Ave Maria ('Hail, Mary'), are the first two words of the angel Gabriel's salutation according to Luke I 28, and the beginning of the very common Latin prayer to the Virgin in the Roman Catholic Church. Its lay use was sanctioned at the end of the twelfth century, and a papal edict of 1326 ordains the repetition of the prayer thrice each morning, noon, and evening, the hour being indicated by sound of bells called the Ave Maria or Angelus Domini. The prayers are counted upon the small beads of the rosary, as the Paternosters are upon the large ones. Research Ave Maria
Eau de Cologne is a perfume said to have been invented by the Italian chemist, Johann Maria Farina, who settled at Cologne in 1709. The original recipe is unknown, though several chemists in Cologne have long claimed to be the sole owners of it. The general principle of Eau de Cologne is alcoholic vegetable extracts, essential oils and rectified spirits. The usual recipe prescribes twelve drops of each of the essential oils, bergamot, citron, neroli, orange and rosemary, with one dram of Malabar cardamoms and a gallon of rectified spirits which are distilled together. Later recipes used highly purified spirits and made further distillation unnecessary. Research Eau de Cologne
The Granny Smith apple derives its name from a real granny Smith, Mrs MariaSmith, who discovered this seedling in her garden in Australia in the 1860's.
Granny Smith is in full bloom from middle to late October and is harvested from late March to late April. It is a medium to large apple, varying in colour from light to bright green. In cooler areas it will develop a red blush. The lenticels are well developed. The flesh is firm, white and crisp. The taste is slightly tart, yet sweet. It is an excellent eating apple and good for baking, and excellent for sauces or purees. Research Granny Smith
Alphonso XII was King of Spain. He was born in 1857 and died in 1885. The only son of Queen Isabella II and her cousin Francis of Assisi, he left Spain with his mother when she was driven from the throne by the revolution of 1868, and until 1874 resided partly in France and partly in Austria. In the latter year he studied for a time at the English military college, Sandhurst, being then known as Prince of the Asturias. His mother had given up her claims to the throne in 1870 in his favour, and in 1874 Alphonso came forward himself as claimant, and in the end of the year was proclaimed by General MartinezCampos as king. He now passed over into Spain and was enthusiastically received, most of the Spaniards being by this time tired of the republican government, which had failed to put down the Carlist party. Alphonso XII was successful in bringing the Carlist struggle to an end in 1876, and henceforth he reigned with little disturbance. He married first his cousin Maria de las Mercedes, daughter of the Duire de Montpensier; second, Maria Christina, archduchess of Austria, whom he left a widow with two daughters, a son (later Alphonso XIII) being born posthumously. Research Alphonso XII
Andrea Appiani was an Italian painter. He was born in 1754 at Milan and died in 1817. As a fresco-painter he excelled every contemporary painter in Italy. He displayed his skill particularly in the cupola of Santa Mariadi S. Celso at Milan, and in the paintings representing the legend of Cupid and Psyche, prepared for the walls and ceiling of the villa of the Archduke Ferdinand at Monza in 1795. Napoleon appointed him royal court painter, and portraits of almost the whole of the imperial family were painted by him. Research Andrea Appiani
Andrea di Cione (also known as Orcagna and Arcaonuolo) was an Italian painter, sculptor and architect. He was born in 1316 at Florence and died in 1376. He painted frescoes of Santa Maria Novella and was the architect of Or San Michele. Research Andrea di Cione
Andrea Sansovino (properly Andrea Contucci) was an Italian sculptor and architect. He was born in 1460 near Montepulciano and died in 1529. After working at Florence and Portugal from 1491 to 1500 he was, in 1505, called by Pope Julius II to Rome where he executed the funeral monuments of Cardinals Basso and Sforza for Santa Maria del Popolo. From 1513 he was engaged on the decoration of the cathedralchurch of Santa Croce at Loreto. Research Andrea Sansovino
Antonio Maria Sacchini was an Italian composer. He was born in 1734 at Pozzuoli and died in 1786. A pupil of Francesco Durante, he lived in Rome, then Venice, London and Paris. In London he met with a hostile reception. He principally wrote operas, including 'Il Gran Cid', 'Tamerlano', 'Lucio Vero' and ' Oedipe e Colone', the cold reception of the last in Paris indirectly causing his death. Research Antonio Sacchini
Bonaparte was the French form which the great Napoleon was the first to give to the original Italian name Buona-parte, borne by his family in Corsica. As early as the 12th and 13th centuries there were families of this name in Northern Italy, members of which reached some distinction as governors of cities (podesta), envoys, etc. But the connection between the Corsican Bonapartes and these Italian families is not clearly established, though probably the former descended from a Genoese branch of the family, which transplanted itself about the beginning of the 16th century to Corsica, an island then under the jurisdiction of Genoa. From that time the Buona-partes ranked as a distinguished patrician family of Ajaccio.
About the middle of the 18th century there remained three male representatives of this family at Ajaccio, viz. the archdeacon Luciano Bonaparte, his brother Napoleon, and the nephew of both, Carlo, the father of the Emperor Napoleon I. Carlo or Charles Buonaparte, born in 1746, studied law at Pisa University, and on his return to Corsica married Letizia Ramolino. He fought under Paoli for the independence of Corsica, but when further resistance was useless he went over to the side of the French, and was included by Louis XV amongst the 400 Corsican families who were to have rights in France as noble. In 1777 he went to Paris, where he resided for several years, procuring a free admission for his second son Napoleon to the military school of Brienne. He died in 1785 at Montpellier. By his marriage with Letizia Ramolino he left eight children: Giuseppe, or Joseph, king of Spain; Napoleon I, emperor of the French; Lucien, prince of Canino; Maria Anna, afterwards called Elise, princess of Lucca and Piombino, and wife of Prince Bacciocchi, Luigi, or Louis, king of Holland; Garlotta, afterwards named Marie Pauline, princess Borghese, Annunciata, afterwards called Caroline, wife of Murat king of Naples; and Girolamo, or Jerome, king of Westphalia. Research Bonaparte
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Matt and Leela Probert
Abbreviations
Research Ave Maria
