Wikipedia:Today's featured article/July 2025
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July 1
Maple syrup is a syrup usually made from the xylem sap of sugar maple, red maple or black maple trees. In cold climates, these trees store starch in their trunks and roots before the winter; the starch is then converted to sugar that rises in the sap in the spring. Trees can be tapped by boring holes into their trunks and collecting the sap. This is processed by heating to evaporate some of the water, leaving the concentrated syrup. Maple syrup was first collected and used by the Indigenous people of North America; the practice was adopted by European settlers. Quebec, Canada, is by far the largest producer, making about three-quarters of the world's output. The syrup is graded based on its density and translucency. Maple syrup is often eaten as an accompaniment to food, as an ingredient in baking and as a sweetener and flavouring agent. Maple syrup and the sugar maple tree are symbols of Canada and several US states, in particular Vermont. (Full article...)
July 2
The Sonata for E♭ Alto Saxophone and Piano, Op. 19, was composed by Paul Creston (pictured) in 1939. The sonata was commissioned by Creston's frequent collaborator, the American saxophonist Cecil Leeson. Creston began composition by June; it was completed by the end of August and slated for publication in 1940, although this was postponed to 1945 due to World War II. The sonata is in three movements and takes around thirteen minutes to perform. Its form follows a traditional, Classical-era structure. The sonata as a whole is of considerable difficulty for both players. Creston and Leeson premiered the sonata at the Carnegie Chamber Hall on February 15, 1940. No critics were present at the premiere, but the sonata's 1955 debut recording by Vincent Abato and Creston received a mixed response. Most found the sonata enjoyable, but there was criticism of a perceived simplistic and salon-like styling. (Full article...)
July 3
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Happy Feet was an emperor penguin who, in June 2011, arrived at Peka Peka Beach in New Zealand's North Island after travelling about 3,200 kilometres (2,000 mi) from Antarctica. He was one of the northernmost emperor penguins ever recorded outside of captivity and the second emperor penguin to have been found in New Zealand. After arriving, he ingested sand on the beach, mistaking it for snow, and filled his stomach with it. He soon became unwell and was transported to Wellington Zoo, where he was given a 50 per cent chance of survival. Most of the sand was removed and he was kept at the zoo to recover. Happy Feet was released in the Southern Ocean on 4 September 2011. He was fitted with a satellite transmitter to track his location; this ceased transmission on 9 September, possibly due to the transmitter falling off or the penguin being preyed upon. Happy Feet's arrival and recovery attracted worldwide media coverage. He was named after the 2006 film Happy Feet. (Full article...)
July 4
George Washington was a Founding Father and the first president of the United States. Born in Virginia, he opposed the perceived oppression of the American colonists by the British Crown and was commander-in-chief of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. After being forced to retreat from New York City, he crossed the Delaware River and won the battles of Trenton and Princeton. Washington led a decisive victory at Yorktown, then served as president of the Constitutional Convention that drafted the US Constitution. As president, he set precedents for the office of president, such as republicanism, a peaceful transition, and the two-term tradition. Washington owned many slaves but opposed the practice near the end of his life. His image is an icon of American culture and he has been extensively memorialized. In both popular and scholarly polls, he is consistently considered one of the greatest presidents in American history. (Full article...)
July 5
The siege of Breteuil was the investment of the Norman town of Breteuil, held by partisans of Charles II, King of Navarre, by French forces between April and about 20 August 1356. It was interrupted on 5 July when a small English army relieved and resupplied the town. The French king, John II, attempted to bring the English to battle, but they evaded him and the siege was renewed. The French attracted praise for the splendour and high status of many of the participants, but made little progress as the town was well-garrisoned and stocked with food for a year. Attempts to mine under the walls were to no avail. In August a large mobile siege tower was pushed up to the walls and an assault launched, but the tower was set on fire and the attack repulsed with many casualties. Taking Breteuil became a matter of prestige for John and he refused to take the army south to face a major English offensive. Eventually the garrison was given free passage and a huge bribe to persuade them to depart. (Full article...)
