuneros' Revolt and Brotherhoods' Revolt) and two German rebellions (Knights' Revolt and Great Peasants' Revolt).
+
+Crowned King in Germany, Charles sided with Pope Leo X and declared Martin Luther an outlaw at the Diet of Worms (1521).[10] The same year Francis I of France, surrounded by the Habsburg possessions, started a conflict in Lombardy that lasted until the Battle of Pavia (1525) led to his temporary imprisonment. The Protestant affair re-emerged in 1527 as Rome was sacked by an army of Charles's mutinous soldiers, largely of Lutheran faith. After his forces left the Papal States, Charles V defended Vienna from the Turks and obtained the coronation as King in Italy by Pope Clement VII. In 1535, he annexed the vacant Duchy of Milan and captured Tunis. Nevertheless, the Algiers expedition and the loss of Buda in the early 40s frustrated his anti-Ottoman policies. Meanwhile, Charles V had come to an agreement with Pope Paul III for the organisation of the Council of Trent (1545). The refusal of the Lutheran Schmalkaldic League to recognize the council's validity led to a war, won by Charles V with the imprisonment of the Protestant princes. However, Henry II of France offered new support to the Lutheran cause and strengthened a close alliance with the sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, the ruler of the Ottoman Empire since 1520.
+
+Ultimately, Charles V conceded the Peace of Augsburg and abandoned his multi-national project with a series of abdications in 1556 that divided his hereditary and imperial domains between the Spanish Habsburgs headed by his son Philip II of Spain and the Austrian Habsburgs headed by his brother Ferdinand, who was Archduke of Austria in Charles's name since 1521 and the designated successor as emperor since 1531.[11][12][13] The Duchy of Milan and the Habsburg Netherlands were left in personal union to the King of Spain, but remained part of the Holy Roman Empire. The two Habsburg dynasties remained allied until the extinction of the Spanish line in 1700. In 1557, Charles retired to the Monastery of Yuste in Extremadura and there died a year later.
+
+Charles was born on 24 February 1500 at the Prinsenhof in the Flemish city of Ghent, part of the Habsburg Netherlands in the Holy Roman Empire. He was the eldest son of Philip the Handsome of the Austrian House of Habsburg (son of Maximilian I of Austria and Mary of Burgundy) and Joanna the Mad of the Spanish House of Trastámara (daughter of Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile).[14] The marriage of his parents was conceived during the First Italian War in the context of a political alliance, known as the Holy League or League of Venice, established against the House of Valois with the goal of encircling the Kingdom of France by forming a ring of hostile powers around it. Dynastic accidents eventually brought in the person of Charles of Ghent, as he was known at his birth, the four inheritances of Burgundy, Castile, Aragon, and Austria.
+
+The Burgundian inheritance included the Habsburg Netherlands, which consisted of a large number of the lordships that formed the Low Countries and covered modern-day Belgium, Holland and Luxembourg. It excluded Burgundy proper, annexed by France in 1477, with the exception of Franche-Comté. Charles was born in the Low Countries and his name was chosen in honor of his ancestor Charles the Bold of Burgundy. At the death of Philip in 1506, Charles was recognized Lord of the Netherlands with the title of Charles II of Burgundy. During Charles's childhood and teen years, William de Croÿ (later prime minister) and Adrian of Utrecht (later Pope Adrian VI) served as his tutors. The culture and courtly life of the Low Countries played an important part in the development of Charles's beliefs. As a member of the Burgundian Order of the Golden Fleece in his infancy, and later its grandmaster, Charles was educated to the ideals of the medieval knights and the desire for Christian unity to fight the infidel.[15] The Low Countries were very rich during his reign, both economically and culturally. Charles was very attached to his homeland and spent much of his life in Brussels.
+
+The Spanish inheritance, resulting from a dynastic union of the crowns of Castile and Aragon, included Spain as well as the Castilian West Indies and the Aragonese Two Sicilies. Joanna inherited these territories in 1516 in a condition of mental illness. Charles, therefore, claimed the crowns for himself jure matris, thus becoming co-monarch of Joanna with the title of Charles I of Castile and Aragon or Charles I of Spain.  Castile and Aragon together formed the largest of Charles's personal possessions, and they also provided a great number of generals and tercios (the formidable Spanish infantry of the time). However, at his accession to the throne, Charles was viewed as a foreign prince. Two rebellions, the revolt of the Germanies and the revolt of the comuneros, contested Charles's rule in the 1520s. Following these revolts, Charles placed Spanish counselors in a position of power and spent a considerable part of his life in Castile, including his final years in a monastery. Indeed, Charles's motto, Plus Ultra (Further Beyond), became the national motto of Spain and his heir, later Philip II, was born and raised in Castile. Nonetheless, many Spaniards believed that their resources (largely consisting of flows of silver from the Americas) were being used to sustain Imperial-Habsburg policies that were not in the country's interest.[16]
+
+Charles inherited the Austrian hereditary lands in 1519, as Charles I of Austria, and obtained the election as Holy Roman Emperor against the candidacy of the French King. Since the Imperial election, he was known as Emperor Charles V even outside of Germany and the A.E.I.O.U. motto of the House of Austria acquired political significance. Despite the fact that he was elected as a German prince, Charles's staunch Catholicism in contrast to the growth of Lutheranism alienated him from various German princes who finally fought against him. Charles's presence in Germany was often marked by the organization of imperial diets to maintain religious unity. He was frequently in Northern Italy, often taking part in complicated negotiations with the Popes to address the rise of Protestantism. It is important to note, though, that the German Catholics supported the Emperor. Charles had a close relationship with important German families, like the House of Nassau, many of which were represented at his court in Brussels. Several German princes or noblemen accompanied him in his military campaigns against France or the Ottomans, and the bulk of his army was generally composed of German troops, especially the Imperial Landsknechte.[17][18]
+
+It is said that Charles spoke several languages. He was fluent in French and Dutch, his native languages. He later added an acceptable Castilian Spanish, which he was required to learn by the Castilian Cortes Generales. He could also speak some Basque, acquired by the influence of the Basque secretaries serving in the royal court.[19] He gained a decent command of German following the Imperial election, though he never spoke it as well as French.[20] A witticism sometimes attributed to Charles is: "I speak Spanish/Latin (depending on the source) to God, Italian to women, French to men and German to my horse."[21] A variant of the quote is attributed to him by Swift in his 1726 Gulliver's Travels, but there are no contemporary accounts referencing the quotation (which has many other variants) and it is often attributed instead to Frederick the Great.[22][23]
+
+Given the vast dominions of the House of Habsburg, Charles was often on the road and needed deputies to govern his realms for the times he was absent from his territories. His first Governor of the Netherlands was Margaret of Austria (succeeded by Mary of Hungary and Emmanuel Philibert, Duke of Savoy). His first Regent of Spain was Adrian of Utrecht (succeeded by Isabella of Portugal and Philip II of Spain). For the regency and governorship of the Austrian hereditary lands, Charles named his brother Ferdinand Archduke in the Austrian lands under his authority at the Diet of Worms (1521). Charles also agreed to favor the election of Ferdinand as King of the Romans in Germany, which took place in 1531. Therefore, it is by virtue of the Worms agreement that Ferdinand became Holy Roman Emperor and obtained hereditary rights over Austria at the abdication of Charles in 1556.[11][24]
+
+Charles V made ten trips to the Low Countries, nine to German-speaking lands, seven to Spain, seven to Italian states, four to France, two to England, and two to North Africa.[5] During all his travels, Charles V left a documentary trail in almost every place he went, allowing historians to surmise that he spent over 10,000 days in the Low Countries, 6,500 days in Spain, more than 3000 days in German-speaking territories, and almost 1,000 days in the Italian peninsula. He further spent 195 days in France, 99 in North Africa and 44 days in England. For only 260 days his exact location is unrecorded, all of them being days spent at sea travelling between his dominions.[25] As he put it in his last public speech "my life has been one long journey".[26]
+
+In 1506, Charles inherited his father's Burgundian territories that included Franche-Comté and, most notably, the Low Countries. The latter territories lay within the Holy Roman Empire and its borders, but were formally divided between fiefs of the German kingdom and French fiefs such as Charles's birthplace of Flanders, a last remnant of what had been a powerful player in the Hundred Years' War. As he was a minor, his aunt Margaret of Austria (born as Archduchess of Austria and in both her marriages as the Dowager Princess of Asturias and Dowager Duchess of Savoy) acted as regent, as appointed by Emperor Maximilian until 1515. She soon found herself at war with France over the question of Charles's requirement to pay homage to the French king for Flanders, as his father had done. The outcome was that France relinquished its ancient claim on Flanders in 1528.
+
+From 1515 to 1523, Charles's government in the Netherlands also had to contend with the rebellion of Frisian peasants (led by Pier Gerlofs Donia and Wijard Jelckama). The rebels were initially successful but after a series of defeats, the remaining leaders were captured and decapitated in 1523.
+
+Charles extended the Burgundian territory with the annexation of Tournai, Artois, Utrecht, Groningen, and Guelders. The Seventeen Provinces had been unified by Charles's Burgundian ancestors, but nominally were fiefs of either France or the Holy Roman Empire. In 1549, Charles issued a Pragmatic Sanction, declaring the Low Countries to be a unified entity of which his family would be the heirs.[29]
+
+The Low Countries held an important place in the Empire. For Charles V personally, they were his home, the region where he was born and spent his childhood. Because of trade and industry and the wealth of the region's cities, the Low Countries also represented an important income for the Imperial treasury.
+
+The Burgundian territories were generally loyal to Charles throughout his reign. The important city of Ghent rebelled in 1539 due to heavy tax payments demanded by Charles. The rebellion did not last long, however, as Charles's military response, with reinforcement from the Duke of Alba,[29] was swift and humiliating to the rebels of Ghent.[30][31]
+
+In the Castilian Cortes of Valladolid in 1506 and of Madrid in 1510, Charles was sworn as the Prince of Asturias, heir-apparent to his mother the Queen Joanna.[34] On the other hand, in 1502, the Aragonese Corts gathered in Saragossa and pledged an oath to Joanna as heiress-presumptive, but the Archbishop of Saragossa expressed firmly that this oath could not establish jurisprudence, that is to say, modify the right of the succession, except by virtue of a formal agreement between the Cortes and the King.[35][36] So, upon the death of King Ferdinand II of Aragon, on 23 January 1516, Joanna inherited the Crown of Aragon, which consisted of Aragon, Catalonia, Valencia, Naples, Sicily and Sardinia, while Charles became governor general.[37] Nevertheless, the Flemings wished Charles to assume the royal title,[citation needed] and this was supported by his grandfather the emperor Maximilian I and Pope Leo X.
+
+Thus, after the celebration of Ferdinand II's obsequies on 14 March 1516, Charles was proclaimed king of the crowns of Castile and Aragon jointly with his mother. Finally, when the Castilian regent Cardinal Jiménez de Cisneros accepted the fait accompli, he acceded to Charles's desire to be proclaimed king and imposed his enstatement throughout the kingdom.[38] Charles arrived in his new kingdoms in autumn of 1517. Jiménez de Cisneros came to meet him but fell ill along the way, not without a suspicion of poison, and he died before meeting the King.[39]
+
+Due to the irregularity of Charles assuming the royal title while his mother, the legitimate queen, was alive, the negotiations with the Castilian Cortes in Valladolid (1518) proved difficult.[40] In the end Charles was accepted under the following conditions: he would learn to speak Castilian; he would not appoint foreigners; he was prohibited from taking precious metals from Castile; and he would respect the rights of his mother, Queen Joanna. The Cortes paid homage to him in Valladolid in February 1518. After this, Charles departed to the crown of Aragon. He managed to overcome the resistance of the Aragonese Cortes and Catalan Corts,[41] and he was finally recognized as king of Aragon and count of Barcelona jointly with his mother.[42] The Kingdom of Navarre had been invaded by Ferdinand of Aragon jointly with Castile in 1512, but he pledged a formal oath to respect the kingdom. On Charles's accession to the Spanish thrones, the Parliament of Navarre (Cortes) required him to attend the coronation ceremony (to become Charles IV of Navarre), but this demand fell on deaf ears, and the Parliament kept piling up grievances.
+
+Charles was accepted as sovereign, even though the Spanish felt uneasy with the Imperial style. Spanish kingdoms varied in their traditions. Castile had become an authoritarian, highly centralized kingdom, where the monarch's own will easily overrode legislative and justice institutions.[43] By contrast, in the crown of Aragon, and especially in the Pyrenean kingdom of Navarre, law prevailed, and the monarchy was seen as a contract with the people.[44] This became an inconvenience and a matter of dispute for Charles V and later kings, since realm-specific traditions limited their absolute power. With Charles, government became more absolute, even though until his mother's death in 1555 Charles did not hold the full kingship of the country.
+
+Soon resistance to the Emperor arose because of heavy taxation to support foreign wars in which Castilians had little interest, and because Charles tended to select Flemings for high offices in Castile and America, ignoring Castilian candidates. The resistance culminated in the Revolt of the Comuneros, which Charles suppressed. Immediately after crushing the Castilian revolt, Charles was confronted again with the hot issue of Navarre when King Henry II attempted to reconquer the kingdom. Main military operations lasted until 1524, when Hondarribia surrendered to Charles's forces, but frequent cross-border clashes in the western Pyrenees only stopped in 1528 (Treaties of Madrid and Cambrai).
+
+After these events, Navarre remained a matter of domestic and international litigation still for a century (a French dynastic claim to the throne did not end until the July Revolution in 1830). Charles wanted his son and heir Philip II to marry the heiress of Navarre, Jeanne d'Albret. Jeanne was instead forced to marry William, Duke of Julich-Cleves-Berg, but that childless marriage was annulled after four years. She next married Antoine de Bourbon, and both she and their son would oppose Philip II in the French Wars of Religion.
+
+Castile became integrated into Charles's empire, and provided the bulk of the empire's financial resources as well as very effective military units. The enormous budget deficit accumulated during Charles's reign, along with the inflation that affected the kingdom, resulted in declaring bankruptcy during the reign of Philip II.[45]
+
+The Crown of Aragon inherited by Charles included the Kingdom of Naples, the Kingdom of Sicily and the Kingdom of Sardinia. As Holy Roman Emperor, Charles was sovereign in several states of northern Italy and had a claim to the Iron Crown (obtained in 1530). The Duchy of Milan, however, was under French control. France took Milan from the House of Sforza after victory against Switzerland at the Battle of Marignano in 1515. Imperial-Papal troops succeeded in re-installing the Sforza in Milan in 1521, in the context of an alliance between Charles V and Pope Leo X. A Franco-Swiss army was finally expelled from Lombardy at Bicocca a year later. Yet in 1524 Francis I of France retook the initiative, crossing into Lombardy where Milan, along with a number of other cities, once again fell to his attack. Pavia alone held out, and on 24 February 1525 (Charles's twenty-fifth birthday), Charles's forces led by Charles de Lannoy captured Francis and crushed his army in the Battle of Pavia. In 1535, Francesco II Sforza died without heirs and Charles V annexed the territory as a vacant Imperial state with the help of Massimiliano Stampa, one of the most influential courtiers of the late Duke.[46] Charles successfully held on to all of its Italian territories, though they were invaded again on multiple occasions during the Italian Wars.
+
+In addition, Habsburg trade in the Mediterranean was consistently disrupted by the Ottoman Empire. In 1538 a Holy League consisting of all the Italian states and the Spanish kingdoms was formed to drive the Ottomans back, but it was defeated at the Battle of Preveza. Decisive naval victory eluded Charles; it would not be achieved until after Charles's death, at the Battle of Lepanto in 1571.
+
+During Charles's reign, the Castilian territories in the Americas were considerably extended by conquistadores like Hernán Cortés and Francisco Pizarro. They conquered the large Aztec and Inca empires and incorporated them into the Empire as the Viceroyalties of New Spain and Peru between 1519 and 1542. Combined with the circumnavigation of the globe by the Magellan expedition in 1522, these successes convinced Charles of his divine mission to become the leader of Christendom, which still perceived a significant threat from Islam. The conquests also helped solidify Charles's rule by providing the state treasury with enormous amounts of bullion. As the conquistador Bernal Díaz del Castillo observed, "We came to serve God and his Majesty, to give light to those in darkness, and also to acquire that wealth which most men covet."[47]
+
+On 28 August 1518 Charles issued a charter authorising the transportation of slaves direct from Africa to the Americas. Up until that point (since at least 1510), African slaves had usually been transported to Castile or Portugal and had then been transhipped to the Caribbean. Charles's decision to create a direct, more economically viable Africa to America slave trade fundamentally changed the nature and scale of the transatlantic slave trade.[48]
+
+In 1528 Charles assigned a concession in Venezuela Province to Bartholomeus V. Welser, in compensation for his inability to repay debts owed.  The concession, known as Klein-Venedig (little Venice), was revoked in 1546.  In 1550, Charles convened a conference at Valladolid in order to consider the morality of the force[49] used against the indigenous populations of the New World, which included figures such as Bartolomé de las Casas.
+
+Charles V is credited with the first idea of constructing an American Isthmus canal in Panama as early as 1520.[50]
+
+After the death of his paternal grandfather, Maximilian, in 1519, Charles inherited the Habsburg Monarchy. He was also the natural candidate of the electors to succeed his grandfather as Holy Roman Emperor. After having paid huge bribes to the electors, he defeated the candidacies of Frederick III of Saxony, Francis I of France, and Henry VIII of England. The electors gave Charles the crown on 28 June 1519. On 26 October 1520 he was crowned in Germany and some ten years later, on 22 February 1530, he was crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Clement VII in Bologna, the last emperor to receive a papal coronation.[51][52]
+
+Despite holding the imperial throne, Charles's real authority was limited by the German princes. They gained a strong foothold in the Empire's territories, and Charles was determined not to let this happen in the Netherlands. An inquisition was established as early as 1522. In 1550, the death penalty was introduced for all cases of unrepentant heresy. Political dissent was also firmly controlled, most notably in his place of birth, where Charles, assisted by the Duke of Alba, personally suppressed the Revolt of Ghent in mid-February 1540.[29]
+
+Charles abdicated as emperor in 1556 in favour of his brother Ferdinand; however, due to lengthy debate and bureaucratic procedure, the Imperial Diet did not accept the abdication (and thus make it legally valid) until 24 February 1558. Up to that date, Charles continued to use the title of emperor.
+
+Much of Charles's reign was taken up by conflicts with France, which found itself encircled by Charles's empire while it still maintained ambitions in Italy.  In 1520, Charles visited England, where his aunt, Catherine of Aragon, urged her husband, Henry VIII, to ally himself with the emperor. In 1508 Charles was nominated by Henry VII to the Order of the Garter.[53] His Garter stall plate survives in Saint George's Chapel.
+
+The first war with Charles's great nemesis Francis I of France began in 1521. Charles allied with England and Pope Leo X against the French and the Venetians, and was highly successful, driving the French out of Milan and defeating and capturing Francis at the Battle of Pavia in 1525. To gain his freedom, Francis ceded Burgundy to Charles in the Treaty of Madrid, as well as renouncing his support of Henry II's claim over Navarre.
+
+When he was released, however, Francis had the Parliament of Paris denounce the treaty because it had been signed under duress. France then joined the League of Cognac that Pope Clement VII had formed with Henry VIII of England, the Venetians, the Florentines, and the Milanese to resist imperial domination of Italy. In the ensuing war, Charles's sack of Rome (1527) and virtual imprisonment of Pope Clement VII in 1527 prevented the Pope from annulling the marriage of Henry VIII of England and Charles's aunt Catherine of Aragon, so Henry eventually broke with Rome, thus leading to the English Reformation.[54][55] In other respects, the war was inconclusive. In the Treaty of Cambrai (1529), called the "Ladies' Peace" because it was negotiated between Charles's aunt and Francis' mother, Francis renounced his claims in Italy but retained control of Burgundy.
+
+A third war erupted in 1536. Following the death of the last Sforza Duke of Milan, Charles installed his son Philip in the duchy, despite Francis' claims on it. This war too was inconclusive. Francis failed to conquer Milan, but he succeeded in conquering most of the lands of Charles's ally, the Duke of Savoy, including his capital Turin. A truce at Nice in 1538 on the basis of uti possidetis ended the war but lasted only a short time. War resumed in 1542, with Francis now allied with Ottoman Sultan Suleiman I and Charles once again allied with Henry VIII. Despite the conquest of Nice by a Franco-Ottoman fleet, the French could not advance toward Milan, while a joint Anglo-Imperial invasion of northern France, led by Charles himself, won some successes but was ultimately abandoned, leading to another peace and restoration of the status quo ante bellum in 1544.
+
+A final war erupted with Francis' son and successor, Henry II, in 1551. Henry won early success in Lorraine, where he captured Metz, but French offensives in Italy failed. Charles abdicated midway through this conflict, leaving further conduct of the war to his son, Philip II, and his brother, Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor.
+
+Charles fought continually with the Ottoman Empire and its sultan, Suleiman the Magnificent. The defeat of Hungary at the Battle of Mohács in 1526 "sent a wave of terror over Europe."[56][57] The Muslim advance in Central Europe was halted at the Siege of Vienna in 1529, followed by a counter-attack of Charles V across the Danube river. However, by 1541, central and southern Hungary fell under Turkish control.
+
+Suleiman won the contest for mastery of the Mediterranean, in spite of Christian victories such as the conquest of Tunis in 1535. The regular Ottoman fleet came to dominate the Eastern Mediterranean after its victories at Preveza in 1538 and Djerba in 1560 (shortly after Charles's death), which severely decimated the Spanish marine arm. At the same time, the Muslim Barbary corsairs, acting under the general authority and supervision of the sultan, regularly devastated the Spanish and Italian coasts, crippling Spanish trade and chipping at the foundations of Habsburg power.
+
+In 1536 Francis I of France allied himself with Suleiman against Charles. While Francis was persuaded to sign a peace treaty in 1538, he again allied himself with the Ottomans in 1542 in a Franco-Ottoman alliance. In 1543 Charles allied himself with Henry VIII and forced Francis to sign the Truce of Crépy-en-Laonnois. Later, in 1547, Charles signed a humiliating[58] treaty with the Ottomans to gain himself some respite from the huge expenses of their war.[59]
+
+Charles V made overtures to the Safavid Empire to open a second front against the Ottomans, in an attempt at creating a Habsburg-Persian alliance. Contacts were positive, but rendered difficult by enormous distances. In effect, however, the Safavids did enter in conflict with the Ottoman Empire in the Ottoman-Safavid War, forcing it to split its military resources.[60]
+
+The issue of the Protestant Reformation was first brought to the imperial attention under Charles V. As Holy Roman Emperor, Charles called Martin Luther to the Diet of Worms in 1521, promising him safe conduct if he would appear. After Luther defended The Ninety-Five Theses and his writings, the Emperor commented: "that monk will never make me a heretic". Charles V relied on religious unity to govern his various realms, otherwise unified only in his person, and perceived Luther's teachings as a disruptive form of heresy. He outlawed Luther and issued the Edict of Worms, declaring:
+
+You know that I am a descendant of the Most Christian Emperors of the great German people, of the Catholic Kings of Spain, of the Archdukes of Austria, and of the Dukes of Burgundy. All of these, their whole life long, were faithful sons of the Roman Church…After their deaths they left, by natural law and heritage, these holy catholic rites, for us to live and die by, following their example. And so until now I have lived as a true follower of these our ancestors. I am therefore resolved to maintain everything which these my forebears have established to the present.
+
+Nonetheless, Charles V kept his word and let Martin Luther free to leave the city. Frederick the Wise, elector of Saxony and protector of Luther, lamented the outcome of the Diet. On the road back from Worms, Luther was kidnapped by Frederick's men and hidden in a far away castle in Wartburg. There, he began to work on his German translation of the bible. The spread of Lutheranism led to two major revolts: that of the knights in 1522–1523 and that of the paesants led by Thomas Muntzer in 1524–1525. While the pro-Imperial Swabian League, in conjunction with Protestant princes afraid of social revolts, restored order, Charles V used the instrument of pardon to maintain peace.
+
+Thereafter, Charles V took a tolerant approach and pursued a policy of reconciliation with the Lutherans. At the Diet of Augsburg in 1530, Luther's assistant Philip Melanchthon went even further and presented to Charles V the Lutheran Augsburg confession. The emperor strongly rejected it, and in 1531 the Schmalkaldic League was formed by Protestant princes. In 1532, Charles V recognized the League and effectively suspended the Edict of Worms with the standstill of Nuremberg. The standstill required the Protestants to continue to take part in the Imperial wars against the Turks and the French, and postponed religious affairs until an ecumenical council of the Catholic Church was called by the Pope to solve the issue.
+
+Due to Papal delays in organizing a general council, Charles V decided to organize a German summit and presided over the Regensburg talks between Catholics and Lutherans in 1541, but no compromise was achieved. In 1545, the Council of Trent was finally opened and the Counter-Reformation began. The Catholic initiative was supported by a number of the princes of the Holy Roman Empire. However, the Schmalkaldic League refused to recognize the validity of the council and occupied territories of catholic princes. Thus Charles V outlawed the Schmalkaldic League and opened hostilities against it in 1546 (the year of Luther's death). The next year his forces drove the League's troops out of southern Germany, and defeated John Frederick, Elector of Saxony, and Philip of Hesse at the Battle of Mühlberg, capturing both. At the Augsburg Interim in 1548, he created a solution giving certain allowances to Protestants until the Council of Trent would restore unity. However, members of both sides resented the Interim and some actively opposed it.
+
+The council was re-opened in 1550 with the participation of Lutherans, and Charles V set up the Imperial court in Innsbruck, Austria, sufficiently close to Trent for him to follow the evolution of the debates. In 1552 Protestant princes, in alliance with Henry II of France, rebelled again and the second Schmalkaldic War began. Maurice of Saxony, instrumental for the Imperial victory in the first conflict, switched side to the Protestant cause and bypassed the Imperial army by marching directly into Innsbruck with the goal of capturing the Emperor. Charles V was forced to flee the city during an attack of gout and barely made it alive to Villach in a state of semi-consciousness carried in a litter. After failing to recapture Metz from the French, Charles V returned to the Low Countries for the last years of his emperorship. In 1555, he instructed his brother Ferdinand to sign the Peace of Augsburg in his name. The agreements led to the religious division of Germany between Catholic and Protestant princedoms.
+
+During his lifetime, Charles V had several mistresses, his step-grandmother, Germaine de Foix among them. These liaisons occurred during his bachelorhood and only once during his widowerhood; there are no records of his having any extramarital affairs during his marriage.
+
+On 21 December 1507, Charles was betrothed to 11-year-old Mary, the daughter of King Henry VII of England and younger sister to the future King Henry VIII of England, who was to take the throne in two years. However, the engagement was called off in 1513, on the advice of Thomas Wolsey, and Mary was instead married to King Louis XII of France in 1514.
+
+After his ascension to the Spanish thrones, negotiations for Charles's marriage began shortly after his arrival in Castile, with the Castilian nobles expressing their wishes for him to marry his first cousin Isabella of Portugal, the daughter of King Manuel I of Portugal and Charles's aunt Maria of Aragon. The nobles desired Charles's marriage to a princess of Castilian blood, and a marriage to Isabella would have secured an alliance between Castile and Portugal. However, the 18-year-old King was in no hurry to marry and ignored the nobles' advice, exploring other marriage options.[61] Instead of marrying Isabella, he sent his sister Eleanor to marry Isabella's widowed father, King Manuel, in 1518.
+
+In 1521, on the advice of his Flemish counselors, especially William de Croÿ, Charles became engaged to his other first cousin, Mary, daughter of his aunt, Catherine of Aragon, and King Henry VIII, in order to secure an alliance with England. However, this engagement was very problematic because Mary was only 6 years old at the time, sixteen years Charles's junior, which meant that he would have to wait for her to be old enough to marry.
+
+By 1525, Charles was no longer interested in an alliance with England and could not wait any longer to have legitimate children and heirs. Following his victory in the Battle of Pavia, Charles abandoned the idea of an English alliance, cancelled his engagement to Mary and decided to marry Isabella and form an alliance with Portugal. He wrote to Isabella's brother, King John III of Portugal, making a double marriage contract – Charles would marry Isabella and John would marry Charles's youngest sister, Catherine. A marriage to Isabella was more beneficial for Charles, as she was closer to him in age, was fluent in Spanish and provided him with a very handsome dowry of 900,000 Portuguese cruzados or Castilian folds that would help to solve the financial problems brought on by the Italian Wars.
+
+On 10 March 1526, Charles and Isabella met at the Alcázar Palace in Seville. The marriage was originally a political arrangement, but on their first meeting, the couple fell deeply in love: Isabella captivated the Emperor with her beauty and charm. They were married that very same night in a quiet ceremony in the Hall of Ambassadors, just after midnight. Following their wedding, Charles and Isabella spent a long and happy honeymoon at the Alhambra in Granada. Charles began the construction of the Palace of Charles V in 1527, wishing to establish a permanent residence befitting an emperor and empress in the Alhambra palaces. However, the palace was not completed during their lifetimes and remained roofless until the late 20th century.[62]
+
+Despite the Emperor's long absences due to political affairs abroad, the marriage was a happy one, as both partners were always devoted and faithful to each other.[63] The Empress acted as regent of Spain during her husband's absences, and she proved herself to be a good politician and ruler, thoroughly impressing the Emperor with many of her political accomplishments and decisions.
+
+The marriage lasted for thirteen years, until Isabella's death in 1539. The Empress contracted a fever during the third month of her seventh pregnancy, which resulted in antenatal complications that caused her to miscarry a stillborn son. Her health further deteriorated due to an infection, and she died two weeks later on 1 May 1539, aged 35. Charles was left so grief-stricken by his wife's death that for two months he shut himself up in a monastery, where he prayed and mourned for her in solitude.[64] Charles never recovered from Isabella's death, dressing in black for the rest of his life to show his eternal mourning, and, unlike most kings of the time, he never remarried. In memory of his wife, the Emperor commissioned the painter Titian to paint several posthumous portraits of Isabella; the finished portraits included Titian's Portrait of Empress Isabel of Portugal and La Gloria.[65] Charles kept these paintings with him whenever he travelled, and they were among those that he brought with him after his retirement to the Monastery of Yuste in 1557.[66]
+
+In 1540, Charles paid tribute to Isabella's memory when he commissioned the Flemish composer Thomas Crecquillon to compose new music as a memorial to her. Crecquillon composed his Missa 'Mort m'a privé in memory of the Empress. It expresses the Emperor's grief and great wish for a heavenly reunion with his beloved wife.[67]
+
+Charles suffered from an enlarged lower jaw, a congenital deformity that became considerably worse in later Habsburg generations, giving rise to the term Habsburg jaw. This deformity may have been caused by the family's long history of inbreeding, the consequence of repeated marriages between close family members, as commonly practiced in royal families of that era to maintain dynastic control of territory.[citation needed] He suffered from epilepsy[68] and was seriously afflicted with gout, presumably caused by a diet consisting mainly of red meat.[69] As he aged, his gout progressed from painful to crippling. In his retirement, he was carried around the monastery of St. Yuste in a sedan chair. A ramp was specially constructed to allow him easy access to his rooms.[70]
+
+Between 1554 and 1556, Charles V gradually divided the Hapsburg empire between a Spanish line and a German-Austrian branch. His abdications occurred at the Palace of Coudenberg and are therefore known as "Abdications of Brussels" (Abdankung von Brüssel in German and Abdicación de Bruselas in Spanish). First he abdicated the thrones of Sicily and Naples, both fiefs of the Papacy, and the Imperial Duchy of Milan, in favour of his son Philip on 25 July 1554. Philip was secretly invested with Milan already in 1540 and again in 1546, but only in 1554 the Emperor made it public. Upon the abdications of Naples and Sicily, Philip was invested by Pope Julius III with the kingdom of Naples on 2 October and with the Kingdom of Sicily on 18 November.[71]
+
+The most famous—and only public—abdication took place a year later, on 25 October 1555, when Charles announced to the States General of the Netherlands, reunited in the great hall of the palace where he was emancipated exactly forty years earlier, his abdication in favour of his son of those territories and his intention to step down from all of his positions and retire to a monastery.[71] This was the occasion for Charles V to pronounce his resignation speech:
+
+When I was nineteen, upon the Emperor's death, I undertook to be a candidate for the Imperial crown, not to increase my possessions but rather to engage myself more vigorously in working for the welfare of Germany and my other realms and in the hopes of thereby bringing peace among the Christian peoples and uniting their fighting forces for the defense of the Catholic faith against the Ottomans. That's why I had to make a lot of arduous trips, had to wage a lot of arduous wars ...but never willfully, and always against my will as an attacked person ... I had great hopes – only a few have been fulfilled, and only a few remain to me: and at the cost of what effort! It ultimately made me tired and sick...I have endured all the confusion as far as possible until today, so that nobody could say that I have become a fugitive. But now it would be irresponsible to delay the layoff any longer. Do not think that I want to escape any troubles and dangers: my strength is simply not enough...As for me: I know that I made many mistakes, big mistakes, first because of my youth, then because of human error and because of my passions, and finally because of tiredness. But I deliberately did no wrong to anyone, whoever it was. Should injustice have arisen, it happened without my knowledge and only out of inability: I publicly regret it and ask forgiveness to everyone who I might have offended.[72]
+
+He concluded the speech by mentioning his voyages: ten to the Low Countries, nine to Germany, seven to Spain, seven to Italy, four to France, two to England, and two to North Africa. His last public words were: My life has been one long journey. With no fanfare, in 1556 he finalized his abdications. On 16 January 1556, he gave Spain and the Spanish Empire in the Americas to Philip. On 3 August 1556, he abdicated as Holy Roman Emperor in favour of his brother Ferdinand, elected King of the Romans in 1531. The succession was recognized by the prince-electors assembled at Frankfurt only in 1558, and by the Pope only in 1559.[73][74][75] The Imperial abdication also marked the beginning of Ferdinand's legal and suo jure rule in the Austrian possessions, that he governed in Charles's name since 1521–1522 and were attached to Hungary and Bohemia since 1526.[11]
+
+According to scholars, Charles decided to abdicate for a variety of reasons: the religious division of Germany sanctioned in 1555; the state of Spanish finances, bankrupted with inflation by the end of his reign; the revival of Italian Wars with attacks from Henri II of France; the never-ending advance of the Ottomans in the Mediterranean and central Europe; and his declining health, in particular attacks of gout such as the one that forced him to postpone an attempt to recapture the city of Metz where he was later defeated.
+
+In September 1556, Charles left the Low Countries and sailed to Spain accompanied by Mary of Hungary and Eleanor of Austria. He arrived to the Monastery of Yuste of Extremadura in 1557. He continued to correspond widely and kept an interest in the situation of the empire, while suffering from severe gout. He lived alone in a secluded monastery, surrounded by paintings of Titian and with clocks lining every wall, which some historians believe were symbols of his reign and his lack of time.[76] In an act designed to "merit the favour of heaven", about six months before his death Charles staged his own funeral, complete with shroud and coffin, after which he "rose out of the coffin, and withdrew to his apartment, full of those awful sentiments, which such a singular solemnity was calculated to inspire."[77] In August 1558, Charles was taken seriously ill with what was later revealed to be malaria.[78] He died in the early hours of the morning on 21 September 1558, at the age of 58, holding in his hand the cross that his wife Isabella had been holding when she died.[79]
+
+Charles was originally buried in the chapel of the Monastery of Yuste, but he left a codicil in his last will and testament asking for the establishment of a new religious foundation in which he would be reburied with Isabella.[80] Following his return to Spain in 1559, their son Philip undertook the task of fulfilling his father's wish when he founded the Monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial. After the Monastery's Royal Crypt was completed in 1574, the bodies of Charles and Isabella were relocated and re-interred into a small vault in directly underneath the altar of the Royal Chapel, in accordance with Charles's wishes to be buried "half-body under the altar and half-body under the priest's feet" side by side with Isabella. They remained in the Royal Chapel while the famous Basilica of the Monastery and the Royal tombs were still under construction. In 1654, after the Basilica and Royal tombs were finally completed during the reign of their great-grandson Philip IV, the remains of Charles and Isabella were moved into the Royal Pantheon of Kings, which lies directly under the Basilica.[81] On one side of the Basilica are bronze effigies of Charles and Isabella, with effigies of their daughter Maria of Austria and Charles's sisters Eleanor of Austria and Maria of Hungary behind them. Exactly adjacent to them on the opposite side of the Basilica are effigies of their son Philip with three of his wives and their ill-fated grandson Carlos, Prince of Asturias.
+
+Charles and Isabella had seven children, though only three survived to adulthood:
+
+Due to Philip II being a grandson of Manuel I of Portugal through his mother he was in the line of succession to the throne of Portugal, and claimed it after his uncle's death (Henry, the Cardinal-King, in 1580), thus establishing the personal union between Spain and Portugal.
+
+Charles also had four illegitimate children:
+
+Charles V styled himself as Holy Roman Emperor since his election, according to a Papal dispensation conferred to the Habsburg family by Pope Julius II in 1508 and confirmed in 1519 to the prince-electors by the legates of Pope Leo X. Although Papal coronation was not necessary to confirm the Imperial title, Charles V was crowned in the city of Bologna by Pope Clement VII in the medieval fashion.
+
+Charles V accumulated a large number of titles due to his vast inheritance of Burgundian, Spanish, and Austrian realms. Following the pacts of Worms (21 April 1521) and Brussels (7 February 1522), he secretely gave the Austrian lands to his younger brother Ferdinand and elevated him to the status of Archduke. Nevertheless, according to the agreements, Charles continued to style himself as Archduke of Austria and maintained that Ferdinand acted as his vassal and vicar.[83][84] Furthermore, the pacts of 1521–1522 imposed restrictions on the governorship and regency of Ferdinand. For example, all of Ferdinand's letters to Charles V were signed "your obedient brother and servant".[85] Nonetheless, the same agreements promised Ferdinand the designation as future emperor and the transfer of hereditary rights over Austria at the imperial succession.
+
+Following the death of Louis II, King of Hungary and Bohemia, at the Battle of Mohacs in 1526, Charles V favored the election of Ferdinand as king of Hungary (and Croatia and Dalmatia) and Bohemia. Despite this, Charles also styled himself as king of Hungary and Bohemia and retained this titular use in official acts (such as his testament) as in the case of the Austrian lands. As a consequence, cartographers and historians have described those kingdoms both as realms of Charles V and as possessions of Ferdinand, not without confusion. Others, such as the Venetian enoys, reported that the states of Ferdinand were "all held in common with the Emperor".[86]
+
+Therefore, although he had agreed on the future division of the dynasty between Ferdinand and Philip II of Spain, during his own reign Charles V conceived the existence of a single "House of Austria" of which he was the sole head.[87] In the abdications of 1554–1556, Charles left his personal possessions to Philip II and the Imperial title to Ferdinand. The titles of King of Hungary, of Dalmatia, Croatia, etc., were also nominally left to the Spanish line (in particular to Don Carlos, Prince of Asturias and son of Philip II). However, Charles's Imperial abdication marked the beginning of Ferdinand's suo jure rule in Austria and his other lands: despite the claims of Philip and his descendants, Hungary and Bohemia were left under the nominal and substantial rule of Ferdinand and his successors. Formal disputes between the two lines over Hungary and Bohemia will be solved with the Onate treaty of 1617.
+
+Charles's full titulature went as follows:
+
+Charles, by the grace of God, Emperor of the Romans, forever August, King of Germany, King of Italy, King of all Spains, of Castile, Aragon, León, of Hungary, of Dalmatia, of Croatia, Navarra, Grenada, Toledo, Valencia, Galicia, Majorca, Sevilla, Cordova, Murcia, Jaén, Algarves, Algeciras, Gibraltar, the Canary Islands, King of Two Sicilies, of Sardinia, Corsica, King of Jerusalem, King of the Indies, of the Islands and Mainland of the Ocean Sea, Archduke of Austria, Duke of Burgundy, Brabant, Lorraine, Styria, Carinthia, Carniola, Limburg, Luxembourg, Gelderland, Neopatria, Württemberg, Landgrave of Alsace, Prince of Swabia, Asturia and Catalonia, Count of Flanders, Habsburg, Tyrol, Gorizia, Barcelona, Artois, Burgundy Palatine, Hainaut, Holland, Seeland, Ferrette, Kyburg, Namur, Roussillon, Cerdagne, Drenthe, Zutphen, Margrave of the Holy Roman Empire, Burgau, Oristano and Gociano, Lord of Frisia, the Wendish March, Pordenone, Biscay, Molin, Salins, Tripoli and Mechelen.[citation needed]
+
+Coat of arms of Charles I of Spain and V of the Holy Roman Empire according to the description: Arms of Charles I added to those of Castile, Leon, Aragon, Two Sicilies and Granada present in the previous coat, those of Austria, ancient Burgundy, modern Burgundy, Brabant, Flanders and Tyrol. Charles I also incorporates the pillars of Hercules with the inscription "Plus Ultra", representing the overseas empire and surrounding coat with the collar of the Golden Fleece, as sovereign of the Order ringing the shield with the imperial crown and Acola double-headed eagle of the Holy Roman Empire and behind it the Spanish Cross of Burgundy. From 1520 added to the corresponding quarter to Aragon and Sicily, one in which the arms of Jerusalem, Naples and Navarre are incorporated.
+
+Coat of arms of King Charles I of Spain before becoming emperor of the Holy Roman Empire.
+
+Coat of Arms of Charles I of Spain, Charles V as Holy Roman Emperor.
+
+Arms of Charles, Infante of Spain, Archduke of Austria, Duke of Burgundy, KG at the time of his installation as a knight of the Most Noble Order of the Garter.
+
+Variant of the Royal Bend of Castile used by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor.
+
+References to Charles V include a large number of legends and folk tales; literary renderings of historical events connected to Charles's life and romantic adventures, his relationship to Flanders, and his abdication; and products marketed in his name.[88]
+
+Unusually among major European monarchs, Charles V discouraged monumental depictions of himself during his lifetime.

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+Charles V[c] (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519, King of Spain (Castile and Aragon) from 1516, and Lord of the Netherlands as titular Duke of Burgundy from 1506. As head of the rising House of Habsburg during the first half of the 16th century, his dominions in Europe included the Holy Roman Empire, extending from Germany to northern Italy with direct rule over the Austrian hereditary lands and the Burgundian Low Countries, and a unified Spain with its southern Italian kingdoms of Naples, Sicily, and Sardinia. Furthermore, his reign encompassed both the long-lasting Spanish and short-lived German colonizations of the Americas. The personal union of the European and American territories of Charles V was the first collection of realms labelled "the empire on which the sun never sets".[1][2][3][4][5]
+
+Charles was born in Flanders to Philip the Handsome of the Austrian House of Habsburg (son of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor, and Mary of Burgundy) and Joanna the Mad of the Spanish House of Trastámara (daughter of Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon). The ultimate heir of his four grandparents, he inherited all of his family dominions at a young age, due to the premature death of his father and the mental illness of his mother. After the death of Philip in 1506, he inherited the Burgundian Netherlands, originally held by his paternal grandmother Mary.[6] In 1516, he became co-monarch of Spain with his mother Joanna, and as such he was the first king of Spain to inherit the country as dynastically unified by the Catholic Monarchs, his maternal grandparents.[7] The Spanish possessions at his accession also included the Castilian West Indies and the Aragonese Kingdoms of Naples, Sicily and Sardinia. At the death of his paternal grandfather Maximilian in 1519, he inherited Austria and was elected to succeed him as Holy Roman Emperor. He adopted the Imperial name of Charles V as his main title, and styled himself as a new Charlemagne.[8]
+
+Charles V revitalized the medieval concept of the universal monarchy and spent most of his life defending the integrity of the Holy Roman Empire from the Protestant Reformation, the expansion of the Ottoman Empire, and a series of wars with France.[9] With no fixed capital city, he made 40 journeys, travelling from country to country, and it is estimated that he spent a quarter of his reign on the road.[5] The imperial wars were fought by German Landsknechte, Spanish tercios, Burgundian knights, and Italian condottieri. Charles V borrowed money from German and Italian bankers and, in order to repay such loans, he relied on the proto-capitalist economy of the Low Countries and on the flows of precious metals from South America to Spain, which were the chief source of his wealth but also the cause of widespread inflation. He ratified the Spanish conquest of the Aztec and Inca empires by the Spanish Conquistadores Hernán Cortés and Francisco Pizarro, as well as the establishment of Klein-Venedig by the German Welser family in search of the legendary El Dorado. In order to consolidate power in his early reign, Charles suppressed two Spanish insurrections (Comuneros' Revolt and Brotherhoods' Revolt) and two German rebellions (Knights' Revolt and Great Peasants' Revolt).
+
+Crowned King in Germany, Charles sided with Pope Leo X and declared Martin Luther an outlaw at the Diet of Worms (1521).[10] The same year Francis I of France, surrounded by the Habsburg possessions, started a conflict in Lombardy that lasted until the Battle of Pavia (1525) led to his temporary imprisonment. The Protestant affair re-emerged in 1527 as Rome was sacked by an army of Charles's mutinous soldiers, largely of Lutheran faith. After his forces left the Papal States, Charles V defended Vienna from the Turks and obtained the coronation as King in Italy by Pope Clement VII. In 1535, he annexed the vacant Duchy of Milan and captured Tunis. Nevertheless, the Algiers expedition and the loss of Buda in the early 40s frustrated his anti-Ottoman policies. Meanwhile, Charles V had come to an agreement with Pope Paul III for the organisation of the Council of Trent (1545). The refusal of the Lutheran Schmalkaldic League to recognize the council's validity led to a war, won by Charles V with the imprisonment of the Protestant princes. However, Henry II of France offered new support to the Lutheran cause and strengthened a close alliance with the sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, the ruler of the Ottoman Empire since 1520.
+
+Ultimately, Charles V conceded the Peace of Augsburg and abandoned his multi-national project with a series of abdications in 1556 that divided his hereditary and imperial domains between the Spanish Habsburgs headed by his son Philip II of Spain and the Austrian Habsburgs headed by his brother Ferdinand, who was Archduke of Austria in Charles's name since 1521 and the designated successor as emperor since 1531.[11][12][13] The Duchy of Milan and the Habsburg Netherlands were left in personal union to the King of Spain, but remained part of the Holy Roman Empire. The two Habsburg dynasties remained allied until the extinction of the Spanish line in 1700. In 1557, Charles retired to the Monastery of Yuste in Extremadura and there died a year later.
+
+Charles was born on 24 February 1500 at the Prinsenhof in the Flemish city of Ghent, part of the Habsburg Netherlands in the Holy Roman Empire. He was the eldest son of Philip the Handsome of the Austrian House of Habsburg (son of Maximilian I of Austria and Mary of Burgundy) and Joanna the Mad of the Spanish House of Trastámara (daughter of Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile).[14] The marriage of his parents was conceived during the First Italian War in the context of a political alliance, known as the Holy League or League of Venice, established against the House of Valois with the goal of encircling the Kingdom of France by forming a ring of hostile powers around it. Dynastic accidents eventually brought in the person of Charles of Ghent, as he was known at his birth, the four inheritances of Burgundy, Castile, Aragon, and Austria.
+
+The Burgundian inheritance included the Habsburg Netherlands, which consisted of a large number of the lordships that formed the Low Countries and covered modern-day Belgium, Holland and Luxembourg. It excluded Burgundy proper, annexed by France in 1477, with the exception of Franche-Comté. Charles was born in the Low Countries and his name was chosen in honor of his ancestor Charles the Bold of Burgundy. At the death of Philip in 1506, Charles was recognized Lord of the Netherlands with the title of Charles II of Burgundy. During Charles's childhood and teen years, William de Croÿ (later prime minister) and Adrian of Utrecht (later Pope Adrian VI) served as his tutors. The culture and courtly life of the Low Countries played an important part in the development of Charles's beliefs. As a member of the Burgundian Order of the Golden Fleece in his infancy, and later its grandmaster, Charles was educated to the ideals of the medieval knights and the desire for Christian unity to fight the infidel.[15] The Low Countries were very rich during his reign, both economically and culturally. Charles was very attached to his homeland and spent much of his life in Brussels.
+
+The Spanish inheritance, resulting from a dynastic union of the crowns of Castile and Aragon, included Spain as well as the Castilian West Indies and the Aragonese Two Sicilies. Joanna inherited these territories in 1516 in a condition of mental illness. Charles, therefore, claimed the crowns for himself jure matris, thus becoming co-monarch of Joanna with the title of Charles I of Castile and Aragon or Charles I of Spain.  Castile and Aragon together formed the largest of Charles's personal possessions, and they also provided a great number of generals and tercios (the formidable Spanish infantry of the time). However, at his accession to the throne, Charles was viewed as a foreign prince. Two rebellions, the revolt of the Germanies and the revolt of the comuneros, contested Charles's rule in the 1520s. Following these revolts, Charles placed Spanish counselors in a position of power and spent a considerable part of his life in Castile, including his final years in a monastery. Indeed, Charles's motto, Plus Ultra (Further Beyond), became the national motto of Spain and his heir, later Philip II, was born and raised in Castile. Nonetheless, many Spaniards believed that their resources (largely consisting of flows of silver from the Americas) were being used to sustain Imperial-Habsburg policies that were not in the country's interest.[16]
+
+Charles inherited the Austrian hereditary lands in 1519, as Charles I of Austria, and obtained the election as Holy Roman Emperor against the candidacy of the French King. Since the Imperial election, he was known as Emperor Charles V even outside of Germany and the A.E.I.O.U. motto of the House of Austria acquired political significance. Despite the fact that he was elected as a German prince, Charles's staunch Catholicism in contrast to the growth of Lutheranism alienated him from various German princes who finally fought against him. Charles's presence in Germany was often marked by the organization of imperial diets to maintain religious unity. He was frequently in Northern Italy, often taking part in complicated negotiations with the Popes to address the rise of Protestantism. It is important to note, though, that the German Catholics supported the Emperor. Charles had a close relationship with important German families, like the House of Nassau, many of which were represented at his court in Brussels. Several German princes or noblemen accompanied him in his military campaigns against France or the Ottomans, and the bulk of his army was generally composed of German troops, especially the Imperial Landsknechte.[17][18]
+
+It is said that Charles spoke several languages. He was fluent in French and Dutch, his native languages. He later added an acceptable Castilian Spanish, which he was required to learn by the Castilian Cortes Generales. He could also speak some Basque, acquired by the influence of the Basque secretaries serving in the royal court.[19] He gained a decent command of German following the Imperial election, though he never spoke it as well as French.[20] A witticism sometimes attributed to Charles is: "I speak Spanish/Latin (depending on the source) to God, Italian to women, French to men and German to my horse."[21] A variant of the quote is attributed to him by Swift in his 1726 Gulliver's Travels, but there are no contemporary accounts referencing the quotation (which has many other variants) and it is often attributed instead to Frederick the Great.[22][23]
+
+Given the vast dominions of the House of Habsburg, Charles was often on the road and needed deputies to govern his realms for the times he was absent from his territories. His first Governor of the Netherlands was Margaret of Austria (succeeded by Mary of Hungary and Emmanuel Philibert, Duke of Savoy). His first Regent of Spain was Adrian of Utrecht (succeeded by Isabella of Portugal and Philip II of Spain). For the regency and governorship of the Austrian hereditary lands, Charles named his brother Ferdinand Archduke in the Austrian lands under his authority at the Diet of Worms (1521). Charles also agreed to favor the election of Ferdinand as King of the Romans in Germany, which took place in 1531. Therefore, it is by virtue of the Worms agreement that Ferdinand became Holy Roman Emperor and obtained hereditary rights over Austria at the abdication of Charles in 1556.[11][24]
+
+Charles V made ten trips to the Low Countries, nine to German-speaking lands, seven to Spain, seven to Italian states, four to France, two to England, and two to North Africa.[5] During all his travels, Charles V left a documentary trail in almost every place he went, allowing historians to surmise that he spent over 10,000 days in the Low Countries, 6,500 days in Spain, more than 3000 days in German-speaking territories, and almost 1,000 days in the Italian peninsula. He further spent 195 days in France, 99 in North Africa and 44 days in England. For only 260 days his exact location is unrecorded, all of them being days spent at sea travelling between his dominions.[25] As he put it in his last public speech "my life has been one long journey".[26]
+
+In 1506, Charles inherited his father's Burgundian territories that included Franche-Comté and, most notably, the Low Countries. The latter territories lay within the Holy Roman Empire and its borders, but were formally divided between fiefs of the German kingdom and French fiefs such as Charles's birthplace of Flanders, a last remnant of what had been a powerful player in the Hundred Years' War. As he was a minor, his aunt Margaret of Austria (born as Archduchess of Austria and in both her marriages as the Dowager Princess of Asturias and Dowager Duchess of Savoy) acted as regent, as appointed by Emperor Maximilian until 1515. She soon found herself at war with France over the question of Charles's requirement to pay homage to the French king for Flanders, as his father had done. The outcome was that France relinquished its ancient claim on Flanders in 1528.
+
+From 1515 to 1523, Charles's government in the Netherlands also had to contend with the rebellion of Frisian peasants (led by Pier Gerlofs Donia and Wijard Jelckama). The rebels were initially successful but after a series of defeats, the remaining leaders were captured and decapitated in 1523.
+
+Charles extended the Burgundian territory with the annexation of Tournai, Artois, Utrecht, Groningen, and Guelders. The Seventeen Provinces had been unified by Charles's Burgundian ancestors, but nominally were fiefs of either France or the Holy Roman Empire. In 1549, Charles issued a Pragmatic Sanction, declaring the Low Countries to be a unified entity of which his family would be the heirs.[29]
+
+The Low Countries held an important place in the Empire. For Charles V personally, they were his home, the region where he was born and spent his childhood. Because of trade and industry and the wealth of the region's cities, the Low Countries also represented an important income for the Imperial treasury.
+
+The Burgundian territories were generally loyal to Charles throughout his reign. The important city of Ghent rebelled in 1539 due to heavy tax payments demanded by Charles. The rebellion did not last long, however, as Charles's military response, with reinforcement from the Duke of Alba,[29] was swift and humiliating to the rebels of Ghent.[30][31]
+
+In the Castilian Cortes of Valladolid in 1506 and of Madrid in 1510, Charles was sworn as the Prince of Asturias, heir-apparent to his mother the Queen Joanna.[34] On the other hand, in 1502, the Aragonese Corts gathered in Saragossa and pledged an oath to Joanna as heiress-presumptive, but the Archbishop of Saragossa expressed firmly that this oath could not establish jurisprudence, that is to say, modify the right of the succession, except by virtue of a formal agreement between the Cortes and the King.[35][36] So, upon the death of King Ferdinand II of Aragon, on 23 January 1516, Joanna inherited the Crown of Aragon, which consisted of Aragon, Catalonia, Valencia, Naples, Sicily and Sardinia, while Charles became governor general.[37] Nevertheless, the Flemings wished Charles to assume the royal title,[citation needed] and this was supported by his grandfather the emperor Maximilian I and Pope Leo X.
+
+Thus, after the celebration of Ferdinand II's obsequies on 14 March 1516, Charles was proclaimed king of the crowns of Castile and Aragon jointly with his mother. Finally, when the Castilian regent Cardinal Jiménez de Cisneros accepted the fait accompli, he acceded to Charles's desire to be proclaimed king and imposed his enstatement throughout the kingdom.[38] Charles arrived in his new kingdoms in autumn of 1517. Jiménez de Cisneros came to meet him but fell ill along the way, not without a suspicion of poison, and he died before meeting the King.[39]
+
+Due to the irregularity of Charles assuming the royal title while his mother, the legitimate queen, was alive, the negotiations with the Castilian Cortes in Valladolid (1518) proved difficult.[40] In the end Charles was accepted under the following conditions: he would learn to speak Castilian; he would not appoint foreigners; he was prohibited from taking precious metals from Castile; and he would respect the rights of his mother, Queen Joanna. The Cortes paid homage to him in Valladolid in February 1518. After this, Charles departed to the crown of Aragon. He managed to overcome the resistance of the Aragonese Cortes and Catalan Corts,[41] and he was finally recognized as king of Aragon and count of Barcelona jointly with his mother.[42] The Kingdom of Navarre had been invaded by Ferdinand of Aragon jointly with Castile in 1512, but he pledged a formal oath to respect the kingdom. On Charles's accession to the Spanish thrones, the Parliament of Navarre (Cortes) required him to attend the coronation ceremony (to become Charles IV of Navarre), but this demand fell on deaf ears, and the Parliament kept piling up grievances.
+
+Charles was accepted as sovereign, even though the Spanish felt uneasy with the Imperial style. Spanish kingdoms varied in their traditions. Castile had become an authoritarian, highly centralized kingdom, where the monarch's own will easily overrode legislative and justice institutions.[43] By contrast, in the crown of Aragon, and especially in the Pyrenean kingdom of Navarre, law prevailed, and the monarchy was seen as a contract with the people.[44] This became an inconvenience and a matter of dispute for Charles V and later kings, since realm-specific traditions limited their absolute power. With Charles, government became more absolute, even though until his mother's death in 1555 Charles did not hold the full kingship of the country.
+
+Soon resistance to the Emperor arose because of heavy taxation to support foreign wars in which Castilians had little interest, and because Charles tended to select Flemings for high offices in Castile and America, ignoring Castilian candidates. The resistance culminated in the Revolt of the Comuneros, which Charles suppressed. Immediately after crushing the Castilian revolt, Charles was confronted again with the hot issue of Navarre when King Henry II attempted to reconquer the kingdom. Main military operations lasted until 1524, when Hondarribia surrendered to Charles's forces, but frequent cross-border clashes in the western Pyrenees only stopped in 1528 (Treaties of Madrid and Cambrai).
+
+After these events, Navarre remained a matter of domestic and international litigation still for a century (a French dynastic claim to the throne did not end until the July Revolution in 1830). Charles wanted his son and heir Philip II to marry the heiress of Navarre, Jeanne d'Albret. Jeanne was instead forced to marry William, Duke of Julich-Cleves-Berg, but that childless marriage was annulled after four years. She next married Antoine de Bourbon, and both she and their son would oppose Philip II in the French Wars of Religion.
+
+Castile became integrated into Charles's empire, and provided the bulk of the empire's financial resources as well as very effective military units. The enormous budget deficit accumulated during Charles's reign, along with the inflation that affected the kingdom, resulted in declaring bankruptcy during the reign of Philip II.[45]
+
+The Crown of Aragon inherited by Charles included the Kingdom of Naples, the Kingdom of Sicily and the Kingdom of Sardinia. As Holy Roman Emperor, Charles was sovereign in several states of northern Italy and had a claim to the Iron Crown (obtained in 1530). The Duchy of Milan, however, was under French control. France took Milan from the House of Sforza after victory against Switzerland at the Battle of Marignano in 1515. Imperial-Papal troops succeeded in re-installing the Sforza in Milan in 1521, in the context of an alliance between Charles V and Pope Leo X. A Franco-Swiss army was finally expelled from Lombardy at Bicocca a year later. Yet in 1524 Francis I of France retook the initiative, crossing into Lombardy where Milan, along with a number of other cities, once again fell to his attack. Pavia alone held out, and on 24 February 1525 (Charles's twenty-fifth birthday), Charles's forces led by Charles de Lannoy captured Francis and crushed his army in the Battle of Pavia. In 1535, Francesco II Sforza died without heirs and Charles V annexed the territory as a vacant Imperial state with the help of Massimiliano Stampa, one of the most influential courtiers of the late Duke.[46] Charles successfully held on to all of its Italian territories, though they were invaded again on multiple occasions during the Italian Wars.
+
+In addition, Habsburg trade in the Mediterranean was consistently disrupted by the Ottoman Empire. In 1538 a Holy League consisting of all the Italian states and the Spanish kingdoms was formed to drive the Ottomans back, but it was defeated at the Battle of Preveza. Decisive naval victory eluded Charles; it would not be achieved until after Charles's death, at the Battle of Lepanto in 1571.
+
+During Charles's reign, the Castilian territories in the Americas were considerably extended by conquistadores like Hernán Cortés and Francisco Pizarro. They conquered the large Aztec and Inca empires and incorporated them into the Empire as the Viceroyalties of New Spain and Peru between 1519 and 1542. Combined with the circumnavigation of the globe by the Magellan expedition in 1522, these successes convinced Charles of his divine mission to become the leader of Christendom, which still perceived a significant threat from Islam. The conquests also helped solidify Charles's rule by providing the state treasury with enormous amounts of bullion. As the conquistador Bernal Díaz del Castillo observed, "We came to serve God and his Majesty, to give light to those in darkness, and also to acquire that wealth which most men covet."[47]
+
+On 28 August 1518 Charles issued a charter authorising the transportation of slaves direct from Africa to the Americas. Up until that point (since at least 1510), African slaves had usually been transported to Castile or Portugal and had then been transhipped to the Caribbean. Charles's decision to create a direct, more economically viable Africa to America slave trade fundamentally changed the nature and scale of the transatlantic slave trade.[48]
+
+In 1528 Charles assigned a concession in Venezuela Province to Bartholomeus V. Welser, in compensation for his inability to repay debts owed.  The concession, known as Klein-Venedig (little Venice), was revoked in 1546.  In 1550, Charles convened a conference at Valladolid in order to consider the morality of the force[49] used against the indigenous populations of the New World, which included figures such as Bartolomé de las Casas.
+
+Charles V is credited with the first idea of constructing an American Isthmus canal in Panama as early as 1520.[50]
+
+After the death of his paternal grandfather, Maximilian, in 1519, Charles inherited the Habsburg Monarchy. He was also the natural candidate of the electors to succeed his grandfather as Holy Roman Emperor. After having paid huge bribes to the electors, he defeated the candidacies of Frederick III of Saxony, Francis I of France, and Henry VIII of England. The electors gave Charles the crown on 28 June 1519. On 26 October 1520 he was crowned in Germany and some ten years later, on 22 February 1530, he was crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Clement VII in Bologna, the last emperor to receive a papal coronation.[51][52]
+
+Despite holding the imperial throne, Charles's real authority was limited by the German princes. They gained a strong foothold in the Empire's territories, and Charles was determined not to let this happen in the Netherlands. An inquisition was established as early as 1522. In 1550, the death penalty was introduced for all cases of unrepentant heresy. Political dissent was also firmly controlled, most notably in his place of birth, where Charles, assisted by the Duke of Alba, personally suppressed the Revolt of Ghent in mid-February 1540.[29]
+
+Charles abdicated as emperor in 1556 in favour of his brother Ferdinand; however, due to lengthy debate and bureaucratic procedure, the Imperial Diet did not accept the abdication (and thus make it legally valid) until 24 February 1558. Up to that date, Charles continued to use the title of emperor.
+
+Much of Charles's reign was taken up by conflicts with France, which found itself encircled by Charles's empire while it still maintained ambitions in Italy.  In 1520, Charles visited England, where his aunt, Catherine of Aragon, urged her husband, Henry VIII, to ally himself with the emperor. In 1508 Charles was nominated by Henry VII to the Order of the Garter.[53] His Garter stall plate survives in Saint George's Chapel.
+
+The first war with Charles's great nemesis Francis I of France began in 1521. Charles allied with England and Pope Leo X against the French and the Venetians, and was highly successful, driving the French out of Milan and defeating and capturing Francis at the Battle of Pavia in 1525. To gain his freedom, Francis ceded Burgundy to Charles in the Treaty of Madrid, as well as renouncing his support of Henry II's claim over Navarre.
+
+When he was released, however, Francis had the Parliament of Paris denounce the treaty because it had been signed under duress. France then joined the League of Cognac that Pope Clement VII had formed with Henry VIII of England, the Venetians, the Florentines, and the Milanese to resist imperial domination of Italy. In the ensuing war, Charles's sack of Rome (1527) and virtual imprisonment of Pope Clement VII in 1527 prevented the Pope from annulling the marriage of Henry VIII of England and Charles's aunt Catherine of Aragon, so Henry eventually broke with Rome, thus leading to the English Reformation.[54][55] In other respects, the war was inconclusive. In the Treaty of Cambrai (1529), called the "Ladies' Peace" because it was negotiated between Charles's aunt and Francis' mother, Francis renounced his claims in Italy but retained control of Burgundy.
+
+A third war erupted in 1536. Following the death of the last Sforza Duke of Milan, Charles installed his son Philip in the duchy, despite Francis' claims on it. This war too was inconclusive. Francis failed to conquer Milan, but he succeeded in conquering most of the lands of Charles's ally, the Duke of Savoy, including his capital Turin. A truce at Nice in 1538 on the basis of uti possidetis ended the war but lasted only a short time. War resumed in 1542, with Francis now allied with Ottoman Sultan Suleiman I and Charles once again allied with Henry VIII. Despite the conquest of Nice by a Franco-Ottoman fleet, the French could not advance toward Milan, while a joint Anglo-Imperial invasion of northern France, led by Charles himself, won some successes but was ultimately abandoned, leading to another peace and restoration of the status quo ante bellum in 1544.
+
+A final war erupted with Francis' son and successor, Henry II, in 1551. Henry won early success in Lorraine, where he captured Metz, but French offensives in Italy failed. Charles abdicated midway through this conflict, leaving further conduct of the war to his son, Philip II, and his brother, Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor.
+
+Charles fought continually with the Ottoman Empire and its sultan, Suleiman the Magnificent. The defeat of Hungary at the Battle of Mohács in 1526 "sent a wave of terror over Europe."[56][57] The Muslim advance in Central Europe was halted at the Siege of Vienna in 1529, followed by a counter-attack of Charles V across the Danube river. However, by 1541, central and southern Hungary fell under Turkish control.
+
+Suleiman won the contest for mastery of the Mediterranean, in spite of Christian victories such as the conquest of Tunis in 1535. The regular Ottoman fleet came to dominate the Eastern Mediterranean after its victories at Preveza in 1538 and Djerba in 1560 (shortly after Charles's death), which severely decimated the Spanish marine arm. At the same time, the Muslim Barbary corsairs, acting under the general authority and supervision of the sultan, regularly devastated the Spanish and Italian coasts, crippling Spanish trade and chipping at the foundations of Habsburg power.
+
+In 1536 Francis I of France allied himself with Suleiman against Charles. While Francis was persuaded to sign a peace treaty in 1538, he again allied himself with the Ottomans in 1542 in a Franco-Ottoman alliance. In 1543 Charles allied himself with Henry VIII and forced Francis to sign the Truce of Crépy-en-Laonnois. Later, in 1547, Charles signed a humiliating[58] treaty with the Ottomans to gain himself some respite from the huge expenses of their war.[59]
+
+Charles V made overtures to the Safavid Empire to open a second front against the Ottomans, in an attempt at creating a Habsburg-Persian alliance. Contacts were positive, but rendered difficult by enormous distances. In effect, however, the Safavids did enter in conflict with the Ottoman Empire in the Ottoman-Safavid War, forcing it to split its military resources.[60]
+
+The issue of the Protestant Reformation was first brought to the imperial attention under Charles V. As Holy Roman Emperor, Charles called Martin Luther to the Diet of Worms in 1521, promising him safe conduct if he would appear. After Luther defended The Ninety-Five Theses and his writings, the Emperor commented: "that monk will never make me a heretic". Charles V relied on religious unity to govern his various realms, otherwise unified only in his person, and perceived Luther's teachings as a disruptive form of heresy. He outlawed Luther and issued the Edict of Worms, declaring:
+
+You know that I am a descendant of the Most Christian Emperors of the great German people, of the Catholic Kings of Spain, of the Archdukes of Austria, and of the Dukes of Burgundy. All of these, their whole life long, were faithful sons of the Roman Church…After their deaths they left, by natural law and heritage, these holy catholic rites, for us to live and die by, following their example. And so until now I have lived as a true follower of these our ancestors. I am therefore resolved to maintain everything which these my forebears have established to the present.
+
+Nonetheless, Charles V kept his word and let Martin Luther free to leave the city. Frederick the Wise, elector of Saxony and protector of Luther, lamented the outcome of the Diet. On the road back from Worms, Luther was kidnapped by Frederick's men and hidden in a far away castle in Wartburg. There, he began to work on his German translation of the bible. The spread of Lutheranism led to two major revolts: that of the knights in 1522–1523 and that of the paesants led by Thomas Muntzer in 1524–1525. While the pro-Imperial Swabian League, in conjunction with Protestant princes afraid of social revolts, restored order, Charles V used the instrument of pardon to maintain peace.
+
+Thereafter, Charles V took a tolerant approach and pursued a policy of reconciliation with the Lutherans. At the Diet of Augsburg in 1530, Luther's assistant Philip Melanchthon went even further and presented to Charles V the Lutheran Augsburg confession. The emperor strongly rejected it, and in 1531 the Schmalkaldic League was formed by Protestant princes. In 1532, Charles V recognized the League and effectively suspended the Edict of Worms with the standstill of Nuremberg. The standstill required the Protestants to continue to take part in the Imperial wars against the Turks and the French, and postponed religious affairs until an ecumenical council of the Catholic Church was called by the Pope to solve the issue.
+
+Due to Papal delays in organizing a general council, Charles V decided to organize a German summit and presided over the Regensburg talks between Catholics and Lutherans in 1541, but no compromise was achieved. In 1545, the Council of Trent was finally opened and the Counter-Reformation began. The Catholic initiative was supported by a number of the princes of the Holy Roman Empire. However, the Schmalkaldic League refused to recognize the validity of the council and occupied territories of catholic princes. Thus Charles V outlawed the Schmalkaldic League and opened hostilities against it in 1546 (the year of Luther's death). The next year his forces drove the League's troops out of southern Germany, and defeated John Frederick, Elector of Saxony, and Philip of Hesse at the Battle of Mühlberg, capturing both. At the Augsburg Interim in 1548, he created a solution giving certain allowances to Protestants until the Council of Trent would restore unity. However, members of both sides resented the Interim and some actively opposed it.
+
+The council was re-opened in 1550 with the participation of Lutherans, and Charles V set up the Imperial court in Innsbruck, Austria, sufficiently close to Trent for him to follow the evolution of the debates. In 1552 Protestant princes, in alliance with Henry II of France, rebelled again and the second Schmalkaldic War began. Maurice of Saxony, instrumental for the Imperial victory in the first conflict, switched side to the Protestant cause and bypassed the Imperial army by marching directly into Innsbruck with the goal of capturing the Emperor. Charles V was forced to flee the city during an attack of gout and barely made it alive to Villach in a state of semi-consciousness carried in a litter. After failing to recapture Metz from the French, Charles V returned to the Low Countries for the last years of his emperorship. In 1555, he instructed his brother Ferdinand to sign the Peace of Augsburg in his name. The agreements led to the religious division of Germany between Catholic and Protestant princedoms.
+
+During his lifetime, Charles V had several mistresses, his step-grandmother, Germaine de Foix among them. These liaisons occurred during his bachelorhood and only once during his widowerhood; there are no records of his having any extramarital affairs during his marriage.
+
+On 21 December 1507, Charles was betrothed to 11-year-old Mary, the daughter of King Henry VII of England and younger sister to the future King Henry VIII of England, who was to take the throne in two years. However, the engagement was called off in 1513, on the advice of Thomas Wolsey, and Mary was instead married to King Louis XII of France in 1514.
+
+After his ascension to the Spanish thrones, negotiations for Charles's marriage began shortly after his arrival in Castile, with the Castilian nobles expressing their wishes for him to marry his first cousin Isabella of Portugal, the daughter of King Manuel I of Portugal and Charles's aunt Maria of Aragon. The nobles desired Charles's marriage to a princess of Castilian blood, and a marriage to Isabella would have secured an alliance between Castile and Portugal. However, the 18-year-old King was in no hurry to marry and ignored the nobles' advice, exploring other marriage options.[61] Instead of marrying Isabella, he sent his sister Eleanor to marry Isabella's widowed father, King Manuel, in 1518.
+
+In 1521, on the advice of his Flemish counselors, especially William de Croÿ, Charles became engaged to his other first cousin, Mary, daughter of his aunt, Catherine of Aragon, and King Henry VIII, in order to secure an alliance with England. However, this engagement was very problematic because Mary was only 6 years old at the time, sixteen years Charles's junior, which meant that he would have to wait for her to be old enough to marry.
+
+By 1525, Charles was no longer interested in an alliance with England and could not wait any longer to have legitimate children and heirs. Following his victory in the Battle of Pavia, Charles abandoned the idea of an English alliance, cancelled his engagement to Mary and decided to marry Isabella and form an alliance with Portugal. He wrote to Isabella's brother, King John III of Portugal, making a double marriage contract – Charles would marry Isabella and John would marry Charles's youngest sister, Catherine. A marriage to Isabella was more beneficial for Charles, as she was closer to him in age, was fluent in Spanish and provided him with a very handsome dowry of 900,000 Portuguese cruzados or Castilian folds that would help to solve the financial problems brought on by the Italian Wars.
+
+On 10 March 1526, Charles and Isabella met at the Alcázar Palace in Seville. The marriage was originally a political arrangement, but on their first meeting, the couple fell deeply in love: Isabella captivated the Emperor with her beauty and charm. They were married that very same night in a quiet ceremony in the Hall of Ambassadors, just after midnight. Following their wedding, Charles and Isabella spent a long and happy honeymoon at the Alhambra in Granada. Charles began the construction of the Palace of Charles V in 1527, wishing to establish a permanent residence befitting an emperor and empress in the Alhambra palaces. However, the palace was not completed during their lifetimes and remained roofless until the late 20th century.[62]
+
+Despite the Emperor's long absences due to political affairs abroad, the marriage was a happy one, as both partners were always devoted and faithful to each other.[63] The Empress acted as regent of Spain during her husband's absences, and she proved herself to be a good politician and ruler, thoroughly impressing the Emperor with many of her political accomplishments and decisions.
+
+The marriage lasted for thirteen years, until Isabella's death in 1539. The Empress contracted a fever during the third month of her seventh pregnancy, which resulted in antenatal complications that caused her to miscarry a stillborn son. Her health further deteriorated due to an infection, and she died two weeks later on 1 May 1539, aged 35. Charles was left so grief-stricken by his wife's death that for two months he shut himself up in a monastery, where he prayed and mourned for her in solitude.[64] Charles never recovered from Isabella's death, dressing in black for the rest of his life to show his eternal mourning, and, unlike most kings of the time, he never remarried. In memory of his wife, the Emperor commissioned the painter Titian to paint several posthumous portraits of Isabella; the finished portraits included Titian's Portrait of Empress Isabel of Portugal and La Gloria.[65] Charles kept these paintings with him whenever he travelled, and they were among those that he brought with him after his retirement to the Monastery of Yuste in 1557.[66]
+
+In 1540, Charles paid tribute to Isabella's memory when he commissioned the Flemish composer Thomas Crecquillon to compose new music as a memorial to her. Crecquillon composed his Missa 'Mort m'a privé in memory of the Empress. It expresses the Emperor's grief and great wish for a heavenly reunion with his beloved wife.[67]
+
+Charles suffered from an enlarged lower jaw, a congenital deformity that became considerably worse in later Habsburg generations, giving rise to the term Habsburg jaw. This deformity may have been caused by the family's long history of inbreeding, the consequence of repeated marriages between close family members, as commonly practiced in royal families of that era to maintain dynastic control of territory.[citation needed] He suffered from epilepsy[68] and was seriously afflicted with gout, presumably caused by a diet consisting mainly of red meat.[69] As he aged, his gout progressed from painful to crippling. In his retirement, he was carried around the monastery of St. Yuste in a sedan chair. A ramp was specially constructed to allow him easy access to his rooms.[70]
+
+Between 1554 and 1556, Charles V gradually divided the Hapsburg empire between a Spanish line and a German-Austrian branch. His abdications occurred at the Palace of Coudenberg and are therefore known as "Abdications of Brussels" (Abdankung von Brüssel in German and Abdicación de Bruselas in Spanish). First he abdicated the thrones of Sicily and Naples, both fiefs of the Papacy, and the Imperial Duchy of Milan, in favour of his son Philip on 25 July 1554. Philip was secretly invested with Milan already in 1540 and again in 1546, but only in 1554 the Emperor made it public. Upon the abdications of Naples and Sicily, Philip was invested by Pope Julius III with the kingdom of Naples on 2 October and with the Kingdom of Sicily on 18 November.[71]
+
+The most famous—and only public—abdication took place a year later, on 25 October 1555, when Charles announced to the States General of the Netherlands, reunited in the great hall of the palace where he was emancipated exactly forty years earlier, his abdication in favour of his son of those territories and his intention to step down from all of his positions and retire to a monastery.[71] This was the occasion for Charles V to pronounce his resignation speech:
+
+When I was nineteen, upon the Emperor's death, I undertook to be a candidate for the Imperial crown, not to increase my possessions but rather to engage myself more vigorously in working for the welfare of Germany and my other realms and in the hopes of thereby bringing peace among the Christian peoples and uniting their fighting forces for the defense of the Catholic faith against the Ottomans. That's why I had to make a lot of arduous trips, had to wage a lot of arduous wars ...but never willfully, and always against my will as an attacked person ... I had great hopes – only a few have been fulfilled, and only a few remain to me: and at the cost of what effort! It ultimately made me tired and sick...I have endured all the confusion as far as possible until today, so that nobody could say that I have become a fugitive. But now it would be irresponsible to delay the layoff any longer. Do not think that I want to escape any troubles and dangers: my strength is simply not enough...As for me: I know that I made many mistakes, big mistakes, first because of my youth, then because of human error and because of my passions, and finally because of tiredness. But I deliberately did no wrong to anyone, whoever it was. Should injustice have arisen, it happened without my knowledge and only out of inability: I publicly regret it and ask forgiveness to everyone who I might have offended.[72]
+
+He concluded the speech by mentioning his voyages: ten to the Low Countries, nine to Germany, seven to Spain, seven to Italy, four to France, two to England, and two to North Africa. His last public words were: My life has been one long journey. With no fanfare, in 1556 he finalized his abdications. On 16 January 1556, he gave Spain and the Spanish Empire in the Americas to Philip. On 3 August 1556, he abdicated as Holy Roman Emperor in favour of his brother Ferdinand, elected King of the Romans in 1531. The succession was recognized by the prince-electors assembled at Frankfurt only in 1558, and by the Pope only in 1559.[73][74][75] The Imperial abdication also marked the beginning of Ferdinand's legal and suo jure rule in the Austrian possessions, that he governed in Charles's name since 1521–1522 and were attached to Hungary and Bohemia since 1526.[11]
+
+According to scholars, Charles decided to abdicate for a variety of reasons: the religious division of Germany sanctioned in 1555; the state of Spanish finances, bankrupted with inflation by the end of his reign; the revival of Italian Wars with attacks from Henri II of France; the never-ending advance of the Ottomans in the Mediterranean and central Europe; and his declining health, in particular attacks of gout such as the one that forced him to postpone an attempt to recapture the city of Metz where he was later defeated.
+
+In September 1556, Charles left the Low Countries and sailed to Spain accompanied by Mary of Hungary and Eleanor of Austria. He arrived to the Monastery of Yuste of Extremadura in 1557. He continued to correspond widely and kept an interest in the situation of the empire, while suffering from severe gout. He lived alone in a secluded monastery, surrounded by paintings of Titian and with clocks lining every wall, which some historians believe were symbols of his reign and his lack of time.[76] In an act designed to "merit the favour of heaven", about six months before his death Charles staged his own funeral, complete with shroud and coffin, after which he "rose out of the coffin, and withdrew to his apartment, full of those awful sentiments, which such a singular solemnity was calculated to inspire."[77] In August 1558, Charles was taken seriously ill with what was later revealed to be malaria.[78] He died in the early hours of the morning on 21 September 1558, at the age of 58, holding in his hand the cross that his wife Isabella had been holding when she died.[79]
+
+Charles was originally buried in the chapel of the Monastery of Yuste, but he left a codicil in his last will and testament asking for the establishment of a new religious foundation in which he would be reburied with Isabella.[80] Following his return to Spain in 1559, their son Philip undertook the task of fulfilling his father's wish when he founded the Monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial. After the Monastery's Royal Crypt was completed in 1574, the bodies of Charles and Isabella were relocated and re-interred into a small vault in directly underneath the altar of the Royal Chapel, in accordance with Charles's wishes to be buried "half-body under the altar and half-body under the priest's feet" side by side with Isabella. They remained in the Royal Chapel while the famous Basilica of the Monastery and the Royal tombs were still under construction. In 1654, after the Basilica and Royal tombs were finally completed during the reign of their great-grandson Philip IV, the remains of Charles and Isabella were moved into the Royal Pantheon of Kings, which lies directly under the Basilica.[81] On one side of the Basilica are bronze effigies of Charles and Isabella, with effigies of their daughter Maria of Austria and Charles's sisters Eleanor of Austria and Maria of Hungary behind them. Exactly adjacent to them on the opposite side of the Basilica are effigies of their son Philip with three of his wives and their ill-fated grandson Carlos, Prince of Asturias.
+
+Charles and Isabella had seven children, though only three survived to adulthood:
+
+Due to Philip II being a grandson of Manuel I of Portugal through his mother he was in the line of succession to the throne of Portugal, and claimed it after his uncle's death (Henry, the Cardinal-King, in 1580), thus establishing the personal union between Spain and Portugal.
+
+Charles also had four illegitimate children:
+
+Charles V styled himself as Holy Roman Emperor since his election, according to a Papal dispensation conferred to the Habsburg family by Pope Julius II in 1508 and confirmed in 1519 to the prince-electors by the legates of Pope Leo X. Although Papal coronation was not necessary to confirm the Imperial title, Charles V was crowned in the city of Bologna by Pope Clement VII in the medieval fashion.
+
+Charles V accumulated a large number of titles due to his vast inheritance of Burgundian, Spanish, and Austrian realms. Following the pacts of Worms (21 April 1521) and Brussels (7 February 1522), he secretely gave the Austrian lands to his younger brother Ferdinand and elevated him to the status of Archduke. Nevertheless, according to the agreements, Charles continued to style himself as Archduke of Austria and maintained that Ferdinand acted as his vassal and vicar.[83][84] Furthermore, the pacts of 1521–1522 imposed restrictions on the governorship and regency of Ferdinand. For example, all of Ferdinand's letters to Charles V were signed "your obedient brother and servant".[85] Nonetheless, the same agreements promised Ferdinand the designation as future emperor and the transfer of hereditary rights over Austria at the imperial succession.
+
+Following the death of Louis II, King of Hungary and Bohemia, at the Battle of Mohacs in 1526, Charles V favored the election of Ferdinand as king of Hungary (and Croatia and Dalmatia) and Bohemia. Despite this, Charles also styled himself as king of Hungary and Bohemia and retained this titular use in official acts (such as his testament) as in the case of the Austrian lands. As a consequence, cartographers and historians have described those kingdoms both as realms of Charles V and as possessions of Ferdinand, not without confusion. Others, such as the Venetian enoys, reported that the states of Ferdinand were "all held in common with the Emperor".[86]
+
+Therefore, although he had agreed on the future division of the dynasty between Ferdinand and Philip II of Spain, during his own reign Charles V conceived the existence of a single "House of Austria" of which he was the sole head.[87] In the abdications of 1554–1556, Charles left his personal possessions to Philip II and the Imperial title to Ferdinand. The titles of King of Hungary, of Dalmatia, Croatia, etc., were also nominally left to the Spanish line (in particular to Don Carlos, Prince of Asturias and son of Philip II). However, Charles's Imperial abdication marked the beginning of Ferdinand's suo jure rule in Austria and his other lands: despite the claims of Philip and his descendants, Hungary and Bohemia were left under the nominal and substantial rule of Ferdinand and his successors. Formal disputes between the two lines over Hungary and Bohemia will be solved with the Onate treaty of 1617.
+
+Charles's full titulature went as follows:
+
+Charles, by the grace of God, Emperor of the Romans, forever August, King of Germany, King of Italy, King of all Spains, of Castile, Aragon, León, of Hungary, of Dalmatia, of Croatia, Navarra, Grenada, Toledo, Valencia, Galicia, Majorca, Sevilla, Cordova, Murcia, Jaén, Algarves, Algeciras, Gibraltar, the Canary Islands, King of Two Sicilies, of Sardinia, Corsica, King of Jerusalem, King of the Indies, of the Islands and Mainland of the Ocean Sea, Archduke of Austria, Duke of Burgundy, Brabant, Lorraine, Styria, Carinthia, Carniola, Limburg, Luxembourg, Gelderland, Neopatria, Württemberg, Landgrave of Alsace, Prince of Swabia, Asturia and Catalonia, Count of Flanders, Habsburg, Tyrol, Gorizia, Barcelona, Artois, Burgundy Palatine, Hainaut, Holland, Seeland, Ferrette, Kyburg, Namur, Roussillon, Cerdagne, Drenthe, Zutphen, Margrave of the Holy Roman Empire, Burgau, Oristano and Gociano, Lord of Frisia, the Wendish March, Pordenone, Biscay, Molin, Salins, Tripoli and Mechelen.[citation needed]
+
+Coat of arms of Charles I of Spain and V of the Holy Roman Empire according to the description: Arms of Charles I added to those of Castile, Leon, Aragon, Two Sicilies and Granada present in the previous coat, those of Austria, ancient Burgundy, modern Burgundy, Brabant, Flanders and Tyrol. Charles I also incorporates the pillars of Hercules with the inscription "Plus Ultra", representing the overseas empire and surrounding coat with the collar of the Golden Fleece, as sovereign of the Order ringing the shield with the imperial crown and Acola double-headed eagle of the Holy Roman Empire and behind it the Spanish Cross of Burgundy. From 1520 added to the corresponding quarter to Aragon and Sicily, one in which the arms of Jerusalem, Naples and Navarre are incorporated.
+
+Coat of arms of King Charles I of Spain before becoming emperor of the Holy Roman Empire.
+
+Coat of Arms of Charles I of Spain, Charles V as Holy Roman Emperor.
+
+Arms of Charles, Infante of Spain, Archduke of Austria, Duke of Burgundy, KG at the time of his installation as a knight of the Most Noble Order of the Garter.
+
+Variant of the Royal Bend of Castile used by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor.
+
+References to Charles V include a large number of legends and folk tales; literary renderings of historical events connected to Charles's life and romantic adventures, his relationship to Flanders, and his abdication; and products marketed in his name.[88]
+
+Unusually among major European monarchs, Charles V discouraged monumental depictions of himself during his lifetime.

