The aristocracy synthesizes the perfections of the community

July 16, 2012

The reflections above consider the aristocracy from the point of view of the pole of perfection toward which it should tend. But the aristocracy can be considered further as expressing the collective perfection of a city or region. In effect, every city or region has what could be called a collective personality or a “common […]

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July 17 – Martyred in the Name of Equality

July 16, 2012

The Sixteen Blessed Teresian Martyrs of Compiègne Guillotined at the Place du Trône Renversé (now called Place de la Nation), Paris, 17 July, 1794. They are the first sufferers under the French Revolution on whom the Holy See has passed judgment, and were solemnly beatified 27 May, 1906. Before their execution they knelt and chanted […]

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July 17 – “You Do Not Know What You Do”

July 16, 2012

Execution of Tsar Nicholas II and his family In the early hours of 17 July 1918, the royal family was awakened around 2:00 am, told to dress, and led down into a half-basement room at the back of the Ipatiev house. The pretext for this move was the family’s safety — that anti-Bolshevik forces were […]

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July 18 – “Don’t drink water, drink beer” said the bishop

July 16, 2012

Saint Arnulf of Metz Statesman, bishop under the Merovingians, born c. 580; died c. 640. His parents belonged to a distinguished Frankish family, and lived in Austrasia, the eastern section of the kingdom founded by Clovis. In the school in which he was placed during his boyhood he excelled through his talent and his good […]

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July 18 – This King Would Not Wear a Crown of Gold Where Jesus Wore a Crown of Thorns

July 16, 2012

Godfrey of Bouillon Duke of Lower Lorraine and first King of Jerusalem, son of Eustache II, Count of Boulogne, and of Ida, daughter of Godfrey the Bearded, Duke of Lower Lorraine; b. probably at Boulogne-sur-Mer, 1060; d. at Jerusalem, 18 July, 1100 (according to a thirteenth-century chronicler, he was born at Baisy, in Brabant; see […]

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BBC: Prince William installed as Knight of the Order of the Thistle

July 12, 2012

According to BBC: Prince William has been installed as a Knight of the Order of the Thistle, the highest honour available in Scotland. The ceremony at St Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh was followed by a parade down the Royal Mile led by 400 pipers. The event was followed by a procession involving pipers, drummers and […]

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Are Finishing Schools Finished?

July 12, 2012

According to The Financial Express: Their day begins with a lecture from Mme Neri on protocol. It soon becomes clear that, for some people, seating your guests at dinner can be a worryingly complicated affair. Where should you put the second son of a duke, for example? Is he more important than a daughter? Which […]

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The Crusaders storm into Jerusalem

July 12, 2012

The attack began the night of July 13, [1099,] and the defenders let loose a hail of stones and rivers of Greek fire…. The battle hung in the balance during the morning hours of July 15. Archers shot blazing firebrands to drive the defenders from the walls, but the siege towers were battered and burned. […]

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Aristocracy and sanctity

July 12, 2012

It should not be deduced from the preceding that the condition of aristocrat is synonymous with sanctity. For it cannot be denied that there have been many saints who were not aristocrats and many aristocrats who were not saints. But if aristocracy is not to be confused with sanctity, neither can it be entirely dissociated […]

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July 13 – Good King Henry

July 12, 2012

St. Henry II German King and Holy Roman Emperor, son of Duke Henry II (the Quarrelsome) and of the Burgundian Princess Gisela; b. 972; d. in his palace of Grona, at Gottingen, 13 July, 1024. Like his predecessor, Otto III, he had the literary education of his time. In his youth he had been destined […]

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July 13 – Saintly Elite

July 12, 2012

Blessed Marie-Azélie “Zélie” Martin née Guérin (23 December 1831 – 28 August 1877) was a French laywoman and the mother of Saint Thérèse de Lisieux. Her husband was Blessed Louis Martin. Marie-Azélie Guérin was born in Saint-Denis-sur-Sarthon, Orne, France and was the second daughter of Isidore Guérin and Louise-Jeanne Macé. She had an older sister, […]

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July 14 – The Lily of the Mohawks

July 12, 2012

Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha, Lily of the Mohawks Kateri Tekakwitha was daughter of Kenneronkwa, a Mohawk chief, and Tagaskouita, a devout Roman Catholic Algonquian woman. She was born in the Mohawk fortress of Ossernenon near present-day Auriesville, New York, in 1656. Kateri’s mother was baptized and educated by French missionaries in Trois-Rivières, like many of Abenaki […]

