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Queen Victoria
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Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days, which was longer than those of any of her predecessors, constituted the Victorian era. It was a period of industrial, political, scientific, and military change within the United Kingdom, and was marked by a great expansion of the British Empire. In 1876, the British parliament voted to grant her the additional title of Empress of India.
Victoria was the daughter of Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn (the fourth son of King George III), and Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld. After the deaths of her father and grandfather in 1820, she was raised under close supervision by her mother and her comptroller, John Conroy. She inherited the throne aged 18 after her father's three elder brothers died without surviving legitimate issue. Victoria, a constitutional monarch, attempted privately to influence government policy and ministerial appointments; publicly, she became a national icon who was identified with strict standards of personal morality.
Victoria married her first cousin, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, in 1840. Their nine children married into royal and noble families across the continent, earning Victoria the sobriquet "grandmother of Europe". After Albert's death in 1861, Victoria plunged into deep mourning and avoided public appearances. As a result of her seclusion, British republicanism temporarily gained strength, but in the latter half of her reign, her popularity recovered. Her Golden and Diamond jubilees were times of public celebration. Victoria died at Osborne House on the Isle of Wight, at the age of 81. The last British monarch of the House of Hanover, she was succeeded by her son Edward VII of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.
Early life
Birth and ancestry
Victoria's father was Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, the fourth son of King George III and Queen Charlotte. Until 1817, King George's only legitimate grandchild was Edward's niece Princess Charlotte of Wales, the daughter of George, Prince Regent (who would become George IV). Princess Charlotte's death in 1817 precipitated a succession crisis that brought pressure on Prince Edward and his unmarried brothers to marry and have children. In 1818, the Duke of Kent married Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, a widowed German princess with two children—Carl (1804–1856) and Feodora (1807–1872)—by her first marriage to Emich Carl, 2nd Prince of Leiningen. Her brother Leopold was Princess Charlotte's widower and later the first king of Belgium. The Duke and Duchess of Kent's only child, Victoria was born at 4:15 a.m. on Monday, 24 May 1819 at Kensington Palace in London.Hibbert, pp. 3–12; Strachey, pp. 1–17; Woodham-Smith, pp. 15–29
Victoria was christened privately by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Charles Manners-Sutton, on 24 June 1819 in the Cupola Room at Kensington Palace. She was baptised Alexandrina after one of her godparents, Tsar Alexander I of Russia, and Victoria, after her mother. Additional names proposed by her parents—Georgina (or Georgiana), Charlotte, and Augusta—were dropped on the instructions of the Prince Regent.Hibbert, pp. 12–13; Longford, p. 23; Woodham-Smith, pp. 34–35
At birth, Victoria was fifth in the line of succession after the four eldest sons of George III: George, Prince Regent (later George IV); Frederick, Duke of York; William, Duke of Clarence (later William IV); and Victoria's father, Edward, Duke of Kent.Longford, p. 24 Prince George had no surviving children, and Prince Frederick had no children; further, both were estranged from their wives, who were both past child-bearing age, so the two eldest brothers were unlikely to have any further legitimate children. William married in 1818, in a joint ceremony with his brother Edward, but both of William's legitimate daughters died as infants. The first of these was Princess Charlotte, who was born and died on 27 March 1819, two months before Victoria was born. Victoria's father died in January 1820, when Victoria was less than a year old. A week later her grandfather died and was succeeded by his eldest son as George IV. Victoria was then third in line to the throne after Frederick and William. She was fourth in line while William's second daughter, Princess Elizabeth, lived, from 10 December 1820 to 4 March 1821.Worsley, p. 41.
Heir presumptive
Prince Frederick died in 1827, followed by George IV in 1830; their next surviving brother succeeded to the throne as William IV, and Victoria became heir presumptive. The Regency Act 1830 made special provision for Victoria's mother to act as regent in case William died while Victoria was still a minor.Hibbert, p. 31; St Aubyn, p. 26; Woodham-Smith, p. 81 King William distrusted the Duchess's capacity to be regent, and in 1836 he declared in her presence that he wanted to live until Victoria's 18th birthday, so that a regency could be avoided.Hibbert, p. 46; Longford, p. 54; St Aubyn, p. 50; Waller, p. 344; Woodham-Smith, p. 126
thumb|Portrait with her spaniel Dash by George Hayter, 1833
Victoria later described her childhood as "rather melancholy".Hibbert, p. 19; Marshall, p. 25 Her mother was extremely protective, and Victoria was raised largely isolated from other children under the so-called "Kensington System", an elaborate set of rules and protocols devised by the Duchess and her ambitious and domineering comptroller, Sir John Conroy, who was rumoured to be the Duchess's lover.Hibbert, p. 27; Longford, pp. 35–38, 118–119; St Aubyn, pp. 21–22; Woodham-Smith, pp. 70–72. The rumours were false in the opinion of these biographers. The system prevented the princess from meeting people whom her mother and Conroy deemed undesirable (including most of her father's family), and was designed to render her weak and dependent upon them.Hibbert, pp. 27–28; Waller, pp. 341–342; Woodham-Smith, pp. 63–65 The Duchess avoided the court because she was scandalised by the presence of King William's illegitimate children.Hibbert, pp. 32–33; Longford, pp. 38–39, 55; Marshall, p. 19 Victoria shared a bedroom with her mother every night, studied with private tutors to a regular timetable, and spent her play-hours with her dolls and her King Charles Spaniel, Dash.Waller, pp. 338–341; Woodham-Smith, pp. 68–69, 91 Her lessons included French, German, Italian, and Latin,Hibbert, p. 18; Longford, p. 31; Woodham-Smith, pp. 74–75 but she spoke only English at home.Longford, p. 31; Woodham-Smith, p. 75 At age ten, she wrote and illustrated a children's story, The Adventures of Alice Laselles, which was eventually published in 2015.
In 1830, the Duchess and Conroy took Victoria across the centre of England to visit the Malvern Hills, stopping at towns and great country houses along the way.Hibbert, pp. 34–35 Similar journeys to other parts of England and Wales were taken in 1832, 1833, 1834 and 1835. To the King's annoyance, Victoria was enthusiastically welcomed in each of the stops.Hibbert, pp. 35–39; Woodham-Smith, pp. 88–89, 102 William compared the journeys to royal progresses and was concerned that they portrayed Victoria as his rival rather than his heir presumptive.Hibbert, p. 36; Woodham-Smith, pp. 89–90 Victoria disliked the trips; the constant round of public appearances made her tired and ill, and there was little time for her to rest.Hibbert, pp. 35–40; Woodham-Smith, pp. 92, 102 She objected on the grounds of the King's disapproval, but her mother dismissed his complaints as motivated by jealousy and forced Victoria to continue the tours.Hibbert, pp. 38–39; Longford, p. 47; Woodham-Smith, pp. 101–102 At Ramsgate in October 1835, Victoria contracted a severe fever, which Conroy initially dismissed as a childish pretence.Hibbert, p. 42; Woodham-Smith, p. 105 While Victoria was ill, Conroy and the Duchess unsuccessfully badgered her to make Conroy her private secretary.Hibbert, p. 42; Longford, pp. 47–48; Marshall, p. 21 As a teenager, Victoria resisted persistent attempts by her mother and Conroy to appoint him to her staff.Hibbert, pp. 42, 50; Woodham-Smith, p. 135 Once queen, she banned him from her presence, but he remained in her mother's household.Marshall, p. 46; St Aubyn, p. 67; Waller, p. 353thumb|left|upright|alt=Victoria's sketch of herself|Self-portrait, 1835
By 1836, Victoria's maternal uncle Leopold, who had been King of the Belgians since 1831, hoped to marry her to Prince Albert,Longford, pp. 29, 51; Waller, p. 363; Weintraub, pp. 43–49 the son of his brother Ernest I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Leopold arranged for Victoria's mother to invite her Coburg relatives to visit her in May 1836, with the purpose of introducing Victoria to Albert.Longford, p. 51; Weintraub, pp. 43–49 William IV, however, disapproved of any match with the Coburgs, and instead favoured the suit of Prince Alexander of the Netherlands, second son of the Prince of Orange.Longford, pp. 51–52; St Aubyn, p. 43; Weintraub, pp. 43–49; Woodham-Smith, p. 117 Victoria was aware of the various matrimonial plans and critically appraised a parade of eligible princes.Weintraub, pp. 43–49 According to her diary, she enjoyed Albert's company from the beginning. After the visit she wrote, "[Albert] is extremely handsome; his hair is about the same colour as mine; his eyes are large and blue, and he has a beautiful nose and a very sweet mouth with fine teeth; but the charm of his countenance is his expression, which is most delightful."Victoria quoted in Marshall, p. 27 and Weintraub, p. 49 Alexander, on the other hand, she described as "very plain".Victoria quoted in Hibbert, p. 99; St Aubyn, p. 43; Weintraub, p. 49 and Woodham-Smith, p. 119
Victoria wrote to King Leopold, whom she considered her "best and kindest adviser",Victoria's journal, October 1835, quoted in St Aubyn, p. 36 and Woodham-Smith, p. 104 to thank him "for the prospect of great happiness you have contributed to give me, in the person of dear Albert ... He possesses every quality that could be desired to render me perfectly happy. He is so sensible, so kind, and so good, and so amiable too. He has besides the most pleasing and delightful exterior and appearance you can possibly see."Hibbert, p. 102; Marshall, p. 60; Waller, p. 363; Weintraub, p. 51; Woodham-Smith, p. 122 However at 17, Victoria, though interested in Albert, was not yet ready to marry. The parties did not undertake a formal engagement, but assumed that the match would take place in due time.Waller, pp. 363–364; Weintraub, pp. 53, 58, 64, and 65
Accession and early reign
alt=Drawing of Conyngham and Howley on their knees in front of Victoria|thumb|left|Victoria receives the news of her accession from Lord Conyngham (bowing) and the Archbishop Howley (right). Painting by Henry Tanworth Wells, 1887.
Victoria turned 18 on 24 May 1837, and a regency was avoided. Less than a month later, on 20 June 1837, William IV died at the age of 71, and Victoria became Queen of the United Kingdom. In her diary she wrote, "I was awoke at 6 o'clock by Mamma, who told me the Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord Conyngham were here and wished to see me. I got out of bed and went into my sitting-room (only in my dressing gown) and alone, and saw them. Lord Conyngham then acquainted me that my poor Uncle, the King, was no more, and had expired at 12 minutes past 2 this morning, and consequently that I am Queen."St Aubyn, pp. 55–57; Woodham-Smith, p. 138 Official documents prepared on the first day of her reign described her as Alexandrina Victoria, but the first name was withdrawn at her own wish and not used again.Woodham-Smith, p. 140
Since 1714, Britain had shared a monarch with Hanover in Germany, but under Salic law, women were excluded from the Hanoverian succession. While Victoria inherited the British throne, her father's unpopular younger brother, Ernest Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, became King of Hanover. He was Victoria's heir presumptive until she had a child.Packard, pp. 14–15
thumb|right|alt=Victoria wears her crown and holds a sceptre.|Coronation portrait by George Hayter
At the time of Victoria's accession, the government was led by the Whig prime minister Lord Melbourne. He at once became a powerful influence on the politically inexperienced monarch, who relied on him for advice.Hibbert, pp. 66–69; St Aubyn, p. 76; Woodham-Smith, pp. 143–147 Charles Greville supposed that the widowed and childless Melbourne was "passionately fond of her as he might be of his daughter if he had one", and Victoria probably saw him as a father figure.Greville quoted in Hibbert, p. 67; Longford, p. 70 and Woodham-Smith, pp. 143–144 Her coronation took place on 28 June 1838 at Westminster Abbey. Over 400,000 visitors came to London for the celebrations. She became the first sovereign to take up residence at Buckingham PalaceSt Aubyn, p. 69; Waller, p. 353 and inherited the revenues of the duchies of Lancaster and Cornwall as well as being granted a civil list allowance of £385,000 per year. Financially prudent, she paid off her father's debts.Hibbert, p. 58; Longford, pp. 73–74; Woodham-Smith, p. 152
At the start of her reign Victoria was popular,Marshall, p. 42; St Aubyn, pp. 63, 96 but her reputation suffered in an 1839 court intrigue when one of her mother's ladies-in-waiting, Lady Flora Hastings, developed an abdominal growth that was widely rumoured to be an out-of-wedlock pregnancy by Sir John Conroy.Marshall, p. 47; Waller, p. 356; Woodham-Smith, pp. 164–166 Victoria believed the rumours.Hibbert, pp. 77–78; Longford, p. 97; St Aubyn, p. 97; Waller, p. 357; Woodham-Smith, p. 164 She hated Conroy, and despised "that odious Lady Flora",Victoria's journal, 25 April 1838, quoted in Woodham-Smith, p. 162 because she had conspired with Conroy and the Duchess in the Kensington System.St Aubyn, p. 96; Woodham-Smith, pp. 162, 165 At first, Lady Flora refused to submit to an intimate medical examination, until in mid-February she eventually acquiesced, and was found to be a virgin.Hibbert, p. 79; Longford, p. 98; St Aubyn, p. 99; Woodham-Smith, p. 167 Conroy, the Hastings family, and the opposition Tories organised a press campaign implicating the Queen in the spreading of false rumours about Lady Flora.Hibbert, pp. 80–81; Longford, pp. 102–103; St Aubyn, pp. 101–102 When Lady Flora died in July, the post-mortem revealed a large tumour on her liver that had distended her abdomen.Longford, p. 122; Marshall, p. 57; St Aubyn, p. 104; Woodham-Smith, p. 180 At public appearances, Victoria was hissed and jeered at as "Mrs. Melbourne".Hibbert, p. 83; Longford, pp. 120–121; Marshall, p. 57; St Aubyn, p. 105; Waller, p. 358
In 1839, Melbourne resigned after Radicals and Tories (both of whom Victoria detested) voted against a bill to suspend the constitution of Jamaica. The bill removed political power from plantation owners who were resisting measures associated with the abolition of slavery.St Aubyn, p. 107; Woodham-Smith, p. 169 The Queen commissioned a Tory, Robert Peel, to form a new ministry. At the time, it was customary for the prime minister to appoint members of the Royal Household, who were usually his political allies and their spouses. Many of the Queen's ladies of the bedchamber were wives of Whigs, and Peel expected to replace them with wives of Tories. In what became known as the "bedchamber crisis", Victoria, advised by Melbourne, objected to their removal. Peel refused to govern under the restrictions imposed by the Queen, and consequently resigned his commission, allowing Melbourne to return to office.Hibbert, pp. 94–96; Marshall, pp. 53–57; St Aubyn, pp. 109–112; Waller, pp. 359–361; Woodham-Smith, pp. 170–174
Marriage and public life
upright=1.4|alt=Painting of a lavish wedding attended by richly dressed people in a magnificent room|thumb|Marriage of Victoria and Albert, painted by George Hayter
Although Victoria was now queen, as an unmarried young woman she was required by social convention to live with her mother, despite their differences over the Kensington System and her mother's continued reliance on Conroy.Longford, p. 84; Marshall, p. 52 The duchess was consigned to a remote apartment in Buckingham Palace, and Victoria often refused to see her.Longford, p. 72; Waller, p. 353 When Victoria complained to Melbourne that her mother's proximity promised "torment for many years", Melbourne sympathised but said it could be avoided by marriage, which Victoria called a "schocking alternative".Woodham-Smith, p. 175 Victoria showed interest in Albert's education for the future role he would have to play as her husband, but she resisted attempts to rush her into wedlock.Hibbert, pp. 103–104; Marshall, pp. 60–66; Weintraub, p. 62
Victoria continued to praise Albert following his second visit in October 1839. They felt mutual affection and the queen proposed to him on 15 October 1839, just five days after he had arrived at Windsor.Hibbert, pp. 107–110; St Aubyn, pp. 129–132; Weintraub, pp. 77–81; Woodham-Smith, pp. 182–184, 187 They were married on 10 February 1840, in the Chapel Royal of St James's Palace, London. Victoria was love-struck. She spent the evening after their wedding lying down with a headache, but wrote ecstatically in her diary:
Albert became an important political adviser as well as the queen's companion, replacing Melbourne as the dominant influential figure in the first half of her life.St Aubyn, p. 151 Victoria's mother was evicted from the palace, to Ingestre House in Belgrave Square. After the death of Victoria's aunt Princess Augusta in 1840, the duchess was given both Clarence House and Frogmore House.Hibbert, p. 265, Woodham-Smith, p. 256 Through Albert's mediation, relations between mother and daughter slowly improved.Marshall, p. 152; St Aubyn, pp. 174–175; Woodham-Smith, p. 412
upright=1.4|thumb|Contemporary lithograph of Edward Oxford's attempt to assassinate Victoria, 1840
During Victoria's first pregnancy in 1840, in the first few months of the marriage, 18-year-old Edward Oxford attempted to assassinate her while she was riding in a carriage with Prince Albert on her way to visit her mother. Oxford fired twice, but either both bullets missed or, as he later claimed, the guns had no shot.Charles, p. 23 He was tried for high treason, found not guilty by reason of insanity, committed to an insane asylum indefinitely, and later sent to live in Australia.Hibbert, pp. 421–422; St Aubyn, pp. 160–161 In the immediate aftermath of the attack, Victoria's popularity soared, mitigating residual discontent over the Hastings affair and the bedchamber crisis.Woodham-Smith, p. 213 Her daughter, also named Victoria, was born on 21 November 1840. The queen hated being pregnant,Hibbert, p. 130; Longford, p. 154; Marshall, p. 122; St Aubyn, p. 159; Woodham-Smith, p. 220 viewed breast-feeding with disgust,Hibbert, p. 149; St Aubyn, p. 169 and thought newborn babies were ugly.Hibbert, p. 149; Longford, p. 154; Marshall, p. 123; Waller, p. 377 Nevertheless, over the following seventeen years, she and Albert had a further eight children: Albert Edward, Alice, Alfred, Helena, Louise, Arthur, Leopold and Beatrice.
The household was largely run by Victoria's childhood governess, Baroness Louise Lehzen from Hanover. Lehzen had been a formative influence on VictoriaWoodham-Smith, p. 100 and had supported her against the Kensington System.Longford, p. 56; St Aubyn, p. 29 Albert, however, thought that Lehzen was incompetent and that her mismanagement threatened his daughter Victoria's health. After a furious row between Victoria and Albert over the issue, Lehzen was pensioned off in 1842, and Victoria's close relationship with her ended.Hibbert, pp. 150–156; Marshall, p. 87; St Aubyn, pp. 171–173; Woodham-Smith, pp. 230–232
thumb|left|upright|Portrait by Franz Xaver Winterhalter, 1843
On 29 May 1842, Victoria was riding in a carriage along The Mall, London, when John Francis aimed a pistol at her, but the gun did not fire. The assailant escaped; the following day, Victoria drove the same route, though faster and with a greater escort, in a deliberate attempt to bait Francis into taking a second aim and catch him in the act. As expected, Francis shot at her, but he was seized by plainclothes policemen, and convicted of high treason. On 3 July, two days after Francis's death sentence was commuted to transportation for life, John William Bean also tried to fire a pistol at the queen, but it was loaded only with paper and tobacco and had too little charge.Charles, p. 51; Hibbert, pp. 422–423; St Aubyn, pp. 162–163 Edward Oxford felt that the attempts were encouraged by his acquittal in 1840.Hibbert, p. 423; St Aubyn, p. 163 Bean was sentenced to 18 months in jail. In a similar attack in 1849, unemployed Irishman William Hamilton fired a powder-filled pistol at Victoria's carriage as it passed along Constitution Hill, London.Longford, p. 192 In 1850, the queen did sustain injury when she was assaulted by a possibly insane ex-army officer, Robert Pate. As Victoria was riding in a carriage, Pate struck her with his cane, crushing her bonnet and bruising her forehead. Both Hamilton and Pate were sentenced to seven years' transportation.St Aubyn, p. 164
Melbourne's support in the House of Commons weakened through the early years of Victoria's reign, and in the 1841 general election the Whigs were defeated. Peel became prime minister, and the ladies of the bedchamber most associated with the Whigs were replaced.Marshall, pp. 95–101; St Aubyn, pp. 153–155; Woodham-Smith, pp. 221–222
alt=Victoria cuddling her daughter next to her|thumb|upright|Earliest known photograph of the Queen, here with her eldest daughter, Princess Victoria,
In 1845, Ireland was hit by a potato blight.Woodham-Smith, p. 281 In the next four years, over a million Irish people died and another million emigrated in what became known as the Great Famine.Longford, p. 359 In Ireland, Victoria was labelled "The Famine Queen".The title of Maud Gonne's 1900 article upon Queen Victoria's visit to Ireland In January 1847 she personally donated £2,000 (equivalent to between £230,000 and £8.5million in 2022) to the British Relief Association, more than any other individual famine relief donor, and supported the Maynooth Grant to a Roman Catholic seminary in Ireland, despite Protestant opposition.Longford, p. 181 The story that she donated only £5 in aid to the Irish, and on the same day gave the same amount to Battersea Dogs Home, was a myth generated towards the end of the 19th century.
By 1846, Peel's ministry faced a crisis involving the repeal of the Corn Laws. Many Tories—by then known also as Conservatives—were opposed to the repeal, but Peel, some Tories (the free-trade oriented liberal conservative "Peelites"), most Whigs and Victoria supported it. Peel resigned in 1846, after the repeal narrowly passed, and was replaced by Lord John Russell.St Aubyn, p. 215
Year Prime Minister (party)1835Viscount Melbourne (Whig)1841Sir Robert Peel (Conservative)1846Lord John Russell (Whig)1852 (February)Earl of Derby (Conservative)1852 (December)Earl of Aberdeen (Peelite)1855Viscount Palmerston (Liberal)1858Earl of Derby (Conservative)1859Viscount Palmerston (Liberal)1865Earl Russell, Lord John Russell (Liberal)1866Earl of Derby (Conservative)1868 (February)Benjamin Disraeli (Conservative)1868 (December)William Gladstone (Liberal)1874Benjamin Disraeli, Lord Beaconsfield (Conservative)1880William Gladstone (Liberal)1885Marquess of Salisbury (Conservative)1886 (February)William Gladstone (Liberal)1886 (July)Marquess of Salisbury (Conservative)1892William Gladstone (Liberal)1894Earl of Rosebery (Liberal)1895Marquess of Salisbury (Conservative)
Internationally, Victoria took a keen interest in the improvement of relations between France and Britain.St Aubyn, p. 238 She made and hosted several visits between the British royal family and the House of Orleans, who were related by marriage through the Coburgs. In 1843 and 1845, she and Albert stayed with King Louis Philippe I at Château d'Eu in Normandy; she was the first British or English monarch to visit a French monarch since the meeting of Henry VIII of England and Francis I of France on the Field of the Cloth of Gold in 1520.Longford, pp. 175, 187; St Aubyn, pp. 238, 241; Woodham-Smith, pp. 242, 250 When Louis Philippe made a reciprocal trip in 1844, he became the first French king to visit a British sovereign.Woodham-Smith, p. 248 Louis Philippe was deposed in the revolutions of 1848, and fled to exile in England.Hibbert, p. 198; Longford, p. 194; St Aubyn, p. 243; Woodham-Smith, pp. 282–284 At the height of a revolutionary scare in the United Kingdom in April 1848, Victoria and her family left London for the greater safety of Osborne House,Hibbert, pp. 201–202; Marshall, p. 139; St Aubyn, pp. 222–223; Woodham-Smith, pp. 287–290 a private estate on the Isle of Wight that they had purchased in 1845 and redeveloped.Hibbert, pp. 161–164; Marshall, p. 129; St Aubyn, pp. 186–190; Woodham-Smith, pp. 274–276 Demonstrations by Chartists and Irish nationalists failed to attract widespread support, and the scare died down without any major disturbances.Longford, pp. 196–197; St Aubyn, p. 223; Woodham-Smith, pp. 287–290 Victoria's first visit to Ireland in 1849 was a public relations success, but it had no lasting impact or effect on the growth of Irish nationalism.Longford, p. 191; Woodham-Smith, p. 297
Russell's ministry, though Whig, was not favoured by the queen.St Aubyn, p. 216 She found particularly offensive the Foreign Secretary, Lord Palmerston, who often acted without consulting the cabinet, the prime minister, or the queen.Hibbert, pp. 196–198; St Aubyn, p. 244; Woodham-Smith, pp. 298–307 Victoria complained to Russell that Palmerston sent official dispatches to foreign leaders without her knowledge, but Palmerston was retained in office and continued to act on his own initiative, despite her repeated remonstrances. It was only in 1851 that Palmerston was removed after he announced the British government's approval of President Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte's coup in France without consulting the prime minister.Hibbert, pp. 204–209; Marshall, pp. 108–109; St Aubyn, pp. 244–254; Woodham-Smith, pp. 298–307 The following year, President Bonaparte was declared Emperor Napoleon III, by which time Russell's administration had been replaced by a short-lived minority government led by Lord Derby.St Aubyn, pp. 255, 298
alt=Victoria, dressed in black, is seated and holding her infant daughter. Prince Albert and their other children stand around her.|thumb|upright=1.8|Albert, Victoria and their nine children, 1857. Left to right: Alice, Arthur, Prince Albert, Albert Edward, Leopold, Louise, Queen Victoria with Beatrice, Alfred, Victoria, and Helena
In 1853, Victoria gave birth to her eighth child, Leopold, with the aid of the new anaesthetic, chloroform. She was so impressed by the relief it gave from the pain of childbirth that she used it again in 1857 at the birth of her ninth and final child, Beatrice, despite opposition from members of the clergy, who considered it against biblical teaching, and members of the medical profession, who thought it dangerous.Hibbert, pp. 216–217; St Aubyn, pp. 257–258 Victoria may have had postnatal depression after many of her pregnancies. Letters from Albert to Victoria intermittently complain of her loss of self-control. For example, about a month after Leopold's birth Albert complained in a letter to Victoria about her "continuance of hysterics" over a "miserable trifle".Hibbert, pp. 217–220; Woodham-Smith, pp. 328–331
In early 1855, the government of Lord Aberdeen, who had replaced Derby, fell amidst recriminations over the poor management of British troops in the Crimean War. Victoria approached both Derby and Russell to form a ministry, but neither had sufficient support, and Victoria was forced to appoint Palmerston as prime minister.Hibbert, pp. 227–228; Longford, pp. 245–246; St Aubyn, p. 297; Woodham-Smith, pp. 354–355
Napoleon III, Britain's closest ally as a result of the Crimean War, visited London in April 1855, and from 17 to 28 August the same year Victoria and Albert returned the visit.Woodham-Smith, pp. 357–360 Napoleon III met the couple at Boulogne and accompanied them to Paris. They visited the (a successor to Albert's 1851 brainchild the Great Exhibition) and Napoleon I's tomb at Les Invalides (to which his remains had only been returned in 1840), and were guests of honour at a 1,200-guest ball at the Palace of Versailles. This marked the first time that a reigning British monarch had been to Paris in over 400 years.
thumb|upright|Portrait by Winterhalter, 1859
On 14 January 1858, an Italian refugee from Britain called Felice Orsini attempted to assassinate Napoleon III with a bomb made in England.Hibbert, pp. 241–242; Longford, pp. 280–281; St Aubyn, p. 304; Woodham-Smith, p. 391 The ensuing diplomatic crisis destabilised the government, and Palmerston resigned. Derby was reinstated as prime minister.Hibbert, p. 242; Longford, p. 281; Marshall, p. 117 Victoria and Albert attended the opening of a new basin at the French military port of Cherbourg on 5 August 1858, in an attempt by Napoleon III to reassure Britain that his military preparations were directed elsewhere. On her return Victoria wrote to Derby reprimanding him for the poor state of the Royal Navy in comparison to the French Navy. Derby's ministry did not last long, and in June 1859 Victoria recalled Palmerston to office.Hibbert, p. 255; Marshall, p. 117
Eleven days after Orsini's assassination attempt in France, Victoria's eldest daughter married Prince Frederick William of Prussia in London. They had been betrothed since September 1855, when Princess Victoria was 14 years old; the marriage was delayed by the queen and her husband Albert until the bride was 17.Longford, pp. 259–260; Weintraub, pp. 326 ff. The queen and Albert hoped that their daughter and son-in-law would be a liberalising influence in the enlarging Prussian state.Longford, p. 263; Weintraub, pp. 326, 330 The queen felt "sick at heart" to see her daughter leave England for Germany; "It really makes me shudder", she wrote to Princess Victoria in one of her frequent letters, "when I look round to all your sweet, happy, unconscious sisters, and think I must give them up too – one by one."Hibbert, p. 244 Almost exactly a year later, the Princess gave birth to the queen's first grandchild, Wilhelm, who would become the last German emperor.
Widowhood and isolation
thumb|left|upright|Photograph by J. J. E. Mayall, 1860
In March 1861, Victoria's mother died, with Victoria at her side. Through reading her mother's papers, Victoria discovered that her mother had loved her deeply;Hibbert, p. 267; Longford, pp. 118, 290; St Aubyn, p. 319; Woodham-Smith, p. 412 she was heart-broken, and blamed Conroy and Lehzen for "wickedly" estranging her from her mother.Hibbert, p. 267; Marshall, p. 152; Woodham-Smith, p. 412 To relieve his wife during her intense and deep grief,Hibbert, pp. 265–267; St Aubyn, p. 318; Woodham-Smith, pp. 412–413 Albert took on most of her duties, despite being ill himself with chronic stomach trouble.Waller, p. 393; Weintraub, p. 401 In August, Victoria and Albert visited their son, Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, who was attending army manoeuvres near Dublin, and spent a few days holidaying in Killarney. In November, Albert was made aware of gossip that his son had slept with an actress in Ireland.Hibbert, p. 274; Longford, p. 293; St Aubyn, p. 324; Woodham-Smith, p. 417 Appalled, he travelled to Cambridge, where his son was studying, to confront him.Longford, p. 293; Marshall, p. 153; Strachey, p. 214
By the beginning of December, Albert was very unwell.Hibbert, pp. 276–279; St Aubyn, p. 325; Woodham-Smith, pp. 422–423 He was diagnosed with typhoid fever by William Jenner, and died on 14 December 1861. Victoria was devastated.Hibbert, pp. 280–292; Marshall, p. 154 She blamed her husband's death on worry over the Prince of Wales's philandering. He had been "killed by that dreadful business", she said.Hibbert, p. 299; St Aubyn, p. 346 She entered a state of mourning and wore black for the remainder of her life. She avoided public appearances and rarely set foot in London in the following years.St Aubyn, p. 343 Her seclusion earned her the nickname "widow of Windsor".e.g. Strachey, p. 306 Her weight increased through comfort eating, which reinforced her aversion to public appearances.
Victoria's self-imposed isolation from the public diminished the popularity of the monarchy, and encouraged the growth of the republican movement.Marshall, pp. 170–172; St Aubyn, p. 385 She did undertake her official government duties, yet chose to remain secluded in her royal residences—Windsor Castle, Osborne House, and the private estate in Scotland that she and Albert had acquired in 1847, Balmoral Castle. In March 1864, a protester stuck a notice on the railings of Buckingham Palace that announced "these commanding premises to be let or sold in consequence of the late occupant's declining business".Hibbert, p. 310; Longford, p. 321; St Aubyn, pp. 343–344; Waller, p. 404 Her uncle Leopold wrote to her advising her to appear in public. She agreed to visit the gardens of the Royal Horticultural Society at Kensington and take a drive through London in an open carriage.Hibbert, p. 310; Longford, p. 322
thumb|upright|alt=Victoria on a horse|With John Brown at Balmoral, 1863. Photograph by G. W. Wilson
Through the 1860s, Victoria relied increasingly on a manservant from Scotland, John Brown.Hibbert, pp. 323–324; Marshall, pp. 168–169; St Aubyn, pp. 356–362 Rumours of a romantic connection and even a secret marriage appeared in print, and some referred to the Queen as "Mrs. Brown".Hibbert, pp. 321–322; Longford, pp. 327–328; Marshall, p. 170 The story of their relationship was the subject of the 1997 movie Mrs. Brown. A painting by Sir Edwin Henry Landseer depicting the Queen with Brown was exhibited at the Royal Academy, and Victoria published a book, Leaves from the Journal of Our Life in the Highlands, which featured Brown prominently and in which the Queen praised him highly.Hibbert, p. 329; St Aubyn, pp. 361–362
Palmerston died in 1865, and after a brief ministry led by Russell, Derby returned to power. In 1866, Victoria attended the State Opening of Parliament for the first time since Albert's death.Hibbert, pp. 311–312; Longford, p. 347; St Aubyn, p. 369 The following year she supported the passing of the Reform Act 1867 which doubled the electorate by extending the franchise to many urban working men,St Aubyn, pp. 374–375 though she was not in favour of votes for women.Marshall, p. 199; Strachey, p. 299 Derby resigned in 1868, to be replaced by Benjamin Disraeli, who charmed Victoria. "Everyone likes flattery," he said, "and when you come to royalty you should lay it on with a trowel."Hibbert, p. 318; Longford, p. 401; St Aubyn, p. 427; Strachey, p. 254 With the phrase "we authors, Ma'am", he complimented her.Buckle, George Earle; Monypenny, W. F. (1910–1920) The Life of Benjamin Disraeli, Earl of Beaconsfield, vol. 5, p. 49, quoted in Strachey, p. 243 Disraeli's ministry only lasted a matter of months, and at the end of the year his Liberal rival, William Ewart Gladstone, was appointed prime minister. Victoria found Gladstone's demeanour far less appealing; he spoke to her, she is thought to have complained, as though she were "a public meeting rather than a woman".Hibbert, p. 320; Strachey, pp. 246–247
In 1870 republican sentiment in Britain, fed by the Queen's seclusion, was boosted after the establishment of the Third French Republic.Longford, p. 381; St Aubyn, pp. 385–386; Strachey, p. 248 A republican rally in Trafalgar Square demanded Victoria's removal, and Radical MPs spoke against her.St Aubyn, pp. 385–386; Strachey, pp. 248–250 In August and September 1871, she was seriously ill with an abscess in her arm, which Joseph Lister successfully lanced and treated with his new antiseptic carbolic acid spray.Longford, p. 385 In late November 1871, at the height of the republican movement, the Prince of Wales contracted typhoid fever, the disease that was believed to have killed his father, and Victoria was fearful her son would die.Hibbert, p. 343 As the tenth anniversary of her husband's death approached, her son's condition grew no better, and Victoria's distress continued.Hibbert, pp. 343–344; Longford, p. 389; Marshall, p. 173 To general rejoicing, he recovered.Hibbert, pp. 344–345 Mother and son attended a public parade through London and a grand service of thanksgiving in St Paul's Cathedral on 27 February 1872, and republican feeling subsided.Hibbert, p. 345; Longford, pp. 390–391; Marshall, p. 176; St Aubyn, p. 388
On the last day of February 1872, two days after the thanksgiving service, 17-year-old Arthur O'Connor, a great-nephew of Irish MP Feargus O'Connor, waved an unloaded pistol at Victoria's open carriage just after she had arrived at Buckingham Palace. Brown, who was attending the Queen, grabbed him and O'Connor was later sentenced to 12 months' imprisonment,Charles, p. 103; Hibbert, pp. 426–427; St Aubyn, pp. 388–389 and a birching. As a result of the incident, Victoria's popularity recovered further.Hibbert, p. 427; Marshall, p. 176; St Aubyn, p. 389
Empress of India
After the Indian Rebellion of 1857, the British East India Company, which had ruled much of India, was dissolved, and Britain's possessions and protectorates on the Indian subcontinent were formally incorporated into the British Empire. The Queen had a relatively balanced view of the conflict, and condemned atrocities on both sides.Hibbert, pp. 249–250; Woodham-Smith, pp. 384–385 She wrote of "her feelings of horror and regret at the result of this bloody civil war",Woodham-Smith, p. 386 and insisted, urged on by Albert, that an official proclamation announcing the transfer of power from the company to the state "should breathe feelings of generosity, benevolence and religious toleration".Hibbert, p. 251; Woodham-Smith, p. 386 At her behest, a reference threatening the "undermining of native religions and customs" was replaced by a passage guaranteeing religious freedom.
thumb|upright=0.85|Victoria admired Heinrich von Angeli's 1875 portrait of her for its "honesty, total want of flattery, and appreciation of character".St Aubyn, p. 335
In the 1874 general election, Disraeli was returned to power. He passed the Public Worship Regulation Act 1874, which removed Catholic rituals from the Anglican liturgy and which Victoria strongly supported.Hibbert, p. 361; Longford, p. 402; Marshall, pp. 180–184; Waller, p. 423 She preferred short, simple services, and personally considered herself more aligned with the presbyterian Church of Scotland than the episcopal Church of England.Hibbert, pp. 295–296; Waller, p. 423 Disraeli also pushed the Royal Titles Act 1876 through Parliament, so that Victoria took the title "Empress of India" from 1 May 1876.Hibbert, p. 361; Longford, pp. 405–406; Marshall, p. 184; St Aubyn, p. 434; Waller, p. 426 The new title was proclaimed at the Delhi Durbar of 1 January 1877.Waller, p. 427
On 14 December 1878, the anniversary of Albert's death, Victoria's second daughter Alice, who had married Louis of Hesse, died of diphtheria in Darmstadt. Victoria noted the coincidence of the dates as "almost incredible and most mysterious".Victoria's diary and letters quoted in Longford, p. 425 In May 1879, she became a great-grandmother (on the birth of Princess Feodora of Saxe-Meiningen) and passed her "poor old 60th birthday". She felt "aged" by "the loss of my beloved child".Victoria quoted in Longford, p. 426
Between April 1877 and February 1878, she threatened five times to abdicate while pressuring Disraeli to act against Russia during the Russo-Turkish War, but her threats had no impact on the events or their conclusion with the Congress of Berlin.Longford, pp. 412–413 Disraeli's expansionist foreign policy, which Victoria endorsed, led to conflicts such as the Anglo-Zulu War and the Second Anglo-Afghan War. "If we are to maintain our position as a first-rate Power", she wrote, "we must ... be Prepared for attacks and wars, somewhere or other, CONTINUALLY."Longford, p. 426 Victoria saw the expansion of the British Empire as civilising and benign, protecting native peoples from more aggressive powers or cruel rulers: "It is not in our custom to annexe countries", she said, "unless we are obliged & forced to do so."Longford, p. 411 To Victoria's dismay, Disraeli lost the 1880 general election, and Gladstone returned as prime minister.Hibbert, pp. 367–368; Longford, p. 429; Marshall, p. 186; St Aubyn, pp. 442–444; Waller, pp. 428–429 When Disraeli died the following year, she was blinded by "fast falling tears",Letter from Victoria to Montagu Corry, 1st Baron Rowton, quoted in Hibbert, p. 369 and erected a memorial tablet "placed by his grateful Sovereign and Friend, Victoria R.I."Longford, p. 437
thumb|upright|Victorian farthing, 1884
On 2 March 1882, Roderick Maclean, a disgruntled poet apparently offended by Victoria's refusal to accept one of his poems,Hibbert, p. 420; St Aubyn, p. 422 shot at the Queen as her carriage left Windsor railway station. Gordon Chesney Wilson and another schoolboy from Eton College struck him with their umbrellas, until he was hustled away by a policeman.Hibbert, p. 420; St Aubyn, p. 421 Victoria was outraged when he was found not guilty by reason of insanity,Hibbert, pp. 420–421; St Aubyn, p. 422; Strachey, p. 278 but was so pleased by the many expressions of loyalty after the attack that she said it was "worth being shot at—to see how much one is loved".Hibbert, p. 427; Longford, p. 446; St Aubyn, p. 421
On 17 March 1883, Victoria fell down some stairs at Windsor, which left her lame until July; she never fully recovered and was plagued with rheumatism thereafter.Longford, pp. 451–452 John Brown died 10 days after her accident, and to the consternation of her private secretary, Sir Henry Ponsonby, Victoria began work on a eulogistic biography of Brown.Longford, p. 454; St Aubyn, p. 425; Hibbert, p. 443 Ponsonby and Randall Davidson, Dean of Windsor, who had both seen early drafts, advised Victoria against publication, on the grounds that it would stoke the rumours of a love affair.Hibbert, pp. 443–444; St Aubyn, pp. 425–426 The manuscript was destroyed.Hibbert, pp. 443–444; Longford, p. 455 In early 1884, Victoria did publish More Leaves from a Journal of a Life in the Highlands, a sequel to her earlier book, which she dedicated to her "devoted personal attendant and faithful friend John Brown".Hibbert, p. 444; St Aubyn, p. 424; Waller, p. 413 On the day after the first anniversary of Brown's death, Victoria was informed by telegram that her youngest son, Leopold, had died in Cannes. He was "the dearest of my dear sons", she lamented.Longford, p. 461 The following month, Victoria's youngest child, Beatrice, met and fell in love with Prince Henry of Battenberg at the wedding of Victoria's granddaughter Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine to Henry's brother Prince Louis of Battenberg. Beatrice and Henry planned to marry, but Victoria opposed the match at first, wishing to keep Beatrice at home to act as her companion. After a year, she was won around to the marriage by their promise to remain living with and attending her.Longford, pp. 477–478
thumb|upright=1.3|Extent of the British Empire in 1898
Victoria was pleased when Gladstone resigned in 1885 after his budget was defeated.Hibbert, p. 373; St Aubyn, p. 458 She thought his government was "the worst I have ever had", and blamed him for the death of General Gordon during the Siege of Khartoum.Waller, p. 433; see also Hibbert, pp. 370–371 and Marshall, pp. 191–193 Gladstone was replaced by Lord Salisbury. Salisbury's government only lasted a few months, however, and Victoria was forced to recall Gladstone, whom she referred to as a "half crazy & really in many ways ridiculous old man".Hibbert, p. 373; Longford, p. 484 Gladstone attempted to pass a bill granting Ireland home rule, but to Victoria's glee it was defeated.Hibbert, p. 374; Longford, p. 491; Marshall, p. 196; St Aubyn, pp. 460–461 In the ensuing election, Gladstone's party lost to Salisbury's and the government switched hands again.St Aubyn, pp. 460–461
Golden and Diamond Jubilees
thumb|left|upright|alt=The Munshi stands over Victoria as she works at a desk.|With the Munshi Abdul Karim
In 1887, the British Empire celebrated Victoria's Golden Jubilee. She marked the fiftieth anniversary of her accession on 20 June with a banquet to which 50 kings and princes were invited. The following day, she participated in a procession and attended a thanksgiving service in Westminster Abbey. By this time, Victoria was once again extremely popular.Marshall, pp. 210–211; St Aubyn, pp. 491–493 Two days later on 23 June,Longford, p. 502 she engaged two Indian Muslims as waiters, one of whom was Abdul Karim. He was soon promoted to "Munshi": teaching her Urdu and acting as a clerk.Hibbert, pp. 447–448; Longford, p. 508; St Aubyn, p. 502; Waller, p. 441 Her family and retainers were appalled, and accused Abdul Karim of spying for the Muslim Patriotic League, and biasing the Queen against the Hindus.Hibbert, pp. 448–449 Equerry Frederick Ponsonby (the son of Sir Henry) discovered that the Munshi had lied about his parentage, and reported to Lord Elgin, Viceroy of India, "the Munshi occupies very much the same position as John Brown used to do."Hibbert, pp. 449–451 Victoria dismissed their complaints as racial prejudice.Hibbert, p. 447; Longford, p. 539; St Aubyn, p. 503; Waller, p. 442 Abdul Karim remained in her service until he returned to India with a pension, on her death.Hibbert, p. 454
Victoria's eldest daughter became empress consort of Germany in 1888, but she was widowed a little over three months later, and Victoria's eldest grandchild became German Emperor as Wilhelm II. Victoria and Albert's hopes of a liberal Germany would go unfulfilled, as Wilhelm was a firm believer in autocracy. Victoria thought he had "little heart or Zartgefühl [tact] – and ... his conscience & intelligence have been completely ".Hibbert, p. 382
Gladstone returned to power after the 1892 general election; he was 82 years old. Victoria objected when Gladstone proposed appointing the Radical MP Henry Labouchère to the Cabinet, so Gladstone agreed not to appoint him.Hibbert, p. 375; Longford, p. 519 In 1894, Gladstone retired and, without consulting the outgoing prime minister, Victoria appointed Lord Rosebery as prime minister.Hibbert, p. 376; Longford, p. 530; St Aubyn, p. 515 His government was weak, and the following year Lord Salisbury replaced him. Salisbury remained prime minister for the remainder of Victoria's reign.Hibbert, p. 377thumb|upright|alt=Seated Victoria in embroidered and lace dress|Official Diamond Jubilee photograph by W. & D. Downey
On 23 September 1896, Victoria surpassed her grandfather George III as the longest-reigning monarch in British history. The Queen requested that any special celebrations be delayed until 1897, to coincide with her Diamond Jubilee,Hibbert, p. 456 which was made a festival of the British Empire at the suggestion of the Colonial Secretary, Joseph Chamberlain.Longford, p. 546; St Aubyn, pp. 545–546 The prime ministers of all the self-governing Dominions were invited to London for the festivities.Marshall, pp. 206–207, 211; St Aubyn, pp. 546–548 One reason for including the prime ministers of the Dominions and excluding foreign heads of state was to avoid having to invite Victoria's grandson Wilhelm II, who, it was feared, might cause trouble at the event.
The Queen's Diamond Jubilee procession on 22 June 1897 followed a route six miles long through London and included troops from all over the empire. The procession paused for an open-air service of thanksgiving held outside St Paul's Cathedral, throughout which Victoria sat in her open carriage, to avoid her having to climb the steps to enter the building. The celebration was marked by vast crowds of spectators and great outpourings of affection for the 78-year-old Queen.Hibbert, pp. 457–458; Marshall, pp. 206–207, 211; St Aubyn, pp. 546–548
Declining health and death
thumb|upright|Queen Victoria in Dublin, 1900
Victoria regularly holidayed in mainland Europe. In 1889, during a stay in Biarritz, she became the first reigning monarch from Britain to visit Spain by briefly crossing the border.Hibbert, p. 436; St Aubyn, p. 508 By April 1900, the Boer War was so unpopular in mainland Europe that her annual trip to France seemed inadvisable. Instead, the Queen went to Ireland for the first time since 1861, in part to acknowledge the contribution of Irish regiments to the South African war.Hibbert, pp. 437–438; Longford, pp. 554–555; St Aubyn, p. 555
thumb|left|upright|Portrait by Heinrich von Angeli, 1899
In July 1900, Victoria's second son, Alfred ("Affie"), died. "Oh, God! My poor darling Affie gone too", she wrote in her journal. "It is a horrible year, nothing but sadness & horrors of one kind & another."Longford, p. 558
Following a custom she maintained throughout her widowhood, Victoria spent the Christmas of 1900 at Osborne House on the Isle of Wight. Rheumatism in her legs had rendered her disabled, and her eyesight was clouded by cataracts.Hibbert, pp. 464–466, 488–489; Strachey, p. 308; Waller, p. 442 Through early January, she felt "weak and unwell",Victoria's journal, 1 January 1901, quoted in Hibbert, p. 492; Longford, p. 559 and St Aubyn, p. 592 and by mid-January she was "drowsy[...] dazed, [and] confused".Her personal physician Sir James Reid, 1st Baronet, quoted in Hibbert, p. 492 Her favourite pet Pomeranian, Turi, was laid on her bed as a last request. She died aged 81 on 22 January 1901, at half past six in the evening, in the presence of her eldest son, Albert Edward, and grandson Wilhelm II. Albert Edward immediately succeeded as Edward VII.Longford, pp. 561–562; St Aubyn, p. 598
thumb|upright|Poster proclaiming a day of mourning in Toronto on the day of Victoria's funeral
In 1897, Victoria had written instructions for her funeral, which was to be military as befitting a soldier's daughter and the head of the army, and white instead of black.Hibbert, p. 497; Longford, p. 563 On 25 January, Edward VII and Wilhelm II, together with Prince Arthur, helped lift her body into the coffin.St Aubyn, p. 598 She was dressed in a white dress and her wedding veil.Longford, p. 563 An array of mementos commemorating her extended family, friends and servants were laid in the coffin with her, at her request, by her physician and dressers. One of Albert's dressing gowns was placed by her side, with a plaster cast of his hand, while a lock of John Brown's hair, along with a picture of him, was placed in her left hand concealed from the view of the family by a carefully positioned bunch of flowers.Hibbert, p. 498 Items of jewellery placed on Victoria included the wedding ring of Brown's mother, which Brown gave Victoria in 1883. Her funeral was held on Saturday 2 February, in St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, and after two days of lying-in-state, she was interred beside Prince Albert in the Royal Mausoleum, Frogmore, at Windsor Great Park.Longford, p. 565; St Aubyn, p. 600
With a reign of 63 years, seven months, and two days, Victoria was the longest-reigning British monarch and the longest-reigning queen regnant in world history, until her great-great-granddaughter Elizabeth II surpassed her on 9 September 2015. She was the last monarch of Britain from the House of Hanover; her son Edward VII belonged to her husband's House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.
Legacy
Reputation
thumb|left|alt=Victoria smiling|Victoria amused. The remark "We are not amused" is attributed to her but there is no direct evidence that she ever said it,Fulford, Roger (1967) "Victoria", Collier's Encyclopedia, United States: Crowell, Collier and Macmillan Inc., vol. 23, p. 127 and she denied doing so.Ashley, Mike (1998) British Monarchs, London: Robinson, , p. 690 Her staff and family recorded that Victoria "was immensely amused and roared with laughter" on many occasions.Example from a letter written by lady-in-waiting Marie Mallet née Adeane, quoted in Hibbert, p. 471
According to one of her biographers, Giles St Aubyn, Victoria wrote an average of 2,500 words a day during her adult life.Hibbert, p. xv; St Aubyn, p. 340 From July 1832 until just before her death, she kept a detailed journal, which eventually encompassed 122 volumes.St Aubyn, p. 30; Woodham-Smith, p. 87 After Victoria's death, her youngest daughter, Princess Beatrice, was appointed her literary executor. Beatrice transcribed and edited the diaries covering Victoria's accession onwards, and burned the originals in the process.Hibbert, pp. 503–504; St Aubyn, p. 30; Woodham-Smith, pp. 88, 436–437 Despite this destruction, much of the diaries still exist. In addition to Beatrice's edited copy, Lord Esher transcribed the volumes from 1832 to 1861 before Beatrice destroyed them.Hibbert, p. 503 Part of Victoria's extensive correspondence has been published in volumes edited by A. C. Benson, Hector Bolitho, George Earle Buckle, Lord Esher, Roger Fulford, and Richard Hough among others.Hibbert, pp. 503–504; St Aubyn, p. 624
In her later years, Victoria was stout, dowdy, and about tall, but she projected a grand image.Hibbert, pp. 61–62; Longford, pp. 89, 253; St Aubyn, pp. 48, 63–64 She was unpopular during the first years of her widowhood, but was well liked during the 1880s and 1890s, when she embodied the empire as a benevolent matriarchal figure.Marshall, p. 210; Waller, pp. 419, 434–435, 443 Only after the release of her diary and letters did the extent of her political influence become known to the wider public.Waller, p. 439 Biographies of Victoria written before much of the primary material became available, such as Lytton Strachey's Queen Victoria of 1921, are now considered out of date.St Aubyn, p. 624 The biographies written by Elizabeth Longford and Cecil Woodham-Smith, in 1964 and 1972 respectively, are still widely admired.Hibbert, p. 504; St Aubyn, p. 623 They, and others, conclude that as a person Victoria was emotional, obstinate, honest, and straight-talking.e.g. Hibbert, p. 352; Strachey, p. 304; Woodham-Smith, p. 431
alt=Bronze statue of winged victory mounted on a marble four-sided base with a marble figure on each side|upright|thumb|The Victoria Memorial in front of Buckingham Palace was erected a decade after her death.