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+Charles V (21 January 1338 – 16 September 1380), called the Wise (French: le Sage; Latin: Sapiens), was King of France from 1364 to his death. His reign marked an early high point for France during the Hundred Years' War, with his armies recovering much of the territory held by the English, and successfully reversed the military losses of his predecessors.
+
+In 1349, as a young prince, Charles received from his grandfather King Philip VI the province of Dauphiné to rule. This allowed him to bear the title "Dauphin" until his coronation, which led to the integration of the Dauphiné into the crown lands of France. After 1350, all heirs apparent of France bore the title of Dauphin until their accession.
+
+Charles became regent of France when his father John II was captured by the English at the Battle of Poitiers in 1356. To pay for the defense of the kingdom, Charles raised taxes. As a result, he faced hostility from the nobility, led by Charles the Bad, King of Navarre; the opposition of the French bourgeoisie, which was channeled through the Estates-General led by Étienne Marcel; and with a peasant revolt known as the Jacquerie. Charles overcame all of these rebellions, but in order to liberate his father, he had to conclude the Treaty of Brétigny in 1360, in which he abandoned large portions of south-western France to Edward III of England and agreed to pay a huge ransom.
+
+Charles became king in 1364. With the help of talented advisers, his skillful management of the kingdom allowed him to replenish the royal treasury and to restore the prestige of the House of Valois. He established the first permanent army paid with regular wages, which liberated the French populace from the companies of routiers who regularly plundered the country when not employed. Led by Bertrand du Guesclin, the French Army was able to turn the tide of the Hundred Years' War to Charles' advantage, and by the end of Charles' reign, they had reconquered almost all the territories ceded to the English in 1360. Furthermore, the French fleet, led by Jean de Vienne, managed to attack the English coast for the first time since the beginning of the Hundred Years' War.
+
+Charles V died in 1380. He was succeeded by his son Charles VI, whose disastrous reign allowed the English to regain control of large parts of France.
+
+Charles was born at the Château de Vincennes outside of Paris, the son of Prince John and Princess Bonne of France.[1] He was educated at court with other boys of his age with whom he would remain close throughout his life: his uncle Philip, Duke of Orléans (only two years older than himself), his three brothers Louis, John, and Philip, Louis of Bourbon, Edward and Robert of Bar, Godfrey of Brabant, Louis I, Count of Étampes, Louis of Évreux, brother of Charles the Bad, John and Charles of Artois, Charles of Alençon, and Philip of Rouvres.
+
+The future king was highly intelligent but physically weak, with pale skin and a thin, ill-proportioned body. This made a sharp contrast to his father, who was tall, strong and sandy-haired.
+
+Humbert II, Dauphin of Viennois, ruined due to his inability to raise taxes after a crusade in the Middle East, and childless after the death of his only son, decided to sell the Dauphiné, which was a fief of the Holy Roman Empire. Neither the pope nor the emperor wanted to buy and the transaction was concluded with Charles’ grandfather, the reigning King Philip VI.
+
+Under the Treaty of Romans, the Dauphiné of Viennois was to be held by a son of the future king John the Good. So it was Charles, the eldest son of the latter, who became the first Dauphin. At the age of twelve, he was suddenly vested power while in Grenoble (10 December 1349 to March 1350). A few days after his arrival, the people of Grenoble were invited to the Place Notre-Dame, where a platform was erected. Young Charles took his place next to Bishop John of Chissé and received the oath of allegiance of the people. In exchange, he publicly promised to respect the community charter and confirmed the liberties and franchises of Humbert II, which were summed up in a solemn statute before he signed his abdication and granted a last amnesty to all prisoners, except those facing the penalty of death.
+
+On April 8, 1350 at Tain-l'Hermitage, the Dauphin married his cousin Joanna of Bourbon at the age of 12. The prior approval of the pope was obtained for this consanguineous marriage (both were descended from Charles of Valois). The marriage was delayed by the death of his mother Bonne of Luxembourg and his grandmother Joan the Lame, swept away by the plague (he no longer saw them after he left for the Dauphiné). The dauphin himself had been seriously ill from August to December 1349. Gatherings were limited to slow the spread of the plague then raging in Europe, so the marriage took place in private.
+
+The control of Dauphiné was valuable to the Kingdom of France, because it occupied the Rhône Valley, a major trade route between the Mediterranean and northern Europe since ancient times, putting them in direct contact with Avignon, a papal territory and diplomatic center of medieval Europe. Despite his young age, the dauphin applied to be recognized by his subjects, interceding to stop a war raging between two vassal families, and gaining experience that was very useful to him.
+
+Charles was recalled to Paris at the death of his grandfather Philip VI and participated in the coronation of his father John the Good on 26 September 1350 in Reims. The legitimacy of John the Good, and that of the Valois in general, was not unanimous. His father, Philip VI, had lost all credibility with the disasters of Crécy, Calais, the ravages of the plague, and the monetary changes needed to support the royal finances. The royal clan had to cope with opposition from all sides in the kingdom.
+
+The first of these was led by Charles II of Navarre, called "the Bad", whose mother Joan II of Navarre had renounced the crown of France for that of Navarre in 1328. Charles II of Navarre was the eldest of a powerful lineage. Ambitious of attaining the crown of France, he managed to gather around him the malcontents. He was supported by his relatives and allies: the House of Boulogne (and their kin in Auvergne), the barons of Champagne loyal to Joan II of Navarre (heir of Champagne, had it not merged into the crown of France), and by the followers of Robert of Artois, driven from the kingdom by Philip VI. He also had the support of the University of Paris and the northwestern merchants where the cross-Channel trade was vital.
+
+A brilliant orator, and accustomed to a monarchy controlled by the Cortes of Navarre (the equivalent of the States General), Charles the Bad championed the reform of a state considered too arbitrary, leaving no voice to the nobility or the cities (John the Good governed with a circle of favorites and officers sometimes of humble extraction). Unlike his father, Charles V thought that a king must have the approval of his subjects and must listen to their advice. This view allowed him to approach the Norman nobles and the reformists, and thus Charles of Navarre.
+
+The power of Navarre was such that, on 8 January 1354, he murdered with impunity his rival Charles de la Cerda (the king's favourite), and openly avowed this crime. He even obtained, through the Treaty of Mantes, territorial concessions and sovereignty by threatening to make an alliance with the English. But in Avignon, the English and French were negotiating a peace that would prevent Charles of Navarre from counting on the support of Edward III. He therefore concluded a treaty with the English in which the Kingdom of France would be partitioned between them. An English landing was planned for the end of the truce, which would expire on 24 June 1355.
+
+King John ordered the Dauphin in March 1355 to organize the defense of Normandy, which required raising the necessary taxes. The task was difficult because of the growing influence of Charles the Bad, who had acquired a status similar to that of a "Duke" under the Treaty of Mantes. He was likely to ally with Edward III and could at any time open the gateway to Normandy to the English. The Dauphin avoided war by reconciling Navarre with the king, which was sealed with a ceremony at the court on 24 September 1355. Edward III was offended at the latest betrayal of Charles of Navarre, and the promised landing did not occur.
+
+King John was a poor ruler who alienated his nobles through arbitrary justice and the elevation of associates considered unworthy.[citation needed] After a three-year break, the Hundred Years' War with England resumed in 1355, with Edward, The Black Prince, leading an English-Gascon army in a violent raid across southwestern France. After checking an English incursion into Normandy, John led an army of about 16,000 men to the south, crossing the Loire river in September 1356 with the goal of outflanking the Prince's 8,000 soldiers at Poitiers. Rejecting advice from one captain to surround and starve the Prince, a tactic Edward feared, John attacked the strong enemy position. In the subsequent Battle of Poitiers (19 September 1356), English archery all but annihilated the French cavalry, and John was captured.[2] Charles led a battalion at Poitiers that withdrew early in the struggle; whether the order came from John (as he later claimed), or whether Charles himself ordered the withdrawal, is unclear.[3]
+
+The outcome of the battle left many embittered with the nobility. Popular opinion accused the nobles of betraying the king, while Charles and his brothers escaped blame — he was received with honor upon his return to Paris. The Dauphin summoned the Estates-General in October to seek money for the defense of the country. Furious at what they saw as poor management, many of those assembled organized into a body led by Étienne Marcel, the Provost of Merchants (a title roughly equivalent to Mayor of Paris today). Marcel demanded the dismissal of seven royal ministers, their replacement by a Council of 28 made up of nobles, clergy and bourgeois, and the release of Charles the Bad, who had been imprisoned by John for the murder of his constable. The Dauphin refused the demands, dismissed the Estates-General, and left Paris.
+
+A contest of wills ensued. In an attempt to raise money, Charles tried to devalue the currency; Marcel ordered strikes, and the Dauphin was forced to cancel his plans and recall the Estates in February 1357. The Third Estate presented the Dauphin with a Grand Ordinance, a list of 61 articles that would have given the Estates-General the right to approve all future taxes, assemble at their own volition, and elect a Council of 36 (with 12 members from each Estate) to advise the king.[4] Charles eventually signed the ordinance, but his dismissed councillors took news of the document to King John, imprisoned in Bordeaux. The King renounced the ordinance before being taken to England by Prince Edward.
+
+Charles made a royal progress through the country that summer, winning support from the provinces, and winning Paris back. Marcel, meanwhile, enlisted Charles the Bad, who asserted that his claim to the throne of France was at least as good as that of King Edward III of England, who had used his claim as the pretext for initiating the Hundred Years' War.
+
+Marcel used the murder of a citizen seeking sanctuary in Paris to make an attack close to the Dauphin. Summoning a group of tradesmen, the Provost marched at the head of an army of 3,000, entered the royal palace, and had the crowd murder two of the Dauphin's marshals before his eyes. Charles, horrified, momentarily pacified the crowd, but sent his family away and left the capital as quickly as he could. Marcel's action destroyed support for the Third Estate among the nobles, and the Provost's subsequent backing of the Jacquerie undermined his support from the towns. He was murdered by a mob on 31 July 1358. Charles was able to recover Paris the following month and later issued a general amnesty for all, except close associates of Marcel.
+
+John's capture gave the English the edge in peace negotiations following the Battle of Poitiers. The King signed the Treaty of London in 1359 that ceded most of western France to England and imposed a ruinous ransom of 4 million écus on the country. The Dauphin (backed by his councillors and the Estates General) rejected the treaty, and English King Edward invaded France later that year. Edward reached Reims in December and Paris in March, but Charles forbade his soldiers from direct confrontation with the English, relying on improved municipal fortifications made to Paris by Marcel. He would later rebuild the wall on the Left Bank (Rive gauche), and he built a new wall on the Right Bank (Rive droite) that extended to a new fortification called the Bastille. Edward pillaged and raided the countryside but could not bring the French to a decisive battle, so he eventually agreed to reduce his terms. This non-confrontational strategy would prove extremely beneficial to France during Charles' reign.
+
+The Treaty of Brétigny, signed on 8 May 1360, ceded a third of western France (mostly in Aquitaine and Gascony) to the English and lowered the King's ransom to 3 million écus. King John was released the following October. His second son, Louis of Anjou, took his place as a hostage.
+
+Though his father had regained his freedom, Charles suffered a great personal tragedy at nearly the same time. His three-year-old daughter Joan and infant daughter Bonne died within two months of each other late in 1360; at their double funeral, the Dauphin was said to be "so sorrowful as never before he had been." Charles himself had been severely ill, with his hair and nails falling out; some suggest the symptoms are those of arsenic poisoning.[5]
+
+John proved as ineffective at ruling upon his return to France as he had before his capture. When Louis of Anjou escaped from English custody, John announced he had no choice but to return to captivity himself. He arrived in London in January 1364, became ill, and died the following April.
+
+Charles was crowned King of France in 1364 at the Cathedral of Reims.[6] The new king was highly intelligent, but closed-mouthed and secretive, with sharp eyes, a long nose and a pale, grave manner. He suffered from gout in the right hand and an abscess in his left arm, possibly a side-effect of an attempted poisoning in 1359. Doctors were able to treat the wound but told him that if it ever dried up, he would die within 15 days. His manner may have concealed a more emotional side; his marriage to Joan of Bourbon was considered very strong, and he made no attempt to hide his grief at her funeral or those of his children, five of whom predeceased him.
+
+His reign was dominated by the war with the English and two major problems: recovering the territories ceded at Brétigny and ridding the land of the Tard-Venus (French for "latecomers"), mercenary companies that turned to robbery and pillage after the treaty was signed. In achieving these aims, Charles turned to a minor noble from Brittany named Bertrand du Guesclin. Nicknamed "the Black Dog of Brocéliande", du Guesclin fought the English during the Breton War of Succession and was an expert in guerrilla warfare. Du Guesclin also defeated Charles II of Navarre at the Battle of Cocherel in 1364 and eliminated his threat to Paris.
+
+In order to lure the Tard-Venus out of France, Charles first hired them for an attempted crusade into Hungary, but their reputation for brigandage preceded them, and the citizens of Strasbourg refused to let them cross the Rhine on their journey. Charles next sent the mercenary companies (under the leadership of du Guesclin) to fight in a civil war in Castile between King Peter the Cruel and his illegitimate half-brother Henry. Peter had English backing, while Henry was supported by the French.
+
+Du Guesclin and his men were able to drive Peter out of Castile in 1365 after the capture of the fortresses of Magallón and Briviesca and the capital Burgos. The Black Prince, now serving as his father's viceroy in southwestern France, took up Peter's cause. At the Battle of Nájera in April 1367, the English defeated Henry's army. Du Guesclin was captured after a memorable resistance and ransomed by Charles V, who considered him invaluable. The Black Prince, affected by dysentery, soon withdrew his support from Peter. The English army suffered badly during the retreat. Four English soldiers out of five died during the Castillan Campaign. In 1369, du Guesclin renewed the attack against Peter, defeating him at the decisive Battle of Montiel. Henry stabbed the captive Peter to death in du Guesclin's tent, thereby gaining the throne of Castile. Bertrand was made Duke of Molina, and the Franco-Castillan alliance was sealed. Charles V could now resume the war against England under favorable conditions.
+
+After the Castillan campaign, the Black Prince was invalid and heavily in debt. His rule in Gascony became increasingly autocratic. Nobles from Gascony petitioned Charles for aid, and when the Black Prince refused to answer a summons to Paris to answer the charges, Charles judged him disloyal and declared war in May 1369.
+
+Instead of seeking a major battle, as his predecessors had done, Charles chose a strategy of attrition, spreading the fighting at every point possible. The French and Castillan navies destroyed an English fleet at La Rochelle in 1372. Then, du Guesclin launched destructive raids against the coasts of England, naval reprisals to the English chevauchées. Bertrand du Guesclin, appointed Constable of France in 1370, beat back a major English offensive in northern France with an unnerving combination of raids, sieges, and pitched battles. He notably crushed Robert Knolles at the Battle of Pontvallain.
+
+Most of the major English leaders were killed in a few months and the Black Prince fled to England, where he died in 1376. By 1375, Charles recovered much of the English territories in France except Calais and Gascony, effectively nullifying the Treaty of Brétigny.
+
+In 1376, Pope Gregory XI, fearing a loss of the Papal States, decided to move his court back to Rome after nearly 70 years in Avignon. Charles, hoping to maintain French influence over the papacy, tried to persuade Pope Gregory to remain in France, arguing that "Rome is wherever the Pope happens to be." Gregory refused.
+
+The Pope died in March 1378. When cardinals gathered to elect a successor, a Roman mob, concerned that the predominantly French College of Cardinals would elect a French pope who would bring the papacy back to Avignon, surrounded the Vatican and demanded the election of a Roman. On 9 April, the cardinals elected Bartolomeo Prigamo, Archbishop of Bari, and a commoner by birth, as Pope Urban VI. The new pope quickly alienated his cardinals by criticising their vices, limiting the areas where they could receive income and even rising to strike one cardinal before a second restrained him. The French cardinals left Rome that summer and declared Urban's election invalid because of mob intimidation (a reason that had not been cited at the time of the election) and elected Cardinal Robert of Geneva as Pope Clement VII that September.
+
+The French cardinals quickly moved to get Charles' support. The theology faculty of the University of Paris advised Charles not to make a hasty decision, but he recognised Clement as Pope in November and forbade any obedience to Urban. Charles' support allowed Clement to survive as pope and led to the Papal Schism, which would divide Europe for nearly 40 years.
+
+Charles' last years were spent in the consolidation of Normandy (and the neutralisation of Charles of Navarre). Peace negotiations with the English continued unsuccessfully. The taxes he had levied to support his wars against the English caused deep disaffection among the working classes.
+
+The abscess on the King's left arm dried up in early September 1380 and Charles prepared to die. On his deathbed, perhaps fearful for his soul, Charles announced the abolition of the hearth tax, the foundation of the government's finances. The ordinance would have been impossible to carry out, but its terms were known, and the government's refusal to reduce any of the other taxes on the people sparked the Maillotin revolt in 1381.
+
+The King died on 16 September 1380 and was succeeded by his 11-year-old son, Charles VI. He is buried in the Basilica of St Denis, about five miles north of Paris.
+
+Charles' reputation was of great significance for posterity, especially as his conception of governance was one that courtiers wished his successors could follow. Christine de Pizan's biography, commissioned by Philip the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, in 1404, is a source of most of the intimate details of the king's life of which we are aware, but also provides a moral example for his successors. It draws heavily on the work of Nicole Oresme (who translated Aristotle's moral works into French) and Giles of Rome. Philippe de Mézières, in his allegorical "Songe du Vieil Pèlerin," attempts to persuade the dauphin (later King Charles VI) to follow the example of his wise father, notably in piety, though also to pursue reforming zeal in all policy considerations.
+
+Of great importance to Charles V's cultural program was his vast library, housed in his expanded Louvre, and described in great detail by the nineteenth-century French historian Leopold Delisle. Containing over 1,200 volumes, it was symbolic of the authority and magnificence of the royal person, but also of his concern with government for the common good. Charles was keen to collect copies of works in French, in order that his counsellors had access to them. Perhaps the most significant ones commissioned for the library were those of Nicole Oresme, who translated Aristotle's Politics, Ethics, and Economics into eloquent French for the first time (an earlier attempt had been made at the Politics, but the manuscript is now lost). If the Politics and Economics served as a manual for government, then the Ethics advised the king on how to be a good man.
+
+Other important works commissioned for the royal library were the anonymous legal treatise "Songe du Vergier," greatly inspired by the debates of Philip IV's jurists with Pope Boniface VIII, the translations of Raol de Presles, which included St. Augustine's City of God, and the Grandes Chroniques de France edited in 1377 to emphasise the vassalage of Edward III.
+
+Charles' kingship placed great emphasis on both royal ceremony and scientific political theory, and to contemporaries and posterity his lifestyle at once embodied the reflective life advised by Aristotle and the model of French kingship derived from  St. Louis, Charlemagne, and Clovis which he had illustrated in his Coronation Book of 1364, now in the British Library.
+
+Charles V was also a builder king, and he created or rebuilt several significant buildings in the late 14th century style including the Bastille, the Château du Louvre, Château de Vincennes, and Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, which were widely copied by the nobility of the day.
+
+While he was in many ways a typical medieval king, Charles V has been praised by historians for his pragmatism, which led to the recovery of the territories lost at Brétigny.
+
+His successes, however, proved ephemeral. Charles' brothers, who dominated the regency council that ruled in the king's name until 1388, quarrelled among themselves and divided the government. Charles VI, meanwhile, preferred tournaments to the duties of kingship, and his descent into madness in 1392 put his uncles back in power. By 1419, the country was divided between Armagnac and Burgundian factions and Henry V was conquering the northern part of France. The hard-won victories of Charles V had been lost through the venality of his successors.
+
+8 April 1350 to Joan of Bourbon (3 February 1338 – 4 February 1378), leaving:[10]
+

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+
+
+Ajaccio (UK: /əˈdʒæ(k)siəʊ/, US: /ɑːˈjɑːtʃ(i)oʊ/ also /aɪətʃoʊ/[2][3] French: [aʒaksjo] (listen); Italian: Aiaccio or Ajaccio, pronounced [aˈjattʃo]; Corsican: Aiacciu,
+pronounced [aˈjattʃu], Ajaccino dialect:
+Aghjacciu; Latin: Adiacium) is a French commune, prefecture of the department of Corse-du-Sud, and head office of the Collectivité territoriale de Corse (capital city of Corsica). It is also the largest settlement on the island. Ajaccio is located on the west coast of the island of Corsica, 210 nautical miles (390 km) southeast of Marseille.
+
+The original city went into decline in the Middle Ages, but began to prosper again after the Genoese built a citadel in 1492 to the south of the earlier settlement. After the Corsican Republic was declared in 1755 the Genoese continued to hold several citadels, including Ajaccio, until the French took control of the island.
+
+The inhabitants of the commune are known as Ajacciens or Ajacciennes.[4] The most famous of these is Napoleon Bonaparte who was born in Ajaccio in 1769, and whose ancestral home, the Maison Bonaparte, is now a museum. Other dedications to him in the city include Ajaccio Napoleon Bonaparte Airport.[5]
+
+Ajaccio is located on the west coast of the island of Corsica, 210 nautical miles (390 km) southeast of Marseille. The commune occupies a sheltered position at the foot of wooded hills on the northern shore of the Gulf of Ajaccio[6] between Gravona and the pointe de la Parata and includes the îles Sanguinaires (Bloody Islands). The harbour lies to the east of the original citadel below a hill overlooking a peninsula which protects the harbour in the south where the Quai de la Citadelle and the Jettée de la Citadelle are. The modern city not only encloses the entire harbour but takes up the better part of the Gulf of Ajaccio and in suburban form extends for some miles up the valley of the Gravona River. The flow from that river is nearly entirely consumed as the city's water supply. Many beaches and coves border its territory and the terrain is particularly rugged in the west where the highest point is 790 m (2,592 ft).
+
+Ajaccio Marina
+
+The Bay
+
+The lighthouse of the citadel of Ajaccio overlooking the bay
+
+Îles Sanguinaires
+
+The market
+
+Although the commune of Ajaccio has a large area (82.03 km2), only a small portion of this is urbanized. Therefore, the urban area of Ajaccio is located in the east of the commune on a narrow coastal strip forming a densely populated arc. The rest of the territory is natural with habitation of little importance and spread thinly. Suburbanization occurs north and east of the main urban area.
+
+The original urban core, close to the old marshy plain of Cannes was abandoned in favour of the current city which was built near the Punta della Lechia. It has undergone various improvements, particularly under Napoleon, who originated the two current major structural arteries (the Cours Napoleon oriented north–south and the Cours Grandval oriented east–west).
+
+Ajaccio experienced a demographic boom in the 1960s, which explains why 85% of dwellings are post-1949.[8] This is reflected in the layout of the city which is marked by very large areas of low-rise buildings and concrete towers, especially on the heights (Jardins de l'Empereur) and in the north of the city - e.g. the waterfront, Les Cannes, and Les Salines. A dichotomy appears in the landscape between the old city and the imposing modern buildings. Ajaccio gives the image of a city built on two different levels.
+
+The city has a Mediterranean climate which is Csa in the Köppen climate classification. The average annual sunshine is 2726 hours.
+
+There are important local climatic variations, especially with wind exposure and total precipitation, between the city centre, the airport, and the  îles Sanguinaires. The annual average rainfall is 645.6 mm (25.4 in) at the Campo dell'Oro weather station (as per the chart) and 523.9 mm (20.6 in) at the Parata: the third-driest place in metropolitan France.[9] The heat and dryness of summer are somewhat tempered by the proximity of the Mediterranean Sea except when the sirocco is blowing. In autumn and spring, heavy rain-storm episodes may occur. Winters are mild and snow is rare. Ajaccio is the French city which holds the record for the number of thunderstorms in the reference period 1971–2000 with an average of 39 thunderstorm days per year.[10]
+
+On 14 September 2009, the city was hit by a tornado with an intensity of F1 on the Fujita scale. There was little damage except torn billboards, flying tiles, overturned cars, and broken windows but no casualties.[11]
+
+Weather Data for Ajaccio
+
+
+
+Blazon:
+Supported by two golden lions, a silver column stands on a green base beneath an azure sky.
+
+
+
+
+
+Several hypotheses have been advanced as to the etymology of the name Ajaccio (Aiacciu in Corsican, Addiazzo on old documents). Among these, the most prestigious suggests that the city was founded by the Greek legendary hero  Ajax and named after him. Other more realistic explanations are, for example, that the name could be related to the Tuscan agghiacciu meaning "sheep pens". Another explanation, supported by Byzantine sources from around the year 600AD called the city Agiation which suggests a possible Greek origin for the word,[17] agathè could mean "good luck" or "good mooring" (this was also the root of the name of the city of Agde).
+
+The city was not mentioned by the Greek geographer Ptolemy of Alexandria in the 2nd century AD despite the presence of a place called Ourkinion in the Cinarca area. It is likely that the city of Ajaccio had its first development at this time. The 2nd century was a period of prosperity in the Mediterranean basin (the Pax Romana) and there was a need for a proper port at the head of the several valleys that lead to the Gulf able to accommodate large ships. Some important underwater archaeological discoveries recently made of Roman ships tend to confirm this.[citation needed]
+
+Further excavations conducted recently led to the discovery of important early Christian remains likely to significantly a reevaluation upwards of the size of Ajaccio city in Late Antiquity and the beginning of the Middle Ages. The city was in any case already significant enough to be the seat of a diocese, mentioned by Pope Gregory the Great in 591. The city was then further north than the location chosen later by the Genoese - in the location of the existing quarters of Castel Vecchio and Sainte-Lucie.
+
+The earliest certain written record of a settlement at Ajaccio with a name ancestral to its name was the exhortation in Epistle 77 written in 601AD by Gregory the great to the Defensor Boniface, one of two known rectors of the early Corsican church,[18] to tell him not to leave Aléria and Adjacium without bishops. There is no earlier use of the term and Adjacium is not an attested Latin word, which probably means that it is a Latinization of a word in some other language. The Ravenna Cosmography of about 700 AD cites Agiation,[19] which sometimes is taken as evidence of a prior Greek city, as -ion appears to be a Greek ending. There is, however, no evidence at all of a Greek presence on the west coast and the Ionians at Aléria on the east coast had been expelled by the Etruscans long before Roman domination.[citation needed]
+
+Ptolemy, who must come the closest to representing indigenous names, lists the Lochra River just south of a feature he calls the "sandy shore" on the southwest coast. If the shore is the Campo dell'Oro (Place of Gold) the Lochra would seem to be the combined mouth of the Gravona and Prunelli Rivers, neither one of which sounds like Lochra.
+
+North of there was a Roman city, Ourchinion. The western coastline was so distorted, however, that it is impossible to say where Adjacium was; certainly, he would have known its name and location if he had had any first-hand knowledge of the island and if in fact it was there. Ptolemy's Ourchinion is further north than Ajaccio and does not have the same name. It could be Sagone.[20] The lack of correspondence between Ptolemaic and historical names known to be ancient has no defense except in the case of the two Roman colonies, Aleria and Mariana. In any case the population of the region must belong to Ptolemy's Tarabeni or Titiani people, neither of which are ever heard about again.[citation needed]
+
+The population of the city throughout the centuries maintained an oral tradition that it had originally been Roman.[citation needed]Travellers of the 19th century could point to the Hill of San Giovanni on the northwest shore of the Gulf of Ajaccio, which still had a cathedral said to have been the 6th-century seat of the Bishop of Ajaccio. The Castello Vecchio ("old castle"), a ruined citadel, was believed to be Roman but turned out to have Gothic features. The hill was planted with vines. The farmers kept turning up artifacts and terracotta funerary urns that seemed to be Roman.
+
+In the 20th century the hill was covered over with buildings and became a part of downtown Ajaccio. In 2005 construction plans for a lot on the hill offered the opportunity to the Institut national de recherches archéologiques preventatives (Inrap) to excavate. They found the baptistry of a 6th-century cathedral and large amounts of pottery dated to the 6th and 7th centuries AD; in other words, an early Christian town. A cemetery had been placed over the old church. In it was a single Roman grave covered over with roof tiles bearing short indecipherable inscriptions. The finds of the previous century had included Roman coins. This is the only evidence so far of a Roman city continuous with the early Christian one.[21]
+
+It has been established that after the 8th century the city, like most other Corsican coastal communities, strongly declined and disappeared almost completely. Nevertheless, a castle and a cathedral were still in place in 1492 which last was not demolished until 1748.[citation needed]
+
+Towards the end of the 15th century, the Genoese were eager to assert their dominance in the south of the island and decided to rebuild the city of Ajaccio. Several sites were considered: the Pointe de la Parata (not chosen because it was too exposed to the wind), the ancient city (finally considered unsafe because of the proximity of the salt ponds), and finally the Punta della Lechia which was finally selected.
+
+Work began on the town on 21 April 1492 south of the Christian village by the Bank of Saint George at Genoa, who sent Cristoforo of Gandini, an architect, to build it. He began with a castle on Capo di Bolo, around which he constructed residences for several hundred people.[22]
+
+The new city was essentially a colony of Genoa. The Corsicans were restricted from the city for some years.
+
+Nevertheless, the town grew rapidly and became the administrative capital of the province of Au Delà Des Monts (more or less the current Corse-du-Sud). Bastia remained the capital of the entire island.
+
+Although at first populated exclusively by the Genoese, the city slowly opened to the Corsicans while the Ajaccians, almost to the French conquest, were legally citizens of the Republic of Genoa and were happy to distinguish themselves from the insular paesani who lived mainly in Borgu, a suburb outside the city walls (the current rue Fesch was the main street).
+
+Ajaccio was occupied from 1553 to 1559 by the French, but it again fell to the Genoese after the Treaty of Cateau Cambresis in the latter year.[6]
+
+Subsequently, the Republic of Genoa was strong enough to keep Corsica until 1755, the year Pasquale Paoli proclaimed the Corsican Republic. Paoli took most of the island for the republic, but he was unable to force Genoese troops out of the citadels of Saint-Florent, Calvi, Ajaccio, Bastia and Algajola. Leaving them there, he went on to build the nation, while the Republic of Genoa was left to ponder prospects and solutions. Their ultimate solution was to sell Corsica to France in 1768 and French troops of the Ancien Régime replaced Genoese ones in the citadels, including Ajaccio's.
+
+Corsica was formally annexed to France in 1780.
+
+Napoleon Bonaparte (born as Napoleone di Buonaparte) was born at Ajaccio in the same year as the Battle of Ponte Novu, 1769. The Buonaparte family at the time had a modest four-story home in town (now a museum known as Maison Bonaparte) and a rarely used country home in the hills north of the city (now site of the Arboretum des Milelli). The father of the family, attorney Carlo di Buonaparte, was secretary to Pasquale Paoli during the Corsican Republic.
+
+After the defeat of Paoli, the Comte de Marbeuf began to meet with some leading Corsicans to outline the shape of the future and enlist their assistance. The Comte was among a delegation from Ajaccio in 1769, offered his loyalty and was appointed assessor.
+
+Marbeuf also offered Carlo di Buonaparte an appointment for one of his sons to the Military College of Brienne, but Napoleone did not speak French which was a requirement and he had to be at least ten years of age. There is a dispute concerning Napoleon's age because of this requirement; the emperor is known to have altered the civic records at Ajaccio concerning himself and it is possible that he was born in Corte in 1768 when his father was there on business. In any case Napoleon was sent to a school in Autun to learn basic French, then after a year went to Brienne from 1779–1784.[23][24]
+
+At Brienne Napoleon concentrated on studies. He wrote a boyish history of Corsica. He did not share his father's views but held Pasquale Paoli in high esteem and was at heart a Corsican nationalist. The top students were encouraged to go into the artillery. After graduation and a brief sojourn at the Military School of Paris Napoleon applied for a second-lieutenancy in the artillery regiment of La Fère at Valence and after a time was given the position. Meanwhile, his father died and his mother was cast into poverty in Corsica, still having four children to support. Her only income was Napoleon's meager salary.[citation needed]
+
+The regiment was in Auxonne when the revolution broke out in the summer of 1789. Napoleon returned on leave to Ajaccio in October, became a Jacobin and began to work for the revolution. The National Assembly in Paris united Corsica to France and pardoned its exiles. Paoli returned in 1790 after 21 years and kissed the soil on which he stood. He and Napoleon met and toured the battlefield of Paoli's defeat. A national assembly at Orezza created the department of Corsica and Paoli was subsequently elected president. He commanded the national guard raised by Napoleon. After a brief return to his regiment Napoleon was promoted to First Lieutenant and came home again on leave in 1791. The death of a rich uncle relieved the family's poverty.[citation needed]
+
+All officers were recalled from leave in 1792, intervention threatened and war with Austria (Marie-Antoinette's homeland) began. Napoleon returned to Paris for review, was exonerated, then promoted to Captain and given leave to escort his sister, a schoolgirl, back to Corsica at state expense. His family was prospering; his estate increased.
+
+Napoleon became a Lieutenant-Colonel in the Corsican National Guard. Paoli sent him off on an expedition to Sardinia, ordered by France, under Paolis's nephew but the nephew had secret orders from Paoli to make sure the expedition failed.[25] Paoli was now a conservative, opposing the execution of the king and supporting an alliance with Great Britain. Returning from Sardinia Napoleon with his family and all his supporters were instrumental in getting Paoli denounced at the National Convention in Paris in 1793. Napoleon earned the hatred of the Paolists by pretending to support Paoli and then turning against him (payment, one supposes, for Sardinia).
+
+Paoli was convicted in absentia, a warrant was issued for his arrest (which could not be served) and Napoleon was dispatched to Corsica as Inspector General of Artillery to take the citadel of Ajaccio from the royalists who had held it since 1789. The Paolists combining with the royalists defeated the French in two pitched battles and Napoleon and his family went on the run, hiding by day, while the Paolists burned their estate. Napoleon and his mother, Laetitia, were taken out by ship in June 1793, by friends while two of the girls found refuge with other friends. They landed in Toulon with only Napoleon's pay for their support.
+
+The Bonapartes moved to Marseille but in August Toulon offered itself to the British and received the protection of a fleet under Admiral Hood. The Siege of Toulon began in September under revolutionary officers mainly untrained in the art of war. Napoleon happened to present socially one evening and during a casual conversation over a misplaced 24-pounder explained the value of artillery. Taken seriously he was allowed to bring up over 100 guns from coastal emplacements but his plan for the taking of Toulon was set aside as one incompetent officer superseded another. By December they decided to try his plan and made him a Colonel. Placing the guns at close range he used them to keep the British fleet away while he battered down the walls of Toulon. As soon as the Committee of Public Safety heard of the victory Napoleon became a Brigadier General, the start of his meteoric rise to power.
+
+The Bonapartes were back in Ajaccio in 1797 under the protection of General Napoleon. Soon after Napoleon became First Consul and then emperor, using his office to spread revolution throughout Europe. In 1811 he made Ajaccio the capital of the new Department of Corsica. Despite his subsequent defeat by the Prussians, Russians, and British, his exile and his death, no victorious power reversed that decision or tried to remove Corsica from France. Among the natives, though Corsican nationalism is strong, and feeling often runs high in favour of a union with Italy; loyalty to France, however, as evidenced by elections, remains stronger.
+
+In the 19th century Ajaccio became a popular winter resort of the high society of the time, especially for the English, in the same way as Monaco, Cannes, and Nice. An Anglican Church was even built.
+
+The first prison in France for children was built in Ajaccio in 1855: the Horticultural colony of Saint Anthony. It was a correctional colony for juvenile delinquents (from 8 to 20 years old), established under Article 10 of the Act of 5 August 1850. Nearly 1,200 children from all over France stayed there until 1866, when it was closed. Sixty percent of them perished, the victims of poor sanitation and malaria which infested the unhealthy areas that they were responsible to clean.[26]
+
+On 9 September 1943, the people of Ajaccio rose up against the Nazi occupiers[27] and became the first French town to be liberated from the domination of the Germans. General Charles de Gaulle went to Ajaccio on 8 October 1943 and said: "We owe it to the field of battle the lesson of the page of history that was written in French Corsica. Corsica to her fortune and honour is the first morsel of France to be liberated; which was done intentionally and willingly, in the light of its liberation, this demonstrates that these are the intentions and the will of the whole nation."[citation needed]
+
+Throughout this period, no Jew was executed or deported from Corsica through the protection afforded by its people and its government. This event now allows Corsica to aspire to the title "righteous among the nations", as no region except for the commune Le Chambon-sur-Lignon in Haute-Loire carries this title. Their case is being investigated as of 2010[update].[28]
+
+Since the middle of the 20th century, Ajaccio has seen significant development. The city has seen population growth and considerable urban sprawl. Today Ajaccio is the capital of Corsica and the main town of the island and seeks to establish itself as a true regional centre.[29]
+
+The city is, with Bastia, the economic, commercial and administrative centre of Corsica. Its urban area of nearly 90,000 inhabitants is spread over a large part of the Corse-du-Sud, on either side of the Gulf of Ajaccio and up the valley of the Gravona. Its business is primarily oriented towards the services sector.
+
+The services sector is by far the main source of employment in the city. Ajaccio is an administrative centre comprising communal, intercommunal, departmental, regional, and prefectural services.
+
+It is also a shopping centre with the commercial streets of the city centre and the areas of peripheral activities such as that of Mezzavia (hypermarket Géant Casino) and along the ring road (hypermarket Carrefour and E. Leclerc).
+
+Tourism is one of the most vital aspects of the economy, split between the seaside tourism of summer, cultural tourism, and fishing. A number of hotels, varying from one star to five star, are present across the commune.
+
+Ajaccio is the seat of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Ajaccio and Corsica South. It manages the ports of Ajaccio, Bonifacio, Porto-Vecchio, Propriano and the Tino Rossi marina. It also manages Ajaccio airport[30] and Figari airport as well as the convention centre and the Centre of Ricanto.
+
+Secondary industry is underdeveloped, apart from the aeronautical company Corsica Aerospace Composites CCA, the largest company on the island with 135 employees at two sites.[31] The storage sites of GDF Suez (formerly Gaz de France) and Antargaz in the district of Vazzio are classified as high risk.
+
+The Centrale EDF du Vazzio, a heavy oil power station, provides the south of the island with electricity. The Gravona Canal delivers water for consumption by the city.
+
+By road, the city is accessible from National Route NR194 from Bastia and NR193 via NR196 from Bonifacio.
+
+These two main axes, as well as the roads leading to suburban villages, connect Ajaccio from the north - the site of Ajaccio forming a dead end blocked by the sea to the south. Only the Cours Napoleon and the Boulevard du Roi Jerome cross the city.
+
+Along with the high urban density, this explains the major traffic and parking problems especially during peak hours and during the summer tourist season. A bypass through several neighbourhoods is nearing completion.
+
+The Muvistrada provide services on 21 urban routes, one "city" route for local links and 20 suburban lines. The frequency varies according to demand with intervals of 30 minutes for the most important routes:[32]
+
+A park and ride with 300 spaces was built at Mezzana in the neighbouring commune of Sarrola-Carcopino in order to promote intermodality between cars and public transport.[33] It was inaugurated on 12 July 2010.[34]
+
+In addition, the municipality has introduced a Tramway between Mezzana station in the suburbs and Ajaccio station located in the centre.
+
+The city is served by an Ajaccio Napoleon Bonaparte Airport which is the headquarters of Air Corsica, a Corsican airline. It connects Ajaccio to a number of cities in mainland France (including Paris, Marseille, Nice, and Brive) and to places in Europe to serve the tourist industry.
+
+The airline CCM Airlines also has its head office on the grounds of the Airport.[35]
+
+The port of Ajaccio is connected to the French mainland on an almost daily basis (Marseille, Toulon, Nice). There are also occasional links to the Italian mainland (Livorno) and to Sardinia, as well as a seasonal service serving Calvi and Propriano.[36] The two major shipping companies providing these links are SNCM and Corsica Ferries.
+
+Ajaccio has also become a stopover for cruises with a total of 418,086 passengers in 2007—by far the largest in Corsica and the second-largest in France (after Marseille, but ahead of Nice/Villefranche-sur-Mer and Cannes). The goal is for Ajaccio to eventually become the premier French port for cruises as well as being a main departure point.[36]
+
+The Port function of the city is also served by the commercial, pleasure craft, and artisanal fisheries (3 ports).[36]
+
+The railway station in Ajaccio belongs to Chemins de Fer de la Corse and is located near the port at the Square Pierre Griffi. It connects Ajaccio to Corte, Bastia (3h 25min) and Calvi.
+
+There are two optional stops:
+
+Ajaccio was successively:
+
+Ajaccio remained (with some interruptions) an electoral stronghold of the Bonapartist (CCB) party until the municipal elections of 2001. The outgoing municipality was then beaten by a left-wing coalition led by Simon Renucci which gathered Social Democrats, Communists, and Charles Napoleon - the pretender to the imperial throne.
+
+List of Successive Mayors of Ajaccio[37]
+
+(Not all data is known)
+
+10 Quarters are recognized by the municipality.[40]
+
+Since December 2001, Ajaccio has been part of the Communauté d'agglomération du Pays Ajaccien with nine other communes: Afa, Alata, Appietto, Cuttoli-Corticchiato, Peri, Sarrola-Carcopino, Tavaco, Valle-di-Mezzana, and Villanova.
+
+The geopolitical arrangements of the commune are slightly different from those typical of Corsica and France. Usually an arrondissement includes cantons and a canton includes one to several communes including the chef-lieu, "chief place", from which the canton takes its name. The city of Ajaccio is one commune, but it contains four cantons, Cantons 1–4, and a fraction of Canton 5. The latter contains three other communes: Bastelicaccia, Alata and Villanova, making a total of four communes for the five cantons of Ajaccio.[41]
+
+Each canton contains a certain number of quartiers, "quarters". Cantons 1, 2, 3, 4 are located along the Gulf of Ajaccio from west to east, while 5 is a little further up the valleys of the Gravona and the Prunelli Rivers. These political divisions subdivide the population of Ajaccio into units that can be more democratically served but they do not give a true picture of the size of Ajaccio. In general language, "greater Ajaccio" includes about 100,000 people with all the medical, educational, utility and transportational facilities of a big city. Up until World War II it was still possible to regard the city as being a settlement of narrow streets localized to a part of the harbour or the Gulf of Ajaccio: such bucolic descriptions do not fit the city of today, and travelogues intended for mountain or coastal recreational areas do not generally apply to Corsica's few big cities.
+
+The arrondissement contains other cantons that extend generally up the two rivers into central Corsica.
+
+Ajaccio has twinning associations with:[42]
+
+The demographic development of Ajaccio occurred mainly between 1945 and 1975 with a doubling of the population of the city in that period. This is explicable in the 1950s by the rural exodus. From the 1960s, the city saw the coming of "Pied-Noirs" (French Algerians) including immigrants from the Maghreb and French from mainland France.
+
+Ajaccio has three hospital sites:
+
+Ajaccio is the headquarters of the Academy of Corsica.
+
+The city of Ajaccio has:[44]
+
+Higher education is undeveloped except for a few BTS and IFSI, the University of Corsica Pascal Paoli is located in Corte. A research facility of INRA is also located on Ajaccio.[45]
+
+Ajaccio has a varied tourism potential, with both a cultural framework in the centre of the city and a natural heritage around the coves and beaches of the Mediterranean Sea, as well as the Natura 2000 reserve of the îles Sanguinaires.
+
+The commune has many buildings and structures that are registered as historical monuments:
+
+The town is the seat of a bishopric dating at least from the 7th century. It has tribunals of first instance and of commerce, training colleges, a communal college, a museum and a library; the three latter are established in the Palais Fesch, founded by Cardinal Fesch, who was born at Ajaccio in 1763.[6]
+
+The commune has several religious buildings and structures that are registered as historical monuments:
+
+The Saint François Beach
+
+Gulf of Ajaccio
+
+The iles sanguinaires and views of la Parata from the sentier des crêtes
+
+Along the sentier des crêtes: Skull Rock
+
+There are various sports facilities developed throughout the city.
+
+Units that were stationed in Ajaccio:
+
+Early city map
+
+Statue of Napoleon in Roman garb
+
+Napoleon's birth house
+

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+Charles VII (22 February 1403 – 22 July 1461), called the Victorious (French: le Victorieux)[1] or the Well-Served (French: le Bien-Servi), was King of France from 1422 to his death in 1461.
+
+In the midst of the Hundred Years' War, Charles VII inherited the throne of France under desperate circumstances. Forces of the Kingdom of England and the Duke of Burgundy occupied Guyenne and northern France, including Paris, the most populous city, and Reims, the city in which the French kings were traditionally crowned. In addition, his father Charles VI had disinherited him in 1420 and recognized Henry V of England and his heirs as the legitimate successors to the French crown instead. At the same time, a civil war raged in France between the Armagnacs (supporters of the House of Valois) and the Burgundian party (supporters of the House of Valois-Burgundy allied to the English).
+
+With his court removed to Bourges, south of the Loire River, Charles was disparagingly called the "King of Bourges", because the area around this city was one of the few remaining regions left to him. However, his political and military position improved dramatically with the emergence of Joan of Arc as a spiritual leader in France. Joan of Arc and other charismatic figures led French troops to lift the siege of Orléans, as well as other strategic cities on the Loire river, and to crush the English at the battle of Patay. With the local English troops dispersed, the people of Reims switched allegiance and opened their gates, which enabled the coronation of Charles VII in 1429 at Reims Cathedral. A few years later he ended the English-Burgundian alliance by signing the Treaty of Arras in 1435, followed by the recovery of Paris in 1436 and the steady reconquest of Normandy in the 1440s using a newly organized professional army and advanced siege cannons. Following the battle of Castillon in 1453, the French expelled the English from all their continental possessions except for the Pale of Calais.
+
+The last years of Charles VII were marked by conflicts with his turbulent son, the future Louis XI of France.
+
+Born at the Hôtel Saint-Pol, the royal residence in Paris, Charles was given the title of comte de Ponthieu at his birth in 1403. He was the eleventh child and fifth son of Charles VI of France and Isabeau of Bavaria.[1] His four elder brothers, Charles (1386), Charles (1392–1401), Louis (1397–1415) and John (1398–1417) had each held the title of Dauphin of France (heir to the French Throne) in turn.[1] All died childless, leaving Charles with a rich inheritance of titles.[1]
+
+Almost immediately after his accession to the title of Dauphin, Charles had to face threats to his inheritance, and he was forced to flee from Paris on 29 May 1418 after the partisans of John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy, had entered the city the previous night.[2] By 1419, Charles had established his own court in Bourges and a Parlement in Poitiers.[2] On 11 July of that same year, Charles and John the Fearless attempted a reconciliation by signing, on a small bridge near Pouilly-le-Fort, not far from Melun where Charles was staying, the Treaty of Pouilly-le-Fort known also under name of Paix du Ponceau (ponceau from French pont, "bridge", is a small one-span bridge thrown over a stream).[3] They also decided that a further meeting should take place the following 10 September. On that date, they met on the bridge at Montereau.[4] The Duke assumed that the meeting would be entirely peaceful and diplomatic, thus he brought only a small escort with him. The Dauphin's men reacted to the Duke's arrival by attacking and killing him. Charles' level of involvement has remained uncertain to this day. Although he claimed to have been unaware of his men's intentions, this was considered unlikely by those who heard of the murder.[1] The assassination marked the end of any attempt of a reconciliation between the two factions Armagnacs and Burgundians, thus playing into the hands of Henry V of England. Charles was later required by a treaty with Philip the Good, the son of John the Fearless, to pay penance for the murder, which he never did.
+
+At the death of his father, Charles VI, the succession was cast into doubt. The Treaty of Troyes, signed by Charles VI in 1420, mandated that the throne pass to the infant King Henry VI of England, the son of the recently deceased Henry V and Catherine of Valois, daughter of Charles VI; however, Frenchmen loyal to the king of France regarded the treaty as invalid on grounds of coercion and Charles VI's diminished mental capacity. For those who did not recognize the treaty and believed the Dauphin Charles to be of legitimate birth, he was considered to be the rightful heir to the throne. For those who did not recognize his legitimacy, the rightful heir was recognized as Charles, Duke of Orléans, cousin of the Dauphin, who was in English captivity. Only the supporters of Henry VI and the Dauphin Charles were able to enlist sufficient military force to press effectively for their candidates. The English, already in control of northern France, were able to enforce the claim of their king in the regions of France that they occupied. Northern France, including Paris, was thus ruled by an English regent, Henry V's brother, John of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Bedford, based in Normandy (see Dual monarchy of England and France).
+
+In his adolescent years, Charles was noted for his bravery and flamboyant style of leadership. At one point after becoming Dauphin, he led an army against the English dressed in the red, white, and blue that represented his family;[citation needed] his heraldic device was a mailed fist clutching a naked sword. However, in July 1421, upon learning that Henry V was preparing from Mantes to attack with a much larger army, he withdrew from the siege of Chartres in order to avoid defeat.[5] He then went south of the Loire River under the protection of Yolande of Aragon, known as "Queen of the Four Kingdoms" and, on 22 April 1422, married her daughter, Marie of Anjou,[6] to whom he had been engaged since December 1413 in a ceremony at the Louvre Palace.
+
+Charles, unsurprisingly, claimed the title King of France for himself, but he failed to make any attempts to expel the English from northern France out of indecision and a sense of hopelessness[7][citation needed] Instead, he remained south of the Loire River, where he was still able to exert power, and maintained an itinerant court in the Loire Valley at castles such as Chinon. He was still customarily known as "Dauphin," or derisively as "King of Bourges," after the town where he generally lived. Periodically, he considered flight to the Iberian Peninsula, which would have allowed the English to advance their occupation of France.
+
+Political conditions in France took a decisive turn in the year 1429 just as the prospects for the Dauphin began to look hopeless. The town of Orléans had been under siege since October 1428. The English regent, the Duke of Bedford (the uncle of Henry VI), was advancing into the Duchy of Bar, ruled by Charles's brother-in-law, René. The French lords and soldiers loyal to Charles were becoming increasingly desperate. Then in the little village of Domrémy, on the border of Lorraine and Champagne, a teenage girl named Joan of Arc (French: Jeanne d'Arc), demanded that the garrison commander at Vaucouleurs, Robert de Baudricourt, collect the soldiers and resources necessary to bring her to the Dauphin at Chinon,[8] stating that visions of angels and saints had given her a divine mission. Granted an escort of five veteran soldiers and a letter of referral to Charles by Lord Baudricourt, Joan rode to see Charles at Chinon. She arrived on 23 February 1429.[8]
+
+What followed would become famous. When Joan appeared at Chinon, Charles wanted to test her claim to be able to recognise him despite never having seen him, and so he disguised himself as one of his courtiers. He stood in their midst when Joan entered the chamber in which the court was assembled. Joan identified Charles immediately. She bowed low to him and embraced his knees, declaring "God give you a happy life, sweet King!" Despite attempts to claim that another man was in fact the king, Charles was eventually forced to admit that he was indeed such. Thereafter Joan referred to him as "Dauphin" or "Noble Dauphin" until he was crowned in Reims four months later. After a private conversation between the two (Charles later stated that Joan knew secrets about him that he had voiced only in silent prayer to God), Charles became inspired and filled with confidence.
+
+After her encounter with Charles in March 1429, Joan of Arc set out to lead the French forces at Orléans. She was aided by skilled commanders such as Étienne de Vignolles, known as La Hire, and Jean Poton de Xaintrailles. They compelled the English to lift the siege on 8 May 1429, thus turning the tide of the war. The French won the Battle of Patay on 18 June, at which the English field army lost about half its troops. After pushing further into English and Burgundian-controlled territory, Charles was crowned King Charles VII of France in Reims Cathedral on 17 July 1429.
+
+Joan was later captured by Burgundian troops under John of Luxembourg at the siege of Compiègne on 24 May 1430.[9] The Burgundians handed her over to their English allies. Tried for heresy by a court composed of pro-English clergy such as Pierre Cauchon, who had long served the English occupation government,[10] she was burned at the stake on 30 May 1431.
+
+Nearly as important as Joan of Arc in the cause of Charles was the support of the powerful and wealthy family of his wife Marie d'Anjou, particularly his mother-in-law, Queen Yolande of Aragon. But whatever affection he may have had for his wife, or whatever gratitude he may have felt for the support of her family, the great love of Charles VII's life was his mistress, Agnès Sorel.
+
+Charles VII and Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, then signed the 1435 Treaty of Arras, by which the Burgundian faction rejected their English alliance and became reconciled with Charles VII, just as things were going badly for their English allies. With this accomplishment, Charles attained the essential goal of ensuring that no Prince of the Blood recognised Henry VI as King of France.[11]
+
+Over the following two decades, the French recaptured Paris from the English and eventually recovered all of France with the exception of the northern port of Calais.
+
+Charles' later years were marked by hostile relations with his heir, Louis, who demanded real power to accompany his position as the Dauphin. Charles consistently refused him. Accordingly, Louis stirred up dissent and fomented plots in attempts to destabilise his father's reign. He quarrelled with his father's mistress, Agnès Sorel, and on one occasion drove her with a bared sword into Charles' bed, according to one source. Eventually, in 1446, after Charles' last son, also named Charles, was born, the king banished the Dauphin to the Dauphiny. The two never met again. Louis thereafter refused the king's demands to return to court, and he eventually fled to the protection of Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, in 1456.
+
+In 1458, Charles became ill. A sore on his leg (an early symptom, perhaps, of diabetes or another condition) refused to heal, and the infection in it caused a serious fever. The king summoned Louis to him from his exile in Burgundy, but the Dauphin refused to come. He employed astrologers to foretell the exact hour of his father's death. The king lingered on for the next two and a half years, increasingly ill, but unwilling to die. During this time he also had to deal with the case of his rebellious vassal John V of Armagnac.
+
+Finally, however, there came a point in July 1461 when the king's physicians concluded that Charles would not live past August. Ill and weary, the king became delirious, convinced that he was surrounded by traitors loyal only to his son. Under the pressure of sickness and fever, he went mad. By now another infection in his jaw had caused an abscess in his mouth. The swelling caused by this became so large that, for the last week of his life, Charles was unable to swallow food or water. Although he asked the Dauphin to come to his deathbed, Louis refused, instead waiting at Avesnes, in Burgundy, for his father to die. At Mehun-sur-Yèvre, attended by his younger son, Charles, and aware of his elder son's final betrayal, the King starved to death. He died on 22 July 1461, and was buried, at his request, beside his parents in Saint-Denis.
+
+Charles VII Royal d'or.
+
+Charles VII Ecu neuf, 1436.
+
+Charles VII on a Franc à cheval from 1422–23.
+
+Although Charles VII's legacy is far overshadowed by the deeds and eventual martyrdom of Joan of Arc and his early reign was at times marked by indecisiveness and inaction, he was responsible for successes unprecedented in the history of the Kingdom of France. He succeeded in what four generations of his predecessors (namely his father Charles VI, his grandfather Charles V, his great-grandfather John II and great-great grandfather Philip VI) failed to do — the expulsion of the English and the conclusion of the Hundred Years' War.
+
+He had created France's first standing army since Roman times. In The Prince, Niccolo Machiavelli asserts that if his son Louis XI had continued this policy, then the French would have become invincible.
+
+Charles VII secured himself against papal power by the Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges. He also established the University of Poitiers in 1432, and his policies brought some economic prosperity to his subjects.
+
+Charles married his second cousin Marie of Anjou on 18 December 1422.[12] They were both great-grandchildren of King John II of France and his first wife Bonne of Bohemia through the male line. They had fourteen children:
+
+
+

