Marianne Faithfull

Born December 29, 1946, English singer and actress Marianne Faithfull was a big part of the "British Invasion" of the 1960s, beginning with her '64 single "As Tears Go By". She became one of the leading female artists of the British Invasion in the United States. She recorded albums for Decca, and also appeared in films like I'll Never Forget What's'isname (1967), The Girl on a Motorcycle (1968) and Hamlet (1969). She and Mick Jagger were in a relationship in the late '60s. She is said to have inspired Stones songs like "You Can't Always Get What You Want", "Wild Horses", and others. She cowrote their song "Sister Morphine". In the '70s, Faithfull dealt with serious problems including addiction and homelessness.But unlike some Sixties icons, she did have a long life and career, which are interesting to read about. She died last January.

 

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When Jews Were Expelled from Paducah

On December 28, 1862, thirty Jewish families were expelled from Paducah, Kentucky and sent off on an Ohio River boat. What happened? During the Civil War, there was a lucrative black market in southern cotton along the river. Some of the traders were Jewish, but by no means all. Grant became furious at his own father for joining in the trader with a prominent Jewish company from Cincinnati. On December 17, 1862, Grant issued General Orders No. 11, which stated: “The Jews, as a class, violating every regulation of trade established by the Treasury Department, and also Department orders, are hereby expelled from the Department.” The Paducah expulsion was the largest result of the order. A Jewish citizen of that city, Cesar Kaskel, traveled to DC and met with President Lincoln about the order. Already, Lincoln had received many telegrams in protest. Lincoln--described by his law partner as one of the least prejudiced persons he'd ever met--had always had Jewish friends. Lincoln quickly demanded that the order be immediately rescinded. Grant regretted the order, although his comments about it weren't very good apologies. When he ran for president in 1868, no less a figure than Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise urged Jews not to vote for him. However, Grant seemed to have a genuine desire to rectify his earlier failure. He supported and appointed Jews during his presidency, speaking on their behalf. At his death he was mourned by the Jewish community. But the wartime incident was a painful reminder of the many expulsions--on a much larger scale--that Jews have suffered through the centuries.

https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/ulysses-s-grant-and-general-orders-no-11.htm?fbclid=IwY2xjawPA0cZleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEe0SUxtcTPu5KX8m1FFFIUy_06LBrgrc7t3a1G9cMDTcZNsiu6fgbs3RxhPlc_aem_LkQIG3PGKGV7l5VLDMVhuw

Maud Gonne

"But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you,/ And loved the sorrows of your changing face." Born December 21, 1866, Maud Gonne was an Anglo-Irish actress, suffragette, and Irish republican leader to worked for many years for Home Rule. She co-founded the organization that became the foundation for the Sinn Féin party. She founded Inghinidhe na hÉireann ("Daughters of Ireland"), an influential women's literary society. She also worked for programs for the hungry, for debt relief, and for prisoners. A tall person--at least 6' and possibly taller--with a background in theatre, she was a compelling public speaker. Unfortunately, she also held antisemitic views. Gonne was the muse of poet W. B. Yeats, who proposed to her unsuccessfully four times, and who even proposed to her daughter. Gonne didn't want to adopt Yeats' Catholicism, and she believed he was insufficiently passionate about Irish nationalism. Many of his poems were written for or about her: The Countess Cathleen, A Woman Homer Sung, No Second Troy, When You Are Old, The Rose of the World, He Wishes for the Cloths of Heaven, and others. He also wrote of her in poems like Easter 1916 ("That woman's days were spent/ In ignorant good-will,/ Her nights in argument/ Until her voice grew shrill....") and Among School Children:

I dream of a Ledaean body, bent

Above a sinking fire, a tale that she

Told of a harsh reproof, or trivial event

That changed some childish day to tragedy—

Told, and it seemed that our two natures blent

Into a sphere from youthful sympathy,

Or else, to alter Plato's parable,

Into the yolk and white of the one shell.

Gonne knew that Yeats' poetry was part of her own legacy. She told him that posterity would be glad that she rejected his proposals, considering how he transformed his sadness into immortal verse.

(I used to read a lot of Yeats' poetry and I enjoy Irish history!)

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Great Swamp Massacre, 350 Years Ago Today

A tragic anniversary, 350 years ago today. King Philip's War was waged between English settlers and Native tribes in 1675-1678, a catastrophe for both sides. One of the tragic battles was the Great Swamp Massacre on December 19, 1675. A large Narragansett settlement existed on an island of Great Swamp near South Kingstown, Rhode Island; about 1000 people lived at the 5-acre fort. On December 19, 1675, a force of New England militia and 150 men of the Pequot tribe destroyed the fort and killed hundreds of Narragansetts, including many women, children, and elderly. Capt. Benjamin Church, who later wrote a history of King Philip's War, was wounded. In the spring, the Narragansetts would make destructive raids on English towns, for instance, burning Providence, RI. The location of the battle was of later interest; even Yale president Ezra Stiles rode over to look for it. Finally in 2021, the probable area was transferred to the Narragansett tribe to be held by them in trust. https://smallstatebighistory.com/the-search-for-the-site-of-the-great-swamp-massacre/

