The Nuremberg Trials

When the Allied leaders met in the year 1942 to strategise against the Nazi defeats that were slowly changing the map of Europe, they had more than military matters on their minds. They were already shaping their minds to think in terms of the Nazi leaders being put on trial once they were defeated to face justice for their barbaric acts. When asked for advice, Winston Churchill was in favour of shooting those criminals. Josef Stalin preferred public trials for his propaganda purposes. The Americans had their own thinking and they disagreed with both the British and Russian minds. Once the war was over in 1945, the Americans decided to involve both the British and the Russians while holding a tribunal at Nuremberg in Germany. The Russians wanted the trials to be conducted in Berlin but the place had suffered massive damage and that was the main reason why Nuremberg was decided upon as the city to hold an unparalleled trial against war crimes which was not seen any time before in the history of modern wars. The Palace of Justice at Nuremberg was intact though it required renovation to hold and host the trial. The Grand Hotel was also not damaged and it could hold reporters and other observers. The death of Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the suicide of Adolf Hitler (I feel that Hitler burnt bodies of others and escaped to Argentina by the escape routes from his Berlin bunker) were not a deterrent to holding the war crimes’ trials. Many felt that such a trial would accomplish nothing as the damage had already been done while others felt it was necessary to lay a foundation for a judicial process that would bring to book the perpetrators of what would be termed as crimes against humanity. Hitler could not be tried as a Nazi leader but there other followers of his, most notably Hermann Goering who were alive and could be brought to justice. President Harry Truman took it upon himself to carry out the intentions of Franklin Roosevelt about bringing the war criminals to trial. The Nuremberg trials involved thirteen cases that exposed more than a hundred defendants. The most famous of the trials was the primary one that involved determining the guilt or innocence of major Nazi leaders as they were charged with war crimes. Other important trials involved sixteen German judges and Reich Ministry officials. Some trials were of the German doctors and the Einsatzgruppen (Task Forces or Deployment Groups). Most people remember only the Hermann Goering trial in front of an international tribunal. For prosecuting the Nazis, the lawyers decided that their cases would be strong if they were built upon the documents and records that the Nazis themselves had written. When the Nuremberg trials began, the Allied prosecutors had roughly three thousand tons of documents that could be submitted as proof of what the Nazis had done, During the trials, 199 defendants were tried, 161 were convicted and 37 were sentenced to death. These trials offered a legal indictment of the evil deeds committed by the regime of the Nazis. Most of the defendants pleaded that they were innocent of any crime as they were following orders administered by higher authorities. In the perspective of the rest of the world, the humiliation of their execution that Nazi ideology was evil that had to be punished. In my opinion, these trials were a big farce as wars and war crimes still continue and the perpetrators are never brought to book. Let us reverse the coin for a moment, the evil committed by Israel and the Jews since the end of the Second World War have conveniently been brushed aside and no one has been held responsible or accountable. These trials should have set a precedent as the foundation for a legal process by which the legal community of the entire world could bring to justice and accuse those who have violated the standards of human conduct that is universally acceptable. Domination through Barbarism These trials were an attempt to trigger the conscience of the people to judge and to condemn the monstrous attempt at domination and barbarism of all times. The Nazi Party believed that their creation of the Third Reich would last for about one thousand years. Hitler predicted that as the Chancellor of Germany and the leader of the Nazi Party. At the party rallies at Nuremberg between 1927 and 1938, Hitler was always reminding Germany of its great destiny. He felt that the loss of the First World War was because of the betrayal of the Jews. Before attacking Poland, the German Nazi regime was clear in its mind to make life miserable for the Jews and the Slavs. These communities were the targets. The next group of targets were the mentally ill, the handicapped, homosexuals and anyone who did not fit the Nazi ideal of a German. The first objective was to occupy lands of Europe, bit by bit and then start their atrocities. The script did not play as the Germans expected just like the scenario at the end of the First World War. By mid 1945, the fortune of the Nazi war minds had considerably altered. The Russians were advancing towards Berlin and the Eastern Front was lost. The Nazi party or what was left of it was now reconciled to the fact that they had lost and they wanted to get rid of all evidence of their activities during the last six-year period. At Auschwitz, more than a million prisoners at that camp had already been killed as almost six thousand Jews were put to death, each day. Heinrich Himmler ordered the destruction of the gas chambers at Auschwitz. They blew them and were leaving ruins behind. Those prisoners who were weak to move out of the camp were killed by the SS (Schutz Staffel – Protection Squadron). Some officers at the camp fled and deserted while those who remained; they were busy burning documents which attested to the activities that were taking place at the camp at Auschwitz. However, not all evidence could be destroyed. It was all there in the photographs that were recovered by the Soviet troops when they reached that place. Apart from the photographs, the mass graves also told their stories. There were many survivors who gave their gruelling accounts. It was ironical that Nuremberg, where the Nazi party rallies started was once again the scene where the voices of the victims of war would be heard. Trial Preparations Franklin Delano Roosevelt had this to say about war crimes and atrocities – “All who shared in the guilt shall share in the punishment.” All concerned between the United States of America, United Kingdom and Soviet Union were of a unified thought that retribution was necessary at the Nuremberg Trials; yet, there was no single consensus of opinion on how to deliver justice to the Nazis for the commitment of their crimes. The Allies had been seeking a way to accuse the Nazis for their crimes against their victims of their racial purity policy and ethnic cleansing. The British and the Soviets had suffered directly from the attacks of the Nazis and were more retaliatory in their intentions at these trials; more so than those in the United States of America. There was a point when Josef Stalin had proposed trying a hundred thousand German staff officers. Churchill was of an opinion to execute high ranking Nazis and he did not think a trial was necessary. The officers from the United States believed that a criminal trial would be able to document charges and avoid later accusations that the defendants were condemned without proper evidence. Punishment after the trials was not going to be an easy affair as the thirst for vengeance had to be filtered. Winston Churchill wanted the Nazi leaders to be hunted down and shot. The Treasury Secretary of the United States, Henry Morgenthau, proposed that the economy of Germany should get reverted to agricultural instead of industrial base and that the leaders should be shot by a firing squad. President Harry Truman, who succeeded F.D. Roosevelt after his sudden death, supported the idea of holding a trial at Nuremberg, Germany. He identified Robert Jackson, an Associate Justice Lawyer on the Supreme Court Panel as the Chief of Counsel for the trials and initiated the process for the same. The leaders of the Allied Countries, including France, signed the London Charter of the International Military Tribunal in August 1945, creating a Court that would try the Nazi cases. Jackson set himself to creating a framework which would allow the prosecution to proceed. This was to be done keeping in mind that the Allies would not violate the Third Geneva Convention of