Tuesday, March 15, 2011

The Battle Of Waterloo.

On the night before the battle it had rained heavily and both the French and Allied armies had spent the night in the mud and the pouring rain. The troops of Wellington occupied the northern part of the plains of Mont-Saint-Jean and were situated behind a sunken lane, which later proved to be a strategic advantage for the Duke, because the French infantry and cavalry kept fallen inside this sunken land and thereby hindering each other to move further north.

The battlefield was situated around three large farmhouses . On the far left was the HOUGOUMONT house ( see picture on the right ) , in the middle the HAIE SAINTE farm and at the extreme right was the PAPELLOTTE farm. The French offensive started at 12 0'clock at Hougoumont farm. It was never taken. It was garrisoned by British trops from before the battle began and was held at the time of the victory. Later during the day heavy fights took place around the farms of Haie Sainte and Papellote. La Haie Sainte was taken in late afternoon but for only a short period, because the French for most of the day poured their resources into trying to take Hougoumont.
By the late afternoon the chances for both armies were still fifty-fifty. But, around that time the Blücher's troops started to arrive coming from Wavre to assist the army of Wellington. By then, the French army was surrounded by the two forces and could no longer withstand the joint attacks of allied troops. By the beginning of the evening Napoleon had to withdraw his troops from the battlefield and start the escape back to France. Later, Blücher and Wellington met each other near the BELLE ALLIANCE farmhouse and congratulated each other with the final victory over Napoleon.

On the 18th of June 191.300 soldiers fought one of the most decisive battles in the history of Europe in only one day. The Wellington army had 67.000 soldiers, Blücher's army 52.300 and Napoleon's army 72.000. A total of 48.500 men fell or were severely wounded.

After the battle, the territory of the battlefield was given to the Wellington family by the newly formed state of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands. Later several monuments were erected in commemoration of the different army divisions who fought the battle of Waterloo.

Carnatic Wars

ANGLO FRENCH RIVALRY (1745-63)

The French power in India reached its peak dur­ing the governorship of Dupleix (1742-54). But during the closing years of his term itself (1753-54), they began to lose their ground to the Eng­lish, and in the early 1760's they completely lost their position to the English in India, including Andhra. This Anglo-French rivalry and the rise and fall of the French in India (including Andhra) can.be best seen in three Carnatic wars fought essentially between the French and the English between 1745 and 1763. From the Indian side the Nawabs of the Carnatic state (with Arcot in Tamilnadu as its capital) and the Nizams of Hyderabad state (who were the nominal over­lords of the Carnatic Nawabs) were closely in­volved in these wars.

First Carnatic War (1745-48)

Broke out as a consequence of war of Austrian succession in Europe where the English and the French took opposite sides.
  1. It began in 1745 when the French ships were captured by the English navy. But the French under the leadership of Dupleix retaliated by cap­turing Madras.
  2. The English in turn appealed to the then Carnatic Nawab, Anwaruddin, to save them from the French. But despite Anwaruddin's intervention, the French refused to release Madras.
  3. The resulting battle at St. Thome between the French forces and those of the Nawab (whose ratio was 1:10) ended in a severe defeat to the Nawab, in the process exposing the weakness of traditional Indian armies against the European trained ones.
  4. Finally, the end of Austrian Succession war in Europe brought the first Carnatic war also to an end in 1748.
Consequences : Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle which provided for returning each others places. Madras was therefore, restored to the English by the French.

Second Carnatic War (1749-54)