Through Victoria's reign, the gradual establishment of a modern constitutional monarchy in Britain continued. Reforms of the voting system increased the power of the House of Commons at the expense of the House of Lords and the monarch.Waller, p. 429 In 1867, Walter Bagehot wrote that the monarch only retained "the right to be consulted, the right to encourage, and the right to warn". As Victoria's monarchy became more symbolic than political, it placed a strong emphasis on morality and family values, in contrast to the sexual, financial and personal scandals that had been associated with previous members of the House of Hanover and which had discredited the monarchy. The concept of the "family monarchy", with which the burgeoning middle classes could identify, was solidified.St Aubyn, pp. 602–603; Strachey, pp. 303–304; Waller, pp. 366, 372, 434
Descendants and haemophilia
Victoria's links with Europe's royal families earned her the nickname "the grandmother of Europe".Erickson, Carolly (1997) Her Little Majesty: The Life of Queen Victoria, New York: Simon & Schuster, Of the grandchildren of Victoria and Albert, 34 survived to adulthood.
thumb|upright=1.3|The Victoria Memorial in Kolkata, India
Victoria's youngest son, Leopold, was affected by the blood-clotting disease haemophilia B and at least two of her five daughters, Alice and Beatrice, were carriers. Royal haemophiliacs descended from Victoria included her great-grandsons, Alexei Nikolaevich, Tsarevich of Russia; Alfonso, Prince of Asturias; and Infante Gonzalo of Spain. The presence of the disease in Victoria's descendants, but not in her ancestors, led to modern speculation that her true father was not the Duke of Kent, but a haemophiliac.Potts and Potts, pp. 55–65, quoted in Hibbert p. 217; Packard, pp. 42–43 There is no documentary evidence of a haemophiliac in connection with Victoria's mother, and as male carriers always had the disease, even if such a man had existed he would have been seriously ill.Jones, Steve (1996) In the Blood, BBC documentary It is more likely that the mutation arose spontaneously because Victoria's father was over 50 at the time of her conception and haemophilia arises more frequently in the children of older fathers.; ; ; Spontaneous mutations account for about a third of cases.
Titles, styles, honours, and arms
Titles and styles
At the end of her reign, the Queen's full style was: "Her Majesty Victoria, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland Queen, Defender of the Faith, Empress of India".
Honours
British honours
Royal Family Order of George IV, 1826
Founder of the Victoria Cross 5 February 1856
Founder and Sovereign of the Order of the Star of India, 25 June 1861
Founder and Sovereign of the Royal Order of Victoria and Albert, 10 February 1862
Founder and Sovereign of the Order of the Crown of India, 1 January 1878
Founder and Sovereign of the Order of the Indian Empire, 1 January 1878
Founder and Sovereign of the Royal Red Cross, 27 April 1883"The Royal Red Cross ". QARANC – Queen Alexandra's Royal Army Nursing Corps. Retrieved 28 November 2019.
Founder and Sovereign of the Distinguished Service Order, 6 November 1886
Albert Medal of the Royal Society of Arts, 1887
Founder and Sovereign of the Royal Victorian Order, 23 April 1896
Foreign honours
Arms
As Sovereign, Victoria used the royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom. As she could not succeed to the throne of Hanover, her arms did not carry the Hanoverian symbols that were used by her immediate predecessors. Her arms have been borne by all of her successors on the throne.
Family
thumb|center|400px|Victoria's family in 1846 by Franz Xaver WinterhalterLeft to right: Prince Alfred and the Prince of Wales; the Queen and Prince Albert; Princesses Alice, Helena and Victoria
Issue
NameBirthDeath Spouse and childrenWhitaker's Almanack (1900) Facsimile Reprint 1998, London: Stationery Office, , p. 86Whitaker's Almanack (1993) Concise Edition, London: J. Whitaker and Sons, , pp. 134–136 Victoria, Princess Royal 1840 21 Nov 1901 5 August Married 1858, Frederick, later German Emperor and King of Prussia (1831–1888);4 sons (including Wilhelm II, German Emperor), 4 daughters (including Queen Sophia of Greece) Edward VII 18419 Nov 19106 May Married 1863, Princess Alexandra of Denmark (1844–1925);3 sons (including King George V of the United Kingdom), 3 daughters (including Queen Maud of Norway) Princess Alice 1843 25 April 1878 14 Dec Married 1862, Louis IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine (1837–1892);2 sons, 5 daughters (including Empress Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia) Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburgand Gotha 18446 August 190031 July Married 1874, Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia (1853–1920);2 sons (1 stillborn), 4 daughters (including Queen Marie of Romania) Princess Helena 184625 May 19239 June Married 1866, Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein (1831–1917);4 sons (1 stillborn), 2 daughters Princess Louise 184818 March 19393 Dec Married 1871, John Campbell, Marquess of Lorne, later 9th Duke of Argyll (1845–1914);no issue Prince Arthur,Duke of Connaught and Strathearn 18501 May 1942 16 Jan Married 1879, Princess Louise Margaret of Prussia (1860–1917);1 son, 2 daughters (including Crown Princess Margaret of Sweden) Prince Leopold,Duke of Albany 18537 April 188428 March Married 1882, Princess Helena of Waldeck and Pyrmont (1861–1922);1 son, 1 daughter Princess Beatrice 185714 April 194426 Oct Married 1885, Prince Henry of Battenberg (1858–1896);3 sons, 1 daughter (Queen Victoria Eugenie of Spain)
Ancestry
Family tree
Red borders indicate British monarchs
Bold borders indicate children of British monarchs
Notes
References
Citations
Bibliography
Primary sources
Further reading
External links
Queen Victoria at the official website of the British monarchy
Queen Victoria at the official website of the Royal Collection Trust
Queen Victoria at BBC Teach
Queen Victoria's Journals, online from the Royal Archive and Bodleian Library
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Grape
|
thumb|upright|Grapes
thumb| "Black" (dark blue) and "white" (light green) table grapes
A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus Vitis. Grapes are a non-climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters.
The cultivation of grapes began approximately 8,000 years ago, and the fruit has been used as human food throughout its history. Eaten fresh or in dried form (as raisins, currants and sultanas), grapes also hold cultural significance in many parts of the world, particularly for their role in winemaking. Other grape-derived products include various types of jam, juice, vinegar and oil.
History
thumb|Grape producing countries in 2020
The Middle East is generally described as the homeland of grapes and the cultivation of this plant began there 6,000–8,000 years ago. Yeast, one of the earliest domesticated microorganisms, occurs naturally on the skins of grapes, leading to the discovery of alcoholic drinks such as wine. The earliest archeological evidence for a dominant position of wine-making in human culture dates from 8,000 years ago in Georgia.Keys, David (2003-12-28) Now that's what you call a real vintage: professor unearths 8,000-year-old wine . archaeology.ws.
The oldest known winery, the Areni-1 winery, was found in Armenia and dated back to around 4000 BC. By the 9th century AD, the city of Shiraz was known to produce some of the finest wines in the Middle East. Thus it has been proposed that Syrah red wine is named after Shiraz, a city in Persia where the grape was used to make Shirazi wine.Hugh Johnson, "The Story of Wine", New Illustrated Edition, pp. 58, 131, Mitchell Beazley 2004, .
Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics record the cultivation of purple grapes, and history attests to the ancient Greeks, Cypriots, Phoenicians, and Romans growing purple grapes both for eating and wine production. The growing of grapes would later spread to other regions in Europe, as well as North Africa, and eventually in North America.
In 2005, a team of archaeologists concluded that Chalcolithic wine jars discovered in Cyprus in the 1930s dated back to 3500 BC, making them the oldest of their kind in the world. Commandaria, a sweet dessert wine from Cyprus, is the oldest manufactured wine in the world with origins as far back as 2000 BC.
In North America, native grapes belonging to various species of the genus Vitis proliferate in the wild across the continent and were a part of the diet of many Native Americans, but they were considered by early European colonists to be unsuitable for wine. In the 19th century, Ephraim Bull of Concord, Massachusetts, cultivated seeds from wild Vitis labrusca vines to create the Concord grape, which would become an important agricultural crop in the United States.Jancis Robinson, Vines, Grapes & Wines (Mitchell Beazley, 1986, ), pp. 8, 18, 228.
Description
Grapes are a type of fruit that grow in clusters of 15 to 300 and can be crimson, black, dark blue, yellow, green, orange, and pink. "White" grapes are actually green in color and are evolutionarily derived from the purple grape. Mutations in two regulatory genes of white grapes turn off production of anthocyanins, which are responsible for the color of purple grapes. Anthocyanins and other pigment chemicals of the larger family of polyphenols in purple grapes are responsible for the varying shades of purple in red wines. Grapes are typically an ellipsoid shape resembling a prolate spheroid.
Nutrition
Raw grapes are 81% water, 18% carbohydrates, 1% protein, and have negligible fat (table). A reference amount of raw grapes supplies of food energy and a moderate amount of vitamin K (12% of the Daily Value), with no other micronutrients in significant amounts (table).
Grapevines
thumb|upright|Concord is a variety of North American labrusca grape
Most domesticated grapes come from cultivars of Vitis vinifera, a grapevine native to the Mediterranean and Central Asia. Minor amounts of fruit and wine come from American and Asian species such as:
Vitis amurensis, the most important Asian species
Vitis labrusca, the North American table and grape juice grapevines (including the Concord cultivar), sometimes used for wine, are native to the Eastern United States and Canada.
Vitis mustangensis (the mustang grape), found in Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, Texas, and Oklahoma
Vitis riparia, a wild vine of North America, is sometimes used for winemaking and for jam. It is native to the entire Eastern United States and north to Quebec.
Vitis rotundifolia (the muscadine), used for jams and wine, is native to the Southeastern United States from Delaware to the Gulf of Mexico.
+ Grape production 13.5 6.7 6.2 5.4 4.8 3.4 2.3World 72.5
Distribution of agriculture
In 2023, the world total of land dedicated to grape growing (in hectares, ha) was . By country dedicating farmland for grape growing in 2023, Spain had , France , Italy , and China . Approximately 71% of world grape production is used for wine, 27% as fresh fruit, and 2% as dried fruit.
There are no reliable statistics that break down grape production by variety. It is believed that the most widely planted variety is Sultana, also known as Thompson Seedless, with at least 3,600 km2 (880,000 acres) dedicated to it. The second most common variety is Airén. Other popular varieties include Cabernet Sauvignon, Sauvignon blanc, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Grenache, Tempranillo, Riesling, and Chardonnay.
Production
In 2023, world production of grapes was 72.5 million tonnes, led by China with 19% of the total, with Italy and France as major secondary producers (table).
+ Grape exports 647,967 529,470 483,373 386,672 346,128 318,126
Exports
In 2023, the leading exporters of grapes were Peru and Chile, each with more than half a million tonnes (table).
Table and wine grapes
Commercially cultivated grapes can usually be classified as either table or wine grapes, based on their intended method of consumption: eaten raw (table grapes) or used to make wine (wine grapes). The sweetness of grapes depends on when they are harvested, as they do not continue to ripen once picked.Grapes, Sour or Sweet, Are Ripe for Dessert While almost all of them belong to the same species, Vitis vinifera, table and wine grapes have significant differences, brought about through selective breeding. Table grape cultivars tend to have large, seedless fruit (see below) with relatively thin skin. Wine grapes are smaller, usually seeded, and have relatively thick skins (a desirable characteristic in winemaking, since much of the aroma in wine comes from the skin). Wine grapes also tend to be very sweet: they are harvested at the time when their juice is approximately 24% sugar by weight. By comparison, commercially produced "100% grape juice", made from table grapes, is usually around 15% sugar by weight.
thumb|right|upright|Wine grapes on the vine
Seedless grapes
Seedless cultivars now make up the overwhelming majority of table grape plantings. Because grapevines are vegetatively propagated by cuttings, the lack of seeds does not present a problem for reproduction. It is an issue for breeders, who must either use a seeded variety as the female parent or rescue embryos early in development using tissue culture techniques.
There are several sources of the seedlessness trait, and essentially all commercial cultivators get it from one of three sources: Thompson Seedless, Russian Seedless, and Black Monukka, all being cultivars of Vitis vinifera. There are currently more than a dozen varieties of seedless grapes. Several, such as Einset Seedless, Benjamin Gunnels's Prime seedless grapes, Reliance, and Venus, have been specifically cultivated for hardiness and quality in the relatively cold climates of northeastern United States and southern Ontario.Reisch BI, Peterson DV, Martens M-H. "Seedless Grapes" , in "Table Grape Varieties for Cool Climates", Information Bulletin 234, Cornell University, New York State Agricultural Experiment Station, retrieved December 30, 2008.
An offset to the improved eating quality of seedlessness is the loss of potential health benefits provided by the enriched phytochemical content of grape seeds (see Health claims, below).
Uses
upright=0.9|thumb|Grape leaves in cuisine (dolma)
Culinary
Grapes are eaten raw, dried (as raisins, currants and sultanas), or cooked. Also, depending on grape cultivar, grapes are used in winemaking. Grapes can be processed into a multitude of products such as jams, juices, vinegars and oils.
Commercially cultivated grapes are classified as either table or wine grapes. These categories are based on their intended method of consumption: grapes that are eaten raw (table grapes), or grapes that are used to make wine (wine grapes).
Table grape cultivars normally have large, seedless fruit and thin skins. Wine grapes are smaller (in comparison to table grapes), usually contains seeds, and have thicker skins (a desirable characteristic in making wine). Most of the aroma in wine is from the skin. Wine grapes tend to have a high sugar content. They are harvested at peak sugar levels (approximately 24% sugar by weight.) In comparison, commercially produced "100% grape juice" made from table grapes are normally around 15% sugar by weight.
Raisins, currants and sultanas
thumb|right|Raisins
In most of Europe and North America, dried grapes are referred to as "raisins" or the local equivalent. In the UK, three different varieties are recognized, forcing the EU to use the term "dried vine fruit" in official documents.
A raisin is any dried grape. While raisin is a French loanword, the word in French refers to the fresh fruit; grappe (from which the English grape is derived) refers to the bunch (as in une grappe de raisins). A raisin in French is called raisin sec ("dry grape").
A currant is a dried Zante Black Corinth grape, the name being a corruption of the French raisin de Corinthe (Corinth grape). The names of the black and red currant, now more usually blackcurrant and redcurrant, two berries unrelated to grapes, are derived from this use. Some other fruits of similar appearance are also so named, for example, Australian currant, native currant, Indian currant.
A sultana was originally a raisin made from Sultana grapes of Turkish origin (known as Thompson Seedless in the United States), but the word is now applied to raisins made from either white grapes or red grapes that are bleached to resemble the traditional sultana.
Juice
thumb|upright|Grape juice
Grape juice is obtained from crushing and blending grapes into a liquid. The juice is often sold in stores or fermented and made into wine, brandy, or vinegar. Grape juice that has been pasteurized, removing any naturally occurring yeast, will not ferment if kept sterile, and thus contains no alcohol. In the wine industry, grape juice that contains 7–23% of pulp, skins, stems and seeds is often referred to as "must".
In North America, the most common grape juice is purple and made from Concord grapes, while white grape juice is commonly made from Niagara grapes, both of which are varieties of grapes, a different species from European wine grapes. In California, Sultana (known there as Thompson Seedless) grapes are sometimes diverted from the raisin or table market to produce white juice.
Vinegars
Husrum, also known as verjuice, is a type of vinegar made from sour grapes in the Middle East. It is produced by crushing unripened grapes, collecting and salting the juice, simmering it to remove foam, and then storing it with a layer of olive oil to prevent contamination and oxidation. It is then used as an acidic ingredient in salads and stuffed vegetables.Cosme, F., Pinto, T., & Vilela, A. (2018). Phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity in grape juices: A chemical and sensory view. Beverages, 4(1), 22, p. 9 Unripened husrum grapes sent from Ashkelon to Egypt are mentioned in a 12th-century document found in the Cairo Geniza. In Iran, a sour grape vinegar is used for making Shirazi salad.
Pomace and phytochemicals
Winemaking from red and white grape flesh and skins produces substantial quantities of organic residues, collectively called pomace (also "marc"), which includes crushed skins, seeds, stems, and leaves generally used as compost. Grape pomace – some 10–30% of the total mass of grapes crushed – contains various phytochemicals, such as unfermented sugars, alcohol, polyphenols, tannins, anthocyanins, and numerous other compounds, some of which are harvested and extracted for commercial applications (a process sometimes called "valorization" of the pomace).
Skin
right|thumb|Grape cross-section|upright=1.35|alt=Anatomical-style diagram of three grapes on their stalks. Two of the grapes are shown in cross-section with all their internal parts labeled.
Anthocyanins tend to be the main polyphenolics in purple grapes, whereas flavan-3-ols (i.e. catechins) are the more abundant class of polyphenols in white varieties. Total phenolic content is higher in purple varieties due almost entirely to anthocyanin density in purple grape skin compared to absence of anthocyanins in white grape skin. Phenolic content of grape skin varies with cultivar, soil composition, climate, geographic origin, and cultivation practices or exposure to diseases, such as fungal infections.
Muscadine grapes contain a relatively high phenolic content among dark grapes. In muscadine skins, ellagic acid, myricetin, quercetin, kaempferol, and trans-resveratrol are major phenolics.
The flavonols syringetin, syringetin 3-O-galactoside, laricitrin and laricitrin 3-O-galactoside are also found in purple grape but absent in white grape.
Seeds
Muscadine grape seeds contain about twice the total polyphenol content of skins. Grape seed oil from crushed seeds is used in cosmeceuticals and skincare products. Grape seed oil, including tocopherols (vitamin E) and high contents of phytosterols and polyunsaturated fatty acids such as linoleic acid, oleic acid, and alpha-linolenic acid.
Resveratrol
Resveratrol, a stilbene compound, is found in widely varying amounts among grape varieties, primarily in their skins and seeds. Muscadine grapes have about one hundred times higher concentration of stilbenes than pulp. Fresh grape skin contains about 50 to 100 micrograms of resveratrol per gram.
Grape and raisin toxicity in dogs
The consumption of grapes and raisins presents a potential health threat to dogs. Their toxicity to dogs can cause the animal to develop acute kidney failure (the sudden development of kidney failure) with anuria (a lack of urine production) and may be fatal.Raisins/Grapes . The Merck Veterinary Manual.
Gallery
See also
Annual growth cycle of grapevines
Drakshasava, a traditional Ayurvedic tonic made from grapes
Grape syrup
List of grape dishes
List of grape varieties
Menispermum canadense, a poisonous species resembling wild grapes
Propagation of grapevines
The Fox and the Grapes
References
Further reading
Creasy, G. L. and L. L. Creasy (2009). Grapes (Crop Production Science in Horticulture). CABI. .
External links
Category:Berries
Category:Crops originating from Europe
Category:Edible fruits
Category:Plants in the Bible
Category:Flora of Palestine (region)
Category:Flora of Israel
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Athanasius of Alexandria
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Athanasius I of Alexandria ( – 2 May 373), also called Athanasius the Great, Athanasius the Confessor, or, among Coptic Christians, Athanasius the Apostolic, was a Christian theologian and the 20th patriarch of Alexandria (as Athanasius I). His intermittent episcopacy spanned 45 years ( – 2 May 373), of which over 17 encompassed five exiles, when he was replaced on the order of four different Roman emperors. Athanasius was a Church Father, the chief proponent of Trinitarianism against Arianism, and a noted Egyptian Christian leader of the fourth century.
Conflict with Arius and Arianism, as well as with successive Roman emperors, shaped Athanasius' career. In 325, at age 27, Athanasius began his leading role against the Arians as a deacon and assistant to Bishop Alexander of Alexandria during the First Council of Nicaea. Roman Emperor Constantine the Great had convened the council in May–August 325 to address the Arian position that the Son of God, Jesus of Nazareth, is of a distinct substance from the Father. Three years after that council, Athanasius succeeded his mentor as Patriarch of Alexandria. In addition to the conflict with the Arians (including powerful and influential Arian churchmen led by Eusebius of Nicomedia), he struggled against the Emperors Constantine, Constantius II, Julian the Apostate and Valens. He was known as Athanasius Contra Mundum (Latin for 'Athanasius Against the World').
Nonetheless, within a few years of his death, Gregory of Nazianzus called him the "Pillar of the Church". His writings were well regarded by subsequent Church fathers in the West and the East, who noted their devotion to the Word-become-man, pastoral concern and interest in monasticism. Athanasius is considered one of the four great Eastern Doctors of the Church in the Catholic Church. Some argue that, in his Easter letter of 367, Athanasius was the first person to list the 27 books of the New Testament canon that are in use today. Others argue that Origen of Alexandria was the first to list the twenty-seven books of the New Testament in his Homilies on Joshua (only there is a textual variant as to whether or not he included Revelation).Gallagher, Edmon L. "Origen via Rufinus on the New Testament Canon." New Testament Studies 62.3 (2016): 461-476. Athanasius is venerated as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Catholic Church, the Coptic Orthodox Church, the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, the Anglican Communion, and Lutheranism.
Biography
thumb|upright|A statue of Athanasius in Catania, Sicily|alt=
Athanasius was born to a Christian family in Alexandria, or possibly the nearby Nile Delta town of Damanhur, sometime between 293 and 298. The earlier date is sometimes assigned because of the maturity revealed in his two earliest treatises Contra Gentes (Against the Heathens) and De Incarnatione (On the Incarnation), which were likely written circa 318 before Arianism had begun to make itself felt, as those writings do not show an awareness of Arianism.
However, Cornelius Clifford places his birth no earlier than 296 and no later than 298, based on the fact that Athanasius indicates no first-hand recollection of the Maximian persecution of 303, which he suggests Athanasius would have remembered if he had been ten years old at the time. Secondly, the Festal Epistles state that the Arians had accused Athanasius, among other charges, of not having yet attained the canonical age (35) and thus could not have been properly ordained as patriarch of Alexandria in 328. The accusation must have seemed plausible. The Orthodox Church places his year of birth around 297.
Education
His parents were wealthy enough to give him a fine secular education. He was, nevertheless, clearly not a member of the Egyptian aristocracy. Some Western scholars consider his command of Greek, in which he wrote most (if not all) of his surviving works, evidence that he may have been a Greek born in Alexandria. Historical evidence, however, indicates that he was fluent in Coptic as well, given the regions of Egypt where he preached. Some surviving copies of his writings are in fact in Coptic, though scholars differ as to whether he wrote them in Coptic originally (which would make him the first patriarch to do so) or whether these were translations of writings originally in Greek.
Rufinus relates a story that as Bishop Alexander stood by a window, he watched boys playing on the seashore below, imitating the ritual of Christian baptism. He sent for the children and discovered that one of the boys (Athanasius) had acted as bishop. After questioning Athanasius, Bishop Alexander informed him that the baptisms were genuine, as both the form and matter of the sacrament had been performed through the recitation of the correct words and the administration of water, and that he must not continue to do this as those baptized had not been properly catechized. He invited Athanasius and his playfellows to prepare for clerical careers.
Alexandria was the most important trade centre in the empire during Athanasius's boyhood. Intellectually, morally, and politically—it epitomized the ethnically diverse Graeco-Roman world, even more than Rome or Constantinople, Antioch or Marseilles.Clifford, Cornelius, Catholic Encyclopedia 1930, Volume 2, pp. 35–40 "Athanasius". Its famous catechetical school, while sacrificing none of its famous passion for orthodoxy since the days of Pantaenus, Clement of Alexandria, Origen, Dionysius and Theognostus, had begun to take on an almost secular character in the comprehensiveness of its interests and had counted influential pagans among its serious auditors.Eusebius, Hist. Eccl., VI, xix
Peter of Alexandria, the 17th archbishop of Alexandria, was martyred in 311 in the closing days of the Great Persecution and may have been one of Athanasius's teachers. His successor as bishop of Alexandria was Alexander of Alexandria. According to Sozomen; "the Bishop Alexander 'invited Athanasius to be his commensal and secretary. He had been well educated, and was versed in grammar and rhetoric, and had already, while still a young man, and before reaching the episcopate, given proof to those who dwelt with him of his wisdom and acumen' ".(Soz., II, xvii)
Athanasius' earliest work, Against the Heathen – On the Incarnation (written before 319), bears traces of Origenist Alexandrian thought but in an orthodox way. Athanasius was also familiar with the theories of various philosophical schools and in particular with the developments of neoplatonism. Ultimately, Athanasius would modify the philosophical thought of the School of Alexandria away from the Origenist principles such as the "entirely allegorical interpretation of the text". Still, in later works, Athanasius quotes Homer more than once (Hist. Ar. 68, Orat. iv. 29).
thumb|upright|St. Athanasius (1883–84), by Carl Rohl-Smith, Frederik's Church, Copenhagen, Denmark|alt=
Athanasius knew Greek and admitted not knowing Hebrew [see, e.g., the 39th Festal Letter of St. Athan]. The Old Testament passages he quotes frequently come from the Septuagint Greek translation. Only rarely did he use other Greek versions (to Aquila once in the Ecthesis, to other versions once or twice on the Psalms), and his knowledge of the Old Testament was limited to the Septuagint.Ἀλεξανδρεὺς τῷ γένει, ἀνὴρ λόγιος, δυνατὸς ὢν ἐν ταῖς γραφαῖς
Bishop (or Patriarch, the highest ecclesial rank in the Centre of the Church, in Alexandria) Alexander ordained Athanasius a deacon in 319.Encyclopedia Americana, vol. 2 Danbury, Connecticut: Grolier Incorporated, 1997. . In 325, Athanasius served as Alexander's secretary at the First Council of Nicaea. Already a recognized theologian and ascetic, he was the obvious choice to replace his ageing mentor Alexander as the Pope of Alexandria, despite the opposition of the followers of Arius and Meletius of Lycopolis.
At length, in the Council of Nicaea, the term "consubstantial" (homoousion) was adopted, and a formulary of faith embodying it was drawn up by Hosius of Córdoba. From this time to the end of the Arian controversies, the word "consubstantial" continued to be the test of orthodoxy. The formulary of faith drawn up by Hosius is known as the Nicene Creed. However, "he was not the originator of the famous 'homoousion' (ACC of homoousios). The term had been proposed in a non-obvious and illegitimate sense by Paul of Samosata to the Fathers at Antioch, and had been rejected by them as savouring of materialistic conceptions of the Godhead."
While still a deacon under Alexander's care (or early in his patriarchate as discussed below) Athanasius may have also become acquainted with some of the solitaries of the Egyptian desert, and in particular Anthony the Great, whose life he is said to have written.
Opposition to Arianism
In about 319, when Athanasius was a deacon, a presbyter named Arius came into a direct conflict with Alexander of Alexandria. It appears that Arius reproached Alexander for what he felt were misguided or heretical teachings being taught by the bishop.Kannengiesser, Charles, "Alexander and Arius of Alexandria: The last Ante-Nicene theologians", Miscelanea En Homenaje Al P. Antonio Orbe Compostellanum Vol. XXXV, no. 1–2. (Santiago de Compostela, 1990), 398 Arius embraced a subordinationist Christology which taught that Christ was the divine Son (Logos) of God, made, not begotten. Arius had support from a powerful bishop named Eusebius of Nicomedia (not to be confused with Eusebius of Caesarea),Alexander of Alexandria's Catholic Epistle illustrating how Arius's subordinationist Christology was shared by other Christians in the empire. Arius was subsequently excommunicated by Alexander, and Arius began to elicit the support of many bishops who agreed with his position.
Patriarch
Frances A. M. Forbes writes that when Patriarch Alexander was on his death-bed he called Athanasius, who fled fearing he would be constrained to be made bishop. "When the Bishops of the Church assembled to elect their new Patriarch, the whole Catholic population surrounded the church, holding up their hands to Heaven and crying; "Give us Athanasius!" The Bishops had nothing better. Athanasius was thus elected, as Gregory tells us..." (Pope Gregory I had full access to the Vatican Archives). Alban Butler writes on the subject: "Five months after this great Council, Nicae, St Alexander lying on his deathbed, recommended to his clergy and people the choice of Athanasius for his successor, thrice repeating his name. In consequence of his recommendation, the bishops of all Egypt assembled at Alexandria, and finding the people and clergy unanimous in their choice of Athanasius for patriarch, they confirmed the election about the middle of year 326. He seems, then, to have been about thirty years of age."
T. Gilmartin (Professor of History, Maynooth, 1890) writes: "On the death of Alexander, five months after the termination of the Council of Nicaea, Athanasius was unanimously elected to fill the vacant see. He was most unwilling to accept the dignity, for he clearly foresaw the difficulties in which it would involve him. The clergy and people were determined to have him as their bishop, Patriarch of Alexandria, and refused to accept any excuses. He at length consented to accept a responsibility that he sought in vain to escape, and was consecrated in 326, when he was about thirty years of age."T. Gilmartin, Manual of Church History, Vol. 1. Ch XVII, 1890.
Athanasius' episcopate began on 9 May 328 as the Alexandrian Council elected Athanasius to succeed after the death of Alexander. Patriarch Athanasius spent over 17 years in five exiles ordered by four different Roman Emperors, not counting approximately six more incidents in which Athanasius fled Alexandria to escape people seeking to take his life. During his first years as bishop, Athanasius visited the churches of his territory, which at that time included all of Egypt and Libya. He established contacts with the hermits and monks of the desert, including Pachomius, which proved very valuable to him over the years.
"During the forty-eight years of his episcopate, his history is told in the history of the controversies in which he was constantly engaged with the Arians, and of the sufferings he had to endure in defence of the Nicene faith.
We have seen that when Arius was allowed to return from exile in 328, Athanasius refused to remove the sentence of excommunication."
First exile
Athanasius' first problem lay with Meletius of Lycopolis and his followers, who had failed to abide by the First Council of Nicaea. That council also anathematized Arius. Accused of mistreating Arians and Meletians, Athanasius answered those charges at a gathering of bishops at the First Synod of Tyre in 335. There, Eusebius of Nicomedia and other supporters of Arius deposed Athanasius. On 6 November, both sides of the dispute met with Emperor Constantine I in Constantinople.Barnes, Timothy D., Athanasius and Constantius: Theology and Politics in the Constantinian Empire (Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1993), 23 At that meeting, the Arians claimed Athanasius would try to cut off essential Egyptian grain supplies to Constantinople. He was found guilty and sent into exile to Augusta Treverorum in Gaul (now Trier in Germany).Christianity, Daily Telegraph 1999
When Athanasius reached his destination in exile in 336, Maximin of Trier received him, but not as a disgraced person. Athanasius stayed with him for two years. Constantine died in 337 and was succeeded by his three sons, Constantine II, Constantius, and Constans. Paul I of Constantinople had cautioned Emperor Constans against the Arians, revealing their plots, and he also had been banished and found shelter with Maximin.
Second exile
thumb|upright|Fresco at Hosios Loukas, Greece (11th century)|alt=
thumb|upright|Statue of the saint in St Athanasius's Catholic Church in Evanston, Illinois|alt=
When Emperor Constantine I died, Athanasius was allowed to return to his See of Alexandria. Shortly thereafter, however, Constantius II renewed the order for Athanasius's banishment in 338. "Within a few weeks he set out for Rome to lay his case before the Church at large. He had made his appeal to Pope Julius, who took up his cause with whole-heartedness that never wavered down to the day of that holy pontiff's death. The pope summoned a synod of bishops to meet in Rome. After a careful and detailed examination of the entire case, the primate's innocence was proclaimed to the Christian world." During this time, Gregory of Cappadocia, an Arian bishop, was installed as the patriarch of Alexandria, usurping the absent Athanasius. Athanasius did, however, remain in contact with his people through his annual Festal Letters, in which he also announced on which date Easter would be celebrated that year.
In 339 or 340, nearly one hundred bishops met at Alexandria, declared in favour of Athanasius, and vigorously rejected the criticisms of the Eusebian faction at Tyre. Plus, Pope Julius wrote to the supporters of Arius strongly urging Athanasius's reinstatement, but that effort proved in vain. Julius called a synod in Rome in 340 to address the matter, which proclaimed Athanasius the rightful bishop of Alexandria.
Early in 343 Athanasius met with Hosius of Córdoba, and together they set out for Serdica. A full council of the Church was summoned there in deference to the Roman pontiff's wishes. At this great gathering of prelates, leaders of the Church, the case of Athanasius was taken up once more, that is, Athanasius was formally questioned over misdemeanours and even murder, (a bishop in Egypt named Arsenius had turned up missing, and they blamed his death on Athanasius, even supposedly producing Arsenius' severed hand.)
The council was convoked for the purpose of inquiring into the charges against Athanasius and other bishops, on account of which they were deposed from their sees by the semi-Arian Synod of Antioch in 341 and went into exile. Eusebian bishops objected to the admission of Athanasius and other deposed bishops to the council, except as accused persons to answer the charges brought against them. Their objections were overridden by the orthodox bishops. The Eusebians, seeing they had no chance of having their views carried, retired to Philippopolis in Thrace where they held an opposition council under the presidency of the Patriarch of Antioch and confirmed the decrees of the Synod of Antioch.
Athanasius' innocence was reaffirmed at the Council of Serdica. Two conciliar letters were prepared, one to the clergy and faithful of Alexandria, the other to the bishops of Egypt and Libya, in which the will of the council was made known. Meanwhile, the Eusebians issued an anathema against Athanasius and his supporters. The persecution against the orthodox party broke out with renewed vigour, and Constantius was induced to prepare drastic measures against Athanasius and the priests who were devoted to him. Orders were given that if Athanasius attempted to re-enter his see, he should be put to death. Athanasius, accordingly, withdrew from Serdica to Naissus in Mysia, where he celebrated the Easter festival of the year 344. Hosius presided over the Council of Serdica, as he did for the First Council of Nicaea, which like the 341 synod found Athanasius innocent. He celebrated his last Easter in exile in Aquileia in April 345, received by Bishop Fortunatianus.Barnes, Timothy David, Athanasius and Constantius, Harvard 2001, p. 66
The Council of Serdica sent an emissary to report their finding to Constantius. Constantius reconsidered his decision, owing to a threatening letter from his brother Constans and the uncertain conditions of affairs on the Persian border, and he accordingly made up his mind to yield. But three separate letters were needed to overcome the natural hesitation of Athanasius. When he finally acquiesced to meet with Constantius, he was accorded a gracious interview by the emperor and sent back to his see in triumph and began ten years of peace.
Pope Julius died in April 352 and was succeeded by Liberius. For two years Liberius had been favourable to the cause of Athanasius; but driven at last into exile, he was induced to sign an ambiguous formula, from which the great Nicene text, the "homoousion", had been studiously omitted. In 355 a council was held at Milan, where in spite of the vigorous opposition of a handful of loyal prelates among the Western bishops, a fourth condemnation of Athanasius was announced to the world. With his friends scattered, Hosius in exile, and Pope Liberius denounced as acquiescing in Arian formularies, Athanasius could hardly hope to escape. On the night of 8 February 356, while engaged in services in the Church of St. Thomas, a band of armed men burst in to secure his arrest. It was the beginning of his third exile.
Gilmartin writes: "By Constantius' order, the sole ruler of The Roman Empire at the death of his brother Constans, the Council of Arles in 353, was held, which was presided over by Vincent, Bishop of Capua, in the name of Pope Liberius. The fathers terrified of the threats of the Emperor, an avowed Arian, they consented to the condemnation of Athanasius. The Pope refused to accept their decision, and requested the Emperor to hold another Council, in which the charges against Athanasius could be freely investigated. To this Constantius consented, for he felt able to control the Council in Milan."
In 355, three hundred bishops assembled in Milan, most from the West and only a few from the East. They met in the Church of Milan. Shortly, the emperor ordered them to a hall in the Imperial Palace, thus ending any free debate. He presented an Arian formula of faith for their acceptance. He threatened any who refused with exile and death. All, with the exception of Dionysius (bishop of Milan), and the two Papal Legates, viz., Eusebius of Vercelli and Lucifer of Cagliari, consented to the Arian Creed and the condemnation of Athanasius. Those who refused were sent into exile. The decrees were forwarded to the pope for approval but were rejected because of the violence to which the bishops were subjected.
Third exile
thumb|Athanasius at the Council of Nicea, William of Tyre manuscripts|alt=
Through the influence of the Eusebian faction at Constantinople, an Arian bishop, George of Cappadocia, was appointed to rule the see of Alexandria in 356. Athanasius, after remaining some days in the neighbourhood of the city, finally withdrew into the desert of Upper Egypt where he remained for a period of six years, living the life of the monks and devoting himself to the composition of a group of writings, such as his Letter to the Monks and Four Orations against the Arians. He also defended his own recent conduct in the Apology to Constantius and Apology for His Flight. Constantius' persistence in his opposition to Athanasius, combined with reports Athanasius received about the persecution of non-Arians by the Arian bishop George of Laodicea, prompted Athanasius to write his more emotional History of the Arians, in which he described Constantius as a precursor of the Antichrist.
Constantius died on 4 November 361 and was succeeded by Julian. The proclamation of the new prince's accession was the signal for a pagan outbreak against the still dominant Arian faction in Alexandria. George, the usurping bishop, was imprisoned and murdered. An obscure presbyter named Pistus was chosen by the Arians to succeed him, when news arrived that filled the orthodox party with hope. An edict had been put forth by Julian permitting the exiled bishops of the "Galileans" to return to their "towns and provinces". Athanasius accordingly returned to Alexandria on 22 February 362.
In 362 Athanasius convened a council at Alexandria and presided over it with Eusebius of Vercelli. Athanasius appealed for unity among all those who had faith in Christianity, even if they differed on matters of terminology. This prepared the groundwork for his definition of the orthodox doctrine of the Trinity. However, the council also was directed against those who denied the divinity of the Holy Spirit, the human soul of Christ, and Christ's divinity. Mild measures were agreed on for those heretic bishops who repented, but severe penance was decreed for the chief leaders of the major heresies.
With characteristic energy he set to work to re-establish the somewhat shattered fortunes of the orthodox party and to purge the theological atmosphere of uncertainty. To clear up the misunderstandings that had arisen in the course of the previous years, an attempt was made to determine still further the significance of the Nicene formularies. In the meanwhile, Julian, who seems to have become suddenly jealous of the influence that Athanasius was exercising at Alexandria, addressed an order to Ecdicius, the Prefect of Egypt, peremptorily commanding the expulsion of the restored primate on the ground that he had not been included in the imperial act of clemency. The edict was communicated to the bishop by Pythicodorus Trico, who, though described in the "Chronicon Athanasianum" (XXXV) as a "philosopher", seems to have behaved with brutal insolence. On 23 October the people gathered about the proscribed bishop to protest against the emperor's decree; but Athanasius urged them to submit, consoling them with the promise that his absence would be of short duration.
Fourth exile
In 362 Julian, noted for his opposition to Christianity, ordered Athanasius to leave Alexandria once again. Athanasius left for Upper Egypt, remaining there with the Desert Fathers until Julian's death on 26 June 363. Athanasius returned in secret to Alexandria, where he received a document from the new emperor, Jovian, reinstating him once more in his episcopal functions.
His first act was to convene a council which reaffirmed the terms of the Nicene Creed. Early in September 363 he set out for Antioch on the Orontes, bearing a synodal letter, in which the pronouncements of this council had been embodied. At Antioch he had an interview with Jovian, who received him graciously and even asked him to prepare an exposition of the orthodox faith. In February 364 Jovian died.
Fifth exile
The accession of Emperor Valens gave a fresh lease of life to the Arian party. He issued a decree banishing the bishops who had been deposed by Constantius but who had been permitted by Jovian to return to their sees. The news created the greatest consternation in Alexandria, and the prefect, in order to prevent a serious outbreak, gave public assurance that the very special case of Athanasius would be laid before the emperor. But Athanasius seems to have divined what was preparing in secret against him. He quietly withdrew from Alexandria in October 364 and took up his abode in a country house outside the city. Valens, who seems to have sincerely dreaded the possible consequences of another popular outbreak, within a few weeks issued orders allowing Athanasius to return to his episcopal see. Some early reports state that Athanasius spent this period of exile at his family's ancestral tomb in a Christian cemetery.
Final years and death
After returning to Alexandria, Athanasius spent his final years repairing all the damage done during the earlier years of violence, dissent, and exile. He resumed writing and preaching undisturbed, and characteristically re-emphasized the view of the Incarnation which had been defined at Nicaea. On 2 May 373, having consecrated Peter II, one of his presbyters as his successor, Athanasius died peacefully in his own bed, surrounded by his clergy and faithful supporters.
Works
Polemical and theological works
Athanasius was not a speculative theologian. As he states in his First Letters to Serapion, he held on to "the tradition, teaching, and faith proclaimed by the apostles and guarded by the fathers." He held that both the Son of God and the Holy Spirit are consubstantial with the Father, which had a great deal of influence in the development of later doctrines regarding the Trinity. Athanasius' "Letter Concerning the Decrees of the Council of Nicaea" (De Decretis), is an important historical as well as theological account of the proceedings of that council.
Examples of Athanasius' polemical writings against his theological opponents include Orations Against the Arians, his defence of the divinity of the Holy Spirit (Letters to Serapion in the 360s, and On the Holy Spirit), against Macedonianism and On the Incarnation. Athanasius also authored a two-part work, Against the Heathen and The Incarnation of the Word of God. Completed probably early in his life, before the Arian controversy,Justo L. Gonzalez in A History of Christian Thought notes (p. 292) that E. Schwartz places this work later, around 335, but "his arguments have not been generally accepted". The introduction to the CSMV translation of On the Incarnation places the work in 318, around the time Athanasius was ordained to the diaconate (St Athanasius On the Incarnation, Mowbray, England 1953) they constitute the first classic work of developed Orthodox theology. In the first part, Athanasius attacks several pagan practices and beliefs. The second part presents teachings on the redemption. Also in these books, Athanasius put forward the belief, referencing , that the Son of God, the eternal Word (Logos) through whom God created the world, entered that world in human form to lead men back into the harmony from which they had earlier fallen away.
His other important works include his Letters to Serapion, which defends the divinity of the Holy Spirit. In a letter to Epictetus of Corinth, Athanasius anticipates future controversies in his defence of the humanity of Christ. In a letter addressed to the monk Dracontius, Athanasius urges him to leave the desert for the more active duties of a bishop. Athanasius also wrote several works of Biblical exegesis, primarily on Old Testament materials. The most important of these is his Epistle to Marcellinus (PG 27:12–45) on how to incorporate psalm-saying into one's spiritual practice.
Perhaps his most notable letter was his Festal Letter, written to his Church in Alexandria when he was in exile, as he could not be in their presence. This letter clearly shows his stand that accepting Jesus as the Divine Son of God is not optional but necessary:
Athanasius was the first patriarch of Alexandria to use Coptic and Greek for didactic homilies.
Biographical and ascetic works
His biography of Anthony the Great entitled Life of Antony(Βίος καὶ Πολιτεία Πατρὸς Ἀντωνίου, Vita Antonii) became his most widely read work. Translated into several languages, it became something of a best seller in its day and played an important role in the spreading of the ascetic ideal in Eastern and Western Christianity. It depicts Anthony as an illiterate yet holy man who continuously engages in spiritual exercises in the Egyptian desert and struggles against demonic powers. It later served as an inspiration to Christian monastics in both the East and the West. Athanasius' works on asceticism also include a Discourse on Virginity, a short work on Love and Self-Control, and a treatise On Sickness and Health (of which only fragments remain).
Misattributed works
There are several other works ascribed to him, although not necessarily generally accepted as being his own. These include the so-called Athanasian Creed (which is today generally seen as being of 5th-century Galician origin), and a complete Expositions on the Psalms.
Eschatology
Based on his understanding of the prophecies of Daniel and the Book of Revelation, Athanasius described Jesus’ Second Coming in the clouds of heaven and pleads with his readers to be ready for that day, at which time Jesus would judge the earth, raise the dead, cast out the wicked, and establish his kingdom. Athanasius also argued that the date of Jesus’ earthly sojourn was divinely foretold beyond refutation by the seventy weeks prophecy of Daniel 9.
Veneration
Athanasius was originally buried in Alexandria, but his remains were later transferred to the Chiesa di San Zaccaria in Venice, Italy. During Pope Shenouda III's visit to Rome (4–10 May 1973), Pope Paul VI gave the Coptic Patriarch a relic of Athanasius, which he brought back to Egypt on 15 May. The relic is currently preserved under the new Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in Cairo. However, the majority of Athanasius's corpse remains in the Venetian church.
All major Christian denominations which officially recognize saints venerate Athanasius. Western Christians observe his feast day on 2 May, the anniversary of his death. The Catholic Church considers Athanasius a Doctor of the Church. For Coptic Christians, his feast day is Pashons 7 (now circa 15 May). Eastern Orthodox liturgical calendars remember Athanasius on 18 January.January 18/January 31. Orthodox Calendar (Pravoslavie.ru). Athanasius is honored on the liturgical calendars of the Church of England and the Episcopal Church on 2 May. Gregory of Nazianzus (330–390, also a Doctor of the Church), said: "When I praise Athanasius, virtue itself is my theme: for I name every virtue as often as I mention him who was possessed of all virtues. He was the true pillar of the Church. His life and conduct were the rule of bishops, and his doctrine the rule of the orthodox faith."
Legacy
thumb|Coptic icon of St. Athanasius the Apostolic
Historian Cornelius Clifford says in his account: "Athanasius was the greatest champion of Catholic belief on the subject of the Incarnation that the Church has ever known and in his lifetime earned the characteristic title of 'Father of Orthodoxy', by which he has been distinguished ever since." Clifford also says: "His career almost personifies a crisis in the history of Christianity; and he may be said rather to have shaped the events in which he took part than to have been shaped by them." St. John Henry Newman describes him as a "principal instrument, after the Apostles, by which the sacred truths of Christianity have been conveyed and secured to the world".
The greater majority of Church leaders and the emperors fell into support for Arianism, so much so that Jerome (340–420) wrote of the period: "The whole world groaned and was amazed to find itself Arian". He, Athanasius, even suffered an unjust excommunication from Pope Liberius who was exiled and leant towards compromise, until he was allowed back to the See of Rome. Athanasius stood virtually alone against the world.
Athanasius' biography of Anthony is foundational to Christian monasticism.
Historical significance and controversies
New Testament canon
It was the custom of the bishops of Alexandria to circulate a letter after Epiphany each year confirming the date of Easter and therefore other moveable feasts. They also took the occasion to discuss other matters. Athanasius wrote forty-five festal letters. Athanasius' 39th Festal Letter, written in 367, is widely regarded as a milestone in the evolution of the canon of New Testament books. Some claim that Athanasius is the first person to identify the same 27 books of the New Testament that are in use today. Up until then, various similar lists of works to be read in churches were in use. Others argue that Origen of Alexandria was the first to list the twenty-seven books of the New Testament in his Homilies on Joshua (only there is a textual variant as to whether or not he included Revelation). Athanasius includes the Book of Baruch and the Letter of Jeremiah and places the Book of Esther among the "7 books not in the canon but to be read" along with the Wisdom of Solomon, Book of Sirach, Book of Judith, Book of Tobit, the Didache, and The Shepherd of Hermas.
Athanasius' list is similar to the Codex Vaticanus in the Vatican Library. The establishment of the canon was not a unilateral decision by a bishop in Alexandria but the result of a process of careful investigation and deliberation, as documented in a codex of the Greek Bible and, twenty-seven years later, in his festal letter. Pope Damasus I, the bishop of Rome in 382, promulgated a list of books which contained a New Testament canon identical to that of Athanasius. A synod in Hippo in 393 repeated Athanasius' and Damasus' New Testament list, and the Council of Carthage (397) repeated Athanasius' and Damasus' complete New Testament list.Von Dehsen, Christian. "St. Athanasius", Philosophers and Religious Leaders, Routledge, 2013
Scholars debate whether Athanasius' list in 367 formed the basis for later lists. Because Athanasius' canon is the closest canon of any of the Church Fathers to the one used by Protestant churches today, many Protestants point to Athanasius as the Father of the Canon.
Supporters
left|thumb|Athanasius (left) and his supporter Cyril of Alexandria. 17th-century depiction.
Christian denominations worldwide revere Athanasius as a saint and teacher. They cite his defence of the Christology described in the first chapter of the Gospel of St. John and his significant theological works (C. S. Lewis calls On the Incarnation of the Word of God a "masterpiece")Introduction to St. Athanasius on the Incarnation. Translated and edited by Sister Penelope Lawson, published by Mowbray 1944. p. 9 as evidence of his righteousness. They also emphasize his close relationship with Anthony the Great, the ancient monk who was one of the founders of the Christian monastic movement.
The Gospel of St. John, and particularly the first chapter, demonstrates the Divinity of Jesus. This Gospel is the greatest support of Athanasius' stand. The Gospel of St. John's first chapter began to be said at the end of Mass, we believe as a result of Athanasius and his life's stand. The beginning of John's Gospel was much used as an object of special devotion throughout the Middle Ages; the practice of saying it at the altar grew, and eventually Pope Pius V made this practice universal for the Roman Rite in his 1570 edition of the Missal.Fortescue, Adrian, Catholic Encyclopedia 1907, Volume 6, pp. 662–663 "Gospel" It became a firm custom with exceptions in using another Gospel in use from 1920.Pope Benedict XV, Missale Romanum, IX Additions & Variations of the Rubrics of The MissalSee also: Jungmann, El Sacrificio de la Misa, No. 659, 660 Cyril of Alexandria (370–444) in the first letter says: "Athanasius is one who can be trusted: he would not say anything that is not in accord with sacred scripture." (Ep 1).
Critics
Throughout most of his career, Athanasius had many detractors. Classics scholar Timothy Barnes recounts ancient allegations against Athanasius: from defiling an altar, to selling Church grain that had been meant to feed the poor for his own personal gain, and even violence and murder to suppress dissent.Barnes, Timothy D., Athanasius and Constantius: Theology and Politics in the Constantinian Empire (Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1993), 37 According to Sir Isaac Newton, Athanasius lied about the death of Arius, feigned other men's letters and denied his own, murdered the bishop Arsenius, broke a communion cup, overthrew an altar, was made bishop by violence and sedition against the canons of his own church, and was seditious and immoral. Athanasius used "Arian" to describe both followers of Arius and as a derogatory polemical term for Christians who disagreed with his formulation of the Trinity.Barnes, Timothy D., Athanasius and Constantius: Theology and Politics in the Constantinian Empire (Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1993), 14, 128 Athanasius called many of his opponents "Arian", except for Meletius.Barnes "Athanasius and Constantius", 135
Scholars now believe that the Arian party was not monolithicHaas, Christopher, "The Arians of Alexandria", Vigiliae Christianae Vol. 47, no. 3 (1993), 239 but held drastically different theological views that spanned the early Christian theological spectrum.Chadwick, Henry, "Faith and Order at the Council of Nicaea", Harvard Theological Review LIII (Cambridge Mass: 1960), 173Williams, 63Kannengiesser "Alexander and Arius", 403 They supported the tenets of Origenist thought and subordinationist theologyKannengiesser, "Athanasius of Alexandria vs. Arius: The Alexandrian Crisis", in The Roots of Egyptian Christianity (Studies in Antiquity and Christianity), ed. Birger A. Pearson and James E. Goehring (1986), 208 but had little else in common. Moreover, many labelled "Arian" did not consider themselves followers of Arius.Williams, 82 In addition, non-homoousian bishops disagreed with being labeled as followers of Arius, since Arius was merely a presbyter, while they were fully ordained bishops.Rubinstein, Richard, When Jesus Became God, The Struggle to Define Christianity during the Last Days of Rome, 1999
The old allegations continue to be made against Athanasius, however, many centuries later. For example, Richard E. Rubenstein suggests that Athanasius ascended to the rank of bishop in Alexandria under questionable circumstances because some questioned whether he had reached the minimum age of 30 years, and further that Athanasius employed force when it suited his cause or personal interests. Thus, he argues that a small number of bishops who supported Athanasius held a private consecration to make him bishop.Rubenstein, Richard E., When Jesus Became God: The Epic Fight over Christ's Divinity in the Last Days of Rome (New York: Harcourt Brace & Company, 1999), 105–106
Selected works
Athanasius. Contra Gentes – De Incarnatione (translated by Thompson, Robert W.), text and ET (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1971).
at
Letters to Serapion (on the Holy Spirit) at archive.org
See also
Arabic Homily of Pseudo-Theophilus of Alexandria
Orthodox Christianity
Eastern Catholic Church
Eugenius of Carthage
Homoousian
Pontifical Greek College of Saint Athanasius
Saint Athanasius of Alexandria, patron saint archive
Explanatory notes
Citations
General and cited sources
Alexander of Alexandria, "Catholic Epistle", The Ecole Initiative,
Anatolios, Khaled, Athanasius: The Coherence of His Thought (New York: Routledge, 1998).
Arnold, Duane W.-H., The Early Episcopal Career of Athanasius of Alexandria (Notre Dame, Indiana: University of Notre Dame, 1991).