ill-treating the Prisoners of War. There were four charges brought against the Nazi defendants – Count 1 – Conspiracy to wage aggressive war which would address crimes that had been committed before the start of the war. Count 2 – Waging an aggressive war against peace, violating international treaties. Count 3 – War crimes that were concerned with the mistreatment and killing of prisoners of war, use of slave labour, bombing of civilian population (that is rampant now in the modern world with not a single cry against it), retaliatory killings and violations of the Hague and Geneva Conventions along with the use of outlawed weapons. Count 4 – Crimes against humanity that covered justice for the Jews and other ethnic minorities and against the physically and mentally handicapped civilians in occupied countries. Jackson led a team of forty-six prosecutors who agreed that the defendants could select their own attorneys. They would be provided with legal help, should they need it and the cost would be absorbed by the London Agreement. The defendants would also be able to appeal their verdict to the Allied Control Council. The Soviets felt that the trials should be held in Berlin as they were already taking charge of the city after their invasion, The United States and Britain thought that Nuremberg would be the fitting place to hold the trials. It had a symbolic importance as the location of the annual Nazi Party rally and it was through Nuremberg Laws that Hitler had deprived German Jews of their civil rights. Secondly, Nuremberg was not affected badly by bombing as Berlin was. The city’s Palace of Justice and accompanying prison were modified and used. Nuremberg was also part of the American Sector of Germany after the country was broken into four sections where each was under the control of one of the four Allied nations, Restoration work was soon begun on the Palace of Justice. It contained eventually twenty courtrooms and a prison that was capable of holding twelve hundred prisoners. The Allies also built galleries for visitors and press members. This trial would be the first of its kind and there would be challenges posed by an international tribunal on the world stage. English, German, French and Russian would have to be used every day during the proceedings and translation would bog down the trials. IBM (International Business Machines) had developed recently a translation system that would allow every participant in the trial to her real-time translations through headsets. The microphones were built with yellow lights that would remind people who were speaking to go slowly for the benefit of the translators. Red Lights indicated that they had to stop and that they were going too fast. They had to then repeat their statements. This would help the trial to move faster than the conventional consecutive translation system. Robert Jackson who initiated the proceedings had mentioned that the trial proposed to punish acts that have been regarded as criminal since the time of Cain and Abel. The Defendants Robert Jackson, who was given the role of being in-charge of the Nuremberg trials, wrote, “What we propose is to punish acts which have been regarded as criminal since the time of Cain and have been so written in every civilized code.” Six days after the Charter of the International Military Tribunal was signed outlining the procedure for the Nuremberg Trials, a cargo plane with most of the Nazi war trial defenders landed in Nuremberg. The prisoners were then loaded into ambulances by the Allied military personnel and taken to cell blocks in the Palace of Justice. They stayed there for the next fourteen months. Conversation between prisoners and guards was to remain brief. The prisoners were to be guarded at all time. There were no locks and no keys were used. The doors were bolted from the outside. They had to sleep with their hands outside the blankets. The prisoners had to sleep with one bulb on. The cells were not dark at night. The prisoners were allowed to attend church service. As judges, Robert Jackson represented the United States of America. Hartley Shawcross represented Great Britain, Francois de Menthon represented France and he was later replaced by Auguste Champetier de Ribes; Roman Rudenko represented the Soviet Union. These judges had more than six hundred assistants working for them in building the case and collecting evidence against the Nazis. On 6th October, 1945, the International Military Tribunal’s four chief prosecutors handed down indictments against twenty-four high ranking Nazi officials. They did not include Joseph Goebbels who became Chancellor of Germany after Hitler’s alleged suicide. Goebbels and his wife also committed suicide after poisoning their six children. Heinrich Himmler also committed suicide earlier in May by taking a cyanide pill. Here in Nuremberg, one of the prisoners, Robert Ley committed suicide while in custody. The Nuremberg trials, that were considered unique in the annals of jurisprudence, would last till 1st October, 1946. The Trial Once the indictments were delivered, the stage was set for the trials to commence. The defendants were made to get up at six in the morning on the morning of 20th November 1945. They were served oatmeal for breakfast along with coffee and were made to shave and to dress for the trial. They had to wear their uniforms without the insignia if they were military personnel or suits and ties if they were civilians. They were made to sit in the courtroom in an order that their names appeared on the indictments. At around 0930, about two hundred and fifty journalists entered the courtroom, representing twenty-three countries. These journalists included some heavyweight names in the field of journalism such as Walter Cronkite for the United Press, Howard Smith for CBS Radio and Rebecca West for the New Yorker. At 1000 hours, The International Military Tribunal Court convened. The first day of the trial was spent mostly on the reading of the indictments. Before lunch the next day, all the defendants entered their `not guilty’ pleas. Hermann Goering wanted to deliver a speech but he was cut short and not allowed. Robert Jackson, despite their denial, built up a strong case against them by using their documents and mostly written papers as evidence. Hartley Shawcross of Britain delivered his open remarks, reading from an affidavit that was given by a German construction worker who was witness to the fate of most Jews in a Ukrainian town. This affidavit revealed that an SS unit which was assigned to the town had shot over five thousand Jews in a single afternoon and the corpses were buried in a pit. Jackson was fully convinced that the documents from the Nazis would build a good foundation for his case but there few who felt that the documents would not be enough. A film was shown on the Nazi Concentration Camps and it included stacks of bodies piled up in camps at Bergen-Belsen, Buchenwald and Dachau. Goering dismissed it as circumstantial evidence. Judge Lawrence left the courtroom after viewing the film and did not return for the whole day. The Prosecution Robert Jackson delivered a speech, saying, ”Four great nations who were stung with injury stayed the hand of vengeance and voluntarily submitted their captive enemies to the judgment of law and this would be one of the most significant tributes that power would ever pay to reason.” The prosecution decided to divide its case into two phases. The first phase involved the criminality of the different aspects of the Nazi regime while the second phase covered the guilt of the individuals who had been indicted.. The first phase began with the assertion that the Austrian invasion was an act of aggressive warfare. The use of slave labour and operation of the concentration camps was brought into play. Examples were brought into the court about how Commandant Koch had used the skull of an executed Polish prisoner as a paperweight. These cases were presented as crimes against humanity. A French woman, Marie-Claude Vaillant-Couturier, who had been detained at Auschwitz told the court about how she recalled events of a night when she was awakened by the cries of children who were thrown alive into furnaces when the Nazis did not have enough gas to kill them. The film was titled, `Documentary Evidence of the German Fascist Invaders’. This was presented by the Soviets. They had captured the footage from the Germans and narrated in Russian. One of the clips showed German soldiers shown as smiling as they shot naked women, lying