en/991.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,54 @@
+Charles VII (22 February 1403 – 22 July 1461), called the Victorious (French: le Victorieux)[1] or the Well-Served (French: le Bien-Servi), was King of France from 1422 to his death in 1461.
+
+In the midst of the Hundred Years' War, Charles VII inherited the throne of France under desperate circumstances. Forces of the Kingdom of England and the Duke of Burgundy occupied Guyenne and northern France, including Paris, the most populous city, and Reims, the city in which the French kings were traditionally crowned. In addition, his father Charles VI had disinherited him in 1420 and recognized Henry V of England and his heirs as the legitimate successors to the French crown instead. At the same time, a civil war raged in France between the Armagnacs (supporters of the House of Valois) and the Burgundian party (supporters of the House of Valois-Burgundy allied to the English).
+
+With his court removed to Bourges, south of the Loire River, Charles was disparagingly called the "King of Bourges", because the area around this city was one of the few remaining regions left to him. However, his political and military position improved dramatically with the emergence of Joan of Arc as a spiritual leader in France. Joan of Arc and other charismatic figures led French troops to lift the siege of Orléans, as well as other strategic cities on the Loire river, and to crush the English at the battle of Patay. With the local English troops dispersed, the people of Reims switched allegiance and opened their gates, which enabled the coronation of Charles VII in 1429 at Reims Cathedral. A few years later he ended the English-Burgundian alliance by signing the Treaty of Arras in 1435, followed by the recovery of Paris in 1436 and the steady reconquest of Normandy in the 1440s using a newly organized professional army and advanced siege cannons. Following the battle of Castillon in 1453, the French expelled the English from all their continental possessions except for the Pale of Calais.
+
+The last years of Charles VII were marked by conflicts with his turbulent son, the future Louis XI of France.
+
+Born at the Hôtel Saint-Pol, the royal residence in Paris, Charles was given the title of comte de Ponthieu at his birth in 1403. He was the eleventh child and fifth son of Charles VI of France and Isabeau of Bavaria.[1] His four elder brothers, Charles (1386), Charles (1392–1401), Louis (1397–1415) and John (1398–1417) had each held the title of Dauphin of France (heir to the French Throne) in turn.[1] All died childless, leaving Charles with a rich inheritance of titles.[1]
+
+Almost immediately after his accession to the title of Dauphin, Charles had to face threats to his inheritance, and he was forced to flee from Paris on 29 May 1418 after the partisans of John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy, had entered the city the previous night.[2] By 1419, Charles had established his own court in Bourges and a Parlement in Poitiers.[2] On 11 July of that same year, Charles and John the Fearless attempted a reconciliation by signing, on a small bridge near Pouilly-le-Fort, not far from Melun where Charles was staying, the Treaty of Pouilly-le-Fort known also under name of Paix du Ponceau (ponceau from French pont, "bridge", is a small one-span bridge thrown over a stream).[3] They also decided that a further meeting should take place the following 10 September. On that date, they met on the bridge at Montereau.[4] The Duke assumed that the meeting would be entirely peaceful and diplomatic, thus he brought only a small escort with him. The Dauphin's men reacted to the Duke's arrival by attacking and killing him. Charles' level of involvement has remained uncertain to this day. Although he claimed to have been unaware of his men's intentions, this was considered unlikely by those who heard of the murder.[1] The assassination marked the end of any attempt of a reconciliation between the two factions Armagnacs and Burgundians, thus playing into the hands of Henry V of England. Charles was later required by a treaty with Philip the Good, the son of John the Fearless, to pay penance for the murder, which he never did.
+
+At the death of his father, Charles VI, the succession was cast into doubt. The Treaty of Troyes, signed by Charles VI in 1420, mandated that the throne pass to the infant King Henry VI of England, the son of the recently deceased Henry V and Catherine of Valois, daughter of Charles VI; however, Frenchmen loyal to the king of France regarded the treaty as invalid on grounds of coercion and Charles VI's diminished mental capacity. For those who did not recognize the treaty and believed the Dauphin Charles to be of legitimate birth, he was considered to be the rightful heir to the throne. For those who did not recognize his legitimacy, the rightful heir was recognized as Charles, Duke of Orléans, cousin of the Dauphin, who was in English captivity. Only the supporters of Henry VI and the Dauphin Charles were able to enlist sufficient military force to press effectively for their candidates. The English, already in control of northern France, were able to enforce the claim of their king in the regions of France that they occupied. Northern France, including Paris, was thus ruled by an English regent, Henry V's brother, John of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Bedford, based in Normandy (see Dual monarchy of England and France).
+
+In his adolescent years, Charles was noted for his bravery and flamboyant style of leadership. At one point after becoming Dauphin, he led an army against the English dressed in the red, white, and blue that represented his family;[citation needed] his heraldic device was a mailed fist clutching a naked sword. However, in July 1421, upon learning that Henry V was preparing from Mantes to attack with a much larger army, he withdrew from the siege of Chartres in order to avoid defeat.[5] He then went south of the Loire River under the protection of Yolande of Aragon, known as "Queen of the Four Kingdoms" and, on 22 April 1422, married her daughter, Marie of Anjou,[6] to whom he had been engaged since December 1413 in a ceremony at the Louvre Palace.
+
+Charles, unsurprisingly, claimed the title King of France for himself, but he failed to make any attempts to expel the English from northern France out of indecision and a sense of hopelessness[7][citation needed] Instead, he remained south of the Loire River, where he was still able to exert power, and maintained an itinerant court in the Loire Valley at castles such as Chinon. He was still customarily known as "Dauphin," or derisively as "King of Bourges," after the town where he generally lived. Periodically, he considered flight to the Iberian Peninsula, which would have allowed the English to advance their occupation of France.
+
+Political conditions in France took a decisive turn in the year 1429 just as the prospects for the Dauphin began to look hopeless. The town of Orléans had been under siege since October 1428. The English regent, the Duke of Bedford (the uncle of Henry VI), was advancing into the Duchy of Bar, ruled by Charles's brother-in-law, René. The French lords and soldiers loyal to Charles were becoming increasingly desperate. Then in the little village of Domrémy, on the border of Lorraine and Champagne, a teenage girl named Joan of Arc (French: Jeanne d'Arc), demanded that the garrison commander at Vaucouleurs, Robert de Baudricourt, collect the soldiers and resources necessary to bring her to the Dauphin at Chinon,[8] stating that visions of angels and saints had given her a divine mission. Granted an escort of five veteran soldiers and a letter of referral to Charles by Lord Baudricourt, Joan rode to see Charles at Chinon. She arrived on 23 February 1429.[8]
+
+What followed would become famous. When Joan appeared at Chinon, Charles wanted to test her claim to be able to recognise him despite never having seen him, and so he disguised himself as one of his courtiers. He stood in their midst when Joan entered the chamber in which the court was assembled. Joan identified Charles immediately. She bowed low to him and embraced his knees, declaring "God give you a happy life, sweet King!" Despite attempts to claim that another man was in fact the king, Charles was eventually forced to admit that he was indeed such. Thereafter Joan referred to him as "Dauphin" or "Noble Dauphin" until he was crowned in Reims four months later. After a private conversation between the two (Charles later stated that Joan knew secrets about him that he had voiced only in silent prayer to God), Charles became inspired and filled with confidence.
+
+After her encounter with Charles in March 1429, Joan of Arc set out to lead the French forces at Orléans. She was aided by skilled commanders such as Étienne de Vignolles, known as La Hire, and Jean Poton de Xaintrailles. They compelled the English to lift the siege on 8 May 1429, thus turning the tide of the war. The French won the Battle of Patay on 18 June, at which the English field army lost about half its troops. After pushing further into English and Burgundian-controlled territory, Charles was crowned King Charles VII of France in Reims Cathedral on 17 July 1429.
+
+Joan was later captured by Burgundian troops under John of Luxembourg at the siege of Compiègne on 24 May 1430.[9] The Burgundians handed her over to their English allies. Tried for heresy by a court composed of pro-English clergy such as Pierre Cauchon, who had long served the English occupation government,[10] she was burned at the stake on 30 May 1431.
+
+Nearly as important as Joan of Arc in the cause of Charles was the support of the powerful and wealthy family of his wife Marie d'Anjou, particularly his mother-in-law, Queen Yolande of Aragon. But whatever affection he may have had for his wife, or whatever gratitude he may have felt for the support of her family, the great love of Charles VII's life was his mistress, Agnès Sorel.
+
+Charles VII and Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, then signed the 1435 Treaty of Arras, by which the Burgundian faction rejected their English alliance and became reconciled with Charles VII, just as things were going badly for their English allies. With this accomplishment, Charles attained the essential goal of ensuring that no Prince of the Blood recognised Henry VI as King of France.[11]
+
+Over the following two decades, the French recaptured Paris from the English and eventually recovered all of France with the exception of the northern port of Calais.
+
+Charles' later years were marked by hostile relations with his heir, Louis, who demanded real power to accompany his position as the Dauphin. Charles consistently refused him. Accordingly, Louis stirred up dissent and fomented plots in attempts to destabilise his father's reign. He quarrelled with his father's mistress, Agnès Sorel, and on one occasion drove her with a bared sword into Charles' bed, according to one source. Eventually, in 1446, after Charles' last son, also named Charles, was born, the king banished the Dauphin to the Dauphiny. The two never met again. Louis thereafter refused the king's demands to return to court, and he eventually fled to the protection of Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, in 1456.
+
+In 1458, Charles became ill. A sore on his leg (an early symptom, perhaps, of diabetes or another condition) refused to heal, and the infection in it caused a serious fever. The king summoned Louis to him from his exile in Burgundy, but the Dauphin refused to come. He employed astrologers to foretell the exact hour of his father's death. The king lingered on for the next two and a half years, increasingly ill, but unwilling to die. During this time he also had to deal with the case of his rebellious vassal John V of Armagnac.
+
+Finally, however, there came a point in July 1461 when the king's physicians concluded that Charles would not live past August. Ill and weary, the king became delirious, convinced that he was surrounded by traitors loyal only to his son. Under the pressure of sickness and fever, he went mad. By now another infection in his jaw had caused an abscess in his mouth. The swelling caused by this became so large that, for the last week of his life, Charles was unable to swallow food or water. Although he asked the Dauphin to come to his deathbed, Louis refused, instead waiting at Avesnes, in Burgundy, for his father to die. At Mehun-sur-Yèvre, attended by his younger son, Charles, and aware of his elder son's final betrayal, the King starved to death. He died on 22 July 1461, and was buried, at his request, beside his parents in Saint-Denis.
+
+Charles VII Royal d'or.
+
+Charles VII Ecu neuf, 1436.
+
+Charles VII on a Franc à cheval from 1422–23.
+
+Although Charles VII's legacy is far overshadowed by the deeds and eventual martyrdom of Joan of Arc and his early reign was at times marked by indecisiveness and inaction, he was responsible for successes unprecedented in the history of the Kingdom of France. He succeeded in what four generations of his predecessors (namely his father Charles VI, his grandfather Charles V, his great-grandfather John II and great-great grandfather Philip VI) failed to do — the expulsion of the English and the conclusion of the Hundred Years' War.
+
+He had created France's first standing army since Roman times. In The Prince, Niccolo Machiavelli asserts that if his son Louis XI had continued this policy, then the French would have become invincible.
+
+Charles VII secured himself against papal power by the Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges. He also established the University of Poitiers in 1432, and his policies brought some economic prosperity to his subjects.
+
+Charles married his second cousin Marie of Anjou on 18 December 1422.[12] They were both great-grandchildren of King John II of France and his first wife Bonne of Bohemia through the male line. They had fourteen children:
+
+
+

en/992.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,54 @@
+Charles VII (22 February 1403 – 22 July 1461), called the Victorious (French: le Victorieux)[1] or the Well-Served (French: le Bien-Servi), was King of France from 1422 to his death in 1461.
+
+In the midst of the Hundred Years' War, Charles VII inherited the throne of France under desperate circumstances. Forces of the Kingdom of England and the Duke of Burgundy occupied Guyenne and northern France, including Paris, the most populous city, and Reims, the city in which the French kings were traditionally crowned. In addition, his father Charles VI had disinherited him in 1420 and recognized Henry V of England and his heirs as the legitimate successors to the French crown instead. At the same time, a civil war raged in France between the Armagnacs (supporters of the House of Valois) and the Burgundian party (supporters of the House of Valois-Burgundy allied to the English).
+
+With his court removed to Bourges, south of the Loire River, Charles was disparagingly called the "King of Bourges", because the area around this city was one of the few remaining regions left to him. However, his political and military position improved dramatically with the emergence of Joan of Arc as a spiritual leader in France. Joan of Arc and other charismatic figures led French troops to lift the siege of Orléans, as well as other strategic cities on the Loire river, and to crush the English at the battle of Patay. With the local English troops dispersed, the people of Reims switched allegiance and opened their gates, which enabled the coronation of Charles VII in 1429 at Reims Cathedral. A few years later he ended the English-Burgundian alliance by signing the Treaty of Arras in 1435, followed by the recovery of Paris in 1436 and the steady reconquest of Normandy in the 1440s using a newly organized professional army and advanced siege cannons. Following the battle of Castillon in 1453, the French expelled the English from all their continental possessions except for the Pale of Calais.
+
+The last years of Charles VII were marked by conflicts with his turbulent son, the future Louis XI of France.
+
+Born at the Hôtel Saint-Pol, the royal residence in Paris, Charles was given the title of comte de Ponthieu at his birth in 1403. He was the eleventh child and fifth son of Charles VI of France and Isabeau of Bavaria.[1] His four elder brothers, Charles (1386), Charles (1392–1401), Louis (1397–1415) and John (1398–1417) had each held the title of Dauphin of France (heir to the French Throne) in turn.[1] All died childless, leaving Charles with a rich inheritance of titles.[1]
+
+Almost immediately after his accession to the title of Dauphin, Charles had to face threats to his inheritance, and he was forced to flee from Paris on 29 May 1418 after the partisans of John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy, had entered the city the previous night.[2] By 1419, Charles had established his own court in Bourges and a Parlement in Poitiers.[2] On 11 July of that same year, Charles and John the Fearless attempted a reconciliation by signing, on a small bridge near Pouilly-le-Fort, not far from Melun where Charles was staying, the Treaty of Pouilly-le-Fort known also under name of Paix du Ponceau (ponceau from French pont, "bridge", is a small one-span bridge thrown over a stream).[3] They also decided that a further meeting should take place the following 10 September. On that date, they met on the bridge at Montereau.[4] The Duke assumed that the meeting would be entirely peaceful and diplomatic, thus he brought only a small escort with him. The Dauphin's men reacted to the Duke's arrival by attacking and killing him. Charles' level of involvement has remained uncertain to this day. Although he claimed to have been unaware of his men's intentions, this was considered unlikely by those who heard of the murder.[1] The assassination marked the end of any attempt of a reconciliation between the two factions Armagnacs and Burgundians, thus playing into the hands of Henry V of England. Charles was later required by a treaty with Philip the Good, the son of John the Fearless, to pay penance for the murder, which he never did.
+
+At the death of his father, Charles VI, the succession was cast into doubt. The Treaty of Troyes, signed by Charles VI in 1420, mandated that the throne pass to the infant King Henry VI of England, the son of the recently deceased Henry V and Catherine of Valois, daughter of Charles VI; however, Frenchmen loyal to the king of France regarded the treaty as invalid on grounds of coercion and Charles VI's diminished mental capacity. For those who did not recognize the treaty and believed the Dauphin Charles to be of legitimate birth, he was considered to be the rightful heir to the throne. For those who did not recognize his legitimacy, the rightful heir was recognized as Charles, Duke of Orléans, cousin of the Dauphin, who was in English captivity. Only the supporters of Henry VI and the Dauphin Charles were able to enlist sufficient military force to press effectively for their candidates. The English, already in control of northern France, were able to enforce the claim of their king in the regions of France that they occupied. Northern France, including Paris, was thus ruled by an English regent, Henry V's brother, John of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Bedford, based in Normandy (see Dual monarchy of England and France).
+
+In his adolescent years, Charles was noted for his bravery and flamboyant style of leadership. At one point after becoming Dauphin, he led an army against the English dressed in the red, white, and blue that represented his family;[citation needed] his heraldic device was a mailed fist clutching a naked sword. However, in July 1421, upon learning that Henry V was preparing from Mantes to attack with a much larger army, he withdrew from the siege of Chartres in order to avoid defeat.[5] He then went south of the Loire River under the protection of Yolande of Aragon, known as "Queen of the Four Kingdoms" and, on 22 April 1422, married her daughter, Marie of Anjou,[6] to whom he had been engaged since December 1413 in a ceremony at the Louvre Palace.
+
+Charles, unsurprisingly, claimed the title King of France for himself, but he failed to make any attempts to expel the English from northern France out of indecision and a sense of hopelessness[7][citation needed] Instead, he remained south of the Loire River, where he was still able to exert power, and maintained an itinerant court in the Loire Valley at castles such as Chinon. He was still customarily known as "Dauphin," or derisively as "King of Bourges," after the town where he generally lived. Periodically, he considered flight to the Iberian Peninsula, which would have allowed the English to advance their occupation of France.
+
+Political conditions in France took a decisive turn in the year 1429 just as the prospects for the Dauphin began to look hopeless. The town of Orléans had been under siege since October 1428. The English regent, the Duke of Bedford (the uncle of Henry VI), was advancing into the Duchy of Bar, ruled by Charles's brother-in-law, René. The French lords and soldiers loyal to Charles were becoming increasingly desperate. Then in the little village of Domrémy, on the border of Lorraine and Champagne, a teenage girl named Joan of Arc (French: Jeanne d'Arc), demanded that the garrison commander at Vaucouleurs, Robert de Baudricourt, collect the soldiers and resources necessary to bring her to the Dauphin at Chinon,[8] stating that visions of angels and saints had given her a divine mission. Granted an escort of five veteran soldiers and a letter of referral to Charles by Lord Baudricourt, Joan rode to see Charles at Chinon. She arrived on 23 February 1429.[8]
+
+What followed would become famous. When Joan appeared at Chinon, Charles wanted to test her claim to be able to recognise him despite never having seen him, and so he disguised himself as one of his courtiers. He stood in their midst when Joan entered the chamber in which the court was assembled. Joan identified Charles immediately. She bowed low to him and embraced his knees, declaring "God give you a happy life, sweet King!" Despite attempts to claim that another man was in fact the king, Charles was eventually forced to admit that he was indeed such. Thereafter Joan referred to him as "Dauphin" or "Noble Dauphin" until he was crowned in Reims four months later. After a private conversation between the two (Charles later stated that Joan knew secrets about him that he had voiced only in silent prayer to God), Charles became inspired and filled with confidence.
+
+After her encounter with Charles in March 1429, Joan of Arc set out to lead the French forces at Orléans. She was aided by skilled commanders such as Étienne de Vignolles, known as La Hire, and Jean Poton de Xaintrailles. They compelled the English to lift the siege on 8 May 1429, thus turning the tide of the war. The French won the Battle of Patay on 18 June, at which the English field army lost about half its troops. After pushing further into English and Burgundian-controlled territory, Charles was crowned King Charles VII of France in Reims Cathedral on 17 July 1429.
+
+Joan was later captured by Burgundian troops under John of Luxembourg at the siege of Compiègne on 24 May 1430.[9] The Burgundians handed her over to their English allies. Tried for heresy by a court composed of pro-English clergy such as Pierre Cauchon, who had long served the English occupation government,[10] she was burned at the stake on 30 May 1431.
+
+Nearly as important as Joan of Arc in the cause of Charles was the support of the powerful and wealthy family of his wife Marie d'Anjou, particularly his mother-in-law, Queen Yolande of Aragon. But whatever affection he may have had for his wife, or whatever gratitude he may have felt for the support of her family, the great love of Charles VII's life was his mistress, Agnès Sorel.
+
+Charles VII and Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, then signed the 1435 Treaty of Arras, by which the Burgundian faction rejected their English alliance and became reconciled with Charles VII, just as things were going badly for their English allies. With this accomplishment, Charles attained the essential goal of ensuring that no Prince of the Blood recognised Henry VI as King of France.[11]
+
+Over the following two decades, the French recaptured Paris from the English and eventually recovered all of France with the exception of the northern port of Calais.
+
+Charles' later years were marked by hostile relations with his heir, Louis, who demanded real power to accompany his position as the Dauphin. Charles consistently refused him. Accordingly, Louis stirred up dissent and fomented plots in attempts to destabilise his father's reign. He quarrelled with his father's mistress, Agnès Sorel, and on one occasion drove her with a bared sword into Charles' bed, according to one source. Eventually, in 1446, after Charles' last son, also named Charles, was born, the king banished the Dauphin to the Dauphiny. The two never met again. Louis thereafter refused the king's demands to return to court, and he eventually fled to the protection of Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, in 1456.
+
+In 1458, Charles became ill. A sore on his leg (an early symptom, perhaps, of diabetes or another condition) refused to heal, and the infection in it caused a serious fever. The king summoned Louis to him from his exile in Burgundy, but the Dauphin refused to come. He employed astrologers to foretell the exact hour of his father's death. The king lingered on for the next two and a half years, increasingly ill, but unwilling to die. During this time he also had to deal with the case of his rebellious vassal John V of Armagnac.
+
+Finally, however, there came a point in July 1461 when the king's physicians concluded that Charles would not live past August. Ill and weary, the king became delirious, convinced that he was surrounded by traitors loyal only to his son. Under the pressure of sickness and fever, he went mad. By now another infection in his jaw had caused an abscess in his mouth. The swelling caused by this became so large that, for the last week of his life, Charles was unable to swallow food or water. Although he asked the Dauphin to come to his deathbed, Louis refused, instead waiting at Avesnes, in Burgundy, for his father to die. At Mehun-sur-Yèvre, attended by his younger son, Charles, and aware of his elder son's final betrayal, the King starved to death. He died on 22 July 1461, and was buried, at his request, beside his parents in Saint-Denis.
+
+Charles VII Royal d'or.
+
+Charles VII Ecu neuf, 1436.
+
+Charles VII on a Franc à cheval from 1422–23.
+
+Although Charles VII's legacy is far overshadowed by the deeds and eventual martyrdom of Joan of Arc and his early reign was at times marked by indecisiveness and inaction, he was responsible for successes unprecedented in the history of the Kingdom of France. He succeeded in what four generations of his predecessors (namely his father Charles VI, his grandfather Charles V, his great-grandfather John II and great-great grandfather Philip VI) failed to do — the expulsion of the English and the conclusion of the Hundred Years' War.
+
+He had created France's first standing army since Roman times. In The Prince, Niccolo Machiavelli asserts that if his son Louis XI had continued this policy, then the French would have become invincible.
+
+Charles VII secured himself against papal power by the Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges. He also established the University of Poitiers in 1432, and his policies brought some economic prosperity to his subjects.
+
+Charles married his second cousin Marie of Anjou on 18 December 1422.[12] They were both great-grandchildren of King John II of France and his first wife Bonne of Bohemia through the male line. They had fourteen children:
+
+
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+Charles V (21 January 1338 – 16 September 1380), called the Wise (French: le Sage; Latin: Sapiens), was King of France from 1364 to his death. His reign marked an early high point for France during the Hundred Years' War, with his armies recovering much of the territory held by the English, and successfully reversed the military losses of his predecessors.
+
+In 1349, as a young prince, Charles received from his grandfather King Philip VI the province of Dauphiné to rule. This allowed him to bear the title "Dauphin" until his coronation, which led to the integration of the Dauphiné into the crown lands of France. After 1350, all heirs apparent of France bore the title of Dauphin until their accession.
+
+Charles became regent of France when his father John II was captured by the English at the Battle of Poitiers in 1356. To pay for the defense of the kingdom, Charles raised taxes. As a result, he faced hostility from the nobility, led by Charles the Bad, King of Navarre; the opposition of the French bourgeoisie, which was channeled through the Estates-General led by Étienne Marcel; and with a peasant revolt known as the Jacquerie. Charles overcame all of these rebellions, but in order to liberate his father, he had to conclude the Treaty of Brétigny in 1360, in which he abandoned large portions of south-western France to Edward III of England and agreed to pay a huge ransom.
+
+Charles became king in 1364. With the help of talented advisers, his skillful management of the kingdom allowed him to replenish the royal treasury and to restore the prestige of the House of Valois. He established the first permanent army paid with regular wages, which liberated the French populace from the companies of routiers who regularly plundered the country when not employed. Led by Bertrand du Guesclin, the French Army was able to turn the tide of the Hundred Years' War to Charles' advantage, and by the end of Charles' reign, they had reconquered almost all the territories ceded to the English in 1360. Furthermore, the French fleet, led by Jean de Vienne, managed to attack the English coast for the first time since the beginning of the Hundred Years' War.
+
+Charles V died in 1380. He was succeeded by his son Charles VI, whose disastrous reign allowed the English to regain control of large parts of France.
+
+Charles was born at the Château de Vincennes outside of Paris, the son of Prince John and Princess Bonne of France.[1] He was educated at court with other boys of his age with whom he would remain close throughout his life: his uncle Philip, Duke of Orléans (only two years older than himself), his three brothers Louis, John, and Philip, Louis of Bourbon, Edward and Robert of Bar, Godfrey of Brabant, Louis I, Count of Étampes, Louis of Évreux, brother of Charles the Bad, John and Charles of Artois, Charles of Alençon, and Philip of Rouvres.
+
+The future king was highly intelligent but physically weak, with pale skin and a thin, ill-proportioned body. This made a sharp contrast to his father, who was tall, strong and sandy-haired.
+
+Humbert II, Dauphin of Viennois, ruined due to his inability to raise taxes after a crusade in the Middle East, and childless after the death of his only son, decided to sell the Dauphiné, which was a fief of the Holy Roman Empire. Neither the pope nor the emperor wanted to buy and the transaction was concluded with Charles’ grandfather, the reigning King Philip VI.
+
+Under the Treaty of Romans, the Dauphiné of Viennois was to be held by a son of the future king John the Good. So it was Charles, the eldest son of the latter, who became the first Dauphin. At the age of twelve, he was suddenly vested power while in Grenoble (10 December 1349 to March 1350). A few days after his arrival, the people of Grenoble were invited to the Place Notre-Dame, where a platform was erected. Young Charles took his place next to Bishop John of Chissé and received the oath of allegiance of the people. In exchange, he publicly promised to respect the community charter and confirmed the liberties and franchises of Humbert II, which were summed up in a solemn statute before he signed his abdication and granted a last amnesty to all prisoners, except those facing the penalty of death.
+
+On April 8, 1350 at Tain-l'Hermitage, the Dauphin married his cousin Joanna of Bourbon at the age of 12. The prior approval of the pope was obtained for this consanguineous marriage (both were descended from Charles of Valois). The marriage was delayed by the death of his mother Bonne of Luxembourg and his grandmother Joan the Lame, swept away by the plague (he no longer saw them after he left for the Dauphiné). The dauphin himself had been seriously ill from August to December 1349. Gatherings were limited to slow the spread of the plague then raging in Europe, so the marriage took place in private.
+
+The control of Dauphiné was valuable to the Kingdom of France, because it occupied the Rhône Valley, a major trade route between the Mediterranean and northern Europe since ancient times, putting them in direct contact with Avignon, a papal territory and diplomatic center of medieval Europe. Despite his young age, the dauphin applied to be recognized by his subjects, interceding to stop a war raging between two vassal families, and gaining experience that was very useful to him.
+
+Charles was recalled to Paris at the death of his grandfather Philip VI and participated in the coronation of his father John the Good on 26 September 1350 in Reims. The legitimacy of John the Good, and that of the Valois in general, was not unanimous. His father, Philip VI, had lost all credibility with the disasters of Crécy, Calais, the ravages of the plague, and the monetary changes needed to support the royal finances. The royal clan had to cope with opposition from all sides in the kingdom.
+
+The first of these was led by Charles II of Navarre, called "the Bad", whose mother Joan II of Navarre had renounced the crown of France for that of Navarre in 1328. Charles II of Navarre was the eldest of a powerful lineage. Ambitious of attaining the crown of France, he managed to gather around him the malcontents. He was supported by his relatives and allies: the House of Boulogne (and their kin in Auvergne), the barons of Champagne loyal to Joan II of Navarre (heir of Champagne, had it not merged into the crown of France), and by the followers of Robert of Artois, driven from the kingdom by Philip VI. He also had the support of the University of Paris and the northwestern merchants where the cross-Channel trade was vital.
+
+A brilliant orator, and accustomed to a monarchy controlled by the Cortes of Navarre (the equivalent of the States General), Charles the Bad championed the reform of a state considered too arbitrary, leaving no voice to the nobility or the cities (John the Good governed with a circle of favorites and officers sometimes of humble extraction). Unlike his father, Charles V thought that a king must have the approval of his subjects and must listen to their advice. This view allowed him to approach the Norman nobles and the reformists, and thus Charles of Navarre.
+
+The power of Navarre was such that, on 8 January 1354, he murdered with impunity his rival Charles de la Cerda (the king's favourite), and openly avowed this crime. He even obtained, through the Treaty of Mantes, territorial concessions and sovereignty by threatening to make an alliance with the English. But in Avignon, the English and French were negotiating a peace that would prevent Charles of Navarre from counting on the support of Edward III. He therefore concluded a treaty with the English in which the Kingdom of France would be partitioned between them. An English landing was planned for the end of the truce, which would expire on 24 June 1355.
+
+King John ordered the Dauphin in March 1355 to organize the defense of Normandy, which required raising the necessary taxes. The task was difficult because of the growing influence of Charles the Bad, who had acquired a status similar to that of a "Duke" under the Treaty of Mantes. He was likely to ally with Edward III and could at any time open the gateway to Normandy to the English. The Dauphin avoided war by reconciling Navarre with the king, which was sealed with a ceremony at the court on 24 September 1355. Edward III was offended at the latest betrayal of Charles of Navarre, and the promised landing did not occur.
+
+King John was a poor ruler who alienated his nobles through arbitrary justice and the elevation of associates considered unworthy.[citation needed] After a three-year break, the Hundred Years' War with England resumed in 1355, with Edward, The Black Prince, leading an English-Gascon army in a violent raid across southwestern France. After checking an English incursion into Normandy, John led an army of about 16,000 men to the south, crossing the Loire river in September 1356 with the goal of outflanking the Prince's 8,000 soldiers at Poitiers. Rejecting advice from one captain to surround and starve the Prince, a tactic Edward feared, John attacked the strong enemy position. In the subsequent Battle of Poitiers (19 September 1356), English archery all but annihilated the French cavalry, and John was captured.[2] Charles led a battalion at Poitiers that withdrew early in the struggle; whether the order came from John (as he later claimed), or whether Charles himself ordered the withdrawal, is unclear.[3]
+
+The outcome of the battle left many embittered with the nobility. Popular opinion accused the nobles of betraying the king, while Charles and his brothers escaped blame — he was received with honor upon his return to Paris. The Dauphin summoned the Estates-General in October to seek money for the defense of the country. Furious at what they saw as poor management, many of those assembled organized into a body led by Étienne Marcel, the Provost of Merchants (a title roughly equivalent to Mayor of Paris today). Marcel demanded the dismissal of seven royal ministers, their replacement by a Council of 28 made up of nobles, clergy and bourgeois, and the release of Charles the Bad, who had been imprisoned by John for the murder of his constable. The Dauphin refused the demands, dismissed the Estates-General, and left Paris.
+
+A contest of wills ensued. In an attempt to raise money, Charles tried to devalue the currency; Marcel ordered strikes, and the Dauphin was forced to cancel his plans and recall the Estates in February 1357. The Third Estate presented the Dauphin with a Grand Ordinance, a list of 61 articles that would have given the Estates-General the right to approve all future taxes, assemble at their own volition, and elect a Council of 36 (with 12 members from each Estate) to advise the king.[4] Charles eventually signed the ordinance, but his dismissed councillors took news of the document to King John, imprisoned in Bordeaux. The King renounced the ordinance before being taken to England by Prince Edward.
+
+Charles made a royal progress through the country that summer, winning support from the provinces, and winning Paris back. Marcel, meanwhile, enlisted Charles the Bad, who asserted that his claim to the throne of France was at least as good as that of King Edward III of England, who had used his claim as the pretext for initiating the Hundred Years' War.
+
+Marcel used the murder of a citizen seeking sanctuary in Paris to make an attack close to the Dauphin. Summoning a group of tradesmen, the Provost marched at the head of an army of 3,000, entered the royal palace, and had the crowd murder two of the Dauphin's marshals before his eyes. Charles, horrified, momentarily pacified the crowd, but sent his family away and left the capital as quickly as he could. Marcel's action destroyed support for the Third Estate among the nobles, and the Provost's subsequent backing of the Jacquerie undermined his support from the towns. He was murdered by a mob on 31 July 1358. Charles was able to recover Paris the following month and later issued a general amnesty for all, except close associates of Marcel.
+
+John's capture gave the English the edge in peace negotiations following the Battle of Poitiers. The King signed the Treaty of London in 1359 that ceded most of western France to England and imposed a ruinous ransom of 4 million écus on the country. The Dauphin (backed by his councillors and the Estates General) rejected the treaty, and English King Edward invaded France later that year. Edward reached Reims in December and Paris in March, but Charles forbade his soldiers from direct confrontation with the English, relying on improved municipal fortifications made to Paris by Marcel. He would later rebuild the wall on the Left Bank (Rive gauche), and he built a new wall on the Right Bank (Rive droite) that extended to a new fortification called the Bastille. Edward pillaged and raided the countryside but could not bring the French to a decisive battle, so he eventually agreed to reduce his terms. This non-confrontational strategy would prove extremely beneficial to France during Charles' reign.
+
+The Treaty of Brétigny, signed on 8 May 1360, ceded a third of western France (mostly in Aquitaine and Gascony) to the English and lowered the King's ransom to 3 million écus. King John was released the following October. His second son, Louis of Anjou, took his place as a hostage.
+
+Though his father had regained his freedom, Charles suffered a great personal tragedy at nearly the same time. His three-year-old daughter Joan and infant daughter Bonne died within two months of each other late in 1360; at their double funeral, the Dauphin was said to be "so sorrowful as never before he had been." Charles himself had been severely ill, with his hair and nails falling out; some suggest the symptoms are those of arsenic poisoning.[5]
+
+John proved as ineffective at ruling upon his return to France as he had before his capture. When Louis of Anjou escaped from English custody, John announced he had no choice but to return to captivity himself. He arrived in London in January 1364, became ill, and died the following April.
+
+Charles was crowned King of France in 1364 at the Cathedral of Reims.[6] The new king was highly intelligent, but closed-mouthed and secretive, with sharp eyes, a long nose and a pale, grave manner. He suffered from gout in the right hand and an abscess in his left arm, possibly a side-effect of an attempted poisoning in 1359. Doctors were able to treat the wound but told him that if it ever dried up, he would die within 15 days. His manner may have concealed a more emotional side; his marriage to Joan of Bourbon was considered very strong, and he made no attempt to hide his grief at her funeral or those of his children, five of whom predeceased him.
+
+His reign was dominated by the war with the English and two major problems: recovering the territories ceded at Brétigny and ridding the land of the Tard-Venus (French for "latecomers"), mercenary companies that turned to robbery and pillage after the treaty was signed. In achieving these aims, Charles turned to a minor noble from Brittany named Bertrand du Guesclin. Nicknamed "the Black Dog of Brocéliande", du Guesclin fought the English during the Breton War of Succession and was an expert in guerrilla warfare. Du Guesclin also defeated Charles II of Navarre at the Battle of Cocherel in 1364 and eliminated his threat to Paris.
+
+In order to lure the Tard-Venus out of France, Charles first hired them for an attempted crusade into Hungary, but their reputation for brigandage preceded them, and the citizens of Strasbourg refused to let them cross the Rhine on their journey. Charles next sent the mercenary companies (under the leadership of du Guesclin) to fight in a civil war in Castile between King Peter the Cruel and his illegitimate half-brother Henry. Peter had English backing, while Henry was supported by the French.
+
+Du Guesclin and his men were able to drive Peter out of Castile in 1365 after the capture of the fortresses of Magallón and Briviesca and the capital Burgos. The Black Prince, now serving as his father's viceroy in southwestern France, took up Peter's cause. At the Battle of Nájera in April 1367, the English defeated Henry's army. Du Guesclin was captured after a memorable resistance and ransomed by Charles V, who considered him invaluable. The Black Prince, affected by dysentery, soon withdrew his support from Peter. The English army suffered badly during the retreat. Four English soldiers out of five died during the Castillan Campaign. In 1369, du Guesclin renewed the attack against Peter, defeating him at the decisive Battle of Montiel. Henry stabbed the captive Peter to death in du Guesclin's tent, thereby gaining the throne of Castile. Bertrand was made Duke of Molina, and the Franco-Castillan alliance was sealed. Charles V could now resume the war against England under favorable conditions.
+
+After the Castillan campaign, the Black Prince was invalid and heavily in debt. His rule in Gascony became increasingly autocratic. Nobles from Gascony petitioned Charles for aid, and when the Black Prince refused to answer a summons to Paris to answer the charges, Charles judged him disloyal and declared war in May 1369.
+
+Instead of seeking a major battle, as his predecessors had done, Charles chose a strategy of attrition, spreading the fighting at every point possible. The French and Castillan navies destroyed an English fleet at La Rochelle in 1372. Then, du Guesclin launched destructive raids against the coasts of England, naval reprisals to the English chevauchées. Bertrand du Guesclin, appointed Constable of France in 1370, beat back a major English offensive in northern France with an unnerving combination of raids, sieges, and pitched battles. He notably crushed Robert Knolles at the Battle of Pontvallain.
+
+Most of the major English leaders were killed in a few months and the Black Prince fled to England, where he died in 1376. By 1375, Charles recovered much of the English territories in France except Calais and Gascony, effectively nullifying the Treaty of Brétigny.
+
+In 1376, Pope Gregory XI, fearing a loss of the Papal States, decided to move his court back to Rome after nearly 70 years in Avignon. Charles, hoping to maintain French influence over the papacy, tried to persuade Pope Gregory to remain in France, arguing that "Rome is wherever the Pope happens to be." Gregory refused.
+
+The Pope died in March 1378. When cardinals gathered to elect a successor, a Roman mob, concerned that the predominantly French College of Cardinals would elect a French pope who would bring the papacy back to Avignon, surrounded the Vatican and demanded the election of a Roman. On 9 April, the cardinals elected Bartolomeo Prigamo, Archbishop of Bari, and a commoner by birth, as Pope Urban VI. The new pope quickly alienated his cardinals by criticising their vices, limiting the areas where they could receive income and even rising to strike one cardinal before a second restrained him. The French cardinals left Rome that summer and declared Urban's election invalid because of mob intimidation (a reason that had not been cited at the time of the election) and elected Cardinal Robert of Geneva as Pope Clement VII that September.
+
+The French cardinals quickly moved to get Charles' support. The theology faculty of the University of Paris advised Charles not to make a hasty decision, but he recognised Clement as Pope in November and forbade any obedience to Urban. Charles' support allowed Clement to survive as pope and led to the Papal Schism, which would divide Europe for nearly 40 years.
+
+Charles' last years were spent in the consolidation of Normandy (and the neutralisation of Charles of Navarre). Peace negotiations with the English continued unsuccessfully. The taxes he had levied to support his wars against the English caused deep disaffection among the working classes.
+
+The abscess on the King's left arm dried up in early September 1380 and Charles prepared to die. On his deathbed, perhaps fearful for his soul, Charles announced the abolition of the hearth tax, the foundation of the government's finances. The ordinance would have been impossible to carry out, but its terms were known, and the government's refusal to reduce any of the other taxes on the people sparked the Maillotin revolt in 1381.
+
+The King died on 16 September 1380 and was succeeded by his 11-year-old son, Charles VI. He is buried in the Basilica of St Denis, about five miles north of Paris.
+
+Charles' reputation was of great significance for posterity, especially as his conception of governance was one that courtiers wished his successors could follow. Christine de Pizan's biography, commissioned by Philip the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, in 1404, is a source of most of the intimate details of the king's life of which we are aware, but also provides a moral example for his successors. It draws heavily on the work of Nicole Oresme (who translated Aristotle's moral works into French) and Giles of Rome. Philippe de Mézières, in his allegorical "Songe du Vieil Pèlerin," attempts to persuade the dauphin (later King Charles VI) to follow the example of his wise father, notably in piety, though also to pursue reforming zeal in all policy considerations.
+
+Of great importance to Charles V's cultural program was his vast library, housed in his expanded Louvre, and described in great detail by the nineteenth-century French historian Leopold Delisle. Containing over 1,200 volumes, it was symbolic of the authority and magnificence of the royal person, but also of his concern with government for the common good. Charles was keen to collect copies of works in French, in order that his counsellors had access to them. Perhaps the most significant ones commissioned for the library were those of Nicole Oresme, who translated Aristotle's Politics, Ethics, and Economics into eloquent French for the first time (an earlier attempt had been made at the Politics, but the manuscript is now lost). If the Politics and Economics served as a manual for government, then the Ethics advised the king on how to be a good man.
+
+Other important works commissioned for the royal library were the anonymous legal treatise "Songe du Vergier," greatly inspired by the debates of Philip IV's jurists with Pope Boniface VIII, the translations of Raol de Presles, which included St. Augustine's City of God, and the Grandes Chroniques de France edited in 1377 to emphasise the vassalage of Edward III.
+
+Charles' kingship placed great emphasis on both royal ceremony and scientific political theory, and to contemporaries and posterity his lifestyle at once embodied the reflective life advised by Aristotle and the model of French kingship derived from  St. Louis, Charlemagne, and Clovis which he had illustrated in his Coronation Book of 1364, now in the British Library.
+
+Charles V was also a builder king, and he created or rebuilt several significant buildings in the late 14th century style including the Bastille, the Château du Louvre, Château de Vincennes, and Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, which were widely copied by the nobility of the day.
+
+While he was in many ways a typical medieval king, Charles V has been praised by historians for his pragmatism, which led to the recovery of the territories lost at Brétigny.
+
+His successes, however, proved ephemeral. Charles' brothers, who dominated the regency council that ruled in the king's name until 1388, quarrelled among themselves and divided the government. Charles VI, meanwhile, preferred tournaments to the duties of kingship, and his descent into madness in 1392 put his uncles back in power. By 1419, the country was divided between Armagnac and Burgundian factions and Henry V was conquering the northern part of France. The hard-won victories of Charles V had been lost through the venality of his successors.
+
+8 April 1350 to Joan of Bourbon (3 February 1338 – 4 February 1378), leaving:[10]
+

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+
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+Charles X (born Charles Philippe, Count of Artois; 9 October 1757 – 6 November 1836) was King of France from 16 September 1824 until 2 August 1830.[1] An uncle of the uncrowned Louis XVII and younger brother to reigning kings Louis XVI and Louis XVIII, he supported the latter in exile. After the Bourbon Restoration in 1814, Charles (as heir-presumptive) became the leader of the ultra-royalists, a radical monarchist faction within the French court that affirmed rule by divine right and opposed the concessions towards liberals and guarantees of civil liberties granted by the Charter of 1814.[2] Charles gained influence within the French court after the assassination of his son Charles Ferdinand, Duke of Berry, in 1820 and eventually succeeded his brother in 1824.[3][4]
+
+His reign of almost six years proved to be deeply unpopular from the moment of his coronation in 1825, in which he tried to revive the practice of the royal touch. The governments appointed under his reign reimbursed former landowners for the abolition of feudalism at the expense of bondholders, increased the power of the Catholic Church, and reimposed capital punishment for sacrilege, leading to conflict with the liberal-majority Chamber of Deputies.[5] Charles also initiated the French conquest of Algeria as a way to distract his citizens from domestic problems. He eventually appointed a conservative government under the premiership of Prince Jules de Polignac, who was defeated in the 1830 French legislative election. He responded with the July Ordinances disbanding the Chamber of Deputies, limiting franchise, and reimposing press censorship.[6] Within a week France faced urban riots which led to the July Revolution of 1830, which resulted in his abdication and the election of Louis Philippe I as King of the French. Exiled once again, Charles died in 1836 in Gorizia, then part of the Austrian Empire.[3] He was the last of the French rulers from the senior branch of the House of Bourbon.
+
+Charles Philippe of France was born in 1757, the youngest son of the Dauphin Louis and his wife, the Dauphine Marie Josèphe, at the Palace of Versailles. Charles was created Count of Artois at birth by his grandfather, the reigning King Louis XV. As the youngest male in the family, Charles seemed unlikely ever to become king. His eldest brother, Louis, Duke of Burgundy, died unexpectedly in 1761, which moved Charles up one place in the line of succession. He was raised in early childhood by Madame de Marsan, the Governess of the Children of France. 
+At the death of his father in 1765, Charles's oldest surviving brother, Louis Auguste, became the new Dauphin (the heir apparent to the French throne). Their mother Marie Josèphe, who never recovered from the loss of her husband, died in March 1767 from tuberculosis.[7] This left Charles an orphan at the age of nine, along with his siblings Louis Auguste, Louis Stanislas, Count of Provence, Clotilde ("Madame Clotilde"), and Élisabeth ("Madame Élisabeth").
+
+Louis XV fell ill on 27 April 1774 and died on 10 May of smallpox at the age of 64.[8] His grandson Louis-Auguste succeeded him as King Louis XVI of France.[9]
+
+In November 1773, Charles married Marie Thérèse of Savoy.
+
+In 1775, Marie Thérèse gave birth to a boy, Louis Antoine, who was created Duke of Angoulême by Louis XVI. Louis-Antoine was the first of the next generation of Bourbons, as the king and the Count of Provence had not fathered any children yet, causing the Parisian libellistes (pamphleteers who published scandalous leaflets about important figures in court and politics) to lampoon Louis XVI's alleged impotence.[10] Three years later, in 1778, Charles' second son, Charles Ferdinand, was born and given the title of Duke of Berry.[11] In the same year Queen Marie Antoinette gave birth to her first child, Marie Thérèse, quelling all rumours that she could not bear children.
+
+Charles was thought of as the most attractive member of his family, bearing a strong resemblance to his grandfather Louis XV.[12] His wife was considered quite ugly by most contemporaries, and he looked for company in numerous extramarital affairs. According to the Count of Hézecques, "few beauties were cruel to him." Among his lovers where notably Anne Victoire Dervieux. Later, he embarked upon a lifelong love affair with the beautiful Louise de Polastron, the sister-in-law of Marie Antoinette's closest companion, the Duchess of Polignac.
+
+Charles also struck up a firm friendship with Marie Antoinette herself, whom he had first met upon her arrival in France in April 1770 when he was twelve.[12] The closeness of the relationship was such that he was falsely accused by Parisian rumour mongers of having seduced her. As part of Marie Antoinette's social set, Charles often appeared opposite her in the private theatre of her favourite royal retreat, the Petit Trianon. They were both said to be very talented amateur actors. Marie Antoinette played milkmaids, shepherdesses, and country ladies, whereas Charles played lovers, valets, and farmers.
+
+A famous story concerning the two involves the construction of the Château de Bagatelle. In 1775, Charles purchased a small hunting lodge in the Bois de Boulogne. He soon had the existing house torn down with plans to rebuild. Marie Antoinette wagered her brother-in-law that the new château could not be completed within three months. Charles engaged the neoclassical architect François-Joseph Bélanger to design the building.[13]
+
+He won his bet, with Bélanger completing the house in sixty-three days. It is estimated that the project, which came to include manicured gardens, cost over two million livres. Throughout the 1770s, Charles spent lavishly. He accumulated enormous debts, totalling 21 million livres. In the 1780s, King Louis XVI paid off the debts of both his brothers, the Counts of Provence and Artois.[13]
+
+In 1781, Charles acted as a proxy for Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II at the christening of his godson, the Dauphin Louis Joseph.[14]
+
+Charles's political awakening started with the first great crisis of the monarchy in 1786, when it became apparent that the kingdom was bankrupt from previous military endeavours (in particular the Seven Years' War and the American War of Independence) and needed fiscal reform to survive. Charles supported the removal of the aristocracy's financial privileges, but was opposed to any reduction in the social privileges enjoyed by either the Roman Catholic Church or the nobility. He believed that France's finances should be reformed without the monarchy being overthrown. In his own words, it was "time for repair, not demolition."
+
+King Louis XVI eventually convened the Estates General, which had not been assembled for over 150 years, to meet in May 1789 to ratify financial reforms. Along with his sister Élisabeth, Charles was the most conservative member of the family[15] and opposed the demands of the Third Estate (representing the commoners) to increase their voting power. This prompted criticism from his brother, who accused him of being "plus royaliste que le roi" ("more royalist than the king"). In June 1789, the representatives of the Third Estate declared themselves a National Assembly intent on providing France with a new constitution.[16]
+
+In conjunction with the Baron de Breteuil, Charles had political alliances arranged to depose the liberal minister of finance, Jacques Necker. These plans backfired when Charles attempted to secure Necker's dismissal on 11 July without Breteuil's knowledge, much earlier than they had originally intended. It was the beginning of a decline in his political alliance with Breteuil, which ended in mutual loathing.
+
+Necker's dismissal provoked the storming of the Bastille on 14 July. With the concurrence of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette Charles and his family left France three days later, on 17 July, along with several other courtiers. These included the Duchess of Polignac, the queen's favourite.[17] His flight was historically attributed to personal fears for his own safety. However recent research indicates that the King had approved his brother's departure in advance, seeing it as a means of ensuring that one close relative would be free to act as a spokesman for the monarchy, after Louis himself had been moved from Versailles to Paris.[18]
+
+Charles and his family decided to seek refuge in Savoy, his wife's native country,[19] where they were joined by some members of the Condé family.[20] Meanwhile, in Paris, Louis XVI was struggling with the National Assembly, which was committed to radical reforms and had enacted the Constitution of 1791. In March 1791, the Assembly also enacted a regency bill that provided for the case of the king's premature death. While his heir Louis-Charles was still a minor, the Count of Provence, the Duke of Orléans or, if either was unavailable, someone chosen by election should become regent, completely passing over the rights of Charles who, in the royal lineage, stood between the Count of Provence and the Duke of Orléans.[21]
+
+Charles meanwhile left Turin (in Italy) and moved to Trier in Germany, where his uncle, Clemens Wenceslaus of Saxony, was the incumbent Archbishop-Elector. Charles prepared for a counter-revolutionary invasion of France, but a letter by Marie Antoinette postponed it until after the royal family had escaped from Paris and joined a concentration of regular troops under François Claude Amour, marquis de Bouillé at Montmédy.[22][23]
+
+After the attempted flight was stopped at Varennes, Charles moved on to Koblenz, where he, the recently escaped Count of Provence and the Princes of Condé jointly declared their intention to invade France. The Count of Provence was sending dispatches to various European sovereigns for assistance, while Charles set up a court-in-exile in the Electorate of Trier. On 25 August, the rulers of the Holy Roman Empire and Prussia issued the Declaration of Pillnitz, which called on other European powers to intervene in France.[24]
+
+On New Year's Day 1792, the National Assembly declared all emigrants traitors, repudiated their titles and confiscated their lands.[25] This measure was followed by the suspension and eventually the abolition of the monarchy in September 1792. The royal family was imprisoned, and the king and queen were eventually executed in 1793.[26] The young Dauphin died of illnesses and neglect in 1795.[27]
+
+When the French Revolutionary Wars broke out in 1792, Charles escaped to Great Britain, where King George III of Great Britain gave him a generous allowance. Charles lived in Edinburgh and London with his mistress Louise de Polastron.[28] His older brother, dubbed Louis XVIII after the death of his nephew in June 1795, relocated to Verona and then to Jelgava Palace, Mitau, where Charles' son Louis Antoine married Louis XVI's only surviving child, Marie Thérèse, on 10 June 1799. In 1802, Charles supported his brother with several thousand pounds. In 1807, Louis XVIII moved to the United Kingdom.[29]
+
+In January 1814, Charles covertly left his home in London to join the Coalition forces in southern France. Louis XVIII, by then wheelchair-bound, supplied Charles with letters patent creating him Lieutenant General of the Kingdom of France. On 31 March, the Allies captured Paris. A week later, Napoleon I abdicated. The Senate declared the restoration of Louis XVIII as the Bourbon King of France. Charles arrived in the capital on 12 April[30] and acted as Lieutenant General of the realm until Louis XVIII arrived from England. During his brief tenure as regent, Charles created an ultra-royalist secret police that reported directly back to him without Louis XVIII's knowledge. It operated for over five years.[31]
+
+Louis XVIII was greeted with great rejoicing from the Parisians and proceeded to occupy the Tuileries Palace.[32] The Count of Artois lived in the Pavillon de Mars, and the Duke of Angoulême in the Pavillon de Flore, which overlooked the River Seine.[33] The Duchess of Angoulême fainted upon arriving at the palace, as it brought back terrible memories of her family's incarceration there, and of the storming of the palace and the massacre of the Swiss Guards on 10 August 1792.[32]
+
+Following the advice of the occupying allied army, Louis XVIII promulgated a liberal constitution, the Charter of 1814, which provided for a bicameral legislature, an electorate of 90,000 men and freedom of religion.[34]
+
+After the Hundred Days, Napoleon's brief return to power in 1815,[35] the White Terror focused mainly on the purging of a civilian administration which had almost completely turned against the Bourbon monarchy. About 70,000 officials were dismissed from their positions. The remnants of the Napoleonic army were disbanded after the Battle of Waterloo and its senior officers cashiered. Marshal Ney was executed for treason, and Marshal Brune was murdered by a crowd.[36] Approximately 6,000 individuals who had rallied to Napoleon were brought to trial. There were about 300 mob lynchings in the south of France, notably in Marseilles where a number of Napoleon's Mamluks preparing to return to Egypt, were massacred in their barracks.
+
+While the king retained the liberal charter, Charles patronised members of the ultra-royalists in parliament, such as Jules de Polignac, the writer François-René de Chateaubriand and Jean-Baptiste de Villèle.[37] On several occasions, Charles voiced his disapproval of his brother's liberal ministers and threatened to leave the country unless Louis XVIII dismissed them.[38] Louis, in turn, feared that his brother's and heir presumptive's ultra-royalist tendencies would send the family into exile once more (which they eventually did).
+
+On 14 February 1820, Charles's younger son, the Duke of Berry, was assassinated at the Paris Opera. This loss not only plunged the family into grief but also put the succession in jeopardy, as Charles's elder son, the Duke of Angoulême, was childless. The lack of male heirs in the Bourbon main line raised the prospect of the throne passing to the Duke of Orléans and his heirs, which horrified the more conservative ultras. Parliament debated the abolition of the Salic law, which excluded females from the succession and was long held inviolable. However, the Duke of Berry's widow, Caroline of Naples and Sicily, was found to be pregnant and on 29 September 1820 gave birth to a son, Henry, Duke of Bordeaux.[39] His birth was hailed as "God-given", and the people of France purchased for him the Château de Chambord in celebration of his birth.[40] As a result, his granduncle, Louis XVIII, added the title Count of Chambord, hence Henri, Count of Chambord, the name by which he is usually known.
+
+Charles' brother King Louis XVIII's health had been worsening since the beginning of 1824.[41] Suffering from both dry and wet gangrene in his legs and spine, he died on 16 September of that year, aged almost 69. Charles, by now in his 67th year, succeeded him to the throne as King Charles X of France.[42] In his first act as king, Charles attempted to unify the House of Bourbon by granting the style of Royal Highness to his cousins of the House of Orléans, who had been deprived of this by Louis XVIII because of the former Duke of Orléans' role in the death of Louis XVI.
+
+While his brother had been sober enough to realize that France would never accept an attempt to resurrect the Ancien Régime, Charles had never been willing to accept the changes of the past four decades.  He gave his Prime Minister, Jean-Baptiste de Villèle, lists of laws that he wanted ratified every time he opened parliament. In April 1825, the government approved legislation proposed by Louis XVIII but implemented only after his death, that paid an indemnity to nobles whose estates had been confiscated during the Revolution (the biens nationaux).[43]
+
+The law gave government bonds to those who had lost their lands in exchange for their renunciation of their ownership. This cost the state approximately 988 million francs. In the same month, the Anti-Sacrilege Act was passed. Charles's government attempted to re-establish male only primogeniture for families paying over 300 francs in tax, but the measure was voted down in the Chamber of Deputies.[43]
+
+On 29 May 1825, King Charles was anointed at the cathedral of Reims, the traditional site of consecration of French kings; it had been unused since 1775, as Louis XVIII had forgone the ceremony to avoid controversy.[44] It was in the venerable cathedral of Notre-Dame at Paris that Napoleon had consecrated his revolutionary empire; but in ascending the throne of his ancestors, Charles reverted to the old place of coronation used by the kings of France from the early ages of the monarchy.[45]
+
+That Charles was not a popular ruler became apparent in April 1827, when chaos ensued during the king's review of the National Guard in Paris. In retaliation, the National Guard was disbanded but, as its members were not disarmed, it remained a potential threat.[44] After losing his parliamentary majority in a general election in November 1827, Charles dismissed Prime Minister Villèle on 5 January 1828 and appointed Jean-Baptise de Martignac, a man the king disliked and thought of only as provisional. On 5 August 1829, Charles dismissed Martignac and appointed Jules de Polignac, who, however, lost his majority in parliament at the end of August, when the Chateaubriand faction defected. To stay in power, Polignac would not recall the Chambers until March 1830.[46]
+
+On 31 January 1830, the Polignac government decided to send a military expedition to Algeria to put an end to the threat the Algerian pirates posed to Mediterranean trade and also increase the government's popularity with a military victory. The reason given for the war was that the Viceroy of Algeria, angry about French failure to pay debts stemming from Napoleon's invasion of Egypt, had struck the French consul with the handle of his fly swat.[46] French troops occupied Algiers on 5 July.[47]
+
+The Chambers convened on 2 March 1830, as planned, but Charles's opening speech was greeted by negative reactions from many deputies. Some introduced a bill requiring the King's minister to obtain the support of the Chambers. On 18 March, 221 deputies, a majority of 30, voted in favor of the bill. However, the King had already decided to hold general elections, and the chamber was suspended on 19 March.[48]
+
+Elections were held on 23 June, but did not produce a majority favorable to the government. On 6 July, the king and his ministers decided to suspend the constitution, as provided for in Article 14 of the Charter in case of an emergency, and on 25 July, from the royal residence in Saint-Cloud, issued four ordinances that censored the press, dissolved the newly elected chamber, altered the electoral system, and called for elections in September.[47]
+
+When the official government newspaper, Le Moniteur Universel, published the ordinances on Monday, 26 July, Adolphe Thiers, journalist at the opposition paper Le National, published a call to revolt, which was signed by forty-three journalists:[49]
+"The legal regime has been interrupted: that of force has begun... Obedience ceases to be a duty!"[50]
+
+In the evening, crowds assembled in the gardens of the Palais-Royal, shouting "Down with the Bourbons!" and "Long live the Charter!". As the police closed off the gardens during the nights, the crowd regrouped in a nearby street, where they shattered streetlamps.[51]
+
+The next morning, 27 July, police raided and shut down the newspapers that continued to publish (including Le National). When the protesters, who had re-entered the Palais-Royal gardens, heard of this, they threw stones at the soldiers, prompting them to shoot. By evening, the city was dominated by violence and shops were looted. On 28 July, the rioters began to erect barricades in the streets. Marshal Marmont, who had been called in the day before to remedy the situation, took the offensive against the rioters, but some of his men defected to the rioters, and by afternoon he had to retreat to the Tuileries Palace.[52]
+
+The members of the Chamber of Deputies sent a five-man delegation to Marmont, urging him to advise the king to assuage the protesters by revoking the four Ordinances. On Marmont's request, the prime minister applied to the king, but Charles refused all compromise and dismissed his ministers that afternoon, realizing the precariousness of the situation. That evening, the members of the Chamber assembled at Jacques Laffitte's house and decided that Louis Philippe d'Orléans should take the throne from King Charles. They printed posters endorsing Louis Philippe and distributed them throughout the city. By the end of the day, the government's authority was trampled.[53]
+
+A few minutes after midnight on 31 July, warned by General Gresseau that Parisians were planning to attack the residence, Charles X decided to leave Saint-Cloud and seek refuge in Versailles with his family and the court, with the exception of the Duke of Angoulême, who stayed behind with the troops, and the Duchess of Angoulême, who was taking the waters at Vichy. Meanwhile, in Paris, Louis Philippe assumed the post of Lieutenant General of the Kingdom.[54]
+
+The road to Versailles was filled with disorganized troops and deserters. The Marquis de Vérac, governor of the Palace of Versailles, came to meet the king before the royal cortège entered the town, to tell him that the palace was not safe, as the Versailles national guards wearing the revolutionary tricolor were occupying the Place d'Armes. Charles X then gave the order to go to the Trianon. It was five in the morning.[55] Later that day, after the arrival of the Duke of Angoulême from Saint-Cloud with his troops, Charles X ordered a departure for Rambouillet, where they arrived shortly before midnight. On the morning of 1 August, the Duchess of Angoulême, who had rushed from Vichy after learning of events, arrived at Rambouillet.
+
+The following day, 2 August, King Charles X abdicated, bypassing his son the Dauphin in favor of his grandson Henry, Duke of Bordeaux, who was not yet ten years old. At first, the Duke of Angoulême (the Dauphin) refused to countersign the document renouncing his rights to the throne of France. According to the Duchess of Maillé, "there was a strong altercation between the father and the son. We could hear their voices in the next room."  Finally, after twenty minutes, the Duke of Angoulême reluctantly countersigned the following declaration:[56]
+
+"My cousin, I am too deeply pained by the ills that afflict or could threaten my people, not to seek means of avoiding them. Therefore, I have made the resolution to abdicate the crown in favor of my grandson, the Duke of Bordeaux. The Dauphin, who shares my feelings, also renounces his rights in favor of his nephew. It will thus fall to you, in your capacity as Lieutenant General of the Kingdom, to proclaim the accession of Henri V to the throne. Furthermore, you will take all pertinent measures to regulate the forms of government during the new king's minority. Here, I limit myself to stating these arrangements, as a means of avoiding further evils. You will communicate my intentions to the diplomatic corps, and you will let me know as soon as possible the proclamation by which my grandson will be recognized as king under the name of Henri V."[57]
+
+Louis Philippe ignored the document and on 9 August had himself proclaimed King of the French by the members of the Chamber.[58]
+
+When it became apparent that a mob of 14,000 people was preparing to attack, the royal family left Rambouillet and, on 16 August, embarked for the United Kingdom on packet steamers provided by Louis Philippe. Informed by the British Prime Minister, the Duke of Wellington, that they needed to arrive in Britain as private citizens, all family members adopted pseudonyms; Charles X styled himself "Count of Ponthieu". The Bourbons were greeted coldly by the English, who upon their arrival mockingly waved the newly adopted tri-colour flags at them.[59]
+
+Charles X was quickly followed to Britain by his creditors, who had lent him vast sums during his first exile and were yet to be paid back in full. However, the family was able to use money Charles's wife had deposited in London.[59]
+
+The Bourbons were allowed to reside in Lulworth Castle in Dorset, but quickly moved to Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh,[59] where the Duchess of Berry also lived at Regent Terrace.[60]
+
+Charles' relationship with his daughter-in-law proved uneasy, as the Duchess claimed the regency for her son Henry, whom the abdications of Rambouillet had left the legitimist pretender to the French throne. Charles at first denied her demands, but in December agreed to support her claim[61] once she had landed in France.[60] In 1831 the Duchess made her way from Britain by way of the Netherlands, Prussia and Austria to her family in Naples.[60]
+
+Having gained little support, she arrived in Marseilles in April 1832,[60] made her way to the Vendée, where she tried to instigate an uprising against the new regime, and was imprisoned, much to the embarrassment of her father-in-law.[61] He was further dismayed when after her release the Duchess married the Count of Lucchesi Palli, a minor Neapolitan noble. In response to this morganatic match, Charles banned her from seeing her children.[62]
+
+At the invitation of Emperor Francis I of Austria, the Bourbons moved to Prague in winter 1832/33 and were given lodging at the Hradschin Palace by the Austrian Emperor.[61] In September 1833, Bourbon legitimists gathered in Prague to celebrate the Duke of Bordeaux's thirteenth birthday. They expected grand celebrations, but Charles X merely proclaimed his grandson's majority.[63]
+
+On the same day, after much cajoling by Chateaubriand, Charles agreed to a meeting with his daughter-in-law, which took place in Leoben on 13 October 1833. The children of the Duchess refused to meet her after they learned of her second marriage. Charles refused the various demands by the Duchess, but after protests from his other daughter-in-law, the Duchess of Angoulême, acquiesced. In the summer of 1834, he again allowed the Duchess of Berry to see her children.[63]
+
+Upon the death of Emperor Francis in March 1835, the Bourbons left Prague Castle, as the new Emperor Ferdinand wished to use it for coronation ceremonies. The Bourbons moved initially to Teplitz. Then, as Ferdinand wanted the continued use of Prague Castle, Kirchberg Castle was purchased for them. Moving there was postponed due to an outbreak of cholera in the locality.[64]
+
+In the meantime, Charles left for the warmer climate on Austria's Mediterranean coast in October 1835. Upon his arrival at Görz (Gorizia) in the Kingdom of Illyria, he caught cholera and died on 6 November 1836. The townspeople draped their windows in black to mourn him. Charles was interred in the Church of the Annunciation of Our Lady, in the Franciscan Kostanjevica Monastery (now in Nova Gorica, Slovenia), where his remains lie in a crypt with those of his family.[64] He is the only King of France to be buried outside of France.[65][66]
+
+A movement advocating for Charles X's remains to be buried along with other French monarchs in Basilica of St Denis reportedly began a process of repatriation in late 2016,[65][66] although the current head of the House of Bourbon, Louis Alphonse, Duke of Anjou has stated, in early 2017, that he wishes the remains of his ancestors to remain at the monastery crypt.[67]
+
+Charles X married Princess Maria Teresa of Savoy, the daughter of Victor Amadeus III, King of Sardinia, and Maria Antonietta of Spain, on 16 November 1773.
+The couple had four children – two sons and two daughters – but the daughters did not survive childhood. Only the oldest son survived his father. The children were:
+
+The Count of Artois is portrayed by Al Weaver in Sofia Coppola's motion picture Marie Antoinette.

