In law, adjournment is the postponement of the hearing of a case for later consideration. If a hearing is adjourned sinedie ('without day') it is postponed for an indefinite period. If a party requests an adjournment, the court may find the costs of the adjournment have been unnecessarily incurred and make an order for costs against that party. Research Adjournment
Corgi are an English manufacturer of die cast scale models and toy cars. The company is known to children and adults alike for its quality collectible models which include models from television shows and films, including the 'James Bond' Aston-Martin DB5 and a special 40th anniversary Dr Who set comprising plastic and metal models of K 9, the Tom BakerDr Who, a Cyberman, a Dalek, Davros, the Tardis and Bessy with the Tom BakerDr Who at the wheel. Corgi also produce larger limited edition models for collectors such as models of Second World War AFVs. Research Corgi
A die-hard is someone who refuses to surrender or give-up. The term was given as a nickname to the old 57th Regiment of Foot (later known as the West Middlesex Regiment) following their involvement at the Battle of Albuera in 1811 when their colonel, Inglis, told his men to 'die hard'. At the battle the regimental banner was pierced with thirty bullet holes, twenty-three of the twenty-four officers were killed and 416 of the 584 men killed. Research Die-Hard
An heir-apparent is someone who 'are such whose right of inheritance is indeafsible provided they outlive the ancestor; as the eldest son, who must be heir to the father when ever he happens to die'. Blackstone. That is, someone whose right of inheritance cannot be superseded by the birth of another, unlike an heir-presumptive whose right of inheritance can be superseded by the birth of another. Research Heir-Apparent
Heir-presumptive is one who, if the ancestor should die immediately, would, under existing circumstances, be the heir, but whose right of inheritance may be defeated by some nearer heir being born, as an only daughter, who is displaced by the birth of a son. Research Heir-Presumptive
Horn is a general term applied to all hard and pointed appendages of the head, as in deer, cattle, etc, but as a term denoting a particular kind of substance nothing should be called horn which is not derived from the epidermis or outer, layer of the integument, whether on the trunk, hoofs, or head.
Horn is a tough, flexible, semi-transparent substance, most liberally developed in the horns of bovine animals, but also found in connection with the 'shell' of the tortoise, the nails, claws, and hoofs of animals, the beak of bird and turtle, etc
Horn is softened very completely by heat, so as to become readily flexible, and to adhere to other pieces similarly softened. True horn consists principally of an albuminoid principle, keratin, with a small portion of gelatine and a little phosphate of lime. In some species of animals the males only have horns, as for instance the stag. In cattle both male and female have horns, though there are also hornless cattle.
Horns differ widely in the case of different animals. Thus the horns of deer consist of bone, and are deciduous; those of the giraffe are independent bones, with a covering of hairy skin; those of oxen, sheep, and antelopes consist of a bony core covered by a horny sheath. The horns of the rhinoceros alone consist exclusively of horny matter. The horns of oxen, sheep, goats, and antelopes are never shed, except in the case of the prong-horned antelope. The number never normally exceeds four, and in the case of deer the horns are branched.