down in a ditch. It was now becoming clear that the Germans had indeed committed crimes against humanity. It was also clear that they all had brains but without a conscience. One of the Nazi party officers said that “Once we came to power, we were determined to hold on to it under all circumstances.” During the trial, when Hermann Goering was asked to defend the necessity of concentration camps, he replied that those were essential for the preservation of order and in order to remove danger. When the sentence was pronounced, twelve of the defendants were charged to death, including Hermann Goering. It was going to be death by hanging. Two were sentenced to life in prison. On 1st October, 1946, the Tribunal adjourned as its work was concluded. Over the next fortnight, the sentenced Nazis were allowed to spend time with their families and their lawyers in case of an appeal. The Allied Control Council looked at the appeals and rejected all. They were all hanged on 16th October, 1946 and their bodies were cremated and their ashes were scattered in River Isar near Munich. The Verdict and Legacy German Radio covered the reading of the verdict. The evidence and sentencing removed all hopes that the defendants might have held that they would be regarded as martyrs in their homeland. They were branded by the trial as criminals and not heroes. Subsequent to this major trial, a dozen more trials would be held at Nuremberg from December 1946 to April 1949. These trials took place before United States’ military tribunals and there was no representation by an international unit. They were held at the same location of the Palace of Justice. The trials were held of other Nazis such as SS Officers who had abused inmates in the concentration camps, industrialists who used slave labour and military officers who had committed atrocities against prisoners of war. Seventy-seven people were sentenced to prison terms of different lengths. A dozen of them were executed. The legacy of these trials was reserved but the whole world did not believe that they provided fair justice. Many said that the crimes committed by the Allies were hidden from the prosecution. Some called these trials a high-grade ‘lynching party.” Meanwhile, Justice Robert Jackson wrote a letter to President Truman mentioning that the French were violating the Geneva Convention by their treatment of the prisoners of war and that the Soviets were forcing themselves assertively over the Baltic States without any justification. It has to be noted that the Geneva Convention prohibits methods and weapons capable of causing suffering and unnecessary losses such as the poison gas. The Nuremberg trials demanded a reckoning for the Nazi Reich making violence a novelty in war times. They became a precedent to the formation of the International Criminal Court at Hague in the Netherlands. Source Citations: 1. `Blind Eye to Murder’, Tom Bower, 1995. 2. `Tyranny on Trial’, Whitney Harris, 2006 3. `The Nuremberg Military Tribunals’, Kevin Jon Heller, 2011 4. `Interrogations of the Nazi Elite’, Richard Overy, 2001 5. `The Nuremberg Trials’, Quincy Wright, 1946 *******

The Oldest Library in India

India got its oldest library through a stowaway. What do we mean by that? A stowaway is one who smuggles on to a passenger vehicle without a valid ticket to cover the fare. We have to go back one hundred and eighty years, when a young British Anglo-Indian, Abel Joshua Higginbotham was thrown out of a ship at Madras Presidency. Being a librarian, he got a job as a store manager of Wesleyan Book Shop. This store was patronised by local theologians and it sold mostly religious works and scriptures. The year was 1846. Around 1854, the store was shut down as the missionaries who ran it, also ran out of profits. They offered the Store Manager, Abel, the option of buying the stock of books from them. Who was Abel Higginbotham? He was born in Scotland and after completing high school; he became a seaman. He was not suited to the rough life on sea. He then tried to abandon the ship that he was employed on but was caught and as a stowaway; he was forced to work as an apprentice. When the ship boarded at Madras in India, he ran away and escaped. When the Wesleyan Book Shop offered him the option buying the stock, he took the opportunity and started calling the store, `Higginbothams’. The store gained popularity in time for the quality of its books and the diversity of subjects. Abel was adept and used his knack of tracking down and buying rare books that were in popular demand. The evidence of this is found in a guide book that was published in 1859 by John Murray. It was titled, `Presidencies of Madras and Bombay’. They listed `Higginbothams’ as a `premier book shop’. For all book lovers who lived in Madras, the name `Higginbothams’ became synonymous with not just a good book store but THE book store to go to. Even to the present day, this book store’s name is bound to trigger many memories. All those who visited this bookstore would remember the quality of books this store housed and the famous chequered visual floor patterns, its wooden railings and the high arches. It used to serve upscale families, mostly of royal lineage, ministers and their institutions for more than a hundred years. It is known today as India’s oldest bookstore and it is still in business in major centres of the country even after one hundred and seventy-five years. The bookstore chain opened its unit in Bangalore at Mahatma Gandhi Road in 1897 in a double-storeyed Greco-Roman style building. This is the oldest bookstore in existence in Bangalore, today. In 1869, Britain helped open the Suez Canal and it provided direct access to Asia in considerably good time. What was a three-month journey from England to India was now possible in a matter of three weeks. Tourism and trade grew and ships that were carrying foreign goods came into India at a faster rate. Large crates for the bookstore, `Higginbothams’, were regularly offloaded at Madras Port. They were precious cargo of books and publications which were on the top of the bestseller lists in the United Kingdom and Europe. This helped Higginbothams in becoming the largest bookstore chain in India in the nineteenth century and the reputation grew. The Prince of Wales who went on to become King Edward VII was an avid reader. Higginbothams was appointed as his official bookseller when he visited India in 1876. They were designated to provide the Prince with sufficient reading material after his arrival at the Royapuram Station in Madras. This indirectly helped the bookstore in attracting a large elite clientele. By the beginning of the twentieth century, Higginbothams had turned into the official book supplier for the government and it expanded its trading by publishing cookbooks with recipes. Its clientele ranged from the British Prime Minister Clement Attlee to the Maharaja of Mysore, Jayachamaraja Wodeyar. It was not a surprise then that Madras Curry Powder and Mulligatawny Soup became the legacy of the British Raj; only after Higginbothams printed their recipes. A.J. Higginbothams died in 1891 and left his son, C.H. Higginbotham in-charge of the bookstore. After the son took over, he spread the legacy across the whole range of Southern India. The store shifted to its present location at Mount Road (which is now called Anna Salai). This white building is one of the landmark structures as a form of heritage in the City of Madras (now Chennai). By the nineteen forties, Higginbothams had started stalls at the Central Railway Station in Madras and at Ernakulam Junction Railway Station in Cochin, making books available to interested travelers. In 1949, after India gained independence, S. Anantharamakrishnan, belonging to the `Amalgamations Group’, purchased the bookstore and made it into an Indian company. Today, in the digital age, people do not appreciate the fact that physical books do retain their charm. To Higginbothams, regional language publications have always remained important. The shop in Chennai has an exclusive section for books in the Tamil language. This group has more than twenty stores spread all over Southern India. The store in Chennai is important in a historical perspective as the first and the oldest bookstore in South India. It was at Mount Road in Madras in the year 1844 that Abel Joshua Higginbotham purchased spare office space and established this bookstore which is perhaps the oldest bookstore in the country. More About the Family Abel Joshua Higginbotham was born in Cannanore