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+
+
+Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin KBE (16 April 1889 – 25 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, "The Tramp", and is considered one of the most important figures in the history of the film industry. His career spanned more than 75 years, from childhood in the Victorian era until a year before his death in 1977, and encompassed both adulation and controversy.
+
+Chaplin's childhood in London was one of poverty and hardship, as his father was absent and his mother struggled financially, and he was sent to a workhouse twice before the age of nine. When he was 14, his mother was committed to a mental asylum. Chaplin began performing at an early age, touring music halls and later working as a stage actor and comedian. At 19, he was signed to the prestigious Fred Karno company, which took him to America. He was scouted for the film industry and began appearing in 1914 for Keystone Studios. He soon developed the Tramp persona and formed a large fan base. He directed his own films and continued to hone his craft as he moved to the Essanay, Mutual, and First National corporations. By 1918, he was one of the best-known figures in the world.
+
+In 1919, Chaplin co-founded the distribution company United Artists, which gave him complete control over his films. His first feature-length film was The Kid (1921), followed by A Woman of Paris (1923), The Gold Rush (1925), and The Circus (1928). He initially refused to move to sound films in the 1930s, instead producing City Lights (1931) and Modern Times (1936) without dialogue. He became increasingly political, and his first sound film was The Great Dictator (1940), which satirised Adolf Hitler. The 1940s were a decade marked with controversy for Chaplin, and his popularity declined rapidly. He was accused of communist sympathies, and some members of the press and public found his involvement in a paternity suit, and marriages to much younger women, scandalous. An FBI investigation was opened, and Chaplin was forced to leave the United States and settle in Switzerland. He abandoned the Tramp in his later films, which include Monsieur Verdoux (1947), Limelight (1952), A King in New York (1957), and A Countess from Hong Kong (1967).
+
+Chaplin wrote, directed, produced, edited, starred in, and composed the music for most of his films. He was a perfectionist, and his financial independence enabled him to spend years on the development and production of a picture. His films are characterised by slapstick combined with pathos, typified in the Tramp's struggles against adversity. Many contain social and political themes, as well as autobiographical elements. He received an Honorary Academy Award for "the incalculable effect he has had in making motion pictures the art form of this century" in 1972, as part of a renewed appreciation for his work. He continues to be held in high regard, with The Gold Rush, City Lights, Modern Times, and The Great Dictator often ranked on lists of the greatest films of all time.
+
+Charles Spencer Chaplin was born on 16 April 1889 to Hannah Chaplin (born Hannah Harriet Pedlingham Hill) and Charles Chaplin Sr. There is no official record of his birth, although Chaplin believed he was born at East Street, Walworth, in South London.[1][a] His parents had married four years previously, at which time Charles Sr. became the legal guardian of Hannah's illegitimate son, Sydney John Hill.[5][b] At the time of his birth, Chaplin's parents were both music hall entertainers. Hannah, the daughter of a shoemaker,[6] had a brief and unsuccessful career under the stage name Lily Harley,[7] while Charles Sr., a butcher's son,[8] was a popular singer.[9] Although they never divorced, Chaplin's parents were estranged by around 1891.[10] The following year, Hannah gave birth to a third son – George Wheeler Dryden – fathered by the music hall entertainer Leo Dryden. The child was taken by Dryden at six months old, and did not re-enter Chaplin's life for 30 years.[11]
+
+Chaplin's childhood was fraught with poverty and hardship, making his eventual trajectory "the most dramatic of all the rags to riches stories ever told" according to his authorised biographer David Robinson.[12] Chaplin's early years were spent with his mother and brother Sydney in the London district of Kennington; Hannah had no means of income, other than occasional nursing and dressmaking, and Chaplin Sr. provided no financial support.[13] As the situation deteriorated, Chaplin was sent to Lambeth Workhouse when he was seven years old.[c] The council housed him at the Central London District School for paupers, which Chaplin remembered as "a forlorn existence".[15] He was briefly reunited with his mother 18 months later, before Hannah was forced to readmit her family to the workhouse in July 1898. The boys were promptly sent to Norwood Schools, another institution for destitute children.[16]
+
+I was hardly aware of a crisis because we lived in a continual crisis; and, being a boy, I dismissed our troubles with gracious forgetfulness.
+
+In September 1898, Hannah was committed to Cane Hill mental asylum – she had developed a psychosis seemingly brought on by an infection of syphilis and malnutrition.[18] For the two months she was there, Chaplin and his brother Sydney were sent to live with their father, whom the young boys scarcely knew.[19] Charles Sr. was by then a severe alcoholic, and life there was bad enough to provoke a visit from the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children.[20] Chaplin's father died two years later, at 38 years old, from cirrhosis of the liver.[21]
+
+Hannah entered a period of remission but, in May 1903, became ill again.[20] Chaplin, then 14, had the task of taking his mother to the infirmary, from where she was sent back to Cane Hill.[22] He lived alone for several days, searching for food and occasionally sleeping rough, until Sydney – who had enrolled in the Navy two years earlier – returned.[23] Hannah was released from the asylum eight months later,[24] but in March 1905, her illness returned, this time permanently. "There was nothing we could do but accept poor mother's fate", Chaplin later wrote, and she remained in care until her death in 1928.[25]
+
+Between his time in the poor schools and his mother succumbing to mental illness, Chaplin began to perform on stage. He later recalled making his first amateur appearance at the age of five years, when he took over from Hannah one night in Aldershot.[d] This was an isolated occurrence, but by the time he was nine Chaplin had, with his mother's encouragement, grown interested in performing. He later wrote: "[she] imbued me with the feeling that I had some sort of talent".[27] Through his father's connections,[28] Chaplin became a member of the Eight Lancashire Lads clog-dancing troupe, with whom he toured English music halls throughout 1899 and 1900.[e] Chaplin worked hard, and the act was popular with audiences, but he was not satisfied with dancing and wished to form a comedy act.[30]
+
+In the years Chaplin was touring with the Eight Lancashire Lads, his mother ensured that he still attended school but, by age 13, he had abandoned education.[31][32] He supported himself with a range of jobs, while nursing his ambition to become an actor.[33] At 14, shortly after his mother's relapse, he registered with a theatrical agency in London's West End. The manager sensed potential in Chaplin, who was promptly given his first role as a newsboy in Harry Arthur Saintsbury's Jim, a Romance of Cockayne.[34] It opened in July 1903, but the show was unsuccessful and closed after two weeks. Chaplin's comic performance, however, was singled out for praise in many of the reviews.[35]
+
+Saintsbury secured a role for Chaplin in Charles Frohman's production of Sherlock Holmes, where he played Billy the pageboy in three nationwide tours.[36] His performance was so well received that he was called to London to play the role alongside William Gillette, the original Holmes.[f] "It was like tidings from heaven", Chaplin recalled.[38] At 16 years old, Chaplin starred in the play's West End production at the Duke of York's Theatre from October to December 1905.[39] He completed one final tour of Sherlock Holmes in early 1906, before leaving the play after more than two-and-a-half years.[40]
+
+Chaplin soon found work with a new company, and went on tour with his brother – who was also pursuing an acting career – in a comedy sketch called Repairs.[41] In May 1906, Chaplin joined the juvenile act Casey's Circus,[42] where he developed popular burlesque pieces and was soon the star of the show. By the time the act finished touring in July 1907, the 18-year-old had become an accomplished comedic performer.[43] He struggled to find more work, however, and a brief attempt at a solo act was a failure.[g]
+
+Meanwhile, Sydney Chaplin had joined Fred Karno's prestigious comedy company in 1906 and, by 1908, he was one of their key performers.[45] In February, he managed to secure a two-week trial for his younger brother. Karno was initially wary, and considered Chaplin a "pale, puny, sullen-looking youngster" who "looked much too shy to do any good in the theatre."[46] However, the teenager made an impact on his first night at the London Coliseum and he was quickly signed to a contract.[47] Chaplin began by playing a series of minor parts, eventually progressing to starring roles in 1909.[48] In April 1910, he was given the lead in a new sketch, Jimmy the Fearless. It was a big success, and Chaplin received considerable press attention.[49]
+
+Karno selected his new star to join the section of the company, one that also included Stan Laurel, that toured North America's vaudeville circuit.[50] The young comedian headed the show and impressed reviewers, being described as "one of the best pantomime artists ever seen here".[51] His most successful role was a drunk called the "Inebriate Swell", which drew him significant recognition.[52] The tour lasted 21 months, and the troupe returned to England in June 1912.[53] Chaplin recalled that he "had a disquieting feeling of sinking back into a depressing commonplaceness" and was, therefore, delighted when a new tour began in October.[54]
+
+Six months into the second American tour, Chaplin was invited to join the New York Motion Picture Company. A representative who had seen his performances thought he could replace Fred Mace, a star of their Keystone Studios who intended to leave.[55] Chaplin thought the Keystone comedies "a crude mélange of rough and rumble", but liked the idea of working in films and rationalised: "Besides, it would mean a new life."[56] He met with the company and signed a $150-per-week[h] contract in September 1913.[58] Chaplin arrived in Los Angeles in early December,[59] and began working for the Keystone studio on 5 January 1914.[60]
+
+Chaplin's boss was Mack Sennett, who initially expressed concern that the 24-year-old looked too young.[61] He was not used in a picture until late January, during which time Chaplin attempted to learn the processes of filmmaking.[62] The one-reeler Making a Living marked his film acting debut and was released on 2 February 1914. Chaplin strongly disliked the picture, but one review picked him out as "a comedian of the first water".[63] For his second appearance in front of the camera, Chaplin selected the costume with which he became identified. He described the process in his autobiography:
+
+I wanted everything to be a contradiction: the pants baggy, the coat tight, the hat small and the shoes large ... I added a small moustache, which, I reasoned, would add age without hiding my expression. I had no idea of the character. But the moment I was dressed, the clothes and the makeup made me feel the person he was. I began to know him, and by the time I walked on stage he was fully born.[64][i]
+
+The film was Mabel's Strange Predicament, but "the Tramp" character, as it became known, debuted to audiences in Kid Auto Races at Venice – shot later than Mabel's Strange Predicament but released two days earlier on 7 February 1914.[66] Chaplin adopted the character as his screen persona and attempted to make suggestions for the films he appeared in. These ideas were dismissed by his directors.[67] During the filming of his eleventh picture, Mabel at the Wheel, he clashed with director Mabel Normand and was almost released from his contract. Sennett kept him on, however, when he received orders from exhibitors for more Chaplin films.[68] Sennett also allowed Chaplin to direct his next film himself after Chaplin promised to pay $1,500 ($38,803 in 2019 dollars) if the film was unsuccessful.[69]
+
+Caught in the Rain, issued 4 May 1914, was Chaplin's directorial debut and was highly successful.[70] Thereafter he directed almost every short film in which he appeared for Keystone,[71] at the rate of approximately one per week,[72] a period which he later remembered as the most exciting time of his career.[73] Chaplin's films introduced a slower form of comedy than the typical Keystone farce,[66] and he developed a large fan base.[74] In November 1914, he had a supporting role in the first feature length comedy film, Tillie's Punctured Romance, directed by Sennett and starring Marie Dressler, which was a commercial success and increased his popularity.[75] When Chaplin's contract came up for renewal at the end of the year, he asked for $1,000 a week ($25,869 in 2019 dollars) – an amount Sennett refused as too large.[76]
+
+The Essanay Film Manufacturing Company of Chicago sent Chaplin an offer of $1,250 a week with a signing bonus of $10,000. He joined the studio in late December 1914,[77] where he began forming a stock company of regular players, actors he worked with again and again, including Leo White, Bud Jamison, Paddy McGuire and Billy Armstrong. He soon recruited a leading lady – Edna Purviance, whom Chaplin met in a café and hired on account of her beauty. She went on to appear in 35 films with Chaplin over eight years;[78] the pair also formed a romantic relationship that lasted into 1917.[79]
+
+Chaplin asserted a high level of control over his pictures and started to put more time and care into each film.[80] There was a month-long interval between the release of his second production, A Night Out, and his third, The Champion.[81] The final seven of Chaplin's 14 Essanay films were all produced at this slower pace.[82] Chaplin also began to alter his screen persona, which had attracted some criticism at Keystone for its "mean, crude, and brutish" nature.[83] The character became more gentle and romantic;[84] The Tramp (April 1915) was considered a particular turning point in his development.[85] The use of pathos was developed further with The Bank, in which Chaplin created a sad ending. Robinson notes that this was an innovation in comedy films, and marked the time when serious critics began to appreciate Chaplin's work.[86] At Essanay, writes film scholar Simon Louvish, Chaplin "found the themes and the settings that would define the Tramp's world."[87]
+
+During 1915, Chaplin became a cultural phenomenon. Shops were stocked with Chaplin merchandise, he was featured in cartoons and comic strips, and several songs were written about him.[88] In July, a journalist for Motion Picture Magazine wrote that "Chaplinitis" had spread across America.[89] As his fame grew worldwide, he became the film industry's first international star.[90] When the Essanay contract ended in December 1915,[91][j] Chaplin – fully aware of his popularity – requested a $150,000 signing bonus from his next studio. He received several offers, including Universal, Fox, and Vitagraph, the best of which came from the Mutual Film Corporation at $10,000 a week.[93]
+
+A contract was negotiated with Mutual that amounted to $670,000 a year ($15.7 million today),[94] which Robinson says made Chaplin – at 26 years old – one of the highest paid people in the world.[95] The high salary shocked the public and was widely reported in the press.[96] John R. Freuler, the studio president, explained: "We can afford to pay Mr. Chaplin this large sum annually because the public wants Chaplin and will pay for him."[97]
+
+Mutual gave Chaplin his own Los Angeles studio to work in, which opened in March 1916.[98] He added two key members to his stock company, Albert Austin and Eric Campbell,[99] and produced a series of elaborate two-reelers: The Floorwalker, The Fireman, The Vagabond, One A.M., and The Count.[100] For The Pawnshop, he recruited the actor Henry Bergman, who was to work with Chaplin for 30 years.[101] Behind the Screen and The Rink completed Chaplin's releases for 1916. The Mutual contract stipulated that he release a two-reel film every four weeks, which he had managed to achieve. With the new year, however, Chaplin began to demand more time.[102] He made only four more films for Mutual over the first ten months of 1917: Easy Street, The Cure, The Immigrant, and The Adventurer.[103] With their careful construction, these films are considered by Chaplin scholars to be among his finest work.[104][105]  Later in life, Chaplin referred to his Mutual years as the happiest period of his career.[106] However, Chaplin also felt that those films became increasingly formulaic over the period of the contract and he was increasingly dissatisfied with the working conditions encouraging that.
+[107]
+
+Chaplin was attacked in the British media for not fighting in the First World War.[108] He defended himself, claiming that he would fight for Britain if called and had registered for the American draft, but he was not summoned by either country.[k] Despite this criticism Chaplin was a favourite with the troops,[110] and his popularity continued to grow worldwide. Harper's Weekly reported that the name of Charlie Chaplin was "a part of the common language of almost every country", and that the Tramp image was "universally familiar".[111] In 1917, professional Chaplin imitators were so widespread that he took legal action,[112] and it was reported that nine out of ten men who attended costume parties, did so dressed as the Tramp.[113] The same year, a study by the Boston Society for Psychical Research concluded that Chaplin was "an American obsession".[113] The actress Minnie Maddern Fiske wrote that "a constantly increasing body of cultured, artistic people are beginning to regard the young English buffoon, Charles Chaplin, as an extraordinary artist, as well as a comic genius".[111]
+
+In January 1918, Chaplin was visited by leading British singer and comedian Harry Lauder, and the two acted in a short film together.[114]
+
+Mutual was patient with Chaplin's decreased rate of output, and the contract ended amicably. With his aforementioned concern about the declining quality of his films because of contract scheduling stipulations, Chaplin's primary concern in finding a new distributor was independence; Sydney Chaplin, then his business manager, told the press, "Charlie [must] be allowed all the time he needs and all the money for producing [films] the way he wants ... It is quality, not quantity, we are after."[115] In June 1917, Chaplin signed to complete eight films for First National Exhibitors' Circuit in return for $1 million ($20 million today).[116] He chose to build his own studio, situated on five acres of land off Sunset Boulevard, with production facilities of the highest order.[117] It was completed in January 1918,[118] and Chaplin was given freedom over the making of his pictures.[119]
+
+A Dog's Life, released April 1918, was the first film under the new contract. In it, Chaplin demonstrated his increasing concern with story construction and his treatment of the Tramp as "a sort of Pierrot".[120] The film was described by Louis Delluc as "cinema's first total work of art".[121] Chaplin then embarked on the Third Liberty Bond campaign, touring the United States for one month to raise money for the Allies of the First World War.[122] He also produced a short propaganda film at his own expense, donated to the government for fund-raising, called The Bond.[123] Chaplin's next release was war-based, placing the Tramp in the trenches for Shoulder Arms. Associates warned him against making a comedy about the war but, as he later recalled: "Dangerous or not, the idea excited me."[124] He spent four months filming the 45-minute-long picture, which was released in October 1918 with great success.[125]
+
+After the release of Shoulder Arms, Chaplin requested more money from First National, which was refused. Frustrated with their lack of concern for quality, and worried about rumours of a possible merger between the company and Famous Players-Lasky, Chaplin joined forces with Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford, and D. W. Griffith to form a new distribution company – United Artists, established in January 1919.[126] The arrangement was revolutionary in the film industry, as it enabled the four partners – all creative artists – to personally fund their pictures and have complete control.[127] Chaplin was eager to start with the new company and offered to buy out his contract with First National. They refused and insisted that he complete the final six films owed.[128]
+
+Before the creation of United Artists, Chaplin married for the first time. The 16-year-old actress Mildred Harris had revealed that she was pregnant with his child, and in September 1918, he married her quietly in Los Angeles to avoid controversy.[129] Soon after, the pregnancy was found to be false.[130] Chaplin was unhappy with the union and, feeling that marriage stunted his creativity, struggled over the production of his film Sunnyside.[131] Harris was by then legitimately pregnant, and on 7 July 1919, gave birth to a son. Norman Spencer Chaplin was born malformed and died three days later.[132] The marriage ended in April 1920, with Chaplin explaining in his autobiography that they were "irreconcilably mismated".[133]
+
+Losing the child, plus his own childhood experiences, are thought to have influenced Chaplin's next film, which turned the Tramp into the caretaker of a young boy.[119][134] For this new venture, Chaplin also wished to do more than comedy and, according to Louvish, "make his mark on a changed world."[135] Filming on The Kid began in August 1919, with four-year-old Jackie Coogan his co-star.[136] The Kid was in production for nine months until May 1920 and, at 68 minutes, it was Chaplin's longest picture to date.[137] Dealing with issues of poverty and parent–child separation, The Kid was one of the earliest films to combine comedy and drama.[138] It was released in January 1921 with instant success, and, by 1924, had been screened in over 50 countries.[139]
+
+Chaplin spent five months on his next film, the two-reeler The Idle Class.[127] Following its September 1921 release, he chose to return to England for the first time in almost a decade.[140] He wrote a book about his journey, titled "My Wonderful Visit".  He then worked to fulfil his First National contract, releasing Pay Day in February 1922. The Pilgrim – his final short film – was delayed by distribution disagreements with the studio, and released a year later.[141]
+
+Having fulfilled his First National contract, Chaplin was free to make his first picture as an independent producer. In November 1922, he began filming A Woman of Paris, a romantic drama about ill-fated lovers.[142] Chaplin intended it to be a star-making vehicle for Edna Purviance,[143] and did not appear in the picture himself other than in a brief, uncredited cameo.[144] He wished the film to have a realistic feel and directed his cast to give restrained performances. In real life, he explained, "men and women try to hide their emotions rather than seek to express them".[145] A Woman of Paris premiered in September 1923 and was acclaimed for its innovative, subtle approach.[146] The public, however, seemed to have little interest in a Chaplin film without Chaplin, and it was a box office disappointment.[147] The filmmaker was hurt by this failure – he had long wanted to produce a dramatic film and was proud of the result – and soon withdrew A Woman of Paris from circulation.[148]
+
+Chaplin returned to comedy for his next project. Setting his standards high, he told himself "This next film must be an epic! The Greatest!"[149] Inspired by a photograph of the 1898 Klondike Gold Rush, and later the story of the Donner Party of 1846–1847, he made what Geoffrey Macnab calls "an epic comedy out of grim subject matter."[150] In The Gold Rush, the Tramp is a lonely prospector fighting adversity and looking for love. With Georgia Hale as his leading lady, Chaplin began filming the picture in February 1924.[151] Its elaborate production, costing almost $1 million,[152] included location shooting in the Truckee mountains in Nevada with 600 extras, extravagant sets, and special effects.[153] The last scene was shot in May 1925 after 15 months of filming.[154]
+
+Chaplin felt The Gold Rush was the best film he had made.[155] It opened in August 1925 and became one of the highest-grossing films of the silent era with a U.S. box-office of $5 million.[156] The comedy contains some of Chaplin's most famous sequences, such as the Tramp eating his shoe and the "Dance of the Rolls".[157] Macnab has called it "the quintessential Chaplin film".[158] Chaplin stated at its release, "This is the picture that I want to be remembered by".[159]
+
+While making The Gold Rush, Chaplin married for the second time. Mirroring the circumstances of his first union, Lita Grey was a teenage actress, originally set to star in the film, whose surprise announcement of pregnancy forced Chaplin into marriage. She was 16 and he was 35, meaning Chaplin could have been charged with statutory rape under California law.[160] He therefore arranged a discreet marriage in Mexico on 25 November 1924.[161] They originally met during her childhood and she had previously appeared in his works The Kid and The Idle Class.[162] Their first son, Charles Spencer Chaplin, Jr., was born on 5 May 1925, followed by Sydney Earl Chaplin on 30 March 1926.[163]
+
+It was an unhappy marriage, and Chaplin spent long hours at the studio to avoid seeing his wife.[164] In November 1926, Grey took the children and left the family home.[165] A bitter divorce followed, in which Grey's application – accusing Chaplin of infidelity, abuse, and of harbouring "perverted sexual desires" – was leaked to the press.[166][l] Chaplin was reported to be in a state of nervous breakdown, as the story became headline news and groups formed across America calling for his films to be banned.[168] Eager to end the case without further scandal, Chaplin's lawyers agreed to a cash settlement of $600,000 – the largest awarded by American courts at that time.[169] His fan base was strong enough to survive the incident, and it was soon forgotten, but Chaplin was deeply affected by it.[170]
+
+Before the divorce suit was filed, Chaplin had begun work on a new film, The Circus.[171] He built a story around the idea of walking a tightrope while besieged by monkeys, and turned the Tramp into the accidental star of a circus.[172] Filming was suspended for 10 months while he dealt with the divorce scandal,[173] and it was generally a trouble-ridden production.[174] Finally completed in October 1927, The Circus was released in January 1928 to a positive reception.[175] At the 1st Academy Awards, Chaplin was given a special trophy "For versatility and genius in acting, writing, directing and producing The Circus".[176] Despite its success, he permanently associated the film with the stress of its production; Chaplin omitted The Circus from his autobiography, and struggled to work on it when he recorded the score in his later years.[177]
+
+I was determined to continue making silent films ... I was a pantomimist and in that medium I was unique and, without false modesty, a master.
+
+By the time The Circus was released, Hollywood had witnessed the introduction of sound films. Chaplin was cynical about this new medium and the technical shortcomings it presented, believing that "talkies" lacked the artistry of silent films.[179] He was also hesitant to change the formula that had brought him such success,[180] and feared that giving the Tramp a voice would limit his international appeal.[181] He, therefore, rejected the new Hollywood craze and began work on a new silent film. Chaplin was nonetheless anxious about this decision and remained so throughout the film's production.[181]
+
+When filming began at the end of 1928, Chaplin had been working on the story for almost a year.[182] City Lights followed the Tramp's love for a blind flower girl (played by Virginia Cherrill) and his efforts to raise money for her sight-saving operation. It was a challenging production that lasted 21 months,[183] with Chaplin later confessing that he "had worked himself into a neurotic state of wanting perfection".[184] One advantage Chaplin found in sound technology was the opportunity to record a musical score for the film, which he composed himself.[184][185]
+
+Chaplin finished editing City Lights in December 1930, by which time silent films were an anachronism.[186] A preview before an unsuspecting public audience was not a success,[187] but a showing for the press produced positive reviews. One journalist wrote, "Nobody in the world but Charlie Chaplin could have done it. He is the only person that has that peculiar something called 'audience appeal' in sufficient quality to defy the popular penchant for movies that talk."[188] Given its general release in January 1931, City Lights proved to be a popular and financial success – eventually grossing over $3 million.[189] The British Film Institute cites it as Chaplin's finest accomplishment, and the critic James Agee hails the closing scene as "the greatest piece of acting and the highest moment in movies".[190][191] City Lights became Chaplin's personal favourite of his films and remained so throughout his life.[192]
+
+City Lights had been a success, but Chaplin was unsure if he could make another picture without dialogue. He remained convinced that sound would not work in his films, but was also "obsessed by a depressing fear of being old-fashioned."[193] In this state of uncertainty, early in 1931, the comedian decided to take a holiday and ended up travelling for 16 months.[194][m] He spent months travelling Western Europe, including extended stays in France and Switzerland, and spontaneously decided to visit Japan.[196] The day after he arrived in Japan, Prime Minister Inukai Tsuyoshi was assassinated by ultra-nationalists in the May 15 Incident. The group's original plan had been to provoke a war with the United States by assassinating Chaplin at a welcome reception organised by the prime minister, but the plan had been foiled due to delayed public announcement of the event's date.[197]
+
+In his autobiography, Chaplin recalled that on his return to Los Angeles, "I was confused and without plan, restless and conscious of an extreme loneliness". He briefly considered retiring and moving to China.[199] Chaplin's loneliness was relieved when he met 21-year-old actress Paulette Goddard in July 1932, and the pair began a relationship.[200] He was not ready to commit to a film, however, and focused on writing a serial about his travels (published in Woman's Home Companion).[201] The trip had been a stimulating experience for Chaplin, including meetings with several prominent thinkers, and he became increasingly interested in world affairs.[202] The state of labour in America troubled him, and he feared that capitalism and machinery in the workplace would increase unemployment levels. It was these concerns that stimulated Chaplin to develop his new film.[203]
+
+Modern Times was announced by Chaplin as "a satire on certain phases of our industrial life."[204] Featuring the Tramp and Goddard as they endure the Great Depression, it took ten and a half months to film.[205] Chaplin intended to use spoken dialogue but changed his mind during rehearsals. Like its predecessor, Modern Times employed sound effects but almost no speaking.[206] Chaplin's performance of a gibberish song did, however, give the Tramp a voice for the only time on film.[207] After recording the music, Chaplin released Modern Times in February 1936.[208] It was his first feature in 15 years to adopt political references and social realism,[209] a factor that attracted considerable press coverage despite Chaplin's attempts to downplay the issue.[210] The film earned less at the box-office than his previous features and received mixed reviews, as some viewers disliked the politicising.[211] Today, Modern Times is seen by the British Film Institute as one of Chaplin's "great features,"[190] while David Robinson says it shows the filmmaker at "his unrivalled peak as a creator of visual comedy."[212]
+
+Following the release of Modern Times, Chaplin left with Goddard for a trip to the Far East.[213] The couple had refused to comment on the nature of their relationship, and it was not known whether they were married or not.[214] Some time later, Chaplin revealed that they married in Canton during this trip.[215] By 1938, the couple had drifted apart, as both focused heavily on their work, although Goddard was again his leading lady in his next feature film, The Great Dictator. She eventually divorced Chaplin in Mexico in 1942, citing incompatibility and separation for more than a year.[216]
+
+The 1940s saw Chaplin face a series of controversies, both in his work and in his personal life, which changed his fortunes and severely affected his popularity in the United States. The first of these was his growing boldness in expressing his political beliefs. Deeply disturbed by the surge of militaristic nationalism in 1930s world politics,[217] Chaplin found that he could not keep these issues out of his work.[218]  Parallels between himself and Adolf Hitler had been widely noted: the pair were born four days apart, both had risen from poverty to world prominence, and Hitler wore the same toothbrush moustache as Chaplin. It was this physical resemblance that supplied the plot for Chaplin's next film, The Great Dictator, which directly satirised Hitler and attacked fascism.[219]
+
+Chaplin spent two years developing the script,[220] and began filming in September 1939 – six days after Britain declared war on Germany.[221] He had submitted to using spoken dialogue, partly out of acceptance that he had no other choice, but also because he recognised it as a better method for delivering a political message.[222] Making a comedy about Hitler was seen as highly controversial, but Chaplin's financial independence allowed him to take the risk.[223] "I was determined to go ahead," he later wrote, "for Hitler must be laughed at."[224][n] Chaplin replaced the Tramp (while wearing similar attire) with "A Jewish Barber", a reference to the Nazi party's belief that he was Jewish.[o][226] In a dual performance, he also played the dictator "Adenoid Hynkel", who parodied Hitler.[227]
+
+The Great Dictator spent a year in production and was released in October 1940.[228] The film generated a vast amount of publicity, with a critic for The New York Times calling it "the most eagerly awaited picture of the year", and it was one of the biggest money-makers of the era.[229] The ending was unpopular, however, and generated controversy.[230] Chaplin concluded the film with a five-minute speech in which he abandoned his barber character, looked directly into the camera, and pleaded against war and fascism.[231] Charles J. Maland has identified this overt preaching as triggering a decline in Chaplin's popularity, and writes, "Henceforth, no movie fan would ever be able to separate the dimension of politics from [his] star image".[232][p] The Great Dictator received five Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay and Best Actor.[234]
+
+In the mid-1940s, Chaplin was involved in a series of trials that occupied most of his time and significantly affected his public image.[235] The troubles stemmed from his affair with an aspirant actress named Joan Barry, with whom he was involved intermittently between June 1941 and the autumn of 1942.[236] Barry, who displayed obsessive behaviour and was twice arrested after they separated,[q] reappeared the following year and announced that she was pregnant with Chaplin's child. As Chaplin denied the claim, Barry filed a paternity suit against him.[237]
+
+The director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), J. Edgar Hoover, who had long been suspicious of Chaplin's political leanings, used the opportunity to generate negative publicity about him. As part of a smear campaign to damage Chaplin's image,[238] the FBI named him in four indictments related to the Barry case. Most serious of these was an alleged violation of the Mann Act, which prohibits the transportation of women across state boundaries for sexual purposes.[r] The historian Otto Friedrich has called this an "absurd prosecution" of an "ancient statute",[241] yet if Chaplin was found guilty, he faced 23 years in jail.[242] Three charges lacked sufficient evidence to proceed to court, but the Mann Act trial began on 21 March 1944.[243] Chaplin was acquitted two weeks later, on 4 April.[244][239] The case was frequently headline news, with Newsweek calling it the "biggest public relations scandal since the Fatty Arbuckle murder trial in 1921."[245]
+
+Barry's child, Carol Ann, was born in October 1943, and the paternity suit went to court in December 1944. After two arduous trials, in which the prosecuting lawyer accused him of "moral turpitude",[246] Chaplin was declared to be the father. Evidence from blood tests which indicated otherwise were not admissible,[s] and the judge ordered Chaplin to pay child support until Carol Ann turned 21. Media coverage of the paternity suit was influenced by the FBI, as information was fed to the prominent gossip columnist Hedda Hopper, and Chaplin was portrayed in an overwhelmingly critical light.[248]
+
+The controversy surrounding Chaplin increased when, two weeks after the paternity suit was filed, it was announced that he had married his newest protégée, 18-year-old Oona O'Neill – daughter of the American playwright Eugene O'Neill.[249] Chaplin, then 54, had been introduced to her by a film agent seven months earlier.[t] In his autobiography, Chaplin described meeting O'Neill as "the happiest event of my life", and claimed to have found "perfect love".[252] Chaplin's son, Charles Jr., reported that Oona "worshipped" his father.[253] The couple remained married until Chaplin's death, and had eight children over 18 years: Geraldine Leigh (b. July 1944), Michael John (b. March 1946), Josephine Hannah (b. March 1949), Victoria (b. May 1951), Eugene Anthony (b. August 1953), Jane Cecil (b. May 1957), Annette Emily (b. December 1959), and Christopher James (b. July 1962).[254]
+
+Chaplin claimed that the Barry trials had "crippled [his] creativeness", and it was some time before he began working again.[255] In April 1946, he finally began filming a project that had been in development since 1942.[256] Monsieur Verdoux was a black comedy, the story of a French bank clerk, Verdoux (Chaplin), who loses his job and begins marrying and murdering wealthy widows to support his family. Chaplin's inspiration for the project came from Orson Welles, who wanted him to star in a film about the French serial killer Henri Désiré Landru. Chaplin decided that the concept would "make a wonderful comedy",[257] and paid Welles $5,000 for the idea.[258]
+
+Chaplin again vocalised his political views in Monsieur Verdoux, criticising capitalism and arguing that the world encourages mass killing through wars and weapons of mass destruction.[259] Because of this, the film met with controversy when it was released in April 1947;[260] Chaplin was booed at the premiere, and there were calls for a boycott.[261] Monsieur Verdoux was the first Chaplin release that failed both critically and commercially in the United States.[262] It was more successful abroad,[263] and Chaplin's screenplay was nominated at the Academy Awards.[264] He was proud of the film, writing in his autobiography, "Monsieur Verdoux is the cleverest and most brilliant film I have yet made."[265]
+
+The negative reaction to Monsieur Verdoux was largely the result of changes in Chaplin's public image.[266] Along with damage of the Joan Barry scandal, he was publicly accused of being a communist.[267] His political activity had heightened during World War II, when he campaigned for the opening of a Second Front to help the Soviet Union and supported various Soviet–American friendship groups.[268] He was also friendly with several suspected communists, and attended functions given by Soviet diplomats in Los Angeles.[269] In the political climate of 1940s America, such activities meant Chaplin was considered, as Larcher writes, "dangerously progressive and amoral."[270] The FBI wanted him out of the country,[271] and launched an official investigation in early 1947.[272][u]
+
+Chaplin denied being a communist, instead calling himself a "peacemonger",[274] but felt the government's effort to suppress the ideology was an unacceptable infringement of civil liberties.[275] Unwilling to be quiet about the issue, he openly protested against the trials of Communist Party members and the activities of the House Un-American Activities Committee.[276] Chaplin received a subpoena to appear before HUAC but was not called to testify.[277] As his activities were widely reported in the press, and Cold War fears grew, questions were raised over his failure to take American citizenship.[278] Calls were made for him to be deported; in one extreme and widely published example, Representative John E. Rankin, who helped establish HUAC, told Congress in June 1947: "[Chaplin's] very life in Hollywood is detrimental to the moral fabric of America. [If he is deported] ... his loathsome pictures can be kept from before the eyes of the American youth. He should be deported and gotten rid of at once."[279]
+
+Although Chaplin remained politically active in the years following the failure of Monsieur Verdoux,[v] his next film, about a forgotten music hall comedian and a young ballerina in Edwardian London, was devoid of political themes. Limelight was heavily autobiographical, alluding not only to Chaplin's childhood and the lives of his parents, but also to his loss of popularity in the United States.[281] The cast included various members of his family, including his five oldest children and his half-brother, Wheeler Dryden.[282]
+
+Filming began in November 1951, by which time Chaplin had spent three years working on the story.[283][w] He aimed for a more serious tone than any of his previous films, regularly using the word "melancholy" when explaining his plans to his co-star Claire Bloom.[285] Limelight featured a cameo appearance from Buster Keaton, whom Chaplin cast as his stage partner in a pantomime scene. This marked the only time the comedians worked together.[286]
+
+Chaplin decided to hold the world premiere of Limelight in London, since it was the setting of the film.[287] As he left Los Angeles, he expressed a premonition that he would not be returning.[288] At New York, he boarded the RMS Queen Elizabeth with his family on 18 September 1952.[289] The next day, United States Attorney General James P. McGranery revoked Chaplin's re-entry permit and stated that he would have to submit to an interview concerning his political views and moral behaviour to re-enter the US.[289] Although McGranery told the press that he had "a pretty good case against Chaplin", Maland has concluded, on the basis of the FBI files that were released in the 1980s, that the US government had no real evidence to prevent Chaplin's re-entry. It is likely that he would have gained entry if he had applied for it.[290] However, when Chaplin received a cablegram informing him of the news, he privately decided to cut his ties with the United States:
+
+Whether I re-entered that unhappy country or not was of little consequence to me. I would like to have told them that the sooner I was rid of that hate-beleaguered atmosphere the better, that I was fed up of America's insults and moral pomposity...[291]
+
+Because all of his property remained in America, Chaplin refrained from saying anything negative about the incident to the press.[292] The scandal attracted vast attention,[293] but Chaplin and his film were warmly received in Europe.[289] In America, the hostility towards him continued, and, although it received some positive reviews, Limelight was subjected to a wide-scale boycott.[294] Reflecting on this, Maland writes that Chaplin's fall, from an "unprecedented" level of popularity, "may be the most dramatic in the history of stardom in America".[295]
+
+I have been the object of lies and propaganda by powerful reactionary groups who, by their influence and by the aid of America's yellow press, have created an unhealthy atmosphere in which liberal-minded individuals can be singled out and persecuted. Under these conditions I find it virtually impossible to continue my motion-picture work, and I have therefore given up my residence in the United States.
+
+Chaplin did not attempt to return to the United States after his re-entry permit was revoked, and instead sent his wife to settle his affairs.[x] The couple decided to settle in Switzerland and, in January 1953, the family moved into their permanent home: Manoir de Ban, a 14-hectare (35-acre) estate[298] overlooking Lake Geneva in Corsier-sur-Vevey.[299][y] Chaplin put his Beverly Hills house and studio up for sale in March, and surrendered his re-entry permit in April. The next year, his wife renounced her US citizenship and became a British citizen.[301] Chaplin severed the last of his professional ties with the United States in 1955, when he sold the remainder of his stock in United Artists, which had been in financial difficulty since the early 1940s.[302]
+
+Chaplin remained a controversial figure throughout the 1950s, especially after he was awarded the International Peace Prize by the communist-led World Peace Council, and after his meetings with Zhou Enlai and Nikita Khrushchev.[303] He began developing his first European film, A King in New York, in 1954.[304] Casting himself as an exiled king who seeks asylum in the United States, Chaplin included several of his recent experiences in the screenplay. His son, Michael, was cast as a boy whose parents are targeted by the FBI, while Chaplin's character faces accusations of communism.[305] The political satire parodied HUAC and attacked elements of 1950s culture – including consumerism, plastic surgery, and wide-screen cinema.[306] In a review, the playwright John Osborne called it Chaplin's "most bitter" and "most openly personal" film.[307] In a 1957 interview, when asked to clarify his political views, Chaplin stated "As for politics, I am an anarchist. I hate government and rules – and fetters ... People must be free."[308]
+
+Chaplin founded a new production company, Attica, and used Shepperton Studios for the shooting.[304] Filming in England proved a difficult experience, as he was used to his own Hollywood studio and familiar crew, and no longer had limitless production time. According to Robinson, this had an effect on the quality of the film.[309] A King in New York was released in September 1957, and received mixed reviews.[310] Chaplin banned American journalists from its Paris première and decided not to release the film in the United States. This severely limited its revenue, although it achieved moderate commercial success in Europe.[311] A King in New York was not shown in America until 1973.[312][313]
+
+In the last two decades of his career, Chaplin concentrated on re-editing and scoring his old films for re-release, along with securing their ownership and distribution rights.[314] In an interview he granted in 1959, the year of his 70th birthday, Chaplin stated that there was still "room for the Little Man in the atomic age".[315] The first of these re-releases was The Chaplin Revue (1959), which included new versions of A Dog's Life, Shoulder Arms, and The Pilgrim.[315]
+
+In America, the political atmosphere began to change and attention was once again directed to Chaplin's films instead of his views.[314] In July 1962, The New York Times published an editorial stating that "we do not believe the Republic would be in danger if yesterday's unforgotten little tramp were allowed to amble down the gangplank of a steamer or plane in an American port".[316] The same month, Chaplin was invested with the honorary degree of Doctor of Letters by the universities of Oxford and Durham.[317] In November 1963, the Plaza Theater in New York started a year-long series of Chaplin's films, including Monsieur Verdoux and Limelight, which gained excellent reviews from American critics.[318] September 1964 saw the release of Chaplin's memoirs, My Autobiography, which he had been working on since 1957.[319] The 500-page book became a worldwide best-seller. It focused on his early years and personal life, and was criticised for lacking information on his film career.[320]
+
+Shortly after the publication of his memoirs, Chaplin began work on A Countess from Hong Kong (1967), a romantic comedy based on a script he had written for Paulette Goddard in the 1930s.[321] Set on an ocean liner, it starred Marlon Brando as an American ambassador and Sophia Loren as a stowaway found in his cabin.[321] The film differed from Chaplin's earlier productions in several aspects. It was his first to use Technicolor and the widescreen format, while he concentrated on directing and appeared on-screen only in a cameo role as a seasick steward.[322] He also signed a deal with Universal Pictures and appointed his assistant, Jerome Epstein, as the producer.[323] Chaplin was paid $600,000 director's fee as well as a percentage of the gross receipts.[324] A Countess from Hong Kong premiered in January 1967, to unfavourable reviews, and was a box-office failure.[325][326] Chaplin was deeply hurt by the negative reaction to the film, which turned out to be his last.[325]
+
+Chaplin suffered a series of minor strokes in the late 1960s, which marked the beginning of a slow decline in his health.[327] Despite the setbacks, he was soon writing a new film script, The Freak, a story of a winged girl found in South America, which he intended as a starring vehicle for his daughter, Victoria.[327] His fragile health prevented the project from being realised.[328] In the early 1970s, Chaplin concentrated on re-releasing his old films, including The Kid and The Circus.[329] In 1971, he was made a Commander of the National Order of the Legion of Honour at the Cannes Film Festival.[330] The following year, he was honoured with a special award by the Venice Film Festival.[331]
+
+In 1972, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences offered Chaplin an Honorary Award, which Robinson sees as a sign that America "wanted to make amends". Chaplin was initially hesitant about accepting but decided to return to the US for the first time in 20 years.[330] The visit attracted a large amount of press coverage and, at the Academy Awards gala, he was given a 12-minute standing ovation, the longest in the Academy's history.[332][333] Visibly emotional, Chaplin accepted his award for "the incalculable effect he has had in making motion pictures the art form of this century".[334]
+
+Although Chaplin still had plans for future film projects, by the mid-1970s he was very frail.[335] He experienced several further strokes, which made it difficult for him to communicate, and he had to use a wheelchair.[336][337] His final projects were compiling a pictorial autobiography, My Life in Pictures (1974) and scoring A Woman of Paris for re-release in 1976.[338] He also appeared in a documentary about his life, The Gentleman Tramp (1975), directed by Richard Patterson.[339] In the 1975 New Year Honours, Chaplin was awarded a knighthood by Queen Elizabeth II,[338][z][341] though he was too weak to kneel and received the honour in his wheelchair.[342]
+
+By October 1977, Chaplin's health had declined to the point that he needed constant care.[343] In the early morning of 25 December 1977, Chaplin died at home after suffering a stroke in his sleep.[337] He was 88 years old. The funeral, on 27 December, was a small and private Anglican ceremony, according to his wishes.[344][aa] Chaplin was interred in the Corsier-sur-Vevey cemetery.[343] Among the film industry's tributes, director René Clair wrote, "He was a monument of the cinema, of all countries and all times ... the most beautiful gift the cinema made to us."[346] Actor Bob Hope declared, "We were lucky to have lived in his time."[347]
+
+On 1 March 1978, Chaplin's coffin was dug up and stolen from its grave by two unemployed immigrants, Roman Wardas, from Poland, and Gantcho Ganev, from Bulgaria. The body was held for ransom in an attempt to extort money from Oona Chaplin. The pair were caught in a large police operation in May, and Chaplin's coffin was found buried in a field in the nearby village of Noville. It was re-interred in the Corsier cemetery surrounded by reinforced concrete.[348][349]
+
+Chaplin believed his first influence to be his mother, who entertained him as a child by sitting at the window and mimicking passers-by: "it was through watching her that I learned not only how to express emotions with my hands and face, but also how to observe and study people."[350] Chaplin's early years in music hall allowed him to see stage comedians at work; he also attended the Christmas pantomimes at Drury Lane, where he studied the art of clowning through performers like Dan Leno.[351]  Chaplin's years with the Fred Karno company had a formative effect on him as an actor and filmmaker. Simon Louvish writes that the company was his "training ground",[352] and it was here that Chaplin learned to vary the pace of his comedy.[353] The concept of mixing pathos with slapstick was learnt from Karno,[ab] who also used elements of absurdity that became familiar in Chaplin's gags.[353][354] From the film industry, Chaplin drew upon the work of the French comedian Max Linder, whose films he greatly admired.[355] In developing the Tramp costume and persona, he was likely inspired by the American vaudeville scene, where tramp characters were common.[356]
+
+Chaplin never spoke more than cursorily about his filmmaking methods, claiming such a thing would be tantamount to a magician spoiling his own illusion.[357] Little was known about his working process throughout his lifetime,[358] but research from film historians – particularly the findings of Kevin Brownlow and David Gill that were presented in the three-part documentary Unknown Chaplin (1983) – has since revealed his unique working method.[359]
+
+Until he began making spoken dialogue films with The Great Dictator, Chaplin never shot from a completed script.[360] Many of his early films began with only a vague premise – for example "Charlie enters a health spa" or "Charlie works in a pawn shop."[361] He then had sets constructed and worked with his stock company to improvise gags and "business" using them, almost always working the ideas out on film.[359] As ideas were accepted and discarded, a narrative structure would emerge, frequently requiring Chaplin to reshoot an already-completed scene that might have otherwise contradicted the story.[362] From A Woman of Paris onward Chaplin began the filming process with a prepared plot,[363] but Robinson writes that every film up to Modern Times "went through many metamorphoses and permutations before the story took its final form."[364]
+
+Producing films in this manner meant Chaplin took longer to complete his pictures than almost any other filmmaker at the time.[365] If he was out of ideas, he often took a break from the shoot, which could last for days, while keeping the studio ready for when inspiration returned.[366] Delaying the process further was Chaplin's rigorous perfectionism.[367] According to his friend Ivor Montagu, "nothing but perfection would be right" for the filmmaker.[368] Because he personally funded his films, Chaplin was at liberty to strive for this goal and shoot as many takes as he wished.[369] The number was often excessive, for instance 53 takes for every finished take in The Kid.[370] For The Immigrant, a 20-minute short, Chaplin shot 40,000 feet of film—enough for a feature-length.[371]
+
+No other filmmaker ever so completely dominated every aspect of the work, did every job. If he could have done so, Chaplin would have played every role and (as his son Sydney humorously but perceptively observed) sewn every costume.
+
+Describing his working method as "sheer perseverance to the point of madness",[372] Chaplin would be completely consumed by the production of a picture.[373] Robinson writes that even in Chaplin's later years, his work continued "to take precedence over everything and everyone else."[374] The combination of story improvisation and relentless perfectionism – which resulted in days of effort and thousands of feet of film being wasted, all at enormous expense – often proved taxing for Chaplin who, in frustration, would lash out at his actors and crew.[375]
+
+Chaplin exercised complete control over his pictures,[357] to the extent that he would act out the other roles for his cast, expecting them to imitate him exactly.[376]  He personally edited all of his films, trawling through the large amounts of footage to create the exact picture he wanted.[377] As a result of his complete independence, he was identified by the film historian Andrew Sarris as one of the first auteur filmmakers.[378] Chaplin did receive help, notably from his long-time cinematographer Roland Totheroh, brother Sydney Chaplin, and various assistant directors such as Harry Crocker and Charles Reisner.[379]
+
+While Chaplin's comedic style is broadly defined as slapstick,[380] it is considered restrained and intelligent,[381] with the film historian Philip Kemp describing his work as a mix of "deft, balletic physical comedy and thoughtful, situation-based gags".[382] Chaplin diverged from conventional slapstick by slowing the pace and exhausting each scene of its comic potential, with more focus on developing the viewer's relationship to the characters.[66][383] Unlike conventional slapstick comedies, Robinson states that the comic moments in Chaplin's films centre on the Tramp's attitude to the things happening to him: the humour does not come from the Tramp bumping into a tree, but from his lifting his hat to the tree in apology.[66] Dan Kamin writes that Chaplin's "quirky mannerisms" and "serious demeanour in the midst of slapstick action" are other key aspects of his comedy,[384] while the surreal transformation of objects and the employment of in-camera trickery are also common features.[385]
+
+Chaplin's silent films typically follow the Tramp's efforts to survive in a hostile world.[386] The character lives in poverty and is frequently treated badly, but remains kind and upbeat;[387] defying his social position, he strives to be seen as a gentleman.[388] As Chaplin said in 1925, "The whole point of the Little Fellow is that no matter how down on his ass he is, no matter how well the jackals succeed in tearing him apart, he's still a man of dignity."[389] The Tramp defies authority figures[390] and "gives as good as he gets",[389] leading Robinson and Louvish to see him as a representative for the underprivileged – an "everyman turned heroic saviour".[391] Hansmeyer notes that several of Chaplin's films end with "the homeless and lonely Tramp [walking] optimistically ... into the sunset ... to continue his journey".[392]
+
+It is paradoxical that tragedy stimulates the spirit of ridicule ... ridicule, I suppose, is an attitude of defiance; we must laugh in the face of our helplessness against the forces of nature – or go insane.
+
+The infusion of pathos is a well-known aspect of Chaplin's work,[394] and Larcher notes his reputation for "[inducing] laughter and tears".[395] Sentimentality in his films comes from a variety of sources, with Louvish pinpointing "personal failure, society's strictures, economic disaster, and the elements."[396] Chaplin sometimes drew on tragic events when creating his films, as in the case of The Gold Rush (1925), which was inspired by the fate of the Donner Party.[393] Constance B. Kuriyama has identified serious underlying themes in the early comedies, such as greed (The Gold Rush) and loss (The Kid).[397] Chaplin also touched on controversial issues: immigration (The Immigrant, 1917); illegitimacy (The Kid, 1921); and drug use (Easy Street, 1917).[383] He often explored these topics ironically, making comedy out of suffering.[398]
+
+Social commentary was a feature of Chaplin's films from early in his career, as he portrayed the underdog in a sympathetic light and highlighted the difficulties of the poor.[399] Later, as he developed a keen interest in economics and felt obliged to publicise his views,[400] Chaplin began incorporating overtly political messages into his films.[401] Modern Times (1936) depicted factory workers in dismal conditions, The Great Dictator (1940) parodied Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini and ended in a speech against nationalism, Monsieur Verdoux (1947) criticised war and capitalism, and A King in New York (1957) attacked McCarthyism.[402]
+
+Several of Chaplin's films incorporate autobiographical elements, and the psychologist Sigmund Freud believed that Chaplin "always plays only himself as he was in his dismal youth".[403] The Kid is thought to reflect Chaplin's childhood trauma of being sent into an orphanage,[403] the main characters in Limelight (1952) contain elements from the lives of his parents,[404] and A King in New York references Chaplin's experiences of being shunned by the United States.[405] Many of his sets, especially in street scenes, bear a strong similarity to Kennington, where he grew up. Stephen M. Weissman has argued that Chaplin's problematic relationship with his mentally ill mother was often reflected in his female characters and the Tramp's desire to save them.[403]
+
+Regarding the structure of Chaplin's films, the scholar Gerald Mast sees them as consisting of sketches tied together by the same theme and setting, rather than having a tightly unified storyline.[406] Visually, his films are simple and economic,[407] with scenes portrayed as if set on a stage.[408] His approach to filming was described by the art director Eugène Lourié: "Chaplin did not think in 'artistic' images when he was shooting. He believed that action is the main thing. The camera is there to photograph the actors".[409] In his autobiography, Chaplin wrote, "Simplicity is best ... pompous effects slow up action, are boring and unpleasant ... The camera should not intrude."[410]  This approach has prompted criticism, since the 1940s, for being "old fashioned",[411] while the film scholar Donald McCaffrey sees it as an indication that Chaplin never completely understood film as a medium.[412] Kamin, however, comments that Chaplin's comedic talent would not be enough to remain funny on screen if he did not have an "ability to conceive and direct scenes specifically for the film medium".[413]
+
+Chaplin developed a passion for music as a child and taught himself to play the piano, violin, and cello.[414] He considered the musical accompaniment of a film to be important,[175] and from A Woman of Paris onwards he took an increasing interest in this area.[415] With the advent of sound technology, Chaplin began using a synchronised orchestral soundtrack – composed by himself – for City Lights (1931). He thereafter composed the scores for all of his films, and from the late 1950s to his death, he scored all of his silent features and some of his short films.[416]
+
+As Chaplin was not a trained musician, he could not read sheet music and needed the help of professional composers, such as David Raksin, Raymond Rasch and Eric James, when creating his scores. Musical directors were employed to oversee the recording process, such as Alfred Newman for City Lights.[417] Although some critics have claimed that credit for his film music should be given to the composers who worked with him, Raksin – who worked with Chaplin on Modern Times – stressed Chaplin's creative position and active participation in the composing process.[418] This process, which could take months, would start with Chaplin describing to the composer(s) exactly what he wanted and singing or playing tunes he had improvised on the piano.[418] These tunes were then developed further in a close collaboration among the composer(s) and Chaplin.[418] According to film historian Jeffrey Vance, "although he relied upon associates to arrange varied and complex instrumentation, the musical imperative is his, and not a note in a Chaplin musical score was placed there without his assent."[419]
+
+Chaplin's compositions produced three popular songs. "Smile", composed originally for Modern Times (1936) and later set to lyrics by John Turner and Geoffrey Parsons, was a hit for Nat King Cole in 1954.[419] For Limelight, Chaplin composed "Terry's Theme", which was popularised by Jimmy Young as "Eternally" (1952).[420] Finally, "This Is My Song", performed by Petula Clark for A Countess from Hong Kong (1967), reached number one on the UK and other European charts.[421] Chaplin also received his only competitive Oscar for his composition work, as the Limelight theme won an Academy Award for Best Original Score in 1973 following the film's re-release.[419][ac]
+
+In 1998, the film critic Andrew Sarris called Chaplin "arguably the single most important artist produced by the cinema, certainly its most extraordinary performer and probably still its most universal icon".[423] He is described by the British Film Institute as "a towering figure in world culture",[424] and was included in Time magazine's list of the "100 Most Important People of the 20th Century" for the "laughter [he brought] to millions" and because he "more or less invented global recognizability and helped turn an industry into an art".[425]
+
+The image of the Tramp has become a part of cultural history;[426] according to Simon Louvish, the character is recognisable to people who have never seen a Chaplin film, and in places where his films are never shown.[427] The critic Leonard Maltin has written of the "unique" and "indelible" nature of the Tramp, and argued that no other comedian matched his "worldwide impact".[428] Praising the character, Richard Schickel suggests that Chaplin's films with the Tramp contain the most "eloquent, richly comedic expressions of the human spirit" in movie history.[429] Memorabilia connected to the character still fetches large sums in auctions: in 2006 a bowler hat and a bamboo cane that were part of the Tramp's costume were bought for $140,000 in a Los Angeles auction.[430]
+
+As a filmmaker, Chaplin is considered a pioneer and one of the most influential figures of the early twentieth century.[431] He is often credited as one of the medium's first artists.[432] Film historian Mark Cousins has written that Chaplin "changed not only the imagery of cinema, but also its sociology and grammar" and claims that Chaplin was as important to the development of comedy as a genre as D.W. Griffith was to drama.[433] He was the first to popularise feature-length comedy and to slow down the pace of action, adding pathos and subtlety to it.[434][435] Although his work is mostly classified as slapstick, Chaplin's drama A Woman of Paris (1923) was a major influence on Ernst Lubitsch's film The Marriage Circle (1924) and thus played a part in the development of "sophisticated comedy".[436] According to David Robinson, Chaplin's innovations were "rapidly assimilated to become part of the common practice of film craft."[437] Filmmakers who cited Chaplin as an influence include Federico Fellini (who called Chaplin "a sort of Adam, from whom we are all descended"),[347] Jacques Tati ("Without him I would never have made a film"),[347] René Clair ("He inspired practically every filmmaker"),[346] Michael Powell,[438] Billy Wilder,[439] Vittorio De Sica,[440] and Richard Attenborough.[441] Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky praised Chaplin as "the only person to have gone down into cinematic history without any shadow of a doubt. The films he left behind can never grow old."[442]
+
+Chaplin also strongly influenced the work of later comedians. Marcel Marceau said he was inspired to become a mime artist after watching Chaplin,[435] while the actor Raj Kapoor based his screen persona on the Tramp.[439] Mark Cousins has also detected Chaplin's comedic style in the French character Monsieur Hulot and the Italian character Totò.[439] In other fields, Chaplin helped inspire the cartoon characters Felix the Cat[443] and Mickey Mouse,[444] and was an influence on the Dada art movement.[445] As one of the founding members of United Artists, Chaplin also had a role in the development of the film industry. Gerald Mast has written that although UA never became a major company like MGM or Paramount Pictures, the idea that directors could produce their own films was "years ahead of its time".[446]
+
+In the 21st century, several of Chaplin's films are still regarded as classics and among the greatest ever made. The 2012 Sight & Sound poll, which compiles "top ten" ballots from film critics and directors to determine each group's most acclaimed films,
+saw City Lights rank among the critics' top 50, Modern Times inside the top 100, and The Great Dictator and The Gold Rush placed in the top 250.[447] The top 100 films as voted on by directors included Modern Times at number 22, City Lights at number 30, and The Gold Rush at number 91.[448] Every one of Chaplin's features received a vote.[449] In 2007, the American Film Institute named City Lights the 11th greatest American film of all time, while The Gold Rush and Modern Times again ranked in the top 100.[450] Books about Chaplin continue to be published regularly, and he is a popular subject for media scholars and film archivists.[451] Many of Chaplin's film have had a DVD and Blu-ray release.[452]
+
+Chaplin's legacy is managed on behalf of his children by the Chaplin office, located in Paris. The office represents Association Chaplin, founded by some of his children "to protect the name, image and moral rights" to his body of work, Roy Export SAS, which owns the copyright to most of his films made after 1918, and Bubbles Incorporated S.A., which owns the copyrights to his image and name.[453] Their central archive is held at the archives of Montreux, Switzerland and scanned versions of its contents, including 83,630 images, 118 scripts, 976 manuscripts, 7,756 letters, and thousands of other documents, are available for research purposes at the Chaplin Research Centre at the Cineteca di Bologna.[454] The photographic archive, which includes approximately 10,000 photographs from Chaplin's life and career, is kept at the Musée de l'Elysée in Lausanne, Switzerland.[455] The British Film Institute has also established the Charles Chaplin Research Foundation, and the first international Charles Chaplin Conference was held in London in July 2005.[456]  Elements for many of Chaplin's films are held by the Academy Film Archive as part of the Roy Export Chaplin Collection. [457]
+
+Chaplin's final home, Manoir de Ban in Corsier-sur-Vevey, Switzerland, has been converted into a museum named "Chaplin's World". It opened on 17 April 2016 after 15 years of development, and is described by Reuters as "an interactive museum showcasing the life and works of Charlie Chaplin".[458] On the 128th anniversary of his birth, a record-setting 662 people dressed as the Tramp in an event organised by the museum.[459] Previously, the Museum of the Moving Image in London held a permanent display on Chaplin, and hosted a dedicated exhibition to his life and career in 1988. The London Film Museum hosted an exhibition called Charlie Chaplin – The Great Londoner, from 2010 until 2013.[460]
+
+In London, a statue of Chaplin as the Tramp, sculpted by John Doubleday and unveiled in 1981, is located in Leicester Square.[461] The city also includes a road named after him in central London, "Charlie Chaplin Walk", which is the location of the BFI IMAX.[462] There are nine blue plaques memorialising Chaplin in London, Hampshire, and Yorkshire.[463] The Swiss town of Vevey named a park in his honour in 1980 and erected a statue there in 1982.[461] In 2011, two large murals depicting Chaplin on two 14-storey buildings were also unveiled in Vevey.[464] Chaplin has also been honoured by the Irish town of Waterville, where he spent several summers with his family in the 1960s. A statue was erected in 1998;[465] since 2011, the town has been host to the annual Charlie Chaplin Comedy Film Festival, which was founded to celebrate Chaplin's legacy and to showcase new comic talent.[466]
+
+In other tributes, a minor planet, 3623 Chaplin – discovered by Soviet astronomer Lyudmila Karachkina in 1981 – is named after Chaplin.[467] Throughout the 1980s, the Tramp image was used by IBM to advertise their personal computers.[468] Chaplin's 100th birthday anniversary in 1989 was marked with several events around the world,[ad] and on 15 April 2011, a day before his 122nd birthday, Google celebrated him with a special Google Doodle video on its global and other country-wide homepages.[472] Many countries, spanning six continents, have honoured Chaplin with a postal stamp.[473]
+
+
+
+Chaplin is the subject of a biographical film, Chaplin (1992) directed by Richard Attenborough, and starring Robert Downey Jr. in the title role and Geraldine Chaplin playing Hannah Chaplin.[474] He is also a character in the historical drama film The Cat's Meow (2001), played by Eddie Izzard, and in the made-for-television movie The Scarlett O'Hara War (1980), played by Clive Revill.[475][476] A television series about Chaplin's childhood, Young Charlie Chaplin, ran on PBS in 1989, and was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Children's Program.[477] The French film The Price of Fame (2014) is a fictionalised account of the robbery of Chaplin's grave.[478]
+
+Chaplin's life has also been the subject of several stage productions. Two musicals, Little Tramp and Chaplin, were produced in the early 1990s. In 2006, Thomas Meehan and Christopher Curtis created another musical, Limelight: The Story of Charlie Chaplin, which was first performed at the La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego in 2010.[479] It was adapted for Broadway two years later, re-titled Chaplin – A Musical.[480] Chaplin was portrayed by Robert McClure in both productions. In 2013, two plays about Chaplin premiered in Finland: Chaplin at the Svenska Teatern,[481] and Kulkuri (The Tramp) at the Tampere Workers' Theatre.[482]
+
+Chaplin has also been characterised in literary fiction. He is the protagonist of Robert Coover's short story "Charlie in the House of Rue" (1980; reprinted in Coover's 1987 collection A Night at the Movies), and of Glen David Gold's Sunnyside (2009), a historical novel set in the First World War period.[483] A day in Chaplin's life in 1909 is dramatised in the chapter titled "Modern Times" in Alan Moore's Jerusalem (2016), a novel set in the author's home town of Northampton, England.[484]
+
+Chaplin received many awards and honours, especially later in life. In the 1975 New Year Honours, he was appointed a Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (KBE).[485] He was also awarded honorary Doctor of Letters degrees by the University of Oxford and the University of Durham in 1962.[317] In 1965, he and Ingmar Bergman were joint winners of the Erasmus Prize[486] and, in 1971, he was appointed a Commander of the National Order of the Legion of Honour by the French government.[487]
+
+From the film industry, Chaplin received a special Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival in 1972,[488] and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Lincoln Center Film Society the same year. The latter has since been presented annually to filmmakers as The Chaplin Award.[489] Chaplin was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1972, having been previously excluded because of his political beliefs.[490]
+
+Chaplin received three Academy Awards: an Honorary Award for "versatility and genius in acting, writing, directing, and producing The Circus" in 1929,[176] a second Honorary Award for "the incalculable effect he has had in making motion pictures the art form of this century" in 1972,[334] and a Best Score award in 1973 for Limelight (shared with Ray Rasch and Larry Russell).[419] He was further nominated in the Best Actor, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Picture (as producer) categories for The Great Dictator, and received another Best Original Screenplay nomination for Monsieur Verdoux.[491] In 1976, Chaplin was made a Fellow of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA).[492]
+
+Six of Chaplin's films have been selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the United States Library of Congress: The Immigrant (1917), The Kid (1921), The Gold Rush (1925), City Lights (1931), Modern Times (1936), and The Great Dictator (1940).[493]
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+Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin KBE (16 April 1889 – 25 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, "The Tramp", and is considered one of the most important figures in the history of the film industry. His career spanned more than 75 years, from childhood in the Victorian era until a year before his death in 1977, and encompassed both adulation and controversy.
+
+Chaplin's childhood in London was one of poverty and hardship, as his father was absent and his mother struggled financially, and he was sent to a workhouse twice before the age of nine. When he was 14, his mother was committed to a mental asylum. Chaplin began performing at an early age, touring music halls and later working as a stage actor and comedian. At 19, he was signed to the prestigious Fred Karno company, which took him to America. He was scouted for the film industry and began appearing in 1914 for Keystone Studios. He soon developed the Tramp persona and formed a large fan base. He directed his own films and continued to hone his craft as he moved to the Essanay, Mutual, and First National corporations. By 1918, he was one of the best-known figures in the world.
+
+In 1919, Chaplin co-founded the distribution company United Artists, which gave him complete control over his films. His first feature-length film was The Kid (1921), followed by A Woman of Paris (1923), The Gold Rush (1925), and The Circus (1928). He initially refused to move to sound films in the 1930s, instead producing City Lights (1931) and Modern Times (1936) without dialogue. He became increasingly political, and his first sound film was The Great Dictator (1940), which satirised Adolf Hitler. The 1940s were a decade marked with controversy for Chaplin, and his popularity declined rapidly. He was accused of communist sympathies, and some members of the press and public found his involvement in a paternity suit, and marriages to much younger women, scandalous. An FBI investigation was opened, and Chaplin was forced to leave the United States and settle in Switzerland. He abandoned the Tramp in his later films, which include Monsieur Verdoux (1947), Limelight (1952), A King in New York (1957), and A Countess from Hong Kong (1967).
+
+Chaplin wrote, directed, produced, edited, starred in, and composed the music for most of his films. He was a perfectionist, and his financial independence enabled him to spend years on the development and production of a picture. His films are characterised by slapstick combined with pathos, typified in the Tramp's struggles against adversity. Many contain social and political themes, as well as autobiographical elements. He received an Honorary Academy Award for "the incalculable effect he has had in making motion pictures the art form of this century" in 1972, as part of a renewed appreciation for his work. He continues to be held in high regard, with The Gold Rush, City Lights, Modern Times, and The Great Dictator often ranked on lists of the greatest films of all time.
+
+Charles Spencer Chaplin was born on 16 April 1889 to Hannah Chaplin (born Hannah Harriet Pedlingham Hill) and Charles Chaplin Sr. There is no official record of his birth, although Chaplin believed he was born at East Street, Walworth, in South London.[1][a] His parents had married four years previously, at which time Charles Sr. became the legal guardian of Hannah's illegitimate son, Sydney John Hill.[5][b] At the time of his birth, Chaplin's parents were both music hall entertainers. Hannah, the daughter of a shoemaker,[6] had a brief and unsuccessful career under the stage name Lily Harley,[7] while Charles Sr., a butcher's son,[8] was a popular singer.[9] Although they never divorced, Chaplin's parents were estranged by around 1891.[10] The following year, Hannah gave birth to a third son – George Wheeler Dryden – fathered by the music hall entertainer Leo Dryden. The child was taken by Dryden at six months old, and did not re-enter Chaplin's life for 30 years.[11]
+
+Chaplin's childhood was fraught with poverty and hardship, making his eventual trajectory "the most dramatic of all the rags to riches stories ever told" according to his authorised biographer David Robinson.[12] Chaplin's early years were spent with his mother and brother Sydney in the London district of Kennington; Hannah had no means of income, other than occasional nursing and dressmaking, and Chaplin Sr. provided no financial support.[13] As the situation deteriorated, Chaplin was sent to Lambeth Workhouse when he was seven years old.[c] The council housed him at the Central London District School for paupers, which Chaplin remembered as "a forlorn existence".[15] He was briefly reunited with his mother 18 months later, before Hannah was forced to readmit her family to the workhouse in July 1898. The boys were promptly sent to Norwood Schools, another institution for destitute children.[16]
+
+I was hardly aware of a crisis because we lived in a continual crisis; and, being a boy, I dismissed our troubles with gracious forgetfulness.
+
+In September 1898, Hannah was committed to Cane Hill mental asylum – she had developed a psychosis seemingly brought on by an infection of syphilis and malnutrition.[18] For the two months she was there, Chaplin and his brother Sydney were sent to live with their father, whom the young boys scarcely knew.[19] Charles Sr. was by then a severe alcoholic, and life there was bad enough to provoke a visit from the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children.[20] Chaplin's father died two years later, at 38 years old, from cirrhosis of the liver.[21]
+
+Hannah entered a period of remission but, in May 1903, became ill again.[20] Chaplin, then 14, had the task of taking his mother to the infirmary, from where she was sent back to Cane Hill.[22] He lived alone for several days, searching for food and occasionally sleeping rough, until Sydney – who had enrolled in the Navy two years earlier – returned.[23] Hannah was released from the asylum eight months later,[24] but in March 1905, her illness returned, this time permanently. "There was nothing we could do but accept poor mother's fate", Chaplin later wrote, and she remained in care until her death in 1928.[25]
+
+Between his time in the poor schools and his mother succumbing to mental illness, Chaplin began to perform on stage. He later recalled making his first amateur appearance at the age of five years, when he took over from Hannah one night in Aldershot.[d] This was an isolated occurrence, but by the time he was nine Chaplin had, with his mother's encouragement, grown interested in performing. He later wrote: "[she] imbued me with the feeling that I had some sort of talent".[27] Through his father's connections,[28] Chaplin became a member of the Eight Lancashire Lads clog-dancing troupe, with whom he toured English music halls throughout 1899 and 1900.[e] Chaplin worked hard, and the act was popular with audiences, but he was not satisfied with dancing and wished to form a comedy act.[30]
+
+In the years Chaplin was touring with the Eight Lancashire Lads, his mother ensured that he still attended school but, by age 13, he had abandoned education.[31][32] He supported himself with a range of jobs, while nursing his ambition to become an actor.[33] At 14, shortly after his mother's relapse, he registered with a theatrical agency in London's West End. The manager sensed potential in Chaplin, who was promptly given his first role as a newsboy in Harry Arthur Saintsbury's Jim, a Romance of Cockayne.[34] It opened in July 1903, but the show was unsuccessful and closed after two weeks. Chaplin's comic performance, however, was singled out for praise in many of the reviews.[35]
+
+Saintsbury secured a role for Chaplin in Charles Frohman's production of Sherlock Holmes, where he played Billy the pageboy in three nationwide tours.[36] His performance was so well received that he was called to London to play the role alongside William Gillette, the original Holmes.[f] "It was like tidings from heaven", Chaplin recalled.[38] At 16 years old, Chaplin starred in the play's West End production at the Duke of York's Theatre from October to December 1905.[39] He completed one final tour of Sherlock Holmes in early 1906, before leaving the play after more than two-and-a-half years.[40]
+
+Chaplin soon found work with a new company, and went on tour with his brother – who was also pursuing an acting career – in a comedy sketch called Repairs.[41] In May 1906, Chaplin joined the juvenile act Casey's Circus,[42] where he developed popular burlesque pieces and was soon the star of the show. By the time the act finished touring in July 1907, the 18-year-old had become an accomplished comedic performer.[43] He struggled to find more work, however, and a brief attempt at a solo act was a failure.[g]
+
+Meanwhile, Sydney Chaplin had joined Fred Karno's prestigious comedy company in 1906 and, by 1908, he was one of their key performers.[45] In February, he managed to secure a two-week trial for his younger brother. Karno was initially wary, and considered Chaplin a "pale, puny, sullen-looking youngster" who "looked much too shy to do any good in the theatre."[46] However, the teenager made an impact on his first night at the London Coliseum and he was quickly signed to a contract.[47] Chaplin began by playing a series of minor parts, eventually progressing to starring roles in 1909.[48] In April 1910, he was given the lead in a new sketch, Jimmy the Fearless. It was a big success, and Chaplin received considerable press attention.[49]
+
+Karno selected his new star to join the section of the company, one that also included Stan Laurel, that toured North America's vaudeville circuit.[50] The young comedian headed the show and impressed reviewers, being described as "one of the best pantomime artists ever seen here".[51] His most successful role was a drunk called the "Inebriate Swell", which drew him significant recognition.[52] The tour lasted 21 months, and the troupe returned to England in June 1912.[53] Chaplin recalled that he "had a disquieting feeling of sinking back into a depressing commonplaceness" and was, therefore, delighted when a new tour began in October.[54]
+
+Six months into the second American tour, Chaplin was invited to join the New York Motion Picture Company. A representative who had seen his performances thought he could replace Fred Mace, a star of their Keystone Studios who intended to leave.[55] Chaplin thought the Keystone comedies "a crude mélange of rough and rumble", but liked the idea of working in films and rationalised: "Besides, it would mean a new life."[56] He met with the company and signed a $150-per-week[h] contract in September 1913.[58] Chaplin arrived in Los Angeles in early December,[59] and began working for the Keystone studio on 5 January 1914.[60]
+
+Chaplin's boss was Mack Sennett, who initially expressed concern that the 24-year-old looked too young.[61] He was not used in a picture until late January, during which time Chaplin attempted to learn the processes of filmmaking.[62] The one-reeler Making a Living marked his film acting debut and was released on 2 February 1914. Chaplin strongly disliked the picture, but one review picked him out as "a comedian of the first water".[63] For his second appearance in front of the camera, Chaplin selected the costume with which he became identified. He described the process in his autobiography:
+
+I wanted everything to be a contradiction: the pants baggy, the coat tight, the hat small and the shoes large ... I added a small moustache, which, I reasoned, would add age without hiding my expression. I had no idea of the character. But the moment I was dressed, the clothes and the makeup made me feel the person he was. I began to know him, and by the time I walked on stage he was fully born.[64][i]
+
+The film was Mabel's Strange Predicament, but "the Tramp" character, as it became known, debuted to audiences in Kid Auto Races at Venice – shot later than Mabel's Strange Predicament but released two days earlier on 7 February 1914.[66] Chaplin adopted the character as his screen persona and attempted to make suggestions for the films he appeared in. These ideas were dismissed by his directors.[67] During the filming of his eleventh picture, Mabel at the Wheel, he clashed with director Mabel Normand and was almost released from his contract. Sennett kept him on, however, when he received orders from exhibitors for more Chaplin films.[68] Sennett also allowed Chaplin to direct his next film himself after Chaplin promised to pay $1,500 ($38,803 in 2019 dollars) if the film was unsuccessful.[69]
+
+Caught in the Rain, issued 4 May 1914, was Chaplin's directorial debut and was highly successful.[70] Thereafter he directed almost every short film in which he appeared for Keystone,[71] at the rate of approximately one per week,[72] a period which he later remembered as the most exciting time of his career.[73] Chaplin's films introduced a slower form of comedy than the typical Keystone farce,[66] and he developed a large fan base.[74] In November 1914, he had a supporting role in the first feature length comedy film, Tillie's Punctured Romance, directed by Sennett and starring Marie Dressler, which was a commercial success and increased his popularity.[75] When Chaplin's contract came up for renewal at the end of the year, he asked for $1,000 a week ($25,869 in 2019 dollars) – an amount Sennett refused as too large.[76]
+
+The Essanay Film Manufacturing Company of Chicago sent Chaplin an offer of $1,250 a week with a signing bonus of $10,000. He joined the studio in late December 1914,[77] where he began forming a stock company of regular players, actors he worked with again and again, including Leo White, Bud Jamison, Paddy McGuire and Billy Armstrong. He soon recruited a leading lady – Edna Purviance, whom Chaplin met in a café and hired on account of her beauty. She went on to appear in 35 films with Chaplin over eight years;[78] the pair also formed a romantic relationship that lasted into 1917.[79]
+
+Chaplin asserted a high level of control over his pictures and started to put more time and care into each film.[80] There was a month-long interval between the release of his second production, A Night Out, and his third, The Champion.[81] The final seven of Chaplin's 14 Essanay films were all produced at this slower pace.[82] Chaplin also began to alter his screen persona, which had attracted some criticism at Keystone for its "mean, crude, and brutish" nature.[83] The character became more gentle and romantic;[84] The Tramp (April 1915) was considered a particular turning point in his development.[85] The use of pathos was developed further with The Bank, in which Chaplin created a sad ending. Robinson notes that this was an innovation in comedy films, and marked the time when serious critics began to appreciate Chaplin's work.[86] At Essanay, writes film scholar Simon Louvish, Chaplin "found the themes and the settings that would define the Tramp's world."[87]
+
+During 1915, Chaplin became a cultural phenomenon. Shops were stocked with Chaplin merchandise, he was featured in cartoons and comic strips, and several songs were written about him.[88] In July, a journalist for Motion Picture Magazine wrote that "Chaplinitis" had spread across America.[89] As his fame grew worldwide, he became the film industry's first international star.[90] When the Essanay contract ended in December 1915,[91][j] Chaplin – fully aware of his popularity – requested a $150,000 signing bonus from his next studio. He received several offers, including Universal, Fox, and Vitagraph, the best of which came from the Mutual Film Corporation at $10,000 a week.[93]
+
+A contract was negotiated with Mutual that amounted to $670,000 a year ($15.7 million today),[94] which Robinson says made Chaplin – at 26 years old – one of the highest paid people in the world.[95] The high salary shocked the public and was widely reported in the press.[96] John R. Freuler, the studio president, explained: "We can afford to pay Mr. Chaplin this large sum annually because the public wants Chaplin and will pay for him."[97]
+
+Mutual gave Chaplin his own Los Angeles studio to work in, which opened in March 1916.[98] He added two key members to his stock company, Albert Austin and Eric Campbell,[99] and produced a series of elaborate two-reelers: The Floorwalker, The Fireman, The Vagabond, One A.M., and The Count.[100] For The Pawnshop, he recruited the actor Henry Bergman, who was to work with Chaplin for 30 years.[101] Behind the Screen and The Rink completed Chaplin's releases for 1916. The Mutual contract stipulated that he release a two-reel film every four weeks, which he had managed to achieve. With the new year, however, Chaplin began to demand more time.[102] He made only four more films for Mutual over the first ten months of 1917: Easy Street, The Cure, The Immigrant, and The Adventurer.[103] With their careful construction, these films are considered by Chaplin scholars to be among his finest work.[104][105]  Later in life, Chaplin referred to his Mutual years as the happiest period of his career.[106] However, Chaplin also felt that those films became increasingly formulaic over the period of the contract and he was increasingly dissatisfied with the working conditions encouraging that.
+[107]
+
+Chaplin was attacked in the British media for not fighting in the First World War.[108] He defended himself, claiming that he would fight for Britain if called and had registered for the American draft, but he was not summoned by either country.[k] Despite this criticism Chaplin was a favourite with the troops,[110] and his popularity continued to grow worldwide. Harper's Weekly reported that the name of Charlie Chaplin was "a part of the common language of almost every country", and that the Tramp image was "universally familiar".[111] In 1917, professional Chaplin imitators were so widespread that he took legal action,[112] and it was reported that nine out of ten men who attended costume parties, did so dressed as the Tramp.[113] The same year, a study by the Boston Society for Psychical Research concluded that Chaplin was "an American obsession".[113] The actress Minnie Maddern Fiske wrote that "a constantly increasing body of cultured, artistic people are beginning to regard the young English buffoon, Charles Chaplin, as an extraordinary artist, as well as a comic genius".[111]
+
+In January 1918, Chaplin was visited by leading British singer and comedian Harry Lauder, and the two acted in a short film together.[114]
+
+Mutual was patient with Chaplin's decreased rate of output, and the contract ended amicably. With his aforementioned concern about the declining quality of his films because of contract scheduling stipulations, Chaplin's primary concern in finding a new distributor was independence; Sydney Chaplin, then his business manager, told the press, "Charlie [must] be allowed all the time he needs and all the money for producing [films] the way he wants ... It is quality, not quantity, we are after."[115] In June 1917, Chaplin signed to complete eight films for First National Exhibitors' Circuit in return for $1 million ($20 million today).[116] He chose to build his own studio, situated on five acres of land off Sunset Boulevard, with production facilities of the highest order.[117] It was completed in January 1918,[118] and Chaplin was given freedom over the making of his pictures.[119]
+
+A Dog's Life, released April 1918, was the first film under the new contract. In it, Chaplin demonstrated his increasing concern with story construction and his treatment of the Tramp as "a sort of Pierrot".[120] The film was described by Louis Delluc as "cinema's first total work of art".[121] Chaplin then embarked on the Third Liberty Bond campaign, touring the United States for one month to raise money for the Allies of the First World War.[122] He also produced a short propaganda film at his own expense, donated to the government for fund-raising, called The Bond.[123] Chaplin's next release was war-based, placing the Tramp in the trenches for Shoulder Arms. Associates warned him against making a comedy about the war but, as he later recalled: "Dangerous or not, the idea excited me."[124] He spent four months filming the 45-minute-long picture, which was released in October 1918 with great success.[125]
+
+After the release of Shoulder Arms, Chaplin requested more money from First National, which was refused. Frustrated with their lack of concern for quality, and worried about rumours of a possible merger between the company and Famous Players-Lasky, Chaplin joined forces with Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford, and D. W. Griffith to form a new distribution company – United Artists, established in January 1919.[126] The arrangement was revolutionary in the film industry, as it enabled the four partners – all creative artists – to personally fund their pictures and have complete control.[127] Chaplin was eager to start with the new company and offered to buy out his contract with First National. They refused and insisted that he complete the final six films owed.[128]
+
+Before the creation of United Artists, Chaplin married for the first time. The 16-year-old actress Mildred Harris had revealed that she was pregnant with his child, and in September 1918, he married her quietly in Los Angeles to avoid controversy.[129] Soon after, the pregnancy was found to be false.[130] Chaplin was unhappy with the union and, feeling that marriage stunted his creativity, struggled over the production of his film Sunnyside.[131] Harris was by then legitimately pregnant, and on 7 July 1919, gave birth to a son. Norman Spencer Chaplin was born malformed and died three days later.[132] The marriage ended in April 1920, with Chaplin explaining in his autobiography that they were "irreconcilably mismated".[133]
+
+Losing the child, plus his own childhood experiences, are thought to have influenced Chaplin's next film, which turned the Tramp into the caretaker of a young boy.[119][134] For this new venture, Chaplin also wished to do more than comedy and, according to Louvish, "make his mark on a changed world."[135] Filming on The Kid began in August 1919, with four-year-old Jackie Coogan his co-star.[136] The Kid was in production for nine months until May 1920 and, at 68 minutes, it was Chaplin's longest picture to date.[137] Dealing with issues of poverty and parent–child separation, The Kid was one of the earliest films to combine comedy and drama.[138] It was released in January 1921 with instant success, and, by 1924, had been screened in over 50 countries.[139]
+
+Chaplin spent five months on his next film, the two-reeler The Idle Class.[127] Following its September 1921 release, he chose to return to England for the first time in almost a decade.[140] He wrote a book about his journey, titled "My Wonderful Visit".  He then worked to fulfil his First National contract, releasing Pay Day in February 1922. The Pilgrim – his final short film – was delayed by distribution disagreements with the studio, and released a year later.[141]
+
+Having fulfilled his First National contract, Chaplin was free to make his first picture as an independent producer. In November 1922, he began filming A Woman of Paris, a romantic drama about ill-fated lovers.[142] Chaplin intended it to be a star-making vehicle for Edna Purviance,[143] and did not appear in the picture himself other than in a brief, uncredited cameo.[144] He wished the film to have a realistic feel and directed his cast to give restrained performances. In real life, he explained, "men and women try to hide their emotions rather than seek to express them".[145] A Woman of Paris premiered in September 1923 and was acclaimed for its innovative, subtle approach.[146] The public, however, seemed to have little interest in a Chaplin film without Chaplin, and it was a box office disappointment.[147] The filmmaker was hurt by this failure – he had long wanted to produce a dramatic film and was proud of the result – and soon withdrew A Woman of Paris from circulation.[148]
+
+Chaplin returned to comedy for his next project. Setting his standards high, he told himself "This next film must be an epic! The Greatest!"[149] Inspired by a photograph of the 1898 Klondike Gold Rush, and later the story of the Donner Party of 1846–1847, he made what Geoffrey Macnab calls "an epic comedy out of grim subject matter."[150] In The Gold Rush, the Tramp is a lonely prospector fighting adversity and looking for love. With Georgia Hale as his leading lady, Chaplin began filming the picture in February 1924.[151] Its elaborate production, costing almost $1 million,[152] included location shooting in the Truckee mountains in Nevada with 600 extras, extravagant sets, and special effects.[153] The last scene was shot in May 1925 after 15 months of filming.[154]
+
+Chaplin felt The Gold Rush was the best film he had made.[155] It opened in August 1925 and became one of the highest-grossing films of the silent era with a U.S. box-office of $5 million.[156] The comedy contains some of Chaplin's most famous sequences, such as the Tramp eating his shoe and the "Dance of the Rolls".[157] Macnab has called it "the quintessential Chaplin film".[158] Chaplin stated at its release, "This is the picture that I want to be remembered by".[159]
+
+While making The Gold Rush, Chaplin married for the second time. Mirroring the circumstances of his first union, Lita Grey was a teenage actress, originally set to star in the film, whose surprise announcement of pregnancy forced Chaplin into marriage. She was 16 and he was 35, meaning Chaplin could have been charged with statutory rape under California law.[160] He therefore arranged a discreet marriage in Mexico on 25 November 1924.[161] They originally met during her childhood and she had previously appeared in his works The Kid and The Idle Class.[162] Their first son, Charles Spencer Chaplin, Jr., was born on 5 May 1925, followed by Sydney Earl Chaplin on 30 March 1926.[163]
+
+It was an unhappy marriage, and Chaplin spent long hours at the studio to avoid seeing his wife.[164] In November 1926, Grey took the children and left the family home.[165] A bitter divorce followed, in which Grey's application – accusing Chaplin of infidelity, abuse, and of harbouring "perverted sexual desires" – was leaked to the press.[166][l] Chaplin was reported to be in a state of nervous breakdown, as the story became headline news and groups formed across America calling for his films to be banned.[168] Eager to end the case without further scandal, Chaplin's lawyers agreed to a cash settlement of $600,000 – the largest awarded by American courts at that time.[169] His fan base was strong enough to survive the incident, and it was soon forgotten, but Chaplin was deeply affected by it.[170]
+
+Before the divorce suit was filed, Chaplin had begun work on a new film, The Circus.[171] He built a story around the idea of walking a tightrope while besieged by monkeys, and turned the Tramp into the accidental star of a circus.[172] Filming was suspended for 10 months while he dealt with the divorce scandal,[173] and it was generally a trouble-ridden production.[174] Finally completed in October 1927, The Circus was released in January 1928 to a positive reception.[175] At the 1st Academy Awards, Chaplin was given a special trophy "For versatility and genius in acting, writing, directing and producing The Circus".[176] Despite its success, he permanently associated the film with the stress of its production; Chaplin omitted The Circus from his autobiography, and struggled to work on it when he recorded the score in his later years.[177]
+
+I was determined to continue making silent films ... I was a pantomimist and in that medium I was unique and, without false modesty, a master.
+
+By the time The Circus was released, Hollywood had witnessed the introduction of sound films. Chaplin was cynical about this new medium and the technical shortcomings it presented, believing that "talkies" lacked the artistry of silent films.[179] He was also hesitant to change the formula that had brought him such success,[180] and feared that giving the Tramp a voice would limit his international appeal.[181] He, therefore, rejected the new Hollywood craze and began work on a new silent film. Chaplin was nonetheless anxious about this decision and remained so throughout the film's production.[181]
+
+When filming began at the end of 1928, Chaplin had been working on the story for almost a year.[182] City Lights followed the Tramp's love for a blind flower girl (played by Virginia Cherrill) and his efforts to raise money for her sight-saving operation. It was a challenging production that lasted 21 months,[183] with Chaplin later confessing that he "had worked himself into a neurotic state of wanting perfection".[184] One advantage Chaplin found in sound technology was the opportunity to record a musical score for the film, which he composed himself.[184][185]
+
+Chaplin finished editing City Lights in December 1930, by which time silent films were an anachronism.[186] A preview before an unsuspecting public audience was not a success,[187] but a showing for the press produced positive reviews. One journalist wrote, "Nobody in the world but Charlie Chaplin could have done it. He is the only person that has that peculiar something called 'audience appeal' in sufficient quality to defy the popular penchant for movies that talk."[188] Given its general release in January 1931, City Lights proved to be a popular and financial success – eventually grossing over $3 million.[189] The British Film Institute cites it as Chaplin's finest accomplishment, and the critic James Agee hails the closing scene as "the greatest piece of acting and the highest moment in movies".[190][191] City Lights became Chaplin's personal favourite of his films and remained so throughout his life.[192]
+
+City Lights had been a success, but Chaplin was unsure if he could make another picture without dialogue. He remained convinced that sound would not work in his films, but was also "obsessed by a depressing fear of being old-fashioned."[193] In this state of uncertainty, early in 1931, the comedian decided to take a holiday and ended up travelling for 16 months.[194][m] He spent months travelling Western Europe, including extended stays in France and Switzerland, and spontaneously decided to visit Japan.[196] The day after he arrived in Japan, Prime Minister Inukai Tsuyoshi was assassinated by ultra-nationalists in the May 15 Incident. The group's original plan had been to provoke a war with the United States by assassinating Chaplin at a welcome reception organised by the prime minister, but the plan had been foiled due to delayed public announcement of the event's date.[197]
+
+In his autobiography, Chaplin recalled that on his return to Los Angeles, "I was confused and without plan, restless and conscious of an extreme loneliness". He briefly considered retiring and moving to China.[199] Chaplin's loneliness was relieved when he met 21-year-old actress Paulette Goddard in July 1932, and the pair began a relationship.[200] He was not ready to commit to a film, however, and focused on writing a serial about his travels (published in Woman's Home Companion).[201] The trip had been a stimulating experience for Chaplin, including meetings with several prominent thinkers, and he became increasingly interested in world affairs.[202] The state of labour in America troubled him, and he feared that capitalism and machinery in the workplace would increase unemployment levels. It was these concerns that stimulated Chaplin to develop his new film.[203]
+
+Modern Times was announced by Chaplin as "a satire on certain phases of our industrial life."[204] Featuring the Tramp and Goddard as they endure the Great Depression, it took ten and a half months to film.[205] Chaplin intended to use spoken dialogue but changed his mind during rehearsals. Like its predecessor, Modern Times employed sound effects but almost no speaking.[206] Chaplin's performance of a gibberish song did, however, give the Tramp a voice for the only time on film.[207] After recording the music, Chaplin released Modern Times in February 1936.[208] It was his first feature in 15 years to adopt political references and social realism,[209] a factor that attracted considerable press coverage despite Chaplin's attempts to downplay the issue.[210] The film earned less at the box-office than his previous features and received mixed reviews, as some viewers disliked the politicising.[211] Today, Modern Times is seen by the British Film Institute as one of Chaplin's "great features,"[190] while David Robinson says it shows the filmmaker at "his unrivalled peak as a creator of visual comedy."[212]
+
+Following the release of Modern Times, Chaplin left with Goddard for a trip to the Far East.[213] The couple had refused to comment on the nature of their relationship, and it was not known whether they were married or not.[214] Some time later, Chaplin revealed that they married in Canton during this trip.[215] By 1938, the couple had drifted apart, as both focused heavily on their work, although Goddard was again his leading lady in his next feature film, The Great Dictator. She eventually divorced Chaplin in Mexico in 1942, citing incompatibility and separation for more than a year.[216]
+
+The 1940s saw Chaplin face a series of controversies, both in his work and in his personal life, which changed his fortunes and severely affected his popularity in the United States. The first of these was his growing boldness in expressing his political beliefs. Deeply disturbed by the surge of militaristic nationalism in 1930s world politics,[217] Chaplin found that he could not keep these issues out of his work.[218]  Parallels between himself and Adolf Hitler had been widely noted: the pair were born four days apart, both had risen from poverty to world prominence, and Hitler wore the same toothbrush moustache as Chaplin. It was this physical resemblance that supplied the plot for Chaplin's next film, The Great Dictator, which directly satirised Hitler and attacked fascism.[219]
+
+Chaplin spent two years developing the script,[220] and began filming in September 1939 – six days after Britain declared war on Germany.[221] He had submitted to using spoken dialogue, partly out of acceptance that he had no other choice, but also because he recognised it as a better method for delivering a political message.[222] Making a comedy about Hitler was seen as highly controversial, but Chaplin's financial independence allowed him to take the risk.[223] "I was determined to go ahead," he later wrote, "for Hitler must be laughed at."[224][n] Chaplin replaced the Tramp (while wearing similar attire) with "A Jewish Barber", a reference to the Nazi party's belief that he was Jewish.[o][226] In a dual performance, he also played the dictator "Adenoid Hynkel", who parodied Hitler.[227]
+
+The Great Dictator spent a year in production and was released in October 1940.[228] The film generated a vast amount of publicity, with a critic for The New York Times calling it "the most eagerly awaited picture of the year", and it was one of the biggest money-makers of the era.[229] The ending was unpopular, however, and generated controversy.[230] Chaplin concluded the film with a five-minute speech in which he abandoned his barber character, looked directly into the camera, and pleaded against war and fascism.[231] Charles J. Maland has identified this overt preaching as triggering a decline in Chaplin's popularity, and writes, "Henceforth, no movie fan would ever be able to separate the dimension of politics from [his] star image".[232][p] The Great Dictator received five Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay and Best Actor.[234]
+
+In the mid-1940s, Chaplin was involved in a series of trials that occupied most of his time and significantly affected his public image.[235] The troubles stemmed from his affair with an aspirant actress named Joan Barry, with whom he was involved intermittently between June 1941 and the autumn of 1942.[236] Barry, who displayed obsessive behaviour and was twice arrested after they separated,[q] reappeared the following year and announced that she was pregnant with Chaplin's child. As Chaplin denied the claim, Barry filed a paternity suit against him.[237]
+
+The director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), J. Edgar Hoover, who had long been suspicious of Chaplin's political leanings, used the opportunity to generate negative publicity about him. As part of a smear campaign to damage Chaplin's image,[238] the FBI named him in four indictments related to the Barry case. Most serious of these was an alleged violation of the Mann Act, which prohibits the transportation of women across state boundaries for sexual purposes.[r] The historian Otto Friedrich has called this an "absurd prosecution" of an "ancient statute",[241] yet if Chaplin was found guilty, he faced 23 years in jail.[242] Three charges lacked sufficient evidence to proceed to court, but the Mann Act trial began on 21 March 1944.[243] Chaplin was acquitted two weeks later, on 4 April.[244][239] The case was frequently headline news, with Newsweek calling it the "biggest public relations scandal since the Fatty Arbuckle murder trial in 1921."[245]
+
+Barry's child, Carol Ann, was born in October 1943, and the paternity suit went to court in December 1944. After two arduous trials, in which the prosecuting lawyer accused him of "moral turpitude",[246] Chaplin was declared to be the father. Evidence from blood tests which indicated otherwise were not admissible,[s] and the judge ordered Chaplin to pay child support until Carol Ann turned 21. Media coverage of the paternity suit was influenced by the FBI, as information was fed to the prominent gossip columnist Hedda Hopper, and Chaplin was portrayed in an overwhelmingly critical light.[248]
+
+The controversy surrounding Chaplin increased when, two weeks after the paternity suit was filed, it was announced that he had married his newest protégée, 18-year-old Oona O'Neill – daughter of the American playwright Eugene O'Neill.[249] Chaplin, then 54, had been introduced to her by a film agent seven months earlier.[t] In his autobiography, Chaplin described meeting O'Neill as "the happiest event of my life", and claimed to have found "perfect love".[252] Chaplin's son, Charles Jr., reported that Oona "worshipped" his father.[253] The couple remained married until Chaplin's death, and had eight children over 18 years: Geraldine Leigh (b. July 1944), Michael John (b. March 1946), Josephine Hannah (b. March 1949), Victoria (b. May 1951), Eugene Anthony (b. August 1953), Jane Cecil (b. May 1957), Annette Emily (b. December 1959), and Christopher James (b. July 1962).[254]
+
+Chaplin claimed that the Barry trials had "crippled [his] creativeness", and it was some time before he began working again.[255] In April 1946, he finally began filming a project that had been in development since 1942.[256] Monsieur Verdoux was a black comedy, the story of a French bank clerk, Verdoux (Chaplin), who loses his job and begins marrying and murdering wealthy widows to support his family. Chaplin's inspiration for the project came from Orson Welles, who wanted him to star in a film about the French serial killer Henri Désiré Landru. Chaplin decided that the concept would "make a wonderful comedy",[257] and paid Welles $5,000 for the idea.[258]
+
+Chaplin again vocalised his political views in Monsieur Verdoux, criticising capitalism and arguing that the world encourages mass killing through wars and weapons of mass destruction.[259] Because of this, the film met with controversy when it was released in April 1947;[260] Chaplin was booed at the premiere, and there were calls for a boycott.[261] Monsieur Verdoux was the first Chaplin release that failed both critically and commercially in the United States.[262] It was more successful abroad,[263] and Chaplin's screenplay was nominated at the Academy Awards.[264] He was proud of the film, writing in his autobiography, "Monsieur Verdoux is the cleverest and most brilliant film I have yet made."[265]
+
+The negative reaction to Monsieur Verdoux was largely the result of changes in Chaplin's public image.[266] Along with damage of the Joan Barry scandal, he was publicly accused of being a communist.[267] His political activity had heightened during World War II, when he campaigned for the opening of a Second Front to help the Soviet Union and supported various Soviet–American friendship groups.[268] He was also friendly with several suspected communists, and attended functions given by Soviet diplomats in Los Angeles.[269] In the political climate of 1940s America, such activities meant Chaplin was considered, as Larcher writes, "dangerously progressive and amoral."[270] The FBI wanted him out of the country,[271] and launched an official investigation in early 1947.[272][u]
+
+Chaplin denied being a communist, instead calling himself a "peacemonger",[274] but felt the government's effort to suppress the ideology was an unacceptable infringement of civil liberties.[275] Unwilling to be quiet about the issue, he openly protested against the trials of Communist Party members and the activities of the House Un-American Activities Committee.[276] Chaplin received a subpoena to appear before HUAC but was not called to testify.[277] As his activities were widely reported in the press, and Cold War fears grew, questions were raised over his failure to take American citizenship.[278] Calls were made for him to be deported; in one extreme and widely published example, Representative John E. Rankin, who helped establish HUAC, told Congress in June 1947: "[Chaplin's] very life in Hollywood is detrimental to the moral fabric of America. [If he is deported] ... his loathsome pictures can be kept from before the eyes of the American youth. He should be deported and gotten rid of at once."[279]
+
+Although Chaplin remained politically active in the years following the failure of Monsieur Verdoux,[v] his next film, about a forgotten music hall comedian and a young ballerina in Edwardian London, was devoid of political themes. Limelight was heavily autobiographical, alluding not only to Chaplin's childhood and the lives of his parents, but also to his loss of popularity in the United States.[281] The cast included various members of his family, including his five oldest children and his half-brother, Wheeler Dryden.[282]
+
+Filming began in November 1951, by which time Chaplin had spent three years working on the story.[283][w] He aimed for a more serious tone than any of his previous films, regularly using the word "melancholy" when explaining his plans to his co-star Claire Bloom.[285] Limelight featured a cameo appearance from Buster Keaton, whom Chaplin cast as his stage partner in a pantomime scene. This marked the only time the comedians worked together.[286]
+
+Chaplin decided to hold the world premiere of Limelight in London, since it was the setting of the film.[287] As he left Los Angeles, he expressed a premonition that he would not be returning.[288] At New York, he boarded the RMS Queen Elizabeth with his family on 18 September 1952.[289] The next day, United States Attorney General James P. McGranery revoked Chaplin's re-entry permit and stated that he would have to submit to an interview concerning his political views and moral behaviour to re-enter the US.[289] Although McGranery told the press that he had "a pretty good case against Chaplin", Maland has concluded, on the basis of the FBI files that were released in the 1980s, that the US government had no real evidence to prevent Chaplin's re-entry. It is likely that he would have gained entry if he had applied for it.[290] However, when Chaplin received a cablegram informing him of the news, he privately decided to cut his ties with the United States:
+
+Whether I re-entered that unhappy country or not was of little consequence to me. I would like to have told them that the sooner I was rid of that hate-beleaguered atmosphere the better, that I was fed up of America's insults and moral pomposity...[291]
+
+Because all of his property remained in America, Chaplin refrained from saying anything negative about the incident to the press.[292] The scandal attracted vast attention,[293] but Chaplin and his film were warmly received in Europe.[289] In America, the hostility towards him continued, and, although it received some positive reviews, Limelight was subjected to a wide-scale boycott.[294] Reflecting on this, Maland writes that Chaplin's fall, from an "unprecedented" level of popularity, "may be the most dramatic in the history of stardom in America".[295]
+
+I have been the object of lies and propaganda by powerful reactionary groups who, by their influence and by the aid of America's yellow press, have created an unhealthy atmosphere in which liberal-minded individuals can be singled out and persecuted. Under these conditions I find it virtually impossible to continue my motion-picture work, and I have therefore given up my residence in the United States.
+
+Chaplin did not attempt to return to the United States after his re-entry permit was revoked, and instead sent his wife to settle his affairs.[x] The couple decided to settle in Switzerland and, in January 1953, the family moved into their permanent home: Manoir de Ban, a 14-hectare (35-acre) estate[298] overlooking Lake Geneva in Corsier-sur-Vevey.[299][y] Chaplin put his Beverly Hills house and studio up for sale in March, and surrendered his re-entry permit in April. The next year, his wife renounced her US citizenship and became a British citizen.[301] Chaplin severed the last of his professional ties with the United States in 1955, when he sold the remainder of his stock in United Artists, which had been in financial difficulty since the early 1940s.[302]
+
+Chaplin remained a controversial figure throughout the 1950s, especially after he was awarded the International Peace Prize by the communist-led World Peace Council, and after his meetings with Zhou Enlai and Nikita Khrushchev.[303] He began developing his first European film, A King in New York, in 1954.[304] Casting himself as an exiled king who seeks asylum in the United States, Chaplin included several of his recent experiences in the screenplay. His son, Michael, was cast as a boy whose parents are targeted by the FBI, while Chaplin's character faces accusations of communism.[305] The political satire parodied HUAC and attacked elements of 1950s culture – including consumerism, plastic surgery, and wide-screen cinema.[306] In a review, the playwright John Osborne called it Chaplin's "most bitter" and "most openly personal" film.[307] In a 1957 interview, when asked to clarify his political views, Chaplin stated "As for politics, I am an anarchist. I hate government and rules – and fetters ... People must be free."[308]
+
+Chaplin founded a new production company, Attica, and used Shepperton Studios for the shooting.[304] Filming in England proved a difficult experience, as he was used to his own Hollywood studio and familiar crew, and no longer had limitless production time. According to Robinson, this had an effect on the quality of the film.[309] A King in New York was released in September 1957, and received mixed reviews.[310] Chaplin banned American journalists from its Paris première and decided not to release the film in the United States. This severely limited its revenue, although it achieved moderate commercial success in Europe.[311] A King in New York was not shown in America until 1973.[312][313]
+
+In the last two decades of his career, Chaplin concentrated on re-editing and scoring his old films for re-release, along with securing their ownership and distribution rights.[314] In an interview he granted in 1959, the year of his 70th birthday, Chaplin stated that there was still "room for the Little Man in the atomic age".[315] The first of these re-releases was The Chaplin Revue (1959), which included new versions of A Dog's Life, Shoulder Arms, and The Pilgrim.[315]
+
+In America, the political atmosphere began to change and attention was once again directed to Chaplin's films instead of his views.[314] In July 1962, The New York Times published an editorial stating that "we do not believe the Republic would be in danger if yesterday's unforgotten little tramp were allowed to amble down the gangplank of a steamer or plane in an American port".[316] The same month, Chaplin was invested with the honorary degree of Doctor of Letters by the universities of Oxford and Durham.[317] In November 1963, the Plaza Theater in New York started a year-long series of Chaplin's films, including Monsieur Verdoux and Limelight, which gained excellent reviews from American critics.[318] September 1964 saw the release of Chaplin's memoirs, My Autobiography, which he had been working on since 1957.[319] The 500-page book became a worldwide best-seller. It focused on his early years and personal life, and was criticised for lacking information on his film career.[320]
+
+Shortly after the publication of his memoirs, Chaplin began work on A Countess from Hong Kong (1967), a romantic comedy based on a script he had written for Paulette Goddard in the 1930s.[321] Set on an ocean liner, it starred Marlon Brando as an American ambassador and Sophia Loren as a stowaway found in his cabin.[321] The film differed from Chaplin's earlier productions in several aspects. It was his first to use Technicolor and the widescreen format, while he concentrated on directing and appeared on-screen only in a cameo role as a seasick steward.[322] He also signed a deal with Universal Pictures and appointed his assistant, Jerome Epstein, as the producer.[323] Chaplin was paid $600,000 director's fee as well as a percentage of the gross receipts.[324] A Countess from Hong Kong premiered in January 1967, to unfavourable reviews, and was a box-office failure.[325][326] Chaplin was deeply hurt by the negative reaction to the film, which turned out to be his last.[325]
+
+Chaplin suffered a series of minor strokes in the late 1960s, which marked the beginning of a slow decline in his health.[327] Despite the setbacks, he was soon writing a new film script, The Freak, a story of a winged girl found in South America, which he intended as a starring vehicle for his daughter, Victoria.[327] His fragile health prevented the project from being realised.[328] In the early 1970s, Chaplin concentrated on re-releasing his old films, including The Kid and The Circus.[329] In 1971, he was made a Commander of the National Order of the Legion of Honour at the Cannes Film Festival.[330] The following year, he was honoured with a special award by the Venice Film Festival.[331]
+
+In 1972, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences offered Chaplin an Honorary Award, which Robinson sees as a sign that America "wanted to make amends". Chaplin was initially hesitant about accepting but decided to return to the US for the first time in 20 years.[330] The visit attracted a large amount of press coverage and, at the Academy Awards gala, he was given a 12-minute standing ovation, the longest in the Academy's history.[332][333] Visibly emotional, Chaplin accepted his award for "the incalculable effect he has had in making motion pictures the art form of this century".[334]
+
+Although Chaplin still had plans for future film projects, by the mid-1970s he was very frail.[335] He experienced several further strokes, which made it difficult for him to communicate, and he had to use a wheelchair.[336][337] His final projects were compiling a pictorial autobiography, My Life in Pictures (1974) and scoring A Woman of Paris for re-release in 1976.[338] He also appeared in a documentary about his life, The Gentleman Tramp (1975), directed by Richard Patterson.[339] In the 1975 New Year Honours, Chaplin was awarded a knighthood by Queen Elizabeth II,[338][z][341] though he was too weak to kneel and received the honour in his wheelchair.[342]
+
+By October 1977, Chaplin's health had declined to the point that he needed constant care.[343] In the early morning of 25 December 1977, Chaplin died at home after suffering a stroke in his sleep.[337] He was 88 years old. The funeral, on 27 December, was a small and private Anglican ceremony, according to his wishes.[344][aa] Chaplin was interred in the Corsier-sur-Vevey cemetery.[343] Among the film industry's tributes, director René Clair wrote, "He was a monument of the cinema, of all countries and all times ... the most beautiful gift the cinema made to us."[346] Actor Bob Hope declared, "We were lucky to have lived in his time."[347]
+
+On 1 March 1978, Chaplin's coffin was dug up and stolen from its grave by two unemployed immigrants, Roman Wardas, from Poland, and Gantcho Ganev, from Bulgaria. The body was held for ransom in an attempt to extort money from Oona Chaplin. The pair were caught in a large police operation in May, and Chaplin's coffin was found buried in a field in the nearby village of Noville. It was re-interred in the Corsier cemetery surrounded by reinforced concrete.[348][349]
+
+Chaplin believed his first influence to be his mother, who entertained him as a child by sitting at the window and mimicking passers-by: "it was through watching her that I learned not only how to express emotions with my hands and face, but also how to observe and study people."[350] Chaplin's early years in music hall allowed him to see stage comedians at work; he also attended the Christmas pantomimes at Drury Lane, where he studied the art of clowning through performers like Dan Leno.[351]  Chaplin's years with the Fred Karno company had a formative effect on him as an actor and filmmaker. Simon Louvish writes that the company was his "training ground",[352] and it was here that Chaplin learned to vary the pace of his comedy.[353] The concept of mixing pathos with slapstick was learnt from Karno,[ab] who also used elements of absurdity that became familiar in Chaplin's gags.[353][354] From the film industry, Chaplin drew upon the work of the French comedian Max Linder, whose films he greatly admired.[355] In developing the Tramp costume and persona, he was likely inspired by the American vaudeville scene, where tramp characters were common.[356]
+
+Chaplin never spoke more than cursorily about his filmmaking methods, claiming such a thing would be tantamount to a magician spoiling his own illusion.[357] Little was known about his working process throughout his lifetime,[358] but research from film historians – particularly the findings of Kevin Brownlow and David Gill that were presented in the three-part documentary Unknown Chaplin (1983) – has since revealed his unique working method.[359]
+
+Until he began making spoken dialogue films with The Great Dictator, Chaplin never shot from a completed script.[360] Many of his early films began with only a vague premise – for example "Charlie enters a health spa" or "Charlie works in a pawn shop."[361] He then had sets constructed and worked with his stock company to improvise gags and "business" using them, almost always working the ideas out on film.[359] As ideas were accepted and discarded, a narrative structure would emerge, frequently requiring Chaplin to reshoot an already-completed scene that might have otherwise contradicted the story.[362] From A Woman of Paris onward Chaplin began the filming process with a prepared plot,[363] but Robinson writes that every film up to Modern Times "went through many metamorphoses and permutations before the story took its final form."[364]
+
+Producing films in this manner meant Chaplin took longer to complete his pictures than almost any other filmmaker at the time.[365] If he was out of ideas, he often took a break from the shoot, which could last for days, while keeping the studio ready for when inspiration returned.[366] Delaying the process further was Chaplin's rigorous perfectionism.[367] According to his friend Ivor Montagu, "nothing but perfection would be right" for the filmmaker.[368] Because he personally funded his films, Chaplin was at liberty to strive for this goal and shoot as many takes as he wished.[369] The number was often excessive, for instance 53 takes for every finished take in The Kid.[370] For The Immigrant, a 20-minute short, Chaplin shot 40,000 feet of film—enough for a feature-length.[371]
+
+No other filmmaker ever so completely dominated every aspect of the work, did every job. If he could have done so, Chaplin would have played every role and (as his son Sydney humorously but perceptively observed) sewn every costume.
+
+Describing his working method as "sheer perseverance to the point of madness",[372] Chaplin would be completely consumed by the production of a picture.[373] Robinson writes that even in Chaplin's later years, his work continued "to take precedence over everything and everyone else."[374] The combination of story improvisation and relentless perfectionism – which resulted in days of effort and thousands of feet of film being wasted, all at enormous expense – often proved taxing for Chaplin who, in frustration, would lash out at his actors and crew.[375]
+
+Chaplin exercised complete control over his pictures,[357] to the extent that he would act out the other roles for his cast, expecting them to imitate him exactly.[376]  He personally edited all of his films, trawling through the large amounts of footage to create the exact picture he wanted.[377] As a result of his complete independence, he was identified by the film historian Andrew Sarris as one of the first auteur filmmakers.[378] Chaplin did receive help, notably from his long-time cinematographer Roland Totheroh, brother Sydney Chaplin, and various assistant directors such as Harry Crocker and Charles Reisner.[379]
+
+While Chaplin's comedic style is broadly defined as slapstick,[380] it is considered restrained and intelligent,[381] with the film historian Philip Kemp describing his work as a mix of "deft, balletic physical comedy and thoughtful, situation-based gags".[382] Chaplin diverged from conventional slapstick by slowing the pace and exhausting each scene of its comic potential, with more focus on developing the viewer's relationship to the characters.[66][383] Unlike conventional slapstick comedies, Robinson states that the comic moments in Chaplin's films centre on the Tramp's attitude to the things happening to him: the humour does not come from the Tramp bumping into a tree, but from his lifting his hat to the tree in apology.[66] Dan Kamin writes that Chaplin's "quirky mannerisms" and "serious demeanour in the midst of slapstick action" are other key aspects of his comedy,[384] while the surreal transformation of objects and the employment of in-camera trickery are also common features.[385]
+
+Chaplin's silent films typically follow the Tramp's efforts to survive in a hostile world.[386] The character lives in poverty and is frequently treated badly, but remains kind and upbeat;[387] defying his social position, he strives to be seen as a gentleman.[388] As Chaplin said in 1925, "The whole point of the Little Fellow is that no matter how down on his ass he is, no matter how well the jackals succeed in tearing him apart, he's still a man of dignity."[389] The Tramp defies authority figures[390] and "gives as good as he gets",[389] leading Robinson and Louvish to see him as a representative for the underprivileged – an "everyman turned heroic saviour".[391] Hansmeyer notes that several of Chaplin's films end with "the homeless and lonely Tramp [walking] optimistically ... into the sunset ... to continue his journey".[392]
+
+It is paradoxical that tragedy stimulates the spirit of ridicule ... ridicule, I suppose, is an attitude of defiance; we must laugh in the face of our helplessness against the forces of nature – or go insane.
+
+The infusion of pathos is a well-known aspect of Chaplin's work,[394] and Larcher notes his reputation for "[inducing] laughter and tears".[395] Sentimentality in his films comes from a variety of sources, with Louvish pinpointing "personal failure, society's strictures, economic disaster, and the elements."[396] Chaplin sometimes drew on tragic events when creating his films, as in the case of The Gold Rush (1925), which was inspired by the fate of the Donner Party.[393] Constance B. Kuriyama has identified serious underlying themes in the early comedies, such as greed (The Gold Rush) and loss (The Kid).[397] Chaplin also touched on controversial issues: immigration (The Immigrant, 1917); illegitimacy (The Kid, 1921); and drug use (Easy Street, 1917).[383] He often explored these topics ironically, making comedy out of suffering.[398]
+
+Social commentary was a feature of Chaplin's films from early in his career, as he portrayed the underdog in a sympathetic light and highlighted the difficulties of the poor.[399] Later, as he developed a keen interest in economics and felt obliged to publicise his views,[400] Chaplin began incorporating overtly political messages into his films.[401] Modern Times (1936) depicted factory workers in dismal conditions, The Great Dictator (1940) parodied Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini and ended in a speech against nationalism, Monsieur Verdoux (1947) criticised war and capitalism, and A King in New York (1957) attacked McCarthyism.[402]
+
+Several of Chaplin's films incorporate autobiographical elements, and the psychologist Sigmund Freud believed that Chaplin "always plays only himself as he was in his dismal youth".[403] The Kid is thought to reflect Chaplin's childhood trauma of being sent into an orphanage,[403] the main characters in Limelight (1952) contain elements from the lives of his parents,[404] and A King in New York references Chaplin's experiences of being shunned by the United States.[405] Many of his sets, especially in street scenes, bear a strong similarity to Kennington, where he grew up. Stephen M. Weissman has argued that Chaplin's problematic relationship with his mentally ill mother was often reflected in his female characters and the Tramp's desire to save them.[403]
+
+Regarding the structure of Chaplin's films, the scholar Gerald Mast sees them as consisting of sketches tied together by the same theme and setting, rather than having a tightly unified storyline.[406] Visually, his films are simple and economic,[407] with scenes portrayed as if set on a stage.[408] His approach to filming was described by the art director Eugène Lourié: "Chaplin did not think in 'artistic' images when he was shooting. He believed that action is the main thing. The camera is there to photograph the actors".[409] In his autobiography, Chaplin wrote, "Simplicity is best ... pompous effects slow up action, are boring and unpleasant ... The camera should not intrude."[410]  This approach has prompted criticism, since the 1940s, for being "old fashioned",[411] while the film scholar Donald McCaffrey sees it as an indication that Chaplin never completely understood film as a medium.[412] Kamin, however, comments that Chaplin's comedic talent would not be enough to remain funny on screen if he did not have an "ability to conceive and direct scenes specifically for the film medium".[413]
+
+Chaplin developed a passion for music as a child and taught himself to play the piano, violin, and cello.[414] He considered the musical accompaniment of a film to be important,[175] and from A Woman of Paris onwards he took an increasing interest in this area.[415] With the advent of sound technology, Chaplin began using a synchronised orchestral soundtrack – composed by himself – for City Lights (1931). He thereafter composed the scores for all of his films, and from the late 1950s to his death, he scored all of his silent features and some of his short films.[416]
+
+As Chaplin was not a trained musician, he could not read sheet music and needed the help of professional composers, such as David Raksin, Raymond Rasch and Eric James, when creating his scores. Musical directors were employed to oversee the recording process, such as Alfred Newman for City Lights.[417] Although some critics have claimed that credit for his film music should be given to the composers who worked with him, Raksin – who worked with Chaplin on Modern Times – stressed Chaplin's creative position and active participation in the composing process.[418] This process, which could take months, would start with Chaplin describing to the composer(s) exactly what he wanted and singing or playing tunes he had improvised on the piano.[418] These tunes were then developed further in a close collaboration among the composer(s) and Chaplin.[418] According to film historian Jeffrey Vance, "although he relied upon associates to arrange varied and complex instrumentation, the musical imperative is his, and not a note in a Chaplin musical score was placed there without his assent."[419]
+
+Chaplin's compositions produced three popular songs. "Smile", composed originally for Modern Times (1936) and later set to lyrics by John Turner and Geoffrey Parsons, was a hit for Nat King Cole in 1954.[419] For Limelight, Chaplin composed "Terry's Theme", which was popularised by Jimmy Young as "Eternally" (1952).[420] Finally, "This Is My Song", performed by Petula Clark for A Countess from Hong Kong (1967), reached number one on the UK and other European charts.[421] Chaplin also received his only competitive Oscar for his composition work, as the Limelight theme won an Academy Award for Best Original Score in 1973 following the film's re-release.[419][ac]
+
+In 1998, the film critic Andrew Sarris called Chaplin "arguably the single most important artist produced by the cinema, certainly its most extraordinary performer and probably still its most universal icon".[423] He is described by the British Film Institute as "a towering figure in world culture",[424] and was included in Time magazine's list of the "100 Most Important People of the 20th Century" for the "laughter [he brought] to millions" and because he "more or less invented global recognizability and helped turn an industry into an art".[425]
+
+The image of the Tramp has become a part of cultural history;[426] according to Simon Louvish, the character is recognisable to people who have never seen a Chaplin film, and in places where his films are never shown.[427] The critic Leonard Maltin has written of the "unique" and "indelible" nature of the Tramp, and argued that no other comedian matched his "worldwide impact".[428] Praising the character, Richard Schickel suggests that Chaplin's films with the Tramp contain the most "eloquent, richly comedic expressions of the human spirit" in movie history.[429] Memorabilia connected to the character still fetches large sums in auctions: in 2006 a bowler hat and a bamboo cane that were part of the Tramp's costume were bought for $140,000 in a Los Angeles auction.[430]
+
+As a filmmaker, Chaplin is considered a pioneer and one of the most influential figures of the early twentieth century.[431] He is often credited as one of the medium's first artists.[432] Film historian Mark Cousins has written that Chaplin "changed not only the imagery of cinema, but also its sociology and grammar" and claims that Chaplin was as important to the development of comedy as a genre as D.W. Griffith was to drama.[433] He was the first to popularise feature-length comedy and to slow down the pace of action, adding pathos and subtlety to it.[434][435] Although his work is mostly classified as slapstick, Chaplin's drama A Woman of Paris (1923) was a major influence on Ernst Lubitsch's film The Marriage Circle (1924) and thus played a part in the development of "sophisticated comedy".[436] According to David Robinson, Chaplin's innovations were "rapidly assimilated to become part of the common practice of film craft."[437] Filmmakers who cited Chaplin as an influence include Federico Fellini (who called Chaplin "a sort of Adam, from whom we are all descended"),[347] Jacques Tati ("Without him I would never have made a film"),[347] René Clair ("He inspired practically every filmmaker"),[346] Michael Powell,[438] Billy Wilder,[439] Vittorio De Sica,[440] and Richard Attenborough.[441] Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky praised Chaplin as "the only person to have gone down into cinematic history without any shadow of a doubt. The films he left behind can never grow old."[442]
+
+Chaplin also strongly influenced the work of later comedians. Marcel Marceau said he was inspired to become a mime artist after watching Chaplin,[435] while the actor Raj Kapoor based his screen persona on the Tramp.[439] Mark Cousins has also detected Chaplin's comedic style in the French character Monsieur Hulot and the Italian character Totò.[439] In other fields, Chaplin helped inspire the cartoon characters Felix the Cat[443] and Mickey Mouse,[444] and was an influence on the Dada art movement.[445] As one of the founding members of United Artists, Chaplin also had a role in the development of the film industry. Gerald Mast has written that although UA never became a major company like MGM or Paramount Pictures, the idea that directors could produce their own films was "years ahead of its time".[446]
+
+In the 21st century, several of Chaplin's films are still regarded as classics and among the greatest ever made. The 2012 Sight & Sound poll, which compiles "top ten" ballots from film critics and directors to determine each group's most acclaimed films,
+saw City Lights rank among the critics' top 50, Modern Times inside the top 100, and The Great Dictator and The Gold Rush placed in the top 250.[447] The top 100 films as voted on by directors included Modern Times at number 22, City Lights at number 30, and The Gold Rush at number 91.[448] Every one of Chaplin's features received a vote.[449] In 2007, the American Film Institute named City Lights the 11th greatest American film of all time, while The Gold Rush and Modern Times again ranked in the top 100.[450] Books about Chaplin continue to be published regularly, and he is a popular subject for media scholars and film archivists.[451] Many of Chaplin's film have had a DVD and Blu-ray release.[452]
+
+Chaplin's legacy is managed on behalf of his children by the Chaplin office, located in Paris. The office represents Association Chaplin, founded by some of his children "to protect the name, image and moral rights" to his body of work, Roy Export SAS, which owns the copyright to most of his films made after 1918, and Bubbles Incorporated S.A., which owns the copyrights to his image and name.[453] Their central archive is held at the archives of Montreux, Switzerland and scanned versions of its contents, including 83,630 images, 118 scripts, 976 manuscripts, 7,756 letters, and thousands of other documents, are available for research purposes at the Chaplin Research Centre at the Cineteca di Bologna.[454] The photographic archive, which includes approximately 10,000 photographs from Chaplin's life and career, is kept at the Musée de l'Elysée in Lausanne, Switzerland.[455] The British Film Institute has also established the Charles Chaplin Research Foundation, and the first international Charles Chaplin Conference was held in London in July 2005.[456]  Elements for many of Chaplin's films are held by the Academy Film Archive as part of the Roy Export Chaplin Collection. [457]
+
+Chaplin's final home, Manoir de Ban in Corsier-sur-Vevey, Switzerland, has been converted into a museum named "Chaplin's World". It opened on 17 April 2016 after 15 years of development, and is described by Reuters as "an interactive museum showcasing the life and works of Charlie Chaplin".[458] On the 128th anniversary of his birth, a record-setting 662 people dressed as the Tramp in an event organised by the museum.[459] Previously, the Museum of the Moving Image in London held a permanent display on Chaplin, and hosted a dedicated exhibition to his life and career in 1988. The London Film Museum hosted an exhibition called Charlie Chaplin – The Great Londoner, from 2010 until 2013.[460]
+
+In London, a statue of Chaplin as the Tramp, sculpted by John Doubleday and unveiled in 1981, is located in Leicester Square.[461] The city also includes a road named after him in central London, "Charlie Chaplin Walk", which is the location of the BFI IMAX.[462] There are nine blue plaques memorialising Chaplin in London, Hampshire, and Yorkshire.[463] The Swiss town of Vevey named a park in his honour in 1980 and erected a statue there in 1982.[461] In 2011, two large murals depicting Chaplin on two 14-storey buildings were also unveiled in Vevey.[464] Chaplin has also been honoured by the Irish town of Waterville, where he spent several summers with his family in the 1960s. A statue was erected in 1998;[465] since 2011, the town has been host to the annual Charlie Chaplin Comedy Film Festival, which was founded to celebrate Chaplin's legacy and to showcase new comic talent.[466]
+
+In other tributes, a minor planet, 3623 Chaplin – discovered by Soviet astronomer Lyudmila Karachkina in 1981 – is named after Chaplin.[467] Throughout the 1980s, the Tramp image was used by IBM to advertise their personal computers.[468] Chaplin's 100th birthday anniversary in 1989 was marked with several events around the world,[ad] and on 15 April 2011, a day before his 122nd birthday, Google celebrated him with a special Google Doodle video on its global and other country-wide homepages.[472] Many countries, spanning six continents, have honoured Chaplin with a postal stamp.[473]
+
+
+
+Chaplin is the subject of a biographical film, Chaplin (1992) directed by Richard Attenborough, and starring Robert Downey Jr. in the title role and Geraldine Chaplin playing Hannah Chaplin.[474] He is also a character in the historical drama film The Cat's Meow (2001), played by Eddie Izzard, and in the made-for-television movie The Scarlett O'Hara War (1980), played by Clive Revill.[475][476] A television series about Chaplin's childhood, Young Charlie Chaplin, ran on PBS in 1989, and was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Children's Program.[477] The French film The Price of Fame (2014) is a fictionalised account of the robbery of Chaplin's grave.[478]
+
+Chaplin's life has also been the subject of several stage productions. Two musicals, Little Tramp and Chaplin, were produced in the early 1990s. In 2006, Thomas Meehan and Christopher Curtis created another musical, Limelight: The Story of Charlie Chaplin, which was first performed at the La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego in 2010.[479] It was adapted for Broadway two years later, re-titled Chaplin – A Musical.[480] Chaplin was portrayed by Robert McClure in both productions. In 2013, two plays about Chaplin premiered in Finland: Chaplin at the Svenska Teatern,[481] and Kulkuri (The Tramp) at the Tampere Workers' Theatre.[482]
+
+Chaplin has also been characterised in literary fiction. He is the protagonist of Robert Coover's short story "Charlie in the House of Rue" (1980; reprinted in Coover's 1987 collection A Night at the Movies), and of Glen David Gold's Sunnyside (2009), a historical novel set in the First World War period.[483] A day in Chaplin's life in 1909 is dramatised in the chapter titled "Modern Times" in Alan Moore's Jerusalem (2016), a novel set in the author's home town of Northampton, England.[484]
+
+Chaplin received many awards and honours, especially later in life. In the 1975 New Year Honours, he was appointed a Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (KBE).[485] He was also awarded honorary Doctor of Letters degrees by the University of Oxford and the University of Durham in 1962.[317] In 1965, he and Ingmar Bergman were joint winners of the Erasmus Prize[486] and, in 1971, he was appointed a Commander of the National Order of the Legion of Honour by the French government.[487]
+
+From the film industry, Chaplin received a special Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival in 1972,[488] and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Lincoln Center Film Society the same year. The latter has since been presented annually to filmmakers as The Chaplin Award.[489] Chaplin was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1972, having been previously excluded because of his political beliefs.[490]
+
+Chaplin received three Academy Awards: an Honorary Award for "versatility and genius in acting, writing, directing, and producing The Circus" in 1929,[176] a second Honorary Award for "the incalculable effect he has had in making motion pictures the art form of this century" in 1972,[334] and a Best Score award in 1973 for Limelight (shared with Ray Rasch and Larry Russell).[419] He was further nominated in the Best Actor, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Picture (as producer) categories for The Great Dictator, and received another Best Original Screenplay nomination for Monsieur Verdoux.[491] In 1976, Chaplin was made a Fellow of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA).[492]
+
+Six of Chaplin's films have been selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the United States Library of Congress: The Immigrant (1917), The Kid (1921), The Gold Rush (1925), City Lights (1931), Modern Times (1936), and The Great Dictator (1940).[493]
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+Directed features:

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+Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin KBE (16 April 1889 – 25 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, "The Tramp", and is considered one of the most important figures in the history of the film industry. His career spanned more than 75 years, from childhood in the Victorian era until a year before his death in 1977, and encompassed both adulation and controversy.
+
+Chaplin's childhood in London was one of poverty and hardship, as his father was absent and his mother struggled financially, and he was sent to a workhouse twice before the age of nine. When he was 14, his mother was committed to a mental asylum. Chaplin began performing at an early age, touring music halls and later working as a stage actor and comedian. At 19, he was signed to the prestigious Fred Karno company, which took him to America. He was scouted for the film industry and began appearing in 1914 for Keystone Studios. He soon developed the Tramp persona and formed a large fan base. He directed his own films and continued to hone his craft as he moved to the Essanay, Mutual, and First National corporations. By 1918, he was one of the best-known figures in the world.
+
+In 1919, Chaplin co-founded the distribution company United Artists, which gave him complete control over his films. His first feature-length film was The Kid (1921), followed by A Woman of Paris (1923), The Gold Rush (1925), and The Circus (1928). He initially refused to move to sound films in the 1930s, instead producing City Lights (1931) and Modern Times (1936) without dialogue. He became increasingly political, and his first sound film was The Great Dictator (1940), which satirised Adolf Hitler. The 1940s were a decade marked with controversy for Chaplin, and his popularity declined rapidly. He was accused of communist sympathies, and some members of the press and public found his involvement in a paternity suit, and marriages to much younger women, scandalous. An FBI investigation was opened, and Chaplin was forced to leave the United States and settle in Switzerland. He abandoned the Tramp in his later films, which include Monsieur Verdoux (1947), Limelight (1952), A King in New York (1957), and A Countess from Hong Kong (1967).
+
+Chaplin wrote, directed, produced, edited, starred in, and composed the music for most of his films. He was a perfectionist, and his financial independence enabled him to spend years on the development and production of a picture. His films are characterised by slapstick combined with pathos, typified in the Tramp's struggles against adversity. Many contain social and political themes, as well as autobiographical elements. He received an Honorary Academy Award for "the incalculable effect he has had in making motion pictures the art form of this century" in 1972, as part of a renewed appreciation for his work. He continues to be held in high regard, with The Gold Rush, City Lights, Modern Times, and The Great Dictator often ranked on lists of the greatest films of all time.
+
+Charles Spencer Chaplin was born on 16 April 1889 to Hannah Chaplin (born Hannah Harriet Pedlingham Hill) and Charles Chaplin Sr. There is no official record of his birth, although Chaplin believed he was born at East Street, Walworth, in South London.[1][a] His parents had married four years previously, at which time Charles Sr. became the legal guardian of Hannah's illegitimate son, Sydney John Hill.[5][b] At the time of his birth, Chaplin's parents were both music hall entertainers. Hannah, the daughter of a shoemaker,[6] had a brief and unsuccessful career under the stage name Lily Harley,[7] while Charles Sr., a butcher's son,[8] was a popular singer.[9] Although they never divorced, Chaplin's parents were estranged by around 1891.[10] The following year, Hannah gave birth to a third son – George Wheeler Dryden – fathered by the music hall entertainer Leo Dryden. The child was taken by Dryden at six months old, and did not re-enter Chaplin's life for 30 years.[11]
+
+Chaplin's childhood was fraught with poverty and hardship, making his eventual trajectory "the most dramatic of all the rags to riches stories ever told" according to his authorised biographer David Robinson.[12] Chaplin's early years were spent with his mother and brother Sydney in the London district of Kennington; Hannah had no means of income, other than occasional nursing and dressmaking, and Chaplin Sr. provided no financial support.[13] As the situation deteriorated, Chaplin was sent to Lambeth Workhouse when he was seven years old.[c] The council housed him at the Central London District School for paupers, which Chaplin remembered as "a forlorn existence".[15] He was briefly reunited with his mother 18 months later, before Hannah was forced to readmit her family to the workhouse in July 1898. The boys were promptly sent to Norwood Schools, another institution for destitute children.[16]
+
+I was hardly aware of a crisis because we lived in a continual crisis; and, being a boy, I dismissed our troubles with gracious forgetfulness.
+
+In September 1898, Hannah was committed to Cane Hill mental asylum – she had developed a psychosis seemingly brought on by an infection of syphilis and malnutrition.[18] For the two months she was there, Chaplin and his brother Sydney were sent to live with their father, whom the young boys scarcely knew.[19] Charles Sr. was by then a severe alcoholic, and life there was bad enough to provoke a visit from the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children.[20] Chaplin's father died two years later, at 38 years old, from cirrhosis of the liver.[21]
+
+Hannah entered a period of remission but, in May 1903, became ill again.[20] Chaplin, then 14, had the task of taking his mother to the infirmary, from where she was sent back to Cane Hill.[22] He lived alone for several days, searching for food and occasionally sleeping rough, until Sydney – who had enrolled in the Navy two years earlier – returned.[23] Hannah was released from the asylum eight months later,[24] but in March 1905, her illness returned, this time permanently. "There was nothing we could do but accept poor mother's fate", Chaplin later wrote, and she remained in care until her death in 1928.[25]
+
+Between his time in the poor schools and his mother succumbing to mental illness, Chaplin began to perform on stage. He later recalled making his first amateur appearance at the age of five years, when he took over from Hannah one night in Aldershot.[d] This was an isolated occurrence, but by the time he was nine Chaplin had, with his mother's encouragement, grown interested in performing. He later wrote: "[she] imbued me with the feeling that I had some sort of talent".[27] Through his father's connections,[28] Chaplin became a member of the Eight Lancashire Lads clog-dancing troupe, with whom he toured English music halls throughout 1899 and 1900.[e] Chaplin worked hard, and the act was popular with audiences, but he was not satisfied with dancing and wished to form a comedy act.[30]
+
+In the years Chaplin was touring with the Eight Lancashire Lads, his mother ensured that he still attended school but, by age 13, he had abandoned education.[31][32] He supported himself with a range of jobs, while nursing his ambition to become an actor.[33] At 14, shortly after his mother's relapse, he registered with a theatrical agency in London's West End. The manager sensed potential in Chaplin, who was promptly given his first role as a newsboy in Harry Arthur Saintsbury's Jim, a Romance of Cockayne.[34] It opened in July 1903, but the show was unsuccessful and closed after two weeks. Chaplin's comic performance, however, was singled out for praise in many of the reviews.[35]
+
+Saintsbury secured a role for Chaplin in Charles Frohman's production of Sherlock Holmes, where he played Billy the pageboy in three nationwide tours.[36] His performance was so well received that he was called to London to play the role alongside William Gillette, the original Holmes.[f] "It was like tidings from heaven", Chaplin recalled.[38] At 16 years old, Chaplin starred in the play's West End production at the Duke of York's Theatre from October to December 1905.[39] He completed one final tour of Sherlock Holmes in early 1906, before leaving the play after more than two-and-a-half years.[40]
+
+Chaplin soon found work with a new company, and went on tour with his brother – who was also pursuing an acting career – in a comedy sketch called Repairs.[41] In May 1906, Chaplin joined the juvenile act Casey's Circus,[42] where he developed popular burlesque pieces and was soon the star of the show. By the time the act finished touring in July 1907, the 18-year-old had become an accomplished comedic performer.[43] He struggled to find more work, however, and a brief attempt at a solo act was a failure.[g]
+
+Meanwhile, Sydney Chaplin had joined Fred Karno's prestigious comedy company in 1906 and, by 1908, he was one of their key performers.[45] In February, he managed to secure a two-week trial for his younger brother. Karno was initially wary, and considered Chaplin a "pale, puny, sullen-looking youngster" who "looked much too shy to do any good in the theatre."[46] However, the teenager made an impact on his first night at the London Coliseum and he was quickly signed to a contract.[47] Chaplin began by playing a series of minor parts, eventually progressing to starring roles in 1909.[48] In April 1910, he was given the lead in a new sketch, Jimmy the Fearless. It was a big success, and Chaplin received considerable press attention.[49]
+
+Karno selected his new star to join the section of the company, one that also included Stan Laurel, that toured North America's vaudeville circuit.[50] The young comedian headed the show and impressed reviewers, being described as "one of the best pantomime artists ever seen here".[51] His most successful role was a drunk called the "Inebriate Swell", which drew him significant recognition.[52] The tour lasted 21 months, and the troupe returned to England in June 1912.[53] Chaplin recalled that he "had a disquieting feeling of sinking back into a depressing commonplaceness" and was, therefore, delighted when a new tour began in October.[54]
+
+Six months into the second American tour, Chaplin was invited to join the New York Motion Picture Company. A representative who had seen his performances thought he could replace Fred Mace, a star of their Keystone Studios who intended to leave.[55] Chaplin thought the Keystone comedies "a crude mélange of rough and rumble", but liked the idea of working in films and rationalised: "Besides, it would mean a new life."[56] He met with the company and signed a $150-per-week[h] contract in September 1913.[58] Chaplin arrived in Los Angeles in early December,[59] and began working for the Keystone studio on 5 January 1914.[60]
+
+Chaplin's boss was Mack Sennett, who initially expressed concern that the 24-year-old looked too young.[61] He was not used in a picture until late January, during which time Chaplin attempted to learn the processes of filmmaking.[62] The one-reeler Making a Living marked his film acting debut and was released on 2 February 1914. Chaplin strongly disliked the picture, but one review picked him out as "a comedian of the first water".[63] For his second appearance in front of the camera, Chaplin selected the costume with which he became identified. He described the process in his autobiography:
+
+I wanted everything to be a contradiction: the pants baggy, the coat tight, the hat small and the shoes large ... I added a small moustache, which, I reasoned, would add age without hiding my expression. I had no idea of the character. But the moment I was dressed, the clothes and the makeup made me feel the person he was. I began to know him, and by the time I walked on stage he was fully born.[64][i]
+
+The film was Mabel's Strange Predicament, but "the Tramp" character, as it became known, debuted to audiences in Kid Auto Races at Venice – shot later than Mabel's Strange Predicament but released two days earlier on 7 February 1914.[66] Chaplin adopted the character as his screen persona and attempted to make suggestions for the films he appeared in. These ideas were dismissed by his directors.[67] During the filming of his eleventh picture, Mabel at the Wheel, he clashed with director Mabel Normand and was almost released from his contract. Sennett kept him on, however, when he received orders from exhibitors for more Chaplin films.[68] Sennett also allowed Chaplin to direct his next film himself after Chaplin promised to pay $1,500 ($38,803 in 2019 dollars) if the film was unsuccessful.[69]
+
+Caught in the Rain, issued 4 May 1914, was Chaplin's directorial debut and was highly successful.[70] Thereafter he directed almost every short film in which he appeared for Keystone,[71] at the rate of approximately one per week,[72] a period which he later remembered as the most exciting time of his career.[73] Chaplin's films introduced a slower form of comedy than the typical Keystone farce,[66] and he developed a large fan base.[74] In November 1914, he had a supporting role in the first feature length comedy film, Tillie's Punctured Romance, directed by Sennett and starring Marie Dressler, which was a commercial success and increased his popularity.[75] When Chaplin's contract came up for renewal at the end of the year, he asked for $1,000 a week ($25,869 in 2019 dollars) – an amount Sennett refused as too large.[76]
+
+The Essanay Film Manufacturing Company of Chicago sent Chaplin an offer of $1,250 a week with a signing bonus of $10,000. He joined the studio in late December 1914,[77] where he began forming a stock company of regular players, actors he worked with again and again, including Leo White, Bud Jamison, Paddy McGuire and Billy Armstrong. He soon recruited a leading lady – Edna Purviance, whom Chaplin met in a café and hired on account of her beauty. She went on to appear in 35 films with Chaplin over eight years;[78] the pair also formed a romantic relationship that lasted into 1917.[79]
+
+Chaplin asserted a high level of control over his pictures and started to put more time and care into each film.[80] There was a month-long interval between the release of his second production, A Night Out, and his third, The Champion.[81] The final seven of Chaplin's 14 Essanay films were all produced at this slower pace.[82] Chaplin also began to alter his screen persona, which had attracted some criticism at Keystone for its "mean, crude, and brutish" nature.[83] The character became more gentle and romantic;[84] The Tramp (April 1915) was considered a particular turning point in his development.[85] The use of pathos was developed further with The Bank, in which Chaplin created a sad ending. Robinson notes that this was an innovation in comedy films, and marked the time when serious critics began to appreciate Chaplin's work.[86] At Essanay, writes film scholar Simon Louvish, Chaplin "found the themes and the settings that would define the Tramp's world."[87]
+
+During 1915, Chaplin became a cultural phenomenon. Shops were stocked with Chaplin merchandise, he was featured in cartoons and comic strips, and several songs were written about him.[88] In July, a journalist for Motion Picture Magazine wrote that "Chaplinitis" had spread across America.[89] As his fame grew worldwide, he became the film industry's first international star.[90] When the Essanay contract ended in December 1915,[91][j] Chaplin – fully aware of his popularity – requested a $150,000 signing bonus from his next studio. He received several offers, including Universal, Fox, and Vitagraph, the best of which came from the Mutual Film Corporation at $10,000 a week.[93]
+
+A contract was negotiated with Mutual that amounted to $670,000 a year ($15.7 million today),[94] which Robinson says made Chaplin – at 26 years old – one of the highest paid people in the world.[95] The high salary shocked the public and was widely reported in the press.[96] John R. Freuler, the studio president, explained: "We can afford to pay Mr. Chaplin this large sum annually because the public wants Chaplin and will pay for him."[97]
+
+Mutual gave Chaplin his own Los Angeles studio to work in, which opened in March 1916.[98] He added two key members to his stock company, Albert Austin and Eric Campbell,[99] and produced a series of elaborate two-reelers: The Floorwalker, The Fireman, The Vagabond, One A.M., and The Count.[100] For The Pawnshop, he recruited the actor Henry Bergman, who was to work with Chaplin for 30 years.[101] Behind the Screen and The Rink completed Chaplin's releases for 1916. The Mutual contract stipulated that he release a two-reel film every four weeks, which he had managed to achieve. With the new year, however, Chaplin began to demand more time.[102] He made only four more films for Mutual over the first ten months of 1917: Easy Street, The Cure, The Immigrant, and The Adventurer.[103] With their careful construction, these films are considered by Chaplin scholars to be among his finest work.[104][105]  Later in life, Chaplin referred to his Mutual years as the happiest period of his career.[106] However, Chaplin also felt that those films became increasingly formulaic over the period of the contract and he was increasingly dissatisfied with the working conditions encouraging that.
+[107]
+
+Chaplin was attacked in the British media for not fighting in the First World War.[108] He defended himself, claiming that he would fight for Britain if called and had registered for the American draft, but he was not summoned by either country.[k] Despite this criticism Chaplin was a favourite with the troops,[110] and his popularity continued to grow worldwide. Harper's Weekly reported that the name of Charlie Chaplin was "a part of the common language of almost every country", and that the Tramp image was "universally familiar".[111] In 1917, professional Chaplin imitators were so widespread that he took legal action,[112] and it was reported that nine out of ten men who attended costume parties, did so dressed as the Tramp.[113] The same year, a study by the Boston Society for Psychical Research concluded that Chaplin was "an American obsession".[113] The actress Minnie Maddern Fiske wrote that "a constantly increasing body of cultured, artistic people are beginning to regard the young English buffoon, Charles Chaplin, as an extraordinary artist, as well as a comic genius".[111]
+
+In January 1918, Chaplin was visited by leading British singer and comedian Harry Lauder, and the two acted in a short film together.[114]
+
+Mutual was patient with Chaplin's decreased rate of output, and the contract ended amicably. With his aforementioned concern about the declining quality of his films because of contract scheduling stipulations, Chaplin's primary concern in finding a new distributor was independence; Sydney Chaplin, then his business manager, told the press, "Charlie [must] be allowed all the time he needs and all the money for producing [films] the way he wants ... It is quality, not quantity, we are after."[115] In June 1917, Chaplin signed to complete eight films for First National Exhibitors' Circuit in return for $1 million ($20 million today).[116] He chose to build his own studio, situated on five acres of land off Sunset Boulevard, with production facilities of the highest order.[117] It was completed in January 1918,[118] and Chaplin was given freedom over the making of his pictures.[119]
+
+A Dog's Life, released April 1918, was the first film under the new contract. In it, Chaplin demonstrated his increasing concern with story construction and his treatment of the Tramp as "a sort of Pierrot".[120] The film was described by Louis Delluc as "cinema's first total work of art".[121] Chaplin then embarked on the Third Liberty Bond campaign, touring the United States for one month to raise money for the Allies of the First World War.[122] He also produced a short propaganda film at his own expense, donated to the government for fund-raising, called The Bond.[123] Chaplin's next release was war-based, placing the Tramp in the trenches for Shoulder Arms. Associates warned him against making a comedy about the war but, as he later recalled: "Dangerous or not, the idea excited me."[124] He spent four months filming the 45-minute-long picture, which was released in October 1918 with great success.[125]
+
+After the release of Shoulder Arms, Chaplin requested more money from First National, which was refused. Frustrated with their lack of concern for quality, and worried about rumours of a possible merger between the company and Famous Players-Lasky, Chaplin joined forces with Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford, and D. W. Griffith to form a new distribution company – United Artists, established in January 1919.[126] The arrangement was revolutionary in the film industry, as it enabled the four partners – all creative artists – to personally fund their pictures and have complete control.[127] Chaplin was eager to start with the new company and offered to buy out his contract with First National. They refused and insisted that he complete the final six films owed.[128]
+
+Before the creation of United Artists, Chaplin married for the first time. The 16-year-old actress Mildred Harris had revealed that she was pregnant with his child, and in September 1918, he married her quietly in Los Angeles to avoid controversy.[129] Soon after, the pregnancy was found to be false.[130] Chaplin was unhappy with the union and, feeling that marriage stunted his creativity, struggled over the production of his film Sunnyside.[131] Harris was by then legitimately pregnant, and on 7 July 1919, gave birth to a son. Norman Spencer Chaplin was born malformed and died three days later.[132] The marriage ended in April 1920, with Chaplin explaining in his autobiography that they were "irreconcilably mismated".[133]
+
+Losing the child, plus his own childhood experiences, are thought to have influenced Chaplin's next film, which turned the Tramp into the caretaker of a young boy.[119][134] For this new venture, Chaplin also wished to do more than comedy and, according to Louvish, "make his mark on a changed world."[135] Filming on The Kid began in August 1919, with four-year-old Jackie Coogan his co-star.[136] The Kid was in production for nine months until May 1920 and, at 68 minutes, it was Chaplin's longest picture to date.[137] Dealing with issues of poverty and parent–child separation, The Kid was one of the earliest films to combine comedy and drama.[138] It was released in January 1921 with instant success, and, by 1924, had been screened in over 50 countries.[139]
+
+Chaplin spent five months on his next film, the two-reeler The Idle Class.[127] Following its September 1921 release, he chose to return to England for the first time in almost a decade.[140] He wrote a book about his journey, titled "My Wonderful Visit".  He then worked to fulfil his First National contract, releasing Pay Day in February 1922. The Pilgrim – his final short film – was delayed by distribution disagreements with the studio, and released a year later.[141]
+
+Having fulfilled his First National contract, Chaplin was free to make his first picture as an independent producer. In November 1922, he began filming A Woman of Paris, a romantic drama about ill-fated lovers.[142] Chaplin intended it to be a star-making vehicle for Edna Purviance,[143] and did not appear in the picture himself other than in a brief, uncredited cameo.[144] He wished the film to have a realistic feel and directed his cast to give restrained performances. In real life, he explained, "men and women try to hide their emotions rather than seek to express them".[145] A Woman of Paris premiered in September 1923 and was acclaimed for its innovative, subtle approach.[146] The public, however, seemed to have little interest in a Chaplin film without Chaplin, and it was a box office disappointment.[147] The filmmaker was hurt by this failure – he had long wanted to produce a dramatic film and was proud of the result – and soon withdrew A Woman of Paris from circulation.[148]
+
+Chaplin returned to comedy for his next project. Setting his standards high, he told himself "This next film must be an epic! The Greatest!"[149] Inspired by a photograph of the 1898 Klondike Gold Rush, and later the story of the Donner Party of 1846–1847, he made what Geoffrey Macnab calls "an epic comedy out of grim subject matter."[150] In The Gold Rush, the Tramp is a lonely prospector fighting adversity and looking for love. With Georgia Hale as his leading lady, Chaplin began filming the picture in February 1924.[151] Its elaborate production, costing almost $1 million,[152] included location shooting in the Truckee mountains in Nevada with 600 extras, extravagant sets, and special effects.[153] The last scene was shot in May 1925 after 15 months of filming.[154]
+
+Chaplin felt The Gold Rush was the best film he had made.[155] It opened in August 1925 and became one of the highest-grossing films of the silent era with a U.S. box-office of $5 million.[156] The comedy contains some of Chaplin's most famous sequences, such as the Tramp eating his shoe and the "Dance of the Rolls".[157] Macnab has called it "the quintessential Chaplin film".[158] Chaplin stated at its release, "This is the picture that I want to be remembered by".[159]
+
+While making The Gold Rush, Chaplin married for the second time. Mirroring the circumstances of his first union, Lita Grey was a teenage actress, originally set to star in the film, whose surprise announcement of pregnancy forced Chaplin into marriage. She was 16 and he was 35, meaning Chaplin could have been charged with statutory rape under California law.[160] He therefore arranged a discreet marriage in Mexico on 25 November 1924.[161] They originally met during her childhood and she had previously appeared in his works The Kid and The Idle Class.[162] Their first son, Charles Spencer Chaplin, Jr., was born on 5 May 1925, followed by Sydney Earl Chaplin on 30 March 1926.[163]
+
+It was an unhappy marriage, and Chaplin spent long hours at the studio to avoid seeing his wife.[164] In November 1926, Grey took the children and left the family home.[165] A bitter divorce followed, in which Grey's application – accusing Chaplin of infidelity, abuse, and of harbouring "perverted sexual desires" – was leaked to the press.[166][l] Chaplin was reported to be in a state of nervous breakdown, as the story became headline news and groups formed across America calling for his films to be banned.[168] Eager to end the case without further scandal, Chaplin's lawyers agreed to a cash settlement of $600,000 – the largest awarded by American courts at that time.[169] His fan base was strong enough to survive the incident, and it was soon forgotten, but Chaplin was deeply affected by it.[170]
+
+Before the divorce suit was filed, Chaplin had begun work on a new film, The Circus.[171] He built a story around the idea of walking a tightrope while besieged by monkeys, and turned the Tramp into the accidental star of a circus.[172] Filming was suspended for 10 months while he dealt with the divorce scandal,[173] and it was generally a trouble-ridden production.[174] Finally completed in October 1927, The Circus was released in January 1928 to a positive reception.[175] At the 1st Academy Awards, Chaplin was given a special trophy "For versatility and genius in acting, writing, directing and producing The Circus".[176] Despite its success, he permanently associated the film with the stress of its production; Chaplin omitted The Circus from his autobiography, and struggled to work on it when he recorded the score in his later years.[177]
+
+I was determined to continue making silent films ... I was a pantomimist and in that medium I was unique and, without false modesty, a master.
+
+By the time The Circus was released, Hollywood had witnessed the introduction of sound films. Chaplin was cynical about this new medium and the technical shortcomings it presented, believing that "talkies" lacked the artistry of silent films.[179] He was also hesitant to change the formula that had brought him such success,[180] and feared that giving the Tramp a voice would limit his international appeal.[181] He, therefore, rejected the new Hollywood craze and began work on a new silent film. Chaplin was nonetheless anxious about this decision and remained so throughout the film's production.[181]
+
+When filming began at the end of 1928, Chaplin had been working on the story for almost a year.[182] City Lights followed the Tramp's love for a blind flower girl (played by Virginia Cherrill) and his efforts to raise money for her sight-saving operation. It was a challenging production that lasted 21 months,[183] with Chaplin later confessing that he "had worked himself into a neurotic state of wanting perfection".[184] One advantage Chaplin found in sound technology was the opportunity to record a musical score for the film, which he composed himself.[184][185]
+
+Chaplin finished editing City Lights in December 1930, by which time silent films were an anachronism.[186] A preview before an unsuspecting public audience was not a success,[187] but a showing for the press produced positive reviews. One journalist wrote, "Nobody in the world but Charlie Chaplin could have done it. He is the only person that has that peculiar something called 'audience appeal' in sufficient quality to defy the popular penchant for movies that talk."[188] Given its general release in January 1931, City Lights proved to be a popular and financial success – eventually grossing over $3 million.[189] The British Film Institute cites it as Chaplin's finest accomplishment, and the critic James Agee hails the closing scene as "the greatest piece of acting and the highest moment in movies".[190][191] City Lights became Chaplin's personal favourite of his films and remained so throughout his life.[192]
+
+City Lights had been a success, but Chaplin was unsure if he could make another picture without dialogue. He remained convinced that sound would not work in his films, but was also "obsessed by a depressing fear of being old-fashioned."[193] In this state of uncertainty, early in 1931, the comedian decided to take a holiday and ended up travelling for 16 months.[194][m] He spent months travelling Western Europe, including extended stays in France and Switzerland, and spontaneously decided to visit Japan.[196] The day after he arrived in Japan, Prime Minister Inukai Tsuyoshi was assassinated by ultra-nationalists in the May 15 Incident. The group's original plan had been to provoke a war with the United States by assassinating Chaplin at a welcome reception organised by the prime minister, but the plan had been foiled due to delayed public announcement of the event's date.[197]
+
+In his autobiography, Chaplin recalled that on his return to Los Angeles, "I was confused and without plan, restless and conscious of an extreme loneliness". He briefly considered retiring and moving to China.[199] Chaplin's loneliness was relieved when he met 21-year-old actress Paulette Goddard in July 1932, and the pair began a relationship.[200] He was not ready to commit to a film, however, and focused on writing a serial about his travels (published in Woman's Home Companion).[201] The trip had been a stimulating experience for Chaplin, including meetings with several prominent thinkers, and he became increasingly interested in world affairs.[202] The state of labour in America troubled him, and he feared that capitalism and machinery in the workplace would increase unemployment levels. It was these concerns that stimulated Chaplin to develop his new film.[203]
+
+Modern Times was announced by Chaplin as "a satire on certain phases of our industrial life."[204] Featuring the Tramp and Goddard as they endure the Great Depression, it took ten and a half months to film.[205] Chaplin intended to use spoken dialogue but changed his mind during rehearsals. Like its predecessor, Modern Times employed sound effects but almost no speaking.[206] Chaplin's performance of a gibberish song did, however, give the Tramp a voice for the only time on film.[207] After recording the music, Chaplin released Modern Times in February 1936.[208] It was his first feature in 15 years to adopt political references and social realism,[209] a factor that attracted considerable press coverage despite Chaplin's attempts to downplay the issue.[210] The film earned less at the box-office than his previous features and received mixed reviews, as some viewers disliked the politicising.[211] Today, Modern Times is seen by the British Film Institute as one of Chaplin's "great features,"[190] while David Robinson says it shows the filmmaker at "his unrivalled peak as a creator of visual comedy."[212]
+
+Following the release of Modern Times, Chaplin left with Goddard for a trip to the Far East.[213] The couple had refused to comment on the nature of their relationship, and it was not known whether they were married or not.[214] Some time later, Chaplin revealed that they married in Canton during this trip.[215] By 1938, the couple had drifted apart, as both focused heavily on their work, although Goddard was again his leading lady in his next feature film, The Great Dictator. She eventually divorced Chaplin in Mexico in 1942, citing incompatibility and separation for more than a year.[216]
+
+The 1940s saw Chaplin face a series of controversies, both in his work and in his personal life, which changed his fortunes and severely affected his popularity in the United States. The first of these was his growing boldness in expressing his political beliefs. Deeply disturbed by the surge of militaristic nationalism in 1930s world politics,[217] Chaplin found that he could not keep these issues out of his work.[218]  Parallels between himself and Adolf Hitler had been widely noted: the pair were born four days apart, both had risen from poverty to world prominence, and Hitler wore the same toothbrush moustache as Chaplin. It was this physical resemblance that supplied the plot for Chaplin's next film, The Great Dictator, which directly satirised Hitler and attacked fascism.[219]
+
+Chaplin spent two years developing the script,[220] and began filming in September 1939 – six days after Britain declared war on Germany.[221] He had submitted to using spoken dialogue, partly out of acceptance that he had no other choice, but also because he recognised it as a better method for delivering a political message.[222] Making a comedy about Hitler was seen as highly controversial, but Chaplin's financial independence allowed him to take the risk.[223] "I was determined to go ahead," he later wrote, "for Hitler must be laughed at."[224][n] Chaplin replaced the Tramp (while wearing similar attire) with "A Jewish Barber", a reference to the Nazi party's belief that he was Jewish.[o][226] In a dual performance, he also played the dictator "Adenoid Hynkel", who parodied Hitler.[227]
+
+The Great Dictator spent a year in production and was released in October 1940.[228] The film generated a vast amount of publicity, with a critic for The New York Times calling it "the most eagerly awaited picture of the year", and it was one of the biggest money-makers of the era.[229] The ending was unpopular, however, and generated controversy.[230] Chaplin concluded the film with a five-minute speech in which he abandoned his barber character, looked directly into the camera, and pleaded against war and fascism.[231] Charles J. Maland has identified this overt preaching as triggering a decline in Chaplin's popularity, and writes, "Henceforth, no movie fan would ever be able to separate the dimension of politics from [his] star image".[232][p] The Great Dictator received five Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay and Best Actor.[234]
+
+In the mid-1940s, Chaplin was involved in a series of trials that occupied most of his time and significantly affected his public image.[235] The troubles stemmed from his affair with an aspirant actress named Joan Barry, with whom he was involved intermittently between June 1941 and the autumn of 1942.[236] Barry, who displayed obsessive behaviour and was twice arrested after they separated,[q] reappeared the following year and announced that she was pregnant with Chaplin's child. As Chaplin denied the claim, Barry filed a paternity suit against him.[237]
+
+The director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), J. Edgar Hoover, who had long been suspicious of Chaplin's political leanings, used the opportunity to generate negative publicity about him. As part of a smear campaign to damage Chaplin's image,[238] the FBI named him in four indictments related to the Barry case. Most serious of these was an alleged violation of the Mann Act, which prohibits the transportation of women across state boundaries for sexual purposes.[r] The historian Otto Friedrich has called this an "absurd prosecution" of an "ancient statute",[241] yet if Chaplin was found guilty, he faced 23 years in jail.[242] Three charges lacked sufficient evidence to proceed to court, but the Mann Act trial began on 21 March 1944.[243] Chaplin was acquitted two weeks later, on 4 April.[244][239] The case was frequently headline news, with Newsweek calling it the "biggest public relations scandal since the Fatty Arbuckle murder trial in 1921."[245]
+
+Barry's child, Carol Ann, was born in October 1943, and the paternity suit went to court in December 1944. After two arduous trials, in which the prosecuting lawyer accused him of "moral turpitude",[246] Chaplin was declared to be the father. Evidence from blood tests which indicated otherwise were not admissible,[s] and the judge ordered Chaplin to pay child support until Carol Ann turned 21. Media coverage of the paternity suit was influenced by the FBI, as information was fed to the prominent gossip columnist Hedda Hopper, and Chaplin was portrayed in an overwhelmingly critical light.[248]
+
+The controversy surrounding Chaplin increased when, two weeks after the paternity suit was filed, it was announced that he had married his newest protégée, 18-year-old Oona O'Neill – daughter of the American playwright Eugene O'Neill.[249] Chaplin, then 54, had been introduced to her by a film agent seven months earlier.[t] In his autobiography, Chaplin described meeting O'Neill as "the happiest event of my life", and claimed to have found "perfect love".[252] Chaplin's son, Charles Jr., reported that Oona "worshipped" his father.[253] The couple remained married until Chaplin's death, and had eight children over 18 years: Geraldine Leigh (b. July 1944), Michael John (b. March 1946), Josephine Hannah (b. March 1949), Victoria (b. May 1951), Eugene Anthony (b. August 1953), Jane Cecil (b. May 1957), Annette Emily (b. December 1959), and Christopher James (b. July 1962).[254]
+
+Chaplin claimed that the Barry trials had "crippled [his] creativeness", and it was some time before he began working again.[255] In April 1946, he finally began filming a project that had been in development since 1942.[256] Monsieur Verdoux was a black comedy, the story of a French bank clerk, Verdoux (Chaplin), who loses his job and begins marrying and murdering wealthy widows to support his family. Chaplin's inspiration for the project came from Orson Welles, who wanted him to star in a film about the French serial killer Henri Désiré Landru. Chaplin decided that the concept would "make a wonderful comedy",[257] and paid Welles $5,000 for the idea.[258]
+
+Chaplin again vocalised his political views in Monsieur Verdoux, criticising capitalism and arguing that the world encourages mass killing through wars and weapons of mass destruction.[259] Because of this, the film met with controversy when it was released in April 1947;[260] Chaplin was booed at the premiere, and there were calls for a boycott.[261] Monsieur Verdoux was the first Chaplin release that failed both critically and commercially in the United States.[262] It was more successful abroad,[263] and Chaplin's screenplay was nominated at the Academy Awards.[264] He was proud of the film, writing in his autobiography, "Monsieur Verdoux is the cleverest and most brilliant film I have yet made."[265]
+
+The negative reaction to Monsieur Verdoux was largely the result of changes in Chaplin's public image.[266] Along with damage of the Joan Barry scandal, he was publicly accused of being a communist.[267] His political activity had heightened during World War II, when he campaigned for the opening of a Second Front to help the Soviet Union and supported various Soviet–American friendship groups.[268] He was also friendly with several suspected communists, and attended functions given by Soviet diplomats in Los Angeles.[269] In the political climate of 1940s America, such activities meant Chaplin was considered, as Larcher writes, "dangerously progressive and amoral."[270] The FBI wanted him out of the country,[271] and launched an official investigation in early 1947.[272][u]
+
+Chaplin denied being a communist, instead calling himself a "peacemonger",[274] but felt the government's effort to suppress the ideology was an unacceptable infringement of civil liberties.[275] Unwilling to be quiet about the issue, he openly protested against the trials of Communist Party members and the activities of the House Un-American Activities Committee.[276] Chaplin received a subpoena to appear before HUAC but was not called to testify.[277] As his activities were widely reported in the press, and Cold War fears grew, questions were raised over his failure to take American citizenship.[278] Calls were made for him to be deported; in one extreme and widely published example, Representative John E. Rankin, who helped establish HUAC, told Congress in June 1947: "[Chaplin's] very life in Hollywood is detrimental to the moral fabric of America. [If he is deported] ... his loathsome pictures can be kept from before the eyes of the American youth. He should be deported and gotten rid of at once."[279]
+
+Although Chaplin remained politically active in the years following the failure of Monsieur Verdoux,[v] his next film, about a forgotten music hall comedian and a young ballerina in Edwardian London, was devoid of political themes. Limelight was heavily autobiographical, alluding not only to Chaplin's childhood and the lives of his parents, but also to his loss of popularity in the United States.[281] The cast included various members of his family, including his five oldest children and his half-brother, Wheeler Dryden.[282]
+
+Filming began in November 1951, by which time Chaplin had spent three years working on the story.[283][w] He aimed for a more serious tone than any of his previous films, regularly using the word "melancholy" when explaining his plans to his co-star Claire Bloom.[285] Limelight featured a cameo appearance from Buster Keaton, whom Chaplin cast as his stage partner in a pantomime scene. This marked the only time the comedians worked together.[286]
+
+Chaplin decided to hold the world premiere of Limelight in London, since it was the setting of the film.[287] As he left Los Angeles, he expressed a premonition that he would not be returning.[288] At New York, he boarded the RMS Queen Elizabeth with his family on 18 September 1952.[289] The next day, United States Attorney General James P. McGranery revoked Chaplin's re-entry permit and stated that he would have to submit to an interview concerning his political views and moral behaviour to re-enter the US.[289] Although McGranery told the press that he had "a pretty good case against Chaplin", Maland has concluded, on the basis of the FBI files that were released in the 1980s, that the US government had no real evidence to prevent Chaplin's re-entry. It is likely that he would have gained entry if he had applied for it.[290] However, when Chaplin received a cablegram informing him of the news, he privately decided to cut his ties with the United States:
+
+Whether I re-entered that unhappy country or not was of little consequence to me. I would like to have told them that the sooner I was rid of that hate-beleaguered atmosphere the better, that I was fed up of America's insults and moral pomposity...[291]
+
+Because all of his property remained in America, Chaplin refrained from saying anything negative about the incident to the press.[292] The scandal attracted vast attention,[293] but Chaplin and his film were warmly received in Europe.[289] In America, the hostility towards him continued, and, although it received some positive reviews, Limelight was subjected to a wide-scale boycott.[294] Reflecting on this, Maland writes that Chaplin's fall, from an "unprecedented" level of popularity, "may be the most dramatic in the history of stardom in America".[295]
+
+I have been the object of lies and propaganda by powerful reactionary groups who, by their influence and by the aid of America's yellow press, have created an unhealthy atmosphere in which liberal-minded individuals can be singled out and persecuted. Under these conditions I find it virtually impossible to continue my motion-picture work, and I have therefore given up my residence in the United States.
+
+Chaplin did not attempt to return to the United States after his re-entry permit was revoked, and instead sent his wife to settle his affairs.[x] The couple decided to settle in Switzerland and, in January 1953, the family moved into their permanent home: Manoir de Ban, a 14-hectare (35-acre) estate[298] overlooking Lake Geneva in Corsier-sur-Vevey.[299][y] Chaplin put his Beverly Hills house and studio up for sale in March, and surrendered his re-entry permit in April. The next year, his wife renounced her US citizenship and became a British citizen.[301] Chaplin severed the last of his professional ties with the United States in 1955, when he sold the remainder of his stock in United Artists, which had been in financial difficulty since the early 1940s.[302]
+
+Chaplin remained a controversial figure throughout the 1950s, especially after he was awarded the International Peace Prize by the communist-led World Peace Council, and after his meetings with Zhou Enlai and Nikita Khrushchev.[303] He began developing his first European film, A King in New York, in 1954.[304] Casting himself as an exiled king who seeks asylum in the United States, Chaplin included several of his recent experiences in the screenplay. His son, Michael, was cast as a boy whose parents are targeted by the FBI, while Chaplin's character faces accusations of communism.[305] The political satire parodied HUAC and attacked elements of 1950s culture – including consumerism, plastic surgery, and wide-screen cinema.[306] In a review, the playwright John Osborne called it Chaplin's "most bitter" and "most openly personal" film.[307] In a 1957 interview, when asked to clarify his political views, Chaplin stated "As for politics, I am an anarchist. I hate government and rules – and fetters ... People must be free."[308]
+
+Chaplin founded a new production company, Attica, and used Shepperton Studios for the shooting.[304] Filming in England proved a difficult experience, as he was used to his own Hollywood studio and familiar crew, and no longer had limitless production time. According to Robinson, this had an effect on the quality of the film.[309] A King in New York was released in September 1957, and received mixed reviews.[310] Chaplin banned American journalists from its Paris première and decided not to release the film in the United States. This severely limited its revenue, although it achieved moderate commercial success in Europe.[311] A King in New York was not shown in America until 1973.[312][313]
+
+In the last two decades of his career, Chaplin concentrated on re-editing and scoring his old films for re-release, along with securing their ownership and distribution rights.[314] In an interview he granted in 1959, the year of his 70th birthday, Chaplin stated that there was still "room for the Little Man in the atomic age".[315] The first of these re-releases was The Chaplin Revue (1959), which included new versions of A Dog's Life, Shoulder Arms, and The Pilgrim.[315]
+
+In America, the political atmosphere began to change and attention was once again directed to Chaplin's films instead of his views.[314] In July 1962, The New York Times published an editorial stating that "we do not believe the Republic would be in danger if yesterday's unforgotten little tramp were allowed to amble down the gangplank of a steamer or plane in an American port".[316] The same month, Chaplin was invested with the honorary degree of Doctor of Letters by the universities of Oxford and Durham.[317] In November 1963, the Plaza Theater in New York started a year-long series of Chaplin's films, including Monsieur Verdoux and Limelight, which gained excellent reviews from American critics.[318] September 1964 saw the release of Chaplin's memoirs, My Autobiography, which he had been working on since 1957.[319] The 500-page book became a worldwide best-seller. It focused on his early years and personal life, and was criticised for lacking information on his film career.[320]
+
+Shortly after the publication of his memoirs, Chaplin began work on A Countess from Hong Kong (1967), a romantic comedy based on a script he had written for Paulette Goddard in the 1930s.[321] Set on an ocean liner, it starred Marlon Brando as an American ambassador and Sophia Loren as a stowaway found in his cabin.[321] The film differed from Chaplin's earlier productions in several aspects. It was his first to use Technicolor and the widescreen format, while he concentrated on directing and appeared on-screen only in a cameo role as a seasick steward.[322] He also signed a deal with Universal Pictures and appointed his assistant, Jerome Epstein, as the producer.[323] Chaplin was paid $600,000 director's fee as well as a percentage of the gross receipts.[324] A Countess from Hong Kong premiered in January 1967, to unfavourable reviews, and was a box-office failure.[325][326] Chaplin was deeply hurt by the negative reaction to the film, which turned out to be his last.[325]
+
+Chaplin suffered a series of minor strokes in the late 1960s, which marked the beginning of a slow decline in his health.[327] Despite the setbacks, he was soon writing a new film script, The Freak, a story of a winged girl found in South America, which he intended as a starring vehicle for his daughter, Victoria.[327] His fragile health prevented the project from being realised.[328] In the early 1970s, Chaplin concentrated on re-releasing his old films, including The Kid and The Circus.[329] In 1971, he was made a Commander of the National Order of the Legion of Honour at the Cannes Film Festival.[330] The following year, he was honoured with a special award by the Venice Film Festival.[331]
+
+In 1972, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences offered Chaplin an Honorary Award, which Robinson sees as a sign that America "wanted to make amends". Chaplin was initially hesitant about accepting but decided to return to the US for the first time in 20 years.[330] The visit attracted a large amount of press coverage and, at the Academy Awards gala, he was given a 12-minute standing ovation, the longest in the Academy's history.[332][333] Visibly emotional, Chaplin accepted his award for "the incalculable effect he has had in making motion pictures the art form of this century".[334]
+
+Although Chaplin still had plans for future film projects, by the mid-1970s he was very frail.[335] He experienced several further strokes, which made it difficult for him to communicate, and he had to use a wheelchair.[336][337] His final projects were compiling a pictorial autobiography, My Life in Pictures (1974) and scoring A Woman of Paris for re-release in 1976.[338] He also appeared in a documentary about his life, The Gentleman Tramp (1975), directed by Richard Patterson.[339] In the 1975 New Year Honours, Chaplin was awarded a knighthood by Queen Elizabeth II,[338][z][341] though he was too weak to kneel and received the honour in his wheelchair.[342]
+
+By October 1977, Chaplin's health had declined to the point that he needed constant care.[343] In the early morning of 25 December 1977, Chaplin died at home after suffering a stroke in his sleep.[337] He was 88 years old. The funeral, on 27 December, was a small and private Anglican ceremony, according to his wishes.[344][aa] Chaplin was interred in the Corsier-sur-Vevey cemetery.[343] Among the film industry's tributes, director René Clair wrote, "He was a monument of the cinema, of all countries and all times ... the most beautiful gift the cinema made to us."[346] Actor Bob Hope declared, "We were lucky to have lived in his time."[347]
+
+On 1 March 1978, Chaplin's coffin was dug up and stolen from its grave by two unemployed immigrants, Roman Wardas, from Poland, and Gantcho Ganev, from Bulgaria. The body was held for ransom in an attempt to extort money from Oona Chaplin. The pair were caught in a large police operation in May, and Chaplin's coffin was found buried in a field in the nearby village of Noville. It was re-interred in the Corsier cemetery surrounded by reinforced concrete.[348][349]
+
+Chaplin believed his first influence to be his mother, who entertained him as a child by sitting at the window and mimicking passers-by: "it was through watching her that I learned not only how to express emotions with my hands and face, but also how to observe and study people."[350] Chaplin's early years in music hall allowed him to see stage comedians at work; he also attended the Christmas pantomimes at Drury Lane, where he studied the art of clowning through performers like Dan Leno.[351]  Chaplin's years with the Fred Karno company had a formative effect on him as an actor and filmmaker. Simon Louvish writes that the company was his "training ground",[352] and it was here that Chaplin learned to vary the pace of his comedy.[353] The concept of mixing pathos with slapstick was learnt from Karno,[ab] who also used elements of absurdity that became familiar in Chaplin's gags.[353][354] From the film industry, Chaplin drew upon the work of the French comedian Max Linder, whose films he greatly admired.[355] In developing the Tramp costume and persona, he was likely inspired by the American vaudeville scene, where tramp characters were common.[356]
+
+Chaplin never spoke more than cursorily about his filmmaking methods, claiming such a thing would be tantamount to a magician spoiling his own illusion.[357] Little was known about his working process throughout his lifetime,[358] but research from film historians – particularly the findings of Kevin Brownlow and David Gill that were presented in the three-part documentary Unknown Chaplin (1983) – has since revealed his unique working method.[359]
+
+Until he began making spoken dialogue films with The Great Dictator, Chaplin never shot from a completed script.[360] Many of his early films began with only a vague premise – for example "Charlie enters a health spa" or "Charlie works in a pawn shop."[361] He then had sets constructed and worked with his stock company to improvise gags and "business" using them, almost always working the ideas out on film.[359] As ideas were accepted and discarded, a narrative structure would emerge, frequently requiring Chaplin to reshoot an already-completed scene that might have otherwise contradicted the story.[362] From A Woman of Paris onward Chaplin began the filming process with a prepared plot,[363] but Robinson writes that every film up to Modern Times "went through many metamorphoses and permutations before the story took its final form."[364]
+
+Producing films in this manner meant Chaplin took longer to complete his pictures than almost any other filmmaker at the time.[365] If he was out of ideas, he often took a break from the shoot, which could last for days, while keeping the studio ready for when inspiration returned.[366] Delaying the process further was Chaplin's rigorous perfectionism.[367] According to his friend Ivor Montagu, "nothing but perfection would be right" for the filmmaker.[368] Because he personally funded his films, Chaplin was at liberty to strive for this goal and shoot as many takes as he wished.[369] The number was often excessive, for instance 53 takes for every finished take in The Kid.[370] For The Immigrant, a 20-minute short, Chaplin shot 40,000 feet of film—enough for a feature-length.[371]
+
+No other filmmaker ever so completely dominated every aspect of the work, did every job. If he could have done so, Chaplin would have played every role and (as his son Sydney humorously but perceptively observed) sewn every costume.
+
+Describing his working method as "sheer perseverance to the point of madness",[372] Chaplin would be completely consumed by the production of a picture.[373] Robinson writes that even in Chaplin's later years, his work continued "to take precedence over everything and everyone else."[374] The combination of story improvisation and relentless perfectionism – which resulted in days of effort and thousands of feet of film being wasted, all at enormous expense – often proved taxing for Chaplin who, in frustration, would lash out at his actors and crew.[375]
+
+Chaplin exercised complete control over his pictures,[357] to the extent that he would act out the other roles for his cast, expecting them to imitate him exactly.[376]  He personally edited all of his films, trawling through the large amounts of footage to create the exact picture he wanted.[377] As a result of his complete independence, he was identified by the film historian Andrew Sarris as one of the first auteur filmmakers.[378] Chaplin did receive help, notably from his long-time cinematographer Roland Totheroh, brother Sydney Chaplin, and various assistant directors such as Harry Crocker and Charles Reisner.[379]
+
+While Chaplin's comedic style is broadly defined as slapstick,[380] it is considered restrained and intelligent,[381] with the film historian Philip Kemp describing his work as a mix of "deft, balletic physical comedy and thoughtful, situation-based gags".[382] Chaplin diverged from conventional slapstick by slowing the pace and exhausting each scene of its comic potential, with more focus on developing the viewer's relationship to the characters.[66][383] Unlike conventional slapstick comedies, Robinson states that the comic moments in Chaplin's films centre on the Tramp's attitude to the things happening to him: the humour does not come from the Tramp bumping into a tree, but from his lifting his hat to the tree in apology.[66] Dan Kamin writes that Chaplin's "quirky mannerisms" and "serious demeanour in the midst of slapstick action" are other key aspects of his comedy,[384] while the surreal transformation of objects and the employment of in-camera trickery are also common features.[385]
+
+Chaplin's silent films typically follow the Tramp's efforts to survive in a hostile world.[386] The character lives in poverty and is frequently treated badly, but remains kind and upbeat;[387] defying his social position, he strives to be seen as a gentleman.[388] As Chaplin said in 1925, "The whole point of the Little Fellow is that no matter how down on his ass he is, no matter how well the jackals succeed in tearing him apart, he's still a man of dignity."[389] The Tramp defies authority figures[390] and "gives as good as he gets",[389] leading Robinson and Louvish to see him as a representative for the underprivileged – an "everyman turned heroic saviour".[391] Hansmeyer notes that several of Chaplin's films end with "the homeless and lonely Tramp [walking] optimistically ... into the sunset ... to continue his journey".[392]
+
+It is paradoxical that tragedy stimulates the spirit of ridicule ... ridicule, I suppose, is an attitude of defiance; we must laugh in the face of our helplessness against the forces of nature – or go insane.
+
+The infusion of pathos is a well-known aspect of Chaplin's work,[394] and Larcher notes his reputation for "[inducing] laughter and tears".[395] Sentimentality in his films comes from a variety of sources, with Louvish pinpointing "personal failure, society's strictures, economic disaster, and the elements."[396] Chaplin sometimes drew on tragic events when creating his films, as in the case of The Gold Rush (1925), which was inspired by the fate of the Donner Party.[393] Constance B. Kuriyama has identified serious underlying themes in the early comedies, such as greed (The Gold Rush) and loss (The Kid).[397] Chaplin also touched on controversial issues: immigration (The Immigrant, 1917); illegitimacy (The Kid, 1921); and drug use (Easy Street, 1917).[383] He often explored these topics ironically, making comedy out of suffering.[398]
+
+Social commentary was a feature of Chaplin's films from early in his career, as he portrayed the underdog in a sympathetic light and highlighted the difficulties of the poor.[399] Later, as he developed a keen interest in economics and felt obliged to publicise his views,[400] Chaplin began incorporating overtly political messages into his films.[401] Modern Times (1936) depicted factory workers in dismal conditions, The Great Dictator (1940) parodied Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini and ended in a speech against nationalism, Monsieur Verdoux (1947) criticised war and capitalism, and A King in New York (1957) attacked McCarthyism.[402]
+
+Several of Chaplin's films incorporate autobiographical elements, and the psychologist Sigmund Freud believed that Chaplin "always plays only himself as he was in his dismal youth".[403] The Kid is thought to reflect Chaplin's childhood trauma of being sent into an orphanage,[403] the main characters in Limelight (1952) contain elements from the lives of his parents,[404] and A King in New York references Chaplin's experiences of being shunned by the United States.[405] Many of his sets, especially in street scenes, bear a strong similarity to Kennington, where he grew up. Stephen M. Weissman has argued that Chaplin's problematic relationship with his mentally ill mother was often reflected in his female characters and the Tramp's desire to save them.[403]
+
+Regarding the structure of Chaplin's films, the scholar Gerald Mast sees them as consisting of sketches tied together by the same theme and setting, rather than having a tightly unified storyline.[406] Visually, his films are simple and economic,[407] with scenes portrayed as if set on a stage.[408] His approach to filming was described by the art director Eugène Lourié: "Chaplin did not think in 'artistic' images when he was shooting. He believed that action is the main thing. The camera is there to photograph the actors".[409] In his autobiography, Chaplin wrote, "Simplicity is best ... pompous effects slow up action, are boring and unpleasant ... The camera should not intrude."[410]  This approach has prompted criticism, since the 1940s, for being "old fashioned",[411] while the film scholar Donald McCaffrey sees it as an indication that Chaplin never completely understood film as a medium.[412] Kamin, however, comments that Chaplin's comedic talent would not be enough to remain funny on screen if he did not have an "ability to conceive and direct scenes specifically for the film medium".[413]
+
+Chaplin developed a passion for music as a child and taught himself to play the piano, violin, and cello.[414] He considered the musical accompaniment of a film to be important,[175] and from A Woman of Paris onwards he took an increasing interest in this area.[415] With the advent of sound technology, Chaplin began using a synchronised orchestral soundtrack – composed by himself – for City Lights (1931). He thereafter composed the scores for all of his films, and from the late 1950s to his death, he scored all of his silent features and some of his short films.[416]
+
+As Chaplin was not a trained musician, he could not read sheet music and needed the help of professional composers, such as David Raksin, Raymond Rasch and Eric James, when creating his scores. Musical directors were employed to oversee the recording process, such as Alfred Newman for City Lights.[417] Although some critics have claimed that credit for his film music should be given to the composers who worked with him, Raksin – who worked with Chaplin on Modern Times – stressed Chaplin's creative position and active participation in the composing process.[418] This process, which could take months, would start with Chaplin describing to the composer(s) exactly what he wanted and singing or playing tunes he had improvised on the piano.[418] These tunes were then developed further in a close collaboration among the composer(s) and Chaplin.[418] According to film historian Jeffrey Vance, "although he relied upon associates to arrange varied and complex instrumentation, the musical imperative is his, and not a note in a Chaplin musical score was placed there without his assent."[419]
+
+Chaplin's compositions produced three popular songs. "Smile", composed originally for Modern Times (1936) and later set to lyrics by John Turner and Geoffrey Parsons, was a hit for Nat King Cole in 1954.[419] For Limelight, Chaplin composed "Terry's Theme", which was popularised by Jimmy Young as "Eternally" (1952).[420] Finally, "This Is My Song", performed by Petula Clark for A Countess from Hong Kong (1967), reached number one on the UK and other European charts.[421] Chaplin also received his only competitive Oscar for his composition work, as the Limelight theme won an Academy Award for Best Original Score in 1973 following the film's re-release.[419][ac]
+
+In 1998, the film critic Andrew Sarris called Chaplin "arguably the single most important artist produced by the cinema, certainly its most extraordinary performer and probably still its most universal icon".[423] He is described by the British Film Institute as "a towering figure in world culture",[424] and was included in Time magazine's list of the "100 Most Important People of the 20th Century" for the "laughter [he brought] to millions" and because he "more or less invented global recognizability and helped turn an industry into an art".[425]
+
+The image of the Tramp has become a part of cultural history;[426] according to Simon Louvish, the character is recognisable to people who have never seen a Chaplin film, and in places where his films are never shown.[427] The critic Leonard Maltin has written of the "unique" and "indelible" nature of the Tramp, and argued that no other comedian matched his "worldwide impact".[428] Praising the character, Richard Schickel suggests that Chaplin's films with the Tramp contain the most "eloquent, richly comedic expressions of the human spirit" in movie history.[429] Memorabilia connected to the character still fetches large sums in auctions: in 2006 a bowler hat and a bamboo cane that were part of the Tramp's costume were bought for $140,000 in a Los Angeles auction.[430]
+
+As a filmmaker, Chaplin is considered a pioneer and one of the most influential figures of the early twentieth century.[431] He is often credited as one of the medium's first artists.[432] Film historian Mark Cousins has written that Chaplin "changed not only the imagery of cinema, but also its sociology and grammar" and claims that Chaplin was as important to the development of comedy as a genre as D.W. Griffith was to drama.[433] He was the first to popularise feature-length comedy and to slow down the pace of action, adding pathos and subtlety to it.[434][435] Although his work is mostly classified as slapstick, Chaplin's drama A Woman of Paris (1923) was a major influence on Ernst Lubitsch's film The Marriage Circle (1924) and thus played a part in the development of "sophisticated comedy".[436] According to David Robinson, Chaplin's innovations were "rapidly assimilated to become part of the common practice of film craft."[437] Filmmakers who cited Chaplin as an influence include Federico Fellini (who called Chaplin "a sort of Adam, from whom we are all descended"),[347] Jacques Tati ("Without him I would never have made a film"),[347] René Clair ("He inspired practically every filmmaker"),[346] Michael Powell,[438] Billy Wilder,[439] Vittorio De Sica,[440] and Richard Attenborough.[441] Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky praised Chaplin as "the only person to have gone down into cinematic history without any shadow of a doubt. The films he left behind can never grow old."[442]
+
+Chaplin also strongly influenced the work of later comedians. Marcel Marceau said he was inspired to become a mime artist after watching Chaplin,[435] while the actor Raj Kapoor based his screen persona on the Tramp.[439] Mark Cousins has also detected Chaplin's comedic style in the French character Monsieur Hulot and the Italian character Totò.[439] In other fields, Chaplin helped inspire the cartoon characters Felix the Cat[443] and Mickey Mouse,[444] and was an influence on the Dada art movement.[445] As one of the founding members of United Artists, Chaplin also had a role in the development of the film industry. Gerald Mast has written that although UA never became a major company like MGM or Paramount Pictures, the idea that directors could produce their own films was "years ahead of its time".[446]
+
+In the 21st century, several of Chaplin's films are still regarded as classics and among the greatest ever made. The 2012 Sight & Sound poll, which compiles "top ten" ballots from film critics and directors to determine each group's most acclaimed films,
+saw City Lights rank among the critics' top 50, Modern Times inside the top 100, and The Great Dictator and The Gold Rush placed in the top 250.[447] The top 100 films as voted on by directors included Modern Times at number 22, City Lights at number 30, and The Gold Rush at number 91.[448] Every one of Chaplin's features received a vote.[449] In 2007, the American Film Institute named City Lights the 11th greatest American film of all time, while The Gold Rush and Modern Times again ranked in the top 100.[450] Books about Chaplin continue to be published regularly, and he is a popular subject for media scholars and film archivists.[451] Many of Chaplin's film have had a DVD and Blu-ray release.[452]
+
+Chaplin's legacy is managed on behalf of his children by the Chaplin office, located in Paris. The office represents Association Chaplin, founded by some of his children "to protect the name, image and moral rights" to his body of work, Roy Export SAS, which owns the copyright to most of his films made after 1918, and Bubbles Incorporated S.A., which owns the copyrights to his image and name.[453] Their central archive is held at the archives of Montreux, Switzerland and scanned versions of its contents, including 83,630 images, 118 scripts, 976 manuscripts, 7,756 letters, and thousands of other documents, are available for research purposes at the Chaplin Research Centre at the Cineteca di Bologna.[454] The photographic archive, which includes approximately 10,000 photographs from Chaplin's life and career, is kept at the Musée de l'Elysée in Lausanne, Switzerland.[455] The British Film Institute has also established the Charles Chaplin Research Foundation, and the first international Charles Chaplin Conference was held in London in July 2005.[456]  Elements for many of Chaplin's films are held by the Academy Film Archive as part of the Roy Export Chaplin Collection. [457]
+
+Chaplin's final home, Manoir de Ban in Corsier-sur-Vevey, Switzerland, has been converted into a museum named "Chaplin's World". It opened on 17 April 2016 after 15 years of development, and is described by Reuters as "an interactive museum showcasing the life and works of Charlie Chaplin".[458] On the 128th anniversary of his birth, a record-setting 662 people dressed as the Tramp in an event organised by the museum.[459] Previously, the Museum of the Moving Image in London held a permanent display on Chaplin, and hosted a dedicated exhibition to his life and career in 1988. The London Film Museum hosted an exhibition called Charlie Chaplin – The Great Londoner, from 2010 until 2013.[460]
+
+In London, a statue of Chaplin as the Tramp, sculpted by John Doubleday and unveiled in 1981, is located in Leicester Square.[461] The city also includes a road named after him in central London, "Charlie Chaplin Walk", which is the location of the BFI IMAX.[462] There are nine blue plaques memorialising Chaplin in London, Hampshire, and Yorkshire.[463] The Swiss town of Vevey named a park in his honour in 1980 and erected a statue there in 1982.[461] In 2011, two large murals depicting Chaplin on two 14-storey buildings were also unveiled in Vevey.[464] Chaplin has also been honoured by the Irish town of Waterville, where he spent several summers with his family in the 1960s. A statue was erected in 1998;[465] since 2011, the town has been host to the annual Charlie Chaplin Comedy Film Festival, which was founded to celebrate Chaplin's legacy and to showcase new comic talent.[466]
+
+In other tributes, a minor planet, 3623 Chaplin – discovered by Soviet astronomer Lyudmila Karachkina in 1981 – is named after Chaplin.[467] Throughout the 1980s, the Tramp image was used by IBM to advertise their personal computers.[468] Chaplin's 100th birthday anniversary in 1989 was marked with several events around the world,[ad] and on 15 April 2011, a day before his 122nd birthday, Google celebrated him with a special Google Doodle video on its global and other country-wide homepages.[472] Many countries, spanning six continents, have honoured Chaplin with a postal stamp.[473]
+
+
+
+Chaplin is the subject of a biographical film, Chaplin (1992) directed by Richard Attenborough, and starring Robert Downey Jr. in the title role and Geraldine Chaplin playing Hannah Chaplin.[474] He is also a character in the historical drama film The Cat's Meow (2001), played by Eddie Izzard, and in the made-for-television movie The Scarlett O'Hara War (1980), played by Clive Revill.[475][476] A television series about Chaplin's childhood, Young Charlie Chaplin, ran on PBS in 1989, and was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Children's Program.[477] The French film The Price of Fame (2014) is a fictionalised account of the robbery of Chaplin's grave.[478]
+
+Chaplin's life has also been the subject of several stage productions. Two musicals, Little Tramp and Chaplin, were produced in the early 1990s. In 2006, Thomas Meehan and Christopher Curtis created another musical, Limelight: The Story of Charlie Chaplin, which was first performed at the La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego in 2010.[479] It was adapted for Broadway two years later, re-titled Chaplin – A Musical.[480] Chaplin was portrayed by Robert McClure in both productions. In 2013, two plays about Chaplin premiered in Finland: Chaplin at the Svenska Teatern,[481] and Kulkuri (The Tramp) at the Tampere Workers' Theatre.[482]
+
+Chaplin has also been characterised in literary fiction. He is the protagonist of Robert Coover's short story "Charlie in the House of Rue" (1980; reprinted in Coover's 1987 collection A Night at the Movies), and of Glen David Gold's Sunnyside (2009), a historical novel set in the First World War period.[483] A day in Chaplin's life in 1909 is dramatised in the chapter titled "Modern Times" in Alan Moore's Jerusalem (2016), a novel set in the author's home town of Northampton, England.[484]
+
+Chaplin received many awards and honours, especially later in life. In the 1975 New Year Honours, he was appointed a Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (KBE).[485] He was also awarded honorary Doctor of Letters degrees by the University of Oxford and the University of Durham in 1962.[317] In 1965, he and Ingmar Bergman were joint winners of the Erasmus Prize[486] and, in 1971, he was appointed a Commander of the National Order of the Legion of Honour by the French government.[487]
+
+From the film industry, Chaplin received a special Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival in 1972,[488] and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Lincoln Center Film Society the same year. The latter has since been presented annually to filmmakers as The Chaplin Award.[489] Chaplin was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1972, having been previously excluded because of his political beliefs.[490]
+
+Chaplin received three Academy Awards: an Honorary Award for "versatility and genius in acting, writing, directing, and producing The Circus" in 1929,[176] a second Honorary Award for "the incalculable effect he has had in making motion pictures the art form of this century" in 1972,[334] and a Best Score award in 1973 for Limelight (shared with Ray Rasch and Larry Russell).[419] He was further nominated in the Best Actor, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Picture (as producer) categories for The Great Dictator, and received another Best Original Screenplay nomination for Monsieur Verdoux.[491] In 1976, Chaplin was made a Fellow of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA).[492]
+
+Six of Chaplin's films have been selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the United States Library of Congress: The Immigrant (1917), The Kid (1921), The Gold Rush (1925), City Lights (1931), Modern Times (1936), and The Great Dictator (1940).[493]
+
+Directed features:

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+Charlotte Brontë (/ˈʃɑːrlət ˈbrɒnti/, commonly /-teɪ/;[1] 21 April 1816 – 31 March 1855) was an English novelist and poet, the eldest of the three Brontë sisters who survived into adulthood and whose novels became classics of English literature.
+
+She enlisted in school at Roe Head in January 1831, aged 14 years. She left the year after to teach her sisters, Emily and Anne, at home, returning in 1835 as a governess. In 1839 she undertook the role as governess for the Sidgwick family but left after a few months to return to Haworth where the sisters opened a school, but failed to attract pupils. Instead, they turned to writing and they each first published in 1846 under the pseudonyms of Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell. While her first novel, The Professor, was rejected by publishers, her second novel, Jane Eyre, was published in 1847. The sisters admitted to their Bell pseudonyms in 1848, and by the following year were celebrated in London literary circles.
+
+Brontë was the last to die of all her siblings. She became pregnant shortly after her marriage in June 1854 but died on 31 March 1855, almost certainly from hyperemesis gravidarum, a complication of pregnancy which causes excessive nausea and vomiting.
+
+Charlotte Brontë was born on 21 April 1816 in Market Street Thornton, west of Bradford in the West Riding of Yorkshire, the third of the six children of Maria (née Branwell) and Patrick Brontë (formerly surnamed Brunty), an Irish Anglican clergyman. In 1820 her family moved a few miles to the village of Haworth, where her father had been appointed perpetual curate of St Michael and All Angels Church. Maria died of cancer on 15 September 1821, leaving five daughters, Maria, Elizabeth, Charlotte, Emily and Anne, and a son, Branwell, to be taken care of by her sister, Elizabeth Branwell.
+
+In August 1824, Patrick sent Charlotte, Emily, Maria and Elizabeth to the Clergy Daughters' School at Cowan Bridge in Lancashire. Charlotte maintained that the school's poor conditions permanently affected her health and physical development, and hastened the deaths of Maria (born 1814) and Elizabeth (born 1815), who both died of tuberculosis in June 1825. After the deaths of his older daughters, Patrick removed Charlotte and Emily from the school.[2] Charlotte used the school as the basis for Lowood School in Jane Eyre.
+
+At home in Haworth Parsonage, Brontë acted as "the motherly friend and guardian of her younger sisters".[3] Brontë wrote her first known poem at the age of 13 in 1829, and was to go on to write more than 200 poems in the course of her life.[4] Many of her poems were "published" in their homemade magazine Branwell's Blackwood's Magazine, and concerned the fictional Glass Town Confederacy.[4]  She and her surviving siblings – Branwell, Emily and Anne – created their own fictional worlds, and began chronicling the lives and struggles of the inhabitants of their imaginary kingdoms. Charlotte and Branwell wrote Byronic stories about their jointly imagined country, Angria, and Emily and Anne wrote articles and poems about Gondal. The sagas they created were episodic and elaborate, and they exist in incomplete manuscripts, some of which have been published as juvenilia. They provided them with an obsessive interest during childhood and early adolescence, which prepared them for literary vocations in adulthood.[5]
+
+Between 1831 and 1832, Brontë continued her education at Roe Head in Mirfield, where she met her lifelong friends and correspondents Ellen Nussey and Mary Taylor.[2] In 1833 she wrote a novella, The Green Dwarf, using the name Wellesley. Around about 1833, her stories shifted from tales of the supernatural to more realistic stories.[6] She returned to Roe Head as a teacher from 1835 to 1838. Unhappy and lonely as a teacher at Roe Head, Brontë took out her sorrows in poetry, writing a series of melancholic poems.[7] In "We wove a Web in Childhood" written in December 1835, Brontë drew a sharp contrast between her miserable life as a teacher and the vivid imaginary worlds she and her siblings had created.[7] In another poem "Morning was its freshness still" written at the same time, Brontë wrote "Tis bitter sometimes to recall/Illusions once deemed fair".[7] Many of her poems concerned the imaginary world of Angria, often concerning Byronic heroes, and in December 1836 she wrote to the Poet Laureate Robert Southey asking him for encouragement of her career as a poet. Southey replied, famously, that "Literature cannot be the business of a woman's life, and it ought not to be. The more she is engaged in her proper duties, the less leisure will she have for it even as an accomplishment and a recreation." This advice she respected but did not heed.
+
+In 1839 she took up the first of many positions as governess to families in Yorkshire, a career she pursued until 1841. In particular, from May to July 1839 she was employed by the Sidgwick family at their summer residence, Stone Gappe, in Lothersdale, where one of her charges was John Benson Sidgwick (1835–1927), an unruly child who on one occasion threw a Bible at Charlotte, an incident that may have been the inspiration for a part of the opening chapter of Jane Eyre in which John Reed throws a book at the young Jane.[8] Brontë did not enjoy her work as a governess, noting her employers treated her almost as a slave, constantly humiliating her.[9]
+
+Brontë was of slight build and was less than five feet tall.[10]
+
+In 1842 Charlotte and Emily travelled to Brussels to enrol at the boarding school run by Constantin Héger (1809–1896) and his wife Claire Zoé Parent Héger (1804–1887). During her time in Brussels, Brontë, who favoured the Protestant ideal of an individual in direct contact with God, objected to the stern Catholicism of Madame Héger, which she considered a tyrannical religion that enforced conformity and submission to the Pope.[11] In return for board and tuition Charlotte taught English and Emily taught music. Their time at the school was cut short when their aunt Elizabeth Branwell, who had joined the family in Haworth to look after the children after their mother's death, died of internal obstruction in October 1842. Charlotte returned alone to Brussels in January 1843 to take up a teaching post at the school. Her second stay was not happy: she was homesick and deeply attached to Constantin Héger. She returned to Haworth in January 1844 and used the time spent in Brussels as the inspiration for some of the events in The Professor and Villette.
+
+After returning to Haworth, Charlotte and her sisters made headway with opening their own boarding school in the family home. It was advertised as "The Misses Brontë's Establishment for the Board and Education of a limited number of Young Ladies" and inquiries were made to prospective pupils and sources of funding. But none were attracted and in October 1844, the project was abandoned.[12]
+
+In May 1846 Charlotte, Emily, and Anne self-financed the publication of a joint collection of poems under their assumed names Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell. The pseudonyms veiled the sisters' sex while preserving their initials; thus Charlotte was Currer Bell. "Bell" was the middle name of Haworth's curate, Arthur Bell Nicholls whom Charlotte later married, and "Currer" was the surname of Frances Mary Richardson Currer who had funded their school (and maybe their father).[13] Of the decision to use noms de plume, Charlotte wrote:
+
+Averse to personal publicity, we veiled our own names under those of Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell; the ambiguous choice being dictated by a sort of conscientious scruple at assuming Christian names positively masculine, while we did not like to declare ourselves women, because – without at that time suspecting that our mode of writing and thinking was not what is called "feminine" – we had a vague impression that authoresses are liable to be looked on with prejudice; we had noticed how critics sometimes use for their chastisement the weapon of personality, and for their reward, a flattery, which is not true praise.[14]
+
+Although only two copies of the collection of poems were sold, the sisters continued writing for publication and began their first novels, continuing to use their noms de plume when sending manuscripts to potential publishers.
+
+Brontë's first manuscript, The Professor, did not secure a publisher, although she was heartened by an encouraging response from Smith, Elder & Co. of Cornhill, who expressed an interest in any longer works Currer Bell might wish to send.[15] Brontë responded by finishing and sending a second manuscript in August 1847. Six weeks later, Jane Eyre was published. It tells the story of a plain governess, Jane, who, after difficulties in her early life, falls in love with her employer, Mr Rochester. They marry, but only after Rochester's insane first wife, of whom Jane initially has no knowledge, dies in a dramatic house fire. The book's style was innovative, combining naturalism with gothic melodrama, and broke new ground in being written from an intensely evoked first-person female perspective.[16] Brontë believed art was most convincing when based on personal experience; in Jane Eyre she transformed the experience into a novel with universal appeal.[17]
+
+Jane Eyre had immediate commercial success and initially received favourable reviews. G. H. Lewes wrote that it was "an utterance from the depths of a struggling, suffering, much-enduring spirit", and declared that it consisted of "suspiria de profundis!" (sighs from the depths).[17] Speculation about the identity and gender of the mysterious Currer Bell heightened with the publication of Wuthering Heights by Ellis Bell (Emily) and Agnes Grey by Acton Bell (Anne).[18] Accompanying the speculation was a change in the critical reaction to Brontë's work, as accusations were made that the writing was "coarse",[19] a judgement more readily made once it was suspected that Currer Bell was a woman.[20] However, sales of Jane Eyre continued to be strong and may even have increased as a result of the novel developing a reputation as an "improper" book.[21] A talented amateur artist, Brontë personally did the drawings for the second edition of Jane Eyre and in the summer of 1834 two of her paintings were shown at an exhibition by the Royal Northern Society for the Encouragement of the Fine Arts in Leeds.[11]
+
+In 1848 Brontë began work on the manuscript of her second novel, Shirley. It was only partially completed when the Brontë family suffered the deaths of three of its members within eight months. In September 1848 Branwell died of chronic bronchitis and marasmus, exacerbated by heavy drinking, although Brontë believed that his death was due to tuberculosis. Branwell may have had a laudanum addiction. Emily became seriously ill shortly after his funeral and died of pulmonary tuberculosis in December 1848. Anne died of the same disease in May 1849. Brontë was unable to write at this time.
+
+After Anne's death Brontë resumed writing as a way of dealing with her grief,[22] and Shirley, which deals with themes of industrial unrest and the role of women in society, was published in October 1849. Unlike Jane Eyre, which is written in the first person, Shirley is written in the third person and lacks the emotional immediacy of her first novel,[23] and reviewers found it less shocking.  Brontë, as her late sister's heir, suppressed the republication of Anne's second novel, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, an action which had a deleterious effect on Anne's popularity as a novelist and has remained controversial among the sisters' biographers ever since.[24]
+
+In view of the success of her novels, particularly Jane Eyre, Brontë was persuaded by her publisher to make occasional visits to London, where she revealed her true identity and began to move in more exalted social circles, becoming friends with Harriet Martineau and Elizabeth Gaskell, and acquainted with William Makepeace Thackeray and G.H. Lewes. She never left Haworth for more than a few weeks at a time, as she did not want to leave her ageing father.  Thackeray's daughter, writer Anne Isabella Thackeray Ritchie, recalled a visit to her father by Brontë:
+
+…two gentlemen come in, leading a tiny, delicate, serious, little lady, with fair straight hair and steady eyes. She may be a little over thirty; she is dressed in a little barège dress with a pattern of faint green moss. She enters in mittens, in silence, in seriousness; our hearts are beating with wild excitement. This then is the authoress, the unknown power whose books have set all London talking, reading, speculating; some people even say our father wrote the books – the wonderful books.  …The moment is so breathless that dinner comes as a relief to the solemnity of the occasion, and we all smile as my father stoops to offer his arm; for, genius though she may be, Miss Brontë can barely reach his elbow. My own personal impressions are that she is somewhat grave and stern, specially to forward little girls who wish to chatter.  …Everyone waited for the brilliant conversation which never began at all. Miss Brontë retired to the sofa in the study, and murmured a low word now and then to our kind governess… the conversation grew dimmer and more dim, the ladies sat round still expectant, my father was too much perturbed by the gloom and the silence to be able to cope with it at all… after Miss Brontë had left, I was surprised to see my father opening the front door with his hat on. He put his fingers to his lips, walked out into the darkness, and shut the door quietly behind him… long afterwards… Mrs Procter asked me if I knew what had happened.  …It was one of the dullest evenings [Mrs Procter] had ever spent in her life… the ladies who had all come expecting so much delightful conversation, and the gloom and the constraint, and how finally, overwhelmed by the situation, my father had quietly left the room, left the house, and gone off to his club.[27]
+
+Brontë's friendship with Elizabeth Gaskell, while not particularly close, was significant in that Gaskell wrote the first biography of Brontë after her death in 1855.
+
+Brontë's third novel, the last published in her lifetime, was Villette, which appeared in 1853. Its main themes include isolation, how such a condition can be borne,[28] and the internal conflict brought about by social repression of individual desire.[29] Its main character, Lucy Snowe, travels abroad to teach in a boarding school in the fictional town of Villette, where she encounters a culture and religion different from her own and falls in love with a man (Paul Emanuel) whom she cannot marry. Her experiences result in a breakdown but eventually, she achieves independence and fulfilment through running her own school. A substantial amount of the novel's dialogue is in the French language. Villette marked Brontë's return to writing from a first-person perspective (that of Lucy Snowe), the technique she had used in Jane Eyre. Another similarity to Jane Eyre lies in the use of aspects of her own life as inspiration for fictional events,[29] in particular her reworking of the time she spent at the pensionnat in Brussels. Villette was acknowledged by critics of the day as a potent and sophisticated piece of writing although it was criticised for "coarseness" and for not being suitably "feminine" in its portrayal of Lucy's desires.[30]
+
+Before the publication of Villette, Brontë received an expected proposal of marriage from Arthur Bell Nicholls, her father's curate, who had long been in love with her.[31] She initially turned down his proposal and her father objected to the union at least partly because of Nicholls's poor financial status. Elizabeth Gaskell, who believed that marriage provided "clear and defined duties" that were beneficial for a woman,[32] encouraged Brontë to consider the positive aspects of such a union and tried to use her contacts to engineer an improvement in Nicholls's finances. Brontë meanwhile was increasingly attracted to Nicholls and by January 1854 she had accepted his proposal. They gained the approval of her father by April and married in June.[33] Her father Patrick had intended to give Charlotte away, but at the last minute decided he could not, and Charlotte had to make her way to the church without him.[34] The married couple took their honeymoon in Banagher, County Offaly, Ireland.[35] By all accounts, her marriage was a success and Brontë found herself very happy in a way that was new to her.[31]
+
+Brontë became pregnant soon after her wedding, but her health declined rapidly and, according to Gaskell, she was attacked by "sensations of perpetual nausea and ever-recurring faintness".[36] She died, with her unborn child, on 31 March 1855, three weeks before her 39th birthday. Her death certificate gives the cause of death as tuberculosis, but biographers including Claire Harman and others suggest that she died from dehydration and malnourishment due to vomiting caused by severe morning sickness or hyperemesis gravidarum.[37] Brontë was buried in the family vault in the Church of St Michael and All Angels at Haworth.
+
+The Professor, the first novel Brontë had written, was published posthumously in 1857. The fragment of a new novel she had been writing in her last years has been twice completed by recent authors, the more famous version being Emma Brown: A Novel from the Unfinished Manuscript by Charlotte Brontë by Clare Boylan in 2003. Most of her writings about the imaginary country Angria have also been published since her death. In 2018, The New York Times published a belated obituary for her.[38]
+
+The daughter of an Irish Anglican clergyman, Brontë was herself an Anglican. In a letter to her publisher, she claims to "love the Church of England. Her Ministers indeed, I do not regard as infallible personages, I have seen too much of them for that – but to the Establishment, with all her faults – the profane Athanasian Creed excluded – I am sincerely attached."[39]
+
+In a letter to Ellen Nussey she wrote:
+
+If I could always live with you, and "daily" read the [B]ible with you, if your lips and mine could at the same time, drink the same draught from the same pure fountain of Mercy – I hope, I trust, I might one day become better, far better, than my evil wandering thoughts, my corrupt heart, cold to the spirit, and warm to the flesh will now permit me to be.[40]
+
+Elizabeth Gaskell's biography The Life of Charlotte Brontë was published in 1857. It was an important step for a leading female novelist to write a biography of another,[41] and Gaskell's approach was unusual in that, rather than analysing her subject's achievements, she concentrated on private details of Brontë's life, emphasising those aspects that countered the accusations of "coarseness" that had been levelled at her writing.[41] The biography is frank in places, but omits details of Brontë's love for Héger, a married man, as being too much of an affront to contemporary morals and a likely source of distress to Brontë's father, widower, and friends.[42] Mrs Gaskell also provided doubtful and inaccurate information about Patrick Brontë, claiming that he did not allow his children to eat meat. This is refuted by one of Emily Brontë's diary papers, in which she describes preparing meat and potatoes for dinner at the parsonage.[43] It has been argued that Gaskell's approach transferred the focus of attention away from the 'difficult' novels, not just Brontë's, but all the sisters', and began a process of sanctification of their private lives.[44]
+
+On 29 July 1913 The Times of London printed four letters Brontë had written to Constantin Héger after leaving Brussels in 1844.[45] Written in French except for one postscript in English, the letters broke the prevailing image of Brontë as an angelic martyr to Christian and female duties that had been constructed by many biographers, beginning with Gaskell.[45] The letters, which formed part of a larger and somewhat one-sided correspondence in which Héger frequently appears not to have replied, reveal that she had been in love with a married man, although they are complex and have been interpreted in numerous ways, including as an example of literary self-dramatisation and an expression of gratitude from a former pupil.[45]
+
+In 1980 a commemorative plaque was unveiled at the Centre for Fine Arts, Brussels (BOZAR), on the site of the Madam Heger's school, in honour of Charlotte and Emily.[46] In May 2017 the plaque was cleaned.[47]
+
+The Green Dwarf, A Tale of the Perfect Tense was written in 1833 under the pseudonym Lord Charles Albert Florian Wellesley.[48] It shows the influence of Walter Scott, and Brontë's modifications to her earlier gothic style have led Christine Alexander to comment that, in the work, "it is clear that Brontë was becoming tired of the gothic mode per se".[49]
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+A plough or plow (US; both /plaʊ/) is a farm tool for loosening or turning the soil before sowing seed or planting.[1] Ploughs were traditionally drawn by oxen and horses, but in modern farms are drawn by tractors. A plough may have a wooden, iron or steel frame, with a blade attached to cut and loosen the soil. It has been fundamental to farming for most of history.[2] The earliest ploughs had no wheels, such a plough being known to the Romans as an aratrum. Celtic peoples first came to use wheeled ploughs in the Roman era.[3]
+
+The prime purpose of ploughing is to turn over the uppermost soil,[4] so bringing fresh nutrients to the surface,[5] while burying weeds and crop remains to decay. Trenches cut by the plough are called furrows. In modern use, a ploughed field is normally left to dry and then harrowed before planting. Ploughing and cultivating soil evens the content of the upper 12 to 25 centimetres (5 to 10 in) layer of soil, where most plant-feeder roots grow.
+
+Ploughs were initially powered by humans, but the use of farm animals was considerably more efficient. The earliest beasts used were oxen. Later horses and mules were used in many areas. With the industrial revolution came the possibility of steam engines to pull ploughs. These in turn were superseded by internal-combustion-powered tractors in the early 20th century.
+
+Use of the traditional plough has decreased in some areas threatened by soil damage and erosion. Used instead is shallower ploughing or other less-invasive conservation tillage.
+
+In older English, as in other Germanic languages, the plough was traditionally known by other names, e.g. Old English sulh, Old High German medela, geiza, huohilī(n), Old Norse arðr (Swedish årder), and Gothic hōha, all presumably referring to the ard (scratch plough). The term plough, as used today, was not common until 1700.
+
+The modern word comes from the Old Norse plógr, and is therefore Germanic, but it appears relatively late (it is not attested in Gothic), and is thought to be a loan from one of the north Italic languages. The German cognate is "Pflug", the Dutch "ploeg" and the Swedish "plog". In many Slavic languages and in Romanian the word is "plug". Words with the same root appeared with related meanings: in Raetic plaumorati "wheeled heavy plough" (Pliny, Nat. Hist. 18, 172), and in Latin plaustrum "farm cart", plōstrum, plōstellum "cart", and plōxenum, plōximum "cart box".[6][7] The word must have originally referred to the wheeled heavy plough, common in Roman north-western Europe by the 5th century AD.[8]
+
+Orel (2003)[9] tentatively attaches plough to a PIE stem *blōkó-, which gave Armenian peɫem "to dig" and Welsh bwlch "crack", though the word may not be of Indo-European origin.
+
+The diagram (right) shows the basic parts of the modern plough:
+
+Other parts not shown or labelled include the frog (or frame), runner, landside, shin, trashboard, and stilts (handles).
+
+On modern ploughs and some older ploughs, the mould board is separate from the share and runner, so these parts can be replaced without replacing the mould board. Abrasion eventually wears out all parts of a plough that come into contact with the soil.
+
+When agriculture was first developed, soil was turned using simple hand-held digging sticks and hoes.[4] These were used in highly fertile areas, such as the banks of the Nile, where the annual flood rejuvenates the soil, to create drills (furrows) in which to plant seeds. Digging sticks, hoes and mattocks were not invented in any one place, and hoe cultivation must have been common everywhere agriculture was practised. Hoe-farming is the traditional tillage method in tropical or sub-tropical regions, which are marked by stony soils, steep slope gradients, predominant root crops, and coarse grains grown at wide distances apart. While hoe-agriculture is best suited to these regions, it is used in some fashion everywhere. Instead of hoeing, some cultures use pigs to trample the soil and grub the earth.
+
+Some ancient hoes, like the Egyptian mr, were pointed and strong enough to clear rocky soil and make seed drills, which is why they are called hand-ards. However, domestication of oxen in Mesopotamia and the Indus valley civilization, perhaps as early as the 6th millennium BC, provided mankind with the draft power needed to develop the larger, animal-drawn true ard (or scratch plough). The earliest surviving evidence of ploughing, has been dated to 3500–3800 BCE, on a site in Bubeneč, Czech Republic.[11] A ploughed field, from c.2800 BCE, has also discovered at Kalibangan, Pakistan.[12] A terracotta model of the early ards was found at Banawali, Pakistan, giving insight into the form of the tool used.[13] The ard remained easy to replace if it became damaged and easy to replicate.[14]
+
+The earliest was the bow ard, which consists of a draft-pole (or beam) pierced by a thinner vertical pointed stick called the head (or body), with one end being the stilt (handle) and the other a share (cutting blade) dragged through the topsoil to cut a shallow furrow suitable for most cereal crops. The ard does not clear new land well, so hoes or mattocks had to be used to pull up grass and undergrowth, and a hand-held, coulter-like ristle could be made to cut deeper furrows ahead of the share. Because the ard left a strip of undisturbed earth between furrows, the fields were often cross-ploughed lengthwise and breadth-wise, which tended to form squarish Celtic fields.[15]:42 The ard is best suited to loamy or sandy soils that are naturally fertilised by annual flooding, as in the Nile Delta and Fertile Crescent, and to a lesser extent any other cereal-growing region with light or thin soil. By the late Iron Age, ards in Europe were commonly fitted with coulters.
+
+To grow crops regularly in less-fertile areas, it was once believed that the soil must be turned to bring nutrients to the surface. A major advance for this type of farming was the turn plough, also known as the mould-board plough (UK), moldboard plow (US), or frame-plough. A coulter (or skeith) could be added to cut vertically into the ground just ahead of the share (in front of the frog), a wedge-shaped cutting edge at the bottom front of the mould board with the landside of the frame supporting the under-share (below-ground component). The mould-board plough introduced in the 18th century was a major advance in technology.[4]
+
+The upper parts of the frame carry (from the front) the coupling for the motive power (horses), the coulter and the landside frame. Depending on the size of the implement, and the number of furrows it is designed to plough at one time, a fore-carriage with a wheel or wheels (known as a furrow wheel and support wheel) may be added to support the frame (wheeled plough). In the case of a single-furrow plough there is one wheel at the front and handles at the rear for the ploughman to steer and manœuvre it.
+
+When dragged through a field, the coulter cuts down into the soil and the share cuts horizontally from the previous furrow to the vertical cut. This releases a rectangular strip of sod to be lifted by the share and carried by the mould board up and over, so that the strip of sod (slice of the topsoil) that is being cut lifts and rolls over as the plough moves forward, dropping back upside down into the furrow and onto the turned soil from the previous run down the field. Each gap in the ground where the soil has been lifted and moved across (usually to the right) is called a furrow. The sod lifted from it rests at an angle of about 45 degrees in the adjacent furrow, up the back of the sod from the previous run.
+
+So a series of ploughings runs down a field leaves a row of sods partly in the furrows and partly on the ground lifted earlier. Visually, across the rows, there is the land on the left, a furrow (half the width of the removed strip of soil) and the removed strip almost upside-down lying on about half of the previous strip of inverted soil, and so on across the field. Each layer of soil and the gutter it came from forms a classic furrow.
+
+The mould-board plough greatly reduced the time needed to prepare a field and so allowed a farmer to work a larger area of land. In addition, the resulting pattern of low (under the mould board) and high (beside it) ridges in the soil forms water channels, allowing the soil to drain. In areas where snow build-up causes difficulties, this lets farmers plant the soil earlier, as the snow run-off drains away more quickly.
+
+There are five major parts of a mouldboard plough:
+
+Share, landside, mould board are bolted to the frog, which is an irregular piece of cast iron at the base of the plough body, to which the soil-wearing parts are bolted.
+
+The share is the edge that makes the horizontal cut to separate the furrow slice from the soil below. Conventional shares are shaped to penetrate soil efficiently; the tip is pointed downward to pull the share into the ground to a regular depth. The clearance, usually referred to as suction or down suction, varies with different makes and types of plough. Share configuration is related to soil type, particularly in the down suction or concavity of its lower surface. Generally three degrees of clearance or down suction are recognized: regular for light soil, deep for ordinary dry soil, and double-deep for clay and gravelly soils.
+
+As the share wears away, it becomes blunt and the plough will require more power to pull it through the soil. A plough body with a worn share will not have enough "suck" to ensure it delves the ground to its full working depth.
+
+In addition, the share has horizontal suction related to the amount its point is bent out of line with the land side. Down suction causes the plough to penetrate to proper depth when pulled forward, while horizontal suction causes the plough to create the desired width of furrow. The share is a plane part with a trapezoidal shape. It cuts the soil horizontally and lifts it. Common types are regular, winged-plane, bar-point, and share with mounted or welded point. The regular share conserves a good cut but is recommended on stone-free soils. The winged-plane share is used on heavy soil with a moderate amount of stones. The bar-point share can be used in extreme conditions (hard and stony soils). The share with a mounted point is somewhere between the last two types. Makers have designed shares of various shapes (trapesium, diamond, etc.) with bolted point and wings, often separately renewable. Sometimes the share-cutting edge is placed well in advance of the mould board to reduce the pulverizing action of the soil.
+
+The mould board is the part of the plough that receives the furrow slice from the share.[4] It is responsible for lifting and turning the furrow slice and sometimes for shattering it, depending on the type of mould board, ploughing depth and soil conditions. The intensity of this depends on the type of mould board. To suit different soil conditions and crop requirements, mould boards have been designed in different shapes, each producing its own furrow profile and surface finish, but basically they still conform to the original plough body classification. The various types have been traditionally classified as general purpose, digger, and semi-digger, as described below.
+
+The land side is the flat plate which presses against and transmits the lateral thrust of the plough bottom to the furrow wall. It helps to resist the side pressure exerted by the furrow slice on the mould board. It also helps to stabilize the plough while in operation. The rear bottom end of the landslide, which rubs against the furrow sole, is known as the heel. A heel iron is bolted to the end of the rear of the land side and helps to support the back of the plough. The land side and share are arranged to give a "lead" towards the unploughed land, so helping to sustain the correct furrow width. The land side is usually made of solid medium-carbon steel and is very short, except at the rear bottom of the plough. The heel or rear end of the rear land side may be subject to excessive wear if the rear wheel is out of adjustment, and so a chilled iron heel piece is frequently used. This is inexpensive and can be easily replaced. The land side is fastened to the frog by plough bolts.
+
+The frog (standard) is the central part of the plough bottom to which the other components of the bottom are attached. It is an irregular piece of metal, which may be made of cast iron for cast iron ploughs or welded steel for steel ploughs. The frog is the foundation of the plough bottom. It takes the shock resulting from hitting rocks, and therefore should be tough and strong. The frog is in turn fastened to the plough frame.
+
+A runner extending from behind the share to the rear of the plough controls the direction of the plough, because it is held against the bottom land-side corner of the new furrow being formed. The holding force is the weight of the sod, as it is raised and rotated, on the curved surface of the mould board. Because of this runner, the mould board plough is harder to turn around than the scratch plough, and its introduction brought about a change in the shape of fields – from mostly square fields into longer rectangular "strips" (hence the introduction of the furlong).
+
+An advance on the basic design was the iron ploughshare, a replaceable horizontal cutting surface mounted on the tip of the share. The earliest ploughs with a detachable and replaceable share date from around 1000 BC in the Ancient Near East,[16] and the earliest iron ploughshares from about 500 BC in China.[17] Early mould boards were wedges that sat inside the cut formed by the coulter, turning over the soil to the side. The ploughshare spread the cut horizontally below the surface, so that when the mould board lifted it, a wider area of soil was turned over. Mould boards are known in Britain from the late 6th century onwards.[18]
+
+The mould-board plough type is usually set by the method with which the plough is attached to the tractor and the way it is lifted and carried. The basic types are:
+
+When a plough hits a rock or other solid obstruction, serious damage may result unless the plough is equipped with some safety device. The damage may be bent or broken shares, bent standards, beams or braces.
+
+The three basic types of safety devices used on mould-board ploughs are a spring release device in the plough drawbar, a trip beam construction on each bottom, and an automatic reset design on each bottom.
+
+The spring release was used in the past almost universally on trailing-type ploughs with one to three or four bottoms. It is not practical on larger ploughs. When an obstruction is encountered, the spring release mechanism in the hitch permits the plough to uncouple from the tractor. When a hydraulic lift is used on the plough, the hydraulic hoses will also usually uncouple automatically when the plough uncouples. Most plough makers offer an automatic reset system for tough conditions or rocky soils. The re-set mechanism allows each body to move rearward and upward to pass without damage over obstacles such as rocks hidden below soil surface. A heavy leaf or coil-spring mechanism that holds the body in its working position under normal conditions resets the plough after the obstruction is passed.
+
+Another type of auto-reset mechanism uses an oil (hydraulic) and gas accumulator. Shock loads cause the oil to compress the gas. When the gas expands again, the leg returns to its working ploughing position after passing over the obstacle. The simplest mechanism is a breaking (shear) bolt that needs replacement. Shear bolts that break when a plough body hits an obstruction are a cheaper overload protection device. It is important to use the correct replacement bolt.
+
+Trip-beam ploughs are constructed with a hinge point in the beam. This is usually located some distance above the top of the plough bottom. The bottom is held in normal ploughing position by a spring-operated latch. When an obstruction is encountered, the entire bottom is released and hinges back and up to pass over the obstruction. It is necessary to back up the tractor and plough to reset the bottom. This construction is used to protect the individual bottoms. The automatic reset design has only recently been introduced on US ploughs, but has been used extensively on European and Australian ploughs. Here the beam is hinged at a point almost above the point of the share. The bottom is held in the normal position by a set of springs or a hydraulic cylinder on each bottom.
+
+When an obstruction is encountered, the plough bottom hinges back and up in such a way as to pass over the obstruction, without stopping the tractor and plough. The bottom automatically returns to normal ploughing position as soon as the obstruction is passed, without any interruption of forward motion. The automatic reset design permits higher field efficiencies since stopping for stones is practically eliminated. It also reduces costs for broken shares, beams and other parts. The fast resetting action helps produce a better job of ploughing, as large areas of unploughed land are not left, as they are when lifting a plough over a stone.
+
+Manual loy ploughing was a form used on small farms in Ireland where farmers could not afford more, or on hilly ground that precluded horses.[19] It was used up until the 1960s in poorer land.[20] It suited the moist Irish climate, as the trenches formed by turning in the sods provided drainage. It allowed potatoes to be grown in bogs (peat swamps) and on otherwise unfarmed mountain slopes.[21][22]
+
+In the basic mould-board plough, the depth of cut is adjusted by lifting against the runner in the furrow, which limited the weight of the plough to what a ploughman could easily lift. This limited the construction to a small amount of wood (although metal edges were possible). These ploughs were fairly fragile and unsuitable for the heavier soils of northern Europe. The introduction of wheels to replace the runner allowed the weight of the plough to increase, and in turn the use of a larger mould-board faced in metal. These heavy ploughs led to greater food production and eventually a marked population increase, beginning around AD 1000.[23]
+
+Before the Han Dynasty (202 BC – AD 220), Chinese ploughs were made almost wholly of wood except for the iron blade of the ploughshare. By the Han period the entire ploughshare was made of cast iron. These are the earliest known heavy, mould-board iron ploughs.[17][24]
+
+The Romans achieved a heavy-wheeled mould-board plough in the late 3rd and 4th century AD, for which archaeological evidence appears, for instance, in Roman Britain.[25] The first indisputable appearance after the Roman period is in a northern Italian document of 643.[15]:50 Old words connected with the heavy plough and its use appear in Slavic, suggesting possible early use in that region.[15]:49ff General adoption of the carruca heavy plough in Europe seems to have accompanied adoption of the three-field system in the later 8th and early 9th centuries, leading to improved agricultural productivity per unit of land in northern Europe.[15]:69–78 This was accompanied by larger fields, known variously as carucates, ploughlands, and plough gates.
+
+The basic plough with coulter, ploughshare and mould board remained in use for a millennium. Major changes in design spread widely in the Age of Enlightenment, when there was rapid progress in design. Joseph Foljambe in Rotherham, England, in 1730, used new shapes based on the Rotherham plough, which covered the mould board with iron.[26] Unlike the heavy plough, the Rotherham, or Rotherham swing plough consisted entirely of the coulter, mould board and handles. It was much lighter than earlier designs and became common in England. It may have been the first plough widely built in factories and commercially successful there.[27]
+
+In 1789 Robert Ransome, an iron founder in Ipswich, started casting ploughshares in a disused malting at St Margaret's Ditches. A broken mould in his foundry caused molten metal to come into contact with cold metal, making the metal surface extremely hard. This process, chilled casting, resulted in what Ransome advertised as "self-sharpening" ploughs. He received patents for his discovery.
+
+James Small further advanced the design. Using mathematical methods, he eventually arrived at a shape cast from a single piece of iron, an improvement on the Scots plough of James Anderson of Hermiston.[28] A single-piece cast-iron plough was also developed and patented by Charles Newbold in the United States. This was again improved on by Jethro Wood, a blacksmith of Scipio, New York, who made a three-part Scots plough that allowed a broken piece to be replaced. In 1837 John Deere introduced the first steel plough; it was so much stronger than iron designs that it could work soil in US areas previously thought unsuitable for farming.
+
+Improvements on this followed developments in metallurgy: steel coulters and shares with softer iron mould boards to prevent breakage, the chilled plough (an early example of surface-hardened steel),[29] and eventually mould boards with faces strong enough to dispense with the coulter.
+
+The first mould-board ploughs could only turn the soil over in one direction (conventionally to the right), as dictated by the shape of the mould board. So a field had to be ploughed in long strips, or lands. The plough was usually worked clockwise around each land, ploughing the long sides and being dragged across the short sides without ploughing. The length of the strip was limited by the distance oxen (later horses) could comfortably work without rest, and their width by the distance the plough could conveniently be dragged. These distances determined the traditional size of the strips: a furlong, (or "furrow's length", 220 yards (200 m)) by a chain (22 yards (20 m)) – an area of one acre (about 0.4 hectares); this is the origin of the acre. The one-sided action gradually moved soil from the sides to the centre line of the strip. If the strip was in the same place each year, the soil built up into a ridge, creating the ridge and furrow topography still seen in some ancient fields.
+
+The turn-wrest plough allows ploughing to be done to either side. The mould board is removable, turning to the right for one furrow, then being moved to the other side of the plough to turn to the left. (The coulter and ploughshare are fixed.) Thus adjacent furrows can be ploughed in opposite directions, allowing ploughing to proceed continuously along the field and so avoid the ridge–furrow topography.
+
+The reversible (or roll-over) plough has two mould-board ploughs mounted back to back, one turning right, the other left. While one works the land, the other is borne upside-down in the air. At the end of each row the paired ploughs are turned over so that the other can be used along the next furrow, again working the field in a consistent direction.
+
+These ploughs date back to the days of the steam engine and the horse. In almost universal use on farms, they have right and left-handed mould boards, enabling them to work up and down the same furrow. Reversible ploughs may either be mounted or semi-mounted and are heavier and more expensive than right-handed models, but have the great advantage of leaving a level surface that facilitates seedbed preparation and harvesting. Very little marking out is necessary before ploughing can start; idle running on the headland is minimal compared with conventional ploughs.
+
+Driving a tractor with furrow-side wheels in the furrow bottom provides the most efficient line of draught between tractor and plough. It is also easier to steer the tractor; driving with the front wheel against the furrow wall will keep the front furrow at the correct width. This is less satisfactory when using a tractor with wide front tyres. Although these make better use of the tractor power, the tyres may compact some of the last furrow slice turned on the previous run. The problem is overcome by using a furrow widener or longer mould board on the rear body. The latter moves the soil further towards the ploughed land, leaving more room for the tractor wheels on the next run.
+
+Driving with all four wheels on unploughed land is another solution to the problem of wide tyres. Semi-mounted ploughs can be hitched in a way that allows the tractor to run on unbroken land and pull the plough in correct alignment without any sideways movement (crabbing).
+
+Early steel ploughs were walking ploughs, directed by a ploughman holding handles on either side of the plough. Steel ploughs were so much easier to draw through the soil that constant adjustment of the blade to deal with roots or clods was no longer necessary, as the plough could easily cut through them. So not long after that the first riding ploughs appeared, whose wheels kept the plough at an adjustable level above the ground, while the ploughman sat on a seat instead of walking. Direction was now controlled mostly through the draught team, with levers allowing fine adjustments. This led quickly to riding ploughs with multiple mould boards, which dramatically increased ploughing performance.
+
+A single draught horse can normally pull a single-furrow plough in clean light soil, but in heavier soils two horses are needed, one walking on the land and one in the furrow. Ploughs with two or more furrows call for more than two horses, and usually one or more have to walk on the ploughed sod, which is hard going for them and means they tread newly ploughed land down. It is usual to rest such horses every half-hour for about ten minutes.
+
+Heavy volcanic loam soils such as are found in New Zealand require the use of four heavy draught horses to pull a double-furrow plough. Where paddocks are more square than oblong, it is more economical to have horses four wide in harness than two-by-two ahead, so that one horse is always on the ploughed land (the sod). The limits of strength and endurance in horses made greater than two-furrow ploughs uneconomic to use on a farm.[citation needed]
+
+Amish farmers tend to use a team of about seven horses or mules when spring ploughing. As Amish farmers often cooperate on ploughing, teams are sometimes changed at noon. Using this method, about 10 acres (4.0 ha) can be ploughed per day in light soils and about 2 acres (0.81 ha) in heavy soils.[citation needed]
+
+John Deere, an Illinois blacksmith, noted that ploughing many sticky, non-sandy soils might benefit from modifications in the design of the mould board and the metals used. A polished needle would enter leather and fabric with greater ease and a polished pitchfork also require less effort. Looking for a polished, slicker surface for a plough, he experimented with portions of saw blades, and by 1837 was making polished, cast steel ploughs. The energy required was lessened, which enabled the use of larger ploughs and more effective use of horse power.
+
+The advent of the mobile steam engine allowed steam power to be applied to ploughing from about 1850. In Europe, soil conditions were often too soft to support the weight of a traction engine. Instead, counterbalanced, wheeled ploughs, known as balance ploughs, were drawn by cables across the fields by pairs of ploughing engines on opposite field edges, or by a single engine drawing directly towards it at one end and drawing away from it via a pulley at the other. The balance plough had two sets of facing ploughs arranged so that with one was in the ground, the other was lifted in the air. When pulled in one direction, the trailing ploughs were lowered onto the ground by the tension on the cable. When the plough reached the edge of the field, the other engine pulled the opposite cable, and the plough tilted (balanced), putting the other set of shares into the ground, and the plough worked back across the field.
+
+One set of ploughs was right-handed and the other left-handed, allowing continuous ploughing along the field, as with the turn-wrest and reversible ploughs. The man credited with inventing the ploughing engine and associated balance plough in the mid-19th century was John Fowler, an English agricultural engineer and inventor.[30] One notable producer of steam-powered ploughs was J.Kemna of Eastern Prussia, who became the "leading steam plow company on the European continent and penetrated the monopoly of English companies on the world market"[31] at the beginning of the 20th century.
+
+In America the firm soil of the Plains allowed direct pulling with steam tractors, such as the big Case, Reeves or Sawyer-Massey breaking engines. Gang ploughs of up to 14 bottoms were used. Often these were used in regiments of engines, so that in a single field there might be ten steam tractors each drawing a plough. In this way hundreds of acres could be turned over in a day. Only steam engines had the power to draw the big units. When internal combustion engines appeared, they lacked the comparable strength and ruggedness. Only by reducing the number of shares could the work be completed.
+
+The stump-jump plough, an Australian invention of the 1870s, is designed to break up new farming land that contains tree stumps and rocks expensive to remove. It uses a moveable weight to hold the ploughshare in position. When a tree stump or rock is encountered, the ploughshare is thrown up clear of the obstacle, to avoid breaking its harness or linkage. Ploughing can continue when the weight is returned to the earth.
+
+A simpler, later system uses a concave disc (or pair of them) set at a wide angle to the direction of progress, using a concave shape to hold the disc into the soil – unless something hard strikes the circumference of the disc, causing it to roll up and over the obstruction. As this is dragged forward, the sharp edge of the disc cuts the soil, and the concave surface of the rotating disc lifts and throws the soil to the side. It does not work so well as a mould-board plough (but this is not seen as a drawback, because it helps to fight wind erosion), but it does lift and break up the soil (see disc harrow).
+
+Modern ploughs are usually multiply reversible, mounted on a tractor with a three-point linkage.[32] These commonly have from two and to as many as seven mould boards – and semi-mounted ploughs (whose lifting is assisted by a wheel about halfway along their length) can have as many as 18. The tractor's hydraulics are used to lift and reverse the implement and to adjust furrow width and depth. The ploughman still has to set the draughting linkage from the tractor, so that the plough keeps the proper angle in the soil. This angle and depth can be controlled automatically by modern tractors. As a complement to the rear plough a two or three mould-board plough can be mounted on the front of the tractor if it is equipped with front three-point linkage.
+
+The chisel plough is a common tool for deep tillage (prepared land) with limited soil disruption. Its main function is to loosen and aerate the soils, while leaving crop residue on top. This plough can be used to reduce the effects of soil compaction and to help break up ploughpan and hardpan. Unlike many other ploughs, the chisel will not invert or turn the soil. This feature has made it a useful addition to no-till and low-till farming practices that attempt to maximise the erosion-preventing benefits of keeping organic matter and farming residues present on the soil surface throughout the year. Thus the chisel plough is considered by some[who?] to be more sustainable than other types of plough, such as the mould-board plough.
+
+Chisel ploughs are becoming more popular as a primary tillage tool in row-crop farming areas. Basically the chisel plough is a heavy-duty field cultivator intended to operate at depths from 15 cm [6 in] to as much as 46 cm [18 in]. However some models may run much deeper. Each individual plough  or shank is typically set from nine inches (229 mm) to twelve inches (305 mm) apart. Such a plough can meet significant soil drag, so that a tractor of sufficient power and traction is required. When planning to plough with a chisel plough, it is important to note that 10–20 horsepower (7.5 to 15 kW) per shank will be required, depending on depth.[citation needed]
+
+Pull-type chisel ploughs are made in working widths from about 2.5 m (8 ft) up to 13.7 m (45 ft). They are tractor mounted, and working depth is hydraulically controlled. Those more than about 4 m (13 ft) wide may be equipped with folding wings to reduce transport width. Wider machines may have the wings supported by individual wheels and hinge joints to allow flexing of the machine over uneven ground. The wider models usually have a wheel each side to control working depth. Three-point hitch-mounted units are made in widths from about 1.5 m to 9 m (5–30 ft).
+
+Cultivators are often similar in form to chisel ploughs, but their goals are different. Cultivator teeth work near the surface, usually for weed control, whereas chisel plough shanks work deep under the surface. So cultivation takes much less power per shank than does chisel ploughing.
+
+A ridging plough is used for crops such as potatoes or scallions grown buried in ridges of soil, using a technique called ridging or hilling. A ridging plough has two back-to-back mould boards cutting a deep furrow on each pass with high ridges either side. The same plough may be used to split the ridges to harvest the crop.
+
+This variety of ridge plough is notable for having a blade pointing towards the operator. It is used solely by human effort rather than with animal or machine assistance and pulled backwards by the operator, requiring great physical effort. It is particularly used for second breaking of ground and for potato planting. It is found in Shetland, some western crofts, and more rarely Central Scotland, typically on holdings too small or poor to merit the use of animals.
+
+The mole plough allows under-drainage to be installed without trenches, or breaks up the deep impermeable soil layers that impede it. It is a deep plough with a torpedo or wedge-shaped tip and a narrow blade connecting it to the body. When dragged over ground, it leaves a channel deep under it that acts as a drain. Modern mole ploughs may also bury a flexible perforated plastic drain pipe as they go, making a more permanent drain – or may be used to lay pipes for water supply or other purposes. Similar machines, so-called pipe-and-cable-laying ploughs, are even used under the sea for laying cables or for preparing the earth for side-scan sonar in a process used in oil exploration.[citation needed]
+
+A simple check can be made to find if the subsoil is in the right condition for mole ploughing. Compact a tennis ball-sized sample from moling depth by hand, then push a pencil through. If the hole stays intact without splitting the ball, the soil is in ideal condition for the mole plough.
+
+Heavy land requires draining to reduce its water content to a level efficient for plant growth. Heavy soils usually have a system of permanent drains, using perforated plastic or clay pipes that discharge into a ditch. Mole ploughs The small tunnels (mole drains) that mole ploughs form lie at a depth of up to 950 mm (3 in) at an angle to the pipe drains. Water from the mole drains seeps into the pipes and runs along them into a ditch.
+
+Mole ploughs are usually trailed and pulled by a crawler tractor, but lighter models for use on the three-point linkage of powerful four-wheel drive tractors are also made. A mole plough has a strong frame that slides along the ground when the machine is at work. A heavy leg, similar to a sub-soiler leg, is attached to the frame and a circular section with a larger diameter expander on a flexible link is bolted to the leg. The bullet-shaped share forms a tunnel in the soil about 75 mm diameter and the expander presses the soil outwards to form a long-lasting drainage channel.
+
+The para-plough, or paraplow, loosens compacted soil layers 3 to 4 dm (12 to 16 inches) deep while maintaining high surface residue levels.[33]It is primary tillage implement for deep ploughing without inversion.
+
+The spade plough is designed to cut the soil and turn it on its side, minimising damage to earthworms, soil microorganism and fungi. This increases the sustainability and long-term fertility of the soil.
+
+Using a bar with square shares mounted perpendicularly and a pivot point to change the bar's angle, the switch plough allows ploughing in either direction. It is best in previously-worked soils, as the ploughshares are designed more to turn the soil over than for deep tillage. At the headland, the operator pivots the bar (and so the ploughshares) to turn the soil to the opposite side of the direction of travel. Switch ploughs are usually lighter than roll-over ploughs, requiring less horsepower to operate.
+
+Mould-board ploughing in cold and temperate climates, down to 20 cm, aerates the soil by loosening it. It incorporates crop residues, solid manures, limestone and commercial fertilisers along oxygen, so reducing nitrogen losses by denitrification, accelerating mineralisation and raising short-term nitrogen availability for turning organic matter into humus. It erases wheel tracks and ruts from harvesting equipment. It controls many perennial weeds and delays the growth of others until spring. It accelerates spring soil warming and water evaporation due to lower residues on the soil surface. It facilitates seeding with a lighter seed, controls many crop enemies (slugs, crane flies, seedcorn maggots-bean seed flies, borers), and raises the number of "soil-eating" earthworms (endogic), but deters vertical-dwelling earthworms (anecic).
+
+Ploughing leaves little crop residue on the surface that might otherwise reduce both wind and water erosion. Over-ploughing can lead to the formation of hardpan. Typically, farmers break that up with a subsoiler, which acts as a long, sharp knife slicing through the hardened layer of soil deep below the surface. Soil erosion due to improper land and plough utilisation is possible. Contour ploughing mitigates soil erosion by ploughing across a slope, along elevation lines. Alternatives to ploughing, such as a no till method, have the potential to build soil levels and humus. These may be suitable for smaller, intensively cultivated plots and for farming on poor, shallow or degraded soils that ploughing would further degrade.
+
+Back side of a 100 Mark banknote issued 1908
+
+1975 Italian Lira coin
+
+Robert Burns statue, Schenley Park, Pittsburgh
+
+The Gefion Fountain in Copenhagen
+
+Henry Herbert La Thangue, The Last Furrow, 1895
+
+Ploughing in the Nivernais by Rosa Bonheur (1849)
+
+Plough-usage was revolutionized with the advent of steam-locomotives (as seen in this German 1890's watercolor)