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AFP: Australian Girl Guides No Longer Pledge to Queen and God

July 9, 2012

According to AFP: Australia’s Girl Guides will no longer promise to serve the queen or uphold their duty to God, choosing instead to “be true to myself” and “serve my community and Australia”. Girl Guides Australia has been reviewing the wording of the promise for close to two years, and some members had strong objections […]

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Thai Princess Chulabhorn impresses nation with her efforts to save people from cancer

July 9, 2012

According to the Pattaya Mail: People recognize Her Royal Highness Princess Chulabhorn as founder of Chulabhorn Hospital, but not many know that the Princess also takes her roles in diagnosing illnesses at the hospital ward. The Princess, as a qualified scientist, often joins a grand-round ward activity to follow the progress of treatment in cancer […]

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Young Washington’s martial spirit is fostered by his older brother Lawrence

July 9, 2012

Lawrence Washington had something of the old military spirit of the family, and circumstances soon called it into action. Spanish depredations on British commerce had recently provoked reprisals. Admiral Vernon, commander-in-chief in the West Indies, had accordingly captured Porto Bello, on the Isthmus of Darien. The Spaniards were preparing to revenge the blow; the French […]

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Christian aristocracy

July 9, 2012

Aristocracy(1) is the class in which the distilling of this ideal human type, the quest for this perfection toward which all society should tend, was more complete. In other words, it fell to the aristocracy to realize the most perfect, the most elevated, and the most noble human type. Hence, the human type of Our […]

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July 11 – The noble saint who fled the world, but the world ran after him

July 9, 2012

Saint Benedict of Nursia Founder of western monasticism, born at Nursia, c. 480; died at Monte Cassino, 543. The only authentic life of Benedict of Nursia is that contained in the second book of Saint Gregory’s “Dialogues”. It is rather a character sketch than a biography and consists, for the most part, of a number […]

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Video – Queen’s Diamond Jubilee interview: The royal herald

July 5, 2012

  As part of a series of interviews to celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, Professor Alastair Bruce OBE explains to the Telegraph what it is like to be the Queen’s Fitzalan Pursuivant Extraordinary herald, who advises about state pomp and ceremony. The Fitzalan Pursuivant Extraordinary is an appointment made by Her Majesty as part of […]

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Luxemburger Wort: Luxembourg adopts egalitarian Crown succession rights

July 5, 2012

In future, the first-born child of the Grand Ducal couple, whether boy or girl will be able to accede to the throne, the royal household announced on Friday. The announcement comes just a year after the Grand Ducal household announced it was revising the “Pacte de famille” of the Luxembourg-Nassau house. Grand Duke Henri, as […]

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Sir Winston Churchill’s Ancestral Grandeur

July 5, 2012

“He was not only the foremost of English soldiers, but in the first rank among the statesmen of our history.” Thus Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill summed up the greatness of John Churchill, the first Duke of Marlborough, his ancestor eight generations removed. Pondering what he called the “various long-descending channels” of heredity that produced the […]

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Our Lord Jesus Christ: the perfect human type

July 5, 2012

In their journey toward perfection, the different classes naturally develop human types proper to each, gradually approximating an ideal type. This model, the ideal human type for all classes, this personification of perfection, is not a theoretical model, but a historic reality. The human type par excellence is the person of Our Lord Jesus Christ, […]

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July 6 – The King Had Three Daughters, All Saints

July 5, 2012

St. Sexburga of Ely Died about 699. Her sisters, Sts. Ethelburga and Saethrid, were both Abbesses of Faremontier in Brie, St. Withburga was a nun at Ely, and St. Etheldreda became Abbess of Ely. Sexburga was the daughter of Anna, King of the East Angles, and was married about 640 to Earconbert, King of Kent. […]

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Reuters: Liechtenstein votes to keep prince’s veto

July 2, 2012

Voters in Liechtenstein rejected a proposal to abolish the ruling prince’s right to veto the results of popular referendums on Sunday… The referendum was proposed by pro-democracy campaigners after Crown Prince Alois von und zu Liechtenstein said last year he would block the legalization of abortion if citizens approved it in a referendum. In the […]

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The Guardian: Queen unveils memorial to Bomber Command

July 2, 2012

Unlike the heralded famous “Few” whose fighters defended Britain in 1940, those who went by day and mostly night to destroy enemy cities have felt years of hurt. At last they have a permanent memorial… The German city of Dresden, where 25,000 civilians died in bombing raids, initially objected to the memorial. But this was […]