Happy Anniversary, Boston Tea Party

The Boston Tea Party was 252 years ago, December 16, 1773. The Townshend Acts were a series of British acts of Parliament, passed in 1767-1768, that imposed several taxes and regulations upon the British colonies to fund administration of the colonies. The taxes also were intended to pay the enormous debt that the British incurred in the Seven Years War/French and Indian War. The Tea Act of 1773 was an additional tax. A colonial group called the Sons of Liberty saw all these taxes as a violation of their rights. Dressed as Native Americans, members of the group dumped an entire shipment of tea sent by the East India Company into the harbor: 342 chests altogether. The incident gave additional momentum to the colonial drive toward revolution. The name "Boston Tea Party" didn't appear in print until the 1830s. Later, protesters like Mahatma Gandhi and others invited the 1773 event as a forerunner to social resistance.

Happy 150th Birthday, Rainer Maria Rilke

At Java Central today, another customer had Rilke's "Duino Elegies" with him. I said, "Hey, tomorrow is the 150th anniversary of Rilke's birth!" Influential Austrian poet and novelist Rainer Maria Rilke was born December 4, 1875!  I like his "Book of Hours". 

I live my life in widening circles

that reach out across the world.

I may not complete this last one

but I will give myself to it.

I circle around God, around the primordial tower.

I’ve been circling for thousands of years

and I still don’t know: am I a falcon,

a storm, or a great song?

Happy birthday, George Mason

 Born 300 years ago--December 11, 1725--George Mason authored much of the Fairfax Resolves of 1774, the Virginia Declaration of Rights of 1776, and also his Objections to this Constitution of Government (1787). He had been a delegate to the U.S. Constitutional Convention of 1787 but refused to sign the constitution, citing its lack of a bill of rights. His Virginia Declaration of Rights subsequently became the basis of the Bill of Rights. He spoke out against slavery, which he called a "slow poison" for the nation, and worked to end the international slave trade. Yet he owned numerous slaves and is not known to have freed any.

Happy birthday, Leo X

 Pope Leo X (Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici) was born on December 11, 1475. 550 years. Leo spent crazy amounts of money, patronizing the arts and funding the War of Urbino. He is associated with the beginning of the Protestant Reformation, because his granting of indulgences for donors to St. Peter's reconstruction was criticized by Martin Luther in the latter's 95 Theses. Leo eventually issued a statement (the papal bull Exsurge Domine, "Arise, O Lord") condemning Luther's stance. This picture is Raphael, "Portrait of Pope Leo X with Cardinals Giulio de’Medici and Luigi de’Rossi", c. 1518.

Vandalia's Statehouse

The Tenth Illinois General Assembly convened in my hometown on December 5, 1836. It was the first government session to meet at our Vandalia Statehouse. The session initiated a bold system of public works ("internal improvements"), selected Springfield to be the next state capital, moved along authorization of the Illinois and Michigan Canal, and incorporated the then-small city of Chicago. 

The session was also a gathering of great political talent. Of its members, Abraham Lincoln became president, five became U.S. senators (Stephen A Douglas, James Semple, James Shields, O. H. Browning, and William Richardson), eight became congressmen (Robert Smith, John McClernand, Stephen A. Douglas, John J. Hardin, William Richardson, Abraham Lincoln, E. D. Baker, and John Hogan), and one became Illinois governor (Augustus French). The assembly also included past and future Illinois attorneys general, state treasurers, and state auditors. John McClernand became a Union general, John Logan was the father of Union general John A. Logan. Lincoln, Baker, and Hardin, notable Whigs at this session, died in service to their country.

Lincoln was 27 years old in 1836, and Douglas was 23. This session was the only time that they served together in the legislature. They had first met at Vandalia in 1834. 

The first picture of the title page of the Illinois Senate journal for this session (photobombed with the shadow of cat ears...). The second page is from the House journal, showing the 77-6 vote on a resolution upholding the constitutional right of states to hold slaves and the right of the District of Columbia to retain slavery in spite of congressional efforts to the contrary. Notice Lincoln's name among the six negative votes. Later in the session, Lincoln and Dan Stone published an explanation (which, unfortunately, is missing in this incomplete copy of the House journal).

St. Nicholas Day

 December 6 is the feast day of St. Nicholas, the Christian bishop who died on this day in 343. He is the patron saint of several occupations and is specially associated with the protection of children. Although Advent is a time of longing and reflection rather than fulfillment, Nicholas bids us to show God’s love in tangible ways and to stay happy. I found a site that has this: “Celebrating St. Nicholas on his day in Advent brings a bit of fun and festivity into homes, churches, and schools. His small treats and surprises help keep the spirit of good St. Nicholas, especially when stories of his goodness and kind deeds are told and ways to express his care for those in need are sought. Saint Nicholas helps us remember Christmas is a feast of love, hope, kindness and generosity.” Compelling and "human" as the story is, there is no historical evidence that Nicholas slapped the heretic Arius at the Council of Nicea--although the story is very often repeated as fact. The legend dates from a thousand years after the saint's time. Several years ago, Beth bought me this lovely icon in Belgrade.