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+ABBA is a Swedish pop music group, who had many hits in the 1970s in Stockholm and early 1980s. ABBA was the most commercially successful pop group of the 1970s.[1] The name "ABBA" is made from the first letter of each member's first name:
+
+ABBA became very popular after they won the Eurovision Song Contest in 1974. They had many hits. These included "Dancing Queen", "SOS", "Money, Money, Money", "Mamma Mia", and "Waterloo". Most of their songs were written by Ulvaeus and Andersson.
+
+They originally broke up in 1982, but their music is still popular. It has appeared in movies (including the Australian movies The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert and Muriel's Wedding). The stage musical Mamma Mia! was developed from their music and subsequently made into a 2008 movie followed ten years later by a 2018 sequel Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.
+
+All four ABBA members had local music careers before ABBA even formed. Frida and Agnetha were both solo singers. Benny and Bjorn both had their own individual bands. In 1966, Benny and Bjorn both met and decided to write songs together. In 1969, Bjorn met Agnetha and Benny met Frida. All four friends met together and decided to work together to record songs. By 1970, they were known as "Bjorn & Benny (With Svenska Flicka)". [2][3] Later they were called Bjorn & Benny, Agnetha & Frida. Their first hit was a song called "Hej, gamle man". [4] By 1971, Bjorn and Agnetha were married and Benny and Frida were engaged. "Ring Ring" in 1973 was when the group achieved success throughout much of Europe and Africa. It wasn't until 1973 that the group became officially known as ABBA. The name was suggested by their manager, Stig Anderson. In 1974, ABBA was given a chance to perform in the Eurovision Song Contest. With "Waterloo", they won and soon got global success. In 1976, ABBA released Dancing Queen, which is often known as ABBA's "signature song" and "one of the greatest pop songs ever written". [5][6] During 1977, their huge popularity became known as "Abbamania". [7] In Australia, ABBA played in huge concerts that usually always sold out. [8] "ABBA: The Movie" was also released in 1977 during the height of the group's popularity. Throughout the mid and late 1970's ABBA performed in Europe, The United States, Japan and Australia. [9] In early 1979, Agnetha and Bjorn divorced. In early 1981, Frida and Benny also got divorced. This led to many sadder and more mature songs over the next few years. [10] By 1981, ABBA's popularity was declining. Their last album, "The Visitors" a not a big success like previous albums. [11] The Day Before You Came was the last song ABBA ever recorded together, while Under Attack was the last song ever released, both in 1982. [12] ABBA broke up shortly before 1983 and all members continued on their independent music careers, just like before they had met. [13]
+
+ABBA recorded eight albums between 1973 and 1981,[14] as well as some compilation albums.

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+Slavery is when a person is treated as the property of another person. This person is usually called a slave, with the owner being called a slavemaster. It often means that slaves are forced to work, or else they will be punished by the law (if slavery is legal in that place) or by their master.
+
+There is evidence that even before there was writing, there was slavery.[1] There have been different types of slavery, and they have been in almost all cultures and continents.[2] Some societies had laws about slavery, or they had an economy that was built on it. Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome had many slaves.
+
+During the 20th century almost all countries made laws forbidding slavery. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights says that slavery is wrong. Slavery is now banned by international law.[3] Nevertheless, there are still different forms of slavery in some countries.[4]
+
+The English word "slave" comes from the medieval word for the Slavic peoples of Central Europe and Eastern Europe, because these were the last ethnic group to be captured and enslaved in Central Europe.[5][6]  According to Adam Smith and Auguste Comte, a slave was mainly defined as a captive or prisoner of war.  Slave-holders used to buy slaves at slave auctions. In many cases slaves are not allowed rights.
+
+Slavery has existed for a long time.[7] Early hunter-gatherers had no use for slaves.[8] They did everything for themselves. Having another pair of hands to help them meant another mouth to feed. Slavery or owning another person made no sense to these people.[8] Once men gathered in cities and towns and there was more than enough food, having a cheap supply of labor made sense.[8] This is when the earliest forms of slavery appeared. Slavery can be traced back to the earliest records, such as the Code of Hammurabi (c. 1760 BC). This refers to it as an established institution.[9]
+
+In the Ancient Near East, captives obtained through warfare often became slaves. This was seen by the laws in the Bible book of  Deuteronomy as a legal form of slavery. But the Israelites were not allowed to enslave other Israelites. The Deuteronomic Code calls for the death penalty for the crime of kidnapping Israelites to enslave them.
+
+In Ancient Egypt, slaves were mainly prisoners of war. Other ways people could become slaves was by inheriting the status from their parents who were slaves. Someone could become a slave if he could not pay his debts. People also sold themselves into slavery because they were poor peasants and needed food and shelter. The lives of slaves were normally better than that of peasants.[10] Young slaves could not be put to hard work, and had to be brought up by the mistress of the household. Not all slaves went to houses. Some also sold themselves to temples, or were assigned to temples by the king. Slave trading was not very popular until later in Ancient Egypt. Afterwards, slave trades sprang up all over Egypt.
+
+In many places, citizens were partly or fully protected from being enslaved, so most slaves were foreigners.
+
+Roman slaves played an important role in society and the economy. Besides manual labor, slaves performed many domestic services. They could work at highly skilled jobs and professions. Teachers, accountants, and physicians were often slaves. Greek slaves were often highly educated. Unskilled slaves, or those sentenced to slavery as punishment, worked on farms, in mines, and at mills. Their living conditions were brutal, and their lives short.
+
+Slaves were considered property under Roman law and had no legal personhood. Unlike Roman citizens, they could be subjected to corporal punishment, sexual exploitation (prostitutes were often slaves), torture, and summary execution. The testimony of a slave could not be accepted in a court of law unless the slave was tortured—a practice based on the belief that slaves in a position to be privy to their masters' affairs would be too virtuously loyal to reveal damaging evidence unless coerced. Over time, however, slaves gained increased legal protection, including the right to file complaints against their masters. Attitudes changed in part because of the influence among the educated elite of the Stoics, whose egalitarian views of humanity extended to slaves.
+
+Roman slaves could hold property which, even though it belonged to their masters, they were allowed to use as if it were their own. Skilled or educated slaves were allowed to earn their own money. With enough money they could buy their freedom.[11]
+
+After the Roman Empire broke up, slavery gradually changed into serfdom.
+
+Historians estimate that between 650 AD and the 1960s, 10 to 18 million people were enslaved by Arab slave traders. They were taken from Europe, Asia and Africa across the Red Sea, Indian Ocean, and Sahara desert. Male slaves were often employed as servants, soldiers, or workers by their owners. Many male slaves were castrated.[12] It is estimated that as many as 6 out of every 10 boys bled to death during the process.[12] But the high price of Eunuchs made it worthwhile. According to Ronald Segal, author of Islam’s Black Slaves: The Other Black Diaspora (2002), "The calipha in Baghdad at the beginning of the 10th Century had 7,000 black eunuchs and 4,000 white eunuchs in his palace”.[12] Women and children taken as slaves were mainly used as servants and concubines. While the later Atlantic slave trade concentrated on men for labor, the Arab slave trade started with men and boys, but shifted over time to concentrate more on woman and young girls for sexual purposes. By the 1900s, Arab slave traders had taken between 10 and 20 million slaves out of Africa.[12]
+
+For four centuries, beginning in the late 15th century, millions of Africans were taken as slaves by Europeans.[13] Europeans began exporting Africans to the New World as a source of cheap labor on colonial plantations.[13]
+
+Between 1452 and 1455, Pope Nicolas V issued a series of papal bulls authorizing the Portuguese to take African slaves.[14] At first slave traders raided coastal areas and carried black people off. But the mines and fields of the colonies needed more and more slaves. In the early 16th century Spain began to issue licenses and contracts to supply slaves. By the 1750s large slaving companies were established. Most of Europe at the time was involved in the slave trade.[14]
+
+Many Europeans who arrived in North America during the 17th and 18th centuries came under contract as indentured servants.[15] The change from indentured servitude to slavery was a gradual process in Virginia. The earliest legal documentation of such a shift was in 1640. This is where an African, John Punch, was sentenced to lifetime slavery for attempting to run away. This case also marked the disparate treatment of Africans as held by the Virginia County Court, where two white runaways received far lesser sentences.[16] After 1640, planters started to ignore the expiration of indentured contracts. They kept their servants as slaves for life. This was demonstrated by the case Johnson v. Parker. The court ruled that John Casor, an indentured servant, be returned to Johnson who claimed that Casor belonged to him for his life.[17][18] According to the 1860 U. S. census, 393,975 individuals, representing 8% of all US families, owned 3,950,528 slaves.[19] One-third of Southern families owned slaves.[20] Slavery in United States was legally abolished by Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution in 1865.[21][unreliable source?]
+
+Millions of people are still slaves in some parts of the world, mostly in South Asia and Africa. It is less common in the developed world because of better law enforcement, but it still happens there as well.[4] The ways in which it is done have changed. Today, slaves may work because of things like a high debt (for example, slaves have to work to pay off a debt). Many victims are told that their families will be harmed if they report the slave owners. Many slaves are forced to be domestic servants. In some cases, their families sell them to the slave owners. Some slaves have been trafficked from one part of the world to another. These people are illegally in their host country, and therefore do not report the abuse. Forced prostitution is a type of slavery. Another form of slavery still happening today is forced child labor. Some children have to work in mines or in plantations, or they have to fight wars as child soldiers, for no pay.
+
+One study says that there are 27 million people (but others say there could be as many as 200 million) in slavery today.[22]
+
+Other terms that describe the recruitement of laborers, and that may have similarities to slavery are Blackbirding, Impressment and Shanghaiing.
+
+Some of the countries where there is still slavery are in Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia.[23]  In summer 2007, 570 people were found to be slaves for brick makers in China.[24] They included 69 children.[25] The Chinese government made a force of 35,000 police check northern Chinese brick kilns for slaves, and sent lots of kiln supervisors and officials to prison and sentenced one kiln foreman to death for killing a worker who was a slave.[24]
+
+In Mauritania, it is thought that up to 600,000 men, women and children, or 20% of the population, are slaves, and that many of them are used as bonded labour.[26][27] Slavery in Mauritania was made illegal in August 2007.[28] In Niger, there is also much slavery. A Nigerian study has found that more than 800,000 people are slaves, almost 8% of the population.[29][30][31] Child slavery has commonly been used when making cash crops and mining.  According to the United States Department of State, more than 109,000 children were working on cocoa farms alone in Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast) in 'the worst forms of child labour' in 2002.[32]
+
+In November 2006, the International Labour Organization said that it would prosecute members of the junta that rules Myanmar (also called Burma) at the International Court of Justice for "Crimes against Humanity". This is because the military makes some citizens do forced labour.[33][34] The International Labour Organisation says that it thinks that about 800,000 people are forced to work this way.[35][36]
+
+Scholars of Islamic law have condemned the revival of the slave trade of non-Muslim women by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
+
+An agitation called Abolitionism against slavery began in Christian countries in the 18th century. First they abolished the slave trade so more people wouldn't become slaves. In 1833, the British Empire stopped slavery. Several other countries followed. In the United States, disagreement over slavery led to the American Civil War and the Emancipation Proclamation. In 1865, when the North won, all slaves were made free. Still more countries abolished slavery afterwards. Pedro II of Brazil abolished it in 1888. Forced labor however continued, either against the law or by debt peonage or other methods which the laws of the various countries did not count as slavery.

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+The AK-47 is a Russian assault rifle first used in 1949. It and an updated version called the AKM were used by the Soviet Union's military (which was called the Soviet Army). It was later replaced by the AK-74.
+
+The AK-47 was designed in 1947 by Mikhail Kalashnikov.[8]
+
+The AK-47 quickly became famous and spread all around the world because it was simple to fire, clean and maintain, and also because of its reliability, meaning that it can be fired for a long time without jamming. The AK-47 and its successors continue to be used by many of the world's armies. Many terrorist and insurgent groups also use the AK-47. It is a cheap, reliable, and easy-to-use weapon. The AK-47 was also available with a folding stock, the AKS-47, and a shortened version with the AKS74 folding stock, the AKMSU (used by armoured vehicle crews), although this was soon replaced by the AKS74U, which fires the 5.45 cartridge of the AK-74. There was also a light machine gun variant with a longer barrel and different shaped stock called the RPK.
+
+The Russian military liked the AK's design so much that it was even used to design other types of weapons as well, including the Dragunov sniper rifle and the Saiga-12 semi-automatic shotgun.
+
+The AK-47 uses gas-operated reloading.  When the bullet is moved down the barrel, a little bit of the gas behind the bullet is made to go up a small tube that pushes away the bolt.  The shooter does not have to reload by hand for every shot - the gun reloads by itself.  When you pull the trigger, the bullet in the chamber fires.  You then release and then pull the trigger again to fire another round.  When used this way, it is called a semi-automatic firearm.  A few AK-47's are made to be used only this way but most are fully automatic firearms.
+
+In the pro-communist states, the AK-47 became a symbol of the Third World revolution.
+
+They were used in the Cambodian Civil War and the Cambodian–Vietnamese War.[9] During the 1980s, the Soviet Union became the principal arms dealer to countries embargoed by Western nations. This included Middle Eastern nations such as Iran, Libya, and Syria, which welcomed Soviet Union backing against Israel. After the end of the Soviet Union (1989/90), AK-47s were sold openly and on the black market to any group with cash, including drug cartels and dictatorial states. More recently they have been seen in the hands of Islamic groups such as Al-Qaeda, ISIL, and the Taliban in Afghanistan and Iraq, and FARC, Ejército de Liberación Nacional guerrillas in Colombia.[10]
+
+The proliferation of this weapon is shown by more than just numbers. The AK-47 is included in the flag of Mozambique, an acknowledgment that the country gained its independence in large part through the effective use of their AK-47s.[11] It is also found in the coats of arms of East Timor and the revolution era Burkina Faso, as well as in the flags of Hezbollah, FARC-EP, the New People's Army in the Phillipines, TKP/TIKKO and other "Revolutionary Peoples" groups.

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+A plow or plough is a simple machine used in farming. A plow is pulled across the ground by a human or animal. When pulled across the ground, the plow lifts up dirt and makes two lines of dirt behind it. The dirt lifted by the plow is more loose than before. Ground that has been plowed is a good place for a farmer to grow food.
+
+Early in the agricultural revolution, simple hand-held digging sticks or hoes would have been used in areas with good soil, such as the area near the Nile River in Africa. At the Nile, the annual flood makes the soil better by rejuvenating it, to create places where seeds could be planted. To help crops grow in areas where floods were rare, the soil had to be rejuvenated in a different way. This is when plowing was first used, and hoes were the first plows.
+

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+Hunting is going out to find and kill animals. Animals and some humans, hunt for food. People have hunted at least since the stone age. They used spears, and now people mostly use guns and bows. Some people kill the animals for fur, to make clothes and shelter, or to decorate their homes, or to sell. Fox hunting is sometimes a sport.
+
+Many places have rules that limit hunting. Hunting can be good by keeping animal populations from getting too high. Hunting too much, though, can kill off species of animals, making them extinct. Hunting once made the dodo, a bird, become extinct.
+
+Before they invented herding people got meat by hunting.  Boar hunting and fox hunting became became popular in early modern times.  Another form of hunting is not to use guns, bows and arrows or spears, but by animal trapping.

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+Hunting is going out to find and kill animals. Animals and some humans, hunt for food. People have hunted at least since the stone age. They used spears, and now people mostly use guns and bows. Some people kill the animals for fur, to make clothes and shelter, or to decorate their homes, or to sell. Fox hunting is sometimes a sport.
+
+Many places have rules that limit hunting. Hunting can be good by keeping animal populations from getting too high. Hunting too much, though, can kill off species of animals, making them extinct. Hunting once made the dodo, a bird, become extinct.
+
+Before they invented herding people got meat by hunting.  Boar hunting and fox hunting became became popular in early modern times.  Another form of hunting is not to use guns, bows and arrows or spears, but by animal trapping.

ensimple/1003.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+Hunting is going out to find and kill animals. Animals and some humans, hunt for food. People have hunted at least since the stone age. They used spears, and now people mostly use guns and bows. Some people kill the animals for fur, to make clothes and shelter, or to decorate their homes, or to sell. Fox hunting is sometimes a sport.
+
+Many places have rules that limit hunting. Hunting can be good by keeping animal populations from getting too high. Hunting too much, though, can kill off species of animals, making them extinct. Hunting once made the dodo, a bird, become extinct.
+
+Before they invented herding people got meat by hunting.  Boar hunting and fox hunting became became popular in early modern times.  Another form of hunting is not to use guns, bows and arrows or spears, but by animal trapping.

ensimple/1004.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+Hunting is going out to find and kill animals. Animals and some humans, hunt for food. People have hunted at least since the stone age. They used spears, and now people mostly use guns and bows. Some people kill the animals for fur, to make clothes and shelter, or to decorate their homes, or to sell. Fox hunting is sometimes a sport.
+
+Many places have rules that limit hunting. Hunting can be good by keeping animal populations from getting too high. Hunting too much, though, can kill off species of animals, making them extinct. Hunting once made the dodo, a bird, become extinct.
+
+Before they invented herding people got meat by hunting.  Boar hunting and fox hunting became became popular in early modern times.  Another form of hunting is not to use guns, bows and arrows or spears, but by animal trapping.

ensimple/1005.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,70 @@
+
+
+Cats, also called domestic cats (Felis catus), are small, carnivorous (meat-eating) mammals, of the family Felidae.[3][4]  Domestic cats are often called house cats when kept as indoor pets.[5] Cats have been domesticated (tamed) for nearly 10,000 years.[6] There are also farm cats, which are kept on farms to keep rodents away; and feral cats, which are domestic cats that live away from humans.[7] They are one of the most popular pets in the world. They are kept by humans for hunting rodents and companionship. There are about 60 breeds of cat.[8]
+
+A cat is sometimes called a kitty. A young cat is called a kitten. A female cat that has not had its sex organs removed is called a queen. A male cat that has not had its sex organs removed is called a tom.
+
+Domestic cats are found in shorthair, longhair, and hairless breeds. Cats which are not specific breeds can be referred to as 'domestic shorthair' (DSH) or 'domestic longhair' (DLH).
+
+The word 'cat' is also used for other felines. Felines are usually called either big cats or small cats.  The big, wild cats are well known: lions, tigers, leopards, jaguars, pumas, and cheetahs. There are small, wild cats in most parts of the world, such as the lynx in northern Europe.  The big cats and wild cats are not tame, and can be very dangerous.
+
+In the past, most notably in Egypt, people kept domestic cats because they hunted and ate mice and rats. Today, people often keep cats as pets. There are also domestic cats which live without being cared for by people. These kinds of cats are called "feral cats".
+
+The oldest evidence of cats kept as pets is from the Mediterranean island of Cyprus, around 7500 BC. Ancient Egyptians worshipped cats as gods, and often mummified them so they could be with their owners "for all of eternity".
+
+Today, special food for cats is widely available in the developed countries. Proper feeding will help a cat live longer compared to hunting or being fed table scraps. Not correctly feeding a cat can lead to problems (see below for health concerns).
+
+Cats cannot taste sweet foods (with sugar) because of a mutation (change) in their ancestors which removed the ability to taste sweet things.
+
+Cats have anatomy similar to the other members of the genus Felis. The genus has extra lumbar (lower back) and thoracic (chest) vertebrae. This helps to explain the cat's spinal mobility and flexibility. Unlike human arms, cat forelimbs are attached to the shoulder by free-floating clavicle bones. These allow cats to pass their body through any space into which they can fit their heads.[9]
+
+The cat skull is unusual among mammals in having very large eye sockets and a powerful and specialized jaw.[10]:35 Compared to other felines, domestic cats have narrowly spaced canine teeth: this is an adaptation to their preferred prey of small rodents.[11] Cats, like dogs, walk directly on their toes, with the bones of their feet making up the lower part of the visible leg.[12]
+
+Cats walk very precisely. Unlike most mammals, when cats walk, they use a "pacing" gait (walking style); that is, they move the two legs on one side of the body before the legs on the other side. This trait is shared with camels and giraffes. As a walk speeds up into a trot, a cat's gait will change to be a "diagonal" gait, similar to that of most other mammals: the diagonally opposite hind and forelegs will move at the same time.[13] Most cats have five claws on their front paws, and four on their rear paws.[14] On the inside of the front paws there is something which looks like a sixth "finger". This special feature on the inside of the wrists is the carpal pad. The carpal pad is also found on other cats and on dogs.
+
+Cats are active carnivores, meaning that in the wild they hunt live prey. Their main prey is small mammals (like mice). They will also stalk, and sometimes kill and eat, birds. Cats eat a wide variety of prey, including insects such as flies and grasshoppers.[15] Their main method of hunting is stalk and pounce. While dogs have great stamina and will chase prey over long distances, cats are extremely fast, but only over short distances. The basic cat coat colouring, tabby (see top photo), gives it good camouflage in grass and woodland. The cat creeps towards a chosen victim, keeping its body flat and near to the ground so that it cannot be seen easily, until it is close enough for a rapid dash or pounce. Cats, especially kittens, practice these instinctive behaviours in play with each other or on small toys. Cats can fish. They use a flip-up movement of a front paw which, when successful, flips the fish out of water and over the cat's shoulders onto the grass. Dutch research showed this to be an innate (inherited) behaviour pattern which developed early and without maternal teaching.[16]
+
+Cats are quiet and well-behaved animals, making them popular pets. Young kittens are playful. They can easily entertain themselves with a variety of store-bought or homemade toys. House cats have also been known to teach themselves to use lever-type doorknobs and toilet handles.[17]
+
+Cats are fairly independent animals. They can look after themselves and do not need as much attention as dogs do.
+
+Cats use many different sounds for communication, including meowing, purring, trilling, hissing, growling, squeaking, chirping, clicking and grunting.[18]
+
+Body posture is also important. The whole shape of the body changes when a cat is relaxed, or when it is alert. Also, the position of their ears and tail are used for communication, as well as their usual functions.
+
+These ways of communication are very important. They are used between a mother cat and her kittens. They are also used between male and female cats; and between cats and other species, such as dogs. A mother cat protecting her kittens will fight off the largest dog. She gives good warning with a frightening display, hissing furiously, showing her claws, arching her back, and making her hair stand on end. If that fails, she attacks the dog's face with her claws. It has been said that no dog ever tries such an attack a second time.[19]
+
+Cats only mate when the queen is "in heat". Heat periods occur about every two weeks and last 4 to 6 days.[20] Mating in cats is a spectacular event. Several toms may be attracted to a queen in heat. The males will fight over her, and the victor wins the right to mate. At first, the female will reject the male, but eventually the female will allow the male to mate. The female will utter a loud yowl as the male pulls out of her. This is because a male cat's penis has a band of about 120-150 backwards-pointing spines, which are about one millimeter long;[21] upon withdrawal of the penis, the spines rake the walls of the female's vagina, which is a trigger[22] for ovulation. After mating, the female will wash her vulva thoroughly. If a male attempts to breed with her at this point, the female will attack him. After about 20 to 30 minutes. once the female is finished grooming, the cycle will repeat.[20]
+
+Because ovulation is not always triggered, females may not get pregnant by the first tom which mates with them.[23] A queen may mate with more than one tom when she is in heat, and different kittens in a litter may have different fathers.[20] The cycle ceases when the queen is pregnant.
+
+The gestation period for cats is about two months, with an average length of 66 days.[24] The size of a litter is usually three to five kittens. Kittens are weaned at between six and seven weeks, and cats normally reach sexual maturity at 5–10 months (females) and to 5–7 months (males).[20] Females can have two to three litters per year, so might produce up to 150 kittens in their breeding life of about ten years.[20]
+
+Pregnant queens deliver their litters by themselves, guided by instinct. The queen finds the safest place she can. Then she will clean it thoroughly, with her tongue, if necessary. Here she will quietly give birth. She licks the newborn kits clean. In the wild, leaving a scent is risking a dangerous encounter with other animals. The kits are born blind and with closed eyes. They suckle on her teats, and sleep a good deal. After two weeks or so, their eyes open. At that stage they have blue eyes, but not the best sight. A bit later, the best developed kit will totter out of the nest. The others follow. They will soon recognise you as a living thing: that is a great moment. At first, they go back to the nest to feed and sleep. After some more days they leave the nest for good, but still they may sleep together in a 'kitten heap'.
+
+The queen, meanwhile, has left the nest from time to time, to hunt, feed, and also to urinate and defecate. Unlike the tom, she covers up her business to hide her scent. Very soon, the kits will urinate anywhere they please unless one trains them. This is done after they are weaned, when they are ready for some kitten food. Here is how to do it:
+
+What you have done is exactly what the queen would do in the wild. You have triggered a reflex which all kittens have. The thing is, the tray is artificial, and your queen may do her business outside. But at least when young, kittens need a tray. Your next job is to call the vet, who will tell you when to bring the kits for their vaccination.[25]
+
+Kittens play endlessly. It is how they do their learning. They will play their favourite games, such as 'hide and pounce', with almost anyone or anything. Soft balls on strings are a standard toy; so is a scratching post.
+
+With cats there is a limit to how far you can train them. They are at least as intelligent as dogs, but they are not pack animals. They like to do their own thing, and owners do best by fitting in. Never hit a cat: if you do, the relationship will never be the same again. If you really want to dissuade them, try hissing. Also, a noise they do not like will make them leave. It has been said that no one really owns a cat; many cats collect extra owners, and may change house if they do not like the treatment...[26]
+
+If your kitten was born in your home do not let it out of the house until it is two to three months old. If you have the mother, she will look after the kit. But if you have got the kit from a vet or dealer, keep it in for several weeks. When it does go out, you need to watch over it. The main problem is that it may easily get lost. In time, the kit will learn every inch of the house and garden. Then, you can happily let it roam.[27]
+
+Cats are very clean animals. They groom themselves by licking their fur. The cat's tongue can act as a hairbrush and can clean and untangle a cat's fur. Still, owners may buy grooming products to help the cat take care of itself. After licking their fur, cats sometimes get hairballs.[28] A hairball is a small amount of fur that is vomited up by animals when it becomes too big. This is quite normal. Owners brush their cats to try to prevent a lot of hairballs.
+
+Many house cats eat food which their owners give them. This food is manufactured, and designed to contain the right nutrients for cats. There are many different types of cat food. These come in many different flavors and costs are often very small.
+
+There is moist canned food and also dry cat food which comes in different sized cans or bags and formulas. There are kitten formulas, cat formulas, health formulas, formulas for reducing a cat's weight, and many others. These can even be organic (made from all natural ingredients), and have vegetables, salmon, tuna, meat, and milk essence. Yet, it's best if the food is at least 95% meat, as that's a cat's diet. Also, make sure the cat is not fed a daily diet of dog food. It could make the cat blind, as it has no taurine, which is a nutrient for the eyes.
+
+Cats do get diseases, and prevention is better than cure. It is most important to get a young cat vaccinated against some of the most deadly diseases. If a cat gets a disease, a veterinarian (animal doctor) can offer help. Some cats, depending on breed, gender, age, and general health, may be more susceptible to disease than others.  Regular visits to a vet can keep a cat alive many extra years by catching sickness and disease early.[29]
+
+Cats that roam outside will get fleas at some time. Cat fleas will not live on people, but fleas will not hesitate to bite anyone nearby. Owners may choose to buy anti-flea collars, but any areas where the cat normally sleeps need to be cleaned up. A vet or local pet-shop may offer advice about fleas. It is recommended that people quickly take action when a cat gets fleas because fleas can make cats uncomfortable.
+
+House cats can become overweight through lack of exercise and over-feeding. When they get spayed or neutered ("fixed"), they tend to exercise less. Spaying is done for queens, and neutering is done for toms. It is important to fix cats, and here are some reasons. First of all, if a female cat has kittens, they will need homes. Finding homes for kittens is often quite difficult. If a tom is not fixed, it develops a disgusting smell. Breeders who have entire toms keep them in a special hut outside the house, for that reason. Fixing also helps to avoid over-population. Over-population means that there are too many cats, and some will be put to sleep (put down) in animal pounds (animal shelters).
+
+It is a good idea to adopt a cat from a vet or an animal shelter. The vet, shelter or RSPCA will make sure they are healthy and spayed.[30][31]
+
+Kittens are sometimes born with defects. People who receive cats as gifts are recommended to get it examined for its health. Some birth defects, like heart problems, require urgent vet attention. Others are harmless, like polydactyly. Polydactyly means many digits, or many "fingers" from poly (many) and dactyl (digit). Sometimes, there is a mutation (change) in cat families. Most cats have only four to five toes per paw, depending on whether it is the front or back paw. These mutated cats have six, seven, and in rare cases even more. All of these cats are called polydactyl cats. They can also be called Hemingway cats because author Ernest Hemingway owned some of these cats.
+

ensimple/1006.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,70 @@
+
+
+Cats, also called domestic cats (Felis catus), are small, carnivorous (meat-eating) mammals, of the family Felidae.[3][4]  Domestic cats are often called house cats when kept as indoor pets.[5] Cats have been domesticated (tamed) for nearly 10,000 years.[6] There are also farm cats, which are kept on farms to keep rodents away; and feral cats, which are domestic cats that live away from humans.[7] They are one of the most popular pets in the world. They are kept by humans for hunting rodents and companionship. There are about 60 breeds of cat.[8]
+
+A cat is sometimes called a kitty. A young cat is called a kitten. A female cat that has not had its sex organs removed is called a queen. A male cat that has not had its sex organs removed is called a tom.
+
+Domestic cats are found in shorthair, longhair, and hairless breeds. Cats which are not specific breeds can be referred to as 'domestic shorthair' (DSH) or 'domestic longhair' (DLH).
+
+The word 'cat' is also used for other felines. Felines are usually called either big cats or small cats.  The big, wild cats are well known: lions, tigers, leopards, jaguars, pumas, and cheetahs. There are small, wild cats in most parts of the world, such as the lynx in northern Europe.  The big cats and wild cats are not tame, and can be very dangerous.
+
+In the past, most notably in Egypt, people kept domestic cats because they hunted and ate mice and rats. Today, people often keep cats as pets. There are also domestic cats which live without being cared for by people. These kinds of cats are called "feral cats".
+
+The oldest evidence of cats kept as pets is from the Mediterranean island of Cyprus, around 7500 BC. Ancient Egyptians worshipped cats as gods, and often mummified them so they could be with their owners "for all of eternity".
+
+Today, special food for cats is widely available in the developed countries. Proper feeding will help a cat live longer compared to hunting or being fed table scraps. Not correctly feeding a cat can lead to problems (see below for health concerns).
+
+Cats cannot taste sweet foods (with sugar) because of a mutation (change) in their ancestors which removed the ability to taste sweet things.
+
+Cats have anatomy similar to the other members of the genus Felis. The genus has extra lumbar (lower back) and thoracic (chest) vertebrae. This helps to explain the cat's spinal mobility and flexibility. Unlike human arms, cat forelimbs are attached to the shoulder by free-floating clavicle bones. These allow cats to pass their body through any space into which they can fit their heads.[9]
+
+The cat skull is unusual among mammals in having very large eye sockets and a powerful and specialized jaw.[10]:35 Compared to other felines, domestic cats have narrowly spaced canine teeth: this is an adaptation to their preferred prey of small rodents.[11] Cats, like dogs, walk directly on their toes, with the bones of their feet making up the lower part of the visible leg.[12]
+
+Cats walk very precisely. Unlike most mammals, when cats walk, they use a "pacing" gait (walking style); that is, they move the two legs on one side of the body before the legs on the other side. This trait is shared with camels and giraffes. As a walk speeds up into a trot, a cat's gait will change to be a "diagonal" gait, similar to that of most other mammals: the diagonally opposite hind and forelegs will move at the same time.[13] Most cats have five claws on their front paws, and four on their rear paws.[14] On the inside of the front paws there is something which looks like a sixth "finger". This special feature on the inside of the wrists is the carpal pad. The carpal pad is also found on other cats and on dogs.
+
+Cats are active carnivores, meaning that in the wild they hunt live prey. Their main prey is small mammals (like mice). They will also stalk, and sometimes kill and eat, birds. Cats eat a wide variety of prey, including insects such as flies and grasshoppers.[15] Their main method of hunting is stalk and pounce. While dogs have great stamina and will chase prey over long distances, cats are extremely fast, but only over short distances. The basic cat coat colouring, tabby (see top photo), gives it good camouflage in grass and woodland. The cat creeps towards a chosen victim, keeping its body flat and near to the ground so that it cannot be seen easily, until it is close enough for a rapid dash or pounce. Cats, especially kittens, practice these instinctive behaviours in play with each other or on small toys. Cats can fish. They use a flip-up movement of a front paw which, when successful, flips the fish out of water and over the cat's shoulders onto the grass. Dutch research showed this to be an innate (inherited) behaviour pattern which developed early and without maternal teaching.[16]
+
+Cats are quiet and well-behaved animals, making them popular pets. Young kittens are playful. They can easily entertain themselves with a variety of store-bought or homemade toys. House cats have also been known to teach themselves to use lever-type doorknobs and toilet handles.[17]
+
+Cats are fairly independent animals. They can look after themselves and do not need as much attention as dogs do.
+
+Cats use many different sounds for communication, including meowing, purring, trilling, hissing, growling, squeaking, chirping, clicking and grunting.[18]
+
+Body posture is also important. The whole shape of the body changes when a cat is relaxed, or when it is alert. Also, the position of their ears and tail are used for communication, as well as their usual functions.
+
+These ways of communication are very important. They are used between a mother cat and her kittens. They are also used between male and female cats; and between cats and other species, such as dogs. A mother cat protecting her kittens will fight off the largest dog. She gives good warning with a frightening display, hissing furiously, showing her claws, arching her back, and making her hair stand on end. If that fails, she attacks the dog's face with her claws. It has been said that no dog ever tries such an attack a second time.[19]
+
+Cats only mate when the queen is "in heat". Heat periods occur about every two weeks and last 4 to 6 days.[20] Mating in cats is a spectacular event. Several toms may be attracted to a queen in heat. The males will fight over her, and the victor wins the right to mate. At first, the female will reject the male, but eventually the female will allow the male to mate. The female will utter a loud yowl as the male pulls out of her. This is because a male cat's penis has a band of about 120-150 backwards-pointing spines, which are about one millimeter long;[21] upon withdrawal of the penis, the spines rake the walls of the female's vagina, which is a trigger[22] for ovulation. After mating, the female will wash her vulva thoroughly. If a male attempts to breed with her at this point, the female will attack him. After about 20 to 30 minutes. once the female is finished grooming, the cycle will repeat.[20]
+
+Because ovulation is not always triggered, females may not get pregnant by the first tom which mates with them.[23] A queen may mate with more than one tom when she is in heat, and different kittens in a litter may have different fathers.[20] The cycle ceases when the queen is pregnant.
+
+The gestation period for cats is about two months, with an average length of 66 days.[24] The size of a litter is usually three to five kittens. Kittens are weaned at between six and seven weeks, and cats normally reach sexual maturity at 5–10 months (females) and to 5–7 months (males).[20] Females can have two to three litters per year, so might produce up to 150 kittens in their breeding life of about ten years.[20]
+
+Pregnant queens deliver their litters by themselves, guided by instinct. The queen finds the safest place she can. Then she will clean it thoroughly, with her tongue, if necessary. Here she will quietly give birth. She licks the newborn kits clean. In the wild, leaving a scent is risking a dangerous encounter with other animals. The kits are born blind and with closed eyes. They suckle on her teats, and sleep a good deal. After two weeks or so, their eyes open. At that stage they have blue eyes, but not the best sight. A bit later, the best developed kit will totter out of the nest. The others follow. They will soon recognise you as a living thing: that is a great moment. At first, they go back to the nest to feed and sleep. After some more days they leave the nest for good, but still they may sleep together in a 'kitten heap'.
+
+The queen, meanwhile, has left the nest from time to time, to hunt, feed, and also to urinate and defecate. Unlike the tom, she covers up her business to hide her scent. Very soon, the kits will urinate anywhere they please unless one trains them. This is done after they are weaned, when they are ready for some kitten food. Here is how to do it:
+
+What you have done is exactly what the queen would do in the wild. You have triggered a reflex which all kittens have. The thing is, the tray is artificial, and your queen may do her business outside. But at least when young, kittens need a tray. Your next job is to call the vet, who will tell you when to bring the kits for their vaccination.[25]
+
+Kittens play endlessly. It is how they do their learning. They will play their favourite games, such as 'hide and pounce', with almost anyone or anything. Soft balls on strings are a standard toy; so is a scratching post.
+
+With cats there is a limit to how far you can train them. They are at least as intelligent as dogs, but they are not pack animals. They like to do their own thing, and owners do best by fitting in. Never hit a cat: if you do, the relationship will never be the same again. If you really want to dissuade them, try hissing. Also, a noise they do not like will make them leave. It has been said that no one really owns a cat; many cats collect extra owners, and may change house if they do not like the treatment...[26]
+
+If your kitten was born in your home do not let it out of the house until it is two to three months old. If you have the mother, she will look after the kit. But if you have got the kit from a vet or dealer, keep it in for several weeks. When it does go out, you need to watch over it. The main problem is that it may easily get lost. In time, the kit will learn every inch of the house and garden. Then, you can happily let it roam.[27]
+
+Cats are very clean animals. They groom themselves by licking their fur. The cat's tongue can act as a hairbrush and can clean and untangle a cat's fur. Still, owners may buy grooming products to help the cat take care of itself. After licking their fur, cats sometimes get hairballs.[28] A hairball is a small amount of fur that is vomited up by animals when it becomes too big. This is quite normal. Owners brush their cats to try to prevent a lot of hairballs.
+
+Many house cats eat food which their owners give them. This food is manufactured, and designed to contain the right nutrients for cats. There are many different types of cat food. These come in many different flavors and costs are often very small.
+
+There is moist canned food and also dry cat food which comes in different sized cans or bags and formulas. There are kitten formulas, cat formulas, health formulas, formulas for reducing a cat's weight, and many others. These can even be organic (made from all natural ingredients), and have vegetables, salmon, tuna, meat, and milk essence. Yet, it's best if the food is at least 95% meat, as that's a cat's diet. Also, make sure the cat is not fed a daily diet of dog food. It could make the cat blind, as it has no taurine, which is a nutrient for the eyes.
+
+Cats do get diseases, and prevention is better than cure. It is most important to get a young cat vaccinated against some of the most deadly diseases. If a cat gets a disease, a veterinarian (animal doctor) can offer help. Some cats, depending on breed, gender, age, and general health, may be more susceptible to disease than others.  Regular visits to a vet can keep a cat alive many extra years by catching sickness and disease early.[29]
+
+Cats that roam outside will get fleas at some time. Cat fleas will not live on people, but fleas will not hesitate to bite anyone nearby. Owners may choose to buy anti-flea collars, but any areas where the cat normally sleeps need to be cleaned up. A vet or local pet-shop may offer advice about fleas. It is recommended that people quickly take action when a cat gets fleas because fleas can make cats uncomfortable.
+
+House cats can become overweight through lack of exercise and over-feeding. When they get spayed or neutered ("fixed"), they tend to exercise less. Spaying is done for queens, and neutering is done for toms. It is important to fix cats, and here are some reasons. First of all, if a female cat has kittens, they will need homes. Finding homes for kittens is often quite difficult. If a tom is not fixed, it develops a disgusting smell. Breeders who have entire toms keep them in a special hut outside the house, for that reason. Fixing also helps to avoid over-population. Over-population means that there are too many cats, and some will be put to sleep (put down) in animal pounds (animal shelters).
+
+It is a good idea to adopt a cat from a vet or an animal shelter. The vet, shelter or RSPCA will make sure they are healthy and spayed.[30][31]
+
+Kittens are sometimes born with defects. People who receive cats as gifts are recommended to get it examined for its health. Some birth defects, like heart problems, require urgent vet attention. Others are harmless, like polydactyly. Polydactyly means many digits, or many "fingers" from poly (many) and dactyl (digit). Sometimes, there is a mutation (change) in cat families. Most cats have only four to five toes per paw, depending on whether it is the front or back paw. These mutated cats have six, seven, and in rare cases even more. All of these cats are called polydactyl cats. They can also be called Hemingway cats because author Ernest Hemingway owned some of these cats.
+

ensimple/1007.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+The Château Frontenac is a hotel in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. It is operated as Fairmont Le Château Frontenac. Château Frontenac sits at an elevation of 54 m (177 ft).[1] It was made a National Historic Site of Canada in 1980.[2]

ensimple/1008.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,48 @@
+The Château de Montsoreau, or simply Montsoreau, is a residential castle in Montsoreau, France. It is the only château of the Loire Valley to have been built in the Loire riverbed.
+
+Philippe Méaille opened the Château de Montsoreau-Museum of Contemporary Art in 2016.[1] Nowadays, The chateau hold the world's largest collection of Art & Language works.[2][3]
+
+The chateau has been built on the top of the "mount Soreau". This rocky promontory gave its name to the village.[4] On the top of that mount was built a roman temple, a fortress of the counts of Anjou, and a chateau in the Renaissance architectural style.
+In English one often speaks of the chateau de Montsoreau or Montsoreau. The chateau de Montsoreau was the first of the chateaux of the Loire Valley to be built in the Renaissance architectural style. When the chateau was built, Montsoreau was already a historical village, home of a royal fortified castle. From 1450, when King Charles VII and King Louis XII moved to Chinon and Tours, the Loire Valley became the centre of power of the ancien régime.
+
+The first fortified castle was built by Odo the First count of Blois in 990. In 1001, it was taken by the count of Anjou, Fulk Nerra (Fulk the Black), one of the greatest builders of the middle age,  who gave it to Gautier I of Montsoreau. Gautier I belonged to one of the most pre-eminent families of Anjou. Thus, the Castrum Monsorelli became one of the forty fortified castles in Anjou and one of the few to be given the title of lordship at the turn of year 1000. A town developed quickly near the castle. Fulk and Gautier modified the castle, and this one remained impregnable during more than 150 years. In 1152 and 1156 Henry II King of England, besieged and took twice, the castle of Montsoreau.
+In 1450, the end of the hundred years war was coming and Jean II de Chambes, the first councellor of Charles VII King of France, bought the castle to his brother in law. Associated with Jacques Coeur, He was one of the richest man of France. He was also France ambassador in Venice and Turkey. He destroyed the fortified castle and built the chateau de Montsoreau in the new architectural style of the Renaissance.
+
+The Château de Montsoreau is said to be the first french Renaissance Building. The building marks the transition from military architecture to palace or chateau. Large windows, numerous chimneys, and the great care that taken to sanitation problems, are some of the characteristics of this new style of building. The castle central dwelling was built directly in the Loire riverbed. Unusually, Two right-angled wings looking like square towers were built a few years later, at a time when round towers were usually built, this odd choice prefigures the corner pavilions of classical architecture. A spiral staircase probably existed before the current Renaissance staircase.
+
+In François Rabelais' Pantagruel, Gargantua rewards Ithybole with Montsoreau, after his victory over Picrochole, the king who attacks the kingdom of Grandgousier.
+
+In 1832, Joseph Mallord William Turner made an aquarelle depicting the chateau of Montsoreau with the setting of the confluence of the Vienne and the Loire and the collegiate church of Candes-Saint-Martin.
+
+The Château de Montsoreau was immortalised by Alexandre Dumas in La Dame de Monsoreau, a novel written between 1845 and 1846. This novel takes as a backdrop the Château de Montsoreau and is part of Alexandre Dumas' trilogy on European wars of religion, between La Reine Margot and Les Quarante-cinqs.
+
+At the end of nineteenth century, Montsoreau was ruined. Auguste Rodin, passionate about architecture, unexpectedly made a drawing of the chateau as it was when it was built.
+
+The Château de Montsoreau-Museum of Contemporary Art, situated in the Loire valley, is a private museum open to the public. The project was initiated in November 2014, by Philippe Méaille and was inaugurated the 8 April 2016. The permanent collection, gathered over the past 25 years by Philippe Méaille,[5] is not only intended to be exhibited at the Château de Montsoreau, but also to be lent to other institutions. His collection is the world's largest collection of works by the radical conceptualists Art & Language.[6] This art movement, at the origin of what is now called conceptual art is still active and currently represented by Michael Baldwin and Mel Ramsden.
+
+The chateau de Montsoreau is the only chateau of the Loire Valley built in the Loire riverbed.
+
+Aerial view of the chateau and the Loire river.
+
+Gardens paying tribute to Myriam Rothschild
+
+Chateau de Montsoreau-Museum of Contemporary Art.
+
+East wing of the chateau de Montsoreau.
+
+Architectural detail (east wing).
+
+Renaissance Staircase.
+
+Roof dormer.
+
+Roof dormer and staircase detail.
+
+West wing.
+
+Sunset (blue hour) on the Loire. View from the terrace.
+
+Pink sunset on the Loire.
+
+15 August-Sky Lanterns event.
+

ensimple/1009.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+The Château de Versailles, or simply Versailles, is a royal castle in Versailles, France.
+
+In English one often speaks of the Palace of Versailles. When the castle was built, Versailles was a country village, but it is now a suburb of Paris.
+
+From 1682, when King Louis XIV moved from Paris and lived in this palace, until the royal family was forced to return to the capital in 1789, the Court of Versailles was the centre of power in the Ancien Régime. Versailles is therefore famous not only as a building, but as a symbol of absolute monarchy.
+
+
+

ensimple/101.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,15 @@
+The AK-47 is a Russian assault rifle first used in 1949. It and an updated version called the AKM were used by the Soviet Union's military (which was called the Soviet Army). It was later replaced by the AK-74.
+
+The AK-47 was designed in 1947 by Mikhail Kalashnikov.[8]
+
+The AK-47 quickly became famous and spread all around the world because it was simple to fire, clean and maintain, and also because of its reliability, meaning that it can be fired for a long time without jamming. The AK-47 and its successors continue to be used by many of the world's armies. Many terrorist and insurgent groups also use the AK-47. It is a cheap, reliable, and easy-to-use weapon. The AK-47 was also available with a folding stock, the AKS-47, and a shortened version with the AKS74 folding stock, the AKMSU (used by armoured vehicle crews), although this was soon replaced by the AKS74U, which fires the 5.45 cartridge of the AK-74. There was also a light machine gun variant with a longer barrel and different shaped stock called the RPK.
+
+The Russian military liked the AK's design so much that it was even used to design other types of weapons as well, including the Dragunov sniper rifle and the Saiga-12 semi-automatic shotgun.
+
+The AK-47 uses gas-operated reloading.  When the bullet is moved down the barrel, a little bit of the gas behind the bullet is made to go up a small tube that pushes away the bolt.  The shooter does not have to reload by hand for every shot - the gun reloads by itself.  When you pull the trigger, the bullet in the chamber fires.  You then release and then pull the trigger again to fire another round.  When used this way, it is called a semi-automatic firearm.  A few AK-47's are made to be used only this way but most are fully automatic firearms.
+
+In the pro-communist states, the AK-47 became a symbol of the Third World revolution.
+
+They were used in the Cambodian Civil War and the Cambodian–Vietnamese War.[9] During the 1980s, the Soviet Union became the principal arms dealer to countries embargoed by Western nations. This included Middle Eastern nations such as Iran, Libya, and Syria, which welcomed Soviet Union backing against Israel. After the end of the Soviet Union (1989/90), AK-47s were sold openly and on the black market to any group with cash, including drug cartels and dictatorial states. More recently they have been seen in the hands of Islamic groups such as Al-Qaeda, ISIL, and the Taliban in Afghanistan and Iraq, and FARC, Ejército de Liberación Nacional guerrillas in Colombia.[10]
+
+The proliferation of this weapon is shown by more than just numbers. The AK-47 is included in the flag of Mozambique, an acknowledgment that the country gained its independence in large part through the effective use of their AK-47s.[11] It is also found in the coats of arms of East Timor and the revolution era Burkina Faso, as well as in the flags of Hezbollah, FARC-EP, the New People's Army in the Phillipines, TKP/TIKKO and other "Revolutionary Peoples" groups.

ensimple/1010.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+The Château de Versailles, or simply Versailles, is a royal castle in Versailles, France.
+
+In English one often speaks of the Palace of Versailles. When the castle was built, Versailles was a country village, but it is now a suburb of Paris.
+
+From 1682, when King Louis XIV moved from Paris and lived in this palace, until the royal family was forced to return to the capital in 1789, the Court of Versailles was the centre of power in the Ancien Régime. Versailles is therefore famous not only as a building, but as a symbol of absolute monarchy.
+
+
+

ensimple/1011.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+The Château de Versailles, or simply Versailles, is a royal castle in Versailles, France.
+
+In English one often speaks of the Palace of Versailles. When the castle was built, Versailles was a country village, but it is now a suburb of Paris.
+
+From 1682, when King Louis XIV moved from Paris and lived in this palace, until the royal family was forced to return to the capital in 1789, the Court of Versailles was the centre of power in the Ancien Régime. Versailles is therefore famous not only as a building, but as a symbol of absolute monarchy.
+
+
+

ensimple/1012.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+The Château de Versailles, or simply Versailles, is a royal castle in Versailles, France.
+
+In English one often speaks of the Palace of Versailles. When the castle was built, Versailles was a country village, but it is now a suburb of Paris.
+
+From 1682, when King Louis XIV moved from Paris and lived in this palace, until the royal family was forced to return to the capital in 1789, the Court of Versailles was the centre of power in the Ancien Régime. Versailles is therefore famous not only as a building, but as a symbol of absolute monarchy.
+
+
+

ensimple/1013.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+Windsor Castle is the largest inhabited castle in the world. It is in Windsor, Berkshire, England. Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom lives there for part of the year. The castle was built in the 11th century by William the Conqueror as a motte-and-bailey castle for the protection of England; it has been expanded and rebuilt many times. It was a military headquarters during the English Civil War. In 1992, there was a fire at the castle.
+
+Windsor Castle is near the River Thames.