in Kerala, India, in 1819. His father Joseph Higginbotham served in Bangalore as part of the Sixty-Ninth Regiment. This regiment’s Indian sepoys had rebelled in the 1815 Vellore mutiny. Joshua Higginbotham’s mother died when he was only twelve years old and as his father passed away in a few years; he was adopted by missionaries of the Church of Scotland. He became a seaman as soon as he completed his schooling. The rough life at sea and its monotony did not appeal to him. He tried to abandon his ship and return to India but was caught and forced to serve out his apprenticeship. He became a stowaway at Madras Port. There, he worked in a bookstore and later became its manager. This bookstore belonged to the Methodist missionaries. He became passionate about collecting books. He recognised that he had developed the skills to converse about books and he was resourceful in tracking down rare books that were in demand. He managed the bookstore in the basement of the chapel. Initially, it sold only religious works. He decided to shift the store to Mount Road. In March 1859, Lord Charles Trevelyan, Governor of Madras at that time, wrote about the bookstore to Thomas Macaulay. He talked about it as “one of the many elusive and indescribable charms of life in Maras City. The following year, many noticeable renovations were made to the shop by John Law, a recognised builder and an architect. As time went by, in 1875, Higginbotham and Company were registered as bookseller and stationery supplier to the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII) when he visited India. During the visit of the King, Higginbotham began publishing its own books as well as some classics in ancient Hindu Law and other well-known works such as Colonel Todd’s Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan, Mark Wilks’ Sketches of South India and Francis Buchanan’s Mysore. The popularity of the bookstore brought the popularity of Higginbotham to the limelight. Civic officials sought him out for his knowledge. In 1890, he served as the Sheriff of Madras for a few years before his death. The bookstore scaled big heights under the supervision of Charles Herbert Higginbotham. It had become the city’s go-to place by 1904 and it had by then completed almost six decades since its inception. It started to sell apart from books; stationery and related supplies. Another store was opened in Bangalore and subsequently; bookstalls were set up at railway stations serving the Madras and South Indian Railways. Charles Higginbotham kept up the publishing interests of his father and carried on his legacy. Some of the first curry recipe books in India were published by Higginbotham and Company. Some of the titles were `Sweet Dishes’ and `A Little Treatise on Confectionery’. Charles Higginbotham died in 1930. In 1949, there was a merger with Associated Publishers which was part of the Madras business group of Amalgamations Group. Higginbothams remains a legendary name and a landmark in its accomplished history of one hundred and seventy-four years at various railways stations and cities across India. Several decades ago, when brick-and-mortar bookstores were struggling to survive or were locked some decades later in a fight with e-commerce big-shots, Higginbothams continued to be a big draw and lured customers who had passion for books that attracted its founder, eighteen decades ago.

What is a Theremin?

People who are interested in the sounds of diverse instruments for music should be interested in this term. This is a quantum instrument which is played mainly by the energy that is generated from our hands. This instrument creates a magnetic field which could be created without any touch and it gives out a sound that resembles the human voice. The person playing this instrument would have to stand in front of the instrument and move his or her hands around two metal antennae. The distance from one antenna will establish the frequency or pitch while the distance from the other antenna will control the amplitude or the volume of sound. The Theremin will use the heterodyne principle to generate audio signals. It may sound too easy but it is not. The instrument is quite difficult to master. This instrument was invented by a Russian, Leon Theremin, in 1920. It was presented first to Vladimir Lenin, who was very impressed with its sound. Lenin ordered a quantity of six hundred instruments to be produced for him. Lenin arranged for a voyage that Theremin had to undertake for the sole purpose of introducing this unique instrument to many places in the world. The instrument was given its due attention by three out of close to two hundred countries – only Russia, Japan and Ireland. You can consider a Theremin to be the first electronic musical instrument in the world which is played without any physical contact. The Thereminist will control the pitch and volume by moving hands near the two metal antennae that helps to create electromagnetic fields. This gives out ethereal and haunting tones that resemble a human voice. The operating mechanism is on the principle of variable capacitance which uses vacuum tubes or solid-state electronics to create electromagnetic fields. This instrument has been heard mainly in film background scores such as `Spellbound’ and `The Day the Earth Stood Still’. It is not an easy instrument to play as it demands precise hand positioning, without physical keys or frets. The Beach Boys also used this instrument in their rock compositions. Take a look, here:- https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Gz_UhVyF0Ao?feature=share

Why is it important to have your own planned designs for furniture for aesthetic interiors?

When you decide to build aesthetic furniture for your house or office, you have to start by focusing on natural materials, functional design and styling to create interiors that are soothing to the eye and a shelter for your body and soul. What do I mean by that? I mean that you could start by selecting and emphasising earthy tones such as olive, sage or terracotta; natural textures such as wood or cane and then go for multifunctional pieces that save space in the form of modular units or storage-integrated furniture. Here are key approaches to building or selecting aesthetic furniture for your house: 1. Key Aesthetic Furniture Styles Minimalist: Focuses on clean lines, neutral colors and functionality to create a clutter-free and calming/relaxing space. Bohemian: Uses a mix of textures, colours and patterns, often incorporating rattan, cane and plants for an organic feel. Rustic/Natural: Emphasises raw materials like wood and stone to create a cozy and grounded atmosphere. Modern/Industrial: Combines metal accents with reclaimed wood such as in metal-framed shelving or coffee tables. Scandinavian: Features light-colored wood, leather and sheepskin rugs for a cozy yet bright feel. 2. Design Principles for Aesthetic Furniture Natural Materials and Textures: Incorporate wood, rattan, stone and linen to add warmth. Function-First Design: Use multi-functional pieces, particularly in smaller homes, such as beds with storage, nested tables or foldable desks. Neutral Palette with Pops of Colour: Keep base furniture in neutral tones (white, grey and beige); add colour through cushions, rugs or statement chairs. Statement Pieces: Use a unique piece, such as a hand-carved cabinet or a bold-coloured accent chair, to serve as a focal point. 3. Customisation Ideas Reclaimed Wood Shelves: Add rustic charm by installing floating shelves made from reclaimed wood to display decor. Floating Nightstands: Create a modern, space-saving bedroom by installing minimalist and floating nightstands. Unique Headboards: Build a bed canopy using sheer curtains or a statement headboard made from natural wood. Macramé and Textiles: Create, rather than buy, handmade decor items like macramé wall hangings to add texture and personality. 4. Examples of Aesthetic Pieces Furniture with Cane and Brass: Sheesham wood sofa sets featuring cane work and brass detailing add a modern-traditional and elegant touch. Ladder Shelves: Natural wood and white ladder-design bookshelves provide a stylish and functional storage solution. Versatile television cabinets: Engineered wood television cabinets in walnut finishes offer a clean look for living rooms. 