July 6
Wintjiya Napaltjarri (c. 1923–1934 – 2014) was an Indigenous artist from Australia's Western Desert region. Wintjiya's involvement in contemporary Indigenous Australian art began in 1994 at Haasts Bluff (pictured) when she participated in a group painting project and in the creation of batik fabrics. She was also a printmaker, using drypoint etching. Her paintings typically use an iconography that represents the eggs of the flying ant (waturnuma) and hair-string skirts (nyimparra). Her palette generally involves strong red or black against a white background. A finalist in the 2007 and 2008 National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Awards, Wintjiya's work is held in several of Australia's public collections, including the Art Gallery of New South Wales, the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, the National Gallery of Australia, and the National Gallery of Victoria. Her work is also held in the Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection of the University of Virginia. (Full article...)
July 7
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Weird Faith is the sixth studio album by the American singer-songwriter Madi Diaz (pictured), released on February 9, 2024, on the record label Anti-. The album followed her fifth studio album, History of a Feeling, as well as tours with Angel Olsen, Waxahatchee, and Harry Styles. It was written in Nashville and upstate New York, recorded in the latter by Diaz and Sam Cohen, and produced by Diaz, Cohen, and Konrad Snyder. Weird Faith has been described as an indie rock, indie folk, and indie pop album. The album features sparse, acoustic arrangements that highlight Diaz's lyrics and vocals, and it addresses themes of love, trust, and intimacy. Critics positively reviewed the album, particularly praising Diaz's emotional songwriting and the album's production. It was featured on several year-end lists and was nominated for two Grammy Awards. (Full article...)
July 8
Edgar (c. 944 – 8 July 975) was King of the English from 959 until his death. He mainly followed the political policies of his predecessors but made major changes in the religious sphere, with the English Benedictine Reform becoming a dominant religious and social force. His major administrative reform was the introduction of a standardised coinage, and he issued legislative codes concentrated on improving the enforcement of the law. After his death, the throne was disputed between the supporters of his two surviving sons; Edward the Martyr was chosen with the support of Dunstan, the archbishop of Canterbury. Chroniclers presented Edgar's reign as a golden age when England was free from external attacks and internal disorder. Modern historians see Edgar's reign as the pinnacle of Anglo-Saxon culture but disagree about his political legacy, and some see the disorders following his death as a natural reaction to his overbearing control. (Full article...)
July 9
The goblin shark is a rare species of deep-sea shark. Sometimes called a "living fossil", it is the only extant representative of the family Mitsukurinidae, a lineage 125 million years old. This species looks unlike any other shark, with a long, flattened snout, highly protrusible jaws containing prominent nail-like teeth and pink coloration. Its snout is covered with ampullae of Lorenzini that enable it to sense minute electric fields produced by nearby prey, which it can snatch up by rapidly extending its jaws. It is usually three to four metres long (10 to 13 ft) when mature. Goblin sharks inhabit upper continental slopes, submarine canyons and seamounts deeper than 100 metres (330 ft). Anatomical features, such as its flabby body and small fins, suggest that it is sluggish in nature. It hunts for teleost fishes, cephalopods and crustaceans both near the sea floor and in the middle of the water column. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed it as Least Concern. (Full article...)
July 10
Spyridon Marinatos (1901–1974) was a Greek archaeologist who specialised in the Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations of the Aegean Bronze Age, and excavated the Minoan site of Akrotiri (fresco pictured) on Thera between 1967 and 1974. He received several honours in Greece and abroad, and was considered one of the most important Greek archaeologists of his day. He joined the Greek Archaeological Service in 1919 and spent much of his early career on the island of Crete, where he excavated several Minoan sites. He served three times as head of the Greek Archaeological Service, including under the military junta which ruled Greece between 1967 and 1974. He was an enthusiastic supporter of the junta; in the late 1930s, he had been close to the dictatorial regime of Ioannis Metaxas. Marinatos died while excavating at Akrotiri in 1974, and is buried at the site. (Full article...)
July 11
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Llullaillaco is a dormant stratovolcano on the border between Argentina and Chile. It lies in the Puna de Atacama, a region of tall volcanic peaks on a high plateau close to the Atacama Desert, one of the driest places in the world. Its maximum elevation is most commonly given as 6,723 metres (22,057 ft), making it the second- or third-highest volcano in the world. Between 3700 m and 5000 m elevation there is a sparse plant cover, while at lower altitudes the climate is too dry for plants to grow. The volcano formed during the Pleistocene in two stages. The oldest rocks are about 1.5 million years old. About 150,000 years ago, the volcano's southeastern flank collapsed, generating a debris avalanche that reached as far as 25 kilometres (16 mi) from the summit. There are reports of activity from the 19th century. There are a number of archaeological sites on the mountain; Llullaillaco marks the highest archaeological site in the world. (Full article...)
