Friday, March 30, 2012

Cathedral of the Annunciation


The Cathedral of the Annunciation is a Russian traditional Church dedicated to the Annunciation of the Theotokos. It is located on the southwest side of Cathedral Square of the Moscow Kremlin in Russia, where it connects directly to the main building of the difficult of the Grand Kremlin Palace, adjacent to the Palace of Facets. It was originally the personal chapel for the Muscovite tsars, and its abbot remained a individual confessor of the Russian royal family until the early 20th century.

The Cathedral of the Annunciation was built by architects from Pskov in 1484-1489 as part of Grand Duke Ivan III plans for a large-scale redecoration of the Moscow Kremlin. It was built on the spot of an older 14th century cathedral of the same name, which had been reconstruction in 1416. This older cathedral in turn had replaced a previous wooden church from the 13th century that had fallen victim to the regular fires in the Kremlin.
Compared with the other two major Kremlin cathedrals, the Annunciation Cathedral has slightly smaller dimensions. It is also built in a more traditional style, as it was created by local architects from Pskov, rather than Italian emigrant architects. The most characteristic feature of the building is its nine beautiful golden domes, and roof with rich kokoshnik ornamentation in an ogive form.

The Cathedral was built of brick, with facades of white limestone that are decent and decorated. There are entrances to the cathedral on the eastern and also the southern side of the building, with fretwork influenced by Italian Renaissance architecture. 

The bronze doors are decorated with gold foil. Tourists enter the cathedral via the eastern staircase, while the southern staircase is that the one added in 1570 by Ivan the Terrible. The relatively high entrance is due to the very fact that the building was built on the raised base of its predecessor.

The interior of the cathedral consists of the central prayer area and several surrounding galleries, with the additions of side altars in the 16th Century. The northern is the first gallery space, which is entered through the visitor entrance.

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

About Mr.Jafar Ali Khan


Hashim ud-Daula, Nawab Ja'afar Ali Khan Bahadur, Mahabat Jang commonly known as Mir Jafar, second son of Sayyid Ahmad Najafi, (1691–February 5, 1765) was Nawab of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa. He is also known by Indians as Gaddar-e-Abrar. He succeeded Siraj-Ud-Daulah as the eighth Nawab of Bengal, and the first of the Najafi dynasty after misleading Nawab Siraj-Ud-Daulah and surrendering his army in battle field against Robert Clive. 

His rule is extensively considered the start of British rule in India and was a key step in eventual British domination of the country. His greed of becoming Nawab of Bengal, led him to make a secret deal with Robert Clive and surrender & slaughter of Army of Bengal in Battle of Plessey, without fighting, which led to foundation of British rule in India. For this act of treachery, he has been infamously called Gaddar-e-Abrar. Gaddar means a traitor & Abrar means faith.

However, Mir Jafar had higher ambitions. Arrogant in his position he took advantage of an Ali Vardi Khan weakened by a decade of fighting with Marathas to enter into a conspiracy with Ataullah to overthrow and murder the Nawab. However, the conspiracy was unearthed and he was stripped of most of his powers. He came back to Murshidabad, where he regained the trust of the Nawab's grandson, Siraj-Ud-Daulah, and slowly returned to power and prominence.

After Siraj Ud Daulah’s defeat and subsequent execution, Mir Jafar achieved his long-pursued dream of gaining the throne, and was propped up by the British as puppet Nawab. Mir Jafar paid a sum of Rs. 17,700,000 as compensation for the attack on Calcutta to the company and the traders of the city. In addition, he paid large sums as gifts or bribes to the officials of the company. 

Clive, for example received over two million rupees, Watts over one million Soon, however, he realized that British expectations were boundless and tried to move about out from under them; this time with the help of the Dutch. 

However, the British defeated the Dutch at the Battle of Chinsurah in November 1759 and retaliated by forcing him to abdicate in favor of his son-in-law Mir Qasim. However, Mir Qasim proved to be able and independent, eager to live with but not bow to the British. The Company soon went to war with him, and he was eventually overthrown. Mir Jafar managed to regain the good graces of the British; he was again appointed Nawab in 1763 and held the position until his death in 1765.

Thursday, March 15, 2012

Palace of Facets



The Palace of the Facets may be a building in the Moscow Kremlin, Russia, which contains what used to be the main banquet reception hall of the Muscovite Tsars. It is the oldest preserved secular building in Moscow. Located on Kremlin Cathedral Square, between the Cathedral of the Annunciation and the Dormition Cathedral. Currently, it is an official ceremonial hall in the residence of the President of the Russian Federation and thus closed to the public. Only its eastern facade facing toward Cathedral Square can be viewed.


About Facets Building:

Named when its distinctive stonework eastern facade with horizontal rows of sharp-edged stones, the Palace of sides is all that is left of a larger royal palace made of white limestone. Although from the facade, it seems to be a three-story rectangular building from the outside, it is actually a one-story building with a semi-basement. On the west side the building is directly linked to the central building of the Grand Kremlin Palace.
The first floor of the Palace of the Facets consists of the main hall and adjoining sacred vestibule. Both are decorated with wealthy frescoes and gilded carvings. The splendid vaulted main hall has an area of about 500 m² (5,380 ft²). The whole vault and the walls are frescoed with elaborate several themes from the history of the Russian State and the Russian Orthodox Church.


This was used as a throne room and banqueting hall for the 16th-century and 17th-century tsars and is continues to be used for holding formal state receptions. The paintings are restored in the 1880s by icon painters from Palekh by order of Tsar Alexander III.

On the palace's southern facade is that the Red Porch, an external staircase decorated with stylized lion sculptures on the railings. The tsars passed down this staircase on their way to the Cathedral of the Dormition for his or her coronations. The last such procession was at the coronation of Nicholas II in 1896. 

In the Streltsy Uprising in 1682 many of Tsar Peter the Great's rebellious relatives were hurled down the staircase onto the pikes of the Streltsy guard. Demolished by Joseph Stalin in the 1930s and replaced with a canteen for Kremlin workers, the staircase was rebuilt in 1994 at great expense.

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