5. Tips for Small Spaces on a Budget Use Mirrors: Place mirrors to reflect light and make spaces feel larger. Vertical Storage: Use wall-mounted shelves and tall, narrow furniture to maximise floor space. Re-purpose Existing Furniture: Update old furniture with paint or new hardware to give it a fresh and aesthetic look. The Art of Effortless Beauty There is greater depth to true aesthetics than meets the eye. The goal of aesthetic interior design is to create places that feel planned, harmonious and emotionally resonant. Every design decision should feel entirely appropriate, whether you’re creating a calm, minimalist house or a cozy, multi-layered living room that satisfies your narrative. The skill of designing environments that are visually and emotionally compelling is known as aesthetic interior design. In order to make every space feel purposeful and alive, it is important to create harmony between light, texture, colour and function. Every house is regarded as a blank canvas and the design of each one becomes a conversation between your rhythm, lifestyle and personality. Aesthetic interiors are more than just decoration; they are experiences, from the serene perfection of contemporary minimalism to the organic, multi-layered richness of décor, inspired by nature. Comfort, inspiration and a sense of belonging are all evoked by the careful composition of each piece, from the delicate play of shadows to the tactile warmth of materials. Essentially, excellent design turns areas into mirrors of exquisitely-lived lives. There are five guiding principles to achieve aesthetic decoration - Balance: Every component, from lighting to furniture, works together to create a room that feels grounded and whole. Texture: Soul, depth and tactile richness are added by a carefully chosen combination of materials, including wood, linen, metal and cane. Light: Ambient and natural lighting interact to influence rhythm, mood and how a room is perceived. Colour: Carefully chosen colour schemes, whether earthy, pastel or monochromatic, inspire serenity, clarity and subtly elevated feelings. Functionality: Beauty never comes at the expense of comfort; every design choice has a reason. Different aesthetics inspire different feelings, sensations and moods. Some of the design styles that can be implemented are as follows: • The minimalist aesthetic plan is for a timeless, serene and devoid of clutter set-up. Each component will work together to create areas that breathe and encourage calm. • The modern aesthetic furniture style is crisp, well-defined and fashionable. Interiors feel new and modern because of well-chosen elements and clean lines. • Bohemian aesthetic style – it is a rich, multi-layered style conveyed through textures, flora and vivid colours. It is vibrant and unique • Scandinavian aesthetic style – this is bright, tidy and practical. It is ideal for contemporary Indian apartments because of its natural materials and understated elegance. • The Japandi aesthetic style – this is a blend of nature and minimalism. Spaces that are calm and balanced are produced by delicate warmth and calm simplicity. • Industrial aesthetic style – this allows for spaces that feel edgy yet welcoming. It is defined by exposed materials, powerful lines and bold textures; these are ideal for cafes or studios. Breaking down the living space Living Room: Statement lighting, layered textiles and selective art pieces create a space that spells out conversation, connection and calm. Bedroom: Soft hues, thoughtful furniture placement and demonstrative textures turn your bedroom into a serene retreat for reflection, peace and rest. Kitchen: Sleek cabinetry, functional layout and warm undertones make cooking efficient and enjoyable. Balcony or Nook: Corners influenced by potted plants encourage natural mornings, quiet contemplation and a sense of calm escape. Altering Living Spaces When it comes to changing a space, even minor adjustments can have a significant impact: De-clutter and Breathe: Clear out those items that are not pertinent and allow your room to breathe; simplicity encourages serenity and clarity. Choose a consistent palette: A unified colour scheme binds and fills spaces and produces a calming visual experience. Prioritise Texture Over Pattern: Adding layers of different textures, such as stone, metal, wood, or linen gives the design depth and individuality without being overwhelming. Bring in Greenery: Plants give spaces a sense of vitality, balance and freshness that makes them seem convivial. Blend vintage and contemporary: Your home can have character, contrast and a story to tell by combining classic objects with contemporary designs. Good interior planners and furniture makers and suppliers manage and execute every stage of your house furnishing plan, right from mood-boards and 3D renders to the last installation, guaranteeing a smooth and stress-free experience. Good furniture designers create places that genuinely work by blending functional elegance with modern minimalism and warm bohemian emotions. The main aim of aesthetic interior design is to achieve balance on both a visual and emotional level. It involves carefully balancing light, colour, texture and proportion to create a room that feels alive, balanced and purposeful rather than merely ornamented and facetiously decorated. You may ask as to which aesthetic interior styles are most popular – they are Modern Bohemian, Scandinavian, Japanese and minimalist styles. These designs give homes a sense of flair and tranquility by fusing elegance with simple, practical layouts. Aesthetic interior design isn’t about perfection—it’s about creating meaning, flow, and emotion in every corner. At Cee Bee Design Studio, we transform homes into living reflections of your inner calm, personality, and creative spirit, where every space tells your story. What makes your furniture crafters special? Furniture makers, especially the Saharanpur School, are special due to their hundreds of years of legacy of intricate wood carving, using local wood like Sheesham, creating unique hand-carved pieces with detailed patterns and inlay work, making it India's largest wood craft hub, known for quality and variety, blending tradition with modern luxury finish. ***********

Christmas Truce during the First World War

I am reminded of reading `The Best Christmas Present in the World’ written by Michael Morpurgo when I have to do research and write about the famous Christmas Truce between England and Germany during the peak of the battles of the First World War. Morpurgo weaved a great story around this famous event and presented a very fine emotional account of it. At the beginning of the twentieth century, Europe came to be divided into opposing power blocs. The German Empire, that came into power in 1871 and was created from prior independent German states, emerged as one of the most dominant among Europe’s military and industrial powers. In 1879, the German Empire allied with the Austro-Hungarian Empire. This came to be regarded as the Dual Alliance. In 1882, it transformed into a Triple Alliance when Italy signed a military pact with these two empires. Wary about this Triple Alliance, France rushed into a pact, known as the Dual Entente, with the Russian Empire in 1892. The British Empire, who liked to isolate itself from European affairs, became concerned of the growing power of the Triple Alliance and went on to join the French and the Russian Empires to form the Triple Entente, in 1907. These six nations were undoubtedly among the most powerful industrial and military states in the world. Each pledged to come to the help of its ally in time of need and war. This network of military pacts was to ascertain peace in the region and at the same time, all were aware that sooner or later; it would lead to a very large scale European war. The spark that ignited the First World War was the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand, who was heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. This happened during his visit to Sarajevo on 28th June 1914. The assassin belonged to a secret society from Serbia. He opened fire when they were about to get into a car, killing the Archduke and his wife. The Austro-Hungarian Empire immediately invaded Serbia when they came to know the roots of the assassin. When this happened, Russia arranged a partial mobilisation of its reserve troops. Germany took this as a direct threat and began its own mobilisation of reserve forces and declared war on the Russians on 1st August, 1914. France and Britain, as allies, had to jump in this war to aid Russia and it turned into a full-scale World War. All those countries who helped this alliances from other parts of the world did not realise