July 12
Holkham Hall is an 18th-century country house in Norfolk, England, constructed in the Neo-Palladian style for Thomas Coke, 1st Earl of Leicester. The hall was designed by the architect William Kent, with contributions from Richard Boyle, 3rd Earl of Burlington, the Norfolk architect and surveyor, Matthew Brettingham and Thomas Coke himself. Holkham is one of England's finest examples of the Palladian revival style of architecture. The exterior consists of a central block, of two storeys and four flanking wings. The interior of the hall is opulent, but by the standards of the day, simply decorated and furnished. The Holkham estate was built up by Sir Edward Coke, a lawyer in the reigns of Elizabeth I and James I and the founder of his family's fortune. It remains the ancestral home of the Coke family, who became Earls of Leicester. The house is a Grade I listed building, and its park is listed as Grade I on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England. (Full article...)
July 13
Heartburn is a burning sensation felt behind the breastbone. It is a symptom that is commonly linked to acid reflux and is often triggered by food, particularly fatty, sugary, spicy, chocolate, onions, citrus, and tomato-based products. Lying down, bending, lifting, and performing certain exercises can exacerbate heartburn. Causes include acid reflux, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), damage to the esophageal lining, bile acid, mechanical stimulation to the esophagus, and esophageal hypersensitivity. Heartburn affects 25% of the population at least once a month. Endoscopy and esophageal pH monitoring can be used to evaluate heartburn. Some causes of heartburn, such as GERD, may be diagnosed based on symptoms alone. Lifestyle changes, such as losing weight and avoiding fatty foods, can improve heartburn. Over-the-counter alginates or antacids can help with mild or occasional heartburn. Heartburn treatment primarily involves H2 receptor antagonists and proton-pump inhibitors. (Full article...)
July 14
William Hanna (July 14, 1910 – March 22, 2001) was an American animator, voice actor, and musician who co-created Tom and Jerry and provided the vocal effects for the series' title characters. Hanna joined the Harman and Ising animation studio in 1930 and gained prominence while working on cartoons such as The Captain and the Kids. In 1937, while working at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Hanna met Joseph Barbera. In 1957, they co-founded Hanna-Barbera, which became a successful television animation studio, creating or producing programs such as The Flintstones, The Huckleberry Hound Show, The Jetsons, Scooby-Doo, The Smurfs, and Yogi Bear. In 1967, Hanna-Barbera was sold to Taft Broadcasting for $12 million. Hanna and Barbera were nominated for two Academy Awards and won eight Emmys. Their cartoons have become cultural icons, and their cartoon characters have appeared in other media such as films, books, and toys. (Full article...)
July 15
Manitoba is a province of Canada. Indigenous peoples have inhabited what is now Manitoba for thousands of years. In the early 17th century, English and French fur traders arrived and established settlements in the area. The Kingdom of England secured control of the region in 1673 and created Rupert's Land, which included present-day Manitoba, under the administration of the Hudson's Bay Company. Negotiations for the creation of the province of Manitoba commenced in 1869 but disagreements over the right to self-determination led to the Red River Rebellion. The resolution of the conflict and further negotiations led to Manitoba becoming the fifth province to join Canadian Confederation on 15 July 1870. Manitoba is Canada's fifth-most populous province. It has a widely varied landscape, including from arctic tundra and the Hudson Bay coastline, dense boreal forest, large freshwater lakes, and prairie grassland. Manitoba's capital and largest city is Winnipeg. (Full article...)
July 16
Trinity was the code name given to the nuclear test that saw the first detonation of a nuclear weapon. The code name was assigned by J. Robert Oppenheimer, the director of the Los Alamos Laboratory, after a poem by John Donne. It was conducted on July 16, 1945, as part of the Manhattan Project on the Alamogordo Bombing and Gunnery Range in the Jornada del Muerto desert. The test used a Fat Man bomb of the same design as that detonated over Nagasaki. The complex Implosion-type nuclear weapon design required a major effort from the Los Alamos Laboratory, and testing was required to allay fears that it would not work. Its detonation (shown on video) produced the explosive power of about 20 kilotons of TNT (84 TJ). The test site is now part of the White Sands Missile Range. It was declared a National Historic Landmark district in 1965, and listed on the National Register of Historic Places the following year. (This article is part of a featured topic: History of the Manhattan Project.)