Arius, "Arius's letter to Eusebius of Nicomedia", Ecclesiastical History, ed. Theodoret. Ser. 2, Vol. 3, 41, The Ecole Initiative,
Attwater, Donald and Catherine Rachel John. The Penguin Dictionary of Saints. 3rd edition. (New York: Penguin, 1993). .
Barnes, Timothy D., Athanasius and Constantius: Theology and Politics in the Constantinian Empire (Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1993).
Barnes, Timothy D., Constantine and Eusebius (Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1981)
Brakke, David. Athanasius and the Politics of Asceticism (1995)
Clifford, Cornelius, "Athanasius", Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 2 (1907), 35–40
Chadwick, Henry, "Faith and Order at the Council of Nicaea", Harvard Theological Review LIII (Cambridge Mass: Harvard University Press, 1960), 171–195.
Ernest, James D., The Bible in Athanasius of Alexandria (Leiden: Brill, 2004).
Freeman, Charles, The Closing of the Western Mind: The Rise of Faith and the Fall of Reason (Alfred A. Knopf, 2003).
Haas, Christopher. "The Arians of Alexandria", Vigiliae Christianae Vol. 47, no. 3 (1993), 234–245.
Hanson, R.P.C., The Search for the Christian Doctrine of God: The Arian Controversy, 318–381 (T.&T. Clark, 1988).
Kannengiesser, Charles, "Alexander and Arius of Alexandria: The last Ante-Nicene theologians", Miscelanea En Homenaje Al P. Antonio Orbe Compostellanum Vol. XXXV, no. 1–2. (Santiago de Compostela, 1990), 391–403.
Kannengiesser, Charles "Athanasius of Alexandria vs. Arius: The Alexandrian Crisis", in The Roots of Egyptian Christianity (Studies in Antiquity and Christianity), ed. Birger A. Pearson and James E. Goehring (1986), 204–215.
Ng, Nathan K. K., The Spirituality of Athanasius (1991).
Rubenstein, Richard E., When Jesus Became God: The Epic Fight over Christ's Divinity in the Last Days of Rome (New York: Harcourt Brace & Company, 1999).
Williams, Rowan, Arius: Heresy and Tradition (London: Darton, Longman and Todd, 1987).
Further reading
Anatolios, Khaled. Athanasius (London: Routledge, 2004). [Contains selections from the Orations against the Arians (pp. 87–175) and Letters to Serapion on the Holy Spirit (pp. 212–233), together with the full texts of On the Council of Nicaea (pp. 176–211) and Letter 40: To Adelphius (pp. 234–242)]
Gregg, Robert C. Athanasius: The Life of Antony and the Letter to Marcellinus, Classics of Western Spirituality (New York: Paulist Press, 1980).
External links
Official web site of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria and All Africa
Archibald Robinson, Athanasius: Select Letters and Works (Edinburgh 1885)
(not written by Athanasius, see Athanasian Creed above)
Athanasius Select Resources, Bilingual Anthology (in Greek original and English)
, Dr N Needham
Christian Cyclopedia: Athanasius
Opera Omnia by Migne Patrologia Graeca with analytical indexes
St Athanasius the Great the Archbishop of Alexandria, Orthodox icon and synaxarion
audio resource by Dr. Michael Reeves. Two lectures on
Letter of Saint Athanasius to His Flock at the Our Lady of the Rosary Library
St. Athanasius Patriarch of Alexandria at the Christian Classics Ethereal Library
Colonnade Statue in St Peter's Square
Category:290s births
Category:373 deaths
Category:4th-century Byzantine writers
Category:4th-century Christian saints
Category:4th-century Christian theologians
Category:4th-century philosophers
Category:Anglican saints
Category:Catholic philosophers
Category:Christologists
Category:Church Fathers
Category:Doctors of the Church
Category:Egyptian theologians
Category:Opponents of Arianism
Category:Saints from Roman Egypt
Category:Nature of Jesus Christ
Category:Philosophers in ancient Alexandria
Category:Participants in the First Council of Nicaea
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Lighting
|
thumb|Acropolis of Athens illuminated at night
thumb|Illuminated cherry blossoms, light from the shop windows, and Japanese lantern at night in Ise, Mie, Japan
Lighting or illumination is the deliberate use of light to achieve practical or aesthetic effects. Lighting includes the use of both artificial light sources like lamps and light fixtures, as well as natural illumination by capturing daylight. Daylighting (using windows, skylights, or light shelves) is sometimes used as the main source of light during daytime in buildings. This can save energy in place of using artificial lighting, which represents a major component of energy consumption in buildings. Proper lighting can enhance task performance, improve the appearance of an area, or have positive psychological effects on occupants.
Indoor lighting is usually accomplished using light fixtures, and is a key part of interior design. Lighting can also be an intrinsic component of landscape projects.
History
With the discovery of fire, the earliest form of artificial lighting used to illuminate an area were campfires or torches. As early as 400,000 years ago, fire was kindled in the caves of Peking Man. Prehistoric people used primitive oil lamps to illuminate surroundings. These lamps were made from naturally occurring materials such as rocks, shells, horns and stones, were filled with grease, and had a fiber wick. Lamps typically used animal or vegetable fats as fuel. Hundreds of these lamps (hollow worked stones) have been found in the Lascaux caves in modern-day France, dating to about 15,000 years ago. Oily animals (birds and fish) were also used as lamps after being threaded with a wick. Fireflies have been used as lighting sources. Candles and glass and pottery lamps were also invented. Chandeliers were an early form of "light fixture".
A major reduction in the cost of lighting occurred with the discovery of whale oil. The use of whale oil declined after Abraham Gesner, a Canadian geologist, first refined kerosene in the 1840s, allowing brighter light to be produced at substantially lower cost. In the 1850s, the price of whale oil dramatically increased (more than doubling from 1848 to 1856) due to shortages of available whales, hastening whale oil's decline. By 1860, there were 33 kerosene plants in the United States, and Americans spent more on gas and kerosene than on whale oil. The final death knell for whale oil was in 1859, when crude oil was discovered and the petroleum industry arose.
thumb|Dim night lighting for the old warehouses along the river in the old town of Porvoo, Finland
Gas lighting was economical enough to power street lights in major cities starting in the early 1800s, and was also used in some commercial buildings and in the homes of wealthy people. The gas mantle boosted the luminosity of utility lighting and of kerosene lanterns. The next major drop in price came about in the 1880s with the introduction of electric lighting in the form of arc lights for large space and street lighting, followed by incandescent light bulb-based utilities for indoor and outdoor lighting.The First Form of Electric Light History of the Carbon Arc Lamp (1800 - 1980s)'.Edison Tech Center, edisontechcenter.org
Over time, electric lighting became ubiquitous in developed countries. Segmented sleep patterns disappeared, improved nighttime lighting made more activities possible at night, and more street lights reduced urban crime.
Fixtures
Lighting fixtures come in a wide variety of styles for various functions. The most important functions are as a holder for the light source, to provide directed light and to avoid visual glare. Some are very plain and functional, while some are pieces of art in themselves. Nearly any material can be used, so long as it can tolerate the excess heat and is in keeping with safety codes.
An important property of light fixtures is the luminous efficacy or wall-plug efficiency, meaning the amount of usable light emanating from the fixture per used energy, usually measured in lumen per watt. A fixture using replaceable light sources can also have its efficiency quoted as the percentage of light passed from the "bulb" to the surroundings. The more transparent the lighting fixtures are, the higher efficacy. Shading the light will normally decrease efficacy but increase the directionality and the visual comfort probability.
Color temperature for white light sources also affects their use for certain applications. The color temperature of a white light source is the temperature in kelvins of a theoretical black body emitter that most closely matches the spectral characteristics (spectral power distribution) of the lamp. An incandescent bulb has a color temperature around 2800 to 3000 kelvins; daylight is around 6400 kelvins. Lower color temperature lamps have relatively more energy in the yellow and red part of the visible spectrum, while high color temperatures correspond to lamps with more of a blue-white appearance. For critical inspection or color matching tasks, or for retail displays of food and clothing, the color temperature of the lamps will be selected for the best overall lighting effect.
Types
thumb|A demonstration of the effects of different kinds of lighting
Lighting is classified by intended use as general, accent, or task lighting, depending largely on the distribution of the light produced by the fixture.
Task lighting is mainly functional and is usually the most concentrated, for purposes such as reading or inspection of materials. For example, reading poor-quality reproductions may require task lighting levels up to 1500 lux (140 footcandles), and some inspection tasks or surgical procedures require even higher levels.
Accent lighting is mainly decorative, intended to highlight pictures, plants, or other elements of interior design or landscaping.
thumb|A ceiling light fixtureGeneral lighting (sometimes referred to as ambient light) fills in between the two and is intended for general illumination of an area. Indoors, this would be a basic lamp on a table or floor, or a fixture on the ceiling. Outdoors, general lighting for a parking lot may be as low as 10-20 lux (1-2 footcandles) since pedestrians and motorists already used to the dark will need little light for crossing the area.
Methods
Downlighting is most common, with fixtures on or recessed in the ceiling casting light downward. This tends to be the most used method, used in both offices and homes. Although it is easy to design, it has dramatic problems with glare and excess energy consumption due to large number of fittings. The introduction of LED lighting has greatly improved this by approx. 90% when compared to a halogen downlight or spotlight. LED lamps or bulbs are now available to retro fit in place of high energy consumption lamps.
Uplighting is less common, often used to bounce indirect light off the ceiling and back down. It is commonly used in lighting applications that require minimal glare and uniform general illuminance levels. Uplighting (indirect) uses a diffuse surface to reflect light in a space and can minimize disabling glare on computer displays and other dark glossy surfaces. It gives a more uniform presentation of the light output in operation. However indirect lighting is completely reliant upon the reflectance value of the surface. While indirect lighting can create a diffused and shadow free light effect it can be regarded as an uneconomical lighting principle.
Front lighting is also quite common, but tends to make the subject look flat as its casts almost no visible shadows. Lighting from the side is the less common, as it tends to produce glare near eye level.
Backlighting either around or through an object is mainly for accent. Backlighting is used to illuminate a background or backdrop. This adds depth to an image or scene. Others use it to achieve a more dramatic effect.
Forms of lighting
Indoor lighting
thumb|Wall-mounted light with shadows
Forms of lighting include alcove lighting, which like most other uplighting is indirect. This is often done with fluorescent lighting (first available at the 1939 World's Fair) or rope light, occasionally with neon lighting, and recently with LED strip lighting. It is a form of backlighting.
Soffit or close to wall lighting can be general or a decorative wall-wash, sometimes used to bring out texture (like stucco or plaster) on a wall, though this may also show its defects as well. The effect depends heavily on the exact type of lighting source used.
Recessed lighting (often called "pot lights" in Canada, "can lights" or 'high hats" in the US) is popular, with fixtures mounted into the ceiling structure so as to appear flush with it. These downlights can use narrow beam spotlights, or wider-angle floodlights, both of which are bulbs having their own reflectors. There are also downlights with internal reflectors designed to accept common 'A' lamps (light bulbs) which are generally less costly than reflector lamps. Downlights can be incandescent, fluorescent, HID (high intensity discharge) or LED.
Track lighting, invented by Lightolier, was popular at one period of time because it was much easier to install than recessed lighting, and individual fixtures are decorative and can be easily aimed at a wall. It has regained some popularity recently in low-voltage tracks, which often look nothing like their predecessors because they do not have the safety issues that line-voltage systems have, and are therefore less bulky and more ornamental in themselves. A master transformer feeds all of the fixtures on the track or rod with 12 or 24 volts, instead of each light fixture having its own line-to-low voltage transformer. There are traditional spots and floods, as well as other small hanging fixtures. A modified version of this is cable lighting, where lights are hung from or clipped to bare metal cables under tension.
A sconce is a wall-mounted fixture, particularly one that shines up and sometimes down as well. A torchère is an uplight intended for ambient lighting. It is typically a floor lamp but may be wall-mounted like a sconce. Further interior light fixtures include chandeliers, pendant lights, ceiling fans with lights, close-to-ceiling or flush lights, and various types of lamps
The portable or table lamp is probably the most common fixture, found in many homes and offices. The standard lamp and shade that sits on a table is general lighting, while the desk lamp is considered task lighting. Magnifier lamps are also task lighting.
thumb|Animated fountain in Moscow's Square of Europe, lit at night
The illuminated ceiling was once popular in the 1960s and 1970s but fell out of favor after the 1980s. This uses diffuser panels hung like a suspended ceiling below fluorescent lights, and is considered general lighting. Other forms include neon, which is not usually intended to illuminate anything else, but to actually be an artwork in itself. This would probably fall under accent lighting, though in a dark nightclub it could be considered general lighting.
In a movie theater, steps in the aisles are usually marked with a row of small lights for convenience and safety, when the film has started and the other lights are off. Traditionally made up of small low wattage, low-voltage lamps in a track or translucent tube, these are rapidly being replaced with LED based versions.
Outdoor lighting
left|thumb|High mast lighting along Highway 401 in Ontario, Canada
Street Lights are used to light roadways and walkways at night. Some manufacturers are designing LED and photovoltaic luminaires to provide an energy-efficient alternative to traditional street light fixtures.
thumb|Floodlights are used to illuminate outdoor playing fields or work zones during nighttime.
Floodlights can be used to illuminate work zones or outdoor playing fields during nighttime hours. The most common type of floodlights are metal halide and high pressure sodium lights.
Beacon lights are positioned at the intersection of two roads to aid in navigation.
Sometimes security lighting can be used along roadways in urban areas, or behind homes or commercial facilities. These are extremely bright lights used to deter crime. Security lights may include floodlights and be activated with PIR switches that detect moving heat sources in darkness.
Entry lights can be used outside to illuminate and signal the entrance to a property.DELTA Snapshot: Outdoor Entry Lighting. Issue 11. Lighting Research Center. Found online at: http://www.lrc.rpi.edu/programs/delta/pdf/OutdoorEntry.pdf [last accessed 13 April 2010] These lights are installed for safety, security, and for decoration.
thumb|The decks and gangway of tugboat Samuel de Champlain illuminated at night while docked at a shipyard for the purposes of safety and security
Underwater accent lighting is also used for koi ponds, fountains, swimming pools and the like.
Neon signs are most often used to attract attention rather than to illuminate.
Vehicle use
Vehicles typically include headlamps and tail lights. Headlamps are white or selective yellow lights placed in the front of the vehicle, designed to illuminate the upcoming road and to make the vehicle more visible. Many manufactures are turning to LED headlights as an energy-efficient alternative to traditional headlamps.Van Derlofske, J, JD Bullough, J Watkinson. 2005. Spectral Effects of LED Forward Lighting. TLA 2005-02. Lighting Research Center. Found online at: http://www.lrc.rpi.edu/programs/transportation/TLA/pdf/TLA-2005-02.pdf [last accessed 13 April 2010] Tail and brake lights are red and emit light to the rear so as to reveal the vehicle's direction of travel to following drivers. White rear-facing reversing lamps indicate that the vehicle's transmission has been placed in the reverse gear, warning anyone behind the vehicle that it is moving backwards, or about to do so. Flashing turn signals on the front, side, and rear of the vehicle indicate an intended change of position or direction. In the late 1950s, some automakers began to use electroluminescent technology to backlight their cars' speedometers and other gauges or to draw attention to logos or other decorative elements.
Lamps
Commonly called 'light bulbs', lamps are the removable and replaceable part of a light fixture, which converts electrical energy into electromagnetic radiation. While lamps have traditionally been rated and marketed primarily in terms of their power consumption, expressed in watts, proliferation of lighting technology beyond the incandescent light bulb has eliminated the correspondence of wattage to the amount of light produced. For example, a 60 W incandescent light bulb produces about the same amount of light as a 13 W compact fluorescent lamp. Each of these technologies has a different efficacy in converting electrical energy to visible light. Visible light output is typically measured in lumens. This unit only quantifies the visible radiation, and excludes invisible infrared and ultraviolet light. A wax candle produces on the close order of 13 lumens, a 60 watt incandescent lamp makes around 700 lumens, and a 15-watt compact fluorescent lamp produces about 800 lumens, but actual output varies by specific design.Roger Fouquet, Heat, power and light: revolutions in energy services, Edward Elgar Publishing, 2008 , page 411 Rating and marketing emphasis is shifting away from wattage and towards lumen output, to give the purchaser a directly applicable basis upon which to select a lamp.
Lamp types include:
Ballast: A ballast is an auxiliary piece of equipment designed to start and properly control the flow of power to discharge light sources such as fluorescent and high intensity discharge (HID) lamps. Some lamps require the ballast to have thermal protection.
fluorescent light: A tube coated with phosphor containing low pressure mercury vapor that produces white light.
Halogen: Incandescent lamps containing halogen gases such as iodine or bromine, increasing the efficacy of the lamp versus a plain incandescent lamp.
Neon: A low pressure gas contained within a glass tube; the color emitted depends on the gas.
Light-emitting diodes: Light-emitting diodes (LED) are solid state devices that emit light by dint of the movement of electrons in a semiconductor material.
Compact fluorescent lamps: CFLs are designed to replace incandescent lamps in existing and new installations.Khan N, Abas N. Comparative study of energy saving light sources. Renewable & Sustainable Energy Reviews [serial online].
Design and architecture
Architectural lighting design
thumb|upright|Lighting without windows: The Pantheon in the 18th century, painted by Giovanni Paolo Panini.Another view of the interior by Panini (1735), Liechtenstein Museum, Vienna
Lighting design as it applies to the built environment is known as 'architectural lighting design'. Lighting of structures considers aesthetic elements as well as practical considerations of quantity of light required, occupants of the structure, energy efficiency, and cost. Artificial lighting takes into account the amount of daylight received in a space by using daylight factor calculations. For simple installations, hand calculations based on tabular data are used to provide an acceptable lighting design. More critical or complex designs now routinely use computer software such as Radiance for mathematical modeling, which can allow an architect to quickly and accurately evaluate the benefit of a proposed design.
In some instances, the materials used on walls and furniture play a key role in the lighting effect. For example, dark paint tends to absorb light, making the room appear smaller and more dim than it is, whereas light paint does the opposite. Other reflective surfaces also have an effect on lighting design.
On stage and set
thumb|Lighting and shadows
thumb|Moving heads in a photo studio set
thumb|Illuminating a subject from beneath can create a heightened dramatic effect.
Lighting illuminates the performers and artists in a live theatre, dance, or musical performance, and is selected and arranged to create dramatic effects. Stage lighting uses general illumination technology in devices configured for easy adjustment of their output characteristics. The setup of stage lighting is tailored for each scene of each production. Dimmers, colored filters, reflectors, lenses, motorized or manually aimed lamps, and different kinds of flood and spot lights are among the tools used by a stage lighting designer to produce the desired effects. A set of lighting cues are prepared so that the lighting operator can control the lights in step with the performance; complex theatre lighting systems use computer control of lighting instruments.
Motion picture and television production use many of the same tools and methods of stage lighting. Especially in the early days of these industries, very high light levels were required and heat produced by lighting equipment presented substantial challenges. Modern cameras require less light, and modern light sources emit less heat.
Measurement
Measurement of light or photometry is generally concerned with the amount of useful light falling on a surface and the amount of light emerging from a lamp or other source, along with the colors that can be rendered by this light. The human eye responds differently to light from different parts of the visible spectrum, therefore photometric measurements must take the luminosity function into account when measuring the amount of useful light. The basic SI unit of measurement is the candela (cd), which describes the luminous intensity, all other photometric units are derived from the candela. Luminance for instance is a measure of the density of luminous intensity in a given direction. It describes the amount of light that passes through or is emitted from a particular area, and falls within a given solid angle. The SI unit for luminance is candela per square metre (cd/m2). The CGS unit of luminance is the stilb, which is equal to one candela per square centimetre or 10 kcd/m2. The amount of useful light emitted from a source or the luminous flux is measured in lumen (lm).
The SI unit of illuminance and luminous emittance, being the luminous power per area, is measured in Lux. It is used in photometry as a measure of the intensity, as perceived by the human eye, of light that hits or passes through a surface. It is analogous to the radiometric unit watts per square metre, but with the power at each wavelength weighted according to the luminosity function, a standardized model of human visual brightness perception. In English, "lux" is used in both singular and plural.NIST Guide to SI Units - 9 Rules and Style Conventions for Spelling Unit Names, National Institute of Standards and Technology
Visual comfort often entails the measurement of subjective evaluations. Several measurement methods have been developed to control glare resulting from indoor lighting design. The Unified Glare Rating (UGR), the Visual Comfort Probability, and the Daylight Glare Index are some of the most well-known methods of measurement. In addition to these new methods, four main factors influence the degree of discomfort glare; the luminance of the glare source, the solid angle of the glare source, the background luminance, and the position of the glare source in the field of view must all be taken into account.W. Kim and Y. Koga, "Effect of local background luminance on discomfort glare, Building Environ 2004; 38, pp.
Color properties
thumb|upright|The Leppävaaran Torni building in Leppävaara, Espoo, Finland, illuminated with colorful lights in 2017
To define light source color properties, the lighting industry predominantly relies on two metrics, correlated color temperature (CCT), commonly used as an indication of the apparent "warmth" or "coolness" of the light emitted by a source, and color rendering index (CRI), an indication of the light source's ability to make objects appear natural.
However, these two metrics, developed in the last century, are facing increased challenges and criticisms as new types of light sources, particularly light-emitting diodes (LEDs), become more prevalent in the market.
For example, in order to meet the expectations for good color rendering in retail applications, researchASSIST recommends: Guide to Light and Color in Retail Merchandising. 2010. Volume 8, Issue 1. Available online at: suggests using the well-established CRI along with another metric called gamut area index (GAI). GAI represents the relative separation of object colors illuminated by a light source; the greater the GAI, the greater the apparent saturation or vividness of the object colors. As a result, light sources which balance both CRI and GAI are generally preferred over ones that have only high CRI or only high GAI.ASSIST recommends: Recommendations for Specifying Color Properties of Light Sources for Retail Merchandising. 2010. Volume 8, Issue 2. Available online at:
Light exposure
Typical measurements of light have used a Dosimeter. Dosimeters measure an individual's or an object's exposure to something in the environment, such as light dosimeters and ultraviolet dosimeters.
In order to specifically measure the amount of light entering the eye, personal circadian light meter called the Daysimeter has been developed. This is the first device created to accurately measure and characterize light (intensity, spectrum, timing, and duration) entering the eye that affects the human body's clock.
The small, head-mounted device measures an individual's daily rest and activity patterns, as well as exposure to short-wavelength light that stimulates the circadian system. The device measures activity and light together at regular time intervals and electronically stores and logs its operating temperature. The Daysimeter can gather data for up to 30 days for analysis.Lighting Research Center Website: New approach sheds light on ways circadian disruption affects human health. Found online at: [last accessed 13 April 2010]
Energy consumption
Several strategies are available to minimize energy requirements for lighting a building:
Specification of illumination requirements for each given use area
Analysis of lighting quality to ensure that adverse components of lighting (for example, glare or incorrect color spectrum) are not biasing the design
Integration of space planning and interior architecture (including choice of interior surfaces and room geometries) to lighting design
Design of time of day use that does not expend unnecessary energy
Selection of fixtures and lamps that reflect best available technology for energy conservation
Training of building occupants to use lighting equipment in most efficient manner
Maintenance of lighting systems to minimize energy wastage
Use of natural light
Some big box stores were being built from 2006 on with numerous plastic bubble skylights, in many cases completely obviating the need for interior artificial lighting for many hours of the day.
In countries where indoor lighting of simple dwellings is a significant cost, "Moser lamps", plastic water-filled transparent drink bottles fitted through the roof, provide the equivalent of a 40- to 60-watt incandescent bulb each during daylight.The Guardian newspaper: Alfredo Moser: Bottle light inventor proud to be poor, 13 August 2013
Load shedding can help reduce the power requested by individuals to the main power supply. Load shedding can be done on an individual level, at a building level, or even at a regional level.
Specification of illumination requirements is the basic concept of deciding how much illumination is required for a given task. Clearly, much less light is required to illuminate a hallway compared to that needed for a word processing work station. Generally speaking, the energy expended is proportional to the design illumination level. For example, a lighting level of 400 lux might be chosen for a work environment involving meeting rooms and conferences, whereas a level of 80 lux could be selected for building hallways.European law UNI EN 12464 If the hallway standard simply emulates the conference room needs, then much more energy will be consumed than is needed.
Lighting control systems
Lighting control systems reduce energy usage and cost by helping to provide light only when and where it is needed. Lighting control systems typically incorporate the use of time schedules, occupancy control, and photocell control (i.e. daylight harvesting). Some systems also support demand response and will automatically dim or turn off lights to take advantage of utility incentives. Lighting control systems are sometimes incorporated into larger building automation systems.
Many newer control systems are using wireless mesh open standards (such as Zigbee), which provides benefits including easier installation (no need to run control wires) and interoperability with other standards-based building control systems (e.g. security).
In response to daylighting technology, daylight harvesting systems have been developed to further reduce energy consumption. These technologies are helpful, but they do have their downfalls. Many times, rapid and frequent switching of the lights on and off can occur, particularly during unstable weather conditions or when daylight levels are changing around the switching illuminance. Not only does this disturb occupants, it can also reduce lamp life. A variation of this technology is the 'differential switching or dead-band' photoelectric control which has multiple illuminances it switches from so as not to disturb occupants as much.
Occupancy sensors to allow operation for whenever someone is within the area being scanned can control lighting. When motion can no longer be detected, the lights shut off. Passive infrared sensors react to changes in heat, such as the pattern created by a moving person. The control must have an unobstructed view of the building area being scanned. Doors, partitions, stairways, etc. will block motion detection and reduce its effectiveness. The best applications for passive infrared occupancy sensors are open spaces with a clear view of the area being scanned. Ultrasonic sensors transmit sound above the range of human hearing and monitor the time it takes for the sound waves to return. A break in the pattern caused by any motion in the area triggers the control. Ultrasonic sensors can see around obstructions and are best for areas with cabinets and shelving, restrooms, and open areas requiring 360-degree coverage. Some occupancy sensors utilize both passive infrared and ultrasonic technology, but are usually more expensive. They can be used to control one lamp, one fixture or many fixtures.Hanselaer P, Lootens C, Ryckaert W, Deconinck G, Rombauts P. Power density targets for efficient lighting of interior task areas. Lighting Research & Technology [serial online]. June 2007;39(2):171-182. Available from: Academic Search Premier, Ipswich, MA.Ryckaert W, Lootens C, Geldof J, Hanselaer P. Criteria for energy efficient lighting in buildings. Energy & Buildings [serial online]. March 2010;42(3):341-347. Available from: Academic Search Premier, Ipswich, MA.
Daylighting
thumb|Daylight used at the train station Gare de l'Est Paris
Daylighting is the oldest method of interior lighting. Daylighting is simply designing a space to use as much natural light as possible. This decreases energy consumption and costs, and requires less heating and cooling from the building. Daylighting has also been proven to have positive effects on patients in hospitals as well as work and school performance. Due to a lack of information that indicate the likely energy savings, daylighting schemes are not yet popular among most buildings.Ulrich R S. View through a Windows May Influence Recovery from Surgery. Science (Washington D C) [serial online]. 1984;224(4647):420-421. Unlike electric lighting, the distribution of daylight varies considerably throughout the entire year inside a building.
Solid-state lighting
In recent years light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are becoming increasingly efficient leading to an extraordinary increase in the use of solid state lighting. In many situations, controlling the light emission of LEDs may be done most effectively by using the principles of nonimaging optics.
Health effects
It is valuable to provide the correct light intensity and color spectrum for each task or environment. Otherwise, energy not only could be wasted but over-illumination can lead to adverse health and psychological effects.
Beyond the energy factors being considered, it is important not to over-design illumination, lest adverse health effects such as headache frequency, stress, and increased blood pressure be induced by the higher lighting levels. In addition, glare or excess light can decrease worker efficiency.
Analysis of lighting quality particularly emphasizes use of natural lighting, but also considers spectral content if artificial light is to be used. Not only will greater reliance on natural light reduce energy consumption, but will favorably impact human health and performance. New studies have shown that the performance of students is influenced by the time and duration of daylight in their regular schedules. Designing school facilities to incorporate the right types of light at the right time of day for the right duration may improve student performance and well-being. Similarly, designing lighting systems that maximize the right amount of light at the appropriate time of day for the elderly may help relieve symptoms of Alzheimer's disease. The human circadian system is entrained to a 24-hour light-dark pattern that mimics the earth's natural light/dark pattern. When those patterns are disrupted, they disrupt the natural circadian cycle. Circadian disruption may lead to numerous health problems including breast cancer, seasonal affective disorder, delayed sleep phase syndrome, and other ailments.
A study conducted in 1972 and 1981, documented by Robert Ulrich, surveyed 23 surgical patients assigned to rooms looking out on a natural scene. The study concluded that patients assigned to rooms with windows allowing much natural light had shorter postoperative hospital stays, received fewer negative evaluative comments in nurses' notes, and took fewer potent analgesics than 23 matched patients in similar rooms with windows facing a brick wall. This study suggests that due to the nature of the scenery and daylight exposure was indeed healthier for patients as opposed to those exposed to little light from the brick wall. In addition to increased work performance, proper usage of windows and daylighting crosses the boundaries between pure aesthetics and overall health.Newsham G, Brand J, Donnelly C, Veitch J, Aries M, Charles K. Linking indoor environment conditions to job satisfaction: a field study. Building Research & Information [serial online]. March 2009;37(2):129-147.
Alison Jing Xu, assistant professor of management at the University of Toronto Scarborough and Aparna Labroo of Northwestern University conducted a series of studies analyzing the correlation between lighting and human emotion. The researchers asked participants to rate a number of things such as: the spiciness of chicken-wing sauce, the aggressiveness of a fictional character, how attractive someone was, their feelings about specific words, and the taste of two juices–all under different lighting conditions. In their study, they found that both positive and negative human emotions are felt more intensely in bright light. Professor Xu stated, "we found that on sunny days depression-prone people actually become more depressed." They also found that dim light makes people make more rational decisions and settle negotiations easier. In the dark, emotions are slightly suppressed. However, emotions are intensified in the bright light.
Environmental issues
Compact fluorescent lamps
Compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) use less power than an incandescent lamp to supply the same amount of light, however they contain mercury which is a disposal hazard. Due to the ability to reduce electricity consumption, many organizations encouraged the adoption of CFLs. Some electric utilities and local governments subsidized CFLs or provided them free to customers as a means of reducing electricity demand. For a given light output, CFLs use between one fifth and one quarter the power of an equivalent incandescent lamp. Unlike incandescent lamps CFLs need a little time to warm up and reach full brightness. Not all CFLs are suitable for dimming. CFL's have largely been replaced with LED technologies.
LED lamps
LED lamps provide significant energy savings over incandescent and fluorescent lamps. According to the Energy Saving Trust, LED lamps use only 10% power compared to a standard incandescent bulb, where compact fluorescent lamps use 20% and energy saving halogen lamps 70%. The lifetime is also much longer — up to 50,000 hours. The downside when they were first popularized was the initial cost. By 2018, production costs dropped, performance increased, and energy consumption was reduced. While the initially cost of LEDs is still higher than incandescent lamps, the savings are so dramatic that there are very few instances that LEDs are not the most economical choice.
Scattered light from outdoor illumination may have effects on the environment and human health. For instance, one study conducted by the American Medical Association warned on the use of high blue content white LEDs in street lighting, due to their higher impact on human health and environment, compared to low blue content light sources (e.g. High Pressure Sodium, phosphor-coated or PC amber LEDs, and low CCT LEDs).
Light pollution
Light pollution is a growing problem in reaction to excess light being given off by numerous signs, houses, and buildings. Polluting light is often wasted light involving unnecessary energy costs and carbon dioxide emissions. Light pollution is described as artificial light that is excessive or intrudes where it is not wanted. Well-designed lighting sends light only where it is needed without scattering it elsewhere. Poorly designed lighting can also compromise safety. For example, glare creates safety issues around buildings by causing very sharp shadows, temporarily blinding passersby making them vulnerable to would-be assailants.Claudio L. Switch On the Night. Environmental Health Perspectives [serial online]. January 2009;117(1):A28-A31. Available from: Academic Search Premier, Ipswich, MA.Lynn A. See the Light. Parks & Recreation [serial online]. October 2010;45(10):81-82. Available from: Academic Search Premier, Ipswich, MA. The negative ecological effects of artificial light have been increasingly well documented. The World Health Organization in 2007 issued a report that noted the effects of bright light on flora and fauna, sea turtle hatchlings, frogs during mating season and the migratory patterns of birds. The American Medical Association in 2012 issued a warning that extended exposure to light at night increases the risk of some cancers. Two studies in Israel from 2008 have yielded some additional findings about a possible correlation between artificial light at night and certain cancers.
Effects on animals
thumb|Moths circling an electric lightbulb
Artificial light at night refers to any light source other than a natural light source. Sources of artificial light include LEDS and fluorescents. This particular light source has effect on the reproduction, immune function, metabolism, thermoregulation and body temperature of organisms that need light for their daily activity.
Firstly, most organisms metabolism largely depends on light. In some instances the presence of intense light starts up or increases enzyme activity inside the body of an animal. For diurnal organisms, high rate of metabolism takes place during the day and reduces or comes to a stop during the night thus, artificial light at night has a negative impact of the metabolism of diurnal organisms.
Moreover, the body temperature of diurnal animals fall during the night but the presence of artificial light at night, then causes an increase in body temperature which affects the melatonin levels of the animal.
Furthermore, for organisms such as birds, their sex organs are activated in relation to light intensity in certain periods during the summer at day time to aid reproduction. These sex organs are deactivated during the night but the presence of artificial light during the night sometimes disrupts their reproduction process.
Professional organizations
International
The International Commission on Illumination (CIE) is an international authority and standard defining organization on color and lighting. Publishing widely used standard metrics such as various CIE color spaces and the color rendering index.
The Illuminating Engineering Society (IES), in conjunction with organizations like ANSI and ASHRAE, publishes guidelines, standards, and handbooks that allow categorization of the illumination needs of different built environments. Manufacturers of lighting equipment publish photometric data for their products, which defines the distribution of light released by a specific luminaire. This data is typically expressed in standardized form defined by the IESNA.
The International Association of Lighting Designers (IALD) is an organization which focuses on the advancement of lighting design education and the recognition of independent professional lighting designers. Those fully independent designers who meet the requirements for professional membership in the association typically append the abbreviation IALD to their name.
The Professional Lighting Designers Association (PLDA), formerly known as ELDA is an organisation focusing on the promotion of the profession of Architectural Lighting Design. They publish a monthly newsletter and organise different events throughout the world.
The National Council on Qualifications for the Lighting Professions (NCQLP) offers the Lighting Certification Examination which tests rudimentary lighting design principles. Individuals who pass this exam become "Lighting Certified" and may append the abbreviation LC to their name. This certification process is one of three national (U.S.) examinations (the others are CLEP and CLMC) in the lighting industry and is open not only to designers, but to lighting equipment manufacturers, electric utility employees, etc.
The Professional Lighting And Sound Association (PLASA) is a UK-based trade organisation representing the 500+ individual and corporate members drawn from the technical services sector. Its members include manufacturers and distributors of stage and entertainment lighting, sound, rigging and similar products and services, and affiliated professionals in the area. They lobby for and represent the interests of the industry at various levels, interacting with government and regulating bodies and presenting the case for the entertainment industry. Example subjects of this representation include the ongoing review of radio frequencies (which may or may not affect the radio bands in which wireless microphones and other devices use) and engaging with the issues surrounding the introduction of the RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive) regulations.
National
Association de Concepteurs Eclairage (ACE) in France
American Lighting Association (ALA) in the United States
Associazione Professionisti dell'Illuminazione (APIL) in Italy
Hellenic Illumination Committee (HIC) in Greece
Indian Society of Lighting Engineers (ISLE)
Institution of Lighting Engineers (ILE) in the United Kingdom
Schweizerische Licht Gesellschaft (SLG) in Switzerland
Society of Light and Lighting (SLL), part of the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers in the United Kingdom.
United Scenic Artists Local 829 (USA829), membership for lighting designers as a category, with scenic designers, projection designers, costume designers, and sound designers, in the United States
See also
3D computer graphics
Anglepoise lamp, successful and innovative desk lamp design
Automotive lighting
Banning of incandescent light bulbs
Bug zapper
Candlepower
Computer graphics lighting
Fishing light attractor, underwater lights to attract fish
Home automation
Light fixture
Light in school buildings
Light pollution
Lighting control systems, for a buildings or residences
Lighting for the elderly
List of Lighting Design Software
Luminous efficacy
Neon lighting (for signage)
Over-illumination
Seasonal affective disorder
Sustainable lighting
Three-point lighting, technique used in both still photography and in film
Inventors
Joseph Swan, carbonized-thread filament incandescent lamp
Alexander Nikolayevich Lodygin, carbon-rod filament incandescent lamp
Thomas Edison, long-lasting incandescent lamp with high-resistance filament
John Richardson Wigham, lighthouse engineer
Lists
List of environmental health hazards
List of light sources
Timeline of lighting technology
References
External links
Illuminating Engineering Society of North America – official website
Lighting Research Center at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Lighting Research at the University of Sheffield
Lighting Research and Technology; an international peered reviewed journal
Category:Architectural elements
Category:Garden features
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2025-04
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BBC Television
|
thumb|250px|The "Television Symbol", known informally as the "Bats Wings", was the first BBC Television Service ident. It was created by Abram Games and was used from 1953 to 1960.Nick Higham, 60 years since 'bat's wings' became first BBC TV symbol, BBC News, December 2, 2013.
BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1927. It produced television programmes from its own studios from 1932, although the start of its regular service of television broadcasts is dated to 2 November 1936.Radio Times – The Journal of the BBC, issue dated 27 October 1957: The 21st Anniversary of BBC Television
The BBC's domestic television channels have no commercial advertising and collectively they accounted for more than 30% of all UK viewing in 2013. The services are funded by a television licence.
As a result of the 2016 Licence Fee settlement, the BBC Television division was split, with in-house television production being separated into a new division called BBC Studios and the remaining parts of television (channels and genre commissioning, BBC Sport and BBC iPlayer) being renamed BBC Content.
History of BBC Television
The BBC operates several television networks, television stations (although there is generally very little distinction between the two terms in the UK), and related programming services in the United Kingdom. As well as being a broadcaster, the corporation also produces a large number of its own outsourcing programmes and thereby ranks as one of the world's largest television production companies.
Early years (before 1939)
John Logie Baird set up the Baird Television Development Company in 1926; on 30 September 1929, he made the first experimental television broadcast for the BBC from its studio in Long Acre in the Covent Garden area of London via the BBC's London radio transmitter propagating an analog signal. Baird used his electromechanical system with a vertically scanned image of 30 lines, which is just enough resolution for a close-up of one person, and a bandwidth low enough to use existing radio transmitters. The simultaneous transmission of sound and pictures was achieved on 30 March 1930, by using the BBC's new twin transmitter at Brookmans Park. By late 1930, thirty minutes of morning programmes were broadcast from Monday to Friday, and thirty minutes at midnight on Tuesdays and Fridays after BBC radio went off the air. Baird's broadcasts via the BBC continued until June 1932.
The BBC began its own regular television programming from the basement of Broadcasting House, London, on 22 August 1932. The studio moved to larger quarters in 16 Portland Place, London, in February 1934, and continued broadcasting the 30-line images, carried by telephone line to the medium wave transmitter at Brookmans Park, until 11 September 1935, by which time advances in the all-electronic 405-line television system made electromechanical broadcasts and systems obsolete.
Following a series of test transmissions and special broadcasts that began in August 1936, the BBC Television Service officially launched at 3.00pm on 2 November 1936 from a converted wing of Alexandra Palace in London. The opening day's programming started using the Baird System at 3.00 pm with "Opening of the B.B.C. television service by Major G. C. Tryon", the Postmaster General of the United Kingdom, followed by the latest British Movietone News newsreel at 3.15. This was then followed up with a 10-minute variety show with Adele Dixon and the African-American duo of Buck and Bubbles, and the B.B.C. Television Orchestra. These programmes were then shown at 4.00pm using the Marconi-E.M.I. System.Liverpool Daily Post, November 2, 1936, p.4 "Ally Pally" housed two studios; Studio A for the 405-line Marconi E.M.I. system, and Studio B for Baird's 240-line intermediate film system. It also housed several scenery stores, make-up areas, dressing rooms, offices, and the transmitter itself, which then broadcast on the VHF band. BBC television initially used both the Baird and Marconi-E.M.I systems on alternate weeks. The use of both formats made the BBC's service the world's first regular high-definition television service; it broadcast from Monday to Saturday between 15:00 and 16:00, and 21:00 and 22:00. The first programme broadcast – and thus the first ever, on a dedicated TV channel – was "Opening of the BBC Television Service" at 15:00.Radio Times for that date The first major outside broadcast was the coronation of George VI and Elizabeth in May 1937.
The two systems were to run on a trial basis for six months; early television sets supported both resolutions. However, the Baird system, which used a mechanical camera for filmed programming and Farnsworth image dissector cameras for live programming, proved too cumbersome and visually inferior, and ended with closedown (at 22:00) on Saturday 30 January 1937. It was advertised in Radio Times for two weeks later but the decision to end the Baird system was made too late for it be changed in the printed Radio Times.
Initially, the station's range was officially a 40 kilometres radius of the Alexandra Palace transmitter—in practice, however, transmissions could be picked up a good deal further away, and on one occasion in 1938 were picked up by engineers at RCA in New York, who were experimenting with a British television set. The service was reaching an estimated 25,000–40,000 homes before the outbreak of World War II which caused the BBC Television service to be suspended on 1 September 1939 with little warning.
Wartime closure (1939–1946)
On 1 September 1939, the station went off the air; the government was concerned that the VHF transmissions would act as a beacon to enemy aircraft homing in on London. Also, many of the television service's technical staff and engineers would be needed for the war effort, in particular on the radar programme. The last programme transmitted was a Mickey Mouse cartoon, Mickey's Gala Premier (1933), which was followed by test transmissions; this account refuted the popular memory according to which broadcasting was suspended before the end of the cartoon.
According to figures from Britain's Radio Manufacturers Association, 18,999 television sets had been manufactured from 1936 to September 1939, when production was halted by the war.
The remaining monopoly years (1946–1955)
BBC Television returned on 7 June 1946 at 15:00. Jasmine Bligh, one of the original announcers, made the first announcement, saying, 'Good afternoon, everybody. How are you? Do you remember me, Jasmine Bligh? Well, here we are after a lapse of nearly seven years ready to start again and of course we are all terribly excited and thrilled...' The Mickey Mouse cartoon of 1939 was repeated twenty minutes later. On 31 December the BBC broadcast First-year Flashbacks, a compilation of the year's highlights. An edited copy is now the oldest programme on the BBC's iPlayer streaming service.
Alexandra Palace was the home base of the channel until the early 1950s, when the majority of production moved into the newly acquired Lime Grove Studios. Postwar broadcast coverage was extended to Birmingham in 1949, with the opening of the Sutton Coldfield transmitting station on 17 December, and by the mid-1950s most of the country was covered, transmitting a 405-line interlaced video image on VHF.
1964 to 1967
BBC TV was split into BBC1 and BBC2 in 1964, with BBC2 having a remit to provide more niche programming. The channel was due to launch on 20 April 1964, but this was postponed after a fire at Battersea Power Station resulted in most of west London, including Television Centre, losing power. A videotape made on the opening night was rediscovered in 2003 by a BBC technician. The launch went ahead the following night, beginning with host Denis Tuohy sarcastically blowing out a candle. BBC2 was the first British channel to use UHF and 625-line pictures, giving higher definition than the existing VHF 405-line television system.
1967 to 2003
thumb|right|A special ident was created in 1982 to celebrate 60 years of the BBC.
On 1 July 1967, BBC Two became the first television channel in Europe to broadcast regularly in colour, using the West German PAL system that was used for decades until it was gradually superseded by digital systems.TV Technology 8. Britain In Colour – and UHF, Screenonline, Richard G. Elen. Retrieved: 26 November 2010. (BBC One and ITV began 625-line colour broadcasts simultaneously on 15 November 1969). Unlike other terrestrial channels, BBC Two does not have soap opera or standard news programming, but a range of programmes intended to be eclectic and diverse (although if a programme has high audience ratings it is often eventually repositioned to BBC One). The different remit of BBC2 allowed its first controller, David Attenborough to commission the first heavyweight documentaries and documentary series such as Civilisation, The Ascent of Man and Horizon.
Attenborough was later granted sabbatical leave from his job as Controller to work with the BBC Studios Natural History Unit which had existed since the 1950s. This unit is now famed throughout the world for producing high quality programmes with Attenborough such as Life on Earth, The Private Life of Plants, The Blue Planet, The Life of Mammals, Planet Earth and Frozen Planet.
National and regional variations also occur within the BBC One and BBC Two schedules. England's BBC One output is split up into fifteen regions (such as South West and East), which exist mainly to produce local news programming, but also occasionally opt out of the network to show programmes of local importance (such as major local events). The other nations of the United Kingdom (Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland) have been granted more autonomy from the English network; for example, programmes are mostly introduced by local announcers, rather than by those in London. BBC One and BBC Two schedules in the other UK nations can vary immensely from BBC One and BBC Two in England.
Programmes, such as the politically fuelled Give My Head Peace (produced by BBC Northern Ireland) and the soap opera River City (produced by BBC Scotland), have been created specifically to cater for some viewers in their respective nations. BBC Scotland produces daily programmes for its Gaelic-speaking viewers, including current affairs, political and children's programming such as the popular Eòrpa and Dè a-nis?. BBC Wales also produces a large amount of Welsh language programming for S4C, particularly news, sport and other programmes, especially the soap opera Pobol y Cwm ('People of the Valley') briefly shown on BBC2 across the UK with subtitles in the 1990s.Welsh BBC adds to drama output, The Independent, 9 February 1993 The UK nations also produce a number of programmes that are shown across the UK, such as BBC Scotland's comedy series Chewin' the Fat, and BBC Northern Ireland's talk show Patrick Kielty Almost Live.
During the 1980s, the BBC came under pressure to commission more programmes from independent British production companies, and following the Broadcasting Act 1990 it was legally required to source 25% of its output from such companies by the terms of the Act. This eventually led to the creation of the "WoCC" (Window of Creative Competition) for independent production companies to pitch programmes to the BBC.BBC WoCC review, BBC Trust, 2012
Programmes have also been imported mainly from English-speaking countries: notable—though no longer shown—examples include The Simpsons from the United States and Neighbours from Australia. Programming from countries outside the English-speaking world consisted of feature films, shown in the original language with subtitles instead of being dubbed, with dubbing only used for cartoons and children's programmes.The sad disappearance of foreign TV, The Guardian, 1 September 2010 These included programmes from Eastern Europe, including The Singing Ringing Tree from East Germany, although voice-over translation was used instead of dubbing for budgetary reasons.Return of the teatime terror, The Daily Telegraph, 30 March 2002
Ceefax, the first teletext service, launched on 23 September 1974. This service allowed BBC viewers to view textual information such as the latest news on their television. CEEFAX did not make a full transition to digital television, instead being gradually replaced, from late onwards, by the new interactive BBCi service before being fully closed down on 22 October 2012.
In March 2003 the BBC announced that from the end of May 2003 (subsequently deferred to 14 July) it intended to transmit all eight of its domestic television channels (including the 15 regional variations of BBC1) unencrypted from the Astra 2D satellite. This move was estimated to save the BBC £85 million over the next five years.
While the "footprint" of the Astra 2D satellite was smaller than that of Astra 2A, from which it was previously broadcast encrypted, it meant that viewers with appropriate equipment were able to receive BBC channels "free-to-air" over much of Western Europe. Consequently, some rights concerns have needed to be resolved with programme providers such as Hollywood studios and sporting organisations, which have expressed concern about the unencrypted signal leaking out. This led to some broadcasts being made unavailable on the Sky Digital platform, such as Scottish Premier League and Scottish Cup football, while on other platforms such broadcasts were not disrupted. Later, when rights contracts were renewed, this problem was resolved.
2006 onwards
The BBC Television department headed by Jana Bennett was absorbed into a new, much larger group; BBC Vision, in late 2006.BBC Vision Press release, BBC Press Office The new group was part of larger restructuring within the BBC with the onset of new media outlets and technology.
In 2008, the BBC began experimenting with live streaming of certain channels in the UK, and in November 2008, all standard BBC television channels were made available to watch online via BBC iPlayer.
When Tony Hall became Director General in April 2013, he reverted the division to its original name of BBC Television. As Television it was responsible for the commissioning, scheduling and broadcasting of all programming on the BBC's television channels and online, as well as producing content for broadcast.
Following the 2016 Licence Fee settlement, BBC Television was split into two divisions, with in-house television production being separated into a new division called BBC Studios controlled by Mark Linsey and the remaining parts of television (channels and genre commissioning, BBC Sport and BBC iPlayer) being renamed as BBC Content, controlled by Charlotte Moore. As a result, the BBC Television division is now known internally as BBC Content and "BBC Television" as an entity has ceased to exist.Charlie Cooper, BBC to lose in-house programming guarantee under radical plan to open up public broadcaster to the private sector, The Independent 26 April 2016Programme Supply, BBC Trust, April 2016
On 8 December 2020, Moore announced a new leadership structure for BBC Content taking effect in April 2021, which will prioritise iPlayer in order to compete with commercial streaming services. The role of Controller for BBC One, Two, and Four will be scrapped, in favour of giving the BBC's genre heads autonomy in commissioning programmes without the requirement for a channel controller to provide secondary approval. A team of "portfolio editors" will select from these commissions for carriage on BBC television channels and iPlayer, with iPlayer Controller Dan McGolpin will becoming Portfolio Director for iPlayer and channels. McGolpin and the genre heads will report to Moore.
In July 2022, the BBC announced plans to merge BBC News (for UK audiences) and BBC World News (for international audiences) as one international news network, under the name BBC News, covering news from both the UK and around the world. The merger took effect in April 2023.
In November 2024, six BBC FAST channels were added to Australia's 9Now platform.
Funding
The BBC domestic television channels do not broadcast advertisements; they are instead funded by a television licence fee which TV viewers are required to pay annually. This includes viewers who watch real-time streams or catch up services of the BBC's channels online or via their mobile phone. The BBC's international television channels are funded by advertisements and subscription.
Channels
Free-to-air in the UK
These channels are also available outside the UK in neighbouring countries e.g. Belgium, the Netherlands and the Republic of Ireland. For BBC News, CBBC and Cbeebies see national & international channels
thumb|300px|right|BBC UK viewing figures 1981-2008: BBC1 in red, BBC2 in teal
thumb|right|300px|BBC UK viewing share, 2002–2013: BBC3, pink; BBC4, dark-green; BBC News, red; CBBC, light-green; CBeebies, yellow; BBC HD, purple; BBC Wales & West, blue
BBC One
The Corporation's flagship network, broadcasting mainstream entertainment, comedy, drama, documentaries, films, news, sport, and some children's programmes. BBC One is also the home of the BBC's main news programmes, with BBC Breakfast airing every morning from 06:00 and bulletins airing at 13:00, 18:00 and 22:00 (on weekdays; times vary for weekend news bulletins) and overnight bulletins from the BBC News channel. The main news bulletins are followed by local news. These are provided by production centres in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland and a further 14 regional and sub-regional centres in England. The centres also produce local news magazine programming.
A high definition simulcast, BBC One HD, launched on 3 November 2010.
BBC Two
Home to more specialist programming, including comedy, documentaries, dramas, children's programming and minority interest programmes, as well as imported programmes from other countries, particularly the United States. An important feature of the schedule is Newsnight, a 45-minute news analysis programme shown each weeknight at 22:30. There are slight differences in the programming for England and Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
A high definition simulcast, BBC Two HD, launched on 26 March 2013.
BBC Three
Home to mainly programming geared towards 16-34-year olds, particularly new comedies, drama, programs related to LGBTQ+, music, fashion and documentaries. This channel broadcasts every night from 19:00 to about 04:00 and timeshares with the CBBC channel.
A high definition simulcast, BBC Three HD, launched on 10 December 2013.
On 16 February 2016, BBC Three moved as an online-only content.