The various kinds of horns were formerly employed for many purposes. The principal formerly used in the arts are those of the ox, buffalo, sheep, and goat. Deer horns were almost exclusively employed for the handles of knives and of sticks and umbrellas. Those which furnish true horn can be softened by heat (usually in boiling water), cut into sheets of various thickness, which sheets may be soldered or welded together at the edges so as to form plates of large dimensions, and were formerly polished and dyed so as to imitate the much more expensive tortoise-shell. The clippings of horn may be welded together in the same manner, and were formerly made into snuff-boxes, powder horns, handles for umbrellas, knives, forks, etc. As horn has the valuable property of taking on and retaining a sharp impression from a die, many highly ornamental articles were also turned out. Combs for the hair were made from the flattened sheets, and out of the solid parts of buffalo horns beautiful carvings were made. Research Horn
The Iron Maiden of Nuremberg was an instrument of torture consisting of a box large enough to hold a man, with folding doors, the whole studded with sharp iron spikes. When the doors were pressed-to the spikes were forced into the body of the victim who was then left to die. An Iron Maiden of Nuremberg was exhibited in 1892 at the Free Trade Hall in Manchester and in London. Research Iron Maiden of Nuremberg
Jackass is an American television series showing irresponsible, dangerous, self-harming stunts such as kicking oneself in the head. Despite or perhaps because of it's adults-only classification, the Jackass television series and film (Jackass: The Movie) The television series inspired a world-wide teenage phenomena known as 'Jackass' in which bored, attention-seeking teenagers video themselves and their friends as they carryout dangerous and stupid stunts, and then publish the footage on web sites. A notorious British group of Jackass boys are known as 'Live Now Die Later', a group from the north West of England who formed around 2003, and soon afterwards lost one ten-year old member after he quit after he received major burns to almost his entire body. The type of stunts performed include spraying the hair with aftershave and then igniting it, having a large fishing hook placed through the ear lobe and then ripped out, setting light to oneself and then cycling into a river, and most popular leaping from tall buildings into a nearby tree - or not. Research Jackass
A life table is a way of summarising the probability that an individual will give birth or die during successive periods of life. From this, the proportion of individuals who survive from birth to any given age (survivorship) and the mean number of offspring produced (net reproductive rate) can be determined. Insurance companies use life tables to estimate risks of death so as to set their premiums and governments use them to determine future needs for education and health services. Research Life Table
The meeting of the Long Parliament (as it was afterwards called) in November 1640 ended the great days of the English monarchy, and sowed the seeds for the English Civil War. The Commons were determined on reform; they meant to put an end to the king's unconstitutional methods in both Church and State. Charles I himself, though he seldom faced facts, saw that some concessions would be necessary. But a real settlement was not achieved, chiefly because tempers were rising and the atmosphere soon became that of a revolution. Charles was partly to blame. He had no real desire for a lasting understanding with Parliament, and his shifty character aroused general distrust. But he found that the more he gave way to Parliament, the more it demanded. John Pym, a squire of Somerset, was the acknowledged leader of the Commons.
His enemies nicknamed him 'King Pym'. He was 'the first great popular organiser', for he used the press, the petition, and even the platform to support his cause. He now led the attack on the chief instruments of the late personal government. The judges who had upheld Charles's financial exactions in the Courts were arrested and imprisoned, and so was Archbishop Laud, who was beheaded in 1645. But the principal victim was Strafford. He was charged with having tried to 'subvert the fundamental laws and government of England and Ireland, and instead thereof to introduce an in March arbitrary and tyrannical government against law'. 1641 he was brought to Westminster Hall to be tried for high treason. But his accusers were at once faced with a difficult point. Strafford may have tried to 'subvert the laws'; but treason meant treason to the king, and had Strafford been a traitor to Charles? It was difficult to prove that he had, and as the trial proceeded it became clear that the verdict would be Not Guilty. But the Puritan majority in the House was determined that Strafford should die. Parliament therefore passed a special Bill of Attainder, condemning the minister to death without trial.
The Lords passed the Bill of Attainder, and it remained for the king to give or to withhold his consent. Some may think that it was Charles's duty to risk his life to defend Strafford. But the mob raged round Whitehall, howling for blood. Charles feared for the safety of the queen and his children, and he gave way. ' If my own person only were in danger', he told the Council, with tears in his eyes, 'I would gladly venture it to save Lord Strafford's life.' Three days later the earl was led to his execution in May 1641 in the presence of a crowd of 200000 people who had come to witness the end of 'Black Tom Tyrant'. No man ever died more bravely. 'I thank my God', he said, as he prepared to die, 'I am not afraid of death, but do as cheerfully put off my doublet at this time as ever I did when I went to bed.' The executioner offered to cover his eyes with a handkerchief. 'Thou shalt not bind my eyes.' said Strafford, 'for I will see it done.' And so he placed his head upon the block.
His misfortune, wrote Laud, was that 'he served a mild and gracious prince, who knew not how to be, or be made great'. That summerParliament was busy passing a number of Acts intended to make absolute government impossible for the future. One Act declared that the presentParliament could not be dissolved without its own consent; another - the Triennial Act - that in future Parliaments should be Called every three years. The three Courts by which the king and Laud had carried out their religious and financial measures were abolished - the Star Chamber, the Court of High Commission, and the Council of the North. Finally Ship-Money and other arbitrary forms of taxation were declared illegal. These abolitions of the year 1641 were the permanent, constructive work of the Puritan revolution; nor were the institutions then destroyed restored with the monarchy in 1660. Meanwhile another Bill had come up for discussion. A petition was presented to Parliament praying for the ending of episcopacy (that is, the rule of the Church by bishops) 'in all its roots and branches'.