  1. The Anglo-French rivalry was soon revived when problems of succession arose in the Hyderabad as well as the Carnatic states, with the two European rivals taking up the cause of opposing candidates in both the states. The French, on the one hand, gave their support to Muzaffar Jung in Hyderabad, and Chanda Sahib in Carnatic. The English, on the other hand, lent their support, to Nasir Jang in Hyderabad and Anwaruddin (later to his son, Muhhammed Ali) in Carnatic.
  2. The French succeeded in both states in defeating and murdering their opponents (Nasir Jang in Hyderabad and Anwaruddin in Carnatic) and placing their supporters (Muzaffar Jang in Hyderabad and Chanda Sahib in Carnatic) on the thrones in 1750. In return for the French help, Muzaffar Jang gave Masulipatnam and Divi area in Krishna district and Yanam in East Godavari district to the French. He also accepted the stationing of a French army at Hyderabad under the command of General Bussy. But Muzaffar himself was unfortunately murdered by the Nawabs of Kurnool and Cuddapah in 1751, and hence General Bussy made Salabat Jung (one of the sons of Nizam-ul-Mulk, the founder of Hyderabad state) the new Nizam. Salabat in his turn granted to the French the four Northern circars of Kondave,edu (Kondapalli) Eluru, Rajahmundry and Chicacole in 1752. Thus, the French were the first Europeans to obtain politi­cal power in Andhra. But the actual occupation of the four Northern Circars by the French was not a smooth affair. Though Bussy appointed Vijayarama raju of Vizianagaram as the man­ager of Chicacole circar, and other circars were to be occupied by Mr. Moracin (Chief of French Factory at Masulipatnam ) they had to contend with the troubles caused by the Jafar Ali (Nizam's Faujdar) who not only personally raided some of these areas but also incited the Marathas of Nagpur to do the same. Infact, General Bussy had to come personally to these areas and establish law and order there. It was also during this time (1752-53) that Vijayaramaraju drew Bussy into private feud with Bobbili in which Vijayaramaraju was murdered. This incident has been immortalised in the famous "Ballad of Bobbili" (Bobbili Katha).
  3. In the meanwhile, the French started facing rough weather on the Carnatic front. The trend of the second Carnatic War was, in fact, re­versed with the capture of Arcot by the English under Robert Clive in 1751, and the French be­gan to suffer successive defeats at the hands of the English thereafter. Chanda Sahib was cap­tured and executed in 1752 by a general of Tanjore, who was an ally of the British during this war. The English promptly placed Muhammed Ali (son of Anwaruddin) on the throne of the Carnatic state.
  4. Dupleix, who was still the French governor in India, made several efforts between 1753 and 54 to reverse the trend, but in vain. And his recall by the French Government in 1754 and appointment of Count de Lally (Who proved to be rash and immature) in his place particularly sealed the fate of the French in India in general and in the Carnatic in particular.
Consequences : Treaty of Pondicherry signed by the French and the English, acknowledged Muhammed Ali as the Nawab of Carnatic. Still the French (through their representative, General Bussy) retained their position of being the protectors of the Nizam of Hyderabad and of being the rulers of the four Northern circars in Andhra.

Third Carnatic War (1758-63)

  1. In the background of the Seven years war in Europe (1756-62), wherein the English and the French were on the opposite sides caused the third Carnatic War. It was sparked off by 'the capture of Chandernagore (French settlement in Bengal) by The English under Clive and Watson.
  2. The battle that sealed the fate of the French in Andhra was the famous "Battle of Chandurthi" (7th December, 1758). In this battle, the com­bined forces of the Raja of Vizianagaram (Anandaraju, who had succeeded Vijayaramaraju, switched his support from the French to the Eng­lish because of a personal grouse against the French) and the English under Colonel Forde routed the French army at Chandurthi near Rajahmundry. The English later stormed the French fort at Masuiipatnam and captured it (April 1,759).
  3. The above French setbacks on land were immediately followed by a naval disaster in the Bay of Bengal. The French fleet under Admiral d'Ache was severely defeated by the English navy under Admiral Pocock in three successive naval battles in 1759.
  4. Nizam Salabat Jang, seeing the changed circumstances, asked the French to leave Hyderabad and conferred on the English the Masuiipatnam region and the districts of Nizampatnam, Kondapalli and Wakalmannar. Besides, the English came to replace the French as the Nizam's protectors from now onwards.
Consequences : And whatever bleak hopes that the French had of retrieving their position in India were finally but firmly dashed off by the defeat of the French army under Count de Lally by the English forces under General Eyre Coot in the Battle of Wandiwash (Jan, 1760). This was soon followed by the surrender of Pondicherry and loss of all other French settlements in India to the English. Though peace was finally concluded by the Treaty of Paris and all important French settlements were restored back in 1763, the French could henceforth live only under English protection and not as rivals.
Thus the French, though were first Europeans to acquire political power in Andhra, could retain it only for a short time (1750-58) and con­sequently their rule in the four Northern circars also lasted for a very short while (1752-58).

Top 10 deadliest earthquakes in the world

Top 10 deadliest earthquake in the world
No Location Date Scale
1 Chile 22-May-1960 9.5
2 Prince William Sound, Alaska 28-Mar-1964 9.2
3 Andreanof Islands, Aleutian Islands 9-Mar-1957 9.1
4 Kamchatka 4-Nov-1952 9
5 Off western coast of Sumatra, Indonesia 26-Dec-2004 9
6 Off the coast of Ecuador 31-Jan-1906 8.8
7 Rat Islands, Aleutian Islands 4-Feb-1965 8.7
8 Northern Sumatra, Indonesia 28-Mar-2005 8.7
9 India-China border 15-Aug-1950 8.6
10 Kamchatka 3-Feb-1923 8.5
source
Latest 10 years deadliest
No Location Date Scale Fatalities
1 Southern Sumatera, Indonesia 12-Sep-2007 8.4 9
2 Near the Coast of Central Peru 15-Aug-2007 8 514
3 Kuril Islands 15-Nov-2006 8.3 0
4 Java, Indonesia 26-May-2006 6.3 5,749
5 Northern Sumatra, Indonesia 28-Mar-2005 8.6 1,313
6 Pakistan 8-Oct-2005 7.6 80,361
7 Off West Coast of Northern Sumatra 26-Dec-2004 9.1 227,898
8 Hokkaido, Japan Region 25-Sep-2003 8.3 0
9 Southeastern Iran 26-Dec-2003 6.6 31,000
10 Central Alaska 3-Nov-2002 7.9 0
11 Hindu Kush Region, Afghanistan 25-Mar-2002 6.1 1,000
12 Near Coast of Peru 23-Jun-2001 8.4 138
13 India 26-Jan-2001 7.7 20,023
14 New Ireland Region, P.N.G. 16-Nov-2000 8 2
15 Southern Sumatera, Indonesia 4-Jun-2000 7.9 103
16 Taiwan 20-Sep-1999 7.7 2,297
17 Turkey 17-Aug-1999 7.6 17,118
18 Balleny Islands Region 25-Mar-1998 8.1 0
19 Afghanistan-Tajikistan Border Region 30-May-1998 6.6 4,000