On 1 February 2022, BBC Three relaunched as a broadcast programming channel.
BBC Four
Niche programming for an intellectual audience, including specialist documentaries, occasional 'serious' dramas, live theatre, foreign language films and television programmes and 'prestige' archive television repeats. This channel broadcasts every night from 19:00 to about 04:00 and timeshares with the CBeebies channel.
A high definition simulcast, BBC Four HD, launched on 10 December 2013.
BBC Parliament
The Corporation's dedicated politics channel, covering both houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and unicameral houses of Scottish Parliament, Senedd, and Northern Ireland Assembly, as well as international politics.
National & international channels
CBBC
Programming for children aged six and above. This channel is broadcast every day from 07:00 to 19:00 and timeshares with BBC Three. UK & Ireland, United States and Australia feeds.
A high definition simulcast, CBBC HD, launched on 10 December 2013.
CBeebies
Programming for children aged six and under. This channel is broadcast every day from 06:00 to 19:00 and timeshares with BBC Four. UK & Ireland, International, South African, Asian and Spanish feeds.
A high definition simulcast, CBeebies HD, launched on 10 December 2013.
News channels
BBC News (UK and World)
A dedicated English-language news channel based on the BBC's news service of the same name, covering news and sport from across the UK and around the world, 24 hours a day. There are several regional variations: UK & Ireland, Africa, Asia Pacific, Europe, Latin America, Middle East, North America and South Asia.
On 3 April 2023, the BBC merged the BBC News and BBC World News channels into a single networked news channel, but there are opt-outs for both the domestic and international versions.
BBC News Arabic
A news and factual programming channel broadcast to the Middle East and North Africa. It was launched on 11 March 2008.
BBC Persian
News channel that targets Persian-speaking countries including Iran, Afghanistan and Tajikistan in the Persian/Dari/Tajiki language.
Other public services
S4C
Although this Welsh language channel is not operated by the corporation, the BBC contributes programmes funded by the licence fee as part of its public service obligation. The BBC used to broadcast Welsh-language programmes on its own channels in Wales, but these were transferred to S4C when it started broadcasting in 1982. S4C is available on iPlayer but without adverts there.
BBC Alba
A part-time Scottish Gaelic channel. Although it carries the BBC name, it is a partnership between the BBC and MG Alba, with the majority of funding coming from the Scottish Government via MG Alba. Scottish Gaelic programmes were also shown on BBC Two in Scotland – subject to approval from the BBC Trust, but moved to BBC Alba after digital switchover.
BBC Scotland
Launched on 24 February 2019, the BBC Scotland channel replaced the Scottish version of BBC Two and is home to homegrown Scottish programming. The Nine (and The Seven) are Scottish news programmes, similar to BBC Reporting Scotland. BBC Scotland also airs Scottish comedy, drama, sport, documentaries and music.
BBC Studios
The BBC's wholly owned commercial subsidiary, BBC Studios, also operates several international television channels under BBC branding:
BBC America
A US general entertainment channel, distributed in co-operation with AMC Networks, showcasing British television programming.
BBC Brit
An entertainment subscription television channel featuring male-skewed factual entertainment programming. Launched 1 February 2015 in Poland, April 2015 for Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Iceland replacing BBC Entertainment.
BBC Canada
A Canadian general entertainment channel, co-owned with Corus Entertainment, showing Canadian and British television programming. Closed down on 31 December 2020.
BBC Earth
A documentary subscription television channel featuring premium factual programming. Launched 1 February 2015 in Poland, April 2015 for Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Iceland and as of 14 April 2015 in Hungary replacing BBC Knowledge also replaced BBC Knowledge in Asia (Cambodia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mongolia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam) as of 3 October 2015 – 21h00 Singapore/Hong Kong Time
BBC Entertainment
Broadcasts comedy, drama, light entertainment and children's programming by BBC and other UK production houses, available in the following regions: Europe (except Scandinavia and Eastern Europe), Turkey and Israel.
BBC First
An entertainment subscription television channel featuring drama, crime and comedy programming. The channel kicked off in Australia on 3 August 2014. Currently available in the following regions: Asia, Australia, Benelux, Central and Eastern Europe (Croatia, Macedonia, Poland and Slovenia), Middle East & North Africa and South Africa.
BBC HD
A high-definition channel gradually replaced by other BBC Studios channels, currently still available in Turkey.
BBC Knowledge
Documentaries and factual programming, currently available in Australia and New Zealand.
BBC Lifestyle
Lifestyle programming, currently available in Asia, Poland and South Africa.
BBC UKTV
An entertainment channel in Australia and New Zealand, carrying drama and comedy programmes from the BBC, Talkback Thames, ITV1, and Channel 4.
The BBC also owns the following:
UKTV
Commercial television network in the United Kingdom. The channels broadcast mainly BBC archive and specially produced programming.
BBC Japan was a general entertainment channel, which operated between December 2004 and April 2006. It ceased operations after its Japanese distributor folded.
Timeline
+ BBC Television channel timeline, 1980s to present (includes joint ventures, excludes timeshifts and minor localisations) Type 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s012345678901234567890123456789012345678901234GeneralBBC1BBC OneBBC2BBC TwoBBC1/2 MixBBC EBBC WSTV (Europe)BBC ChoiceBBC TextBBCiBBC Red ButtonBBC Red Button+BBC KidsBBC KidsBBC FourCBBCCBeebiesBBC ThreeBBC HD (UK)BBC HD (international)BBC AlbaBBC ScotlandNews & factualTECBBC ABBC Arabic TelevisionBBC News ArabicBBC WorldBBC World NewsBBC NewsBBC News 24BBC NewsBBC ParliamentBBC Persian TelevisionBBC PersianBBC News AfghanistanFactualBMTBBC SAnimal PlanetUK HorizonsUKTV DocumentaryBBC KnowledgeUK HistoryUKTV HistoryYesterdayU&YesterdayUKTV PeopleBlightyBBC Knowledge (international)EdenReallyBBC EarthBBC Antiques Roadshow UKBBC TravelBBC HistoryBBC Game ShowsBBC ImpossibleBBC Dinos 24/7Factual & comedyBBC BritBBC Top GearBBC NordicLifestyleUK StyleUKTV StyleHomeBBC HomeBBC Home & GardenUK FoodUKTV FoodGood FoodBBC FoodBBC FoodUK BIUKTV BIUKTV SGUKTV GBBC LifestyleBBC LivDrama, comedy & factualBBC WSTV (Asia)BBC PrimeBBC EntertainmentUK GoldUKTV GoldUK.TVUKTVBBC UKTVPeople+ArtsBBC AmericaBBC CanadaBBC JPWatchWU&WBBC Sci-FiDramaUK ArenaUK DramaUKTV DramaDramaU&DramaAlibiBBC FirstBBC DramaBBC Doctor WhoBritBox MysteriesSilent Witness & New TricksComedy, sport & musicUKGCGoldU&GoldUK PlayPlay UKUK G2UKTV G2DaveU&DaveBBC Comedy
See also
List of television programmes broadcast by the BBC
History of BBC television idents
BBC television drama
BBC Local Radio
BBC World Service
British Broadcasting Company for a history of the BBC prior to 1927.
Timeline of the BBC for a chronological overview of BBC history.
Prewar television stations
Freesat
Notes
References
External links
Category:BBC Television
Category:Peabody Award winners
Category:Commercial-free television networks
Category:Television production companies of the United Kingdom
Category:Mass media companies established in 1932
Category:1932 establishments in the United Kingdom
Category:BBC divisions
Category:Television broadcasting companies of the United Kingdom
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Federal Bureau of Investigation
|
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. An agency of the United States Department of Justice, the FBI is a member of the U.S. Intelligence Community and reports to both the attorney general and the director of national intelligence. A leading American counterterrorism, counterintelligence, and criminal investigative organization, the FBI has jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crimes.
Although many of the FBI's functions are unique, its activities in support of national security are comparable to those of the British MI5 and NCA, the New Zealand GCSB and the Russian FSB. Unlike the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), which has no law enforcement authority and is focused on intelligence collection abroad, the FBI is primarily a domestic agency, maintaining 56 field offices in major cities throughout the United States, and more than 400 resident agencies in smaller cities and areas across the nation. At an FBI field office, a senior-level FBI officer concurrently serves as the representative of the director of national intelligence.Statement Before the House Appropriations Committee, Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies (), Federal Bureau of Investigation, March 26, 2014"FBI gets a broader role in coordinating domestic intelligence activities" (), The Washington Post, June 19, 2012
Despite its domestic focus, the FBI also maintains a significant international footprint, operating 60 Legal Attache (LEGAT) offices and 15 sub-offices in U.S. embassies and consulates across the globe. These foreign offices exist primarily for the purpose of coordination with foreign security services and do not usually conduct unilateral operations in the host countries."Overview of the Legal Attaché Program" (), Federal Bureau of Investigation. Retrieved: March 25, 2015. The FBI can and does at times carry out secret activities overseas,Spies Clash as FBI Joins CIA Overseas: Sources Talk of Communication Problem in Terrorism Role (), Associated Press via NBC News, February 15, 2005 just as the CIA has a limited domestic function. These activities generally require coordination across government agencies.
The FBI was established in 1908 as the Bureau of Investigation, the BOI or BI for short. Its name was changed to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in 1935. The FBI headquarters is the J. Edgar Hoover Building in Washington, D.C. The FBI has a list of the top 10 most wanted fugitives.
Mission, priorities and budget
thumb|FBI Domestic Investigations and Operations Guide (.pdf file)
Mission
The mission of the FBI is to "protect the American people and uphold the Constitution of the United States".
Priorities
Currently, the FBI's top priorities are:
Protect the United States from terrorist attacks
Protect the United States against foreign intelligence operations, espionage, and cyber operations
Combat significant cybercriminal activity
Combat public corruption at all levels
Protect civil rights
Combat transnational criminal enterprises
Combat major white-collar crime
Combat significant violent crime
Budget
In the fiscal year 2019, the Bureau's total budget was approximately $9.6 billion.
In the Authorization and Budget Request to Congress for fiscal year 2021, the FBI asked for $9,800,724,000. Of that money, $9,748,829,000 would be used for Salaries and Expenses (S&E) and $51,895,000 for Construction. The S&E program saw an increase of $199,673,000.
History
Background
In 1896, the National Bureau of Criminal Identification was founded, providing agencies across the country with information to identify known criminals. The 1901 assassination of President William McKinley created a perception that the United States was under threat from anarchists. The Departments of Justice and Labor had been keeping records on anarchists for years, but President Theodore Roosevelt wanted more power to monitor them.
The Justice Department had been tasked with the regulation of interstate commerce since 1887, though it lacked the staff to do so. It had made little effort to relieve its staff shortage until the Oregon land fraud scandal at the turn of the 20th century. President Roosevelt instructed Attorney General Charles Bonaparte to organize an autonomous investigative service that would report only to the Attorney General.
Bonaparte contacted other agencies, including the U.S. Secret Service, for personnel, investigators in particular. On May 27, 1908, Congress forbade this use of Treasury employees by the Justice Department, citing fears that the new agency would serve as a secret police department. Again at Roosevelt's urging, Bonaparte moved to organize a formal Bureau of Investigation, which would then have its own staff of special agents.
Creation of BOI
The Bureau of Investigation (BOI) was created on July 26, 1908. Attorney General Bonaparte, using Department of Justice expense funds, hired thirty-four people, including some veterans of the Secret Service, to work for a new investigative agency. Its first "chief" (the title is now "director") was Stanley Finch. Bonaparte notified the Congress of these actions in December 1908.
The bureau's first official task was visiting and making surveys of the houses of prostitution in preparation for enforcing the "White Slave Traffic Act" or Mann Act, passed on June 25, 1910. In 1932, the bureau was renamed the United States Bureau of Investigation.
Creation of FBI
The following year, 1933, the BOI was linked to the Bureau of Prohibition and rechristened the Division of Investigation (DOI); it became an independent service within the Department of Justice in 1935. In the same year, its name was officially changed from the Division of Investigation to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
J. Edgar Hoover as FBI director
thumb|J. Edgar Hoover, FBI director from 1924 to 1972
J. Edgar Hoover served as FBI director from 1924 to 1972, a combined 48 years with the BOI, DOI, and FBI. He was chiefly responsible for creating the Scientific Crime Detection Laboratory, or the FBI Laboratory, which officially opened in 1932, as part of his work to professionalize investigations by the government. Hoover was substantially involved in most major cases and projects that the FBI handled during his tenure. But as detailed below, his tenure as Bureau director proved to be highly controversial, especially in its later years. After Hoover's death, Congress passed legislation that limited the tenure of future FBI directors to ten years.
Early homicide investigations of the new agency included the Osage Indian murders. During the "War on Crime" of the 1930s, FBI agents apprehended or killed a number of notorious criminals who committed kidnappings, bank robberies, and murders throughout the nation, including John Dillinger, "Baby Face" Nelson, Kate "Ma" Barker, Alvin "Creepy" Karpis, and George "Machine Gun" Kelly.
Other activities of its early decades focused on the scope and influence of the white supremacist group Ku Klux Klan, a group with which the FBI was evidenced to be working in the Viola Liuzzo lynching case. Earlier, through the work of Edwin Atherton, the BOI claimed to have successfully apprehended an entire army of Mexican neo-revolutionaries under the leadership of General Enrique Estrada in the mid-1920s, east of San Diego, California.
Hoover began using wiretapping in the 1920s during Prohibition to arrest bootleggers. In the 1927 case Olmstead v. United States, in which a bootlegger was caught through telephone tapping, the United States Supreme Court ruled that FBI wiretaps did not violate the Fourth Amendment as unlawful search and seizure, as long as the FBI did not break into a person's home to complete the tapping. After Prohibition's repeal, Congress passed the Communications Act of 1934, which outlawed non-consensual phone tapping, but did allow bugging. In the 1939 case Nardone v. United States, the court ruled that due to the 1934 law, evidence the FBI obtained by phone tapping was inadmissible in court. After Katz v. United States (1967) overturned Olmstead, Congress passed the Omnibus Crime Control Act, allowing public authorities to tap telephones during investigations, as long as they obtained warrants beforehand.
National security
Beginning in the 1940s and continuing into the 1970s, the bureau investigated cases of espionage against the United States and its allies. Eight Nazi agents who had planned sabotage operations against American targets were arrested, and six were executed (Ex parte Quirin) under their sentences. Also during this time, a joint US/UK code-breaking effort called "The Venona Project"—with which the FBI was heavily involved—broke Soviet diplomatic and intelligence communications codes, allowing the US and British governments to read Soviet communications. This effort confirmed the existence of Americans working in the United States for Soviet intelligence. Hoover was administering this project, but he failed to notify the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) of it until 1952. Another notable case was the arrest of Soviet spy Rudolf Abel in 1957. The discovery of Soviet spies operating in the US motivated Hoover to pursue his longstanding concern with the threat he perceived from the American Left.
Japanese American internment
In 1939, the Bureau began compiling a custodial detention list with the names of those who would be taken into custody in the event of war with Axis nations. The majority of the names on the list belonged to Issei community leaders, as the FBI investigation built on an existing Naval Intelligence index that had focused on Japanese Americans in Hawaii and the West Coast, but many German and Italian nationals also found their way onto the FBI Index list. Robert Shivers, head of the Honolulu office, obtained permission from Hoover to start detaining those on the list on December 7, 1941, while bombs were still falling over Pearl Harbor. Mass arrests and searches of homes, in most cases conducted without warrants, began a few hours after the attack, and over the next several weeks more than 5,500 Issei men were taken into FBI custody.
On February 19, 1942, President Franklin Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066, authorizing the removal of Japanese Americans from the West Coast. FBI Director Hoover opposed the subsequent mass removal and confinement of Japanese Americans authorized under Executive Order 9066, but Roosevelt prevailed. The vast majority went along with the subsequent exclusion orders, but in a handful of cases where Japanese Americans refused to obey the new military regulations, FBI agents handled their arrests. The Bureau continued surveillance on Japanese Americans throughout the war, conducting background checks on applicants for resettlement outside camp, and entering the camps, usually without the permission of War Relocation Authority officials, and grooming informants to monitor dissidents and "troublemakers". After the war, the FBI was assigned to protect returning Japanese Americans from attacks by hostile white communities.
Sex deviates program
According to Douglas M. Charles, the FBI's "sex deviates" program began on April 10, 1950, when J. Edgar Hoover forwarded to the White House, to the U.S. Civil Service Commission, and to branches of the armed services a list of 393 alleged federal employees who had allegedly been arrested in Washington, D.C., since 1947, on charges of "sexual irregularities". On June 20, 1951, Hoover expanded the program by issuing a memo establishing a "uniform policy for the handling of the increasing number of reports and allegations concerning present and past employees of the United States Government who assertedly [sic] are sex deviates". The program was expanded to include non-government jobs. According to Athan Theoharis, "In 1951 he [Hoover] had unilaterally instituted a Sex Deviates program to purge alleged homosexuals from any position in the federal government, from the lowliest clerk to the more powerful position of White house aide." On May 27, 1953, Executive Order 10450 went into effect. The program was expanded further by this executive order by making all federal employment of homosexuals illegal. On July 8, 1953, the FBI forwarded to the U.S. Civil Service Commission information from the sex deviates program. Between 1977 and 1978, 300,000 pages in the sex deviates program, collected between 1930 and the mid-1970s, were destroyed by FBI officials.
Civil rights movement
During the 1950s and 1960s, FBI officials became increasingly concerned about the influence of civil rights leaders, whom they believed either had communist ties or were unduly influenced by communists or "fellow travelers". In 1956, for example, Hoover sent an open letter denouncing Dr. T. R. M. Howard, a civil rights leader, surgeon, and wealthy entrepreneur in Mississippi who had criticized FBI inaction in solving recent murders of George W. Lee, Emmett Till, and other blacks in the South.David T. Beito and Linda Royster Beito, Black Maverick: T.R.M. Howard's Fight for Civil Rights and Economic Power (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 2009), 148, 154–59. The FBI carried out controversial domestic surveillance in an operation it called the COINTELPRO, from "COunter-INTELligence PROgram". It was to investigate and disrupt the activities of dissident political organizations within the United States, including both militant and non-violent organizations. Among its targets was the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, a leading civil rights organization whose clergy leadership included the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr..
thumb|The "suicide letter", mailed anonymously to King by the FBI
The FBI frequently investigated King. In the mid-1960s, King began to criticize the Bureau for giving insufficient attention to the use of terrorism by white supremacists. Hoover responded by publicly calling King the most "notorious liar" in the United States.Taylor Branch, Pillar of Fire: America in the King Years 1963–1965 (Simon and Schuster, 1999), p. 524–529 In his 1991 memoir, Washington Post journalist Carl Rowan asserted that the FBI had sent at least one anonymous letter to King encouraging him to commit suicide. Historian Taylor Branch documents an anonymous November 1964 "suicide package" sent by the Bureau that combined a letter to the civil rights leader telling him "You are done. There is only one way out for you." with audio recordings of King's sexual indiscretions.
In March 1971, the residential office of an FBI agent in Media, Pennsylvania, was burgled by a group calling itself the Citizens' Commission to Investigate the FBI. Numerous files were taken and distributed to a range of newspapers, including The Harvard Crimson. The files detailed the FBI's extensive COINTELPRO program, which included investigations into lives of ordinary citizens—including a black student group at a Pennsylvania military college and the daughter of Congressman Henry S. Reuss of Wisconsin. The country was "jolted" by the revelations, which included assassinations of political activists, and the actions were denounced by members of the Congress, including House Majority Leader Hale Boggs. The phones of some members of the Congress, including Boggs, had allegedly been tapped.
Kennedy's assassination
When President John F. Kennedy was shot and killed, the jurisdiction fell to the local police departments until President Lyndon B. Johnson directed the FBI to take over the investigation. To ensure clarity about the responsibility for investigation of homicides of federal officials, Congress passed a law in 1965 that included investigations of such deaths of federal officials, especially by homicide, within FBI jurisdiction.
Organized crime
thumb|An FBI surveillance photograph of Joseph D. Pistone (aka Donnie Brasco), Benjamin "Lefty" Ruggiero and Edgar Robb (aka Tony Rossi), 1980s
In response to organized crime, on August 25, 1953, the FBI created the Top Hoodlum Program. The national office directed field offices to gather information on mobsters in their territories and to report it regularly to Washington for a centralized collection of intelligence on racketeers."Using Intel to Stop the Mob, Part 2" . Retrieved February 12, 2010. After the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, for RICO Act, took effect, the FBI began investigating the former Prohibition-organized groups, which had become fronts for crime in major cities and small towns. All the FBI work was done undercover and from within these organizations, using the provisions provided in the RICO Act. Gradually the agency dismantled many of the groups. Although Hoover initially denied the existence of a National Crime Syndicate in the United States, the Bureau later conducted operations against known organized crime syndicates and families, including those headed by Sam Giancana and John Gotti. The RICO Act is still used today for all organized crime and any individuals who may fall under the Act's provisions.
In 2003, a congressional committee called the FBI's organized crime informant program "one of the greatest failures in the history of federal law enforcement". The FBI allowed four innocent men to be convicted of the March 1965 gangland murder of Edward "Teddy" Deegan in order to protect Vincent Flemmi, an FBI informant. Three of the men were sentenced to death (which was later reduced to life in prison), and the fourth defendant was sentenced to life in prison. Two of the four men died in prison after serving almost 30 years, and two others were released after serving 32 and 36 years. In July 2007, U.S. District Judge Nancy Gertner in Boston found that the Bureau had helped convict the four men using false witness accounts given by mobster Joseph Barboza. The U.S. Government was ordered to pay $100 million in damages to the four defendants.
Special FBI teams
thumb| FBI SWAT agents in a training exercise
In 1982, the FBI formed an elite unit to help with problems that might arise at the 1984 Summer Olympics to be held in Los Angeles, particularly terrorism and major-crime. This was a result of the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany, when terrorists murdered the Israeli athletes. Named the Hostage Rescue Team, or HRT, it acts as a dedicated FBI SWAT team dealing primarily with counter-terrorism scenarios. Unlike the special agents serving on local FBI SWAT teams, HRT does not conduct investigations. Instead, HRT focuses solely on additional tactical proficiency and capabilities. Also formed in 1984 was the Computer Analysis and Response Team, or CART.
From the end of the 1980s to the early 1990s, the FBI reassigned more than 300 agents from foreign counter-intelligence duties to violent crime, and made violent crime the sixth national priority. With cuts to other well-established departments, and because terrorism was no longer considered a threat after the end of the Cold War, the FBI assisted local and state police forces in tracking fugitives who had crossed state lines, which is a federal offense. The FBI Laboratory helped develop DNA testing, continuing its pioneering role in identification that began with its fingerprinting system in 1924.
Notable efforts in the 1990s
thumb|An FBI agent tags the cockpit voice recorder from EgyptAir Flight 990 on the deck of the USS Grapple (ARS 53) at the crash site on November 13, 1999.
On May 1, 1992, FBI SWAT and HRT personnel in Los Angeles County, California aided local officials in securing peace within the area during the 1992 Los Angeles riots. HRT operators, for instance, spent 10 days conducting vehicle-mounted patrols throughout Los Angeles, before returning to Virginia.
Between 1993 and 1996, the FBI increased its counter-terrorism role following the first 1993 World Trade Center bombing in New York City, the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, and the arrest of the Unabomber in 1996. Technological innovation and the skills of FBI Laboratory analysts helped ensure that the three cases were successfully prosecuted. However, Justice Department investigations into the FBI's roles in the Ruby Ridge and Waco incidents were found to have been obstructed by agents within the Bureau. During the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, the FBI was criticized for its investigation of the Centennial Olympic Park bombing. It has settled a dispute with Richard Jewell, who was a private security guard at the venue, along with some media organizations, in regard to the leaking of his name during the investigation; this had briefly led to his being wrongly suspected of the bombing.
After Congress passed the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA, 1994), the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA, 1996), and the Economic Espionage Act (EEA, 1996), the FBI followed suit and underwent a technological upgrade in 1998, just as it did with its CART team in 1991. Computer Investigations and Infrastructure Threat Assessment Center (CITAC) and the National Infrastructure Protection Center (NIPC) were created to deal with the increase in Internet-related problems, such as computer viruses, worms, and other malicious programs that threatened U.S. operations. With these developments, the FBI increased its electronic surveillance in public safety and national security investigations, adapting to the telecommunications advancements that changed the nature of such problems.
In response to the 1998 U.S. embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania, the FBI developed its Strategic Plan 1998–2003 to prioritize counterterrorism and national security. This plan introduced a three-tiered system to classify and prioritize investigative programs agency-wide. Tier one, the highest priority, included national security programs such as counterterrorism and counterintelligence; tier two encompassed major criminal investigations, such as organized crime and white-collar crime, while tier three covered lower-priority matters, including "the most significant" crimes against property and individuals.
The September 11, 2001, attacks accelerated the FBI’s implementation of the tier system, leading to a significant reallocation of resources toward Tier 1 programs. A 2003 audit by the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General (OIG) reported that the average number of agents assigned to terrorism-related investigations more than doubledfrom 2,126 in FY 2000 to 4,680 by FY 2002largely due to the expansion of the Counterterrorism Division’s Joint Terrorism Task Forces and related initiatives.
September 11 attacks
thumb|September 11 attacks at the Pentagon
During the September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center, FBI agent Leonard W. Hatton Jr. was killed during the rescue effort while helping the rescue personnel evacuate the occupants of the South Tower, and he stayed when it collapsed. Within months after the attacks, FBI Director Robert Mueller, who had been sworn in a week before the attacks, called for a re-engineering of FBI structure and operations. He made countering every federal crime a top priority, including the prevention of terrorism, countering foreign intelligence operations, addressing cybersecurity threats, other high-tech crimes, protecting civil rights, combating public corruption, organized crime, white-collar crime, and major acts of violent crime.
In February 2001, Robert Hanssen was caught selling information to the Russian government. It was later learned that Hanssen, who had reached a high position within the FBI, had been selling intelligence since as early as 1979. He pleaded guilty to espionage and received a life sentence in 2002, but the incident led many to question the security practices employed by the FBI. There was also a claim that Hanssen might have contributed information that led to the September 11, 2001, attacks.
The 9/11 Commission's final report on July 22, 2004, stated that the FBI and Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) were both partially to blame for not pursuing intelligence reports that could have prevented the September 11 attacks. In its most damning assessment, the report concluded that the country had "not been well served" by either agency and listed numerous recommendations for changes within the FBI. While the FBI did accede to most of the recommendations, including oversight by the new director of National Intelligence, some former members of the 9/11 Commission publicly criticized the FBI in October 2005, claiming it was resisting any meaningful changes.
On July 8, 2007, The Washington Post published excerpts from UCLA Professor Amy Zegart's book Spying Blind: The CIA, the FBI, and the Origins of 9/11. The Post reported, from Zegart's book, that government documents showed that both the CIA and the FBI had missed 23 potential chances to disrupt the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. The primary reasons for the failures included: agency cultures resistant to change and new ideas; inappropriate incentives for promotion; and a lack of cooperation between the FBI, CIA, and the rest of the United States Intelligence Community. The book blamed the FBI's decentralized structure, which prevented effective communication and cooperation among different FBI offices. The book suggested that the FBI had not evolved into an effective counter-terrorism or counter-intelligence agency, due in large part to deeply ingrained agency cultural resistance to change. For example, FBI personnel practices continued to treat all staff other than special agents as support staff, classifying intelligence analysts alongside the FBI's auto mechanics and janitors.
Faulty bullet analysis
For over 40 years, the FBI crime lab in Quantico had believed that lead alloys used in bullets had unique chemical signatures. It was analyzing the bullets with the goal of matching them chemically, not only to a single batch of ammunition coming out of a factory, but also to a single box of bullets. The National Academy of Sciences conducted an 18-month independent review of comparative bullet-lead analysis. In 2003, its National Research Council published a report whose conclusions called into question 30 years of FBI testimony. It found the analytic model used by the FBI for interpreting results was deeply flawed, and the conclusion, that bullet fragments could be matched to a box of ammunition, was so overstated that it was misleading under the rules of evidence. One year later, the FBI decided to stop conducting bullet lead analyses.
After a 60 Minutes/The Washington Post investigation in November 2007, two years later, the Bureau agreed to identify, review, and release all pertinent cases, and notify prosecutors about cases in which faulty testimony was given.
Technology
In 2012, the FBI formed the National Domestic Communications Assistance Center to develop technology for assisting law enforcement with technical knowledge regarding communication services, technologies, and electronic surveillance.
January 6 United States Capitol attack
An FBI informant who participated in the January 6 United States Capitol attack on democratic institutions in Washington D.C. later testified in support of the Proud boys, who were part of the plot. Revelations about the informant raised fresh questions about intelligence failures by the FBI before the riot. According to the Brennan Center, and Senate committees, the FBI's response to white supremacist violence was "woefully inadequate". The FBI has long been suspected to have turned a blind eye towards right-wing extremists while disseminating "conspiracy theories" on the origin of SARS-CoV-2.
Organization
Organizational structure
thumb|FBI field divisions map
thumb|Organization chart for the FBI as of July 15, 2014
thumb|Redacted policy guide for the Counterterrorism Division (part of the FBI National Security Branch)
The FBI is organized into functional branches and the Office of the Director, which contains most administrative offices. An executive assistant director manages each branch. Each branch is then divided into offices and divisions, each headed by an assistant director. The various divisions are further divided into sub-branches, led by deputy assistant directors. Within these sub-branches, there are various sections headed by section chiefs. Section chiefs are ranked analogous to special agents in charge. Four of the branches report to the deputy director while two report to the associate director.
The main branches of the FBI are:
FBI Intelligence Branch
Executive Assistant Director: Stephen Laycock
FBI National Security Branch
Executive Assistant Director: John Brown
FBI Criminal, Cyber, Response, and Services Branch
Executive Assistant Director: Terry Wade
FBI Science and Technology Branch
Executive Assistant Director: Darrin E. Jones
FBI Information and Technology Branch
Executive Assistant Director: Michael Gavin (Acting)
FBI Human Resources Branch
Executive Assistant Director: Jeffrey S. Sallet
Each branch focuses on different tasks, and some focus on more than one. Here are some of the tasks that different branches are in charge of:
FBI Headquarters Washington D.C.
National Security Branch (NSB)
Counterintelligence Division (CD)
Counterterrorism Division (CTD)
Weapons of Mass Destruction Directorate (WMDD)
High-Value Detainee Interrogation Group (HIG)
Terrorist Screening Center (TSC)
Intelligence Branch (IB)
Directorate of Intelligence (DI)
Office of Partner Engagement (OPE)
Office of Private Sector
FBI Criminal, Cyber, Response, and Services Branch (CCRSB)
Criminal Investigation Division (CID)
Violent Crime Section (VCS)
Child Exploitation Operational Unit (CEOU) a joint unit between the FBI and U.S. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) - Located in Boston Mass.
Violent Crimes Against Children Section (VCACS)
Major Case Coordination Unit (MCCU)
Cyber Division (CyD)
Critical Incident Response Group (CIRG)
International Operation Division (IOD)
Victim Services Division
Science and Technology Branch (STB)
Operational Technology Division (OTD)
Laboratory Division (LD)
Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) Division
Other Headquarter Offices
Information and Technology Branch (ITB)
IT Enterprise Services Division (ITESD)
IT Applications and Data Division (ITADD)
IT Infrastructure Division (ITID)
IT Management Division
IT Engineering Division
IT Services Division
Human Resources Branch (HRB)
Training Division (TD)
Human Resources Division (HRD)
Security Division (SecD)
Administrative and financial management support
Facilities and Logistics Services Division (FLSD)
Finance Division (FD)
Records Management Division (RMD)
Resource Planning Office (RPO)
Inspection Division (InSD)
Office of the Director
The Office of the Director serves as the central administrative organ of the FBI. The office provides staff support functions (such as finance and facilities management) to the five function branches and the various field divisions. The office is managed by the FBI associate director, who also oversees the operations of both the Information and Technology and Human Resources Branches.
Senior staff
Deputy director
Associate deputy director
Chief of staff
Office of the Director
Finance and Facilities Division
Information Management Division
Insider Threat Office
Inspection Division
Office of the Chief Information Officer
Office of Congressional Affairs (OCA)
Office of Diversity and Inclusion
Office of Equal Employment Opportunity Affairs (OEEOA)
Office of the General Counsel (OGC)
Office of Integrity and Compliance (OIC)
Office of Internal Auditing
Office of the Ombudsman
Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR)
Office of Public Affairs (OPA)
Resource Planning Office
thumb|An FBI agent at a crime scene
Rank structure
The following is a listing of the rank structure found within the FBI (in ascending order):
Field agents
New agent trainee
Special agent
Senior special agent
Supervisory special agent
Assistant special agent-in-charge (ASAC)
Special agent-in-charge (SAC)thumb|James Comey speaks at the White House following his nomination by President Barack Obama to be the next director of the FBI, June 21, 2013.
FBI management
Deputy assistant director
Assistant director
Associate executive assistant director (National Security Branch only)
Executive assistant director
Deputy chief of staff
Chief of staff and special counsel to the director
Associate deputy director
Deputy director
Director
Legal authority
thumb|FBI badge and service pistol, a Glock Model 22, .40 S&W caliber
The FBI's mandate is established in Title 28 of the United States Code (U.S. Code), Section 533, which authorizes the Attorney General to "appoint officials to detect and prosecute crimes against the United States". Other federal statutes give the FBI the authority and responsibility to investigate specific crimes.
The FBI's chief tool against organized crime is the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act. The FBI is also charged with the responsibility of enforcing compliance of the United States Civil Rights Act of 1964 and investigating violations of the act in addition to prosecuting such violations with the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). The FBI also shares concurrent jurisdiction with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in the enforcement of the Controlled Substances Act of 1970.
The USA PATRIOT Act increased the powers allotted to the FBI, especially in wiretapping and monitoring of Internet activity. One of the most controversial provisions of the act is the so-called sneak and peek provision, granting the FBI powers to search a house while the residents are away, and not requiring them to notify the residents for several weeks afterward. Under the PATRIOT Act's provisions, the FBI also resumed inquiring into the library records of those who are suspected of terrorism (something it had supposedly not done since the 1970s).
In the early 1980s, Senate hearings were held to examine FBI undercover operations in the wake of the Abscam controversy, which had allegations of entrapment of elected officials. As a result, in the following years a number of guidelines were issued to constrain FBI activities.
Information obtained through an FBI investigation is presented to the appropriate U.S. Attorney or Department of Justice official, who decides if prosecution or other action is warranted.
The FBI often works in conjunction with other federal agencies, including the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in seaport and airport security, and the National Transportation Safety Board in investigating airplane crashes and other critical incidents. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) has nearly the same amount of investigative manpower as the FBI and investigates the largest range of crimes. In the wake of the September 11 attacks, then–Attorney General Ashcroft assigned the FBI as the designated lead organization in terrorism investigations after the creation of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. HSI and the FBI are both integral members of the Joint Terrorism Task Force.
Indian reservations
thumb|FBI Director James Comey visiting the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation in North Dakota in June 2016
The federal government has the primary responsibility for investigating"Indian Country Crime" FBI website, accessed August 10, 2010 and prosecuting serious crime on Indian reservations.
The FBI does not specifically list crimes in Native American land as one of its priorities.FBI "Facts and Figures" See prominently displayed list of priorities, accessed August 10, 2010 Often serious crimes have been either poorly investigated or prosecution has been declined. Tribal courts can impose sentences of up to three years, under certain restrictions.Michael Riley, "Expansion of tribal courts' authority passes Senate" , The Denver Post. Posted: 25 June 2010 01:00:00 am MDT Updated: 25 June 2010 02:13:47 am MDT. Accessed June 25, 2010.Michael Riley, "President Obama signs tribal-justice changes" , The Denver Post, Posted: 30 July 2010 01:00:00 am MDT, Updated: 30 July 2010 06:00:20 am MDT, accessed July 30, 2010.
Infrastructure
thumb|The J. Edgar Hoover Building, FBI headquarters
thumb|FBI Mobile Command Center, Washington Field Office
The FBI is headquartered at the J. Edgar Hoover Building in Washington, D.C., with 56 field offices in major cities across the United States. The FBI also maintains over 400 resident agencies across the United States, as well as over 50 legal attachés at United States embassies and consulates. Many specialized FBI functions are located at facilities in Quantico, Virginia, as well as a "data campus" in Clarksburg, West Virginia, where 96 million sets of fingerprints "from across the United States are stored, along with others collected by American authorities from prisoners in Saudi Arabia and Yemen, Iraq and Afghanistan".Priest, Dana and Arkin, William (December 2010) Monitoring America , The Washington Post The FBI is in process of moving its Records Management Division, which processes Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, to Winchester, Virginia.
According to The Washington Post, the FBI "is building a vast repository controlled by people who work in a top-secret vault on the fourth floor of the J. Edgar Hoover Building in Washington. This one stores the profiles of tens of thousands of Americans and legal residents who are not accused of any crime. What they have done is appear to be acting suspiciously to a town sheriff, a traffic cop or even a neighbor."
The FBI Laboratory, established with the formation of the BOI, did not appear in the J. Edgar Hoover Building until its completion in 1974. The lab serves as the primary lab for most DNA, biological, and physical work. Public tours of FBI headquarters ran through the FBI laboratory workspace before the move to the J. Edgar Hoover Building. The services the lab conducts include Chemistry, Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), Computer Analysis and Response, DNA Analysis, Evidence Response, Explosives, Firearms and Tool marks, Forensic Audio, Forensic Video, Image Analysis, Forensic Science Research, Forensic Science Training, Hazardous Materials Response, Investigative and Prospective Graphics, Latent Prints, Materials Analysis, Questioned Documents, Racketeering Records, Special Photographic Analysis, Structural Design, and Trace Evidence. The services of the FBI Laboratory are used by many state, local, and international agencies free of charge. The lab also maintains a second lab at the FBI Academy.
The FBI Academy, located in Quantico, Virginia, is home to the communications and computer laboratory the FBI utilizes. It is also where new agents are sent for training to become FBI special agents. Going through the 21-week course is required for every special agent. First opened for use in 1972, the facility is located on of woodland. The Academy trains state and local law enforcement agencies, which are invited to the law enforcement training center. The FBI units that reside at Quantico are the Field and Police Training Unit, Firearms Training Unit, Forensic Science Research and Training Center, Technology Services Unit (TSU), Investigative Training Unit, Law Enforcement Communication Unit, Leadership and Management Science Units (LSMU), Physical Training Unit, New Agents' Training Unit (NATU), Practical Applications Unit (PAU), the Investigative Computer Training Unit and the "College of Analytical Studies".
thumb|The FBI Academy, located in Quantico, Virginia
In 2000, the FBI began the Trilogy project to upgrade its outdated information technology (IT) infrastructure. This project, originally scheduled to take three years and cost around $380 million, ended up over budget and behind schedule. Efforts to deploy modern computers and networking equipment were generally successful, but attempts to develop new investigation software, outsourced to Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), were not. Virtual Case File, or VCF, as the software was known, was plagued by poorly defined goals, and repeated changes in management.
In January 2005, more than two years after the software was originally planned for completion, the FBI abandoned the project. At least $100 million, and much more by some estimates, was spent on the project, which never became operational. The FBI has been forced to continue using its decade-old Automated Case Support system, which IT experts consider woefully inadequate. In March 2005, the FBI announced it was beginning a new, more ambitious software project, code-named Sentinel, which they expected to complete by 2009.
thumb|The FBI Field Office in Chelsea, Massachusetts
Carnivore was an electronic eavesdropping software system implemented by the FBI during the Clinton administration; it was designed to monitor email and electronic communications. After prolonged negative coverage in the press, the FBI changed the name of its system from "Carnivore" to "DCS1000". DCS is reported to stand for "Digital Collection System"; the system has the same functions as before. The Associated Press reported in mid-January 2005 that the FBI essentially abandoned the use of Carnivore in 2001, in favor of commercially available software, such as NarusInsight.
The Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) Division is located in Clarksburg, West Virginia. Organized beginning in 1991, the office opened in 1995 as the youngest agency division. The complex is the length of three football fields. It provides a main repository for information in various data systems. Under the roof of the CJIS are the programs for the National Crime Information Center (NCIC), Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR), Fingerprint Identification, Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System (IAFIS), NCIC 2000, and the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS). Many state and local agencies use these data systems as a source for their own investigations and contribute to the database using secure communications. FBI provides these tools of sophisticated identification and information services to local, state, federal, and international law enforcement agencies.
The FBI heads the National Virtual Translation Center, which provides "timely and accurate translations of foreign intelligence for all elements of the Intelligence Community".
In June 2021, the FBI held a groundbreaking for its planned FBI Innovation Center, set to be built in Huntsville, Alabama. The Innovation Center is to be part of a large, college-like campus costing a total of $1.3 billion in Redstone Arsenal and will act as a center for cyber threat intelligence, data analytics, and emerging threat training.
Personnel
thumb|right|An FBI Evidence Response Team
thumb|right|Agents in training on the FBI Academy firing range
, the FBI had a total of 33,852 employees. That includes 13,412 special agents and 20,420 support professionals, such as intelligence analysts, language specialists, scientists, information technology specialists, and other professionals.
Line of Duty Deaths
According to the Officer Down Memorial Page 87 FBI agents and 2 K9s have died in the line of duty from 1925 to February 2021.
Hiring process
To apply to become an FBI agent, one must be between the ages of 23 and 37, unless one is a preference-eligible veteran, in which case one may apply after age 37.Due to the decision in Robert P. Isabella v. Department of State and Office of Personnel Management, 2008 M.S.P.B. 146. In 2009, the Office of Personnel Management issued implementation guidance on the Isabella decision (CHCOC . Chcoc.gov. Retrieved on July 23, 2013). The applicant must also hold U.S. citizenship, be of high moral character, have a clean record, and hold at least a four-year bachelor's degree. At least three years of professional work experience prior to application is also required. All FBI employees require a Top Secret (TS) security clearance, and in many instances, employees need a TS/SCI (Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information) clearance.
To obtain a security clearance, all potential FBI personnel must pass a series of Single Scope Background Investigations (SSBI), which are conducted by the Office of Personnel Management. Special agent candidates also have to pass a Physical Fitness Test (PFT), which includes a 300-meter run, one-minute sit-ups, maximum push-ups, and a run. Personnel must pass a polygraph test with questions including possible drug use. Applicants who fail polygraphs may not gain employment with the FBI.Taylor, Marisa. "FBI turns away many applicants who fail lie-detector tests". The McClatchy Company. May 20, 2013. Retrieved on July 25, 2013. Up until 1975, the FBI had a minimum height requirement of .
BOI and FBI directors
FBI directors are appointed (nominated) by the president of the United States and must be confirmed by the United States Senate to serve a term of office of ten years, subject to resignation or removal by the president at his/her discretion before their term ends. Additional terms are allowed following the same procedure.
J. Edgar Hoover, appointed by President Calvin Coolidge in 1924, was by far the longest-serving director, serving until his death in 1972. In 1968, Congress passed legislation, as part of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, requiring Senate confirmation of appointments of future directors.Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act , June 19, 1968, , sec.1101 As the incumbent, this legislation did not apply to Hoover. The last FBI director was Andrew McCabe. The current FBI director is Kash Patel, appointed by President Donald Trump.
The FBI director is responsible for the day-to-day operations at the FBI. Along with the deputy director, the director makes sure cases and operations are handled correctly. The director also is in charge of making sure the leadership in the FBI field offices is staffed with qualified agents. Before the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act was passed in the wake of the September 11 attacks, the FBI director would directly brief the president of the United States on any issues that arise from within the FBI. Since then, the director now reports to the director of national intelligence (DNI), who in turn reports to the President.
Firearms
thumb|A Glock 22 pistol in .40 S&W caliber
Upon qualification, an FBI special agent is issued a full-size Glock 22 or compact Glock 23 semi-automatic pistol, both of which are chambered in the .40 S&W cartridge. In May 1997, the FBI officially adopted the Glock, in .40 S&W, for general agent use, and first issued it to New Agent Class 98-1 in October 1997. At present, the Glock 23 "FG&R" (finger groove and rail; either 3rd generation or "Gen4") is the issue sidearm.
New agents are issued firearms, on which they must qualify, on successful completion of their training at the FBI Academy. The Glock 26 (subcompact 9 mm Parabellum), Glock 23 and Glock 27 (.40 S&W compact and subcompact, respectively) are authorized as secondary weapons. Special agents are also authorized to purchase and qualify with the Glock 21 in .45 ACP.
Special agents of the FBI Hostage Rescue Team (HRT) and regional SWAT teams are issued the Springfield Armory Professional Model 1911 pistol in .45 ACP.
In June 2016, the FBI awarded Glock a contract for new handguns. Unlike the currently issued .40 S&W chambered Glock pistols, the new Glocks will be chambered for 9 mm Parabellum. The contract is for the full-size Glock 17M and the compact Glock 19M. The "M" means the Glocks have been modified to meet government standards specified by a 2015 government request for proposal.
Publications
thumb|A publication following the January 6 United States Capitol attack
The FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin is published monthly by the FBI Law Enforcement Communication Unit, with articles of interest to state and local law enforcement personnel. First published in 1932 as Fugitives Wanted by Police, the FBI Law Bulletin covers topics including law enforcement technology and issues, such as crime mapping and use of force, as well as recent criminal justice research, and ViCAP alerts, on wanted suspects and key cases.
The FBI also publishes some reports for both law enforcement personnel as well as regular citizens covering topics including law enforcement, terrorism, cybercrime, white-collar crime, violent crime, and statistics. The vast majority of federal government publications covering these topics are published by the Office of Justice Programs agencies of the United States Department of Justice, and disseminated through the National Criminal Justice Reference Service.
Crime statistics
During the 1920s the FBI began issuing crime reports by gathering numbers from local police departments. Due to limitations of this system that were discovered during the 1960s and 1970s—victims often simply did not report crimes to the police in the first place—the Department of Justice developed an alternative method of tallying crime, the victimization survey.
Uniform Crime Reports
The Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) compile data from over 17,000 law enforcement agencies across the country. They provide detailed data regarding the volume of crimes to include arrest, clearance (or closing a case), and law enforcement officer information. The UCR focuses its data collection on violent crimes, hate crimes, and property crimes. Created in the 1920s, the UCR system has not proven to be as uniform as its name implies. The UCR data only reflect the most serious offense in the case of connected crimes and has a very restrictive definition of rape. Since about 93% of the data submitted to the FBI is in this format, the UCR stands out as the publication of choice as most states require law enforcement agencies to submit this data.
Preliminary Annual Uniform Crime Report for 2006 was released on June 4, 2006. The report shows violent crime offenses rose 1.3%, but the number of property crime offenses decreased 2.9% compared to 2005.
National Incident-Based Reporting System
The National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) crime statistics system aims to address limitations inherent in UCR data. The system is used by law enforcement agencies in the United States for collecting and reporting data on crimes. Local, state, and federal agencies generate NIBRS data from their records management systems. Data is collected on every incident and arrest in the Group A offense category. The Group A offenses are 46 specific crimes grouped in 22 offense categories. Specific facts about these offenses are gathered and reported in the NIBRS system. In addition to the Group A offenses, eleven Group B offenses are reported with only the arrest information. The NIBRS system is in greater detail than the summary-based UCR system. , 5,271 law enforcement agencies submitted NIBRS data. That amount represents 20% of the United States population and 16% of the crime statistics data collected by the FBI.
eGuardian
eGuardian is the name of an FBI system, launched in January 2009, to share tips about possible terror threats with local police agencies. The program aims to get law enforcement at all levels sharing data quickly about suspicious activity and people.
eGuardian enables near real-time sharing and tracking of terror information and suspicious activities with local, state, tribal, and federal agencies. The eGuardian system is a spin-off of a similar but classified tool called Guardian that has been used inside the FBI, and shared with vetted partners since 2005.
Controversies
Throughout its history, the FBI has been the subject of many controversies, both at home and abroad.
Files on Puerto Rican independence advocates – Congressman Luiz Gutierrez revealed that Pedro Albizu Campos and his Nationalist political party had been watched for a decade-long period in the 1930s.
The Whitey Bulger case – The FBI was, and continues to be, criticized for its handling of Boston criminal Whitey Bulger. As a result of Bulger acting as an informant, the agency turned a blind eye to his activities as an exchange.
Latin America – For decades during the Cold War, the FBI placed agents to monitor the governments of Caribbean and Latin American nations.
Domestic surveillance – In 1985, it was found that the FBI had made use of surveillance devices on numerous American citizens between 1940 and 1960.
Robert Hanssen – In what is described by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) as "possibly the worst intelligence disaster in U.S. history". Hanssen managed to evade the FBI as he simultaneously sold thousands of classified American documents to Soviet intelligence operatives.
Viola Liuzzo – Gary Thomas Rowe, an FBI informant who at the time was also an active member of the Ku Klux Klan, assisted in the murder of Viola Liuzzo (a civil rights activist) in 1965, and afterwards, defamatory rumors were spread by the Bureau about the victim.
Ruby Ridge (1992) was a shootout between the FBI and Randy Weaver over his failure to appear for weapons charges.
Waco siege (1993) was a failed raid by the ATF that resulted in the death of 4 ATF agents and 6 Branch Davidians. The FBI and US military got involved with the 51 day siege that followed. The building ended up burning down killing 76 including 26 children. This is what motivated Timothy McVeigh (along with Ruby Ridge) to carry out the Oklahoma City bombing (1995).
Associated Press (AP) impersonation case – A Bureau agent, masquerading as an AP journalist, placed surveillance software in the personal computer of a minor. This resulted in a series of conflicts between the news agency and the FBI.
Stoneman Douglas High School shooting – A statement from the FBI confirmed that it had failed to act on a tip warning of the possibility of the shooting over a month prior to its occurrence, which may have prevented the tragedy outright.
1993 World Trade Center bombing - Emad Salem, an FBI informant and a key witness in the trial of Ramzi Yousef, Abdul Hakim Murad, and Wali Khan Amin Shah, stated that the bomb itself was built under supervision from the FBI.
Specific practices include:
Internal investigations of shootings – A professor of criminal justice at the University of Nebraska Omaha suggested that FBI internal reports found a questionably high number of weapon discharges by its agents to be justified.
Covert operations on political groups – Political groups deemed disruptive have been investigated and discredited by the FBI in the aim of "protecting national security, preventing violence, and maintaining the existing social and political order".
FBI surveillance since 2010 – In the years since 2010, it has been uncovered by various civil liberties groups (such as the American Civil Liberties Union [ACLU]) that the FBI earmarked disproportionate resources for the surveillance of left-leaning movements and political organizations. The FBI has also committed several breaches of the First Amendment in this time.
Files on U.S. citizens – The Bureau kept files on certain individuals for varying reasons and lengths of time, notably, Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra, John Denver.
Entrapment - The FBI has been criticized for its use of entrapment, where agent provocateurs attempt to incite individuals into committing illegal acts. Notable critics of FBI entrapment such as Human Rights Watch and the ACLU note that entrapment cases often target impoverished individuals or those with mental or emotional disabilities and that these cases have an adverse effect on marginalized groups.
Media portrayal
thumb|upright=0.9|The popular TV series The X-Files depicts the fictional FBI Special Agents Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) and Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) who investigate paranormal phenomena.
The FBI has been frequently depicted in popular media since the 1930s. The bureau has participated to varying degrees, which has ranged from direct involvement in the creative process of film or TV series development, to providing consultation on operations and closed cases. A few of the notable portrayals of the FBI on television are the series The X-Files, which started in 1993 and concluded its eleventh season in early 2018, and concerned investigations into paranormal phenomena by five fictional special agents, and the fictional Counter Terrorist Unit (CTU) agency in the TV drama 24, which is patterned after the FBI Counterterrorism Division.
The 1991 movie Point Break depicts an undercover FBI agent who infiltrated a gang of bank robbers. The 1997 movie Donnie Brasco is based on the true story of undercover FBI agent Joseph D. Pistone infiltrating the Mafia. The 2005–2020 television series Criminal Minds, that follows the team members of the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU) in the pursuit of serial killers. The 2017 TV series Riverdale where one of the main characters is an FBI agent. The 2015 TV series Quantico, titled after the location of the Bureau's training facility, deals with probationary and special agents, not all of whom, within the show's format, may be fully reliable or even trustworthy.