The thorough-going Puritan members considered the petition, and a 'Root-and-Branch' Bill in 1641 was prepared, but it fell through. For now a new factor came into play. Hitherto a large majority, both of Lords and Commons, had been united in their opposition to the king. But this Bill divided parliamentarians for the first time. There were many who began to fear extremes; and a moderate party now sprang up. It was out of this debate on the Root-and- Branch Bill that the germs of the future Roundhead and Cavalier parties were formed. The extremists - the Roundheads - included Pym, Hampden, and Oliver Cromwell. The chief figures on the other side were LordFalkland and Sir Edward Hyde, afterwards the famous Earl of Clarendon, the future Chancellor and historian. Parliament adjourned for six months, but met again at the end of October. It had no sooner assembled than terrible news arrived from Ireland. Now that the stern hand of Strafford was withdrawn, the crushed Irish had risen against their lords. There was a sudden and horrible rebellion thousands of Protestants were massacred in cold blood. When this news was received in London it only served to increase the Puritanfury. Meanwhile the Commons drew up a Grand Remonstrance in November 1641, in which they recited the past acts of the king and his servants to which they objected - there were 201 items - and stated a programme for the future. Some of its clauses prayed the king to reduce the power of the bishops and to remove 'oppressions in religion'. Another clause asked His Majesty to employ ministers 'such as the Parliament may have cause to confide in' - which in later times solved the problem of disputes between king and Parliament.
All this shows that Parliament had considerably advanced its demands. During the months from November 1640 to September 1641 they, had succeeded in placing constitutional checks on the king's power. From November 1641 to August 1642 they were bent on seizing control of both Church and State, until they forced Charles to reply: ' If I granted your demands, I should be no more than the merephantom of a king.' The Grand Remonstrance was passed by a majority of only eleven - a fact which illustrates the growth of the anti-Puritan party.
The situation, at the end of 1641, was dangerous in the extreme. On the one hand the queen and the swaggering ' Cavaliers' of the Court were urging Charles to strike at King Pym and his fellow leaders before it was too late. On the other hand, London was a stronghold of Puritanism, and it was the London merchants who had felt the weight of Charles's taxation most heavily. The London ' prentices' and the king's swordsmen were itching to get at one another's throats. Never the less Pym proceeded steadily on his way. He was determined to deprive the king of the command of the militia; for it was obvious that if the Irish rebellion was to be crushed a militia must be called out. And once Charles had command of the national armed forces, would he not use them to crush Parliament and destroy English liberty for ever? Pym had no doubt that he would. A Militia Bill was therefore brought in, and - contrary to all English law and custom - it took the command of the military forces out of the king's hands. To this Charles of course refused his consent.
Early in January 1642 he took the queen's advice, and instructed the Attorney- General to impeach Pym, Hampden, and three other leading members of the Commons. The members were alarmed, but Charles promised them 'on the word of a king' that no violence should be done them. The next day - the 4th of January 1642 - he went down to the House with 400 swordsmen. He left his guard at the door, and walked in accompanied only by Prince Rupert, his German nephew. But the five members, warned of his intention, had fled by river. There was a dead silence as the king looked round. He asked the Speaker, Lenthall, where the missing members were. 'I have neither eyes to see', Lenthall replied, 'nor tongue to speak in this place, but as this House shall direct me.' There was another pause as Charles scanned the benches. 'I see', he said at last, 'all the birds are flown. I do expect you will send them to me as soon as they shall return hither.' Then, amid cries of 'Privilege, privilege', he walked out. By this revolutionary act the king had outlawed himself. All hope of reconciliation being now past, he determined to try the issue of war. He left his capital on the 10th of January, sent the queen out of the country, and took up his quarters at York. Parliament claimed the control of the militia and secured the command of the fleet. During the spring and summer of 1642 both sides were busy raising troops. The great strength of the Puritan cause was London. The city contained a tenth of the population of England - 500000 out of five million. The number of troops which London provided was more than sufficient to quell any Royalist opposition in the surrounding country. The London 'train-bands' therefore protected the Puritan leaders during the eight months that the king was gathering his army in the north - January to August 1642. And so the English Civil War started. Research Long Parliament
 
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