July 17
Hurricane Claudette was the third tropical storm and first hurricane of the 2003 Atlantic hurricane season. A fairly long-lived July Atlantic hurricane, Claudette began as a tropical wave in the eastern Caribbean. It moved westward past the Yucatán Peninsula before moving northwestward through the Gulf of Mexico. Claudette remained a tropical storm until just before making landfall in Port O'Connor, Texas, when it quickly strengthened to a strong Category 1 hurricane. Forecasting its path and intensity was uncertain, resulting in widespread and often unnecessary preparations. The hurricane caused one death and moderate damage in Texas, mostly from strong winds, as well as extensive beach erosion. Because of the damage, President George W. Bush declared portions of South Texas as a Federal Disaster Area. Claudette also caused significant rainfall and minor damage in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo, as well as minor damage on Saint Lucia. (This article is part of a featured topic: 2003 Atlantic hurricane season.)
July 18
Lieutenant-General Henry de Hinuber (1767–1833) was a Hanoverian army officer who commanded units of the King's German Legion (KGL) during the Napoleonic Wars. Initially serving in the Hanoverian Army, in 1782 he fought in the Second Anglo-Mysore War in India. He was present at the Siege of Cuddalore. The French Revolutionary Wars began a decade later and Hinuber served in the Flanders Campaign. When Hanover was invaded in 1803 Hinuber offered his services to the British Army and was given command of the 3rd Line Battalion of the KGL before commanding a brigade in the Bay of Naples in 1809. He was promoted to major-general in 1811 and given command of a brigade in Lord Wellington's Peninsular War army in 1813. Hinuber commanded his brigade at the Battle of Nivelle in 1813 and then at the Siege of Bayonne the following year, when he led the response to the French counter-attack. He joined the army of the new Kingdom of Hanover in 1816. He received his last command in 1831, the 2nd Division of a corps of the German Federal Army and died in Frankfurt two years later. (Full article...)
July 19
Great Wilbraham is a Neolithic causewayed enclosure, an archaeological site near the village of Great Wilbraham in Cambridgeshire, England. The enclosure is about 170 metres (560 ft) across, and covers about 2 hectares (4.9 acres). Causewayed enclosures were built in England from before 3700 BC until c. 3500 BC; they are characterized by the enclosure of an area with ditches that are interrupted by gaps, or causeways. Their purpose is not known; they may have been settlements, meeting places, or ritual sites. The Great Wilbraham enclosure was first identified from aerial photographs in 1972. An excavation was begun in 1975 by David Clarke, with a planned five-year research programme, but he died in 1976 and his results remained unpublished. His archive of finds and records was reanalysed in the 2000s. The site was rich in finds, including Neolithic flint, pottery from periods from the Neolithic to the present day and animal bone. The site has been protected as a scheduled monument since 1976. (Full article...)
July 20
Lieutenant-Colonel Sir William Gordon-Cumming (20 July 1848 – 20 May 1930), was a Scottish landowner, soldier and socialite. He was the central figure in the royal baccarat scandal of 1891. He joined the British Army in 1868 and saw service in South Africa, Egypt and the Sudan; he served with distinction and rose to the rank of lieutenant-colonel. An adventurer, he also hunted in the US and India. A friend of Edward, Prince of Wales, for over 20 years, in 1890 he attended a house party at Tranby Croft, where he took part in a game of baccarat at the behest of the prince. During the course of two nights' play he was accused of cheating, which he denied. After news of the affair leaked out, he sued five members of the party for slander; Edward was called as a witness. The case was a public spectacle in the UK and abroad, but the verdict went against Gordon-Cumming and he was ostracised from polite society. After the court case he married an American heiress, but their relationship was unhappy. (Full article...)
July 21
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Red is the fourth studio album by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. It was released in October 2012, by Big Machine Records. Swift designated Red as a breakup album and her last to be promoted as country music. The album incorporates styles of pop, rock, folk and country, and is composed of acoustic instruments, electronic synths and drum machines. Initial reviews mostly praised Swift's songwriting for its emotional exploration and engagement, but critics deemed the production inconsistent and questioned her identity as a country artist. Swift supported Red with the Red Tour (2013–2014). Red topped the charts and received multi-platinum certifications in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. In the United States it spent seven weeks atop the Billboard 200. Red was nominated for Album of the Year at the 2013 Country Music Association Awards, and Album of the Year and Best Country Album at the 2014 Grammy Awards. (Full article...)