The 2018 series FBI, set in NYC that follows the personal and professional lives of the agents assigned to 26 Federal Plaza (NYC FBI field office). FBI first spin-off titled FBI: Most Wanted (2019), follows the FBI's Fugitive Task Force in chasing down the US's most wanted criminals, and the second spin-off, FBI: International (2021), follows the FBI's International Fly Team that goes where ever they are needed in the world to protect the US's interests.
Notable FBI personnel
Edwin Atherton
Ed Bethune
Cassandra Chandler
James Comey
Alaska P. Davidson
Sibel Edmonds
W. Mark Felt
James R. Fitzgerald
Robert Hanssen
J. Edgar Hoover
Lon Horiuchi
James Wormley Jones
John McClurg
Sylvia E. Mathis
Richard Miller
Robert Mueller
Eric O'Neill
John P. O'Neill
M.K. Palmore
Joseph D. Pistone
Melvin Purvis
Coleen Rowley
Ali Soufan
Sue Thomas
Clyde Tolson
Frederic Whitehurst
See also
Diplomatic Security Service (DSS)
Law enforcement in the United States
List of United States state and local law enforcement agencies
State bureau of investigation
United States Marshals Service (USMS)
FBI Honorary Medals
FBI Victims Identification Project
History of espionage
Inspector
Society of Former Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation
References
Further reading
Church Committee Report (), Vol. 6, "Federal Bureau of Investigation". 1975 congressional inquiry into American intelligence operations.
Federal Bureau of Investigation. FBI—The Year in Review, Part 1, Part 2 (2013)
Graves, Melissa. "FBI Historiography: From Leader to Organisation" in Christopher R. Moran, Christopher J. Murphy, eds. Intelligence Studies in Britain and the US: Historiography Since 1945 (Edinburgh UP, 2013) pp. 129–145. .
Jeffreys-Jones, Rhodri. The FBI: A History (Yale University Press, 2007).
Jeffreys-Jones, Rhodri. "The Historiography of the FBI", in Loch Johnson, ed., A Handbook of Intelligence (Routledge, 2006). pp. 39–51.
Jeffreys-Jones, Rhodri. "Forcing Out Unwanted FBI Directors: A Brief, Messy History" (), Vox, (May 23, 2017).
Jeffreys-Jones, Rhodri. "A brief history of the FBI's meddling in US politics" (). Vox, (November 5, 2016).
Lindorff, Dave, "Brothers Against the Bureau: Ted Hall, the Soviet Union's Youngest Atomic Spy, His Rocket Scientist Brother Ed, and the Untold Story of How J. Edgar Hoover's biggest Manhattan Project Bust Was Shut Down", The Nation, vol. 314, no. 1 (January 10–17, 2022), pp. 26–31.
External links
Federal Bureau of Investigation from the Federation of American Scientists
The Vault, FBI electronic reading room (launched April 2011)
FBI Collection at Internet Archive, files on over 1,100 subjects
William H. Thomas, Jr.: Bureau of Investigation, in: 1914-1918-online. International Encyclopedia of the First World War.
FBI coverage at C-SPAN
Category:1908 establishments in Washington, D.C.
Category:1908 establishments in the United States
Category:Government agencies established in 1908
Category:United States Department of Justice agencies
Category:United States intelligence agencies
Category:Anti-communist organizations in the United States
Category:Law enforcement intelligence agencies
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Punjab, Pakistan
|
Punjab (; , ) is a province of Pakistan. With a population of over 127 million, it is the most populous province in Pakistan and second most populous subnational polity in the world. Located in the central-eastern region of the country, it has the largest economy, contributing the most to national GDP, in Pakistan. Lahore is the capital and largest city. Other major cities include Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala and Multan.
It is bordered by the Pakistani provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to the north-west, Balochistan to the south-west and Sindh to the south, as well as Islamabad Capital Territory to the north-west and Azad Kashmir to the north. It shares an international border with the Indian states of Rajasthan and Punjab to the east and Indian-administered Kashmir to the north-east. Punjab is the most fertile province of the country as the Indus River and its four major tributaries Ravi, Jhelum, Chenab and Sutlej flow through it.
The province forms the bulk of the transnational Punjab region, partitioned in 1947 among Pakistan and India. The province is represented in the federal parliament through 173, out of 336, seats in National Assembly, the lower house; and 23, out of 96, seats in Senate, the upper house.
Punjab is Pakistan's most industrialized province, with the industrial sector comprising 24 percent of the province's gross domestic product. It is known for its relative prosperity, and has the lowest rate of poverty among all Pakistani provinces. However, a clear divide is present between the northern and southern regions of the province; with northern Punjab being relatively more developed than south Punjab. Punjab is also one of the most urbanized regions of South Asia, with approximately 40 percent of its population being concentrated in urban areas.
Punjabi Muslims form majority of the province. Their culture has been strongly influenced by Islamic culture and Sufism, with a number of Sufi shrines spread across the province.Nizami, K.A., "Farīd al-Dīn Masʿūd "Gand̲j̲-I-S̲h̲akar"", in: Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition, Edited by: P. Bearman, Th. Bianquis, C.E. Bosworth, E. van Donzel, W.P. Heinrichs. Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, was born in the town of Nankana Sahib. Punjab hosts several of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including the Shalimar Gardens, the Lahore Fort, the archaeological excavations at Taxila, and the Rohtas Fort, among others.
Etymology
The name "Punjab" consists of two parts ( and ), of Persian origin which are cognates of the Sanskrit words ( and ). The name Punjab gained currency during the Mughal Empire rule over the region.Canfield, Robert L. (1991). Persia in Historical Perspective. Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press. p. 1 ("Origins"). . The word pañj-āb is the calque of Indo-Aryan pañca-áp and means "The Land of Five Waters", referring to the rivers Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Sutlej, and Beas."Punjab." p. 107 in Encyclopædia Britannica (9th ed.), vol. 20. All are tributaries of the Indus River, the Sutlej being the largest. References to a land of five rivers is found in the Mahabharata, in which one of the regions is named as Panchanada (). The ancient Greeks referred to the region as Pentapotamía (), of the same meaning as that of Punjab.Lassen, Christian. 1827. Commentatio Geographica atque Historica de Pentapotamia Indica [A Geographical and Historical Commentary on Indian Pentapotamia]. Weber. p. 4:
"That part of India which today we call by the Persian name ''Penjab'' is named Panchanada in the sacred language of the Indians; either of which names may be rendered in Greek by Πενταποταμια. The Persian origin of the former name is not at all in doubt, although the words of which it is composed are both Indian and Persian.... But, in truth, that final word is never, to my knowledge, used by the Indians in proper names compounded in this way; on the other hand, there exist multiple Persian names which end with that word, e.g., Doab and Nilab. Therefore, it is probable that the name Penjab, which is today found in all geographical books, is of more recent origin and is to be attributed to the Muslim kings of India, among whom the Persian language was mostly in use. That the Indian name Panchanada is ancient and genuine is evident from the fact that it is already seen in the Ramayana and Mahabharata, the most ancient Indian poems, and that no other exists in addition to it among the Indians; for Panchála, which English translations of the Ramayana render with Penjab...is the name of another region, entirely distinct from Pentapotamia...." Earlier, Punjab was also known as Sapta Sindhu in the Rigveda and Hapta Hendu in the Avesta, translating into "The Land of Seven Rivers"; the other two being Indus and Kabul which are included in the greater Punjab region.
History
Ancient period
It is believed that the earliest evidence of human habitation in Punjab traces to the Soan Valley of the Pothohar, between the Indus and the Jhelum rivers, where Soanian culture developed between 774,000 BC and 11,700 BC. This period goes back to the first interglacial period in the second Ice Age, from which remnants of stone and flint tools have been found. The Punjab region was the site of one of the earliest cradle of civilizations, the Bronze Age Harrapan civilization that flourished from about 3000 B.C. and declined rapidly 1,000 years later, following the Indo-Aryan migrations that overran the region in waves between 1500 and 500 B.C. The migrating Indo-Aryan tribes gave rise to the Iron Age Vedic civilization, which lasted till 500 BC. During this era, the Rigveda was composed in Punjab, laying the foundation of Hinduism. Frequent intertribal wars in the post-Vedic period stimulated the growth of larger groupings ruled by chieftains and kings, who ruled local kingdoms known as Mahajanapadas. Achaemenid emperor Darius the Great, in 518 BCE crossed the Indus and annex the regions up to the Jhelum River. Taxila is considered to be the site of one of the oldest education centre of South Asia and was part of the Achaemenid province of Hindush.
One of the early kings in Punjab was Porus, who fought the famous Battle of the Hydaspes against Alexander the Great. The battle is thought to have resulted in a decisive Greek victory; however, A. B. Bosworth warns against an uncritical reading of Greek sources who were obviously exaggerative. Porus refused to surrender and wandered about atop an elephant, until he was wounded and his force routed. When asked by Alexander how he wished to be treated, Porus replied "Treat me as a king would treat another king". Despite the apparently one-sided results, Alexander was impressed by Porus and chose to not depose him. Not only was his territory reinstated but also expanded with Alexander's forces annexing the territories of Glausaes, who ruled to the northeast of Porus' kingdom. The battle is historically significant because it resulted in the syncretism of ancient Greek political and cultural influences to the Indian subcontinent, yielding works such as Greco-Buddhist art, which continued to have an impact for the ensuing centuries.
Multan was the noted centre of excellence of the region which was attacked by the Greek army during the era of Alexander the Great. The Malli tribe together with nearby tribes gathered an army of 90,000-100,000 personnel to face the Greek army. This was perhaps the largest army faced by the Greeks in the entire Indian subcontinent. During the siege of the city's citadel, Alexander leaped into the inner area of the citadel, where he faced the Mallians' leader. Alexander was wounded by an arrow that had penetrated his lung, leaving him severely injured. The city was conquered after a fierce battle.
The region was then divided between the Maurya Empire and the Greco-Bactrian kingdom in 302 B.C.E. Menander I Soter conquered Punjab and made Sagala (present-day Sialkot) the capital of the Indo-Greek Kingdom. Menander is noted for becoming a patron and converting to Greco-Buddhism and he is widely regarded as the greatest of the Indo-Greek kings.
Medieval period
Following the Muslim conquests in the Indian subcontinent at the beginning of the 8th century, Arab armies of the Umayyad Caliphate penetrated into South Asia introducing Islam into the Punjab. First, Islam was introduced into the Southern Punjab in the opening decades of the eighth century. By the 16th century, Muslims were the majority in the region and an elaborate network of mosques and mausoleums marked the landscape. Local Punjabi Muslim converts constituted the majority of this Muslim community, and as far for the mechanisms of conversion, the sources of the period emphasize the recitation of the Islamic confession of faith (shahada), the performance of the circumcision, and the ingestion of cow-meat.
Islam emerged as the major power in Punjab after the Umayyad army led by Muhammad ibn al-Qasim conquered the region in 711 AD. The city of Multan became a centre of Islam. After the Umayyads conquered the key cities of Uch and Multan, they ruled the far areas of Punjab and included Kashmir. Islam spread rapidly.
According to local traditions, Baba Ratan Hindi was a trader from Punjab who was one of the non-Arab companions of Prophet Muhammad. He was reportedly a trader who used to take goods to Arabia. There is also a dargah named after him, the Haji Ratan Dargah, in Bathinda, where he settled after his conversion to Islam. Muslims who migrated to Pakistan during the partition of India in 1947 still venerate him as Baba Haji Ratan.
In the ninth century, the Hindu Shahi dynasty originating from the region of Oddiyana replaced the Taank kingdom in the Punjab, ruling much of Punjab along with eastern Afghanistan. In the 10th century, the tribe of the Gakhars/Khokhars, formed a large part of the Hindu Shahi army according to the Persian historian Firishta.
Ghaznavid
The Turkic Ghaznavids in the tenth century attacked the regions of Punjab. Multan and Uch were conquered after 3 attacks and Multan's ruler Abul Fateh Daud was defeated, famous Sun Temple was destroyed. Ghaznavids overthrew the Hindu Shahis and consequently ruled for 157 years, gradually declining as a power until the Ghurid conquests of key Punjab cities of Uch, Multan and Lahore by Muhammad of Ghor in 1186, deposing the last Ghaznavid ruler Khusrau Malik.
Following the death of Muhammad of Ghor in 1206, the Ghurid state fragmented and was replaced in northern India by the Delhi Sultanate and for some time independent sultanates ruled by various Sultans. The Delhi Sultanate ruled Punjab for the next three hundred years, led by five unrelated dynasties, the Mamluks, Khalajis, Tughlaqs, Sayyids and Lodis.
Delhi Sultanate
Tughlaqs
Ghiyath al-Din Tughlaq, the former governor of Multan and Dipalpur founded the Tughlaq dynasty in Delhi and ruled the subcontinent region. Earlier, he served as the governor of Multan and fought 28 battles against Mongols from there and saved Punjab and Sindh regions from the advances of Mongols and survived. After his death, his son Muhammad Tughlaq became the emperor.
Sayyid Dynasty
The 15th century saw the rise of many prominent Muslims from Punjab. Khizr Khan established the Sayyid dynasty, the fourth dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate, with four rulers ruling from 1414 to 1451 for 37 years.See:
M. Reza Pirbha, Reconsidering Islam in a South Asian Context, , Brill
The Islamic frontier in the east: Expansion into South Asia, Journal of South Asian Studies, 4(1), pp. 91–109
Sookoohy M., Bhadreswar – Oldest Islamic Monuments in India, , Brill Academic; see discussion of earliest raids in Gujarat The first ruler of the dynasty, Khizr Khan, who was the Timurid vassal of Multan, conquered Delhi in 1414, while the rulers proclaimed themselves the Sultans of the Delhi Sultanate under Mubarak Shah, which succeeded the Tughlaq dynasty and ruled the Sultanate until they were displaced by the Lodi dynasty in 1451.
Khizr Khan was originally a noble in the Delhi Sultanate during the Tughlaq Dynasty and was the governor of Multan under Sultan Firuz Shah. He was expelled from the city by the Muin tribes under Sarang Khan who occupied Multan in 1395, an Indian Muslim and the brother of Mallu Iqbal Khan, who was the de facto ruler of Delhi. Sarang Khan was aided by the servants of Malik Mardan Bhatti, a former governor of Multan and the grandfather of Khizr Khan by adoption.
In 1398, Timur attacked the Punjab region. After his invasion, Khizr Khan established the fourth dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate. According to Richard M. Eaton, Khizr Khan was the son of a Punjabi chieftain. He was a Khokhar chieftain who travelled to Samarkand and profited from the contacts he made with the Timurid society.
Following Timur's 1398 Sack of Delhi, he appointed Khizr Khan as deputy of Multan (Punjab). He held Lahore, Dipalpur, Multan and Upper Sindh. Collecting his forces in Multan, Khizr Khan defeated and killed Mallu Iqbal Khan in Delhi in 1405. He then captured Delhi on 28 May 1414 thereby establishing the Sayyid dynasty. Khizr Khan did not take up the title of Sultan, but continued the fiction of his allegiance to Timur as Rayat-i-Ala (vassal) of the Timurids - initially that of Timur, and later his son Shah Rukh.Mahajan, V.D. (1991, reprint 2007). History of Medieval India, Part I, New Delhi: S. Chand, , p.237 After the accession of Khizr Khan, the Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Sindh were reunited under the Delhi Sultanate, where he spent his time subduing rebellions.
Khizr Khan was succeeded by his son Sayyid Mubarak Shah after his death on 20 May 1421. Mubarak Shah referred to himself as Muizz-ud-Din Mubarak Shah on his coins, removing the Timurid name with the name of the Caliph, and declared himself a Shah. A detailed account of his reign is available in the Tarikh-i-Mubarak Shahi written by Yahya-bin-Ahmad Sirhindi. After the death of Mubarak Shah, his nephew, Muhammad Shah ascended the throne and styled himself as Sultan Muhammad Shah. Just before his death, he called his son Sayyid Ala-ud-Din Shah from Badaun, and nominated him as successor.
The last ruler of the Sayyids, Ala-ud-Din, voluntarily abdicated the throne of the Delhi Sultanate in favour of Bahlul Khan Lodi on 19 April 1451, and left for Badaun, where he died in 1478.thumb|180x180px|Silver copper coin of Khizr Khan, founder of the Sayyid dynasty.Langah Sultanate
In 1445, Sultan Qutbudin, chief of Langah tribe, established the Langah Sultanate in Multan. The Sultanate included regions of southern and central Punjab and some areas of present-day Khyber. A large number of Baloch settlers arrived and the towns of Dera Ghazi Khan and Dera Ismail Khan were founded.
During the most of 15th century, the Khokhars and Gakhars tribes were in general revolt in the Pothohar region. Jasrath Khokhar was one of their major chiefs who helped Sultan Zain Ul Abideen of Kashmir Sultanate to gain his throne and ruled over vast tracts of Jammu and North Punjab. He also conquered Delhi for a brief period in 1431 but was driven out by Mubarak Shah.
Modern period
Mughal Era
The Mughals came to power in the early sixteenth century and gradually expanded to control all of Punjab. During Mughal period Punjab region was divided into two provinces; Province of Multan and Province of Lahore. The Subah of Lahore was one of the three subahs (provinces) of the Mughal Empire in the Punjab region, alongside Multan and Delhi subahs, encompassing the northern, central and eastern Punjab. It was created as one of the original 12 Subahs of the Mughal Empire under the administrative reforms carried by Akbar in 1580. The province ceased to exist after the death of its last viceroy, Adina Beg in 1758, with large parts being incorporated into Durrani Empire. Collectively, Lahore and Multan subahs, and parts of Delhi subah, comprised Mughal Punjab.
During the Mughal era, Saadullah Khan, born into a family of Punjabi Muslim agriculturalist from Chiniot remained the Grand vizier and Vakil-i-Mutlaq of the Mughal Empire in the period 1645–1656, during the reign of Shah Jahan. Other prominent Muslims from Punjab who rose to nobility during the Mughal Era include Wazir Khan, Adina Beg Arain, and Shahbaz Khan Kamboh.Islamic Thought and Movements in the Subcontinent, 711–1947, 1979, p 278, Syed Moinul Haq.
The Mughal Empire ruled the region until it was severely weakened in the eighteenth century. As Mughal power weakened, Afghan rulers of Durrani dynasty took control of the region.
The Sikh Empire ruled Punjab from 1799 until the British annexed it in 1849 following the First and Second Anglo-Sikh Wars.
British Rule
thumb|Punjab Region on World Map under the British Rule
Most of the Punjabi homeland formed a province of British India, though a number of small princely states retained local rulers who recognized British authority. The Punjab with its rich farmlands became one of the most important colonial assets. Lahore was a noted center of learning and culture, and Rawalpindi became an important military installation.
Most Punjabis supported the British during World War I, providing men and resources to the war effort even though the Punjab remained a source of anti-colonial activities. Disturbances in the region increased as the war continued. At the end of the war, high casualty rates, heavy taxation, inflation, and a widespread influenza epidemic disrupted Punjabi society. In 1919 a British officer ordered his troops to fire on a crowd of demonstrators, mostly Sikhs in Amritsar. The Jallianwala massacre fueled the Indian independence movement. Nationalists declared the independence of India from Lahore in 1930 but were quickly suppressed.
When the Second World War broke out, nationalism in British India had already divided into religious movements. Many Sikhs and other minorities supported the Hindus, who promised a secular multicultural and multireligious society, and Muslim leaders in Lahore passed a resolution to work for a Muslim Pakistan, making the Punjab region a center of growing conflict between Indian and Pakistani nationalists. At the end of the war, the British granted separate independence to India and Pakistan, setting off massive communal violence as Muslims fled to Pakistan and Hindu and Sikh Punjabis fled east to India.
The British Raj had major political, cultural, philosophical, and literary consequences in the Punjab, including the establishment of a new system of education. During the independence movement, many Punjabis played a significant role, including Madan Lal Dhingra, Sukhdev Thapar, Ajit Singh Sandhu, Bhagat Singh, Udham Singh, Kartar Singh Sarabha, Bhai Parmanand, Choudhry Rahmat Ali, and Lala Lajpat Rai.
After Independence
At the time of partition in 1947, the province was split into East and West Punjab. East Punjab (48%) became part of India, while West Punjab (52%) became part of Pakistan.. Daily Times (10 May 2012). Retrieved 12 July 2013. The Punjab bore the brunt of the civil unrest following partition, with casualties estimated to be in the millions.
Another major consequence of partition was the sudden shift towards religious homogeneity that occurred in all districts across Punjab owing to the new international border that cut through the province. This rapid demographic shift was primarily due to wide-scale migration but also caused by large-scale religious cleansing riots which were witnessed across the region at the time. According to historical demographer Tim Dyson, in the eastern regions of Punjab that ultimately became Indian Punjab following independence, districts that were 66% Hindu in 1941 became 80% Hindu in 1951; those that were 20% Sikh became 50% Sikh in 1951. Conversely, in the western regions of Punjab that ultimately became Pakistani Punjab, all districts became almost exclusively Muslim by 1951.
Geography
Punjab is Pakistan's second largest province by area after Balochistan with an area of . It occupies 25.8% of the total landmass of Pakistan. Punjab province is bordered by Sindh to the south, the province of Balochistan to the southwest, the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to the west, and the Islamabad Capital Territory and Azad Kashmir in the north. Punjab borders Jammu and Kashmir in the north, and the Indian states of Punjab and Rajasthan to the east.
The capital and largest city is Lahore which was the capital of the wider Punjab region since 17th century. Other important cities include Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Sargodha, Multan, Sialkot, Bahawalpur, Gujrat, Sheikhupura, Jhelum, Rahim Yar Khan and Sahiwal. The undivided Punjab region was home to six rivers, of which five flow through Pakistan's Punjab province. From west to east, the rivers are: the Indus, Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi and Sutlej. It is the nation's only province that touches every other province; it also surrounds the federal enclave of the national capital city of Islamabad.
Topography
thumb|Punjab features mountainous terrain near the hill station of Murree.
thumb|The route from Dera Ghazi Khan to Fort Munro|left
Punjab's landscape mostly consists of fertile alluvial plains of the Indus River and its four major tributaries in Pakistan, the Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, and Sutlej rivers which traverse Punjab north to south – the fifth of the "five waters" of Punjab, the Beas River, lies exclusively in the Indian state of Punjab. The landscape is amongst the most heavily irrigated on earth and canals can be found throughout the province. Punjab also includes several mountainous regions, including the Sulaiman Mountains in the southwest part of the province, the Margalla Hills in the north near Islamabad, and the Salt Range which divides the most northerly portion of Punjab, the Pothohar Plateau, from the rest of the province. Sparse deserts can be found in southern Punjab near the border with Rajasthan and the Sulaiman Range. Punjab also contains part of the Thal and Cholistan deserts. In the South, Punjab's elevation reaches near the hill station of Fort Munro in Dera Ghazi Khan.
Climate
thumb|Sunset in Punjab, during summer
Most areas in Punjab experience extreme weather with foggy winters, often accompanied by rain. By mid-February the temperature begins to rise; springtime weather continues until mid-April, when the summer heat sets in.
The onset of the southwest monsoon is anticipated to reach Punjab by May, but since the early 1970s, the weather pattern has been irregular. The spring monsoon has either skipped over the area or has caused it to rain so hard that floods have resulted. June and July are oppressively hot. Although official estimates rarely place the temperature above 46 °C, newspaper sources claim that it reaches 51 °C and regularly carry reports about people who have succumbed to the heat. Heat records were broken in Multan in June 1993, when the mercury was reported to have risen to 54 °C. In August the oppressive heat is punctuated by the rainy season, referred to as barsat, which brings relief in its wake. The hardest part of the summer is then over, but cooler weather does not come until late October.
In early 2007, the province experienced one of the coldest winters in the last 70 years.
Punjab's region temperature ranges from −2° to 45 °C, but can reach 50 °C (122 °F) in summer and can touch down to −10 °C in winter.
Climatically, Punjab has three major seasons:
Hot weather (April to early June) when temperature rises as high as .
Rainy season (late June to September). Average annual rainfall ranges between 950 and 1300 mm sub-mountain region and 500–800 mm in the plains.
Cold / Foggy / mild weather (October to March). Temperature goes down as low as .
Weather extremes are notable from the hot and barren south to the cool hills of the north. The foothills of the Himalayas are found in the extreme north as well, and feature a much cooler and wetter climate, with snowfall common at higher altitudes.
Demographics
Historical population figuresThe figures for 1998 are from pop by province – statpak.gov.pk. The estimates for 2012 are from Population shoots up by 47 percent since 1998 . Thenews.com.pk. Retrieved on 12 July 2013. Census Population Urban Rural 1881 7,942,399 1891 8,895,342 1901 10,427,765 1911 11,104,585 1921 11,888,985 1931 14,040,798 1941 17,350,103 1951 20,540,762 3,568,076 16,972,686 1961 25,463,974 5,475,922 19,988,052 1972 37,607,423 9,182,695 28,424,728 1981 47,292,441 13,051,646 34,240,795 1998 73,621,290 23,019,025 50,602,265 2017 110,012,615 40,401,164 70,008,451 2023 127,688,922 51,975,967 75,712,955
Population
The province is home to over half the population of Pakistan, and is the world's second-most populous subnational entity, and the most populous outside of India and China.
Languages
The major native language spoken in the Punjab is Punjabi, representing the largest language spoken in the country. The Punjabi language is spoken in the form of many dialects across the province including Majhi, Multani, Pothwari, Thali, Jhangvi, Dhanni, Shahpuri, Derawali, Riasti, Doabi, Chachhi, Awankari, Ghebi, and others. Many of these dialects are grouped together in the form of varieties such as Saraiki in the south consisting of southern dialects including Multani, Derawali and Riasti; and Hindko in the northwest consisting of a group of northwestern dialects. Saraiki and Hindko varieties of the language have been separately enumerated from Punjabi (general) in Pakistani censuses from 1981 and 2017, respectively.
Religions
According to the 2023 census, the population of Punjab, Pakistan was 127,688,922. With 124,462,897 adherents, Muslims comprise the largest religious group, with a Sunni Hanafi majority and a Shia Ithna 'ashariyah minority, forming approximately 97.75 percent of the population. The largest non-Muslim minority is Christians with 2,458,924 adherents, forming roughly 1.93 percent of the population. Hindus form 249,716 people, comprising approximately 0.20 percent of the population. The other minorities include Sikhs and Parsis.
+ Religion in Punjab, Pakistan (1881–2023)Religiousgroup18811891190119111921193119411951199820172023 Islam 15px 6,201,859 6,766,545 7,951,155 8,494,314 8,975,288 10,570,029 13,022,160 20,200,794 71,574,830 107,541,602 124,462,897 Hinduism 15px 1,449,913 1,727,810 1,944,363 1,645,758 1,797,141 1,957,878 2,373,466 33,052 116,410 211,641 249,716 Sikhism 15px 272,908 366,162 483,999 813,441 863,091 1,180,789 1,530,112 5,649 Christianity 15px 12,992 30,168 42,371 144,514 247,030 324,730 395,311 402,617 1,699,843 2,063,063 2,458,924 Jainism 15px 4,352 4,408 5,562 5,977 5,930 6,921 9,520 Zoroastrianism 15px 354 215 300 377 309 413 312 195 358 Buddhism 15px 0 0 6 168 172 32 87 9 Judaism 15px 17 9 36 16 6 7 Ahmadiyya 15px 181,428 158,021 140,512 Others 21 17 0 0 8 0 19,534 35 48,779 15,328 15,249 Total responses 7,942,399 8,895,342 10,427,765 11,104,585 11,888,985 14,040,798 17,350,103 20,636,702 73,621,290 109,989,655 127,333,305 Total population 7,942,399 8,895,342 10,427,765 11,104,585 11,888,985 14,040,798 17,350,103 20,651,140 73,621,290 109,989,655 127,688,922
Government and administration
thumb|Punjab assembly, Lahore
The Government of Punjab is a provincial government in the federal structure of Pakistan, is based in Lahore, the capital of the Punjab Province. The Chief Minister of Punjab (CM) is elected by the Provincial Assembly of the Punjab to serve as the head of the provincial government in Punjab, Pakistan. The current Chief Minister is Maryam Nawaz Sharif, who is also the first ever woman Chief Minister of any province in Pakistan. The Provincial Assembly of the Punjab is a unicameral legislature of elected representatives of the province of Punjab, which is located in Lahore in eastern Pakistan. The Assembly was established under Article 106 of the Constitution of Pakistan as having a total of 371 seats, with 66 seats reserved for women and eight reserved for non-Muslims.
There are 48 departments in Punjab government. Each Department is headed by a Provincial Minister (Politician) and a Provincial Secretary (A civil servant of usually BPS-20 or BPS-21). All Ministers report to the Chief Minister, who is the Chief Executive. All Secretaries report to the Chief Secretary of Punjab, who is usually a BPS-22 Civil Servant. The Chief Secretary in turn, reports to the Chief Minister. In addition to these departments, there are several Autonomous Bodies and Attached Departments that report directly to either the Secretaries or the Chief Secretary.
Divisions
thumb|upright=1.15|Map of the Pakistani Punjab divisions
Districts
Major cities
List of major cities in Punjab Rank City District Population Image 1 Lahore Lahore 11,126,285 200px 2 Faisalabad Faisalabad 3,204,726 200px 3 Rawalpindi Rawalpindi 2,098,231 200px 4 GujranwalaGujranwala 2,027,001 200px 5 MultanMultan 1,871,843 200px 6 BahawalpurBahawalpur 762,111 200px 7 Sargodha Sargodha 659,862 200px 8 SialkotSialkot 655,852 200px 9 SheikhupuraSheikhupura 473,129 200px 10 Rahim Yar KhanRahim Yar Khan 420,419 200px 11 Jhang Jhang 414,131 200px 12 Dera Ghazi KhanDera Ghazi Khan 399,064 200px 13 GujratGujrat 390,533 200px 14 SahiwalSahiwal 389,605 200px 15 Wah CantonmentRawalpindi 380,103 200px Source: pbscensus 2017 This is a list of city proper populations and does not indicate metro populations.
Economy
thumb|right|GDP by Province
Punjab has the largest economy in Pakistan, contributing most to the national GDP. The province's economy has quadrupled since 1972. Its share of Pakistan's GDP was 54.7% in 2000 and 59% as of 2010. It is especially dominant in the service and agriculture sectors of Pakistan's economy. With its contribution ranging from 52.1% to 64.5% in the Service Sector and 56.1% to 61.5% in the agriculture sector. It is also a major manpower contributor because it has the largest pool of professionals and highly skilled (technically trained) manpower in Pakistan. It is also dominant in the manufacturing sector, though the dominance is not as huge, with historical contributions ranging from a low of 44% to a high of 52.6%. In 2007, Punjab achieved a growth rate of 7.8% and during the period 2002–03 to 2007–08, its economy grew at a rate of between 7% and 8% per year.A PricewaterhouseCoopers study released in 2009, surveying the 2008 GDP of the top cities in the world, calculated Faisalabad's GDP (PPP) at $35 billion. The city was third in Pakistan behind Karachi ($78 billion) and Lahore ($40 billion). Faisalabad's GDP is projected to rise to $37 billion in 2025 at a growth rate of 5.7%, higher than the growth rates of 5.5% and 5.6% predicted for Karachi and Lahore.[2][ "PricewaterhouseCoopers Media Centre". Ukmediacentre.pwc.com. 1 June 2005.]– Last Paragraph and during 2008–09 grew at 6% against the total GDP growth of Pakistan at 4%.
Despite the lack of a coastline, Punjab is the most industrialised province of Pakistan; its manufacturing industries produce textiles, sports goods, heavy machinery, electrical appliances, surgical instruments, vehicles, auto parts, metals, sugar mill plants, aircraft, cement, agricultural machinery, bicycles and rickshaws, floor coverings, and processed foods. In 2003, the province manufactured 90% of the paper and paper boards, 71% of the fertilizers, 69% of the sugar and 40% of the cement of Pakistan.
thumb|right|Industrial Zones Punjab, Source:
Lahore and Gujranwala Divisions have the largest concentration of small light engineering units. The district of Sialkot excels in sports goods, surgical instruments and cutlery goods. Industrial estates are being developed by Punjab government to boost industrialization in province, Quaid e Azam Business Park Sheikhupura is one of the industrial areas which is being developed near Sheikhupura on Lahore-Islamabad motorway.
Punjab has the lowest poverty rates in Pakistan, although a divide is present between the northern and southern parts of the province. Sialkot District in the prosperous northern part of the province has a poverty rate of 5.63%, while Rajanpur District in the poorer south has a poverty rate of 60.05%.
Education
thumb|Government College University, Lahore
The literacy rate has increased greatly over the last 40 years (see the table below). Punjab has the highest Human Development Index out of all of Pakistan's provinces at 0.550.
Year Literacy Rate 1972 20.7% 1981 27.4% 1998 46.56% 2009 59.6% 2021 66.3%
Sources:
This is a chart of the education market of Punjab estimated by the government in 1998.
Qualification Urban Rural Total Enrollment Ratio(%) – 23,019,025 50,602,265 73,621,290 — Below Primary 3,356,173 11,598,039 14,954,212 100.00 Primary 6,205,929 18,039,707 24,245,636 79.68 Middle 5,140,148 10,818,764 15,958,912 46.75 Matriculation 4,624,522 7,119,738 11,744,260 25.07 Intermediate 1,862,239 1,821,681 3,683,920 9.12 BA, BSc... degrees 110,491 96,144 206,635 4.12 MA, MSc... degrees 1,226,914 764,094 1,991,008 3.84 Diploma, Certificate... 418,946 222,649 641,595 1.13 Other qualifications 73,663 121,449 195,112 0.26
List of universities
List of medical colleges
Culture
thumb|Tomb of Shah Rukn-e-Alam, Multan (1320 AD)
The culture in Punjab grew out of the settlements along the five rivers, which served as an important route to the Near East as early as the ancient Indus Valley civilization, dating back to 3000 BCE. Agriculture has been the major economic feature of the Punjab and has therefore formed the foundation of Punjabi culture, with one's social status being determined by landownership. Punjab emerged as an important agricultural region, especially following the Green Revolution during the mid-1960's to the mid-1970's, has been described as the "breadbasket of both India and Pakistan".
Fairs and festivals
The Islamic festivals are typically observed.Official Holidays 2016 , Government of Punjab – Pakistan (2016)Official Holidays 2016 , Karachi Metropolitan, Sindh, Pakistan Non-Islamic festivals include Lohri, Basant and Vaisakhi, which are usually celebrated as seasonal festivals.Census of India, 1961: Punjab. Manage of Publications The Islamic festivals are set according to the lunar Islamic calendar (Hijri), and the date falls earlier by 10 to 13 days from year to year.; Eid ul-Fitar, Ramzan Id/Eid-ul-Fitar in India, Festival Dates
Some Islamic clerics and some politicians have attempted to ban the participation of non-Islamic festivals because of the religious basis,The ban on fun, IRFAN HUSAIN, Dawn, 18 February 2017 and they being declared haram (forbidden in Islam).The barricaded Muslim mind , Saba Naqvi (28 August 2016), Quote: "Earlier, Muslim villagers would participate in Hindu festivals; now they think that would be haraam, so stay away. Visiting dargahs is also haraam"
Tourism
thumb|The Lahore Fort, a landmark built during the Mughal era, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site|250x250px
left|thumb|Rohtas Fort, a UNESCO world heritage site, was built upon a hill overlooking the Pothohar Plateau.
thumb|Derawar Fort in Cholistan Desert, a UNESCO World Heritage Site|left
Tourism in Punjab is regulated by the Tourism Development Corporation of Punjab. The province has a number of large cosmopolitan cities, including the provincial capital Lahore. Major visitor attractions there include Lahore Fort and Shalimar Gardens, which are now recognised World Heritage Sites. The Walled City of Lahore, Badshahi Mosque, Wazir Khan Mosque, Tomb of Jahangir and Nur Jahan, Tomb of Asaf Khan, Chauburji and other major sites are visited by tourists each year.
Murree is a famous hill station stop for tourists. The Pharwala Fort, which was built by an ancient Hindu civilisation, is on the outskirts of the city. The city of Sheikhupura also has a number of sites from the Mughal Empire, including the World Heritage-listed Rohtas Fort near Jhelum. The Katasraj temple in the city of Chakwal is a major destination for Hindu devotees. The Khewra Salt Mines is one of the oldest mines in South Asia. Faisalabad's clock tower and eight bazaars were designed to represent the Union Jack.
thumb|Noor Mahal, Bahawalpur
The province's southward is arid. Multan is known for its mausoleums of saints and Sufi pirs. The Multan Museum, Multan fort, DHA 360° zoo and Nuagaza tombs are significant attractions in the city. The city of Bahawalpur is located near the Cholistan and Thar deserts. Derawar Fort in the Cholistan Desert is the site for the annual Cholistan Jeep Rally. The city is also near the ancient site of Uch Sharif which was once a Delhi Sultanate stronghold. The Noor Mahal, Sadiq Ghar Palace, and Darbar Mall were built during the reign of the Nawabs. The Lal Suhanra National Park is a major zoological garden on the outskirts of the city.
Social issues
thumb|A demonstration by Punjabis at Lahore, Pakistan, demanding to make Punjabi as official language of instruction in schools of the Punjab.|leftThe use of Urdu and English as the near exclusive languages of broadcasting, the public sector, and formal education have led some to fear that the Punjabi language in the province is being relegated to a low-status language and that it is being denied an environment where it can flourish.Sarah Veach, Katy Williamson, Punjabi Culture and Language Manual (archived), Texas State University, p. 6, retrieved 14 May 2016.
In August 2015, the Pakistan Academy of Letters, International Writer's Council (IWC) and World Punjabi Congress (WPC) organised the Khawaja Farid Conference and demanded that a Punjabi-language university should be established in Lahore and that Punjabi language should be declared as the medium of instruction at the primary level. In September 2015, a case was filed in Supreme Court of Pakistan against Government of Punjab, Pakistan as it did not take any step to implement the Punjabi language in the province. Additionally, several thousand Punjabis gather in Lahore every year on International Mother Language Day.
Hafiz Saeed, chief of Jama'at-ud-Da'wah (JuD), has questioned Pakistan's decision to adopt Urdu as its national language in a country where majority of people speak Punjabi language, citing his interpretation of Islamic doctrine as encouraging education in the mother-tongue."Pakistan should have adopted Punjabi as national language: Hafiz Saeed" Zee News. 6 March 2016 Some of the organisations and activists that demand the promotion of the Punjabi language include:
Cultural and research institutes: Punjabi Adabi Board, the Khoj Garh Research Centre, Punjabi Prachar, Institute for Peace and Secular Studies, Adbi Sangat, Khaaksaar Tehreek, Saanjh, Maan Boli Research Centre, Punjabi Sangat Pakistan, Punjabi Markaz, Sver International.
Trade unions and youth groups: Punjabi Writers Forum, National Students Federation, Punjabi Union-Pakistan, Punjabi National Conference, National Youth Forum, Punjabi Writers Forum, National Students Federation, Punjabi Union, Pakistan, and the Punjabi National Conference.
Notable activists include Tariq Jatala, Farhad Iqbal, Diep Saeeda, Khalil Ojla, Afzal Sahir, Jamil Ahmad Paul, Mazhar Tirmazi, Mushtaq Sufi, Biya Je, Tohid Ahmad Chattha and Bilal Shaker Kahaloon, Nazeer Kahut."Mind your language—The movement for the preservation of Punjabi". The Herald. 2 September 2106."Punjabi in schools: Pro-Punjabi outfits in Pakistan threaten hunger strike". The Times of India. 4 October 2015."Rally for Ending the 150-year-old Ban on Education in Punjabi" The Nation. 21 February 2011.
Notable people
List of people from Punjab, Pakistan, also includes people born in what is today Indian Punjab but moved to Pakistan after partition
List of Punjabi people, also includes people of Punjabi ethnicity from India and elsewhere
Notes
References
Bibliography
External links
Guide to Punjab, Pakistan
Category:Provinces of Pakistan
Category:1970 establishments in Pakistan
Category:States and territories established in 1970
Category:Punjabi-speaking countries and territories
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Capacitor
|
In electrical engineering, a capacitor is a device that stores electrical energy by accumulating electric charges on two closely spaced surfaces that are insulated from each other. The capacitor was originally known as the condenser, a term still encountered in a few compound names, such as the condenser microphone. It is a passive electronic component with two terminals.
The utility of a capacitor depends on its capacitance. While some capacitance exists between any two electrical conductors in proximity in a circuit, a capacitor is a component designed specifically to add capacitance to some part of the circuit.
The physical form and construction of practical capacitors vary widely and many types of capacitor are in common use. Most capacitors contain at least two electrical conductors, often in the form of metallic plates or surfaces separated by a dielectric medium. A conductor may be a foil, thin film, sintered bead of metal, or an electrolyte. The nonconducting dielectric acts to increase the capacitor's charge capacity. Materials commonly used as dielectrics include glass, ceramic, plastic film, paper, mica, air, and oxide layers. When an electric potential difference (a voltage) is applied across the terminals of a capacitor, for example when a capacitor is connected across a battery, an electric field develops across the dielectric, causing a net positive charge to collect on one plate and net negative charge to collect on the other plate. No current actually flows through a perfect dielectric. However, there is a flow of charge through the source circuit. If the condition is maintained sufficiently long, the current through the source circuit ceases. If a time-varying voltage is applied across the leads of the capacitor, the source experiences an ongoing current due to the charging and discharging cycles of the capacitor.
Capacitors are widely used as parts of electrical circuits in many common electrical devices. Unlike a resistor, an ideal capacitor does not dissipate energy, although real-life capacitors do dissipate a small amount (see Non-ideal behavior).
The earliest forms of capacitors were created in the 1740s, when European experimenters discovered that electric charge could be stored in water-filled glass jars that came to be known as Leyden jars. Today, capacitors are widely used in electronic circuits for blocking direct current while allowing alternating current to pass. In analog filter networks, they smooth the output of power supplies. In resonant circuits they tune radios to particular frequencies. In electric power transmission systems, they stabilize voltage and power flow. The property of energy storage in capacitors was exploited as dynamic memory in early digital computers, and still is in modern DRAM.
History
Natural capacitors have existed since prehistoric times. The most common example of natural capacitance are the static charges accumulated between clouds in the sky and the surface of the Earth, where the air between them serves as the dielectric. This results in bolts of lightning when the breakdown voltage of the air is exceeded.
left|upright=0.8|thumb|Battery of four Leyden jars in Museum Boerhaave, Leiden, the Netherlands
In October 1745, Ewald Georg von Kleist of Pomerania, Germany, found that charge could be stored by connecting a high-voltage electrostatic generator by a wire to a volume of water in a hand-held glass jar. Von Kleist's hand and the water acted as conductors and the jar as a dielectric (although details of the mechanism were incorrectly identified at the time). Von Kleist found that touching the wire resulted in a powerful spark, much more painful than that obtained from an electrostatic machine. The following year, the Dutch physicist Pieter van Musschenbroek invented a similar capacitor, which was named the Leyden jar, after the University of Leiden where he worked. He also was impressed by the power of the shock he received, writing, "I would not take a second shock for the kingdom of France."
Daniel Gralath was the first to combine several jars in parallel to increase the charge storage capacity. Benjamin Franklin investigated the Leyden jar and came to the conclusion that the charge was stored on the glass, not in the water as others had assumed. He also adopted the term "battery", (denoting the increase of power with a row of similar units as in a battery of cannon), subsequently applied to clusters of electrochemical cells. In 1747, Leyden jars were made by coating the inside and outside of jars with metal foil, leaving a space at the mouth to prevent arcing between the foils. The earliest unit of capacitance was the jar, equivalent to about 1.11 nanofarads.
Leyden jars or more powerful devices employing flat glass plates alternating with foil conductors were used exclusively up until about 1900, when the invention of wireless (radio) created a demand for standard capacitors, and the steady move to higher frequencies required capacitors with lower inductance. More compact construction methods began to be used, such as a flexible dielectric sheet (like oiled paper) sandwiched between sheets of metal foil, rolled or folded into a small package.
thumb|Advert from the 28 December 1923 edition of The Radio Times for Dubilier condensers, for use in wireless receiving sets|upright=1.5
Early capacitors were known as condensers, a term that is still occasionally used today, particularly in high power applications, such as automotive systems. The term condensatore was used by Alessandro Volta in 1780 to refer to a device, similar to his electrophorus, he developed to measure electricity, and translated in 1782 as condenser, where the name referred to the device's ability to store a higher density of electric charge than was possible with an isolated conductor. The term became deprecated because of the ambiguous meaning of steam condenser, with capacitor becoming the recommended term in the UK from 1926,British Engineering Standards Association, British Standard Glossary of Terms in Electrical Engineering, C. Lockwood & Son, 1926 while the change occurred considerably later in the United States.
Since the beginning of the study of electricity, non-conductive materials like glass, porcelain, paper and mica have been used as insulators. Decades later, these materials were also well-suited for use as the dielectric for the first capacitors.
Paper capacitors, made by sandwiching a strip of impregnated paper between strips of metal and rolling the result into a cylinder, were commonly used in the late 19th century; their manufacture started in 1876, and they were used from the early 20th century as decoupling capacitors in telephony.
Porcelain was used in the first ceramic capacitors. In the early years of Marconi's wireless transmitting apparatus, porcelain capacitors were used for high voltage and high frequency application in the transmitters. On the receiver side, smaller mica capacitors were used for resonant circuits. Mica capacitors were invented in 1909 by William Dubilier. Prior to World War II, mica was the most common dielectric for capacitors in the United States.
Charles Pollak (born Karol Pollak), the inventor of the first electrolytic capacitors, found out that the oxide layer on an aluminum anode remained stable in a neutral or alkaline electrolyte, even when the power was switched off. In 1896 he was granted U.S. Patent No. 672,913 for an "Electric liquid capacitor with aluminum electrodes". Solid electrolyte tantalum capacitors were invented by Bell Laboratories in the early 1950s as a miniaturized and more reliable low-voltage support capacitor to complement their newly invented transistor.
With the development of plastic materials by organic chemists during the Second World War, the capacitor industry began to replace paper with thinner polymer films. One very early development in film capacitors was described in British Patent 587,953 in 1944.
Electric double-layer capacitors (now supercapacitors) were invented in 1957 when H. Becker developed a "Low voltage electrolytic capacitor with porous carbon electrodes".A brief history of supercapacitors AUTUMN 2007 Batteries & Energy Storage Technology He believed that the energy was stored as a charge in the carbon pores used in his capacitor as in the pores of the etched foils of electrolytic capacitors. Because the double layer mechanism was not known by him at the time, he wrote in the patent: "It is not known exactly what is taking place in the component if it is used for energy storage, but it leads to an extremely high capacity."
The MOS capacitor was later widely adopted as a storage capacitor in memory chips, and as the basic building block of the charge-coupled device (CCD) in image sensor technology. In 1966, Dr. Robert Dennard invented modern DRAM architecture, combining a single MOS transistor per capacitor.
Theory of operation
Overview
class=skin-invert-image|upright=0.8|thumb|Charge separation in a parallel-plate capacitor causes an internal electric field. A dielectric (orange) reduces the field and increases the capacitance.
upright=0.8|thumb|A simple demonstration capacitor made of two parallel metal plates, using an air gap as the dielectric
A capacitor consists of two conductors separated by a non-conductive region. The non-conductive region can either be a vacuum or an electrical insulator material known as a dielectric. Examples of dielectric media are glass, air, paper, plastic, ceramic, and even a semiconductor depletion region chemically identical to the conductors. From Coulomb's law a charge on one conductor will exert a force on the charge carriers within the other conductor, attracting opposite polarity charge and repelling like polarity charges, thus an opposite polarity charge will be induced on the surface of the other conductor. The conductors thus hold equal and opposite charges on their facing surfaces, and the dielectric develops an electric field.
An ideal capacitor is characterized by a constant capacitance C, in farads in the SI system of units, defined as the ratio of the positive or negative charge Q on each conductor to the voltage V between them:
A capacitance of one farad (F) means that one coulomb of charge on each conductor causes a voltage of one volt across the device. Because the conductors (or plates) are close together, the opposite charges on the conductors attract one another due to their electric fields, allowing the capacitor to store more charge for a given voltage than when the conductors are separated, yielding a larger capacitance.
In practical devices, charge build-up sometimes affects the capacitor mechanically, causing its capacitance to vary. In this case, capacitance is defined in terms of incremental changes:
Hydraulic analogy
thumb|In the hydraulic analogy, a capacitor is analogous to an elastic diaphragm within a pipe. This animation shows a diaphragm being stretched and un-stretched, which is analogous to a capacitor being charged and discharged.
In the hydraulic analogy, voltage is analogous to water pressure and electrical current through a wire is analogous to water flow through a pipe. A capacitor is like an elastic diaphragm within the pipe. Although water cannot pass through the diaphragm, it moves as the diaphragm stretches or un-stretches.
Capacitance is analogous to diaphragm elasticity. In the same way that the ratio of charge differential to voltage would be greater for a larger capacitance value (), the ratio of water displacement to pressure would be greater for a diaphragm that flexes more readily.
In an AC circuit, a capacitor behaves like a diaphragm in a pipe, allowing the charge to move on both sides of the dielectric while no electrons actually pass through. For DC circuits, a capacitor is analogous to a hydraulic accumulator, storing the energy until pressure is released. Similarly, they can be used to smooth the flow of electricity in rectified DC circuits in the same way an accumulator damps surges from a hydraulic pump.
Charged capacitors and stretched diaphragms both store potential energy. The more a capacitor is charged, the higher the voltage across the plates (). Likewise, the greater the displaced water volume, the greater the elastic potential energy.
Electrical current affects the charge differential across a capacitor just as the flow of water affects the volume differential across a diaphragm.
Just as capacitors experience dielectric breakdown when subjected to high voltages, diaphragms burst under extreme pressures.
Just as capacitors block DC while passing AC, diaphragms displace no water unless there is a change in pressure.
Circuit equivalence at short-time limit and long-time limit
In a circuit, a capacitor can behave differently at different time instants. However, it is usually easy to think about the short-time limit and long-time limit:
In the long-time limit, after the charging/discharging current has saturated the capacitor, no current would come into (or get out of) either side of the capacitor; Therefore, the long-time equivalence of capacitor is an open circuit.
In the short-time limit, if the capacitor starts with a certain voltage V, since the voltage drop on the capacitor is known at this instant, we can replace it with an ideal voltage source of voltage V. Specifically, if V=0 (capacitor is uncharged), the short-time equivalence of a capacitor is a short circuit.
Parallel-plate capacitor
class=skin-invert-image|thumb|upright=0.8|Parallel plate capacitor model consists of two conducting plates, each of area A, separated by a gap of thickness d containing a dielectric.
thumb|upright=0.8|A surface-mount capacitor. The plates, not visible, are layered horizontally between ceramic dielectric layers, and connect alternately to either end-cap, which are visible.
The simplest model of a capacitor consists of two thin parallel conductive plates each with an area of separated by a uniform gap of thickness filled with a dielectric of permittivity . It is assumed the gap is much smaller than the dimensions of the plates. This model applies well to many practical capacitors which are constructed of metal sheets separated by a thin layer of insulating dielectric, since manufacturers try to keep the dielectric very uniform in thickness to avoid thin spots which can cause failure of the capacitor.
Since the separation between the plates is uniform over the plate area, the electric field between the plates is constant, and directed perpendicularly to the plate surface, except for an area near the edges of the plates where the field decreases because the electric field lines "bulge" out of the sides of the capacitor. This "fringing field" area is approximately the same width as the plate separation, , and assuming is small compared to the plate dimensions, it is small enough to be ignored. Therefore, if a charge of is placed on one plate and on the other plate (the situation for unevenly charged plates is discussed below), the charge on each plate will be spread evenly in a surface charge layer of constant charge density coulombs per square meter, on the inside surface of each plate. From Gauss's law the magnitude of the electric field between the plates is . The voltage(difference) between the plates is defined as the line integral of the electric field over a line (in the z-direction) from one plate to another
The capacitance is defined as . Substituting above into this equation
Therefore, in a capacitor the highest capacitance is achieved with a high permittivity dielectric material, large plate area, and small separation between the plates.