that new military tactics and technology would make this war more deadly and destructive than any other previous wars fought before. During the first Battle of Ypres, in matter of just one month; a quarter of a million German, British, Belgian and French troops became casualties of war and not a single party had successfully achieved a breakthrough in enemy lines. The Initiation of the Trenches Germany had canvassed vigorously and inducted much young blood into their armed forces and Kaiser Wilhelm II had said to them.”Well boys! Before the leaves fall from the trees here, you shall all be back in the Dear Vaterland.” A great film was made to cover this scope of the First World War. It was `All Quiet on the Western Front’ in 1930, directed by Lewis Milestone and a remake in 2022 of the same name, directed by Edward Berger. Both the films are worth a watch and they cover the narrative brilliantly. During the opening engagement of the First World War on the Western Front, the First Battle of the Marne saw German troops advancing towards the French and British defenders. The result was that more than five-hundred thousand men became casualties of war on both sides. Then, The First Battle of the Aisne was responsible for another quarter of a million casualties. The result was about the same after the First Battle of Ypres. These three battles on the Western Front saw over one million casualties. By the end of the year 1914, it became clear that traditional military tactics were simply not working because of the new weaponry. The German Empire, as was the case in the Second World War, had hoped for a quick victory against the French soldiers. When this did not happen, German troops switched to a defensive posture and started making a network of bunkers and fortified positions that would allow them to hold their territory for a longer time and then help them counter attack. The focus of these positions was to make a strong stand and protect themselves with the help of artillery and machine guns. To allow the troops to dwell within them safely, trenches were dug. They were dug in No-Man’s Land and they provided a strong line of defense in case of attacks. Supplies were passed on to these trenches from the front lines. The nature of these trench systems depended on the nature of the terrain where they were created. The films I have mentioned in this article give you a fair idea of the nature of these trenches. As a case in example, the ground area around River Somme was chalky and was easily dug out but it tended to crumble easily during heavy rain. So, many trenches were heavily secured with wood or sandbags to prevent them from collapsing. In the Ypres region, the boggy soil made the digging of trenches very difficult. Breastworks were built up above the ground, using sandbags and wood behind which the defenders could take shelter. This network of trenches was created on both sides of the front line and came to be known as the `Western Front’. Stalemate on the Western Front By the end of the year 1914, life in the battleground trenches had become a fact that had to be accepted by thousands of soldiers on the Western Front. Even when there were no attacks taking place, all the troops faced the lurking threat of death or a serious injury through artillery fire or from snipers in the opposing trench system. Enemy fire was not the only danger that was present; the living conditions were pitiful. The soldiers had to live in permanently cold and damp conditions, reminding the youth about how comfortable life was during peace days in their respective homes. The sanitation conditions were poor. Toilets often overflowed into the trenches and there were rotting dead bodies to be found frequently, nearby. Dysentery and diarrhoea were sadly common as were lice and scabies. Soldiers were suffering with a condition called Trench Foot that was caused by wet feet for longer periods. That caused their feet to swell and the skin to decay. Often, it would lead to gangrene and feet had to be amputated. Many soldiers on the Western Front had to be evacuated to get medical attention, mostly for frostbite and hypothermia. Each day became a crushing routine for them, which sapped their energy. Combat troops in a trench would have to take up defensive positions, about half an hour before dawn as most attacks began at that time. These were precautionary moves. Breakfast was usually served around 0700. The same routine was repeated around dusk. The soldiers who were not on guard duty mostly cleaned their weapons and themselves. They also made the required repairs to the bunkers or trenches. They were sometimes ordered out into No-Man’s-Land to repair barbed wire and defensive equipment. Patrols were sent out in the night to reconnoitre enemy lines and to generate maps of important positions. The actual time that was spent by men on the lines at the front depended first on the location and then on the availability of reserve troops. Each section was of about eight soldiers. It should be remembered that these soldiers were spending a twelve-day rotation in these trenches with wet, unsanitary and cold conditions with very little sleep, under the constant threat of injury or death. This was to be endured for months on end. The senior officers had the comfort and shelter of working and ordering from shelters or buildings and were away from danger as there was very little threat of being bombarded by air force. An issue for senior officers on all sides was of the potential drop in the morale within their camps and a reality check of lack of enthusiasm when coming to grips with the actual enemy. In 1915, hostilities lost their sheen and there was a time when the soldiers saw the futility of war for some stupid ideologies and decided that they wanted to reduce the risk of injury or death by inclining themselves towards a `live and let live’ policy which led to the famous truce during Christmastime in 1914. In fact, the people at the front were actually preparing to protect the men while assuring the higher command that the enemy was continuously being attacked. On several occasions, informal local cease-fires were being agreed to, mutually to allow for the removal of wounded and dead troops. There were even reports of fraternisation and exchange of goodies like tobacco and chocolate between opposing frontline trenches. The reality of the situation becomes clear that war is a horrendous, vain and futile fact of life in comparison with peace and brotherhood. The men in the trenches may have been wearing different uniforms but they shared a clear understanding of the stark horrors of life on the frontlines. This awareness grew to quite an extent among British and German troops. Hence, my referral to Morpurgo’s great novel, `The Best Christmas Present in the World’. Not many people know that King George V, the British Monarch and the German Emperor, Kaiser Wilhelm II, were cousins as both were grandsons of Queen Victoria. It also has to be noted that Many Germans spoke English well as many of them worked in England before the war started. All this was being done during propaganda speeches by opposing senior officers in the army as they were trying to dehumanise the enemy and presenting them as barbaric and savage. What they did not know was at the Western Front; the soldiers could clearly her and see their enemy. This was quite an unexpected outcome of trench warfare. In wars that were held before, ordinary soldiers of opposing armies had never spent long periods of inactivity while they were just about hundred yards from each other in trenches. The governments of the countries involved in this war discouraged fraternisation through threats of prison sentences for treason. Field Marshal Kitchener When the war began, Field Marshal Herbert Kitchener was made British Secretary of State for War and he predicted that this would be a long conflict and that Britain would need a large army and unlike the Austro-Hungarian Empire, there was no system in England of compulsory military training for the young blood. In comparison with the Germans, the British soldiers at the Western Front were not so experienced in the art of war. Kitchener started a publicity campaign for volunteers to join the army. He had a good response as half a million citizens volunteered and joined the British Army. As the Germans failed in the war to come in 1939, in this war too; their plans misfired. They were contemplating on a swift victory against the French and they wanted to swing their armies to the