Top 10 successful tips to pass SSC examination


1. GET YOUR BASICS RIGHT

It has been said time and again, but keeping all your examination material ready a day before the examination is very important part of your success at SSC exams. Create a checklist of all the things you need to carry such as hall tickets, pens, pencils, writing pads, and other instruments, and make
sure you carry them. All your basic information such as your name, seat number, etc. should be filled in neatly on your answers booklets. Make sure you get these basics right.

 2. START WITH YOUR BEST

“First impression is the last impression” and the same is true for your SSC answer paper also. If the examiner gets a good first impression of you, it can only work in your favour. Therefore, the first answer that you write, take extra precaution to make sure there are no careless mistakes, cancellations or any turn-offs that will create a bad impression. Also, attempting questions in order is preferable but not necessary.
You can start with the answer that you know best if you are not so confident.
 
3. LEVERAGE THE EXAMINER’S INERTIA

The examiner is only human and if he/she feels that you know your subject matter perfectly, then he/she may automatically tend to overlook some minor mistakes you make later in the paper. Thus many top ranking SSC students choose to answer the questions they are most confident about first. If the examiner is ticking your earlier questions, chances are he will keep ticking. You don’t want the examiner to keep crossing your answers. Thus write your best answers first and your not so perfect answers last. This can be a useful strategy especially for your subjective SSC papers such as English, Hindi, Marathi and History-Civics.

4. PRESENT YOUR PAPER WELL
Examiners cannot deduct marks if a student has not underlined important terms and not written neatly. However if you present your paper well, it makes it easier of the examiner to award you marks. Few students waste time in decorating their paper with sketch pens etc. This too is not needed. The trick is to give the examiner the confidence that you know what you are writing.

5. PAY ATTENTION TO SUBJECT SPECIFIC DETAILS

In all Maths and Science papers, writing the proper units is one of the most important things. Presentation of the solution of any sum of Algebra should be done systematically with proper statements, formula wherever applicable and complete step by step solving. Scale is important while drawing a graph. Highlighting the final answer is compulsory in any sum of Algebra. For objective type question, rewrite the complete statements with underlined answer. A balanced chemical equation with proper explanation is required. In ray diagrams, circuit diagram arrows are important. For questions like give reasons, short answers, distinguish-properties and uses, the number of points should be as per the marks allotted for the specific answer.
 
6. WRITE GOOD CRISP ANSWERS

In subjective papers, examiners have to read a lot of text. Many answer sheets contain long blocks of text which are very inconvenient for the examiners to check. Whenever possible, write your answers in bullet points one below the other. Always write short paragraphs with just enough explanation of each point: not too much, not too little. Many of our professors who have also been board moderators say that this single mistake can cause good students to lose up to 4-5 marks in the paper. Make sure you do not make this mistake.

7. DRAW SIMPLE & NEAT DIAGRAM
The goal of drawing a diagram in any SSC paper is to show the examiner that you know the name and location of various parts. Many students lose marks because their diagrams are too complicated. A simple, clear diagram that you can draw in a minute or two is much better than an artistic diagram with too much detail. The labeling must be in FULL CAPS and the diagram should have a Title.

8. RECHECK YOUR PAPER PERFECTLY
Examiners don’t read 100% of your paper, word-by-word; they look for the keywords. Many times under exam pressure while writing fast, we may skip writing few keywords in some answers even though we know them. Carefully rechecking your paper is the ONLY way you can spot errors and rectify them.
 
9. ATTEMPT OPTIONAL QUESTION

Year after year, many students leave the examination hall before time. Since there are no marks for leaving early, its better to attempt extra questions so that in case you miss out a point in one question you can make it up in another. Attempting extra questions is a good strategy employed by top ranking students year after year but this has to be done only if you are left with time after completely re-checking your paper.

10. GET READY TO SUBMIT
After tying your papers neatly,  and thoroughly rechecking  your paper you can further improve it by drawing neat lines between two answers, underlining the important sentences etc. Adding the final touches should only be done if you are left  with time after completely rechecking your paper. This will definitely add a nice feel to your SSC exam papers.

Remember, getting excited about writing your SSC papers will automatically improve your actual performance. So feel confident and write the PERFECT SSC papers that you can. Best Wishes for your academic success. All  the best