Since the area of the plates increases with the square of the linear dimensions and the separation increases linearly, the capacitance scales with the linear dimension of a capacitor (), or as the cube root of the volume.
A parallel plate capacitor can only store a finite amount of energy before dielectric breakdown occurs. The capacitor's dielectric material has a dielectric strength Ud which sets the capacitor's breakdown voltage at . The maximum energy that the capacitor can store is therefore
The maximum energy is a function of dielectric volume, permittivity, and dielectric strength. Changing the plate area and the separation between the plates while maintaining the same volume causes no change of the maximum amount of energy that the capacitor can store, so long as the distance between plates remains much smaller than both the length and width of the plates. In addition, these equations assume that the electric field is entirely concentrated in the dielectric between the plates. In reality there are fringing fields outside the dielectric, for example between the sides of the capacitor plates, which increase the effective capacitance of the capacitor. This is sometimes called parasitic capacitance. For some simple capacitor geometries this additional capacitance term can be calculated analytically. It becomes negligibly small when the ratios of plate width to separation and length to separation are large.
For unevenly charged plates:
If one plate is charged with while the other is charged with , and if both plates are separated from other materials in the environment, then the inner surface of the first plate will have , and the inner surface of the second plated will have charge. Therefore, the voltage between the plates is . Note that the outer surface of both plates will have , but those charges do not affect the voltage between the plates.
If one plate is charged with while the other is charged with , and if the second plate is connected to ground, then the inner surface of the first plate will have , and the inner surface of the second plated will have . Therefore, the voltage between the plates is . Note that the outer surface of both plates will have zero charge.
Interleaved capacitor
class=skin-invert-image|thumb|The interleaved capacitor can be seen as a combination of several parallel connected capacitors.
For number of plates in a capacitor, the total capacitance would be
where is the capacitance for a single plate and is the number of interleaved plates.
As shown to the figure on the right, the interleaved plates can be seen as parallel plates connected to each other. Every pair of adjacent plates acts as a separate capacitor; the number of pairs is always one less than the number of plates, hence the multiplier.
Energy stored in a capacitor
To increase the charge and voltage on a capacitor, work must be done by an external power source to move charge from the negative to the positive plate against the opposing force of the electric field. If the voltage on the capacitor is , the work required to move a small increment of charge from the negative to the positive plate is . The energy is stored in the increased electric field between the plates. The total energy stored in a capacitor (expressed in joules) is equal to the total work done in establishing the electric field from an uncharged state.
where is the charge stored in the capacitor, is the voltage across the capacitor, and is the capacitance. This potential energy will remain in the capacitor until the charge is removed. If charge is allowed to move back from the positive to the negative plate, for example by connecting a circuit with resistance between the plates, the charge moving under the influence of the electric field will do work on the external circuit.
If the gap between the capacitor plates is constant, as in the parallel plate model above, the electric field between the plates will be uniform (neglecting fringing fields) and will have a constant value . In this case the stored energy can be calculated from the electric field strength
The last formula above is equal to the energy density per unit volume in the electric field multiplied by the volume of field between the plates, confirming that the energy in the capacitor is stored in its electric field.
Current–voltage relation
class=skin-invert-image|thumb|upright=0.8|Schematic showing polarity of voltage and direction of current for this current–voltage relation
The current I(t) through any component in an electric circuit is defined as the rate of flow of a charge Q(t) passing through it. Actual charges – electrons – cannot pass through the dielectric of an ideal capacitor. Rather, one electron accumulates on the negative plate for each one that leaves the positive plate, resulting in an electron depletion and consequent positive charge on one electrode that is equal and opposite to the accumulated negative charge on the other. Thus the charge on the electrodes is equal to the integral of the current as well as proportional to the voltage, as discussed above. As with any antiderivative, a constant of integration is added to represent the initial voltage V(t0). This is the integral form of the capacitor equation:
Taking the derivative of this and multiplying by C yields the derivative form:
for independent of time, voltage and electric charge.
The dual of the capacitor is the inductor, which stores energy in a magnetic field rather than an electric field. Its current-voltage relation is obtained by exchanging current and voltage in the capacitor equations and replacing with the inductance .
RC circuits
class=skin-invert-image|A simple resistor–capacitor circuit demonstrates charging of a capacitor.|thumb
A series circuit containing only a resistor, a capacitor, a switch and a constant DC source of voltage is known as a charging circuit. If the capacitor is initially uncharged while the switch is open, and the switch is closed at , it follows from Kirchhoff's voltage law that
Taking the derivative and multiplying by C, gives a first-order differential equation:
At , the voltage across the capacitor is zero and the voltage across the resistor is V0. The initial current is then . With this assumption, solving the differential equation yields
where is the time constant of the system. As the capacitor reaches equilibrium with the source voltage, the voltages across the resistor and the current through the entire circuit decay exponentially. In the case of a discharging capacitor, the capacitor's initial voltage () replaces . The equations become
AC circuits
Impedance, the vector sum of reactance and resistance, describes the phase difference and the ratio of amplitudes between sinusoidally varying voltage and sinusoidally varying current at a given frequency. Fourier analysis allows any signal to be constructed from a spectrum of frequencies, whence the circuit's reaction to the various frequencies may be found. The reactance and impedance of a capacitor are respectively
where is the imaginary unit and is the angular frequency of the sinusoidal signal. The phase indicates that the AC voltage lags the AC current by 90°: the positive current phase corresponds to increasing voltage as the capacitor charges; zero current corresponds to instantaneous constant voltage, etc.
Impedance decreases with increasing capacitance and increasing frequency.Current percolation through resistors and capacitors PLoS one 2017 This implies that a higher-frequency signal or a larger capacitor results in a lower voltage amplitude per current amplitude – an AC "short circuit" or AC coupling. Conversely, for very low frequencies, the reactance is high, so that a capacitor is nearly an open circuit in AC analysis – those frequencies have been "filtered out".
Capacitors are different from resistors and inductors in that the impedance is inversely proportional to the defining characteristic; i.e., capacitance.
A capacitor connected to an alternating voltage source has a displacement current to flowing through it. In the case that the voltage source is V0cos(ωt), the displacement current can be expressed as:
At , the capacitor has a maximum (or peak) current whereby . The ratio of peak voltage to peak current is due to capacitive reactance (denoted XC).
XC approaches zero as approaches infinity. If XC approaches 0, the capacitor resembles a short wire that strongly passes current at high frequencies. XC approaches infinity as ω approaches zero. If XC approaches infinity, the capacitor resembles an open circuit that poorly passes low frequencies.
The current of the capacitor may be expressed in the form of cosines to better compare with the voltage of the source:
In this situation, the current is out of phase with the voltage by +π/2 radians or +90 degrees, i.e. the current leads the voltage by 90°.
Laplace circuit analysis (s-domain)
When using the Laplace transform in circuit analysis, the impedance of an ideal capacitor with no initial charge is represented in the domain by:
where
is the capacitance, and
is the complex frequency.
Circuit analysis
Capacitors in parallel
Capacitors in a parallel configuration each have the same applied voltage. Their capacitance values add up. Charge is apportioned among them by capacitance value. Using the schematic diagram to visualize parallel plates, it is apparent that each capacitor contributes to the total surface area.
For capacitors in series
Connected in series, the schematic diagram reveals that the separation distance, not the plate area, adds up. The capacitors each store instantaneous charge build-up equal to that of every other capacitor in the series. The total voltage difference from end to end is apportioned to each capacitor according to the inverse of its capacitance. The entire series acts as a capacitor smaller than any of its components.
Capacitors are combined in series to achieve a higher working voltage, for example for smoothing a high voltage power supply. The voltage ratings, which are based on plate separation, add up, if capacitance and leakage currents for each capacitor are identical. In such an application, on occasion, series strings are connected in parallel, forming a matrix. The goal is to maximize the energy storage of the network without overloading any capacitor. For high-energy storage with capacitors in series, some safety considerations must be applied to ensure one capacitor failing and leaking current does not apply too much voltage to the other series capacitors.
Series connection is also sometimes used to adapt polarized electrolytic capacitors for bipolar AC use.
Voltage distribution in parallel-to-series networks.
To model the distribution of voltages from a single charged capacitor connected in parallel to a chain of capacitors in series :
Note: This is only correct if all capacitance values are equal.
The power transferred in this arrangement is:
Non-ideal behavior
In practice, capacitors deviate from the ideal capacitor equation in several aspects. Some of these, such as leakage current and parasitic effects are linear, or can be analyzed as nearly linear, and can be accounted for by adding virtual components to form an equivalent circuit. The usual methods of network analysis can then be applied. In other cases, such as with breakdown voltage, the effect is non-linear and ordinary (normal, e.g., linear) network analysis cannot be used, the effect must be considered separately. Yet another group of artifacts may exist, including temperature dependence, that may be linear but invalidates the assumption in the analysis that capacitance is a constant. Finally, combined parasitic effects such as inherent inductance, resistance, or dielectric losses can exhibit non-uniform behavior at varying frequencies of operation.
Breakdown voltage
Above a particular electric field strength, known as the dielectric strength Eds, the dielectric in a capacitor becomes conductive. The voltage at which this occurs is called the breakdown voltage of the device, and is given by the product of the dielectric strength and the separation between the conductors,
The maximum energy that can be stored safely in a capacitor is limited by the breakdown voltage. Exceeding this voltage can result in a short circuit between the plates, which can often cause permanent damage to the dielectric, plates, or both. Due to the scaling of capacitance and breakdown voltage with dielectric thickness, all capacitors made with a particular dielectric have approximately equal maximum energy density, to the extent that the dielectric dominates their volume.
For air dielectric capacitors the breakdown field strength is of the order 2–5 MV/m (or kV/mm); for mica the breakdown is 100–300 MV/m; for oil, 15–25 MV/m; it can be much less when other materials are used for the dielectric. The dielectric is used in very thin layers and so absolute breakdown voltage of capacitors is limited. Typical ratings for capacitors used for general electronics applications range from a few volts to 1 kV. As the voltage increases, the dielectric must be thicker, making high-voltage capacitors larger per capacitance than those rated for lower voltages.
The breakdown voltage is critically affected by factors such as the geometry of the capacitor conductive parts; sharp edges or points increase the electric field strength at that point and can lead to a local breakdown. Once this starts to happen, the breakdown quickly tracks through the dielectric until it reaches the opposite plate, leaving carbon behind and causing a short (or relatively low resistance) circuit. The results can be explosive, as the short in the capacitor draws current from the surrounding circuitry and dissipates the energy. However, in capacitors with particular dielectrics and thin metal electrodes, shorts are not formed after breakdown. It happens because a metal melts or evaporates in a breakdown vicinity, isolating it from the rest of the capacitor.
The usual breakdown route is that the field strength becomes large enough to pull electrons in the dielectric from their atoms thus causing conduction. Other scenarios are possible, such as impurities in the dielectric, and, if the dielectric is of a crystalline nature, imperfections in the crystal structure can result in an avalanche breakdown as seen in semi-conductor devices. Breakdown voltage is also affected by pressure, humidity and temperature.
Equivalent circuit
class=skin-invert-image|thumb|upright=1.2|Real capacitor model that adds an inductance and resistance in series and a conductance in parallel to its capacitance. Its total impedance is:
An ideal capacitor only stores and releases electrical energy, without dissipation. In practice, capacitors have imperfections within the capacitor's materials that result in the following parasitic components:
, the equivalent series inductance, due to the leads. This is usually significant only at relatively high frequencies.
Two resistances that add a real-valued component to the total impedance, which wastes power:
, a small series resistance in the leads. Becomes more relevant as frequency increases.
, a small conductance (or reciprocally, a large resistance) in parallel with the capacitance, to account for imperfect dielectric material. This causes a small leakage current across the dielectric (see ) that slowly discharges the capacitor over time. This conductance dominates the total resistance at very low frequencies. Its value varies greatly depending on the capacitor material and quality.
Simplified RLC series model
class=skin-invert-image|thumb|Simplified RLC series capacitor model. Its total equivalent impedance is:
class=skin-invert-image|thumb|upright=1.2|Bode magnitude plot of voltages in an RLC circuit. Frequency is relative to the natural frequency ω0. (Its damping ratio ζ and ω0 would depend on the particular capacitor.) Lower frequencies are more capacitive. Around ω0, the total impedance and voltage drop is primarily resistive. Higher frequencies are more inductive.
As frequency increases, the capacitive impedance (a negative reactance) reduces, so the dielectric's conductance becomes less important and the series components become more significant. Thus, a simplified RLC series model valid for a large frequency range simply treats the capacitor as being in series with an equivalent series inductance and a frequency-dependent equivalent series resistance , which varies little with frequency. Unlike the previous model, this model is not valid at DC and very low frequencies where is relevant.
Inductive reactance increases with frequency. Because its sign is positive, it counteracts the capacitance.
At the RLC circuit's natural frequency , the inductance perfectly cancels the capacitance, so total reactance is zero. Since the total impedance at is just the real-value of , average power dissipation reaches its maximum of , where V is the root mean square (RMS) voltage across the capacitor.
At even higher frequencies, the inductive impedance dominates, so the capacitor undesirably behaves instead like an inductor. High-frequency engineering involves accounting for the inductance of all connections and components.
Q factor
For a simplified model of a capacitor as an ideal capacitor in series with an equivalent series resistance , the capacitor's quality factor (or Q) is the ratio of the magnitude of its capacitive reactance to its resistance at a given frequency :
The Q factor is a measure of its efficiency: the higher the Q factor of the capacitor, the closer it approaches the behavior of an ideal capacitor. Dissipation factor is its reciprocal.
Ripple current
Ripple current is the AC component of an applied source (often a switched-mode power supply) whose frequency may be constant or varying. Ripple current causes heat to be generated within the capacitor due to the dielectric losses caused by the changing field strength together with the current flow across the slightly resistive supply lines or the electrolyte in the capacitor. The equivalent series resistance (ESR) is the amount of internal series resistance one would add to a perfect capacitor to model this.
Some types of capacitors, primarily tantalum and aluminum electrolytic capacitors, as well as some film capacitors have a specified rating value for maximum ripple current.
Tantalum electrolytic capacitors with solid manganese dioxide electrolyte are limited by ripple current and generally have the highest ESR ratings in the capacitor family. Exceeding their ripple limits can lead to shorts and burning parts.
Aluminum electrolytic capacitors, the most common type of electrolytic, suffer a shortening of life expectancy at higher ripple currents. If ripple current exceeds the rated value of the capacitor, it tends to result in explosive failure.
Ceramic capacitors generally have no ripple current limitation and have some of the lowest ESR ratings.
Film capacitors have very low ESR ratings but exceeding rated ripple current may cause degradation failures.
Capacitance instability
The capacitance of certain capacitors decreases as the component ages. In ceramic capacitors, this is caused by degradation of the dielectric. The type of dielectric, ambient operating and storage temperatures are the most significant aging factors, while the operating voltage usually has a smaller effect, i.e., usual capacitor design is to minimize voltage coefficient. The aging process may be reversed by heating the component above the Curie point. Aging is fastest near the beginning of life of the component, and the device stabilizes over time. Electrolytic capacitors age as the electrolyte evaporates. In contrast with ceramic capacitors, this occurs towards the end of life of the component.
Temperature dependence of capacitance is usually expressed in parts per million (ppm) per °C. It can usually be taken as a broadly linear function but can be noticeably non-linear at the temperature extremes. The temperature coefficient may be positive or negative, depending mostly on the dielectric material. Some, designated C0G/NP0, but called NPO, have a somewhat negative coefficient at one temperature, positive at another, and zero in between. Such components may be specified for temperature-critical circuits.
Capacitors, especially ceramic capacitors, and older designs such as paper capacitors, can absorb sound waves resulting in a microphonic effect. Vibration moves the plates, causing the capacitance to vary, in turn inducing AC current. Some dielectrics also generate piezoelectricity. The resulting interference is especially problematic in audio applications, potentially causing feedback or unintended recording. In the reverse microphonic effect, the varying electric field between the capacitor plates exerts a physical force, moving them as a speaker. This can generate audible sound, but drains energy and stresses the dielectric and the electrolyte, if any.
Current and voltage reversal
Current reversal occurs when the current changes direction. Voltage reversal is the change of polarity in a circuit. Reversal is generally described as the percentage of the maximum rated voltage that reverses polarity. In DC circuits, this is usually less than 100%, often in the range of 0 to 90%, whereas AC circuits experience 100% reversal.
In DC circuits and pulsed circuits, current and voltage reversal are affected by the damping of the system. Voltage reversal is encountered in RLC circuits that are underdamped. The current and voltage reverse direction, forming a harmonic oscillator between the inductance and capacitance. The current and voltage tends to oscillate and may reverse direction several times, with each peak being lower than the previous, until the system reaches an equilibrium. This is often referred to as ringing. In comparison, critically damped or overdamped systems usually do not experience a voltage reversal. Reversal is also encountered in AC circuits, where the peak current is equal in each direction.
For maximum life, capacitors usually need to be able to handle the maximum amount of reversal that a system may experience. An AC circuit experiences 100% voltage reversal, while underdamped DC circuits experience less than 100%. Reversal creates excess electric fields in the dielectric, causes excess heating of both the dielectric and the conductors, and can dramatically shorten the life expectancy of the capacitor. Reversal ratings often affect the design considerations for the capacitor, from the choice of dielectric materials and voltage ratings to the types of internal connections used.
Dielectric absorption
Capacitors made with any type of dielectric material show some level of "dielectric absorption" or "soakage". On discharging a capacitor and disconnecting it, after a short time it may develop a voltage due to hysteresis in the dielectric. This effect is objectionable in applications such as precision sample and hold circuits or timing circuits. The level of absorption depends on many factors, from design considerations to charging time, since the absorption is a time-dependent process. However, the primary factor is the type of dielectric material. Capacitors such as tantalum electrolytic or polysulfone film exhibit relatively high absorption, while polystyrene or Teflon allow very small levels of absorption. In some capacitors where dangerous voltages and energies exist, such as in flashtubes, television sets, microwave ovens and defibrillators, the dielectric absorption can recharge the capacitor to hazardous voltages after it has been shorted or discharged. Any capacitor containing over 10 joules of energy is generally considered hazardous, while 50 joules or higher is potentially lethal. A capacitor may regain anywhere from 0.01 to 20% of its original charge over a period of several minutes, allowing a seemingly safe capacitor to become surprisingly dangerous.Electronics. McGraw-Hill 1960 p. 90Xenon Strobe and Flash Safety Hints. donklipstein.com. 2006-05-29
Leakage
No material is a perfect insulator, thus all dielectrics allow some small level of current to leak through, which can be measured with a megohmmeter.<ref>Robinson's Manual of Radio Telegraphy and Telephony by S.S. Robinson -- US Naval Institute 1924 Pg. 170</ref> Leakage is equivalent to a resistor in parallel with the capacitor. Constant exposure to factors such as heat, mechanical stress, or humidity can cause the dielectric to deteriorate resulting in excessive leakage, a problem often seen in older vacuum tube circuits, particularly where oiled paper and foil capacitors were used. In many vacuum tube circuits, interstage coupling capacitors are used to conduct a varying signal from the plate of one tube to the grid circuit of the next stage. A leaky capacitor can cause the grid circuit voltage to be raised from its normal bias setting, causing excessive current or signal distortion in the downstream tube. In power amplifiers this can cause the plates to glow red, or current limiting resistors to overheat, even fail. Similar considerations apply to component fabricated solid-state (transistor) amplifiers, but, owing to lower heat production and the use of modern polyester dielectric-barriers, this once-common problem has become relatively rare.
Electrolytic failure from disuse
Aluminum electrolytic capacitors are conditioned when manufactured by applying a voltage sufficient to initiate the proper internal chemical state. This state is maintained by regular use of the equipment. If a system using electrolytic capacitors is unused for a long period of time it can lose its conditioning. Sometimes they fail with a short circuit when next operated.
Lifespan
All capacitors have varying lifespans, depending upon their construction, operational conditions, and environmental conditions. Solid-state ceramic capacitors generally have very long lives under normal use, which has little dependency on factors such as vibration or ambient temperature, but factors like humidity, mechanical stress, and fatigue play a primary role in their failure. Failure modes may differ. Some capacitors may experience a gradual loss of capacitance, increased leakage or an increase in equivalent series resistance (ESR), while others may fail suddenly or even catastrophically. For example, metal-film capacitors are more prone to damage from stress and humidity, but will self-heal when a breakdown in the dielectric occurs. The formation of a glow discharge at the point of failure prevents arcing by vaporizing the metallic film in that spot, neutralizing any short circuit with minimal loss in capacitance. When enough pinholes accumulate in the film, a total failure occurs in a metal-film capacitor, generally happening suddenly without warning.
Electrolytic capacitors generally have the shortest lifespans. Electrolytic capacitors are affected very little by vibration or humidity, but factors such as ambient and operational temperatures play a large role in their failure, which gradually occur as an increase in ESR (up to 300%) and as much as a 20% decrease in capacitance. The capacitors contain electrolytes which will eventually diffuse through the seals and evaporate. An increase in temperature also increases internal pressure, and increases the reaction rate of the chemicals. Thus, the life of an electrolytic capacitor is generally defined by a modification of the Arrhenius equation, which is used to determine chemical-reaction rates:
Manufacturers often use this equation to supply an expected lifespan, in hours, for electrolytic capacitors when used at their designed operating temperature, which is affected by both ambient temperature, ESR, and ripple current. However, these ideal conditions may not exist in every use. The rule of thumb for predicting lifespan under different conditions of use is determined by:
This says that the capacitor's life decreases by half for every 10 degrees Celsius that the temperature is increased, where:
is the rated life under rated conditions, e.g. 2000 hours
is the rated max/min operational temperature
is the average operational temperature
is the expected lifespan under given conditions
Capacitor types
Practical capacitors are available commercially in many different forms. The type of internal dielectric, the structure of the plates and the device packaging all strongly affect the characteristics of the capacitor, and its applications.
Values available range from very low (picofarad range; while arbitrarily low values are in principle possible, stray (parasitic) capacitance in any circuit is the limiting factor) to about 5 kF supercapacitors.
Above approximately 1 microfarad electrolytic capacitors are usually used because of their small size and low cost compared with other types, unless their relatively poor stability, life and polarised nature make them unsuitable. Very high capacity supercapacitors use a porous carbon-based electrode material.
Dielectric materials
thumb|upright=1.2|An assortment of capacitor types. From left: multilayer ceramic, ceramic disc, multilayer polyester film, tubular ceramic, polystyrene, metalized polyester film, aluminum electrolytic. Major scale divisions are in centimetres.
Most capacitors have a dielectric spacer, which increases their capacitance compared to air or a vacuum. In order to maximise the charge that a capacitor can hold, the dielectric material needs to have as high a permittivity as possible, while also having as high a breakdown voltage as possible. The dielectric also needs to have as low a loss with frequency as possible.
However, low value capacitors are available with a high vacuum between their plates to allow extremely high voltage operation and low losses. Variable capacitors with their plates open to the atmosphere were commonly used in radio tuning circuits. Later designs use polymer foil dielectric between the moving and stationary plates, with no significant air space between the plates.
Several solid dielectrics are available, including paper, plastic, glass, mica and ceramic.
Paper was used extensively in older capacitors and offers relatively high voltage performance. However, paper absorbs moisture, and has been largely replaced by plastic film capacitors.
Most of the plastic films now used offer better stability and ageing performance than such older dielectrics such as oiled paper, which makes them useful in timer circuits, although they may be limited to relatively low operating temperatures and frequencies, because of the limitations of the plastic film being used. Large plastic film capacitors are used extensively in suppression circuits, motor start circuits, and power-factor correction circuits.
Ceramic capacitors are generally small, cheap and useful for high frequency applications, although their capacitance varies strongly with voltage and temperature and they age poorly. They can also suffer from the piezoelectric effect. Ceramic capacitors are broadly categorized as class 1 dielectrics, which have predictable variation of capacitance with temperature or class 2 dielectrics, which can operate at higher voltage. Modern multilayer ceramics are usually quite small, but some types have inherently wide value tolerances, microphonic issues, and are usually physically brittle.
Glass and mica capacitors are extremely reliable, stable and tolerant to high temperatures and voltages, but are too expensive for most mainstream applications.
Electrolytic capacitors and supercapacitors are used to store small and larger amounts of energy, respectively, ceramic capacitors are often used in resonators, and parasitic capacitance occurs in circuits wherever the simple conductor-insulator-conductor structure is formed unintentionally by the configuration of the circuit layout.
thumb|right|Three aluminum electrolytic capacitors of varying capacity
thumb|right|3D model of a capacitor
Electrolytic capacitors use an aluminum or tantalum plate with an oxide dielectric layer. The second electrode is a liquid electrolyte, connected to the circuit by another foil plate. Electrolytic capacitors offer very high capacitance but suffer from poor tolerances, high instability, gradual loss of capacitance especially when subjected to heat, and high leakage current. Poor quality capacitors may leak electrolyte, which is harmful to printed circuit boards. The conductivity of the electrolyte drops at low temperatures, which increases equivalent series resistance. While widely used for power-supply conditioning, poor high-frequency characteristics make them unsuitable for many applications. Electrolytic capacitors suffer from self-degradation if unused for a period (around a year), and when full power is applied may short circuit, permanently damaging the capacitor and usually blowing a fuse or causing failure of rectifier diodes. For example, in older equipment, this may cause arcing in rectifier tubes. They can be restored before use by gradually applying the operating voltage, often performed on antique vacuum tube equipment over a period of thirty minutes by using a variable transformer to supply AC power. The use of this technique may be less satisfactory for some solid state equipment, which may be damaged by operation below its normal power range, requiring that the power supply first be isolated from the consuming circuits. Such remedies may not be applicable to modern high-frequency power supplies as these produce full output voltage even with reduced input.
Tantalum capacitors offer better frequency and temperature characteristics than aluminum, but higher dielectric absorption and leakage.
Polymer capacitors (OS-CON, OC-CON, KO, AO) use solid conductive polymer (or polymerized organic semiconductor) as electrolyte and offer longer life and lower ESR at higher cost than standard electrolytic capacitors.
A feedthrough capacitor is a component that, while not serving as its main use, has capacitance and is used to conduct signals through a conductive sheet.
Several other types of capacitor are available for specialist applications. Supercapacitors store large amounts of energy. Supercapacitors made from carbon aerogel, carbon nanotubes, or highly porous electrode materials, offer extremely high capacitance (up to 5 kF ) and can be used in some applications instead of rechargeable batteries. Alternating current capacitors are specifically designed to work on line (mains) voltage AC power circuits. They are commonly used in electric motor circuits and are often designed to handle large currents, so they tend to be physically large. They are usually ruggedly packaged, often in metal cases that can be easily grounded/earthed. They also are designed with direct current breakdown voltages of at least five times the maximum AC voltage.
Voltage-dependent capacitors
The dielectric constant for a number of very useful dielectrics changes as a function of the applied electrical field, for example ferroelectric materials, so the capacitance for these devices is more complex. For example, in charging such a capacitor the differential increase in voltage with charge is governed by:
where the voltage dependence of capacitance, , suggests that the capacitance is a function of the electric field strength, which in a large area parallel plate device is given by . This field polarizes the dielectric, which polarization, in the case of a ferroelectric, is a nonlinear S-shaped function of the electric field, which, in the case of a large area parallel plate device, translates into a capacitance that is a nonlinear function of the voltage.
Corresponding to the voltage-dependent capacitance, to charge the capacitor to voltage an integral relation is found:
which agrees with only when does not depend on voltage .
By the same token, the energy stored in the capacitor now is given by
Integrating:
where interchange of the order of integration is used.
The nonlinear capacitance of a microscope probe scanned along a ferroelectric surface is used to study the domain structure of ferroelectric materials.
Another example of voltage dependent capacitance occurs in semiconductor devices such as semiconductor diodes, where the voltage dependence stems not from a change in dielectric constant but in a voltage dependence of the spacing between the charges on the two sides of the capacitor. This effect is intentionally exploited in diode-like devices known as varicaps.
Frequency-dependent capacitors
If a capacitor is driven with a time-varying voltage that changes rapidly enough, at some frequency the polarization of the dielectric cannot follow the voltage. As an example of the origin of this mechanism, the internal microscopic dipoles contributing to the dielectric constant cannot move instantly, and so as frequency of an applied alternating voltage increases, the dipole response is limited and the dielectric constant diminishes. A changing dielectric constant with frequency is referred to as dielectric dispersion, and is governed by dielectric relaxation processes, such as Debye relaxation. Under transient conditions, the displacement field can be expressed as (see electric susceptibility):
indicating the lag in response by the time dependence of , calculated in principle from an underlying microscopic analysis, for example, of the dipole behavior in the dielectric. See, for example, linear response function. The integral extends over the entire past history up to the present time. A Fourier transform in time then results in:
where εr(ω) is now a complex function, with an imaginary part related to absorption of energy from the field by the medium. See permittivity. The capacitance, being proportional to the dielectric constant, also exhibits this frequency behavior. Fourier transforming Gauss's law with this form for displacement field:
where is the imaginary unit, is the voltage component at angular frequency , is the real part of the current, called the conductance, and determines the imaginary part of the current and is the capacitance. is the complex impedance.
When a parallel-plate capacitor is filled with a dielectric, the measurement of dielectric properties of the medium is based upon the relation:
where a single prime denotes the real part and a double prime the imaginary part, is the complex impedance with the dielectric present, is the so-called complex capacitance with the dielectric present, and is the capacitance without the dielectric. (Measurement "without the dielectric" in principle means measurement in free space, an unattainable goal inasmuch as even the quantum vacuum is predicted to exhibit nonideal behavior, such as dichroism. For practical purposes, when measurement errors are taken into account, often a measurement in terrestrial vacuum, or simply a calculation of C0, is sufficiently accurate.)
Using this measurement method, the dielectric constant may exhibit a resonance at certain frequencies corresponding to characteristic response frequencies (excitation energies) of contributors to the dielectric constant. These resonances are the basis for a number of experimental techniques for detecting defects. The conductance method measures absorption as a function of frequency. Alternatively, the time response of the capacitance can be used directly, as in deep-level transient spectroscopy.
Another example of frequency dependent capacitance occurs with MOS capacitors, where the slow generation of minority carriers means that at high frequencies the capacitance measures only the majority carrier response, while at low frequencies both types of carrier respond.
At optical frequencies, in semiconductors the dielectric constant exhibits structure related to the band structure of the solid. Sophisticated modulation spectroscopy measurement methods based upon modulating the crystal structure by pressure or by other stresses and observing the related changes in absorption or reflection of light have advanced our knowledge of these materials.
Styles
thumb|Capacitor packages: SMD ceramic at top left; SMD tantalum electrolytic at bottom left; through-hole ceramic at top right; through-hole aluminium electrolytic at bottom right. Major scale divisions are cm.
The arrangement of plates and dielectric has many variations in different styles depending on the desired ratings of the capacitor. For small values of capacitance (microfarads and less), ceramic disks use metallic coatings, with wire leads bonded to the coating. Larger values can be made by multiple stacks of plates and disks. Larger value capacitors usually use a metal foil or metal film layer deposited on the surface of a dielectric film to make the plates, and a dielectric film of impregnated paper or plasticthese are rolled up to save space. To reduce the series resistance and inductance for long plates, the plates and dielectric are staggered so that connection is made at the common edge of the rolled-up plates, not at the ends of the foil or metalized film strips that comprise the plates.
The assembly is encased to prevent moisture entering the dielectricearly radio equipment used a cardboard tube sealed with wax. Modern paper or film dielectric capacitors are dipped in a hard thermoplastic. Large capacitors for high-voltage use may have the roll form compressed to fit into a rectangular metal case, with bolted terminals and bushings for connections. The dielectric in larger capacitors is often impregnated with a liquid to improve its properties.
thumb|right|Several axial-lead electrolytic capacitors
Capacitors may have their connecting leads arranged in many configurations, for example axially or radially. "Axial" means that the leads are on a common axis, typically the axis of the capacitor's cylindrical bodythe leads extend from opposite ends. Radial leads are rarely aligned along radii of the body's circle, so the term is conventional. The leads (until bent) are usually in planes parallel to that of the flat body of the capacitor, and extend in the same direction; they are often parallel as manufactured.
Small, cheap discoidal ceramic capacitors have existed from the 1930s onward, and remain in widespread use. After the 1980s, surface mount packages for capacitors have been widely used. These packages are extremely small and lack connecting leads, allowing them to be soldered directly onto the surface of printed circuit boards. Surface mount components avoid undesirable high-frequency effects due to the leads and simplify automated assembly, although manual handling is made difficult due to their small size.
Mechanically controlled variable capacitors allow the plate spacing to be adjusted, for example by rotating or sliding a set of movable plates into alignment with a set of stationary plates. Low cost variable capacitors squeeze together alternating layers of aluminum and plastic with a screw. Electrical control of capacitance is achievable with varactors (or varicaps), which are reverse-biased semiconductor diodes whose depletion region width varies with applied voltage. They are used in phase-locked loops, amongst other applications.
Capacitor markings
Marking codes for larger parts
Most capacitors have designations printed on their bodies to indicate their electrical characteristics. Larger capacitors, such as electrolytic types usually display the capacitance as value with explicit unit, for example, 220 μF.
For typographical reasons, some manufacturers print MF on capacitors to indicate microfarads (μF).
Three-/four-character marking code for small capacitors
Smaller capacitors, such as ceramic types, often use a shorthand-notation consisting of three digits and an optional letter, where the digits (XYZ) denote the capacitance in picofarad (pF), calculated as XY × 10Z, and the letter indicating the tolerance. Common tolerances are ±5%, ±10%, and ±20%, denotes as J, K, and M, respectively.
A capacitor may also be labeled with its working voltage, temperature, and other relevant characteristics.
Example:
A capacitor labeled or designated as 473K 330V has a capacitance of = 47 nF (±10%) with a maximum working voltage of 330 V. The working voltage of a capacitor is nominally the highest voltage that may be applied across it without undue risk of breaking down the dielectric layer.
Two-character marking code for small capacitors
For capacitances following the E3, E6, E12 or E24 series of preferred values, the former ANSI/EIA-198-D:1991, ANSI/EIA-198-1-E:1998 and ANSI/EIA-198-1-F:2002 as well as the amendment IEC 60062:2016/AMD1:2019 to IEC 60062 define a special two-character marking code for capacitors for very small parts which leave no room to print the above-mentioned three-/four-character code onto them. The code consists of an uppercase letter denoting the two significant digits of the value followed by a digit indicating the multiplier. The EIA standard also defines a number of lowercase letters to specify a number of values not found in E24.
CodeSeriesDigitLetterE249012345678A1.00.10 pF1.0 pF10 pF100 pF1.0 nF10 nF100 nF1.0 μF10 μF100 μFB1.10.11 pF1.1 pF11 pF110 pF1.1 nF11 nF110 nF1.1 μF11 μF110 μFC1.20.12 pF1.2 pF12 pF120 pF1.2 nF12 nF120 nF1.2 μF12 μF120 μFD1.30.13 pF1.3 pF13 pF130 pF1.3 nF13 nF130 nF1.3 μF13 μF130 μFE1.50.15 pF1.5 pF15 pF150 pF1.5 nF15 nF150 nF1.5 μF15 μF150 μFF1.60.16 pF1.6 pF16 pF160 pF1.6 nF16 nF160 nF1.6 μF16 μF160 μFG1.80.18 pF1.8 pF18 pF180 pF1.8 nF18 nF180 nF1.8 μF18 μF180 μFH2.00.20 pF2.0 pF20 pF200 pF2.0 nF20 nF200 nF2.0 μF20 μF200 μFJ2.20.22 pF2.2 pF22 pF220 pF2.2 nF22 nF220 nF2.2 μF22 μF220 μFK2.40.24 pF2.4 pF24 pF240 pF2.4 nF24 nF240 nF2.4 μF24 μF240 μFL2.70.27 pF2.7 pF27 pF270 pF2.7 nF27 nF270 nF2.7 μF27 μF270 μFM3.00.30 pF3.0 pF30 pF300 pF3.0 nF30 nF300 nF3.0 μF30 μF300 μFN3.30.33 pF3.3 pF33 pF330 pF3.3 nF33 nF330 nF3.3 μF33 μF330 μFP3.60.36 pF3.6 pF36 pF360 pF3.6 nF36 nF360 nF3.6 μF36 μF360 μFQ3.90.39 pF3.9 pF39 pF390 pF3.9 nF39 nF390 nF3.9 μF39 μF390 μFR4.30.43 pF4.3 pF43 pF430 pF4.3 nF43 nF430 nF4.3 μF43 μF430 μFS4.70.47 pF4.7 pF47 pF470 pF4.7 nF47 nF470 nF4.7 μF47 μF470 μFT5.10.51 pF5.1 pF51 pF510 pF5.1 nF51 nF510 nF5.1 μF51 μF510 μFU5.60.56 pF5.6 pF56 pF560 pF5.6 nF56 nF560 nF5.6 μF56 μF560 μFV6.20.62 pF6.2 pF62 pF620 pF6.2 nF62 nF620 nF6.2 μF62 μF620 μFW6.80.68 pF6.8 pF68 pF680 pF6.8 nF68 nF680 nF6.8 μF68 μF680 μFX7.50.75 pF7.5 pF75 pF750 pF7.5 nF75 nF750 nF7.5 μF75 μF750 μFY8.20.82 pF8.2 pF82 pF820 pF8.2 nF82 nF820 nF8.2 μF82 μF820 μFZ9.10.91 pF9.1 pF91 pF910 pF9.1 nF91 nF910 nF9.1 μF91 μF910 μF
CodeSeriesDigitLetterEIA9012345678a2.50.25 pF2.5 pF25 pF250 pF2.5 nF25 nF250 nF2.5 μF25 μF250 μFb?3.0?0.30 pF3.0 pF30 pF300 pF3.0 nF30 nF300 nF3.0 μF30 μF300 μFb?/c?3.50.35 pF3.5 pF35 pF350 pF3.5 nF35 nF350 nF3.5 μF35 μF350 μFd4.00.40 pF4.0 pF40 pF400 pF4.0 nF40 nF400 nF4.0 μF40 μF400 μFe4.50.45 pF4.5 pF45 pF450 pF4.5 nF45 nF450 nF4.5 μF45 μF450 μFf5.00.50 pF5.0 pF50 pF500 pF5.0 nF50 nF500 nF5.0 μF50 μF500 μFm6.00.60 pF6.0 pF60 pF600 pF6.0 nF60 nF600 nF6.0 μF60 μF600 μFn7.00.70 pF7.0 pF70 pF700 pF7.0 nF70 nF700 nF7.0 μF70 μF700 μFt8.00.80 pF8.0 pF80 pF800 pF8.0 nF80 nF800 nF8.0 μF80 μF800 μFg9.00.90 pF9.0 pF90 pF900 pF9.0 nF90 nF900 nF9.0 μF90 μF900 μF
RKM code
The RKM code following IEC 60062 and BS 1852 is a notation to state a capacitor's value in a circuit diagram. It avoids using a decimal separator and replaces the decimal separator with the SI prefix symbol for the particular value (and the letter for weight 1). The code is also used for part markings. Example: for 4.7 nF or for 2.2 F.
Historical
In texts prior to the 1960s and on some capacitor packages until more recently, obsolete capacitance units were utilized in electronic books, magazines, and electronics catalogs. The old units "mfd" and "mf" meant microfarad (μF); and the old units "mmfd", "mmf", "uuf", "μμf", "pfd" meant picofarad (pF); but they are rarely used any more. Also, "Micromicrofarad" or "micro-microfarad" are obsolete units that are found in some older texts that is equivalent to picofarad (pF).
Summary of obsolete capacitance units: (upper/lower case variations are not shown)
μF (microfarad) = mf, mfd
pF (picofarad) = mmf, mmfd, pfd, μμF
Applications
thumb|A capacitor discharging its stored energy through a flashtube. The mylar-film capacitor has very low inductance and low resistance, producing a 3.5 microsecond pulse with 24 million watts of power, to operate a dye laser.
Energy storage
A capacitor can store electric energy when disconnected from its charging circuit, so it can be used like a temporary battery, or like other types of rechargeable energy storage system. Capacitors are commonly used in electronic devices to maintain power supply while batteries are being changed. (This prevents loss of information in volatile memory.)
A capacitor can facilitate conversion of kinetic energy of charged particles into electric energy and store it.
There are tradeoffs between capacitors and batteries as storage devices. Without external resistors or inductors, capacitors can generally release their stored energy in a very short time compared to batteries. Conversely, batteries can hold a far greater charge per their size. Conventional capacitors provide less than 360 joules per kilogram of specific energy, whereas a conventional alkaline battery has a density of 590 kJ/kg. There is
an intermediate solution: supercapacitors, which can accept and deliver charge much faster than batteries, and tolerate many more charge and discharge cycles than rechargeable batteries. They are, however, 10 times larger than conventional batteries for a given charge. On the other hand, it has been shown that the amount of charge stored in the dielectric
layer of the thin film capacitor can be equal to, or can even exceed, the amount of charge stored on its plates.
In car audio systems, large capacitors store energy for the amplifier to use on demand. Also, for a flash tube, a capacitor is used to hold the high voltage.
Digital memory
In the 1930s, John Atanasoff applied the principle of energy storage in capacitors to construct dynamic digital memories for the first binary computers that used electron tubes for logic.
Pulsed power and weapons
Pulsed power is used in many applications to increase the power intensity (watts) of a volume of energy (joules) by releasing that volume within a very short time. Pulses in the nanosecond range and powers in the gigawatts are achievable. Short pulses often require specially constructed, low-inductance, high-voltage capacitors that are often used in large groups (capacitor banks) to supply huge pulses of current for many pulsed power applications. These include electromagnetic forming, Marx generators, pulsed lasers (especially TEA lasers), pulse forming networks, radar, fusion research, and particle accelerators.Pulsed Power by Gennady A. Mesyats -- Springer 2005 Page 1--5
Large capacitor banks (reservoir) are used as energy sources for the exploding-bridgewire detonators or slapper detonators in nuclear weapons and other specialty weapons. Experimental work is under way using banks of capacitors as power sources for electromagnetic armour and electromagnetic railguns and coilguns.
Power conditioning
thumb|upright=0.8|A 10,000 microfarad capacitor in an amplifier power supply
Reservoir capacitors are used in power supplies where they smooth the output of a full or half wave rectifier. They can also be used in charge pump circuits as the energy storage element in the generation of higher voltages than the input voltage.
Capacitors are connected in parallel with the power circuits of most electronic devices and larger systems (such as factories) to shunt away and conceal current fluctuations from the primary power source to provide a "clean" power supply for signal or control circuits. Audio equipment, for example, uses several capacitors in this way, to shunt away power line hum before it gets into the signal circuitry. The capacitors act as a local reserve for the DC power source, and bypass AC currents from the power supply. This is used in car audio applications, when a stiffening capacitor compensates for the inductance and resistance of the leads to the lead–acid car battery.
Power-factor correction
thumb|upright=0.8|A high-voltage capacitor bank used for power-factor correction on a power transmission system
In electric power distribution, capacitors are used for power-factor correction. Such capacitors often come as three capacitors connected as a three phase load. Usually, the values of these capacitors are not given in farads but rather as a reactive power in volt-amperes reactive (var). The purpose is to counteract inductive loading from devices like electric motors and transmission lines to make the load appear to be mostly resistive. Individual motor or lamp loads may have capacitors for power-factor correction, or larger sets of capacitors (usually with automatic switching devices) may be installed at a load center within a building or in a large utility substation.
Suppression and coupling
Signal coupling
thumb|upright=0.8|Polyester film capacitors are frequently used as coupling capacitors.
Because capacitors pass AC but block DC signals (when charged up to the applied DC voltage), they are often used to separate the AC and DC components of a signal. This method is known as AC coupling or "capacitive coupling". Here, a large value of capacitance, whose value need not be accurately controlled, but whose reactance is small at the signal frequency, is employed.
Decoupling
A decoupling capacitor is a capacitor used to protect one part of a circuit from the effect of another, for instance to suppress noise or transients. Noise caused by other circuit elements is shunted through the capacitor, reducing the effect they have on the rest of the circuit. It is most commonly used between the power supply and ground.
An alternative name is bypass capacitor as it is used to bypass the power supply or other high impedance component of a circuit.
Decoupling capacitors need not always be discrete components. Capacitors used in these applications may be built into a printed circuit board, between the various layers. These are often referred to as embedded capacitors. The layers in the board contributing to the capacitive properties also function as power and ground planes, and have a dielectric in between them, enabling them to operate as a parallel plate capacitor.
High-pass and low-pass filters
Noise suppression, spikes, and snubbers
When an inductive circuit is opened, the current through the inductance collapses quickly, creating a large voltage across the open circuit of the switch or relay. If the inductance is large enough, the energy may generate a spark, causing the contact points to oxidize, deteriorate, or sometimes weld together, or destroying a solid-state switch. A snubber capacitor across the newly opened circuit creates a path for this impulse to bypass the contact points, thereby preserving their life; these were commonly found in contact breaker ignition systems, for instance. Similarly, in smaller scale circuits, the spark may not be enough to damage the switch but may still radiate undesirable radio frequency interference (RFI), which a filter capacitor absorbs. Snubber capacitors are usually employed with a low-value resistor in series, to dissipate energy and minimize RFI. Such resistor-capacitor combinations are available in a single package.
Capacitors are also used in parallel with interrupting units of a high-voltage circuit breaker to equally distribute the voltage between these units. These are called "grading capacitors".
In schematic diagrams, a capacitor used primarily for DC charge storage is often drawn vertically in circuit diagrams with the lower, more negative, plate drawn as an arc. The straight plate indicates the positive terminal of the device, if it is polarized (see electrolytic capacitor).
Motor starters
In single phase squirrel cage motors, the primary winding within the motor housing is not capable of starting a rotational motion on the rotor, but is capable of sustaining one. To start the motor, a secondary "start" winding has a series non-polarized starting capacitor to introduce a lead in the sinusoidal current. When the secondary (start) winding is placed at an angle with respect to the primary (run) winding, a rotating electric field is created. The force of the rotational field is not constant, but is sufficient to start the rotor spinning. When the rotor comes close to operating speed, a centrifugal switch (or current-sensitive relay in series with the main winding) disconnects the capacitor. The start capacitor is typically mounted to the side of the motor housing. These are called capacitor-start motors, that have relatively high starting torque. Typically they can have up-to four times as much starting torque as a split-phase motor and are used on applications such as compressors, pressure washers and any small device requiring high starting torques.
Capacitor-run induction motors have a permanently connected phase-shifting capacitor in series with a second winding. The motor is much like a two-phase induction motor.
Motor-starting capacitors are typically non-polarized electrolytic types, while running capacitors are conventional paper or plastic film dielectric types.
Signal processing
The energy stored in a capacitor can be used to represent information, either in binary form, as in DRAMs, or in analogue form, as in analog sampled filters and CCDs. Capacitors can be used in analog circuits as components of integrators or more complex filters and in negative feedback loop stabilization. Signal processing circuits also use capacitors to integrate a current signal.
Tuned circuits
Capacitors and inductors are applied together in tuned circuits to select information in particular frequency bands. For example, radio receivers rely on variable capacitors to tune the station frequency. Speakers use passive analog crossovers, and analog equalizers use capacitors to select different audio bands.
The resonant frequency f of a tuned circuit is a function of the inductance (L) and capacitance (C) in series, and is given by:
where is in henries and is in farads.
Sensing
Most capacitors are designed to maintain a fixed physical structure. However, various factors can change the structure of the capacitor, and the resulting change in capacitance can be used to sense those factors.
Changing the dielectric
The effects of varying the characteristics of the dielectric can be used for sensing purposes. Capacitors with an exposed and porous dielectric can be used to measure humidity in air. Capacitors are used to accurately measure the fuel level in airplanes; as the fuel covers more of a pair of plates, the circuit capacitance increases. Squeezing the dielectric can change a capacitor at a few tens of bar pressure sufficiently that it can be used as a pressure sensor.Downie, Neil A and Mathilde Pradier, 'Method and apparatus for monitoring fluid pressure", US Patent 7526961 (2009) A selected, but otherwise standard, polymer dielectric capacitor, when immersed in a compatible gas or liquid, can work usefully as a very low cost pressure sensor up to many hundreds of bar.
Changing the distance between the plates
Capacitors with a flexible plate can be used to measure strain or pressure. Industrial pressure transmitters used for process control use pressure-sensing diaphragms, which form a capacitor plate of an oscillator circuit. Capacitors are used as the sensor in condenser microphones, where one plate is moved by air pressure, relative to the fixed position of the other plate. Some accelerometers use MEMS capacitors etched on a chip to measure the magnitude and direction of the acceleration vector. They are used to detect changes in acceleration, in tilt sensors, or to detect free fall, as sensors triggering airbag deployment, and in many other applications. Some fingerprint sensors use capacitors. Additionally, a user can adjust the pitch of a theremin musical instrument by moving their hand since this changes the effective capacitance between the user's hand and the antenna.
Changing the effective area of the plates
Capacitive touch switches are now used on many consumer electronic products.
Oscillators
class=skin-invert-image|thumb|Example of a simple oscillator incorporating a capacitor
A capacitor can possess spring-like qualities in an oscillator circuit. In the image example, a capacitor acts to influence the biasing voltage at the npn transistor's base. The resistance values of the voltage-divider resistors and the capacitance value of the capacitor together control the oscillatory frequency.
Producing light
A light-emitting capacitor is made from a dielectric that uses phosphorescence to produce light. If one of the conductive plates is made with a transparent material, the light is visible. Light-emitting capacitors are used in the construction of electroluminescent panels, for applications such as backlighting for laptop computers. In this case, the entire panel is a capacitor used for the purpose of generating light.
Hazards and safety
The hazards posed by a capacitor are usually determined, foremost, by the amount of energy stored, which is the cause of things like electrical burns or heart fibrillation. Factors such as voltage and chassis material are of secondary consideration, which are more related to how easily a shock can be initiated rather than how much damage can occur. Under certain conditions, including conductivity of the surfaces, preexisting medical conditions, the humidity of the air, or the pathways it takes through the body (i.e.: shocks that travel across the core of the body and, especially, the heart are more dangerous than those limited to the extremities), shocks as low as one joule have been reported to cause death, although in most instances they may not even leave a burn. Shocks over ten joules will generally damage skin, and are usually considered hazardous. Any capacitor that can store 50 joules or more should be considered potentially lethal.
Capacitors may retain a charge long after power is removed from a circuit; this charge can cause dangerous or even potentially fatal shocks or damage connected equipment. For example, even a seemingly innocuous device such as the flash of a disposable camera, has a photoflash capacitor which may contain over 15 joules of energy and be charged to over 300 volts. This is easily capable of delivering a shock. Service procedures for electronic devices usually include instructions to discharge large or high-voltage capacitors, for instance using a Brinkley stick. Larger capacitors, such as those used in microwave ovens, HVAC units and medical defibrillators may also have built-in discharge resistors to dissipate stored energy to a safe level within a few seconds after power is removed. High-voltage capacitors are stored with the terminals shorted, as protection from potentially dangerous voltages due to dielectric absorption or from transient voltages the capacitor may pick up from static charges or passing weather events.
Some old, large oil-filled paper or plastic film capacitors contain polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). It is known that waste PCBs can leak into groundwater under landfills. Capacitors containing PCBs were labelled as containing "Askarel" and several other trade names. PCB-filled paper capacitors are found in very old (pre-1975) fluorescent lamp ballasts, and other applications.
Capacitors may catastrophically fail when subjected to voltages or currents beyond their rating, or in case of polarized capacitors, applied in a reverse polarity. Failures may create arcing that heats and vaporizes the dielectric fluid, causing a build up of pressurized gas that may result in swelling, rupture, or an explosion. Larger capacitors may have vents or
similar mechanism to allow the release of such pressures in the event of failure. Capacitors used in RF or sustained high-current applications can overheat, especially in the center of the capacitor rolls. Capacitors used within high-energy capacitor banks can violently explode when a short in one capacitor causes sudden dumping of energy stored in the rest of the bank into the failing unit. High voltage vacuum capacitors can generate soft X-rays even during normal operation. Proper containment, fusing, and preventive maintenance can help to minimize these hazards.
High-voltage capacitors may benefit from a pre-charge to limit in-rush currents at power-up of high voltage direct current (HVDC) circuits. This extends the life of the component and may mitigate high-voltage hazards.