East to face the Russians. When such a victory failed, Germany found itself declaring a war on two fronts; hence, the term Western Front. The main core of the German Army was the Prussian regiments. Germany failed to defeat the French convincingly and these elite units were redeployed to the East. To replace them at the Western Front, less experienced troops were called in from Bavaria, Saxony and Westphalia. It was expected that these troops would be able to hold the Western Front. How the Singing began on the Christmas Eve? By the third week of December in 1914, the weather turned at the Western Front. It became colder, making the mud freeze and the movement within the trenches became easier. Many soldiers were dreading to face the prospect of spending Christmas in the cold trenches. A week before Christmas, the Germans took the initiative and baked a chocolate cake, sending and sharing that with the British troops. They also invited the `enemy’ to join them for a round of carols that night and asked for a cease-fire for a whole day on Christmas. The British troops gladly agreed and sent them tobacco in return. There was even a talk about playing a friendly football (soccer) match. This relaxed attitude among the soldiers did not go along too well with their seniors, particularly the singing in the night of Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht or Silent Night, Holy Night carol. The British sang the `First Noel’ and `O Come All Ye Faithful.’ The German trenches were lit by Christmas decorations. Thee was no shooting from either side. It was a mutual agreement as the troops were disillusioned with the very act of hostilities. Among the British High Command, discovering that the men in the opposite camps wished to celebrate Christmas in peace was a stunning shock. Propaganda had portrayed the Germans as brutal and merciless; the picture in reality was an altogether different one. On Christmas Day, unaccustomed silence reined on the battlefields. This famous Christmas Truce was glorified by John Morpurgo when he wrote `The Best Christmas Present in the World’. On Christmas Day in 1914, the German and British troops even played soccer games with one another in No-Man’s Land. Those who were able to speak with their enemies were surprised to learn that the propaganda they had read about did not seem to be true. One of the officers from the London Rifle Brigade wrote in a letter home, “The Germans whom I spoke with were awfully decent fellows – Saxons, intelligent, respectable-looking men. I had quite a decent talk with three of my enemy soldiers.” This letter was published in the Hull Daily Mail. This was being looked at by respective government heads as treasonous peace. One of the Corporals from the Bavarian Reserve Infantry Regiment, Adolf Hitler, wrote “Such things should not happen in wartime; have you Germans no sense of honour left at all?” Earlier in December 1914, Pope Benedict XV had sent out a request to all warring nations that they consider establishing a `truce during Christmas’. The soldiers on opposing sides took this plea seriously and they did exactly what the Pope had suggested. The New York Times ran an article on 31st December that year about this `Christmas Truce’ at the Western Front in Europe. The senior officers in Britain and Germany denied such news and called it false. They much preferred the news that the First World War was being fought in an entirely inhuman way with the scale of carnage that it brought. Under military law, the fraternisation instances were outlawed. The soldiers that took part in such a truce would be dealt with severely and charged with desertion or treason, punishable by death. The End of the Christmas Truce The acts of humanity and sanity were short-lived. On the Boxing Day, the seniors had goaded the troops to continue with their battles by announcing engagement by firing two shots in the air. The wars that have been fought since Adam and the waste of human lives have never been questioned by government and their heads (or should I say tails)! I consider war as not a necessary act but a criminal act where taking the life of a soldier of an opposing country should be deemed as cold degree murder. The night of the Boxing Day saw hostilities begin again influenced the fears of senior officers. I am digressing here but not many people know the source of the Boxing Day. It has nothing to do with the sport that made Muhammad Ali famous. It has to do with boxing the gifts that had been brought for Christmas by family members to be given to their servants and their families as well as distributing these boxes to orphanages and old-age homes. Despite the orders of the senior officers, neither the Germans nor the British were in the mood for being cruel and killing people. So, there was little activity on the Western Front in the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day of 1915. This was the only remarkable example of a Christmas Truce during a World War. Such acts were not repeated during the Second World War. God had also sent much snow during this time, resulting in the battleground become muddy and slushy. Preoccupied with the rain and mud, the unofficial truce got prolonged in some regions of Flanders. Many British and Scottish units chose to spend Hogmanay and New Year’s Day in relative peace and their German opponents seemed very willing to cooperate. By the first week of January 1915, all traces of truces finally ended and the world was back to business; the business of making money with armoury and the business of killing. The Western Front returned to the misery of trench warfare and the daily danger of death or severe injury through enemy fire. This Christmas Truce at the Western Front became famous In the early part of the year 1915, the British newspapers carried several reports of this famous Christmas Truce between the Germans and the British. In a journal, `South Wales Echo’, it was noted that the way in which soldiers on both sides had adhered to this unofficial truce would certainly go down as one of the greatest surprises of a World War. There was an overpowering feeling that the men on both sides of the front lines were exposed directly to the genuine horrors of modern warfare and they understood about what was really happening while their seniors and political leaders were the ones who wanted to prolong the war. Sometime in the later part of January 1915, the `Daily Mirror’ noted that “the lull is finished. The absurdity and the tragedy renew themselves.” It took ten weeks for the British to use the new troops of the Volunteer Army to launch an attack after this notable Christmas Truce. The result was that the battle ended with over eleven thousand British and Indian casualties. A month later, the German troops launched an attack on British positions around Ypres, using poison gas. There were further casualties of about seventy thousand allied troops and about thirty-five thousand German troops. There were attempts to organise brief unofficial truces around Easter time but they were not noteworthy and fizzled out. When Christmas approached in 1915 and the war was still not over; the British senior officers were concerned about a repeat of the previous year’s truce but it did not happen as there was close monitoring and senior officers made sure that a truce did not materialise. As time moved on, there was no congeniality left among the troops. The German Zeppelin airships had also begun a large scale campaign at bombing British cities, killing large number of civilians. The RMS Lusitania was torpedoed in May 1915 by a German submarine, killing more than one thousand two hundred people including naval troops, soldiers, women and children. However, there were reports that on Christmas Day in 1915; there was a ceasefire and the respective sides were allowed break to bury their dead. An officer in a Highland Regiment reported in the Times Edition of 2nd January 1915, “So there you are; all this talk of hate, all this fury at each other that has raged since the beginning of the War, quelled and stayed by the magic of Christmas.” The fact has to be separated from the fiction. Unlike the majority, there were very few who truly saw the futility of war and hatred among races of mankind. Those who thought like this were in the minority. The fact was that this war went on for three more long years. The letters written by few soldiers on the Western Front show respect for the courage and professionalism of their enemies, as is brought out in the novel