July 22
The hippocampus is a major component of the brain of humans and many other vertebrates. It plays important roles in the consolidation of information from short-term memory to long-term memory, and in spatial memory that enables navigation. In humans and other primates the hippocampus is located in the archicortex, one of the three regions of allocortex, in each hemisphere. The hippocampus is a structure found in all vertebrates. In Alzheimer's disease (and other forms of dementia), the hippocampus is one of the first regions of the brain to suffer damage; short-term memory loss and disorientation are included among the early symptoms. Damage to the hippocampus can also result from oxygen starvation, encephalitis or medial temporal lobe epilepsy. Since different neuronal cell types are neatly organized into layers in the hippocampus, it has frequently been used as a model system for studying neurophysiology. (Full article...)
July 23
The Daily News Building is a skyscraper in Manhattan, New York City. The original tower, completed on July 23, 1930, was designed by Raymond Hood and John Mead Howells in the Art Deco style; a similarly-styled expansion, designed by Harrison & Abramovitz, was completed in 1960. The 36-story tower rising 476 feet (145 m) consists of a 14-story printing plant and an 18-story annex. There is a large carved-granite entrance leading to a rotunda lobby with a rotating painted globe (pictured). The Daily News' parent company, Tribune Media, sold the building in 1982, and the newspaper moved out entirely in 1995. SL Green Realty bought the building in 2003 and sold a partial ownership stake to Meritz Alternative Investment Management in 2021. When it opened, the building received mixed reviews and was described as having a utilitarian design. It is a National Historic Landmark and its exterior and lobby are designated city landmarks. (Full article...)
July 24
The Second Test of the 1948 Ashes series was one of five Tests in The Ashes cricket series between Australia and England. The match was played at Lord's in London between 24 and 29 June 1948. Australia won the match by 409 runs to take a 2–0 lead, meaning that England would need to win the remaining three matches to regain The Ashes. The Australian captain Don Bradman won the toss and elected to bat. Australia scored 350 in their first innings. England finished their first innings at 215 early on the third morning; the Australian paceman Ray Lindwall took 5/70. Australia reached 460/7 in their second innings before Bradman declared, setting England a target of 596. The hosts reached 106/3 at stumps on the fourth day, but then collapsed on the final morning to be all out for 186, handing Australia a 409-run victory. The leading English batsmen Len Hutton was controversially dropped for the following match. The match set a new record for the highest attendance at a Test in England. (Full article...)
July 25
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Lesley James McNair was a United States Army lieutenant general who served in both world wars. Prior to this he saw service in the Veracruz occupation and Pancho Villa Expedition. During World War I he served with the American Expeditionary Forces on the Western Front. At 35, he became the Army's second-youngest general officer. During the early stages of World War II he was commander of Army Ground Forces, and played the leading role in the organization, equipping, and training of Army units before they departed for overseas combat. He was killed on 25 July 1944 while in France as commander of the fictitious First United States Army Group, part of the Operation Quicksilver deception plan for the invasion of Normandy. McNair died when the US Eighth Air Force attempted to use heavy bombers in support of ground combat troops, and several planes dropped payloads short of their targets. He received a posthumous promotion to general. (Full article...)
July 26
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Liz Truss (born 1975) is a British politician who was prime minister from September to October 2022. A Liberal Democrat in youth, she defected to the Conservatives in 1996. After several bids for public office she was elected as an MP in 2010 and served continuously in government in the Cameron, May and Johnson ministries, latterly as foreign secretary. After Johnson resigned in July 2022 Truss stood in the election to replace him, defeating Rishi Sunak and becoming the leader of the party. Two days after her appointment as prime minister Queen Elizabeth II died, freezing government business for ten days during a national mourning period; after its conclusion Truss's ministry announced a mini-budget which was received badly by markets, the fallout from which subsequently engulfed her government. Facing a rapid loss of confidence in her leadership, Truss resigned fifty days into her premiership and was succeeded by Sunak, becoming the shortest-serving British prime minister. (Full article...)