See also
Capacitance meter
Capacitor plague
Electric displacement field
Electroluminescence
List of capacitor manufacturers
Notes
References
Bibliography
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society LXXII, Appendix 8, 1782 (Volta coins the word condenser)
Further reading
Tantalum and Niobium-Based Capacitors – Science, Technology, and Applications; 1st Ed; Yuri Freeman; Springer; 120 pages; 2018; .
Capacitors; 1st Ed; R. P. Deshpande; McGraw-Hill; 342 pages; 2014; .
The Capacitor Handbook; 1st Ed; Cletus Kaiser; Van Nostrand Reinhold; 124 pages; 1993; .
Understanding Capacitors and their Uses; 1st Ed; William Mullin; Sams Publishing; 96 pages; 1964. (archive)
Fixed and Variable Capacitors; 1st Ed; G. W. A. Dummer and Harold Nordenberg; Maple Press; 288 pages; 1960. (archive)
The Electrolytic Capacitor''; 1st Ed; Alexander Georgiev; Murray Hill Books; 191 pages; 1945. (archive)
External links
The First Condenser – A Beer Glass – SparkMuseum
How Capacitors Work – Howstuffworks
Capacitor Tutorial
Category:Electrical components
Category:Energy storage
Category:Science and technology in the Dutch Republic
Category:Dutch inventions
Category:18th-century inventions
Category:German inventions
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History of India
|
thumb|Indus Valley Civilisation, at peak phase (2600–1900 BCE)
Anatomically modern humans first arrived on the Indian subcontinent between 73,000 and 55,000 years ago. Quote: "Y-Chromosome and Mt-DNA data support the colonization of South Asia by modern humans originating in Africa. ... Coalescence dates for most non-European populations average to between 73–55 ka." The earliest known human remains in South Asia date to 30,000 years ago. Sedentariness began in South Asia around 7000 BCE; by 4500 BCE, settled life had spread, and gradually evolved into the Indus Valley Civilisation, one of three early cradles of civilisation in the Old World, which flourished between 2500 BCE and 1900 BCE in present-day Pakistan and north-western India. Early in the second millennium BCE, persistent drought caused the population of the Indus Valley to scatter from large urban centres to villages. Indo-Aryan tribes moved into the Punjab from Central Asia in several waves of migration. The Vedic Period of the Vedic people in northern India (1500–500 BCE) was marked by the composition of their extensive collections of hymns (Vedas). The social structure was loosely stratified via the varna system, incorporated into the highly evolved present-day Jāti system. The pastoral and nomadic Indo-Aryans spread from the Punjab into the Gangetic plain. Around 600 BCE, a new, interregional culture arose; then, small chieftaincies (janapadas) were consolidated into larger states (mahajanapadas). Second urbanization took place, which came with the rise of new ascetic movements and religious concepts,Flood, Gavin. Olivelle, Patrick. 2003. The Blackwell Companion to Hinduism. Malden: Blackwell. pp. 273–274 including the rise of Jainism and Buddhism. The latter was synthesized with the preexisting religious cultures of the subcontinent, giving rise to Hinduism.
thumb|Indian cultural influence (Greater India)
thumb|Timeline of Indian history
Chandragupta Maurya overthrew the Nanda Empire and established the first great empire in ancient India, the Maurya Empire. India's Mauryan king Ashoka is widely recognised for the violent kalinga war and his historical acceptance of Buddhism and his attempts to spread nonviolence and peace across his empire. The Maurya Empire would collapse in 185 BCE, on the assassination of the then-emperor Brihadratha by his general Pushyamitra Shunga. Shunga would form the Shunga Empire in the north and north-east of the subcontinent, while the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom would claim the north-west and found the Indo-Greek Kingdom. Various parts of India were ruled by numerous dynasties, including the Gupta Empire, in the 4th to 6th centuries CE. This period, witnessing a Hindu religious and intellectual resurgence is known as the Classical or Golden Age of India. Aspects of Indian civilisation, administration, culture, and religion spread to much of Asia, which led to the establishment of Indianised kingdoms in the region, forming Greater India.The Cambridge History of Southeast Asia: From Early Times to c. 1800, Band 1 by Nicholas Tarling, p. 281 The most significant event between the 7th and 11th centuries was the Tripartite struggle centred on Kannauj. Southern India saw the rise of multiple imperial powers from the middle of the fifth century. The Chola dynasty conquered southern India in the 11th century. In the early medieval period, Indian mathematics, including Hindu numerals, influenced the development of mathematics and astronomy in the Arab world, including the creation of the Hindu-Arabic numeral system.Essays on Ancient India by Raj Kumar p. 199
Islamic conquests made limited inroads into modern Afghanistan and Sindh as early as the 8th century,Al Baldiah wal nahaiyah vol: 7 p. 141 "Conquest of Makran" followed by the invasions of Mahmud Ghazni.
The Delhi Sultanate, established in 1206 by Central Asian Turks, ruled much of northern India in the 14th century. It was governed by various Turkic and Afghan dynasties, including the Indo-Turkic Tughlaqs. The empire declined in the late 14th century following the invasions of Timur and saw the advent of the Malwa, Gujarat, and Bahmani sultanates, the last of which split in 1518 into the five Deccan sultanates. The wealthy Bengal Sultanate also emerged as a major power, lasting over three centuries. During this period, multiple strong Hindu kingdoms, notably the Vijayanagara Empire and Rajput states under the Kingdom of Mewar emerged and played significant roles in shaping the cultural and political landscape of India.
The early modern period began in the 16th century, when the Mughal Empire conquered most of the Indian subcontinent, signaling the proto-industrialisation, becoming the biggest global economy and manufacturing power. The Mughals suffered a gradual decline in the early 18th century, largely due to the rising power of the Marathas, who took control of extensive regions of the Indian subcontinent, and numerous Afghan invasions. The East India Company, acting as a sovereign force on behalf of the British government, gradually acquired control of huge areas of India between the middle of the 18th and the middle of the 19th centuries. Policies of company rule in India led to the Indian Rebellion of 1857. India was afterwards ruled directly by the British Crown, in the British Raj. After World War I, a nationwide struggle for independence was launched by the Indian National Congress, led by Mahatma Gandhi. Later, the All-India Muslim League would advocate for a separate Muslim-majority nation state. The British Indian Empire was partitioned in August 1947 into the Dominion of India and Dominion of Pakistan, each gaining its independence.
Prehistoric era (before c. 3300 BCE)
Paleolithic
Hominin expansion from Africa is estimated to have reached the Indian subcontinent approximately two million years ago, and possibly as early as 2.2 million years ago. This dating is based on the known presence of Homo erectus in Indonesia by 1.8 million years ago and in East Asia by 1.36 million years ago, as well as the discovery of stone tools at Riwat in Pakistan. Although some older discoveries have been claimed, the suggested dates, based on the dating of fluvial sediments, have not been independently verified.
The oldest hominin fossil remains in the Indian subcontinent are those of Homo erectus or Homo heidelbergensis, from the Narmada Valley in central India, and are dated to approximately half a million years ago. Older fossil finds have been claimed, but are considered unreliable. Reviews of archaeological evidence have suggested that occupation of the Indian subcontinent by hominins was sporadic until approximately 700,000 years ago, and was geographically widespread by approximately 250,000 years ago.
According to a historical demographer of South Asia, Tim Dyson:Modern human beings—Homo sapiens—originated in Africa. Then, intermittently, sometime between 60,000 and 80,000 years ago, tiny groups of them began to enter the north-west of the Indian subcontinent. It seems likely that initially they came by way of the coast. It is virtually certain that there were Homo sapiens in the subcontinent 55,000 years ago, even though the earliest fossils that have been found of them date to only about 30,000 years before the present.
According to Michael D. Petraglia and Bridget Allchin: Y-Chromosome and Mt-DNA data support the colonisation of South Asia by modern humans originating in Africa. ... Coalescence dates for most non-European populations average to between 73–55 ka.
Historian of South Asia, Michael H. Fisher, states: Scholars estimate that the first successful expansion of the Homo sapiens range beyond Africa and across the Arabian Peninsula occurred from as early as 80,000 years ago to as late as 40,000 years ago, although there may have been prior unsuccessful emigrations. Some of their descendants extended the human range ever further in each generation, spreading into each habitable land they encountered. One human channel was along the warm and productive coastal lands of the Persian Gulf and northern Indian Ocean. Eventually, various bands entered India between 75,000 years ago and 35,000 years ago.
Archaeological evidence has been interpreted to suggest the presence of anatomically modern humans in the Indian subcontinent 78,000–74,000 years ago, although this interpretation is disputed. The occupation of South Asia by modern humans, initially in varying forms of isolation as hunter-gatherers, has turned it into a highly diverse one, second only to Africa in human genetic diversity.
According to Tim Dyson: Genetic research has contributed to knowledge of the prehistory of the subcontinent's people in other respects. In particular, the level of genetic diversity in the region is extremely high. Indeed, only Africa's population is genetically more diverse. Related to this, there is strong evidence of 'founder' events in the subcontinent. By this is meant circumstances where a subgroup—such as a tribe—derives from a tiny number of 'original' individuals. Further, compared to most world regions, the subcontinent's people are relatively distinct in having practised comparatively high levels of endogamy.
Neolithic
thumb|right|Mehrgarh site in present-day Beluchistan, Pakistan
thumb|right|Mehrgarh painted pottery, 3000–2500 BCE
Settled life emerged on the subcontinent in the western margins of the Indus River alluvium approximately 9,000 years ago, evolving gradually into the Indus Valley Civilisation of the third millennium BCE. According to Tim Dyson: "By 7,000 years ago agriculture was firmly established in Baluchistan... [and] slowly spread eastwards into the Indus valley." Michael Fisher adds: The earliest discovered instance ... of well-established, settled agricultural society is at Mehrgarh in the hills between the Bolan Pass and the Indus plain (today in Pakistan) (see Map 3.1). From as early as 7000 BCE, communities there started investing increased labor in preparing the land and selecting, planting, tending, and harvesting particular grain-producing plants. They also domesticated animals, including sheep, goats, pigs, and oxen (both humped zebu [Bos indicus] and unhumped [Bos taurus]). Castrating oxen, for instance, turned them from mainly meat sources into domesticated draft-animals as well.
Bronze Age (c. 3300 – 1800 BCE)
Indus Valley Civilisation
thumb|right|Harappan Period at peak, 2600 - 1900 BCE
The Bronze Age in the Indian subcontinent began around 3300 BCE. The Indus Valley region was one of three early cradles of civilisation in the Old World; the Indus Valley civilisation was the most expansive, and at its peak, may have had a population of over five million.
The civilisation was primarily centred in modern-day Pakistan, in the Indus river basin, and secondarily in the Ghaggar-Hakra River basin. The mature Indus civilisation flourished from about 2600 to 1900 BCE, marking the beginning of urban civilisation on the Indian subcontinent. It included cities such as Harappa, Ganweriwal, and Mohenjo-daro in modern-day Pakistan, and Dholavira, Kalibangan, Rakhigarhi, and Lothal in modern-day India.
thumb|Mohenjo-daro (one of the largest Indus cities). View of the site's Great Bath, showing the surrounding urban layout.
thumb|right|Dholavira, a city of the Indus Valley civilisation, with stepwell steps to reach the water level in artificially constructed reservoirs
thumb|right|Archaeological remains of washroom drainage system at Lothal
Inhabitants of the ancient Indus River valley, the Harappans, developed new techniques in metallurgy and handicraft, and produced copper, bronze, lead, and tin.Kenoyer, J. M., Miller, H. M.-L. "Metal technologies of the Indus Valley tradition in Pakistan and western India." The Archaeometallurgy of the Asian Old World, MASCA research papers in science and archaeology. 1999, Vol 16, pp 107-151; ref : 7 p.1/4. ISSN 1048-5325 The civilisation is noted for its cities built of brick, and its roadside drainage systems, and is thought to have had some kind of municipal organisation. The civilisation also developed an Indus script, the earliest of the ancient Indian scripts, which is presently undeciphered.Early India: A Concise History, D.N. Jha, 2004, p. 31 This is the reason why Harappan language is not directly attested, and its affiliation is uncertain.
thumb|upright=1.2|Three stamp seals and their impressions showing Indus script characters alongside animals: unicorn (left), bull (centre), and elephant (right); at Guimet Museum
After the collapse of Indus Valley civilisation, the inhabitants migrated from the river valleys of Indus and Ghaggar-Hakra, towards the Himalayan foothills of Ganga-Yamuna basin.
Ochre Coloured Pottery culture
thumb|Sinauli solid-disk wheel cart, photograph of the Archaeological Survey of India.
During the 2nd millennium BCE, Ochre Coloured Pottery culture was in Ganga Yamuna Doab region. These were rural settlements with agriculture and hunting. They were using copper tools such as axes, spears, arrows, and swords, and had domesticated animals.
Iron Age (c. 1800 – 200 BCE)
Vedic period (c. 1500 – 600 BCE)
Starting , Indo-Aryan tribes moved into the Punjab from Central Asia in several waves of migration. The Vedic period is when the Vedas were composed of liturgical hymns from the Indo-Aryan people. The Vedic culture was located in part of north-west India, while other parts of India had a distinct cultural identity. Many regions of the Indian subcontinent transitioned from the Chalcolithic to the Iron Age in this period.
The Vedic culture is described in the texts of Vedas, still sacred to Hindus, which were orally composed and transmitted in Vedic Sanskrit. The Vedas are some of the oldest extant texts in India. The Vedic period, lasting from about 1500 to 500 BCE,Romila Thapar, A History of India: Part 1, pp. 29–30. contributed to the foundations of several cultural aspects of the Indian subcontinent.
Vedic society
thumb|right|An early 19th century manuscript in the Devanagari script of the Rigveda, originally transmitted orally
Historians have analysed the Vedas to posit a Vedic culture in the Punjab, and the upper Gangetic Plain. The Peepal tree and cow were sanctified by the time of the Atharva Veda. Many of the concepts of Indian philosophy espoused later, like dharma, trace their roots to Vedic antecedents.
Early Vedic society is described in the Rigveda, the oldest Vedic text, believed to have been compiled during the 2nd millennium BCE, in the north-western region of the Indian subcontinent. At this time, Aryan society consisted of predominantly tribal and pastoral groups, distinct from the Harappan urbanisation which had been abandoned. The early Indo-Aryan presence probably corresponds, in part, to the Ochre Coloured Pottery culture in archaeological contexts.Michael Witzel (1989), Tracing the Vedic dialects in Dialectes dans les litteratures Indo-Aryennes ed. Caillat, Paris, 97–265.
At the end of the Rigvedic period, the Aryan society expanded from the north-western region of the Indian subcontinent into the western Ganges plain. It became increasingly agricultural and was socially organised around the hierarchy of the four varnas, or social classes. This social structure was characterised by the exclusion of some indigenous peoples by labelling their occupations impure. During this period, many of the previous small tribal units and chiefdoms began to coalesce into Janapadas (monarchical, state-level polities).
Sanskrit epics
thumb|right|250px|Manuscript illustration of the Battle of Kurukshetra.
The Sanskrit epics Ramayana and Mahabharata were composed during this period. The Mahabharata remains the longest single poem in the world.Romila Thapar, A History of India Part 1, p. 31. Historians formerly postulated an "epic age" as the milieu of these two epic poems, but now recognise that the texts went through multiple stages of development over centuries. The existing texts of these epics are believed to belong to the post-Vedic age, between 400 BCE and 400 CE.
Janapadas
thumb|right|Late Vedic era map showing the boundaries of Āryāvarta with Janapadas in northern India, beginning of Iron Age kingdoms in India – Kuru, Panchala, Kosala, Videha
The Iron Age in the Indian subcontinent from about 1200 BCE to the 6th century BCE is defined by the rise of Janapadas, which are realms, republics and kingdoms—notably the Iron Age Kingdoms of Kuru, Panchala, Kosala and Videha.
The Kuru Kingdom ( 1200–450 BCE) was the first state-level society of the Vedic period, corresponding to the beginning of the Iron Age in north-western India, around 1200–800 BCE, as well as with the composition of the Atharvaveda. The Kuru state organised the Vedic hymns into collections and developed the srauta ritual to uphold the social order. Two key figures of the Kuru state were king Parikshit and his successor Janamejaya, who transformed this realm into the dominant political, social, and cultural power of northern India. When the Kuru kingdom declined, the centre of Vedic culture shifted to their eastern neighbours, the Panchala kingdom. The archaeological PGW (Painted Grey Ware) culture, which flourished in north-eastern India's Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh regions from about 1100 to 600 BCE, is believed to correspond to the Kuru and Panchala kingdoms.
During the Late Vedic Period, the kingdom of Videha emerged as a new centre of Vedic culture, situated even farther to the East (in what is today Nepal and Bihar state); reaching its prominence under the king Janaka, whose court provided patronage for Brahmin sages and philosophers such as Yajnavalkya, Aruni, and Gārgī Vāchaknavī.H.C. Raychaudhuri (1950), Political History of Ancient India and Nepal, Calcutta: University of Calcutta, p. 58 The later part of this period corresponds with a consolidation of increasingly large states and kingdoms, called Mahajanapadas, across Northern India.
Second urbanisation (c. 600 – 200 BCE)
thumb|right|City of Kushinagar in the 5th century BCE according to a 1st-century BCE frieze in Sanchi Stupa 1 Southern Gate
The period between 800 and 200 BCE saw the formation of the Śramaṇa movement, from which Jainism and Buddhism originated. The first Upanishads were written during this period. After 500 BCE, the so-called "second urbanisation" started, with new urban settlements arising at the Ganges plain. The foundations for the "second urbanisation" were laid prior to 600 BCE, in the Painted Grey Ware culture of the Ghaggar-Hakra and Upper Ganges Plain; although most PGW sites were small farming villages, "several dozen" PGW sites eventually emerged as relatively large settlements that can be characterised as towns, the largest of which were fortified by ditches or moats and embankments made of piled earth with wooden palisades.
The Central Ganges Plain, where Magadha gained prominence, forming the base of the Maurya Empire, was a distinct cultural area, with new states arising after 500 BCE. It was influenced by the Vedic culture, but differed markedly from the Kuru-Panchala region. It "was the area of the earliest known cultivation of rice in South Asia and by 1800 BCE was the location of an advanced Neolithic population associated with the sites of Chirand and Chechar". In this region, the Śramaṇic movements flourished, and Jainism and Buddhism originated.
Buddhism and Jainism
The time between 800 BCE and 400 BCE witnessed the composition of the earliest Upanishads, which form the theoretical basis of classical Hinduism, and are also known as the Vedanta (conclusion of the Vedas).
The increasing urbanisation of India in the 7th and 6th centuries BCE led to the rise of new ascetic or "Śramaṇa movements" which challenged the orthodoxy of rituals. Mahavira ( 599–527 BCE), proponent of Jainism, and Gautama Buddha ( 563–483 BCE), founder of Buddhism, were the most prominent icons of this movement. Śramaṇa gave rise to the concept of the cycle of birth and death, the concept of samsara, and the concept of liberation. Buddha found a Middle Way that ameliorated the extreme asceticism found in the Śramaṇa religions.
Around the same time, Mahavira (the 24th Tirthankara in Jainism) propagated a theology that was to later become Jainism. However, Jain orthodoxy believes the teachings of the Tirthankaras predates all known time and scholars believe Parshvanatha (c. 872 – c. 772 BCE), accorded status as the 23rd Tirthankara, was a historical figure. The Vedas are believed to have documented a few Tirthankaras and an ascetic order similar to the Śramaṇa movement.
Mahajanapadas
thumb|left|The Mahajanapadas were sixteen powerful polities located mainly within the Indo-Gangetic Plain
The period from to featured the rise of the Mahajanapadas, sixteen powerful kingdoms and oligarchic republics in a belt stretching from Gandhara in the north-west to Bengal in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent—including parts of the trans-Vindhyan region. Ancient Buddhist texts, like the Aṅguttara Nikāya,Anguttara Nikaya I. p. 213; IV. pp. 252, 256, 261. make frequent reference to these sixteen great kingdoms and republics—Anga, Assaka, Avanti, Chedi, Gandhara, Kashi, Kamboja, Kosala, Kuru, Magadha, Malla, Matsya (or Machcha), Panchala, Surasena, Vṛji, and Vatsa. This period saw the second major rise of urbanism in India after the Indus Valley Civilisation.
thumb|right|Hindush warrior, on the Tomb of Xerxes I, circa 480 BCE.
Early "republics" or , such as Shakyas, Koliyas, Mallakas, and Licchavis had republican governments. s, such as the Mallakas, centered in the city of Kusinagara, and the Vajjika League, centred in the city of Vaishali, existed as early as the 6th century BCE and persisted in some areas until the 4th century CE.Raychaudhuri Hemchandra (1972), Political History of Ancient India, Calcutta: University of Calcutta, p. 107 The most famous clan amongst the ruling confederate clans of the Vajji Mahajanapada were the Licchavis.
This period corresponds in an archaeological context to the Northern Black Polished Ware culture. Especially focused in the Central Ganges plain but also spreading across vast areas of the northern and central Indian subcontinent, this culture is characterised by the emergence of large cities with massive fortifications, significant population growth, increased social stratification, wide-ranging trade networks, construction of public architecture and water channels, specialised craft industries, a system of weights, punch-marked coins, and the introduction of writing in the form of Brahmi and Kharosthi scripts.J.M. Kenoyer (2006), "Cultures and Societies of the Indus Tradition. In Historical Roots" in the Making of 'the Aryan, R. Thapar (ed.), pp. 21–49. New Delhi, National Book Trust. The language of the gentry at that time was Sanskrit, while the languages of the general population of northern India are referred to as Prakrits.
Many of the sixteen kingdoms had merged into four major ones by the time of Gautama Buddha. These four were Vatsa, Avanti, Kosala, and Magadha.
Early Magadha dynasties
thumb|right|Magadha state c. 600 BCE, which is later expanded from its capital Rajagriha – under the Haryanka dynasty and the later Shishunaga dynasty.
Magadha formed one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas (Sanskrit: "Great Realms") or kingdoms in ancient India. The core of the kingdom was the area of Bihar south of the Ganges; its first capital was Rajagriha (modern Rajgir) then Pataliputra (modern Patna). Magadha expanded to include most of Bihar and Bengal with the conquest of Licchavi and Anga respectively, followed by much of eastern Uttar Pradesh and Orissa. The ancient kingdom of Magadha is heavily mentioned in Jain and Buddhist texts. It is also mentioned in the Ramayana, Mahabharata and Puranas. The earliest reference to the Magadha people occurs in the Atharva-Veda where they are found listed along with the Angas, Gandharis, and Mujavats. Magadha played an important role in the development of Jainism and Buddhism. Republican communities (such as the community of Rajakumara) are merged into Magadha kingdom. Villages had their own assemblies under their local chiefs called Gramakas. Their administrations were divided into executive, judicial, and military functions.
Early sources, from the Buddhist Pāli Canon, the Jain Agamas and the Hindu Puranas, mention Magadha being ruled by the Pradyota dynasty and Haryanka dynasty ( 544–413 BCE) for some 200 years, 600–413 BCE. King Bimbisara of the Haryanka dynasty led an active and expansive policy, conquering Anga in what is now eastern Bihar and West Bengal. King Bimbisara was overthrown and killed by his son, Prince Ajatashatru, who continued the expansionist policy of Magadha. During this period, Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, lived much of his life in the Magadha kingdom. He attained enlightenment in Bodh Gaya, gave his first sermon in Sarnath and the first Buddhist council was held in Rajgriha. The Haryanka dynasty was overthrown by the Shaishunaga dynasty ( 413–345 BCE). The last Shishunaga ruler, Kalasoka, was assassinated by Mahapadma Nanda in 345 BCE, the first of the so-called Nine Nandas (Mahapadma Nanda and his eight sons).
Nanda Empire and Alexander's campaign
The Nanda Empire ( 345–322 BCE), at its peak, extended from Bengal in the east, to the Punjab in the west and as far south as the Vindhya Range. The Nanda dynasty built on the foundations laid by their Haryanka and Shishunaga predecessors. Nanda empire have built a vast army, consisting of 200,000 infantry, 20,000 cavalry, 2,000 war chariots and 3,000 war elephants (at the lowest estimates).
Maurya Empire
The Maurya Empire (322–185 BCE) unified most of the Indian subcontinent into one state, and was the largest empire ever to exist on the Indian subcontinent. At its greatest extent, the Mauryan Empire stretched to the north up to the natural boundaries of the Himalayas and to the east into what is now Assam. To the west, it reached beyond modern Pakistan, to the Hindu Kush mountains in what is now Afghanistan. The empire was established by Chandragupta Maurya assisted by Chanakya (Kautilya) in Magadha (in modern Bihar) when he overthrew the Nanda Empire.
Chandragupta rapidly expanded his power westwards across central and western India, and by 317 BCE the empire had fully occupied north-western India. The Mauryan Empire defeated Seleucus I, founder of the Seleucid Empire, during the Seleucid–Mauryan war, thus gained additional territory west of the Indus River. Chandragupta's son Bindusara succeeded to the throne around 297 BCE. By the time he died in 272 BCE, a large part of the Indian subcontinent was under Mauryan suzerainty. However, the region of Kalinga (around modern day Odisha) remained outside Mauryan control, perhaps interfering with trade with the south.
thumb|The Mauryan carved door of Lomas Rishi, one of the Barabar Caves, 250 BCE
Bindusara was succeeded by Ashoka, whose reign lasted until his death in about 232 BCE. His campaign against the Kalingans in about 260 BCE, though successful, led to immense loss of life and misery. This led Ashoka to shun violence, and subsequently to embrace Buddhism. The empire began to decline after his death and the last Mauryan ruler, Brihadratha, was assassinated by Pushyamitra Shunga to establish the Shunga Empire.
Under Chandragupta Maurya and his successors, internal and external trade, agriculture, and economic activities all thrived and expanded across India thanks to the creation of a single efficient system of finance, administration, and security. The Mauryans built the Grand Trunk Road, one of Asia's oldest and longest major roads connecting the Indian subcontinent with Central Asia. After the Kalinga War, the Empire experienced nearly half a century of peace and security under Ashoka. Mauryan India also enjoyed an era of social harmony, religious transformation, and expansion of scientific knowledge. Chandragupta Maurya's embrace of Jainism increased social and religious renewal and reform across his society, while Ashoka's embrace of Buddhism has been said to have been the foundation of the reign of social and political peace and non-violence across India. Ashoka sponsored Buddhist missions across the Indo-Mediterranean, into Sri Lanka, Southeast Asia, West Asia, North Africa, and Mediterranean Europe.
The Arthashastra written by Chanakya and the Edicts of Ashoka are the primary written records of the Mauryan times. Archaeologically, this period falls in the era of Northern Black Polished Ware. The Mauryan Empire was based on a modern and efficient economy and society in which the sale of merchandise was closely regulated by the government. Although there was no banking in the Mauryan society, usury was customary. A significant amount of written records on slavery are found, suggesting a prevalence thereof. During this period, a high-quality steel called Wootz steel was developed in south India and was later exported to China and Arabia.Technology and Society by Menon, R.V.G. p. 15
Sangam period
During the Sangam period Tamil literature flourished from the 3rd century BCE to the 4th century CE. Three Tamil dynasties, collectively known as the Three Crowned Kings of Tamilakam: Chera dynasty, Chola dynasty, and the Pandya dynasty ruled parts of southern India.
The Sangam literature deals with the history, politics, wars, and culture of the Tamil people of this period.Essays on Indian Renaissance by Raj Kumar p. 260 Unlike Sanskrit writers who were mostly Brahmins, Sangam writers came from diverse classes and social backgrounds and were mostly non-Brahmins.The First Spring: The Golden Age of India by Abraham Eraly p. 655
Around 300 BCE – 200 CE, Pathupattu, an anthology of ten mid-length book collections, which is considered part of Sangam Literature, were composed; the composition of eight anthologies of poetic works Ettuthogai as well as the composition of eighteen minor poetic works Patiṉeṇkīḻkaṇakku; while Tolkāppiyam, the earliest grammarian work in the Tamil language was developed.* Zvelebil, Kamil. 1973. The smile of Murugan on Tamil literature of South India. Leiden: Brill. Zvelebil dates the Ur-Tholkappiyam to the 1st or 2nd century BCE Also, during Sangam period, two of the Five Great Epics of Tamil Literature were composed. Ilango Adigal composed Silappatikaram, which is a non-religious work, that revolves around Kannagi, and Manimekalai, composed by Chithalai Chathanar, is a sequel to Silappatikaram, and tells the story of the daughter of Kovalan and Madhavi, who became a Buddhist Bhikkhuni.
Classical period (c. 200 BCE – 650 CE)
The time between the Maurya Empire in the 3rd century BCE and the end of the Gupta Empire in the 6th century CE is referred to as the "Classical" period of India. The Gupta Empire (4th–6th century) is regarded as the Golden Age of India, although a host of kingdoms ruled over India in these centuries. Also, the Sangam literature flourished from the 3rd century BCE to the 3rd century CE in southern India.A Social History of Early India by Brajadulal Chattopadhyaya p. 259 During this period, India's economy is estimated to have been the largest in the world, having between one-third and one-quarter of the world's wealth, from 1 CE to 1000 CE.
Early classical period (c. 200 BCE – 320 CE)
Shunga Empire
The Shungas originated from Magadha, and controlled large areas of the central and eastern Indian subcontinent from around 187 to 78 BCE. The dynasty was established by Pushyamitra Shunga, who overthrew the last Maurya emperor. Its capital was Pataliputra, but later emperors, such as Bhagabhadra, also held court at Vidisha, modern Besnagar.
Pushyamitra Shunga ruled for 36 years and was succeeded by his son Agnimitra. There were ten Shunga rulers. However, after the death of Agnimitra, the empire rapidly disintegrated;K. A. Nilkantha Shastri (1970), A Comprehensive History of India: Volume 2, p. 108: "Soon after Agnimitra there was no 'Sunga empire'". inscriptions and coins indicate that much of northern and central India consisted of small kingdoms and city-states that were independent of any Shunga hegemony.Bhandare, Shailendra. "Numismatics and History: The Maurya-Gupta Interlude in the Gangetic Plain" in Between the Empires: Society in India, 300 to 400 ed. Patrick Olivelle (2006), p. 96 The empire is noted for its numerous wars with both foreign and indigenous powers. They fought with the Mahameghavahana dynasty of Kalinga, Satavahana dynasty of Deccan, the Indo-Greeks, and possibly the Panchalas and Mitras of Mathura.
Art, education, philosophy, and other forms of learning flowered during this period including architectural monuments such as the Stupa at Bharhut and the renowned Great Stupa at Sanchi. The Shunga rulers helped to establish the tradition of royal sponsorship of learning and art. The script used by the empire was a variant of Brahmi and was used to write the Sanskrit language. The Shunga Empire played an imperative role in patronising Indian culture at a time when some of the most important developments in Hindu thought were taking place.
Satavahana Empire
The Śātavāhanas were based from Amaravati in Andhra Pradesh as well as Junnar (Pune) and Prathisthan (Paithan) in Maharashtra. The territory of the empire covered large parts of India from the 1st century BCE onward. The Sātavāhanas started out as feudatories to the Mauryan dynasty, but declared independence with its decline.
The Sātavāhanas are known for their patronage of Hinduism and Buddhism, which resulted in Buddhist monuments from Ellora (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) to Amaravati. They were one of the first Indian states to issue coins with their rulers embossed. They formed a cultural bridge and played a vital role in trade as well as the transfer of ideas and culture to and from the Indo-Gangetic Plain to the southern tip of India.
They had to compete with the Shunga Empire and then the Kanva dynasty of Magadha to establish their rule. Later, they played a crucial role to protect large part of India against foreign invaders like the Sakas, Yavanas and Pahlavas. In particular, their struggles with the Western Kshatrapas went on for a long time. The notable rulers of the Satavahana Dynasty Gautamiputra Satakarni and Sri Yajna Sātakarni were able to defeat the foreign invaders like the Western Kshatrapas and to stop their expansion. In the 3rd century CE, the empire was split into smaller states.
Trade and travels to India
thumb|right|Silk Road and Spice trade, ancient trade routes that linked India with the Old World; carried goods and ideas between the ancient civilisations of the Old World and India. The land routes are marked as red, and the water routes are marked as blue.
The spice trade in Kerala attracted traders from all over the Old World to India. India's Southwest coastal port Muziris had established itself as a major spice trade centre from as early as 3,000 BCE, according to Sumerian records. Jewish traders arrived in Kochi, Kerala, India as early as 562 BCE. The Greco-Roman world followed by trading along the incense route and the Roman-India routes. During the 2nd century BCE Greek and Indian ships met to trade at Arabian ports such as Aden.Greatest emporium in the world, CSI, UNESCO. During the first millennium, the sea routes to India were controlled by the Indians and Ethiopians that became the maritime trading power of the Red Sea.
Indian merchants involved in spice trade took Indian cuisine to Southeast Asia, where spice mixtures and curries became popular with the native inhabitants. Buddhism entered China through the Silk Road in the 1st or 2nd century CE. Hindu and Buddhist religious establishments of South and Southeast Asia came to be centres of production and commerce as they accumulated capital donated by patrons. They engaged in estate management, craftsmanship, and trade. Buddhism in particular travelled alongside the maritime trade, promoting literacy, art, and the use of coinage.
Kushan Empire
The Kushan Empire expanded out of what is now Afghanistan into the northwest of the Indian subcontinent under the leadership of their first emperor, Kujula Kadphises, about the middle of the 1st century CE. The Kushans were possibly a Tocharian speaking tribe, one of five branches of the Yuezhi confederation. By the time of his grandson, Kanishka the Great, the empire spread to encompass much of Afghanistan,Buddhist Records of the Western World Si-Yu-Ki, (Tr. Samuel Beal: Travels of Fa-Hian, The Mission of Sung-Yun and Hwei-Sing, Books 1–5), Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner & Co. Ltd. London. 1906 and Hill (2009), pp. 29, 318–350 and then the northern parts of the Indian subcontinent.which began about 127 CE. "Falk 2001, pp. 121–136", Falk (2001), pp. 121–136, Falk, Harry (2004), pp. 167–176 and Hill (2009), pp. 29, 33, 368–371.
Emperor Kanishka was a great patron of Buddhism; however, as Kushans expanded southward, the deities of their later coinage came to reflect its new Hindu majority. Historian Vincent Smith said about Kanishka:
The empire linked the Indian Ocean maritime trade with the commerce of the Silk Road through the Indus valley, encouraging long-distance trade, particularly between China and Rome. The Kushans brought new trends to the budding and blossoming Gandhara art and Mathura art, which reached its peak during Kushan rule. The period of peace under Kushan rule is known as Pax Kushana. By the 3rd century, their empire in India was disintegrating and their last known great emperor was Vasudeva I.Si-Yu-Ki, Buddhist Records of the Western World, (Tr. Samuel Beal: Travels of Fa-Hian, The Mission of Sung-Yun and Hwei-Sing, Books 1–5), Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner & Co. Ltd. London. 1906
Classical period (c. 320 – 650 CE)
Gupta Empire
The Gupta period was noted for cultural creativity, especially in literature, architecture, sculpture, and painting. The Gupta period produced scholars such as Kalidasa, Aryabhata, Varahamihira, Vishnu Sharma, and Vatsyayana. The Gupta period marked a watershed of Indian culture: the Guptas performed Vedic sacrifices to legitimise their rule, but they also patronised Buddhism, an alternative to Brahmanical orthodoxy. The military exploits of the first three rulers – Chandragupta I, Samudragupta, and Chandragupta II – brought much of India under their leadership. Science and political administration reached new heights during the Gupta era. Strong trade ties also made the region an important cultural centre and established it as a base that would influence nearby kingdoms and regions.Coedes, G. (1968) The Indianized States of Southeast Asia Edited by Walter F. Vella. Translated by Susan Brown Cowing. Canberra: Australian National University Press. Introduction... The geographic area here called Farther India consists of Indonesia, or island Southeast Asia.... The period of peace under Gupta rule is known as Pax Gupta.
The latter Guptas successfully resisted the northwestern kingdoms until the arrival of the Alchon Huns, who established themselves in Afghanistan by the first half of the 5th century CE, with their capital at Bamiyan.Iaroslav Lebedynsky, Les Nomades, p. 172. However, much of the southern India including Deccan were largely unaffected by these events.Early History of India, p. 339, Dr V.A. Smith; See also Early Empire of Central Asia (1939), W.M. McGovern.Ancient India, 2003, p. 650, Dr V.D. Mahajan; History and Culture of Indian People, The Age of Imperial Kanauj, p. 50, Dr R.C. Majumdar, Dr A.D. Pusalkar.
Vakataka Empire
The Vākāṭaka Empire originated from the Deccan in the mid-third century CE. Their state is believed to have extended from the southern edges of Malwa and Gujarat in the north to the Tungabhadra River in the south as well as from the Arabian Sea in the western to the edges of Chhattisgarh in the east. They were the most important successors of the Satavahanas in the Deccan, contemporaneous with the Guptas in northern India and succeeded by the Vishnukundina dynasty.
The Vakatakas are noted for having been patrons of the arts, architecture and literature. The rock-cut Buddhist viharas and chaityas of Ajanta Caves (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) were built under the patronage of Vakataka emperor, Harishena.The precise number varies according to whether or not some barely started excavations, such as cave 15A, are counted. The ASI say "In all, total 30 excavations were hewn out of rock which also include an unfinished one", UNESCO and Spink "about 30". The controversies over the end date of excavation is covered below.
Kamarupa Kingdom
120px|thumb|Copper Plate Seal of Kamarupa Kings at Madan Kamdev ruins.|alt=
Samudragupta's 4th-century Allahabad pillar inscription mentions Kamarupa (Western Assam)Tej Ram Sharma, 1978, "Personal and geographical names in the Gupta inscriptions. (1.publ.)", p. 254, Kamarupa consisted of the Western districts of the Brahmaputra valley which being the most powerful state. and Davaka (Central Assam)Suresh Kant Sharma, Usha Sharma – 2005, "Discovery of North-East India: Geography, History, Culture, ... – Volume 3", p. 248, Davaka (Nowgong) and Kamarupa as separate and submissive friendly kingdoms. as frontier kingdoms of the Gupta Empire. Davaka was later absorbed by Kamarupa, which grew into a large kingdom that spanned from Karatoya river to near present Sadiya and covered the entire Brahmaputra valley, North Bengal, parts of Bangladesh and, at times Purnea and parts of West Bengal.The eastern border of Kamarupa is given by the temple of the goddess Tamreshvari (Pūrvāte Kāmarūpasya devī Dikkaravasini in Kalika Purana) near present-day Sadiya. "...the temple of the goddess Tameshwari (Dikkaravasini) is now located at modern Sadiya about 100 miles to the northeast of Sibsagar" .
Ruled by three dynasties Varmanas (c. 350–650 CE), Mlechchha dynasty (c. 655–900 CE) and Kamarupa-Palas (c. 900–1100 CE), from their capitals in present-day Guwahati (Pragjyotishpura), Tezpur (Haruppeswara) and North Gauhati (Durjaya) respectively. All three dynasties claimed their descent from Narakasura. In the reign of the Varman king, Bhaskar Varman (c. 600–650 CE), the Chinese traveller Xuanzang visited the region and recorded his travels. Later, after weakening and disintegration (after the Kamarupa-Palas), the Kamarupa tradition was somewhat extended until c. 1255 CE by the Lunar I (c. 1120–1185 CE) and Lunar II (c. 1155–1255 CE) dynasties. The Kamarupa kingdom came to an end in the middle of the 13th century when the Khen dynasty under Sandhya of Kamarupanagara (North Guwahati), moved his capital to Kamatapur (North Bengal) after the invasion of Muslim Turks, and established the Kamata kingdom.Sarkar, J.N. (1992), "Chapter II The Turko-Afghan Invasions", in Barpujari, H.K., The Comprehensive History of Assam, 2, Guwahati: Assam Publication Board, pp. 35–48
Pallava Empire
thumb|Shore Temple (UNESCO World Heritage Site) at Mahabalipuram built by Narasimhavarman II.|alt=The Pallavas, during the 4th to 9th centuries were, alongside the Guptas of the North, great patronisers of Sanskrit development in the South of the Indian subcontinent. The Pallava reign saw the first Sanskrit inscriptions in a script called Grantha. Early Pallavas had different connexions to Southeast Asian countries. The Pallavas used Dravidian architecture to build some very important Hindu temples and academies in Mamallapuram, Kanchipuram and other places; their rule saw the rise of great poets. The practice of dedicating temples to different deities came into vogue followed by fine artistic temple architecture and sculpture style of Vastu Shastra.Nilakanta Sastri, pp. 412–413
Pallavas reached the height of power during the reign of Mahendravarman I (571–630 CE) and Narasimhavarman I (630–668 CE) and dominated the Telugu and northern parts of the Tamil region until the end of the 9th century.
Kadamba Empire
thumb|Kadamba shikara (tower) with Kalasa (pinnacle) on top, Doddagaddavalli.|alt=
Kadambas originated from Karnataka, was founded by Mayurasharma in 345 CE which at later times showed the potential of developing into imperial proportions. King Mayurasharma defeated the armies of Pallavas of Kanchi possibly with help of some native tribes. The Kadamba fame reached its peak during the rule of Kakusthavarma, a notable ruler with whom the kings of Gupta Dynasty of northern India cultivated marital alliances. The Kadambas were contemporaries of the Western Ganga Dynasty and together they formed the earliest native kingdoms to rule the land with absolute autonomy. The dynasty later continued to rule as a feudatory of larger Kannada empires, the Chalukya and the Rashtrakuta empires, for over five hundred years during which time they branched into minor dynasties (Kadambas of Goa, Kadambas of Halasi and Kadambas of Hangal).
Empire of Harsha
Harsha ruled northern India from 606 to 647 CE. He was the son of Prabhakarvardhana and the younger brother of Rajyavardhana, who were members of the Vardhana dynasty and ruled Thanesar, in present-day Haryana.
thumb|250px|Coin of Emperor Harsha, c. 606–647 CE.|alt=
After the downfall of the prior Gupta Empire in the middle of the 6th century, North India reverted to smaller republics and monarchical states. The power vacuum resulted in the rise of the Vardhanas of Thanesar, who began uniting the republics and monarchies from the Punjab to central India. After the death of Harsha's father and brother, representatives of the empire crowned Harsha emperor in April 606 CE, giving him the title of Maharaja.RN Kundra & SS Bawa, History of Ancient and Medieval India At the peak, his Empire covered much of North and Northwestern India, extended East until Kamarupa, and South until Narmada River; and eventually made Kannauj (in present Uttar Pradesh) his capital, and ruled until 647 CE.International Dictionary of Historic Places: Asia and Oceania by Trudy Ring, Robert M. Salkin, Sharon La Boda p. 507
The peace and prosperity that prevailed made his court a centre of cosmopolitanism, attracting scholars, artists and religious visitors. During this time, Harsha converted to Buddhism from Surya worship. The Chinese traveller Xuanzang visited the court of Harsha and wrote a very favourable account of him, praising his justice and generosity. His biography Harshacharita ("Deeds of Harsha") written by Sanskrit poet Banabhatta, describes his association with Thanesar and the palace with a two-storied Dhavalagriha (White Mansion).
Early medieval period (c. 650 – 1200)
Early medieval India began after the end of the Gupta Empire in the 6th century CE. This period also covers the "Late Classical Age" of Hinduism, which began after the collapse of the Empire of Harsha in the 7th century, and ended in the 13th century with the rise of the Delhi Sultanate in Northern India; the beginning of Imperial Kannauj, leading to the Tripartite struggle; and the end of the Later Cholas with the death of Rajendra Chola III in 1279 in Southern India; however some aspects of the Classical period continued until the fall of the Vijayanagara Empire in the south around the 17th century.
From the fifth century to the thirteenth, Śrauta sacrifices declined, and support for Shaivism, Vaishnavism and Shaktism expanded in royal courts, while the support for Buddhism declined. Lack of appeal among the rural masses, who instead embraced Brahmanical Hinduism formed in the Hindu synthesis, and dwindling financial support from trading communities and royal elites, were major factors in the decline of Buddhism.Sarao, Decline of Buddhism in India
In the 7th century, Kumārila Bhaṭṭa formulated his school of Mimamsa philosophy and defended the position on Vedic rituals.Sheridan, Daniel P. "Kumarila Bhatta", in Great Thinkers of the Eastern World, ed. Ian McGready, New York: HarperCollins, 1995, pp. 198–201. .
From the 8th to the 10th century, three dynasties contested for control of northern India: the Gurjara Pratiharas of Malwa, the Palas of Bengal, and the Rashtrakutas of the Deccan. The Sena dynasty would later assume control of the Pala Empire; the Gurjara Pratiharas fragmented into various states, notably the Kingdom of Malwa, the Kingdom of Bundelkhand, the Kingdom of Dahala, the Tomaras of Haryana, and the Kingdom of Sambhar, these states were some of the earliest Rajput kingdoms; while the Rashtrakutas were annexed by the Western Chalukyas. During this period, the Chaulukya dynasty emerged; the Chaulukyas constructed the Dilwara Temples, Modhera Sun Temple, Rani ki vav in the style of Māru-Gurjara architecture, and their capital Anhilwara (modern Patan, Gujarat) was one of the largest cities in the Indian subcontinent, with the population estimated at 100,000 in 1000.
The Chola Empire emerged as a major power during the reign of Raja Raja Chola I and Rajendra Chola I who successfully invaded parts of Southeast Asia and Sri Lanka in the 11th century.The Dancing Girl: A History of Early India by Balaji Sadasivan p. 129 Lalitaditya Muktapida (r. 724–760) was an emperor of the Kashmiri Karkoṭa dynasty, which exercised influence in northwestern India from 625 until 1003, and was followed by Lohara dynasty. Kalhana in his Rajatarangini credits king Lalitaditya with leading an aggressive military campaign in Northern India and Central Asia.Sunil Fotedar (June 1984). The Kashmir Series: Glimpses of Kashmiri Culture – Vivekananda Kendra, Kanyakumari (p. 57).R. C. Mazumdar, Ancient India, p. 383
The Hindu Shahi dynasty ruled portions of eastern Afghanistan, northern Pakistan, and Kashmir from the mid-7th century to the early 11th century. While in Odisha, the Eastern Ganga Empire rose to power; noted for the advancement of Hindu architecture, most notable being Jagannath Temple and Konark Sun Temple, as well as being patrons of art and literature.
Later Gupta dynasty
thumb|Map of the Later Guptas
The Later Gupta dynasty ruled the Magadha region in eastern India between the 6th and 7th centuries AD. The Later Guptas succeeded the imperial Guptas as the rulers of Magadha, but there is no evidence connecting the two dynasties; these appear to be two distinct families. The Later Guptas are so-called because the names of their rulers ended with the suffix "-gupta", which they might have adopted to portray themselves as the legitimate successors of the imperial Guptas.
Chalukya Empire
The Chalukya Empire ruled large parts of southern and central India between the 6th and the 12th centuries, as three related yet individual dynasties. The earliest dynasty, known as the "Badami Chalukyas", ruled from Vatapi (modern Badami) from the middle of the 6th century. The Badami Chalukyas began to assert their independence at the decline of the Kadamba kingdom of Banavasi and rapidly rose to prominence during the reign of Pulakeshin II. The rule of the Chalukyas marks an important milestone in the history of South India and a golden age in the history of Karnataka. The political atmosphere in South India shifted from smaller kingdoms to large empires with the ascendancy of Badami Chalukyas. A Southern India-based kingdom took control and consolidated the entire region between the Kaveri and the Narmada Rivers. The rise of this empire saw the birth of efficient administration, overseas trade and commerce and the development of new style of architecture called "Chalukyan architecture". The Chalukya dynasty ruled parts of southern and central India from Badami in Karnataka between 550 and 750, and then again from Kalyani between 970 and 1190.
Rashtrakuta Empire
Founded by Dantidurga around 753, the Rashtrakuta Empire ruled from its capital at Manyakheta for almost two centuries. At its peak, the Rashtrakutas ruled from the Ganges-Yamuna Doab in the north to Cape Comorin in the south, a fruitful time of architectural and literary achievements.
The early rulers of this dynasty were Hindu, but the later rulers were strongly influenced by Jainism. Govinda III and Amoghavarsha were the most famous of the long line of able administrators produced by the dynasty. Amoghavarsha was also an author and wrote Kavirajamarga, the earliest known Kannada work on poetics. Architecture reached a milestone in the Dravidian style, the finest example of which is seen in the Kailasanath Temple at Ellora. Other important contributions are the Kashivishvanatha temple and the Jain Narayana temple at Pattadakal in Karnataka.
The Arab traveller Suleiman described the Rashtrakuta Empire as one of the four great Empires of the world. The Rashtrakuta period marked the beginning of the golden age of southern Indian mathematics. The great south Indian mathematician Mahāvīra had a huge impact on medieval south Indian mathematicians.The Britannica Guide to Algebra and Trigonometry by William L. Hosch p. 105 The Rashtrakuta rulers also patronised men of letters in a variety of languages.
Gurjara-Pratihara Empire
The Gurjara-Pratiharas were instrumental in containing Arab armies moving east of the Indus River. Nagabhata I defeated the Arab army under Junaid and Tamin during the Umayyad campaigns in India. Under Nagabhata II, the Gurjara-Pratiharas became the most powerful dynasty in northern India. He was succeeded by his son Ramabhadra, who ruled briefly before being succeeded by his son, Mihira Bhoja. Under Bhoja and his successor Mahendrapala I, the Pratihara Empire reached its peak of prosperity and power. By the time of Mahendrapala, its territory stretched from the border of Sindh in the west to Bihar in the east and from the Himalayas in the north to around the Narmada River in the south. The expansion triggered a tripartite power struggle with the Rashtrakuta and Pala empires for control of the Indian subcontinent.
By the end of the 10th century, several feudatories of the empire took advantage of the temporary weakness of the Gurjara-Pratiharas to declare their independence, notably the Kingdom of Malwa, the Kingdom of Bundelkhand, the Tomaras of Haryana, and the Kingdom of Sambhar and the Kingdom of Dahala.
Gahadavala dynasty
Gahadavala dynasty ruled parts of the present-day Indian states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, during 11th and 12th centuries. Their capital was located at Varanasi.
Karnat dynasty
thumb|Pillar from the Karnat capital of Simraungadh
In 1097 AD, the Karnat dynasty of Mithila emerged on the Bihar/Nepal border area and maintained capitals in Darbhanga and Simraongadh. The dynasty was established by Nanyadeva, a military commander of Karnataka origin. Under this dynasty, the Maithili language started to develop with the first piece of Maithili literature, the Varna Ratnakara being produced in the 14th century by Jyotirishwar Thakur. The Karnats also carried out raids into Nepal. They fell in 1324 following the invasion of Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq.
Pala Empire
thumb|right|Excavated ruins of Nalanda, a centre of Buddhist learning from 450 to 1193
The Pala Empire was founded by Gopala I.Epigraphia Indica, XXIV, p. 43, Dr N.G. Majumdar It was ruled by a Buddhist dynasty from Bengal. The Palas reunified Bengal after the fall of Shashanka's Gauda Kingdom.
The Palas were followers of the Mahayana and Tantric schools of Buddhism,History of Buddhism in India, Translation by A Shiefner they also patronised Shaivism and Vaishnavism. The empire reached its peak under Dharmapala and Devapala. Dharmapala is believed to have conquered Kanauj and extended his sway up to the farthest limits of India in the north-west.
The Pala Empire can be considered as the golden era of Bengal. Dharmapala founded the Vikramashila and revived Nalanda, considered one of the first great universities in recorded history. Nalanda reached its height under the patronage of the Pala Empire. The Palas also built many viharas. They maintained close cultural and commercial ties with countries of Southeast Asia and Tibet. Sea trade added greatly to the prosperity of the Pala Empire.