by Robert Morpurgo. The Christmas Truce of 1914 has attained a mythic status down the ages in the United Kingdom. Though it was covered in a number of books as I have suggested above, it was also reflected in few movies such as Lewis Milestone’s 1930 film, `All Quiet on the Western Front’, the 2022 remake and `Oh! What a Lovely War’ in 1969 by Richard Attenborough. Post 1915, the perspective changed and the German atrocities like the indiscriminate bombing of civilians hardened the attitude of British soldiers and the scale of carnage continued on the Western Front. The war, as was expected, did not end quickly. It is important to mention that the fraternising that took place on Christmas Day in 1914 brought in severe punishments in the form of a court martial of Captain Sir Iain Colquhoun for allowing his men to cease fire and distribute cake and wine within the enemy camp on the Western Front. Whatever the case may be, this Christmas Truce of 1914, in itself, is unique in the history of battlefield reports and in the annals of modern warfare. It is certainly worth remembering. Some records say that about ten thousand British troops may have been involved in a kind of informal cease fire agreement and that some of them may have met amicably with their German counterparts in No-Man’s Land. It was deemed as a rebellion by the High Command but it did happen. The troops involved did look at this truce as a very welcome and temporary respite before the resumption of fighting. If you ask my personal opinion, I consider the whole period of the First World War to be a state of extended horror and of pointless suffering as incompetent generals pushed their men in the name of motivation into costly and futile attacks on enemy trenches. Those troops were forced to live and fight in unhealthy conditions in those trenches. It is surprising and beyond me that people of this world simply accept such mindless wars and never question the fundamental rights of men during war and do not question the unchallenged leadership of the senior officers. *******

Franz Joseph Haydn : The Classical Symphonist from Austria

His Personality Described in One Word – Humorous Franz Joseph Haydn had told his biographer, Georg August Griesinger, “I have always preferred to see the funny side of life.” This is not to say that Haydn’s life could be described as a `bed of roses’. Haydn almost starved during his youth and that experience remained a traumatic one for him. He was not able to earn enough to eat well. When Haydn was tutoring Beethoven, he was always trying to extract some more money from Beethoven’s patron, Elector Maximilian Franz. He wrote to Franz, “While we are on the subject of Beethoven, our Highness will perhaps permit me to say a few words concerning his financial status. A hundred Ducats or 450 Gulden were allotted to him during the past year. Your Highness is no doubt convinced that this sum has been insufficient and not even enough to live from; you had your own reasons for choosing to send him into the great world with such a paltry sum. Under these circumstances and to prevent him from falling into the hands of usurers, I have in part gone bail for him and I partly lent him money; with the result that he owes me five-hundred Florins. You must know that not a Kreutzer was spent unnecessarily; which sum I would ask you to send him, here. Since the interest on borrowed money grows continually, it is very tedious for an artist like Beethoven. Please send him a thousand Florins for the coming year and you would earn his eternal gratitude, relieving him of all his distress.” This kind of writing represents a little wit rather than the tone of humour. An example of this nature could also be seen in the slow movement of his Symphony # 55, `The Schoolmaster.’ It has a tender and a moving quality, which makes the wit stand out even more. In this movement, there are sections marked `semplice’ where the violins are to play in a deadpan style and without vibrato while in the `dolce’ sections, they have to play sweetly and also with vibrato. Hints of wit are also seen in his Surprise and Clock symphony and his 88th Symphony. The String Quartets of Haydn To call Haydn the father of he symphony is wrong as Karl Stamitz and several other composers had already written symphonies much before he even began writing one. As far as string quartets are concerned, yes; Haydn was the one who made the string quartet popular. I don’t know if he invented the ensemble form. As far as I can remember, Claudio Monteverdi used to write for string quartets but the classical sonata form that Haydn introduced for the string quartets was unique and it picked up popularity in the last couple of decades of the eighteenth century. The divertimento was the preferred format for the string quartet in the early phases. Haydn’s earliest publications included the string quartets. There is plenty of self-discipline in these quartets and they have remained among his admired compositions. Haydn used fugues quite frequently in his string quartets. One of his finest is the `Lark’ string quartet, which is the fifth among the series of six quartets that Haydn wrote in 1790, op. 64. The Trumpet and Haydn The trumpet had evolved from the keyed trumpet to a valve one. Haydn was impressed by this change and wrote a concerto for this instrument which went on to become perhaps the preferred one among his concerti. The third movement is popular among the trumpeters and the audiences as it introduces its theme in a twelve-bar structure brought about by the internal repetition, first on the strings and then repeated by the full orchestra. The second theme does not begin on the tonic chord of E Flat Major. It is built out of broken chord figuration. A new motif helps end the ritornellos before the entry of the soloist. There are passages written for the trumpet with arpeggios and daring octave leaps. Haydn’s Friendship with Mozart This friendship began when Mozart edited Haydn’s manuscripts of his string quartets op. 17 for a performance in Salzburg. Both composers were fond of hearing each other’s compositions in concerts. It became cemented when Haydn joined the Masonic Lodge in December 1784. Haydn respected the music of Mozart deeply and even commented once to Leopold Mozart, “Before God and as an honest man, I tell you that your son is the greatest composer I know either personally or by name. He has taste in composing and has a profound knowledge on the techniques of composition. (Citations: H.C. Robbins Landon –An American musicologist from Boston University. He has done extensive research on classical composers, particularly Haydn and Mozart. He is the founder of the Haydn Society, which he formed in 1947 and has spent much of his time searching in Europe for last manuscripts of Haydn. His famous book is `The Symphonies of Franz Joseph Haydn’.)

Corporate Greed and the Dangers it poses to Rainforests and Animal and Bird Species

Two big corporate firms who cater to the sweet tooth of many are responsible for forest destruction on a very large scale in their greed for palm oil in bulk quantities. Greed is letting these corporate damage some of the rainforests. A case in example is the Leuser Ecosystem of Sumatra in Indonesia. Who is mainly responsible? Corporate and large businesses and their supply chains along with their producers and their middlemen are directly and indirectly responsible for rainforest destruction all over the planet. They are also connected to large scale land grabbing in certain indigenous territories. They are also endangering many species of animals and birds as they are destroying their habitats. Not many people know that deforestation resulting out of the activities and greed of agricultural commodity sectors is the direct source of up to one-fifth of global greenhouse gas emissions. This is because trees and particularly those in the rainforests absorb and then lock away much of the excess carbon on this planet. When rainforests are burnt and bulldozed, hundreds of years’ worth of trapped carbon gets released into the atmosphere in a matter of few minutes. This also destroys indigenous economies and cultures and pushes many animal and bird species to the edge of extinction. It is forcing people into dangerous health issues, not to mention the pittance that they get for working on plantations. What does the COP27, the United Nations’ Climate Change Conference do about this? You may guess. Nothing because the rich that run the world stuff the representative mouths, too.