ensimple/1014.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,63 @@
+Castles are medieval buildings which were defensive homes for powerful people. They could be made from wood, stone, or brick, and some were used for hundreds of years. Thousands of castles were built across Europe, the Middle East and Japan with different styles of design. Today, most castles are ruins and many are popular tourist attractions.
+
+In England and Wales castles were first employed by the invading Normans led by Duke William in 1066.  They provided a base for troops to control the surrounding area, and over time helped the owner of the castle administer their land.  Castles were designed to be imposing: their massive defenses deterred attackers and showed the owner's strength.
+
+A few troops in a castle could defend themselves against a much larger army.  The most common method for taking a castle would be to besiege or storm it.  Each had problems.  Storming a castle would kill many of the attackers, but a siege would take a long time.  Both methods sometimes failed.
+
+The first castles were built in the 9th century and were built up to the 16th century.  A castle was both a home for someone important like a king or aristocrat, and a fort.  Castles were designed to keep people out and show how powerful the people inside were.  They were sometimes used in war, with many famous sieges like the siege of Kenilworth which lasted for six months.
+
+Castles could look very strong, but sometimes the defences were mostly for show. The moat around Bodiam Castle is not very deep and could be drained by an attacking army, so was not very practical as a defence. But it made the castle look very impressive, and look bigger than it really is. If the owner of a castle rebelled against their ruler they might be punished by having their castle demolished, known as slighting.
+
+The dining hall in Malbork Castle (Poland). The castle had a large garrison of knights, so needed lots of space for them to eat.
+
+A 15th-century drawing of the end of a siege. Troops are storming the weakened castle.
+
+Bodiam Castle (England) was built around 1385.
+
+A reconstruction of Holt Castle (Wales), as it was in 1495. Archaeologists, historians, and artists work together on reconstructions like this to imagine how castles looked in the past.
+
+Castles were built in Europe and the Middle East, with similar buildings developing separately in Japan in the 15th century. Castles were usually built from either wood or stone, and sometimes brick. Some castles started off as wooden, and were then rebuilt in stone which was more expensive and a stronger so that the castles could be bigger. They could be built on hills or low areas like the edge of towns or at river crossings. When thinking about castles, people often think of ones on high hills. Will there are some castles which make dramatic use of the landscape and are very visible because of this, there were a lot of factors in choosing where to build castles.[1] For example, many castles were built along the Rhine River so they could stop people using the river without permission.
+
+Depending on the exact definition, the number of castles varies and more castles are still being discovered. The numbers below are rough, and it is difficult to find guesses for some countries like Italy and Spain though they have many castles. Imitation castles have been built in the 19th and 20th century, like Neuschwanstein or some places in the United States but these are not really castles because they were not meant to be defensive.
+
+The Alhambra (Spain) is a World Heritage Site
+
+Krak des Chevaliers (Syria) was built by crusaders trying to conquer the Middle East
+
+Himeji Castle (Japan) is also a World Heritage Site
+
+Some castles like Château de Montségur (France) were built very high up. This made them very visible and difficult to attack.
+
+The powerful people who built castles also lived in them with their families. They would have servants and a group of people to make sure the castle worked: people fetching water, cooking,  clearing the stables, looking after animals, cooking, lighting fires, and checking who was coming into the castle. In peacetime, most castles only had a few soldiers who would guard the place.
+
+Today, most castles have bare stone walls inside but in the Middle Ages they looked very different. Important rooms had colourful tapestries hanging on the walls, and paintings on the ceiling. Other rooms like kitchens or cupboards had plain white walls. Fireplaces kept rooms warm, and candles were used for light at night or in dark rooms. Glass was used later in the Middle Ages, but windows had shutters to keep out the cold and the weather. Religion was an important of the Middle Ages, and castles usually had chapels so that the people who lived there could pray.
+
+The King's Bedroom at Dover Castle (England) has been decorated to show how it may have appeared in the 12th century.
+
+This fireplace at Beynac Castle (France) is delicately carved.
+
+The chapel at Angers Castle (France) where people in the castle could pray.
+
+A 14th-century drawing of people eating. Scenes like this would have taken place in castles.[7]
+
+Later in the Middle Ages, important people wanted more privacy and larger homes. It was easier to build new homes instead of trying to make the castles bigger, so some people moved out of castles into new homes. The use of gunpowder weapons also changed warfare and made castles less effective. Guns were introduced in the 14th century, and by the 15th and 16th centuries they were powerful enough to break castle walls. New types of fortification were invested, with shorter thicker walls, and using earth to absorb hits from cannonballs.
+
+Though cannons were powerful, castles were still used in war. In the 17th century, lots of castles were used in the English Civil War, though many of them had not been lived in for decades and needed repairs.
+
+As castles were built hundreds of years ago, most of them are ruins. Some are still lived in by wealthy families, or are still used by governments or armies. Because of this they might have changed and look different to old castles which were abandoned. Many castles have been turned into museums so the public can visit and learn about the past. Some castles are owned by the state, and others are owned by private people. Castles are expensive to run, so many are falling down. Every so often lightning strikes, flooding, or earthquakes damage castles.
+
+People have been interested in castle for centuries. Historians and archaeologists have searched old documents and dug into castles to find out more about them. Because of this, for some castles we know who owned them, when they were used, when bits were built, what people ate, and what kind of things happened at castles. But there are lots of places where we know very little, not even when they were built. This is because a lot of medieval documents do not survive.
+
+Some castle ruins have been rebuilt to look like they did originally.
+
+Castel Nuovo in Naples (Italy) was built in the 15th century and is now a museum.
+
+Šášovské castle (Slovakia) was built in the 13th century and is now a ruin.
+
+Prague Castle is used by the President of the Czech Republic.
+
+Diósgyőr Castle (Hungary) was rebuilt in the 2010s.
+
+Some terms you might find people using when they talk about castles:
+
+Books used

ensimple/1015.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,63 @@
+Castles are medieval buildings which were defensive homes for powerful people. They could be made from wood, stone, or brick, and some were used for hundreds of years. Thousands of castles were built across Europe, the Middle East and Japan with different styles of design. Today, most castles are ruins and many are popular tourist attractions.
+
+In England and Wales castles were first employed by the invading Normans led by Duke William in 1066.  They provided a base for troops to control the surrounding area, and over time helped the owner of the castle administer their land.  Castles were designed to be imposing: their massive defenses deterred attackers and showed the owner's strength.
+
+A few troops in a castle could defend themselves against a much larger army.  The most common method for taking a castle would be to besiege or storm it.  Each had problems.  Storming a castle would kill many of the attackers, but a siege would take a long time.  Both methods sometimes failed.
+
+The first castles were built in the 9th century and were built up to the 16th century.  A castle was both a home for someone important like a king or aristocrat, and a fort.  Castles were designed to keep people out and show how powerful the people inside were.  They were sometimes used in war, with many famous sieges like the siege of Kenilworth which lasted for six months.
+
+Castles could look very strong, but sometimes the defences were mostly for show. The moat around Bodiam Castle is not very deep and could be drained by an attacking army, so was not very practical as a defence. But it made the castle look very impressive, and look bigger than it really is. If the owner of a castle rebelled against their ruler they might be punished by having their castle demolished, known as slighting.
+
+The dining hall in Malbork Castle (Poland). The castle had a large garrison of knights, so needed lots of space for them to eat.
+
+A 15th-century drawing of the end of a siege. Troops are storming the weakened castle.
+
+Bodiam Castle (England) was built around 1385.
+
+A reconstruction of Holt Castle (Wales), as it was in 1495. Archaeologists, historians, and artists work together on reconstructions like this to imagine how castles looked in the past.
+
+Castles were built in Europe and the Middle East, with similar buildings developing separately in Japan in the 15th century. Castles were usually built from either wood or stone, and sometimes brick. Some castles started off as wooden, and were then rebuilt in stone which was more expensive and a stronger so that the castles could be bigger. They could be built on hills or low areas like the edge of towns or at river crossings. When thinking about castles, people often think of ones on high hills. Will there are some castles which make dramatic use of the landscape and are very visible because of this, there were a lot of factors in choosing where to build castles.[1] For example, many castles were built along the Rhine River so they could stop people using the river without permission.
+
+Depending on the exact definition, the number of castles varies and more castles are still being discovered. The numbers below are rough, and it is difficult to find guesses for some countries like Italy and Spain though they have many castles. Imitation castles have been built in the 19th and 20th century, like Neuschwanstein or some places in the United States but these are not really castles because they were not meant to be defensive.
+
+The Alhambra (Spain) is a World Heritage Site
+
+Krak des Chevaliers (Syria) was built by crusaders trying to conquer the Middle East
+
+Himeji Castle (Japan) is also a World Heritage Site
+
+Some castles like Château de Montségur (France) were built very high up. This made them very visible and difficult to attack.
+
+The powerful people who built castles also lived in them with their families. They would have servants and a group of people to make sure the castle worked: people fetching water, cooking,  clearing the stables, looking after animals, cooking, lighting fires, and checking who was coming into the castle. In peacetime, most castles only had a few soldiers who would guard the place.
+
+Today, most castles have bare stone walls inside but in the Middle Ages they looked very different. Important rooms had colourful tapestries hanging on the walls, and paintings on the ceiling. Other rooms like kitchens or cupboards had plain white walls. Fireplaces kept rooms warm, and candles were used for light at night or in dark rooms. Glass was used later in the Middle Ages, but windows had shutters to keep out the cold and the weather. Religion was an important of the Middle Ages, and castles usually had chapels so that the people who lived there could pray.
+
+The King's Bedroom at Dover Castle (England) has been decorated to show how it may have appeared in the 12th century.
+
+This fireplace at Beynac Castle (France) is delicately carved.
+
+The chapel at Angers Castle (France) where people in the castle could pray.
+
+A 14th-century drawing of people eating. Scenes like this would have taken place in castles.[7]
+
+Later in the Middle Ages, important people wanted more privacy and larger homes. It was easier to build new homes instead of trying to make the castles bigger, so some people moved out of castles into new homes. The use of gunpowder weapons also changed warfare and made castles less effective. Guns were introduced in the 14th century, and by the 15th and 16th centuries they were powerful enough to break castle walls. New types of fortification were invested, with shorter thicker walls, and using earth to absorb hits from cannonballs.
+
+Though cannons were powerful, castles were still used in war. In the 17th century, lots of castles were used in the English Civil War, though many of them had not been lived in for decades and needed repairs.
+
+As castles were built hundreds of years ago, most of them are ruins. Some are still lived in by wealthy families, or are still used by governments or armies. Because of this they might have changed and look different to old castles which were abandoned. Many castles have been turned into museums so the public can visit and learn about the past. Some castles are owned by the state, and others are owned by private people. Castles are expensive to run, so many are falling down. Every so often lightning strikes, flooding, or earthquakes damage castles.
+
+People have been interested in castle for centuries. Historians and archaeologists have searched old documents and dug into castles to find out more about them. Because of this, for some castles we know who owned them, when they were used, when bits were built, what people ate, and what kind of things happened at castles. But there are lots of places where we know very little, not even when they were built. This is because a lot of medieval documents do not survive.
+
+Some castle ruins have been rebuilt to look like they did originally.
+
+Castel Nuovo in Naples (Italy) was built in the 15th century and is now a museum.
+
+Šášovské castle (Slovakia) was built in the 13th century and is now a ruin.
+
+Prague Castle is used by the President of the Czech Republic.
+
+Diósgyőr Castle (Hungary) was rebuilt in the 2010s.
+
+Some terms you might find people using when they talk about castles:
+
+Books used

ensimple/1016.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,63 @@
+Castles are medieval buildings which were defensive homes for powerful people. They could be made from wood, stone, or brick, and some were used for hundreds of years. Thousands of castles were built across Europe, the Middle East and Japan with different styles of design. Today, most castles are ruins and many are popular tourist attractions.
+
+In England and Wales castles were first employed by the invading Normans led by Duke William in 1066.  They provided a base for troops to control the surrounding area, and over time helped the owner of the castle administer their land.  Castles were designed to be imposing: their massive defenses deterred attackers and showed the owner's strength.
+
+A few troops in a castle could defend themselves against a much larger army.  The most common method for taking a castle would be to besiege or storm it.  Each had problems.  Storming a castle would kill many of the attackers, but a siege would take a long time.  Both methods sometimes failed.
+
+The first castles were built in the 9th century and were built up to the 16th century.  A castle was both a home for someone important like a king or aristocrat, and a fort.  Castles were designed to keep people out and show how powerful the people inside were.  They were sometimes used in war, with many famous sieges like the siege of Kenilworth which lasted for six months.
+
+Castles could look very strong, but sometimes the defences were mostly for show. The moat around Bodiam Castle is not very deep and could be drained by an attacking army, so was not very practical as a defence. But it made the castle look very impressive, and look bigger than it really is. If the owner of a castle rebelled against their ruler they might be punished by having their castle demolished, known as slighting.
+
+The dining hall in Malbork Castle (Poland). The castle had a large garrison of knights, so needed lots of space for them to eat.
+
+A 15th-century drawing of the end of a siege. Troops are storming the weakened castle.
+
+Bodiam Castle (England) was built around 1385.
+
+A reconstruction of Holt Castle (Wales), as it was in 1495. Archaeologists, historians, and artists work together on reconstructions like this to imagine how castles looked in the past.
+
+Castles were built in Europe and the Middle East, with similar buildings developing separately in Japan in the 15th century. Castles were usually built from either wood or stone, and sometimes brick. Some castles started off as wooden, and were then rebuilt in stone which was more expensive and a stronger so that the castles could be bigger. They could be built on hills or low areas like the edge of towns or at river crossings. When thinking about castles, people often think of ones on high hills. Will there are some castles which make dramatic use of the landscape and are very visible because of this, there were a lot of factors in choosing where to build castles.[1] For example, many castles were built along the Rhine River so they could stop people using the river without permission.
+
+Depending on the exact definition, the number of castles varies and more castles are still being discovered. The numbers below are rough, and it is difficult to find guesses for some countries like Italy and Spain though they have many castles. Imitation castles have been built in the 19th and 20th century, like Neuschwanstein or some places in the United States but these are not really castles because they were not meant to be defensive.
+
+The Alhambra (Spain) is a World Heritage Site
+
+Krak des Chevaliers (Syria) was built by crusaders trying to conquer the Middle East
+
+Himeji Castle (Japan) is also a World Heritage Site
+
+Some castles like Château de Montségur (France) were built very high up. This made them very visible and difficult to attack.
+
+The powerful people who built castles also lived in them with their families. They would have servants and a group of people to make sure the castle worked: people fetching water, cooking,  clearing the stables, looking after animals, cooking, lighting fires, and checking who was coming into the castle. In peacetime, most castles only had a few soldiers who would guard the place.
+
+Today, most castles have bare stone walls inside but in the Middle Ages they looked very different. Important rooms had colourful tapestries hanging on the walls, and paintings on the ceiling. Other rooms like kitchens or cupboards had plain white walls. Fireplaces kept rooms warm, and candles were used for light at night or in dark rooms. Glass was used later in the Middle Ages, but windows had shutters to keep out the cold and the weather. Religion was an important of the Middle Ages, and castles usually had chapels so that the people who lived there could pray.
+
+The King's Bedroom at Dover Castle (England) has been decorated to show how it may have appeared in the 12th century.
+
+This fireplace at Beynac Castle (France) is delicately carved.
+
+The chapel at Angers Castle (France) where people in the castle could pray.
+
+A 14th-century drawing of people eating. Scenes like this would have taken place in castles.[7]
+
+Later in the Middle Ages, important people wanted more privacy and larger homes. It was easier to build new homes instead of trying to make the castles bigger, so some people moved out of castles into new homes. The use of gunpowder weapons also changed warfare and made castles less effective. Guns were introduced in the 14th century, and by the 15th and 16th centuries they were powerful enough to break castle walls. New types of fortification were invested, with shorter thicker walls, and using earth to absorb hits from cannonballs.
+
+Though cannons were powerful, castles were still used in war. In the 17th century, lots of castles were used in the English Civil War, though many of them had not been lived in for decades and needed repairs.
+
+As castles were built hundreds of years ago, most of them are ruins. Some are still lived in by wealthy families, or are still used by governments or armies. Because of this they might have changed and look different to old castles which were abandoned. Many castles have been turned into museums so the public can visit and learn about the past. Some castles are owned by the state, and others are owned by private people. Castles are expensive to run, so many are falling down. Every so often lightning strikes, flooding, or earthquakes damage castles.
+
+People have been interested in castle for centuries. Historians and archaeologists have searched old documents and dug into castles to find out more about them. Because of this, for some castles we know who owned them, when they were used, when bits were built, what people ate, and what kind of things happened at castles. But there are lots of places where we know very little, not even when they were built. This is because a lot of medieval documents do not survive.
+
+Some castle ruins have been rebuilt to look like they did originally.
+
+Castel Nuovo in Naples (Italy) was built in the 15th century and is now a museum.
+
+Šášovské castle (Slovakia) was built in the 13th century and is now a ruin.
+
+Prague Castle is used by the President of the Czech Republic.
+
+Diósgyőr Castle (Hungary) was rebuilt in the 2010s.
+
+Some terms you might find people using when they talk about castles:
+
+Books used

ensimple/1017.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+The Château Frontenac is a hotel in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. It is operated as Fairmont Le Château Frontenac. Château Frontenac sits at an elevation of 54 m (177 ft).[1] It was made a National Historic Site of Canada in 1980.[2]

ensimple/1018.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+The Château de Versailles, or simply Versailles, is a royal castle in Versailles, France.
+
+In English one often speaks of the Palace of Versailles. When the castle was built, Versailles was a country village, but it is now a suburb of Paris.
+
+From 1682, when King Louis XIV moved from Paris and lived in this palace, until the royal family was forced to return to the capital in 1789, the Court of Versailles was the centre of power in the Ancien Régime. Versailles is therefore famous not only as a building, but as a symbol of absolute monarchy.
+
+
+

ensimple/1019.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,63 @@
+Castles are medieval buildings which were defensive homes for powerful people. They could be made from wood, stone, or brick, and some were used for hundreds of years. Thousands of castles were built across Europe, the Middle East and Japan with different styles of design. Today, most castles are ruins and many are popular tourist attractions.
+
+In England and Wales castles were first employed by the invading Normans led by Duke William in 1066.  They provided a base for troops to control the surrounding area, and over time helped the owner of the castle administer their land.  Castles were designed to be imposing: their massive defenses deterred attackers and showed the owner's strength.
+
+A few troops in a castle could defend themselves against a much larger army.  The most common method for taking a castle would be to besiege or storm it.  Each had problems.  Storming a castle would kill many of the attackers, but a siege would take a long time.  Both methods sometimes failed.
+
+The first castles were built in the 9th century and were built up to the 16th century.  A castle was both a home for someone important like a king or aristocrat, and a fort.  Castles were designed to keep people out and show how powerful the people inside were.  They were sometimes used in war, with many famous sieges like the siege of Kenilworth which lasted for six months.
+
+Castles could look very strong, but sometimes the defences were mostly for show. The moat around Bodiam Castle is not very deep and could be drained by an attacking army, so was not very practical as a defence. But it made the castle look very impressive, and look bigger than it really is. If the owner of a castle rebelled against their ruler they might be punished by having their castle demolished, known as slighting.
+
+The dining hall in Malbork Castle (Poland). The castle had a large garrison of knights, so needed lots of space for them to eat.
+
+A 15th-century drawing of the end of a siege. Troops are storming the weakened castle.
+
+Bodiam Castle (England) was built around 1385.
+
+A reconstruction of Holt Castle (Wales), as it was in 1495. Archaeologists, historians, and artists work together on reconstructions like this to imagine how castles looked in the past.
+
+Castles were built in Europe and the Middle East, with similar buildings developing separately in Japan in the 15th century. Castles were usually built from either wood or stone, and sometimes brick. Some castles started off as wooden, and were then rebuilt in stone which was more expensive and a stronger so that the castles could be bigger. They could be built on hills or low areas like the edge of towns or at river crossings. When thinking about castles, people often think of ones on high hills. Will there are some castles which make dramatic use of the landscape and are very visible because of this, there were a lot of factors in choosing where to build castles.[1] For example, many castles were built along the Rhine River so they could stop people using the river without permission.
+
+Depending on the exact definition, the number of castles varies and more castles are still being discovered. The numbers below are rough, and it is difficult to find guesses for some countries like Italy and Spain though they have many castles. Imitation castles have been built in the 19th and 20th century, like Neuschwanstein or some places in the United States but these are not really castles because they were not meant to be defensive.
+
+The Alhambra (Spain) is a World Heritage Site
+
+Krak des Chevaliers (Syria) was built by crusaders trying to conquer the Middle East
+
+Himeji Castle (Japan) is also a World Heritage Site
+
+Some castles like Château de Montségur (France) were built very high up. This made them very visible and difficult to attack.
+
+The powerful people who built castles also lived in them with their families. They would have servants and a group of people to make sure the castle worked: people fetching water, cooking,  clearing the stables, looking after animals, cooking, lighting fires, and checking who was coming into the castle. In peacetime, most castles only had a few soldiers who would guard the place.
+
+Today, most castles have bare stone walls inside but in the Middle Ages they looked very different. Important rooms had colourful tapestries hanging on the walls, and paintings on the ceiling. Other rooms like kitchens or cupboards had plain white walls. Fireplaces kept rooms warm, and candles were used for light at night or in dark rooms. Glass was used later in the Middle Ages, but windows had shutters to keep out the cold and the weather. Religion was an important of the Middle Ages, and castles usually had chapels so that the people who lived there could pray.
+
+The King's Bedroom at Dover Castle (England) has been decorated to show how it may have appeared in the 12th century.
+
+This fireplace at Beynac Castle (France) is delicately carved.
+
+The chapel at Angers Castle (France) where people in the castle could pray.
+
+A 14th-century drawing of people eating. Scenes like this would have taken place in castles.[7]
+
+Later in the Middle Ages, important people wanted more privacy and larger homes. It was easier to build new homes instead of trying to make the castles bigger, so some people moved out of castles into new homes. The use of gunpowder weapons also changed warfare and made castles less effective. Guns were introduced in the 14th century, and by the 15th and 16th centuries they were powerful enough to break castle walls. New types of fortification were invested, with shorter thicker walls, and using earth to absorb hits from cannonballs.
+
+Though cannons were powerful, castles were still used in war. In the 17th century, lots of castles were used in the English Civil War, though many of them had not been lived in for decades and needed repairs.
+
+As castles were built hundreds of years ago, most of them are ruins. Some are still lived in by wealthy families, or are still used by governments or armies. Because of this they might have changed and look different to old castles which were abandoned. Many castles have been turned into museums so the public can visit and learn about the past. Some castles are owned by the state, and others are owned by private people. Castles are expensive to run, so many are falling down. Every so often lightning strikes, flooding, or earthquakes damage castles.
+
+People have been interested in castle for centuries. Historians and archaeologists have searched old documents and dug into castles to find out more about them. Because of this, for some castles we know who owned them, when they were used, when bits were built, what people ate, and what kind of things happened at castles. But there are lots of places where we know very little, not even when they were built. This is because a lot of medieval documents do not survive.
+
+Some castle ruins have been rebuilt to look like they did originally.
+
+Castel Nuovo in Naples (Italy) was built in the 15th century and is now a museum.
+
+Šášovské castle (Slovakia) was built in the 13th century and is now a ruin.
+
+Prague Castle is used by the President of the Czech Republic.
+
+Diósgyőr Castle (Hungary) was rebuilt in the 2010s.
+
+Some terms you might find people using when they talk about castles:
+
+Books used

ensimple/102.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,36 @@
+Emperor Akihito (明仁天皇, Akihito-tennō, born 23 December 1933) (known simply as Akihito) is the former emperor of Japan from 1989 to 2019, He was the 125th emperor of his line according to Japan's traditional order of succession.[1]  He is head of the Imperial House of Japan.
+
+Akihito became emperor after the death of his father in 1989, who was Emperor Shōwa. The current emperor's official reign name is Heisei (establishing peace).[2]
+
+The Japanese government announced in December 2017 that Akihito would abdicate on 30 April 2019.[3] He then did so in a brief ceremony on that date.[4]
+
+The emperor has many duties and responsibilities.  For example, he regularly
+
+As a personal interest, Akihito studies fish.[13]
+
+Akihito directly addressed his subjects in a television broadcast after the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.  This was the first time any emperor used television in this way.[14]
+
+Media related to Emperor Akihito at Wikimedia Commons
+
+HM The Emperor & HM The EmpressHIH The Princess Toshi
+HM The Emperor Emeritus & HM The Empress Emerita
+
+HIH The Prince Akishino & HIH The Princess AkishinoHIH Princess Mako of Akishino  •  HIH Princess Kako of Akishino  •  HIH Prince Hisahito of Akishino
+
+HIH The Prince Hitachi & HIH The Princess Hitachi
+
+HIH The Princess MikasaHIH Princess Tomohito of MikasaHIH Princess Akiko of Mikasa  •  HIH Princess Yōko of Mikasa
+
+Jimmu · Suizei · Annei · Itoku · Kōshō · Kōan · Kōrei · Kōgen · Kaika · Sujin · Suinin · Keikō · Seimu · Chūai · Jingū♀
+
+Genshō♀ · Shōmu · Kōken♀ · Junnin · Shōtoku♀ · Kōnin
+
+Tsuchimikado · Juntoku · Chūkyō · Go-Horikawa · Shijō · Go-Saga · Go-Fukakusa · Kameyama · Go-Uda · Fushimi · Go-Fushimi · Go-Nijō · Hanazono · Go-Daigo
+
+Kōgon · Kōmyō · Sukō · Go-Kōgon · Go-En'yū · Go-Komatsu
+
+Go-Murakami · Chōkei · Go-Kameyama · Go-Komatsu  · Shōkō · Go-Hanazono · Go-Tsuchimikado · Go-Kashiwabara · Go-Nara · Ōgimachi · Go-Yōzei
+
+Go-Mizunoo · Meishō♀ · Go-Kōmyō · Go-Sai · Reigen · Higashiyama · Nakamikado · Sakuramachi · Momozono · Go-Sakuramachi♀ · Go-Momozono · Kōkaku · Ninkō · Kōmei
+
+Meiji · Taishō · Shōwa · Akihito · Naruhito (current)

ensimple/1020.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,63 @@
+Castles are medieval buildings which were defensive homes for powerful people. They could be made from wood, stone, or brick, and some were used for hundreds of years. Thousands of castles were built across Europe, the Middle East and Japan with different styles of design. Today, most castles are ruins and many are popular tourist attractions.
+
+In England and Wales castles were first employed by the invading Normans led by Duke William in 1066.  They provided a base for troops to control the surrounding area, and over time helped the owner of the castle administer their land.  Castles were designed to be imposing: their massive defenses deterred attackers and showed the owner's strength.
+
+A few troops in a castle could defend themselves against a much larger army.  The most common method for taking a castle would be to besiege or storm it.  Each had problems.  Storming a castle would kill many of the attackers, but a siege would take a long time.  Both methods sometimes failed.
+
+The first castles were built in the 9th century and were built up to the 16th century.  A castle was both a home for someone important like a king or aristocrat, and a fort.  Castles were designed to keep people out and show how powerful the people inside were.  They were sometimes used in war, with many famous sieges like the siege of Kenilworth which lasted for six months.
+
+Castles could look very strong, but sometimes the defences were mostly for show. The moat around Bodiam Castle is not very deep and could be drained by an attacking army, so was not very practical as a defence. But it made the castle look very impressive, and look bigger than it really is. If the owner of a castle rebelled against their ruler they might be punished by having their castle demolished, known as slighting.
+
+The dining hall in Malbork Castle (Poland). The castle had a large garrison of knights, so needed lots of space for them to eat.
+
+A 15th-century drawing of the end of a siege. Troops are storming the weakened castle.
+
+Bodiam Castle (England) was built around 1385.
+
+A reconstruction of Holt Castle (Wales), as it was in 1495. Archaeologists, historians, and artists work together on reconstructions like this to imagine how castles looked in the past.
+
+Castles were built in Europe and the Middle East, with similar buildings developing separately in Japan in the 15th century. Castles were usually built from either wood or stone, and sometimes brick. Some castles started off as wooden, and were then rebuilt in stone which was more expensive and a stronger so that the castles could be bigger. They could be built on hills or low areas like the edge of towns or at river crossings. When thinking about castles, people often think of ones on high hills. Will there are some castles which make dramatic use of the landscape and are very visible because of this, there were a lot of factors in choosing where to build castles.[1] For example, many castles were built along the Rhine River so they could stop people using the river without permission.
+
+Depending on the exact definition, the number of castles varies and more castles are still being discovered. The numbers below are rough, and it is difficult to find guesses for some countries like Italy and Spain though they have many castles. Imitation castles have been built in the 19th and 20th century, like Neuschwanstein or some places in the United States but these are not really castles because they were not meant to be defensive.
+
+The Alhambra (Spain) is a World Heritage Site
+
+Krak des Chevaliers (Syria) was built by crusaders trying to conquer the Middle East
+
+Himeji Castle (Japan) is also a World Heritage Site
+
+Some castles like Château de Montségur (France) were built very high up. This made them very visible and difficult to attack.
+
+The powerful people who built castles also lived in them with their families. They would have servants and a group of people to make sure the castle worked: people fetching water, cooking,  clearing the stables, looking after animals, cooking, lighting fires, and checking who was coming into the castle. In peacetime, most castles only had a few soldiers who would guard the place.
+
+Today, most castles have bare stone walls inside but in the Middle Ages they looked very different. Important rooms had colourful tapestries hanging on the walls, and paintings on the ceiling. Other rooms like kitchens or cupboards had plain white walls. Fireplaces kept rooms warm, and candles were used for light at night or in dark rooms. Glass was used later in the Middle Ages, but windows had shutters to keep out the cold and the weather. Religion was an important of the Middle Ages, and castles usually had chapels so that the people who lived there could pray.
+
+The King's Bedroom at Dover Castle (England) has been decorated to show how it may have appeared in the 12th century.
+
+This fireplace at Beynac Castle (France) is delicately carved.
+
+The chapel at Angers Castle (France) where people in the castle could pray.
+
+A 14th-century drawing of people eating. Scenes like this would have taken place in castles.[7]
+
+Later in the Middle Ages, important people wanted more privacy and larger homes. It was easier to build new homes instead of trying to make the castles bigger, so some people moved out of castles into new homes. The use of gunpowder weapons also changed warfare and made castles less effective. Guns were introduced in the 14th century, and by the 15th and 16th centuries they were powerful enough to break castle walls. New types of fortification were invested, with shorter thicker walls, and using earth to absorb hits from cannonballs.
+
+Though cannons were powerful, castles were still used in war. In the 17th century, lots of castles were used in the English Civil War, though many of them had not been lived in for decades and needed repairs.
+
+As castles were built hundreds of years ago, most of them are ruins. Some are still lived in by wealthy families, or are still used by governments or armies. Because of this they might have changed and look different to old castles which were abandoned. Many castles have been turned into museums so the public can visit and learn about the past. Some castles are owned by the state, and others are owned by private people. Castles are expensive to run, so many are falling down. Every so often lightning strikes, flooding, or earthquakes damage castles.
+
+People have been interested in castle for centuries. Historians and archaeologists have searched old documents and dug into castles to find out more about them. Because of this, for some castles we know who owned them, when they were used, when bits were built, what people ate, and what kind of things happened at castles. But there are lots of places where we know very little, not even when they were built. This is because a lot of medieval documents do not survive.
+
+Some castle ruins have been rebuilt to look like they did originally.
+
+Castel Nuovo in Naples (Italy) was built in the 15th century and is now a museum.
+
+Šášovské castle (Slovakia) was built in the 13th century and is now a ruin.
+
+Prague Castle is used by the President of the Czech Republic.
+
+Diósgyőr Castle (Hungary) was rebuilt in the 2010s.
+
+Some terms you might find people using when they talk about castles:
+
+Books used

ensimple/1021.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,63 @@
+Castles are medieval buildings which were defensive homes for powerful people. They could be made from wood, stone, or brick, and some were used for hundreds of years. Thousands of castles were built across Europe, the Middle East and Japan with different styles of design. Today, most castles are ruins and many are popular tourist attractions.
+
+In England and Wales castles were first employed by the invading Normans led by Duke William in 1066.  They provided a base for troops to control the surrounding area, and over time helped the owner of the castle administer their land.  Castles were designed to be imposing: their massive defenses deterred attackers and showed the owner's strength.
+
+A few troops in a castle could defend themselves against a much larger army.  The most common method for taking a castle would be to besiege or storm it.  Each had problems.  Storming a castle would kill many of the attackers, but a siege would take a long time.  Both methods sometimes failed.
+
+The first castles were built in the 9th century and were built up to the 16th century.  A castle was both a home for someone important like a king or aristocrat, and a fort.  Castles were designed to keep people out and show how powerful the people inside were.  They were sometimes used in war, with many famous sieges like the siege of Kenilworth which lasted for six months.
+
+Castles could look very strong, but sometimes the defences were mostly for show. The moat around Bodiam Castle is not very deep and could be drained by an attacking army, so was not very practical as a defence. But it made the castle look very impressive, and look bigger than it really is. If the owner of a castle rebelled against their ruler they might be punished by having their castle demolished, known as slighting.
+
+The dining hall in Malbork Castle (Poland). The castle had a large garrison of knights, so needed lots of space for them to eat.
+
+A 15th-century drawing of the end of a siege. Troops are storming the weakened castle.
+
+Bodiam Castle (England) was built around 1385.
+
+A reconstruction of Holt Castle (Wales), as it was in 1495. Archaeologists, historians, and artists work together on reconstructions like this to imagine how castles looked in the past.
+
+Castles were built in Europe and the Middle East, with similar buildings developing separately in Japan in the 15th century. Castles were usually built from either wood or stone, and sometimes brick. Some castles started off as wooden, and were then rebuilt in stone which was more expensive and a stronger so that the castles could be bigger. They could be built on hills or low areas like the edge of towns or at river crossings. When thinking about castles, people often think of ones on high hills. Will there are some castles which make dramatic use of the landscape and are very visible because of this, there were a lot of factors in choosing where to build castles.[1] For example, many castles were built along the Rhine River so they could stop people using the river without permission.
+
+Depending on the exact definition, the number of castles varies and more castles are still being discovered. The numbers below are rough, and it is difficult to find guesses for some countries like Italy and Spain though they have many castles. Imitation castles have been built in the 19th and 20th century, like Neuschwanstein or some places in the United States but these are not really castles because they were not meant to be defensive.
+
+The Alhambra (Spain) is a World Heritage Site
+
+Krak des Chevaliers (Syria) was built by crusaders trying to conquer the Middle East
+
+Himeji Castle (Japan) is also a World Heritage Site
+
+Some castles like Château de Montségur (France) were built very high up. This made them very visible and difficult to attack.
+
+The powerful people who built castles also lived in them with their families. They would have servants and a group of people to make sure the castle worked: people fetching water, cooking,  clearing the stables, looking after animals, cooking, lighting fires, and checking who was coming into the castle. In peacetime, most castles only had a few soldiers who would guard the place.
+
+Today, most castles have bare stone walls inside but in the Middle Ages they looked very different. Important rooms had colourful tapestries hanging on the walls, and paintings on the ceiling. Other rooms like kitchens or cupboards had plain white walls. Fireplaces kept rooms warm, and candles were used for light at night or in dark rooms. Glass was used later in the Middle Ages, but windows had shutters to keep out the cold and the weather. Religion was an important of the Middle Ages, and castles usually had chapels so that the people who lived there could pray.
+
+The King's Bedroom at Dover Castle (England) has been decorated to show how it may have appeared in the 12th century.
+
+This fireplace at Beynac Castle (France) is delicately carved.
+
+The chapel at Angers Castle (France) where people in the castle could pray.
+
+A 14th-century drawing of people eating. Scenes like this would have taken place in castles.[7]
+
+Later in the Middle Ages, important people wanted more privacy and larger homes. It was easier to build new homes instead of trying to make the castles bigger, so some people moved out of castles into new homes. The use of gunpowder weapons also changed warfare and made castles less effective. Guns were introduced in the 14th century, and by the 15th and 16th centuries they were powerful enough to break castle walls. New types of fortification were invested, with shorter thicker walls, and using earth to absorb hits from cannonballs.
+
+Though cannons were powerful, castles were still used in war. In the 17th century, lots of castles were used in the English Civil War, though many of them had not been lived in for decades and needed repairs.
+
+As castles were built hundreds of years ago, most of them are ruins. Some are still lived in by wealthy families, or are still used by governments or armies. Because of this they might have changed and look different to old castles which were abandoned. Many castles have been turned into museums so the public can visit and learn about the past. Some castles are owned by the state, and others are owned by private people. Castles are expensive to run, so many are falling down. Every so often lightning strikes, flooding, or earthquakes damage castles.
+
+People have been interested in castle for centuries. Historians and archaeologists have searched old documents and dug into castles to find out more about them. Because of this, for some castles we know who owned them, when they were used, when bits were built, what people ate, and what kind of things happened at castles. But there are lots of places where we know very little, not even when they were built. This is because a lot of medieval documents do not survive.
+
+Some castle ruins have been rebuilt to look like they did originally.
+
+Castel Nuovo in Naples (Italy) was built in the 15th century and is now a museum.
+
+Šášovské castle (Slovakia) was built in the 13th century and is now a ruin.
+
+Prague Castle is used by the President of the Czech Republic.
+
+Diósgyőr Castle (Hungary) was rebuilt in the 2010s.
+
+Some terms you might find people using when they talk about castles:
+
+Books used

ensimple/1022.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,70 @@
+
+
+Cats, also called domestic cats (Felis catus), are small, carnivorous (meat-eating) mammals, of the family Felidae.[3][4]  Domestic cats are often called house cats when kept as indoor pets.[5] Cats have been domesticated (tamed) for nearly 10,000 years.[6] There are also farm cats, which are kept on farms to keep rodents away; and feral cats, which are domestic cats that live away from humans.[7] They are one of the most popular pets in the world. They are kept by humans for hunting rodents and companionship. There are about 60 breeds of cat.[8]
+
+A cat is sometimes called a kitty. A young cat is called a kitten. A female cat that has not had its sex organs removed is called a queen. A male cat that has not had its sex organs removed is called a tom.
+
+Domestic cats are found in shorthair, longhair, and hairless breeds. Cats which are not specific breeds can be referred to as 'domestic shorthair' (DSH) or 'domestic longhair' (DLH).
+
+The word 'cat' is also used for other felines. Felines are usually called either big cats or small cats.  The big, wild cats are well known: lions, tigers, leopards, jaguars, pumas, and cheetahs. There are small, wild cats in most parts of the world, such as the lynx in northern Europe.  The big cats and wild cats are not tame, and can be very dangerous.
+
+In the past, most notably in Egypt, people kept domestic cats because they hunted and ate mice and rats. Today, people often keep cats as pets. There are also domestic cats which live without being cared for by people. These kinds of cats are called "feral cats".
+
+The oldest evidence of cats kept as pets is from the Mediterranean island of Cyprus, around 7500 BC. Ancient Egyptians worshipped cats as gods, and often mummified them so they could be with their owners "for all of eternity".
+
+Today, special food for cats is widely available in the developed countries. Proper feeding will help a cat live longer compared to hunting or being fed table scraps. Not correctly feeding a cat can lead to problems (see below for health concerns).
+
+Cats cannot taste sweet foods (with sugar) because of a mutation (change) in their ancestors which removed the ability to taste sweet things.
+
+Cats have anatomy similar to the other members of the genus Felis. The genus has extra lumbar (lower back) and thoracic (chest) vertebrae. This helps to explain the cat's spinal mobility and flexibility. Unlike human arms, cat forelimbs are attached to the shoulder by free-floating clavicle bones. These allow cats to pass their body through any space into which they can fit their heads.[9]
+
+The cat skull is unusual among mammals in having very large eye sockets and a powerful and specialized jaw.[10]:35 Compared to other felines, domestic cats have narrowly spaced canine teeth: this is an adaptation to their preferred prey of small rodents.[11] Cats, like dogs, walk directly on their toes, with the bones of their feet making up the lower part of the visible leg.[12]
+
+Cats walk very precisely. Unlike most mammals, when cats walk, they use a "pacing" gait (walking style); that is, they move the two legs on one side of the body before the legs on the other side. This trait is shared with camels and giraffes. As a walk speeds up into a trot, a cat's gait will change to be a "diagonal" gait, similar to that of most other mammals: the diagonally opposite hind and forelegs will move at the same time.[13] Most cats have five claws on their front paws, and four on their rear paws.[14] On the inside of the front paws there is something which looks like a sixth "finger". This special feature on the inside of the wrists is the carpal pad. The carpal pad is also found on other cats and on dogs.
+
+Cats are active carnivores, meaning that in the wild they hunt live prey. Their main prey is small mammals (like mice). They will also stalk, and sometimes kill and eat, birds. Cats eat a wide variety of prey, including insects such as flies and grasshoppers.[15] Their main method of hunting is stalk and pounce. While dogs have great stamina and will chase prey over long distances, cats are extremely fast, but only over short distances. The basic cat coat colouring, tabby (see top photo), gives it good camouflage in grass and woodland. The cat creeps towards a chosen victim, keeping its body flat and near to the ground so that it cannot be seen easily, until it is close enough for a rapid dash or pounce. Cats, especially kittens, practice these instinctive behaviours in play with each other or on small toys. Cats can fish. They use a flip-up movement of a front paw which, when successful, flips the fish out of water and over the cat's shoulders onto the grass. Dutch research showed this to be an innate (inherited) behaviour pattern which developed early and without maternal teaching.[16]
+
+Cats are quiet and well-behaved animals, making them popular pets. Young kittens are playful. They can easily entertain themselves with a variety of store-bought or homemade toys. House cats have also been known to teach themselves to use lever-type doorknobs and toilet handles.[17]
+
+Cats are fairly independent animals. They can look after themselves and do not need as much attention as dogs do.
+
+Cats use many different sounds for communication, including meowing, purring, trilling, hissing, growling, squeaking, chirping, clicking and grunting.[18]
+
+Body posture is also important. The whole shape of the body changes when a cat is relaxed, or when it is alert. Also, the position of their ears and tail are used for communication, as well as their usual functions.
+
+These ways of communication are very important. They are used between a mother cat and her kittens. They are also used between male and female cats; and between cats and other species, such as dogs. A mother cat protecting her kittens will fight off the largest dog. She gives good warning with a frightening display, hissing furiously, showing her claws, arching her back, and making her hair stand on end. If that fails, she attacks the dog's face with her claws. It has been said that no dog ever tries such an attack a second time.[19]
+
+Cats only mate when the queen is "in heat". Heat periods occur about every two weeks and last 4 to 6 days.[20] Mating in cats is a spectacular event. Several toms may be attracted to a queen in heat. The males will fight over her, and the victor wins the right to mate. At first, the female will reject the male, but eventually the female will allow the male to mate. The female will utter a loud yowl as the male pulls out of her. This is because a male cat's penis has a band of about 120-150 backwards-pointing spines, which are about one millimeter long;[21] upon withdrawal of the penis, the spines rake the walls of the female's vagina, which is a trigger[22] for ovulation. After mating, the female will wash her vulva thoroughly. If a male attempts to breed with her at this point, the female will attack him. After about 20 to 30 minutes. once the female is finished grooming, the cycle will repeat.[20]
+
+Because ovulation is not always triggered, females may not get pregnant by the first tom which mates with them.[23] A queen may mate with more than one tom when she is in heat, and different kittens in a litter may have different fathers.[20] The cycle ceases when the queen is pregnant.
+
+The gestation period for cats is about two months, with an average length of 66 days.[24] The size of a litter is usually three to five kittens. Kittens are weaned at between six and seven weeks, and cats normally reach sexual maturity at 5–10 months (females) and to 5–7 months (males).[20] Females can have two to three litters per year, so might produce up to 150 kittens in their breeding life of about ten years.[20]
+
+Pregnant queens deliver their litters by themselves, guided by instinct. The queen finds the safest place she can. Then she will clean it thoroughly, with her tongue, if necessary. Here she will quietly give birth. She licks the newborn kits clean. In the wild, leaving a scent is risking a dangerous encounter with other animals. The kits are born blind and with closed eyes. They suckle on her teats, and sleep a good deal. After two weeks or so, their eyes open. At that stage they have blue eyes, but not the best sight. A bit later, the best developed kit will totter out of the nest. The others follow. They will soon recognise you as a living thing: that is a great moment. At first, they go back to the nest to feed and sleep. After some more days they leave the nest for good, but still they may sleep together in a 'kitten heap'.
+
+The queen, meanwhile, has left the nest from time to time, to hunt, feed, and also to urinate and defecate. Unlike the tom, she covers up her business to hide her scent. Very soon, the kits will urinate anywhere they please unless one trains them. This is done after they are weaned, when they are ready for some kitten food. Here is how to do it:
+
+What you have done is exactly what the queen would do in the wild. You have triggered a reflex which all kittens have. The thing is, the tray is artificial, and your queen may do her business outside. But at least when young, kittens need a tray. Your next job is to call the vet, who will tell you when to bring the kits for their vaccination.[25]
+
+Kittens play endlessly. It is how they do their learning. They will play their favourite games, such as 'hide and pounce', with almost anyone or anything. Soft balls on strings are a standard toy; so is a scratching post.
+
+With cats there is a limit to how far you can train them. They are at least as intelligent as dogs, but they are not pack animals. They like to do their own thing, and owners do best by fitting in. Never hit a cat: if you do, the relationship will never be the same again. If you really want to dissuade them, try hissing. Also, a noise they do not like will make them leave. It has been said that no one really owns a cat; many cats collect extra owners, and may change house if they do not like the treatment...[26]
+
+If your kitten was born in your home do not let it out of the house until it is two to three months old. If you have the mother, she will look after the kit. But if you have got the kit from a vet or dealer, keep it in for several weeks. When it does go out, you need to watch over it. The main problem is that it may easily get lost. In time, the kit will learn every inch of the house and garden. Then, you can happily let it roam.[27]
+
+Cats are very clean animals. They groom themselves by licking their fur. The cat's tongue can act as a hairbrush and can clean and untangle a cat's fur. Still, owners may buy grooming products to help the cat take care of itself. After licking their fur, cats sometimes get hairballs.[28] A hairball is a small amount of fur that is vomited up by animals when it becomes too big. This is quite normal. Owners brush their cats to try to prevent a lot of hairballs.
+
+Many house cats eat food which their owners give them. This food is manufactured, and designed to contain the right nutrients for cats. There are many different types of cat food. These come in many different flavors and costs are often very small.
+
+There is moist canned food and also dry cat food which comes in different sized cans or bags and formulas. There are kitten formulas, cat formulas, health formulas, formulas for reducing a cat's weight, and many others. These can even be organic (made from all natural ingredients), and have vegetables, salmon, tuna, meat, and milk essence. Yet, it's best if the food is at least 95% meat, as that's a cat's diet. Also, make sure the cat is not fed a daily diet of dog food. It could make the cat blind, as it has no taurine, which is a nutrient for the eyes.
+
+Cats do get diseases, and prevention is better than cure. It is most important to get a young cat vaccinated against some of the most deadly diseases. If a cat gets a disease, a veterinarian (animal doctor) can offer help. Some cats, depending on breed, gender, age, and general health, may be more susceptible to disease than others.  Regular visits to a vet can keep a cat alive many extra years by catching sickness and disease early.[29]
+
+Cats that roam outside will get fleas at some time. Cat fleas will not live on people, but fleas will not hesitate to bite anyone nearby. Owners may choose to buy anti-flea collars, but any areas where the cat normally sleeps need to be cleaned up. A vet or local pet-shop may offer advice about fleas. It is recommended that people quickly take action when a cat gets fleas because fleas can make cats uncomfortable.
+
+House cats can become overweight through lack of exercise and over-feeding. When they get spayed or neutered ("fixed"), they tend to exercise less. Spaying is done for queens, and neutering is done for toms. It is important to fix cats, and here are some reasons. First of all, if a female cat has kittens, they will need homes. Finding homes for kittens is often quite difficult. If a tom is not fixed, it develops a disgusting smell. Breeders who have entire toms keep them in a special hut outside the house, for that reason. Fixing also helps to avoid over-population. Over-population means that there are too many cats, and some will be put to sleep (put down) in animal pounds (animal shelters).
+
+It is a good idea to adopt a cat from a vet or an animal shelter. The vet, shelter or RSPCA will make sure they are healthy and spayed.[30][31]
+
+Kittens are sometimes born with defects. People who receive cats as gifts are recommended to get it examined for its health. Some birth defects, like heart problems, require urgent vet attention. Others are harmless, like polydactyly. Polydactyly means many digits, or many "fingers" from poly (many) and dactyl (digit). Sometimes, there is a mutation (change) in cat families. Most cats have only four to five toes per paw, depending on whether it is the front or back paw. These mutated cats have six, seven, and in rare cases even more. All of these cats are called polydactyl cats. They can also be called Hemingway cats because author Ernest Hemingway owned some of these cats.
+

ensimple/1023.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,70 @@
+
+
+Cats, also called domestic cats (Felis catus), are small, carnivorous (meat-eating) mammals, of the family Felidae.[3][4]  Domestic cats are often called house cats when kept as indoor pets.[5] Cats have been domesticated (tamed) for nearly 10,000 years.[6] There are also farm cats, which are kept on farms to keep rodents away; and feral cats, which are domestic cats that live away from humans.[7] They are one of the most popular pets in the world. They are kept by humans for hunting rodents and companionship. There are about 60 breeds of cat.[8]
+
+A cat is sometimes called a kitty. A young cat is called a kitten. A female cat that has not had its sex organs removed is called a queen. A male cat that has not had its sex organs removed is called a tom.
+
+Domestic cats are found in shorthair, longhair, and hairless breeds. Cats which are not specific breeds can be referred to as 'domestic shorthair' (DSH) or 'domestic longhair' (DLH).
+
+The word 'cat' is also used for other felines. Felines are usually called either big cats or small cats.  The big, wild cats are well known: lions, tigers, leopards, jaguars, pumas, and cheetahs. There are small, wild cats in most parts of the world, such as the lynx in northern Europe.  The big cats and wild cats are not tame, and can be very dangerous.
+
+In the past, most notably in Egypt, people kept domestic cats because they hunted and ate mice and rats. Today, people often keep cats as pets. There are also domestic cats which live without being cared for by people. These kinds of cats are called "feral cats".
+
+The oldest evidence of cats kept as pets is from the Mediterranean island of Cyprus, around 7500 BC. Ancient Egyptians worshipped cats as gods, and often mummified them so they could be with their owners "for all of eternity".
+
+Today, special food for cats is widely available in the developed countries. Proper feeding will help a cat live longer compared to hunting or being fed table scraps. Not correctly feeding a cat can lead to problems (see below for health concerns).
+
+Cats cannot taste sweet foods (with sugar) because of a mutation (change) in their ancestors which removed the ability to taste sweet things.
+
+Cats have anatomy similar to the other members of the genus Felis. The genus has extra lumbar (lower back) and thoracic (chest) vertebrae. This helps to explain the cat's spinal mobility and flexibility. Unlike human arms, cat forelimbs are attached to the shoulder by free-floating clavicle bones. These allow cats to pass their body through any space into which they can fit their heads.[9]
+
+The cat skull is unusual among mammals in having very large eye sockets and a powerful and specialized jaw.[10]:35 Compared to other felines, domestic cats have narrowly spaced canine teeth: this is an adaptation to their preferred prey of small rodents.[11] Cats, like dogs, walk directly on their toes, with the bones of their feet making up the lower part of the visible leg.[12]
+
+Cats walk very precisely. Unlike most mammals, when cats walk, they use a "pacing" gait (walking style); that is, they move the two legs on one side of the body before the legs on the other side. This trait is shared with camels and giraffes. As a walk speeds up into a trot, a cat's gait will change to be a "diagonal" gait, similar to that of most other mammals: the diagonally opposite hind and forelegs will move at the same time.[13] Most cats have five claws on their front paws, and four on their rear paws.[14] On the inside of the front paws there is something which looks like a sixth "finger". This special feature on the inside of the wrists is the carpal pad. The carpal pad is also found on other cats and on dogs.
+
+Cats are active carnivores, meaning that in the wild they hunt live prey. Their main prey is small mammals (like mice). They will also stalk, and sometimes kill and eat, birds. Cats eat a wide variety of prey, including insects such as flies and grasshoppers.[15] Their main method of hunting is stalk and pounce. While dogs have great stamina and will chase prey over long distances, cats are extremely fast, but only over short distances. The basic cat coat colouring, tabby (see top photo), gives it good camouflage in grass and woodland. The cat creeps towards a chosen victim, keeping its body flat and near to the ground so that it cannot be seen easily, until it is close enough for a rapid dash or pounce. Cats, especially kittens, practice these instinctive behaviours in play with each other or on small toys. Cats can fish. They use a flip-up movement of a front paw which, when successful, flips the fish out of water and over the cat's shoulders onto the grass. Dutch research showed this to be an innate (inherited) behaviour pattern which developed early and without maternal teaching.[16]
+
+Cats are quiet and well-behaved animals, making them popular pets. Young kittens are playful. They can easily entertain themselves with a variety of store-bought or homemade toys. House cats have also been known to teach themselves to use lever-type doorknobs and toilet handles.[17]
+
+Cats are fairly independent animals. They can look after themselves and do not need as much attention as dogs do.
+
+Cats use many different sounds for communication, including meowing, purring, trilling, hissing, growling, squeaking, chirping, clicking and grunting.[18]
+
+Body posture is also important. The whole shape of the body changes when a cat is relaxed, or when it is alert. Also, the position of their ears and tail are used for communication, as well as their usual functions.
+
+These ways of communication are very important. They are used between a mother cat and her kittens. They are also used between male and female cats; and between cats and other species, such as dogs. A mother cat protecting her kittens will fight off the largest dog. She gives good warning with a frightening display, hissing furiously, showing her claws, arching her back, and making her hair stand on end. If that fails, she attacks the dog's face with her claws. It has been said that no dog ever tries such an attack a second time.[19]
+
+Cats only mate when the queen is "in heat". Heat periods occur about every two weeks and last 4 to 6 days.[20] Mating in cats is a spectacular event. Several toms may be attracted to a queen in heat. The males will fight over her, and the victor wins the right to mate. At first, the female will reject the male, but eventually the female will allow the male to mate. The female will utter a loud yowl as the male pulls out of her. This is because a male cat's penis has a band of about 120-150 backwards-pointing spines, which are about one millimeter long;[21] upon withdrawal of the penis, the spines rake the walls of the female's vagina, which is a trigger[22] for ovulation. After mating, the female will wash her vulva thoroughly. If a male attempts to breed with her at this point, the female will attack him. After about 20 to 30 minutes. once the female is finished grooming, the cycle will repeat.[20]
+
+Because ovulation is not always triggered, females may not get pregnant by the first tom which mates with them.[23] A queen may mate with more than one tom when she is in heat, and different kittens in a litter may have different fathers.[20] The cycle ceases when the queen is pregnant.
+
+The gestation period for cats is about two months, with an average length of 66 days.[24] The size of a litter is usually three to five kittens. Kittens are weaned at between six and seven weeks, and cats normally reach sexual maturity at 5–10 months (females) and to 5–7 months (males).[20] Females can have two to three litters per year, so might produce up to 150 kittens in their breeding life of about ten years.[20]
+
+Pregnant queens deliver their litters by themselves, guided by instinct. The queen finds the safest place she can. Then she will clean it thoroughly, with her tongue, if necessary. Here she will quietly give birth. She licks the newborn kits clean. In the wild, leaving a scent is risking a dangerous encounter with other animals. The kits are born blind and with closed eyes. They suckle on her teats, and sleep a good deal. After two weeks or so, their eyes open. At that stage they have blue eyes, but not the best sight. A bit later, the best developed kit will totter out of the nest. The others follow. They will soon recognise you as a living thing: that is a great moment. At first, they go back to the nest to feed and sleep. After some more days they leave the nest for good, but still they may sleep together in a 'kitten heap'.
+
+The queen, meanwhile, has left the nest from time to time, to hunt, feed, and also to urinate and defecate. Unlike the tom, she covers up her business to hide her scent. Very soon, the kits will urinate anywhere they please unless one trains them. This is done after they are weaned, when they are ready for some kitten food. Here is how to do it:
+
+What you have done is exactly what the queen would do in the wild. You have triggered a reflex which all kittens have. The thing is, the tray is artificial, and your queen may do her business outside. But at least when young, kittens need a tray. Your next job is to call the vet, who will tell you when to bring the kits for their vaccination.[25]
+
+Kittens play endlessly. It is how they do their learning. They will play their favourite games, such as 'hide and pounce', with almost anyone or anything. Soft balls on strings are a standard toy; so is a scratching post.
+
+With cats there is a limit to how far you can train them. They are at least as intelligent as dogs, but they are not pack animals. They like to do their own thing, and owners do best by fitting in. Never hit a cat: if you do, the relationship will never be the same again. If you really want to dissuade them, try hissing. Also, a noise they do not like will make them leave. It has been said that no one really owns a cat; many cats collect extra owners, and may change house if they do not like the treatment...[26]
+
+If your kitten was born in your home do not let it out of the house until it is two to three months old. If you have the mother, she will look after the kit. But if you have got the kit from a vet or dealer, keep it in for several weeks. When it does go out, you need to watch over it. The main problem is that it may easily get lost. In time, the kit will learn every inch of the house and garden. Then, you can happily let it roam.[27]
+
+Cats are very clean animals. They groom themselves by licking their fur. The cat's tongue can act as a hairbrush and can clean and untangle a cat's fur. Still, owners may buy grooming products to help the cat take care of itself. After licking their fur, cats sometimes get hairballs.[28] A hairball is a small amount of fur that is vomited up by animals when it becomes too big. This is quite normal. Owners brush their cats to try to prevent a lot of hairballs.
+
+Many house cats eat food which their owners give them. This food is manufactured, and designed to contain the right nutrients for cats. There are many different types of cat food. These come in many different flavors and costs are often very small.
+
+There is moist canned food and also dry cat food which comes in different sized cans or bags and formulas. There are kitten formulas, cat formulas, health formulas, formulas for reducing a cat's weight, and many others. These can even be organic (made from all natural ingredients), and have vegetables, salmon, tuna, meat, and milk essence. Yet, it's best if the food is at least 95% meat, as that's a cat's diet. Also, make sure the cat is not fed a daily diet of dog food. It could make the cat blind, as it has no taurine, which is a nutrient for the eyes.
+
+Cats do get diseases, and prevention is better than cure. It is most important to get a young cat vaccinated against some of the most deadly diseases. If a cat gets a disease, a veterinarian (animal doctor) can offer help. Some cats, depending on breed, gender, age, and general health, may be more susceptible to disease than others.  Regular visits to a vet can keep a cat alive many extra years by catching sickness and disease early.[29]
+
+Cats that roam outside will get fleas at some time. Cat fleas will not live on people, but fleas will not hesitate to bite anyone nearby. Owners may choose to buy anti-flea collars, but any areas where the cat normally sleeps need to be cleaned up. A vet or local pet-shop may offer advice about fleas. It is recommended that people quickly take action when a cat gets fleas because fleas can make cats uncomfortable.
+
+House cats can become overweight through lack of exercise and over-feeding. When they get spayed or neutered ("fixed"), they tend to exercise less. Spaying is done for queens, and neutering is done for toms. It is important to fix cats, and here are some reasons. First of all, if a female cat has kittens, they will need homes. Finding homes for kittens is often quite difficult. If a tom is not fixed, it develops a disgusting smell. Breeders who have entire toms keep them in a special hut outside the house, for that reason. Fixing also helps to avoid over-population. Over-population means that there are too many cats, and some will be put to sleep (put down) in animal pounds (animal shelters).
+
+It is a good idea to adopt a cat from a vet or an animal shelter. The vet, shelter or RSPCA will make sure they are healthy and spayed.[30][31]
+
+Kittens are sometimes born with defects. People who receive cats as gifts are recommended to get it examined for its health. Some birth defects, like heart problems, require urgent vet attention. Others are harmless, like polydactyly. Polydactyly means many digits, or many "fingers" from poly (many) and dactyl (digit). Sometimes, there is a mutation (change) in cat families. Most cats have only four to five toes per paw, depending on whether it is the front or back paw. These mutated cats have six, seven, and in rare cases even more. All of these cats are called polydactyl cats. They can also be called Hemingway cats because author Ernest Hemingway owned some of these cats.
+

ensimple/1024.html.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,70 @@
+
+
+Cats, also called domestic cats (Felis catus), are small, carnivorous (meat-eating) mammals, of the family Felidae.[3][4]  Domestic cats are often called house cats when kept as indoor pets.[5] Cats have been domesticated (tamed) for nearly 10,000 years.[6] There are also farm cats, which are kept on farms to keep rodents away; and feral cats, which are domestic cats that live away from humans.[7] They are one of the most popular pets in the world. They are kept by humans for hunting rodents and companionship. There are about 60 breeds of cat.[8]
+
+A cat is sometimes called a kitty. A young cat is called a kitten. A female cat that has not had its sex organs removed is called a queen. A male cat that has not had its sex organs removed is called a tom.
+
+Domestic cats are found in shorthair, longhair, and hairless breeds. Cats which are not specific breeds can be referred to as 'domestic shorthair' (DSH) or 'domestic longhair' (DLH).
+
+The word 'cat' is also used for other felines. Felines are usually called either big cats or small cats.  The big, wild cats are well known: lions, tigers, leopards, jaguars, pumas, and cheetahs. There are small, wild cats in most parts of the world, such as the lynx in northern Europe.  The big cats and wild cats are not tame, and can be very dangerous.
+
+In the past, most notably in Egypt, people kept domestic cats because they hunted and ate mice and rats. Today, people often keep cats as pets. There are also domestic cats which live without being cared for by people. These kinds of cats are called "feral cats".
+
+The oldest evidence of cats kept as pets is from the Mediterranean island of Cyprus, around 7500 BC. Ancient Egyptians worshipped cats as gods, and often mummified them so they could be with their owners "for all of eternity".
+
+Today, special food for cats is widely available in the developed countries. Proper feeding will help a cat live longer compared to hunting or being fed table scraps. Not correctly feeding a cat can lead to problems (see below for health concerns).
+
+Cats cannot taste sweet foods (with sugar) because of a mutation (change) in their ancestors which removed the ability to taste sweet things.
+
+Cats have anatomy similar to the other members of the genus Felis. The genus has extra lumbar (lower back) and thoracic (chest) vertebrae. This helps to explain the cat's spinal mobility and flexibility. Unlike human arms, cat forelimbs are attached to the shoulder by free-floating clavicle bones. These allow cats to pass their body through any space into which they can fit their heads.[9]
+
+The cat skull is unusual among mammals in having very large eye sockets and a powerful and specialized jaw.[10]:35 Compared to other felines, domestic cats have narrowly spaced canine teeth: this is an adaptation to their preferred prey of small rodents.[11] Cats, like dogs, walk directly on their toes, with the bones of their feet making up the lower part of the visible leg.[12]
+
+Cats walk very precisely. Unlike most mammals, when cats walk, they use a "pacing" gait (walking style); that is, they move the two legs on one side of the body before the legs on the other side. This trait is shared with camels and giraffes. As a walk speeds up into a trot, a cat's gait will change to be a "diagonal" gait, similar to that of most other mammals: the diagonally opposite hind and forelegs will move at the same time.[13] Most cats have five claws on their front paws, and four on their rear paws.[14] On the inside of the front paws there is something which looks like a sixth "finger". This special feature on the inside of the wrists is the carpal pad. The carpal pad is also found on other cats and on dogs.
+
+Cats are active carnivores, meaning that in the wild they hunt live prey. Their main prey is small mammals (like mice). They will also stalk, and sometimes kill and eat, birds. Cats eat a wide variety of prey, including insects such as flies and grasshoppers.[15] Their main method of hunting is stalk and pounce. While dogs have great stamina and will chase prey over long distances, cats are extremely fast, but only over short distances. The basic cat coat colouring, tabby (see top photo), gives it good camouflage in grass and woodland. The cat creeps towards a chosen victim, keeping its body flat and near to the ground so that it cannot be seen easily, until it is close enough for a rapid dash or pounce. Cats, especially kittens, practice these instinctive behaviours in play with each other or on small toys. Cats can fish. They use a flip-up movement of a front paw which, when successful, flips the fish out of water and over the cat's shoulders onto the grass. Dutch research showed this to be an innate (inherited) behaviour pattern which developed early and without maternal teaching.[16]
+
+Cats are quiet and well-behaved animals, making them popular pets. Young kittens are playful. They can easily entertain themselves with a variety of store-bought or homemade toys. House cats have also been known to teach themselves to use lever-type doorknobs and toilet handles.[17]
+
+Cats are fairly independent animals. They can look after themselves and do not need as much attention as dogs do.
+
+Cats use many different sounds for communication, including meowing, purring, trilling, hissing, growling, squeaking, chirping, clicking and grunting.[18]
+
+Body posture is also important. The whole shape of the body changes when a cat is relaxed, or when it is alert. Also, the position of their ears and tail are used for communication, as well as their usual functions.
+
+These ways of communication are very important. They are used between a mother cat and her kittens. They are also used between male and female cats; and between cats and other species, such as dogs. A mother cat protecting her kittens will fight off the largest dog. She gives good warning with a frightening display, hissing furiously, showing her claws, arching her back, and making her hair stand on end. If that fails, she attacks the dog's face with her claws. It has been said that no dog ever tries such an attack a second time.[19]
+
+Cats only mate when the queen is "in heat". Heat periods occur about every two weeks and last 4 to 6 days.[20] Mating in cats is a spectacular event. Several toms may be attracted to a queen in heat. The males will fight over her, and the victor wins the right to mate. At first, the female will reject the male, but eventually the female will allow the male to mate. The female will utter a loud yowl as the male pulls out of her. This is because a male cat's penis has a band of about 120-150 backwards-pointing spines, which are about one millimeter long;[21] upon withdrawal of the penis, the spines rake the walls of the female's vagina, which is a trigger[22] for ovulation. After mating, the female will wash her vulva thoroughly. If a male attempts to breed with her at this point, the female will attack him. After about 20 to 30 minutes. once the female is finished grooming, the cycle will repeat.[20]
+
+Because ovulation is not always triggered, females may not get pregnant by the first tom which mates with them.[23] A queen may mate with more than one tom when she is in heat, and different kittens in a litter may have different fathers.[20] The cycle ceases when the queen is pregnant.
+
+The gestation period for cats is about two months, with an average length of 66 days.[24] The size of a litter is usually three to five kittens. Kittens are weaned at between six and seven weeks, and cats normally reach sexual maturity at 5–10 months (females) and to 5–7 months (males).[20] Females can have two to three litters per year, so might produce up to 150 kittens in their breeding life of about ten years.[20]
+
+Pregnant queens deliver their litters by themselves, guided by instinct. The queen finds the safest place she can. Then she will clean it thoroughly, with her tongue, if necessary. Here she will quietly give birth. She licks the newborn kits clean. In the wild, leaving a scent is risking a dangerous encounter with other animals. The kits are born blind and with closed eyes. They suckle on her teats, and sleep a good deal. After two weeks or so, their eyes open. At that stage they have blue eyes, but not the best sight. A bit later, the best developed kit will totter out of the nest. The others follow. They will soon recognise you as a living thing: that is a great moment. At first, they go back to the nest to feed and sleep. After some more days they leave the nest for good, but still they may sleep together in a 'kitten heap'.
+
+The queen, meanwhile, has left the nest from time to time, to hunt, feed, and also to urinate and defecate. Unlike the tom, she covers up her business to hide her scent. Very soon, the kits will urinate anywhere they please unless one trains them. This is done after they are weaned, when they are ready for some kitten food. Here is how to do it:
+
+What you have done is exactly what the queen would do in the wild. You have triggered a reflex which all kittens have. The thing is, the tray is artificial, and your queen may do her business outside. But at least when young, kittens need a tray. Your next job is to call the vet, who will tell you when to bring the kits for their vaccination.[25]
+
+Kittens play endlessly. It is how they do their learning. They will play their favourite games, such as 'hide and pounce', with almost anyone or anything. Soft balls on strings are a standard toy; so is a scratching post.
+
+With cats there is a limit to how far you can train them. They are at least as intelligent as dogs, but they are not pack animals. They like to do their own thing, and owners do best by fitting in. Never hit a cat: if you do, the relationship will never be the same again. If you really want to dissuade them, try hissing. Also, a noise they do not like will make them leave. It has been said that no one really owns a cat; many cats collect extra owners, and may change house if they do not like the treatment...[26]
+
+If your kitten was born in your home do not let it out of the house until it is two to three months old. If you have the mother, she will look after the kit. But if you have got the kit from a vet or dealer, keep it in for several weeks. When it does go out, you need to watch over it. The main problem is that it may easily get lost. In time, the kit will learn every inch of the house and garden. Then, you can happily let it roam.[27]
+
+Cats are very clean animals. They groom themselves by licking their fur. The cat's tongue can act as a hairbrush and can clean and untangle a cat's fur. Still, owners may buy grooming products to help the cat take care of itself. After licking their fur, cats sometimes get hairballs.[28] A hairball is a small amount of fur that is vomited up by animals when it becomes too big. This is quite normal. Owners brush their cats to try to prevent a lot of hairballs.
+
+Many house cats eat food which their owners give them. This food is manufactured, and designed to contain the right nutrients for cats. There are many different types of cat food. These come in many different flavors and costs are often very small.
+
+There is moist canned food and also dry cat food which comes in different sized cans or bags and formulas. There are kitten formulas, cat formulas, health formulas, formulas for reducing a cat's weight, and many others. These can even be organic (made from all natural ingredients), and have vegetables, salmon, tuna, meat, and milk essence. Yet, it's best if the food is at least 95% meat, as that's a cat's diet. Also, make sure the cat is not fed a daily diet of dog food. It could make the cat blind, as it has no taurine, which is a nutrient for the eyes.
+
+Cats do get diseases, and prevention is better than cure. It is most important to get a young cat vaccinated against some of the most deadly diseases. If a cat gets a disease, a veterinarian (animal doctor) can offer help. Some cats, depending on breed, gender, age, and general health, may be more susceptible to disease than others.  Regular visits to a vet can keep a cat alive many extra years by catching sickness and disease early.[29]
+
+Cats that roam outside will get fleas at some time. Cat fleas will not live on people, but fleas will not hesitate to bite anyone nearby. Owners may choose to buy anti-flea collars, but any areas where the cat normally sleeps need to be cleaned up. A vet or local pet-shop may offer advice about fleas. It is recommended that people quickly take action when a cat gets fleas because fleas can make cats uncomfortable.
+
+House cats can become overweight through lack of exercise and over-feeding. When they get spayed or neutered ("fixed"), they tend to exercise less. Spaying is done for queens, and neutering is done for toms. It is important to fix cats, and here are some reasons. First of all, if a female cat has kittens, they will need homes. Finding homes for kittens is often quite difficult. If a tom is not fixed, it develops a disgusting smell. Breeders who have entire toms keep them in a special hut outside the house, for that reason. Fixing also helps to avoid over-population. Over-population means that there are too many cats, and some will be put to sleep (put down) in animal pounds (animal shelters).
+
+It is a good idea to adopt a cat from a vet or an animal shelter. The vet, shelter or RSPCA will make sure they are healthy and spayed.[30][31]
+
+Kittens are sometimes born with defects. People who receive cats as gifts are recommended to get it examined for its health. Some birth defects, like heart problems, require urgent vet attention. Others are harmless, like polydactyly. Polydactyly means many digits, or many "fingers" from poly (many) and dactyl (digit). Sometimes, there is a mutation (change) in cat families. Most cats have only four to five toes per paw, depending on whether it is the front or back paw. These mutated cats have six, seven, and in rare cases even more. All of these cats are called polydactyl cats. They can also be called Hemingway cats because author Ernest Hemingway owned some of these cats.
+

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+Heat is the opposite of cold. Simply heat is the sum of kinetic energy of atoms or molecules. In thermodynamics, heat means energy which is moved between two things when one of them is hotter than the other.
+
+Adding heat to something increases its temperature, but heat is not the same as temperature. The temperature of an object is the measure of the average speed of the moving particles in it.  The energy of the particles is called the internal energy.  When an object is heated, its internal energy can increase to make the object hotter.  The first law of thermodynamics says that the increase in internal energy is equal to the heat added minus the work done on the surroundings.
+
+Heat can also be defined as the amount of thermal energy in a system.[1] Thermal energy is the type of energy that a thing has because of its temperature. In thermodynamics, thermal energy is the internal energy present in a system in a state of thermodynamic equilibrium because of its temperature.[2]  That is, heat is defined as a spontaneous flow of energy (energy in transit) from one object to another, caused by a difference in temperature between two objects; therefore, objects do not possess heat.[3]
+
+Heat is a form of energy and not a physical substance.  Heat has no mass.
+
+Heat can move from one place to another in different ways:
+
+The measure of how much heat is needed to cause a change in temperature for a material is the specific heat capacity of the material. If the particles in the material are hard to move, then more energy is needed to make them move quickly, so a lot of heat will cause a small change in temperature. A different particle that is easier to move will need less heat for the same change in temperature.
+
+Specific heat capacities can be looked up in a table, like this one.
+
+Unless some work is done, heat moves only from hot things to cold things.
+
+Heat can be measured. That is, the amount of heat given out or taken in can be given a value. One of the units of measurement for heat is the joule.
+
+Heat is usually measured with a calorimeter, where the energy in a material is allowed to flow into nearby water, which has a known specific heat capacity.  The temperature of the water is then measured before and after, and heat can be found using a formula.
+

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+Heat is the opposite of cold. Simply heat is the sum of kinetic energy of atoms or molecules. In thermodynamics, heat means energy which is moved between two things when one of them is hotter than the other.
+
+Adding heat to something increases its temperature, but heat is not the same as temperature. The temperature of an object is the measure of the average speed of the moving particles in it.  The energy of the particles is called the internal energy.  When an object is heated, its internal energy can increase to make the object hotter.  The first law of thermodynamics says that the increase in internal energy is equal to the heat added minus the work done on the surroundings.
+
+Heat can also be defined as the amount of thermal energy in a system.[1] Thermal energy is the type of energy that a thing has because of its temperature. In thermodynamics, thermal energy is the internal energy present in a system in a state of thermodynamic equilibrium because of its temperature.[2]  That is, heat is defined as a spontaneous flow of energy (energy in transit) from one object to another, caused by a difference in temperature between two objects; therefore, objects do not possess heat.[3]
+
+Heat is a form of energy and not a physical substance.  Heat has no mass.
+
+Heat can move from one place to another in different ways:
+
+The measure of how much heat is needed to cause a change in temperature for a material is the specific heat capacity of the material. If the particles in the material are hard to move, then more energy is needed to make them move quickly, so a lot of heat will cause a small change in temperature. A different particle that is easier to move will need less heat for the same change in temperature.
+
+Specific heat capacities can be looked up in a table, like this one.
+
+Unless some work is done, heat moves only from hot things to cold things.
+
+Heat can be measured. That is, the amount of heat given out or taken in can be given a value. One of the units of measurement for heat is the joule.
+
+Heat is usually measured with a calorimeter, where the energy in a material is allowed to flow into nearby water, which has a known specific heat capacity.  The temperature of the water is then measured before and after, and heat can be found using a formula.
+

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+Socks are often worn on a person's feet. They absorb sweat and help to keep the foot dry. Socks also give comfort to people's feet and keep them warm in cold weather. They are usually made of cotton or wool. Some socks can cover only the foot and ankle, and others may be long enough to cover the entire lower leg up to the knee. Toe socks are socks that wrap each toe separate from the others. Socks can be worn on the feet. Socks come in an array of different colors. Generally, white socks are worn for everyday or athletic use, and dark socks (black, brown, gray, or navy blue) are worn with business or formal wears. Some dress socks have patterns on them; these are called "argyles".
+
+People often refer to sleeves that cover phones as 'socks'. These come in many different forms, colourful or plain. They help to protect the mobile phone whilst also being a stylish addition. Not many people use phone socks anymore because they seem to be old and out of use however some people still prefer to use them
+

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+Socks are often worn on a person's feet. They absorb sweat and help to keep the foot dry. Socks also give comfort to people's feet and keep them warm in cold weather. They are usually made of cotton or wool. Some socks can cover only the foot and ankle, and others may be long enough to cover the entire lower leg up to the knee. Toe socks are socks that wrap each toe separate from the others. Socks can be worn on the feet. Socks come in an array of different colors. Generally, white socks are worn for everyday or athletic use, and dark socks (black, brown, gray, or navy blue) are worn with business or formal wears. Some dress socks have patterns on them; these are called "argyles".
+
+People often refer to sleeves that cover phones as 'socks'. These come in many different forms, colourful or plain. They help to protect the mobile phone whilst also being a stylish addition. Not many people use phone socks anymore because they seem to be old and out of use however some people still prefer to use them
+

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+Footwear is an item of clothing made by humans that covers and protects the foot, including the soles of the feet. Footwear allows people to walk on rough surfaces such as gravel roads without hurting their feet. Some types of footwear such as boots help to keep people's feet dry, or help to keep people's feet warm in cold weather.
+
+People in many countries make their own footwear by hand, using simple tools. A simple pair of sandals can be made by hand cutting a foot-shaped sole out of a thick, flexible material such as rubber. Next, straps of fabric, rope or leather can be added with a needle and thread. A simple pair of boots can be made by hand by using animal hide with fur, and sewing it with strong thread.
+
+Many people wear footwear that is made in a factory. The machines in shoe factories and boot factories can make footwear much more quickly than people who are making footwear by hand with a needle and thread.
+