Cholas
thumb|right|250px|Chola Empire under Rajendra Chola, 1030
Medieval Cholas rose to prominence during the middle of the 9th century and established the greatest empire South India had seen.History of Ancient India: Earliest Times to 1000 A.D. by Radhey Shyam Chaurasia p. 237 They successfully united the South India under their rule and through their naval strength extended their influence in the Southeast Asian countries such as Srivijaya. Under Rajaraja Chola I and his successors Rajendra Chola I, Rajadhiraja Chola, Virarajendra Chola and Kulothunga Chola I the dynasty became a military, economic and cultural power in South Asia and South-East Asia.: The Cholas were in fact the most successful dynasty since the Guptas ... The classic expansion of Chola power began anew with the accession of Rajaraja I in 985. Rajendra Chola I's navies occupied the sea coasts from Burma to Vietnam, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the Lakshadweep (Laccadive) islands, Sumatra, and the Malay Peninsula. The power of the new empire was proclaimed to the eastern world by the expedition to the Ganges which Rajendra Chola I undertook and by the occupation of cities of the maritime empire of Srivijaya in Southeast Asia, as well as by the repeated embassies to China.K. A. Nilakanta Sastri, A History of South India, p. 158
They dominated the political affairs of Sri Lanka for over two centuries through repeated invasions and occupation. They also had continuing trade contacts with the Arabs and the Chinese empire.Buddhism, Diplomacy, and Trade: The Realignment of Sino-Indian Relations by Tansen Sen p. 229 Rajaraja Chola I and his son Rajendra Chola I gave political unity to the whole of Southern India and established the Chola Empire as a respected sea power.History of Asia by B.V. Rao p. 297 Under the Cholas, the South India reached new heights of excellence in art, religion and literature. In all of these spheres, the Chola period marked the culmination of movements that had begun in an earlier age under the Pallavas. Monumental architecture in the form of majestic temples and sculpture in stone and bronze reached a finesse never before achieved in India.Indian Civilization and Culture by Suhas Chatterjee p. 417
300px|thumb|centre|Srirangam Ranganathaswamy Temple is the world's largest functioning Hindu temple present in Tamil Nadu, India
Western Chalukya Empire
The Western Chalukya Empire ruled most of the western Deccan, South India, between the 10th and 12th centuries.A Comprehensive History of Medieval India: by Farooqui Salma Ahmed, Salma Ahmed Farooqui p. 24 Vast areas between the Narmada River in the north and Kaveri River in the south came under Chalukya control. During this period the other major ruling families of the Deccan, the Hoysalas, the Seuna Yadavas of Devagiri, the Kakatiya dynasty and the Southern Kalachuris, were subordinates of the Western Chalukyas and gained their independence only when the power of the Chalukya waned during the latter half of the 12th century.Ancient Indian History and Civilization by Sailendra Nath Sen pp. 403–405
The Western Chalukyas developed an architectural style known today as a transitional style, an architectural link between the style of the early Chalukya dynasty and that of the later Hoysala empire. Most of its monuments are in the districts bordering the Tungabhadra River in central Karnataka. Well known examples are the Kasivisvesvara Temple at Lakkundi, the Mallikarjuna Temple at Kuruvatti, the Kallesvara Temple at Bagali, Siddhesvara Temple at Haveri, and the Mahadeva Temple at Itagi.World Heritage Monuments and Related Edifices in India, Band 1 by ʻAlī Jāvīd pp. 132–134 This was an important period in the development of fine arts in Southern India, especially in literature as the Western Chalukya kings encouraged writers in the native language of Kannada, and Sanskrit like the philosopher and statesman Basava and the great mathematician Bhāskara II.History of Kannada Literature by E.P. Rice p. 32Bilhana by Prabhakar Narayan Kawthekar, p. 29
Late medieval period (c. 1200 – 1526)
The late medieval period is marked by repeated invasions by Muslim Central Asian nomadic clans, the rule of the Delhi Sultanate, and by the growth of other states, built upon military technology of the sultanate.
Delhi Sultanate
The Delhi Sultanate was a series of successive Islamic states based in Delhi, ruled by several dynasties of varying origins. The polity ruled over large parts of the Indian subcontinent from the 13th to early 16th centuries.Delhi Sultanate, Encyclopædia Britannica The sultanate was founded in the 12th and 13th centuries by Central Asian Turks, who invaded parts of northern India and established the state atop former Hindu holdings. The subsequent Mamluk dynasty of Delhi managed to conquer large areas of northern India. The Khalji dynasty conquered much of central India while forcing the principal Hindu kingdoms of South India to become vassal states.
The sultanate ushered in a period of Indian cultural renaissance. The resulting "Indo-Muslim" fusion of cultures left lasting syncretic monuments in architecture, music, literature, religion, and clothing. It is surmised that the language of Urdu was born during the period of the Delhi Sultanate. The sultanate was the only Indo-Islamic state to enthrone one of the few female rulers in India, Razia Sultana ().
While initially disruptive due to the passing of power from native Indian elites to Turkic Muslim elites, the Delhi Sultanate was responsible for integrating the Indian subcontinent into a growing world system, drawing India into a wider international network, which had a significant impact on Indian culture and society. However, the Delhi Sultanate also caused large-scale destruction and desecration of temples in the Indian subcontinent.Richard Eaton (2000), Temple Desecration and Indo-Muslim States, Journal of Islamic Studies, 11(3), pp. 283–319
The Mongol invasions of India were successfully repelled by the Delhi Sultanate during the rule of Alauddin Khalji. A major factor in their success was their Turkic Mamluk slave army, who were highly skilled in the same style of nomadic cavalry warfare as the Mongols. It is possible that the Mongol Empire may have expanded into India were it not for the Delhi Sultanate's role in repelling them. By repeatedly repulsing the Mongol raiders, the sultanate saved India from the devastation waged on West and Central Asia. Soldiers from that region and learned men and administrators fleeing Mongol invasions of Iran migrated into the subcontinent, thereby creating a syncretic Indo-Islamic culture in the north.
A Turco-Mongol conqueror from Central Asia, Timur (Tamerlane), attacked the reigning sultan Nasir-u Din Mehmud of the Tughlaq dynasty in Delhi. The sultan's army was defeated on 17 December 1398. Timur entered Delhi and the city was sacked, destroyed, and left in ruins after Timur's army had killed and plundered for three days and nights. He ordered the whole city to be sacked except for the sayyids, scholars, and the "other Muslims" (artists); 100,000 war prisoners were said to have been put to death in one day. The sultanate suffered significantly from the sacking of Delhi. Though revived briefly under the Sayyid and Lodi dynasties, it was but a shadow of the former. Lodi rule lasted in Delhi until the defeat of the last sultan, Ibrahim Khan Lodi, in 1526 to the forces of Babur.
Vijayanagara Empire
thumb|right|250px|Map of the Sangama dynasty of the Vijayanagara Empire
The Vijayanagara Empire was established in 1336 by Harihara I and his brother Bukka Raya I of Sangama Dynasty,History of Classical Sanskrit Literature: by M. Srinivasachariar p. 211 which originated as a political heir of the Hoysala Empire, Kakatiya Empire, and the Pandyan Empire. The empire rose to prominence as a culmination of attempts by the south Indian powers to ward off Islamic invasions by the end of the 13th century. It lasted until 1646, although its power declined after a major military defeat in 1565 by the combined armies of the Deccan sultanates. The empire is named after its capital city of Vijayanagara, whose ruins surround present day Hampi, now a World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India.South India by Amy Karafin, Anirban Mahapatra p. 32
In the first two decades after the founding of the empire, Harihara I gained control over most of the area south of the Tungabhadra river and earned the title of Purvapaschima Samudradhishavara ("master of the eastern and western seas"). By 1374 Bukka Raya I, successor to Harihara I, had defeated the chiefdom of Arcot, the Reddys of Kondavidu, and the Sultan of Madurai and had gained control over Goa in the west and the Tungabhadra-Krishna doab in the north.
Harihara II, the second son of Bukka Raya I, further consolidated the kingdom beyond the Krishna River and brought the whole of South India under the Vijayanagara umbrella.The success was probably also due to the peaceful nature of Muhammad II Bahmani, according to The next ruler, Deva Raya I, emerged successful against the Gajapatis of Odisha and undertook important works of fortification and irrigation.From the notes of Portuguese Nuniz. Robert Sewell notes that a big dam across was built the Tungabhadra and an aqueduct long was cut out of rock (). Italian traveller Niccolo de Conti wrote of him as the most powerful ruler of India. Deva Raya II succeeded to the throne in 1424 and was possibly the most capable of the Sangama Dynasty rulers. He quelled rebelling feudal lords as well as the Zamorin of Calicut and Quilon in the south. He invaded the island of Sri Lanka and became overlord of the kings of Burma at Pegu and Tanasserim.From the notes of Persian Abdur Razzak. Writings of Nuniz confirms that the kings of Burma paid tributes to Vijayanagara empire. ()From the notes of Abdur Razzak about Vijayanagara: a city like this had not been seen by the pupil of the eye nor had an ear heard of anything equal to it in the world (Hampi, A Travel Guide 2003, p. 11)
The Vijayanagara Emperors were tolerant of all religions and sects, as writings by foreign visitors show.From the notes of Duarte Barbosa. () The kings used titles such as Gobrahamana Pratipalanacharya (literally, "protector of cows and Brahmins") and Hindurayasuratrana (lit, "upholder of Hindu faith") that testified to their intention of protecting Hinduism and yet were at the same time staunchly Islamicate in their court ceremonials and dress. The empire's founders, Harihara I and Bukka Raya I, were devout Shaivas (worshippers of Shiva), but made grants to the Vaishnava order of Sringeri with Vidyaranya as their patron saint, and designated Varaha (an avatar of Vishnu) as their emblem. Nobles from Central Asia's Timurid kingdoms also came to Vijayanagara. The later Saluva and Tuluva kings were Vaishnava by faith, but worshipped at the feet of Lord Virupaksha (Shiva) at Hampi as well as Lord Venkateshwara (Vishnu) at Tirupati. A Sanskrit work, Jambavati Kalyanam by King Krishnadevaraya, called Lord Virupaksha Karnata Rajya Raksha Mani ("protective jewel of Karnata Empire"). The kings patronised the saints of the dvaita order (philosophy of dualism) of Madhvacharya at Udupi.
The empire's legacy includes many monuments spread over South India, the best known of which is the group at Hampi. The previous temple building traditions in South India came together in the Vijayanagara Architecture style. The mingling of all faiths and vernaculars inspired architectural innovation of Hindu temple construction. South Indian mathematics flourished under the protection of the Vijayanagara Empire in Kerala. The south Indian mathematician Madhava of Sangamagrama founded the famous Kerala School of Astronomy and Mathematics in the 14th century which produced a lot of great south Indian mathematicians like Parameshvara, Nilakantha Somayaji and Jyeṣṭhadeva.History of Science and Philosophy of Science by Pradip Kumar Sengupta p. 91 Efficient administration and vigorous overseas trade brought new technologies such as water management systems for irrigation.Medieval India: From Sultanat to the Mughals-Delhi Sultanat (1206–1526) by Satish Chandra pp. 188–189 The empire's patronage enabled fine arts and literature to reach new heights in Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, and Sanskrit, while Carnatic music evolved into its current form.Art History, Volume II: 1400–present by Boundless p. 243
Vijayanagara went into decline after the defeat in the Battle of Talikota (1565). After the death of Aliya Rama Raya in the Battle of Talikota, Tirumala Deva Raya started the Aravidu dynasty, moved and founded a new capital of Penukonda to replace the destroyed Hampi, and attempted to reconstitute the remains of Vijayanagara Empire. Tirumala abdicated in 1572, dividing the remains of his kingdom to his three sons, and pursued a religious life until his death in 1578. The Aravidu dynasty successors ruled the region but the empire collapsed in 1614, and the final remains ended in 1646, from continued wars with the Bijapur sultanate and others. During this period, more kingdoms in South India became independent and separate from Vijayanagara. These include the Mysore Kingdom, Keladi Nayaka, Nayaks of Madurai, Nayaks of Tanjore, Nayakas of Chitradurga and Nayak Kingdom of Gingee – all of which declared independence and went on to have a significant impact on the history of South India in the coming centuries.
Other kingdoms
For two and a half centuries from the mid-13th century, politics in Northern India was dominated by the Delhi Sultanate, and in Southern India by the Vijayanagar Empire. However, there were other regional powers present as well. After fall of Pala Empire, the Chero dynasty ruled much of Eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand from the 12th to the 18th centuries. The Reddy dynasty successfully defeated the Delhi Sultanate and extended their rule from Cuttack in the north to Kanchi in the south, eventually being absorbed into the expanding Vijayanagara Empire.
In the north, the Rajput kingdoms remained the dominant force in Western and Central India. The Mewar dynasty under Maharana Hammir defeated and captured Muhammad Tughlaq with the Bargujars as his main allies. Tughlaq had to pay a huge ransom and relinquish all of Mewar's lands. After this event, the Delhi Sultanate did not attack Chittor for a few hundred years. The Rajputs re-established their independence, and Rajput states were established as far east as Bengal and north into the Punjab. The Tomaras established themselves at Gwalior, and Man Singh Tomar reconstructed the Gwalior Fort. During this period, Mewar emerged as the leading Rajput state; and Rana Kumbha expanded his kingdom at the expense of the Sultanates of Malwa and Gujarat.Lectures on Rajput history and culture by Dr. Dasharatha Sharma. Publisher: Motilal Banarsidass, Jawahar Nagar, Delhi 1970. . The next great Rajput ruler, Rana Sanga of Mewar, became the principal player in Northern India. His objectives grew in scope – he planned to conquer Delhi. But, his defeat in the Battle of Khanwa consolidated the new Mughal dynasty in India. The Mewar dynasty under Maharana Udai Singh II faced further defeat by Mughal emperor Akbar, with their capital Chittor being captured. Due to this event, Udai Singh II founded Udaipur, which became the new capital of the Mewar kingdom. His son, Maharana Pratap of Mewar, firmly resisted the Mughals. Akbar sent many missions against him. He survived to ultimately gain control of all of Mewar, excluding the Chittor Fort.John Merci, Kim Smith; James Leuck (1922). "Muslim conquest and the Rajputs". The Medieval History of India pg 67–115
In the south, the Bahmani Sultanate in the Deccan, born from a rebellion in 1347 against the Tughlaq dynasty, was the chief rival of Vijayanagara, and frequently created difficulties for them.Farooqui Salma Ahmed, A Comprehensive History of Medieval India: From Twelfth to the Mid-Eighteenth Century, (Dorling Kindersley Pvt. Ltd., 2011) Starting in 1490, the Bahmani Sultanate's governors revolted, their independent states composing the five Deccan sultanates; Ahmadnagar declared independence, followed by Bijapur and Berar in the same year; Golkonda became independent in 1518 and Bidar in 1528. Although generally rivals, they allied against the Vijayanagara Empire in 1565, permanently weakening Vijayanagar in the Battle of Talikota.
In the East, the Gajapati Kingdom remained a strong regional power to reckon with, associated with a high point in the growth of regional culture and architecture. Under Kapilendradeva, Gajapatis became an empire stretching from the lower Ganga in the north to the Kaveri in the south. In Northeast India, the Ahom Kingdom was a major power for six centuries; led by Lachit Borphukan, the Ahoms decisively defeated the Mughal army at the Battle of Saraighat during the Ahom-Mughal conflicts. Further east in Northeastern India was the Kingdom of Manipur, which ruled from their seat of power at Kangla Fort and developed a sophisticated Hindu Gaudiya Vaishnavite culture.
The Sultanate of Bengal was the dominant power of the Ganges–Brahmaputra Delta, with a network of mint towns spread across the region. It was a Sunni Muslim monarchy with Indo-Turkic, Arab, Abyssinian and Bengali Muslim elites. The sultanate was known for its religious pluralism where non-Muslim communities co-existed peacefully. The Bengal Sultanate had a circle of vassal states, including Odisha in the southwest, Arakan in the southeast, and Tripura in the east. In the early 16th century, the Bengal Sultanate reached the peak of its territorial growth with control over Kamrup and Kamata in the northeast and Jaunpur and Bihar in the west. It was reputed as a thriving trading nation and one of Asia's strongest states. The Bengal Sultanate was described by contemporary European and Chinese visitors as a relatively prosperous kingdom and the "richest country to trade with". The Bengal Sultanate left a strong architectural legacy. Buildings from the period show foreign influences merged into a distinct Bengali style. The Bengal Sultanate was also the largest and most prestigious authority among the independent medieval Muslim-ruled states in the history of Bengal. Its decline began with an interregnum by the Suri Empire, followed by Mughal conquest and disintegration into petty kingdoms.
Bhakti movement and Sikhism
The Bhakti movement refers to the theistic devotional trend that emerged in medieval Hinduism and later revolutionised in Sikhism. It originated in the seventh-century south India (now parts of Tamil Nadu and Kerala), and spread northwards. It swept over east and north India from the 15th century onwards, reaching its zenith between the 15th and 17th century.
The Bhakti movement regionally developed around different gods and goddesses, such as Vaishnavism (Vishnu), Shaivism (Shiva), Shaktism (Shakti goddesses), and Smartism.Lance Nelson (2007), An Introductory Dictionary of Theology and Religious Studies (Editors: Orlando O. Espín, James B. Nickoloff), Liturgical Press, , pp. 562–563SS Kumar (2010), Bhakti – the Yoga of Love, LIT Verlag Münster, , pp. 35–36Wendy Doniger (2009), Bhakti, Encyclopædia Britannica; The Four Denomination of Hinduism Himalayan Academy (2013) The movement was inspired by many poet-saints, who championed a wide range of philosophical positions ranging from theistic dualism of Dvaita to absolute monism of Advaita Vedanta.
Sikhism is a monotheistic and panentheistic religion based on the spiritual teachings of Guru Nanak, the first Guru,Singh, Patwant (2000). The Sikhs. Alfred A Knopf Publishing. p. 17. . and the ten successive Sikh gurus. After the death of the tenth Guru, Guru Gobind Singh, the Sikh scripture, Guru Granth Sahib, became the literal embodiment of the eternal, impersonal Guru, where the scripture's word serves as the spiritual guide for Sikhs.Louis Fenech and WH McLeod (2014), Historical Dictionary of Sikhism, 3rd Edition, Rowman & Littlefield, , p. 17William James (2011), God's Plenty: Religious Diversity in Kingston, McGill Queens University Press, , pp. 241–242
Buddhism in India flourished in the Himalayan kingdoms of Namgyal Kingdom in Ladakh, Sikkim Kingdom in Sikkim, and Chutia Kingdom in Arunachal Pradesh of the Late medieval period.
Early modern period (1526–1858)
The early modern period of Indian history is dated from 1526 to 1858, corresponding to the rise and fall of the Mughal Empire, which inherited from the Timurid Renaissance. During this age India's economy expanded, relative peace was maintained and arts were patronised. This period witnessed the further development of Indo-Islamic architecture; the growth of Marathas and Sikhs enabled them to rule significant regions of India in the waning days of the Mughal empire. With the discovery of the Cape route in the 1500s, the first Europeans to arrive by sea and establish themselves, were the Portuguese in Goa and Bombay.
Mughal Empire
In 1526, Babur swept across the Khyber Pass and established the Mughal Empire, which at its zenith covered much of South Asia. However, his son Humayun was defeated by the Afghan warrior Sher Shah Suri in 1540, and Humayun was forced to retreat to Kabul. After Sher Shah's death, his son Islam Shah Suri and his Hindu general Hemu Vikramaditya established secular rule in North India from Delhi until 1556, when Akbar (), grandson of Babur, defeated Hemu in the Second Battle of Panipat on 6 November 1556 after winning Battle of Delhi. Akbar tried to establish a good relationship with the Hindus. Akbar declared "Amari" or non-killing of animals in the holy days of Jainism. He rolled back the jizya tax for non-Muslims. The Mughal emperors married local royalty, allied themselves with local maharajas, and attempted to fuse their Turko-Persian culture with ancient Indian styles, creating a unique Indo-Persian culture and Indo-Saracenic architecture.
Akbar married a Rajput princess, Mariam-uz-Zamani, and they had a son, Jahangir ().Jeroen Duindam (2015), Dynasties: A Global History of Power, 1300–1800, p. 105, Cambridge University Press Jahangir followed his father's policy. The Mughal dynasty ruled most of the Indian subcontinent by 1600. The reign of Shah Jahan () was the golden age of Mughal architecture. He erected several large monuments, the most famous of which is the Taj Mahal at Agra.
It was one of the largest empires to have existed in the Indian subcontinent, and surpassed China to become the world's largest economic power, controlling 24.4% of the world economy,Maddison, Angus (2003): Development Centre Studies The World Economy Historical Statistics: Historical Statistics, OECD Publishing, , p. 261 and the world leader in manufacturing, producing 25% of global industrial output. The economic and demographic upsurge was stimulated by Mughal agrarian reforms that intensified agricultural production, and a relatively high degree of urbanisation.
The Mughal Empire reached the zenith of its territorial expanse during the reign of Aurangzeb (), under whose reign India surpassed Qing China as the world's largest economy.Maddison, Angus (2003): Development Centre Studies The World Economy Historical Statistics: Historical Statistics, OECD Publishing, , pages 259–261 Aurangzeb was less tolerant than his predecessors, reintroducing the jizya tax and destroying several historical temples, while at the same time building more Hindu temples than he destroyed, employing significantly more Hindus in his imperial bureaucracy than his predecessors, and advancing administrators based on ability rather than religion. However, he is often blamed for the erosion of the tolerant syncretic tradition of his predecessors, as well as increasing religious controversy and centralisation. The English East India Company suffered a defeat in the Anglo-Mughal War.
thumb|150px|18th-century political formation in India
The Mughals suffered several blows due to invasions from Marathas, Rajputs, Jats and Afghans. In 1737, the Maratha general Bajirao of the Maratha Empire invaded and plundered Delhi. Under the general Amir Khan Umrao Al Udat, the Mughal Emperor sent 8,000 troops to drive away the 5,000 Maratha cavalry soldiers. Baji Rao easily routed the novice Mughal general. In 1737, in the final defeat of Mughal Empire, the commander-in-chief of the Mughal Army, Nizam-ul-mulk, was routed at Bhopal by the Maratha army. This essentially brought an end to the Mughal Empire. While Bharatpur State under Jat ruler Suraj Mal, overran the Mughal garrison at Agra and plundered the city. In 1739, Nader Shah, emperor of Iran, defeated the Mughal army at the Battle of Karnal. After this victory, Nader captured and sacked Delhi, carrying away treasures including the Peacock Throne. Ahmad Shah Durrani commenced his own invasions as ruler of the Durrani Empire, eventually sacking Delhi in 1757. Mughal rule was further weakened by constant native Indian resistance; Banda Singh Bahadur led the Sikh Khalsa against Mughal religious oppression; Hindu Rajas of Bengal, Pratapaditya and Raja Sitaram Ray revolted; and Maharaja Chhatrasal, of Bundela Rajputs, fought the Mughals and established the Panna State. The Mughal dynasty was reduced to puppet rulers by 1757. Vadda Ghalughara took place under the Muslim provincial government based at Lahore to wipe out the Sikhs, with 30,000 Sikhs being killed, an offensive that had begun with the Mughals, with the Chhota Ghallughara,A Popular Dictionary of Sikhism: Sikh Religion and Philosophy, p. 86, Routledge, W. Owen Cole, Piara Singh Sambhi, 2005 and lasted several decades under its Muslim successor states.Khushwant Singh, A History of the Sikhs, Volume I: 1469–1839, Delhi, Oxford University Press, 1978, pp. 127–129
Maratha Empire
The Maratha kingdom was founded and consolidated by Chatrapati Shivaji.Shivaji and his Times (1919) – J.N. Sarkar However, the credit for making the Marathas formidable power nationally goes to Peshwa (chief minister) Bajirao I. Historian K.K. Datta wrote that Bajirao I "may very well be regarded as the second founder of the Maratha Empire".An Advanced History of India, Dr. K.K. Datta, p. 546
In the early 18th century, under the Peshwas, the Marathas consolidated and ruled over much of South Asia. The Marathas are credited to a large extent for ending Mughal rule in India. In 1737, the Marathas defeated a Mughal army in their capital, in the Battle of Delhi. The Marathas continued their military campaigns against the Mughals, Nizam, Nawab of Bengal and the Durrani Empire to further extend their boundaries. At its peak, the domain of the Marathas encompassed most of the Indian subcontinent. The Marathas even attempted to capture Delhi and discussed putting Vishwasrao Peshwa on the throne there in place of the Mughal emperor.
The Maratha empire at its peak stretched from Tamil Nadu in the south, to Peshawar (modern-day Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan ) in the north, and Bengal in the east. The Northwestern expansion of the Marathas was stopped after the Third Battle of Panipat (1761). However, the Maratha authority in the north was re-established within a decade under Peshwa Madhavrao I.
Under Madhavrao I, the strongest knights were granted semi-autonomy, creating a confederacy of United Maratha states under the Gaekwads of Baroda, the Holkars of Indore and Malwa, the Scindias of Gwalior and Ujjain, the Bhonsales of Nagpur and the Puars of Dhar and Dewas. In 1775, the East India Company intervened in a Peshwa family succession struggle in Pune, which led to the First Anglo-Maratha War, resulting in a Maratha victory. The Marathas remained a major power in India until their defeat in the Second and Third Anglo-Maratha Wars (1805–1818).
Sikh Empire
The Sikh Empire was a political entity that governed the Northwestern regions of the Indian subcontinent, based around the Punjab, from 1799 to 1849. It was forged, on the foundations of the Khalsa, under the leadership of Maharaja Ranjit Singh (1780–1839).
Maharaja Ranjit Singh consolidated much of northern India into an empire using his Sikh Khalsa Army, trained in European military techniques and equipped with modern military technologies. Ranjit Singh proved himself to be a master strategist and selected well-qualified generals for his army. He successfully ended the Afghan-Sikh Wars. In stages, he added central Punjab, the provinces of Multan and Kashmir, and the Peshawar Valley to his empire.
At its peak in the 19th century, the empire extended from the Khyber Pass in the west, to Kashmir in the north, to Sindh in the south, running along Sutlej river to Himachal in the east. After the death of Ranjit Singh, the empire weakened, leading to conflict with the British East India Company. The First Anglo-Sikh War and Second Anglo-Sikh War marked the downfall of the Sikh Empire, making it among the last areas of the Indian subcontinent to be conquered by the British.
Other kingdoms
thumb|left|Territories of India in 1763
The Kingdom of Mysore in southern India expanded to its greatest extent under Hyder Ali and his son Tipu Sultan in the later half of the 18th century. Under their rule, Mysore fought series of wars against the Marathas and British or their combined forces. The Maratha–Mysore War ended in April 1787, following the finalising of treaty of Gajendragad, in which Tipu Sultan was obligated to pay tribute to the Marathas. Concurrently, the Anglo-Mysore Wars took place, where the Mysoreans used the Mysorean rockets. The Fourth Anglo-Mysore War (1798–1799) saw the death of Tipu. Mysore's alliance with the French was seen as a threat to the British East India Company, and Mysore was attacked from all four sides. The Nizam of Hyderabad and the Marathas launched an invasion from the north. The British won a decisive victory at the Siege of Seringapatam (1799).
Hyderabad was founded by the Qutb Shahi dynasty of Golconda in 1591. Following a brief Mughal rule, Asif Jah, a Mughal official, seized control of Hyderabad and declared himself Nizam-al-Mulk of Hyderabad in 1724. The Nizams lost considerable territory and paid tribute to the Maratha Empire after being routed in multiple battles, such as the Battle of Palkhed. However, the Nizams maintained their sovereignty from 1724 until 1948 through paying tributes to the Marathas, and later, being vassals of the British. Hyderabad State became a princely state in British India in 1798.
The Nawabs of Bengal had become the de facto rulers of Bengal following the decline of Mughal Empire. However, their rule was interrupted by Marathas who carried out six expeditions in Bengal from 1741 to 1748, as a result of which Bengal became a tributary state of Marathas. On 23 June 1757, Siraj ud-Daulah, the last independent Nawab of Bengal was betrayed in the Battle of Plassey by Mir Jafar. He lost to the British, who took over the charge of Bengal in 1757, installed Mir Jafar on the Masnad (throne) and established itself to a political power in Bengal. In 1765 the system of Dual Government was established, in which the Nawabs ruled on behalf of the British and were mere puppets to the British. In 1772 the system was abolished and Bengal was brought under the direct control of the British. In 1793, when the Nizamat (governorship) of the Nawab was also taken away, they remained as mere pensioners of the British East India Company.
In the 18th century, the whole of Rajputana was virtually subdued by the Marathas. The Second Anglo-Maratha War distracted the Marathas from 1807 to 1809, but afterward Maratha domination of Rajputana resumed. In 1817, the British went to war with the Pindaris, raiders who were fled in Maratha territory, which quickly became the Third Anglo-Maratha War, and the British government offered its protection to the Rajput rulers from the Pindaris and the Marathas. By the end of 1818 similar treaties had been executed between the other Rajput states and Britain. The Maratha Sindhia ruler of Gwalior gave up the district of Ajmer-Merwara to the British, and Maratha influence in Rajasthan came to an end. Most of the Rajput princes remained loyal to Britain in the Revolt of 1857, and few political changes were made in Rajputana until Indian independence in 1947. The Rajputana Agency contained more than 20 princely states, most notable being Udaipur State, Jaipur State, Bikaner State and Jodhpur State.
After the fall of the Maratha Empire, many Maratha dynasties and states became vassals in a subsidiary alliance with the British. With the decline of the Sikh Empire, after the First Anglo-Sikh War in 1846, under the terms of the Treaty of Amritsar, the British government sold Kashmir to Maharaja Gulab Singh and the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, the second-largest princely state in British India, was created by the Dogra dynasty. While in eastern and north-eastern India, the Hindu and Buddhist states of Cooch Behar Kingdom, Twipra Kingdom and Kingdom of Sikkim were annexed by the British and made vassal princely state.
After the fall of the Vijayanagara Empire, Polygar states emerged in Southern India; and managed to weather invasions and flourished until the Polygar Wars, where they were defeated by the British East India Company forces. Around the 18th century, the Kingdom of Nepal was formed by Rajput rulers.
European exploration
thumb|right|The route followed in Vasco da Gama's first voyage (1497–1499)p
In 1498, a Portuguese fleet under Vasco da Gama discovered a new sea route from Europe to India, which paved the way for direct Indo-European commerce. The Portuguese soon set up trading posts in Velha Goa, Damaon, Dio island, and Bombay. The Portuguese instituted the Goa Inquisition, where new Indian converts were punished for suspected heresy against Christianity and non-Christians were condemned. Goa remained the main Portuguese territory until it was annexed by India in 1961.
The next to arrive were the Dutch, with their main base in Ceylon. They established ports in Malabar. However, their expansion into India was halted after their defeat in the Battle of Colachel by the Kingdom of Travancore during the Travancore-Dutch War. The Dutch never recovered from the defeat and no longer posed a large colonial threat to India.http://mod.nic.in 9th Madras Regiment
The internal conflicts among Indian kingdoms gave opportunities to the European traders to gradually establish political influence and appropriate lands. Following the Dutch, the British — who set up in the west coast port of Surat in 1619 — and the French both established trading outposts in India. Although continental European powers controlled various coastal regions of southern and eastern India during the ensuing century, they eventually lost all their territories in India to the British, with the exception of the French outposts of Pondichéry and Chandernagore, and the Portuguese colonies of Goa, Daman and Diu.
East India Company rule in India
The English East India Company was founded in 1600. It gained a foothold in India with the establishment of a factory in Masulipatnam on the Eastern coast of India in 1611 and a grant of rights by the Mughal emperor Jahangir to establish a factory in Surat in 1612. In 1640, after receiving similar permission from the Vijayanagara ruler farther south, a second factory was established in Madras on the southeastern coast. The islet of Bom Bahia in present-day Mumbai (Bombay) was a Portuguese outpost not far from Surat. It was presented to Charles II of England as dowry in his marriage to Catherine of Braganza. Charles in turn leased Bombay to the Company in 1668. Two decades later, the company established a trade post in the River Ganges delta. During this time other companies established by the Portuguese, Dutch, French, and Danish were similarly expanding in the subcontinent.
The company's victory under Robert Clive in the 1757 Battle of Plassey and another victory in the 1764 Battle of Buxar (in Bihar), consolidated the company's power, and forced emperor Shah Alam II to appoint it the diwan, or revenue collector, of Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa. The company thus became the de facto ruler of large areas of the lower Gangetic plain by 1773. It also proceeded by degrees to expand its dominions around Bombay and Madras. The Anglo-Mysore Wars (1766–99) and the Anglo-Maratha Wars (1772–1818) left it in control of large areas of India south of the Sutlej River. With the defeat of the Marathas, no native power represented a threat for the company any longer.
The expansion of the company's power chiefly took two forms. The first of these was the outright annexation of Indian states and subsequent direct governance of the underlying regions that collectively came to comprise British India. The annexed regions included the North-Western Provinces (comprising Rohilkhand, Gorakhpur, and the Doab) (1801), Delhi (1803), Assam (Ahom Kingdom 1828) and Sindh (1843). Punjab, North-West Frontier Province, and Kashmir were annexed after the Anglo-Sikh Wars in 1849–56 (Period of tenure of Marquess of Dalhousie Governor General). However, Kashmir was immediately sold under the Treaty of Amritsar (1850) to the Dogra Dynasty of Jammu and thereby became a princely state. In 1854, Berar was annexed along with the state of Oudh two years later.
The second form of asserting power involved treaties in which Indian rulers acknowledged the company's hegemony in return for limited internal autonomy. Since the company operated under financial constraints, it had to set up political underpinnings for its rule. The most important such support came from the subsidiary alliances with Indian princes. In the early 19th century, the territories of these princes accounted for two-thirds of India. When an Indian ruler who was able to secure his territory wanted to enter such an alliance, the company welcomed it as an economical method of indirect rule that did not involve the economic costs of direct administration or the political costs of gaining the support of alien subjects.
In return, the company undertook the "defense of these subordinate allies and treated them with traditional respect and marks of honor." Subsidiary alliances created the Princely States of the Hindu maharajas and the Muslim nawabs. Prominent among the princely states were Cochin (1791), Jaipur (1794), Travancore (1795), Hyderabad (1798), Mysore (1799), Cis-Sutlej Hill States (1815), Central India Agency (1819), Cutch and Gujarat Gaikwad territories (1819), Rajputana (1818), and Bahawalpur (1833).
Indian indenture system
The Indian indenture system was an ongoing system of indenture, a form of debt bondage, by which 3.5 million Indians were transported to colonies of European powers to provide labour for the (mainly sugar) plantations. It started from the end of slavery in 1833 and continued until 1920. This resulted in the development of a large Indian diaspora that spread from the Caribbean to the Pacific Ocean and the growth of large Indo-Caribbean and Indo-African populations.
Late modern period and contemporary history (1857–1947)
Rebellion of 1857 and its consequences
The Indian rebellion of 1857 was a large-scale rebellion by soldiers employed by the British East India Company in northern and central India against the company's rule. The spark that led to the mutiny was the issue of new gunpowder cartridges for the Enfield rifle, which was insensitive to local religious prohibition. The key mutineer was Mangal Pandey.Saul David, p. 70, The Indian Mutiny, Penguin Books 2003 In addition, the underlying grievances over British taxation, the ethnic gulf between the British officers and their Indian troops and land annexations played a significant role in the rebellion. Within weeks after Pandey's mutiny, dozens of units of the Indian army joined peasant armies in widespread rebellion. The rebel soldiers were later joined by Indian nobility, many of whom had lost titles and domains under the Doctrine of Lapse and felt that the company had interfered with a traditional system of inheritance. Rebel leaders such as Nana Sahib and the Rani of Jhansi belonged to this group., ,
After the outbreak of the mutiny in Meerut, the rebels very quickly reached Delhi. The rebels had also captured large tracts of the North-Western Provinces and Awadh (Oudh). Most notably, in Awadh, the rebellion took on the attributes of a patriotic revolt against British presence., However, the British East India Company mobilised rapidly with the assistance of friendly Princely states, but it took the British the better part of 1858 to suppress the rebellion. Due to the rebels being poorly equipped and having no outside support or funding, they were brutally subdued.Christopher Hibbert, The Great Mutiny: India 1857 (1980)
In the aftermath, all power was transferred from the British East India Company to the British Crown, which began to administer most of India as provinces. The Crown controlled the company's lands directly and had considerable indirect influence over the rest of India, which consisted of the Princely states ruled by local royal families. There were officially 565 princely states in 1947, but only 21 had actual state governments, and only three were large (Mysore, Hyderabad, and Kashmir). They were absorbed into the independent nation in 1947–48.
British Raj (1858–1947)
After 1857, the colonial government strengthened and expanded its infrastructure via the court system, legal procedures, and statutes. The Indian Penal Code came into being."Law Commission of India – Early Beginnings" In education, Thomas Babington Macaulay had made schooling a priority for the Raj in 1835 and succeeded in implementing the use of English for instruction. By 1890 some 60,000 Indians had matriculated. The Indian economy grew at about 1% per year from 1880 to 1920, and the population also grew at 1%. However, from 1910s Indian private industry began to grow significantly. India built a modern railway system in the late 19th century which was the fourth largest in the world. Historians have been divided on issues of economic history, with the Nationalist school arguing that India was poorer due to British rule.
In 1905, Lord Curzon split the large province of Bengal into a largely Hindu western half and "Eastern Bengal and Assam", a largely Muslim eastern half. The British goal was said to be efficient administration but the people of Bengal were outraged at the apparent "divide and rule" strategy. It also marked the beginning of the organised anti-colonial movement. When the Liberal party in Britain came to power in 1906, he was removed. Bengal was reunified in 1911. The new Viceroy Gilbert Minto and the new Secretary of State for India John Morley consulted with Congress leaders on political reforms. The Morley-Minto reforms of 1909 provided for Indian membership of the provincial executive councils as well as the Viceroy's executive council. The Imperial Legislative Council was enlarged from 25 to 60 members and separate communal representation for Muslims was established in a dramatic step towards representative and responsible government.S.A. Wolpert, Morley and India, 1906–1910, (1967) Several socio-religious organisations came into being at that time. Muslims set up the All India Muslim League in 1906 to protect the interests of the aristocratic Muslims. The Hindu Mahasabha and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) sought to represent Hindu interests though the latter always claimed it to be a "cultural" organisation.Democracy and Hindu nationalism, Chetan Bhatt (2013) Sikhs founded the Shiromani Akali Dal in 1920.Harjinder Singh Dilgeer. Shiromani Akali Dal (1920–2000). Sikh University Press, Belgium, 2001. However, the largest and oldest political party Indian National Congress, founded in 1885, attempted to keep a distance from the socio-religious movements and identity politics.The History of the Indian National Congress, B. Pattabhi Sitaramayya (1935)
Indian Renaissance
The Bengali Renaissance refers to a social reform movement, dominated by Bengali Hindus, in the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, a period of British rule. Historian Nitish Sengupta describes the renaissance as having started with reformer and humanitarian Raja Ram Mohan Roy (1775–1833), and ended with Asia's first Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore (1861–1941). This flowering of religious and social reformers, scholars, and writers is described by historian David Kopf as "one of the most creative periods in Indian history."
During this period, Bengal witnessed an intellectual awakening that is in some way similar to the Renaissance. This movement questioned existing orthodoxies, particularly with respect to women, marriage, the dowry system, the caste system, and religion. One of the earliest social movements that emerged during this time was the Young Bengal movement, which espoused rationalism and atheism as the common denominators of civil conduct among upper caste educated Hindus. It played an important role in reawakening Indian minds and intellect across the Indian subcontinent.
Famines
During British East India Company and British Crown rule, India experienced some of deadliest ever recorded famines. These famines, usually resulting from crop failures and often exacerbated by policies of the colonial government, included the Great Famine of 1876–1878 in which 6.1 million to 10.3 million people died,Davis, Mike. Late Victorian Holocausts. 1. Verso, 2000. p. 7 the Great Bengal famine of 1770 where between 1 and 10 million people died, the Indian famine of 1899–1900 in which 1.25 to 10 million people died,Davis, Mike. Late Victorian Holocausts. 1. Verso, 2000. p. 173 and the Bengal famine of 1943 where between 2.1 and 3.8 million people died. The Third plague pandemic in the mid-19th century killed 10 million people in India.. World Health Organisation. Despite persistent diseases and famines, the population of the Indian subcontinent, which stood at up to 200 million in 1750, had reached 389 million by 1941."Reintegrating India with the World Economy". Peterson Institute for International Economics.
World War I
During World War I, over 800,000 volunteered for the army, and more than 400,000 volunteered for non-combat roles, compared with the pre-war annual recruitment of about 15,000 men. The Army saw early action on the Western Front at the First Battle of Ypres. After a year of front-line duty, sickness and casualties had reduced the Indian Corps to the point where it had to be withdrawn. Nearly 700,000 Indians fought the Turks in the Mesopotamian campaign. Indian formations were also sent to East Africa, Egypt, and Gallipoli.
Indian Army and Imperial Service Troops fought during the Sinai and Palestine Campaign's defence of the Suez Canal in 1915, at Romani in 1916 and to Jerusalem in 1917. India units occupied the Jordan Valley and after the German spring offensive they became the major force in the Egyptian Expeditionary Force during the Battle of Megiddo and in the Desert Mounted Corps' advance to Damascus and on to Aleppo. Other divisions remained in India guarding the North-West Frontier and fulfilling internal security obligations.
One million Indian troops served abroad during the war. In total, 74,187 died, and another 67,000 were wounded. The roughly 90,000 soldiers who died fighting in World War I and the Afghan Wars are commemorated by the India Gate.
World War II
British India officially declared war on Nazi Germany in September 1939. The British Raj, as part of the Allied Nations, sent over two and a half million volunteer soldiers to fight under British command against the Axis powers. Additionally, several Princely States provided large donations to support the Allied campaign. India also provided the base for American operations in support of China in the China Burma India Theatre.
Indians fought throughout the world, including in the European theatre against Germany, in North Africa against Germany and Italy, against the Italians in East Africa, in the Middle East against the Vichy French, in the South Asian region defending India against the Japanese and fighting the Japanese in Burma. Indians also aided in liberating British colonies such as Singapore and Hong Kong after the Japanese surrender in August 1945. Over 87,000 soldiers from the subcontinent died in World War II.
The Indian National Congress denounced Nazi Germany but would not fight it or anyone else until India was independent. Congress launched the Quit India Movement in August 1942, refusing to co-operate in any way with the government until independence was granted. The government immediately arrested over 60,000 national and local Congress leaders. The Muslim League rejected the Quit India movement and worked closely with the Raj authorities.
Subhas Chandra Bose (also called Netaji) broke with Congress and tried to form a military alliance with Germany or Japan to gain independence. The Germans assisted Bose in the formation of the Indian Legion; however, it was Japan that helped him revamp the Indian National Army (INA), after the First Indian National Army under Mohan Singh was dissolved. The INA fought under Japanese direction, mostly in Burma. Bose also headed the Provisional Government of Free India (or Azad Hind), a government-in-exile based in Singapore.
By 1942, neighbouring Burma was invaded by Japan, which by then had already captured the Indian territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Japan gave nominal control of the islands to the Provisional Government of Free India on 21 October 1943, and in the following March, the Indian National Army with the help of Japan crossed into India and advanced as far as Kohima in Nagaland. This advance on the mainland of the Indian subcontinent reached its farthest point on Indian territory, retreating from the Battle of Kohima in June and from that of Imphal on 3 July 1944.
The region of Bengal in British India suffered a devastating famine during 1940–1943. An estimated 2.1–3 million died from the famine, frequently characterised as "man-made", with most sources asserting that wartime colonial policies exacerbated the crisis.
Indian independence movement (1885–1947)
The numbers of British in India were small, yet they were able to rule 52% of the Indian subcontinent directly and exercise considerable leverage over the princely states that accounted for 48% of the area.
One of the most important events of the 19th century was the rise of Indian nationalism,Modern India, Bipin Chandra, p. 76 leading Indians to seek first "self-rule" and later "complete independence". However, historians are divided over the causes of its rise. Probable reasons include a "clash of interests of the Indian people with British interests", "racial discriminations",India Awakening and Bengal, N.S. Bose, 1976, p. 237 and "the revelation of India's past".British Paramountcy and Indian Renaissance, Part–II, Dr. R.C. Majumdar, p. 466
The first step toward Indian self-rule was the appointment of councillors to advise the British viceroy in 1861 and the first Indian was appointed in 1909. Provincial Councils with Indian members were also set up. The councillors' participation was subsequently widened into legislative councils. The British built a large British Indian Army, with the senior officers all British and many of the troops from small minority groups such as Gurkhas from Nepal and Sikhs. The civil service was increasingly filled with natives at the lower levels, with the British holding the more senior positions.Anil Chandra Banerjee, A Constitutional History of India 1600–1935 (1978) pp. 171–173
Bal Gangadhar Tilak, an Indian nationalist leader, declared Swaraj (home rule) as the destiny of the nation. His popular sentence "Swaraj is my birthright, and I shall have it" became the source of inspiration. Tilak was backed by rising public leaders like Bipin Chandra Pal and Lala Lajpat Rai, who held the same point of view, notably they advocated the Swadeshi movement involving the boycott of imported items and the use of Indian-made goods; the triumvirate were popularly known as Lal Bal Pal. In 1907, the Congress was split into two factions: The radicals, led by Tilak, advocated civil agitation and direct revolution to overthrow the British Empire and the abandonment of all things British. The moderates, led by leaders like Dadabhai Naoroji and Gopal Krishna Gokhale, on the other hand, wanted reform within the framework of British rule.
The partition of Bengal in 1905 further increased the revolutionary movement for Indian independence. The disenfranchisement lead some to take violent action.
The British themselves adopted a "carrot and stick" approach in response to renewed nationalist demands. The means of achieving the proposed measure were later enshrined in the Government of India Act 1919, which introduced the principle of a dual mode of administration, or diarchy, in which elected Indian legislators and appointed British officials shared power.Albert, Sir Courtenay Peregrine. The Government of India. Clarendon Press, 1922. p. 125 In 1919, Colonel Reginald Dyer ordered his troops to fire their weapons on peaceful protestors, including unarmed women and children, resulting in the Jallianwala Bagh massacre; which led to the Non-cooperation Movement of 1920–1922. The massacre was a decisive episode towards the end of British rule in India.
From 1920 leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi began highly popular mass movements to campaign against the British Raj using largely peaceful methods. The Gandhi-led independence movement opposed the British rule using non-violent methods like non-co-operation, civil disobedience and economic resistance. However, revolutionary activities against the British rule took place throughout the Indian subcontinent and some others adopted a militant approach like the Hindustan Republican Association, that sought to overthrow British rule by armed struggle.
The All India Azad Muslim Conference gathered in Delhi in April 1940 to voice its support for an independent and united India. Its members included several Islamic organisations in India, as well as 1,400 nationalist Muslim delegates. The pro-separatist All-India Muslim League worked to try to silence those nationalist Muslims who stood against the partition of India, often using "intimidation and coercion". The murder of the All India Azad Muslim Conference leader Allah Bakhsh Soomro also made it easier for the pro-separatist All-India Muslim League to demand the creation of a Pakistan.
After World War II (c. 1946–1947)
In January 1946, several mutinies broke out in the armed services, starting with that of RAF servicemen frustrated with their slow repatriation. The mutinies came to a head with mutiny of the Royal Indian Navy in Bombay in February 1946, followed by others in Calcutta, Madras, and Karachi. The mutinies were rapidly suppressed. In early 1946, new elections were called and Congress candidates won in eight of the eleven provinces.
Late in 1946, the Labour government decided to end British rule of India, and in early 1947 it announced its intention of transferring power no later than June 1948 and participating in the formation of an interim government.
Along with the desire for independence, tensions between Hindus and Muslims had also been developing over the years. Muslim League leader Muhammad Ali Jinnah proclaimed 16 August 1946 as Direct Action Day, with the stated goal of highlighting, peacefully, the demand for a Muslim homeland in British India, which resulted in the outbreak of the cycle of violence that would be later called the "Great Calcutta Killing of August 1946". The communal violence spread to Bihar, Noakhali in Bengal, Garhmukteshwar in the United Provinces, and on to Rawalpindi in March 1947 in which Sikhs and Hindus were attacked or driven out by Muslims.
right|thumb|Literacy in India grew very slowly until independence in 1947. An acceleration in the rate of literacy growth occurred in the 1991–2001 period.
Independence and partition (1947–present)
In August 1947, the British Indian Empire was partitioned into the Union of India and Dominion of Pakistan. In particular, the partition of the Punjab and Bengal led to rioting between Hindus, Muslims, and Sikhs in these provinces and spread to other nearby regions, leaving some 500,000 dead. The police and army units were largely ineffective. The British officers were gone, and the units were beginning to tolerate if not actually indulge in violence against their religious enemies.Philip Ziegler, Mountbatten(1985) p. 401. Also, this period saw one of the largest mass migrations anywhere in modern history, with a total of 12 million Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims moving between the newly created nations of India and Pakistan (which gained independence on 15 and 14 August 1947 respectively). In 1971, Bangladesh, formerly East Pakistan and East Bengal, seceded from Pakistan.
See also
Adivasi
Early Indians
List of Indian periods
The Cambridge History of India
Outline of ancient India
Timeline of Indian history
By topic
Culture
Economy
Historiography
Foreign relations
Maritime
Languages
Military
Physical culture
Medieval taxation
References
Notes
Citations
Sources
Printed sources
Further reading
General
Basham, A.L., ed. The Illustrated Cultural History of India (Oxford University Press, 2007)
Buckland, C.E. Dictionary of Indian Biography (1906) 495pp full text
Chakrabarti D.K. 2009. India, an archaeological history : palaeolithic beginnings to early historic foundations.
Dharma Kumar and Meghnad Desai, eds. The Cambridge Economic History of India: Volume 2, c. 1751–1970 (2nd ed. 2010), 1114pp of scholarly articles
Guha, Ramachandra. India After Gandhi: The History of the World's Largest Democracy (2007), 890pp; since 1947
James, Lawrence. Raj: The Making and Unmaking of British India (2000) online
Khan, Yasmin. The Raj At War: A People's History Of India's Second World War (2015); also published as India At War: The Subcontinent and the Second World War India At War: The Subcontinent and the Second World War.
Khan, Yasmin. The Great Partition: The Making of India and Pakistan (2n d ed. Yale UP 2017) excerpt
Mcleod, John. The History of India (2002) excerpt and text search
Majumdar, R.C. : An Advanced History of India. London, 1960.
Majumdar, R.C. (ed.) : The History and Culture of the Indian People, Bombay, 1977 (in eleven volumes).
Mansingh, Surjit The A to Z of India (2010), a concise historical encyclopedia
Markovits, Claude, ed. A History of Modern India, 1480–1950 (2002) by a team of French scholars
Metcalf, Barbara D. and Thomas R. Metcalf. A Concise History of Modern India (2006)
Peers, Douglas M. India under Colonial Rule: 1700–1885 (2006), 192pp
Riddick, John F. The History of British India: A Chronology (2006) excerpt
Riddick, John F. Who Was Who in British India (1998); 5000 entries excerpt
Rothermund, Dietmar. An Economic History of India: From Pre-Colonial Times to 1991 (1993)
Sharma, R.S., India's Ancient Past, (Oxford University Press, 2005)
Sarkar, Sumit. Modern India, 1885–1947 (2002)
Singhal, D.P. A History of the Indian People (1983)
Smith, Vincent. The Oxford History of India (3rd ed. 1958), old-fashioned
Spear, Percival. A History of India. Volume 2. Penguin Books. (1990) [First published 1965]
Stein, Burton. A History of India (1998)
Thapar, Romila. Early India: From the Origins to AD 1300 (2004) excerpt and text search
Thompson, Edward, and G.T. Garratt. Rise and Fulfilment of British Rule in India (1934) 690 pages; scholarly survey, 1599–1933 excerpt and text search
Tomlinson, B.R. The Economy of Modern India, 1860–1970 (The New Cambridge History of India) (1996)
Tomlinson, B.R. The political economy of the Raj, 1914–1947 (1979) online
Wolpert, Stanley. A New History of India (8th ed. 2008) online 7th edition
Historiography
Bose, Mihir. "India's Missing Historians: Mihir Bose Discusses the Paradox That India, a Land of History, Has a Surprisingly Weak Tradition of Historiography", History Today 57#9 (2007) pp. 34–. online
Primary
Highly detailed description of all of India in 1901.
India
| 13,890
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2025-04
|
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