July 27
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Dick Cresswell (27 July 1920 – 12 December 2006) was an officer and pilot in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). Born in Tasmania, he joined the RAAF in July 1938. He commanded No. 77 (Fighter) Squadron from April 1942 to August 1943, in Australia's North Western Area Campaign, flying against Japanese raiders. He claimed the squadron's first aerial victory—the first by an Australian over the mainland—in November 1942. He commanded No. 81 (Fighter) Wing from May 1944 to March 1945, and simultaneously No. 77 Squadron between September and December 1944. In September 1950, during the Korean War, Cresswell took command of No. 77 Squadron for the third time. He oversaw its conversion to Gloster Meteors, becoming the first RAAF commander of a jet squadron in war. His performance earned him the Commonwealth and US Distinguished Flying Crosses. From 1953 until 1956 Cresswell was responsible for converting pilots to jet fighters as commanding officer of No. 2 Operational Training Unit. (Full article...)
July 28
Edward Drinker Cope (July 28, 1840 – April 12, 1897) was an American zoologist, paleontologist, comparative anatomist, herpetologist, and ichthyologist. Born to a Quaker family, he published his first scientific paper at age 19. He made regular trips to the American West, prospecting in the 1870s and 1880s. A feud between Cope and Othniel Charles Marsh led to an intense fossil-finding competition called the Bone Wars. Cope's financial fortunes soured after failed mining ventures in the 1880s, forcing him to sell much of his fossil collection. His contributions helped to define the field of American paleontology and wrote over 1,400 published papers, although rivals debated the accuracy of his rapidly published works. He discovered, described, and named more than 1,000 vertebrate species, including hundreds of fishes and dozens of dinosaurs. His proposal for the origin of mammalian molars is notable among his theoretical contributions. (Full article...)
July 29
Gaetano Bresci (1869–1901) was an Italian anarchist who assassinated King Umberto I of Italy. He became an anarchist after experiencing exploitation in the workplace and later emigrated to the United States, where he joining the Italian immigrant anarchist movement in Paterson, New Jersey. News of the Bava Beccaris massacre motivated him to return to Italy to assassinate Umberto. Bresci killed the king on 29 July 1900, during Umberto's scheduled appearance in Monza, amid a sparse police presence. The government of Italy suspected that Bresci had been a part of a conspiracy but no evidence was found to indicate that others were involved. He was sentenced to life imprisonment for murder and confined on Santo Stefano Island, where he was found dead of an apparent suicide the following year. After his death, Bresci became a martyr for the Italian left-wing. He inspired the American anarchist Leon Czolgosz to assassinate United States president William McKinley. (Full article...)
July 30
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Scanners (Autumn/Winter 2003) was the twenty-second collection by British fashion designer Alexander McQueen for his eponymous fashion house. The collection is based on the idea of exiles travelling eastward through northern Eurasia: Siberia, Tibet and finally Japan. The designs borrow heavily from the traditional clothing and art of those areas, and reflect an overall aesthetic of luxury, with voluminous silhouettes and rich materials. Cultural motifs include heavy embroidery, traditional patterns and kimono-like shapes. The runway show was staged at the Grande halle de la Villette in Paris. The set was made to look like a desolate tundra with rocks and snow. A clear plastic wind tunnel was suspended over the runway for some models to walk through. Fifty-nine looks were presented in roughly three stages, representing the journey through each of Siberia, Tibet and Japan. Critical reception was mostly positive and sales were strong. (Full article...)
July 31
The Battle of Warsaw was fought on 31 July 1705 as part of a power struggle for the Polish–Lithuanian throne during the Great Northern War. Augustus II the Strong, elector of Saxony and king of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, was allied with Denmark–Norway and Russia against Stanisław Leszczyński, who had seized the Polish throne in 1704 with the support of the army of Charles XII of Sweden. The Polish nobility of the Sandomierz Confederation supported Augustus II and his allies, while the Warsaw Confederation supported Leszczyński and Sweden. Augustus II helped develop a grand strategy to crush the Swedish forces and restore himself to the Polish throne, sending an allied army of up to 10,000 cavalry under the command of Otto Arnold von Paykull towards Warsaw to interrupt the Polish parliament. A 2,000-strong Swedish cavalry contingent under the command of Carl Nieroth defeated Paykull's army on the plains west of Warsaw, and Leszczyński was crowned in early October. (Full article...)