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Ferdinand-Alphonse Hamelin
Ferdinand-Alphonse Hamelin (2 September 1796 – 10 January 1864), French admiral, was born in Pont-l'Évêque, Normandy. He was the nephew of Jacques Félix Emmanuel Hamelin, a successful rear admiral in the French Navy of the Napoleonic era. Early career Hamelain went to sea in 1806 as cabin boy with his uncle, Jacques Félix Emmanuel Hamelin, on the frigate '' Vénus'' in the era of Napoleon and the French Empire. The ''Vénus'' was part of the French squadron in the Indian Ocean during the Mauritius Campaign of 1809-1811, and young Hamelin had an opportunity of seeing much active service. She, in company with another and a smaller vessel, captured the English frigate ''Ceylon'' in 1810, but was immediately afterwards captured herself by the ''Boadicea'', under Commodore Josias Rowley (1765–1842). Young Hamelin was a prisoner of war for a short time. His identification as François seems to be in error. Career after the First French Empire fell He returned to France in 18 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pont-l'Évêque, Calvados
Pont-l'Évêque () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. It is known for Pont-l'Évêque cheese, a type of soft cheese, the oldest Normandy cheese in production. During World War II, the town was severely damaged by a two-day battle in August 1944. On 1 January 2019, the former commune of Coudray-Rabut was merged into Pont-l'Évêque. The town serves as the setting for Gustave Flaubert's story ''Un cœur simple'' and features heavily in the book ''13 - Lucky For Some'' which is about the history of the 13th (Lancashire) Parachute Battalion. There are many then and now photographs as well as maps and diagrams of battles that took place in the region. Geography and toponymy The river Touques flows through Pont-l'Évêque, which takes its name from a bridge (''pont'') built over the river. Starting in the 10th century, the local bishop (''évêque'') took responsibility for building and repairing the bridges and roads in France. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mauritius Campaign Of 1809-1811
Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label= Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It includes the main island (also called Mauritius), as well as Rodrigues, Agaléga and St. Brandon. The islands of Mauritius and Rodrigues, along with nearby Réunion (a French overseas department), are part of the Mascarene Islands. The main island of Mauritius, where most of the population is concentrated, hosts the capital and largest city, Port Louis. The country spans and has an exclusive economic zone covering . Arab sailors were the first to discover the uninhabited island, around 975, and they called it ''Dina Arobi''. The earliest discovery was in 1507 by Portuguese sailors, who otherwise took little interest in the islands. The Dutch took possession in 1598, establishing a succession of short-lived settlements over a period of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount Melville
Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount Melville, PC, FRSE (28 April 1742 – 28 May 1811), styled as Lord Melville from 1802, was the trusted lieutenant of British Prime Minister William Pitt and the most powerful politician in Scotland in the late 18th century. Dundas was instrumental in the encouragement of the Scottish Enlightenment, in the prosecution of the war against France, and in the expansion of British influence in India. Prime Minister Pitt appointed him Lord of Trade (1784–1786), Home Secretary (1791–1794), President of the Board of Control for Indian Affairs (1793–1801), Secretary at War (1794–1801) and First Lord of the Admiralty (1804–1805). His deft and almost total control of Scottish politics during a long period in which no monarch visited the country led to him being nicknamed "King Harry the Ninth", the "Grand Manager of Scotland" (a play on the masonic office of Grand Master of Scotland), the "Great Tyrant" and "The Uncrowned King of Scotland". He w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Black Sea
The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Romania, Russia, Turkey, and Ukraine. The Black Sea is supplied by major rivers, principally the Danube, Dnieper, and Don. Consequently, while six countries have a coastline on the sea, its drainage basin includes parts of 24 countries in Europe. The Black Sea covers (not including the Sea of Azov), has a maximum depth of , and a volume of . Most of its coasts ascend rapidly. These rises are the Pontic Mountains to the south, bar the southwest-facing peninsulas, the Caucasus Mountains to the east, and the Crimean Mountains to the mid-north. In the west, the coast is generally small floodplains below foothills such as the Strandzha; Cape Emine, a dwindling of the east end of the Balkan Mountains; and the Dobruja Plateau considerably farth ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marquesas Islands
The Marquesas Islands (; french: Îles Marquises or ' or '; Marquesan: ' ( North Marquesan) and ' ( South Marquesan), both meaning "the land of men") are a group of volcanic islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France in the southern Pacific Ocean. Their highest point is the peak of Mount Oave (french: Mont Oave, links=no) on Ua Pou island, at 1,230 m (4,035 ft) above sea level. Archaeological research suggests the islands were colonized in the 10th century AD by voyagers from West Polynesia. Over the centuries that followed, the islands have maintained a "remarkably uniform culture, biology and language". The Marquesas were named after the 16th century Spanish Viceroy of Peru, the Marquis of Cañete ( es, Marqués de Cañete, italic=unset) by navigator , who visited them in 1595. The Marquesas Islands constitute one of the five administrative divisions (') of French Polynesia. The capital of the Marquesas Islands' administrative subdivision is t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