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In saving Don John of Austria’s life, Don Luis Quijada loses his own

July 2, 2012

Meanwhile D. John of Austria was driving the Moors from place to place, and from rock to rock, towards the Alpujarras, where the other wing of the army was to cut them off. And such were his ardor, forethought, and wish to participate as much in the responsibilities of a leader as in the fatigues […]

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All classes should tend to perfection

July 2, 2012

It is proper for everything that has a sound and healthy existence to tend continually toward perfection. This natural tendency should also manifest itself in the social classes.(1) Perfection has degrees, as we have noted. From this perspective, a social class is a group of families that has achieved a degree of perfection proper to […]

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July 2 – Caught Between Two Masters

July 2, 2012

Saint Otto Bishop of Bamberg, born about 1060; died 30 June, 1139. He belonged to the noble, though not wealthy, family of Mistelbach in Swabia, not to the Counts of Andechs. He was ordained priest, but where he was educated is not known. While still young he joined the household of Duke Wladislaw of Poland; […]

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July 4 – Patroness of victims of adultery, jealousy and unfaithfulness

July 2, 2012

St. Elizabeth, Queen of Portugal A.D. 1336. ST. ELIZABETH was daughter of Peter III,  king of Aragon, and granddaughter of James I, who had been educated under the care of St. Peter Nolasco, and was surnamed the Saint, and from the taking of Majorca and Valentia, Expugnator or the Conqueror. Her mother, Constantia, was daughter […]

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July 4 – HIRH Archduke Otto of Hapsburg-Lorraine Died One Year Ago Today

July 2, 2012

Obitiuary.   The Traditional Burial Ceremony of a Hapsburg Prince This traditional ceremony for the burial of Hapsburg emperors and princes is a glorious specimen of the profound influence of Christianity on this “first family of Christendom” and a luminous example of faith for Christians not just in Austria, but throughout the world. It will […]

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Queen’s swans ‘killed by floods, disease and yobs’

June 28, 2012

According to The Telegraph: The Queen’s Swan Marker, David Barber, said…”Vandalism remains a constant threat to swan numbers and is one of the primary causes of fatalities among mute swans and young cygnets together with fishing tackle injuries. The number of vandal attacks has continued to increase over the past year.” Mr. Barber also noted […]

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“If I died tomorrow, I would die a happy man.”

June 28, 2012

According to the Daventry Express: A butcher from Spratton presented his award-winning Diamond Pie to the Queen on her recent Diamond Jubilee tour of the East Midlands. Chris Saul, of Sauls of Spratton was among a number of county producers…who were displaying their wares at Burghley House. Mr Saul said: “I told the Queen that […]

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The Marquis de Chastellux draws a sketch of General Washington

June 28, 2012

As de Chastellux rode up, he observed Lafayette in front of the house, conversing with an officer, tall of stature, with a mild and noble countenance. It was Washington. De Chastellux alighted and was presented by Lafayette. His reception was frank and cordial. Washington conducted him into the house. Dinner was over, but Generals Knox, […]

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A Sauce in Honor of a Marquis

June 28, 2012

Before the French Revolution, creative chefs commonly dedicated their new recipes to members of the royal family or of the nobility. This is what François Pierre de la Varenne did with one of his creations, a white roux sauce. As the chef of the Marquis of Uxelles, de la Varenne made the first Bechamel by […]

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The concept of perfection applied to individuals and families

June 28, 2012

The concept of perfection is readily understood. Perfection is the state of a being that contains all the necessary attributes for its own integrity. For a rational being, perfection implies the ability to discern one’s ends and to possess the means to realize them. Perfection admits several degrees. First, there is a minimal perfection, which […]

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June 28 – To Avoid Their Desecration, He Ordered the Relics of the Saints to be Brought Inside the Walls

June 28, 2012

Pope Saint Paul I Date of birth unknown; died at Rome, 28 June, 767. He was a brother of Pope Stephen II. They had been educated for the priesthood at the Lateran palace. Stephen entrusted his brother, who approved of the pope’s course in respect to King Pepin, with many important ecclesiastical affairs, among others […]

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June 30 – How the New York Upper Class Was Transformed by One Humble Servant

June 28, 2012

Servant of God Pierre Toussaint (1766-1853) Born to slavery in Saint Domingue (present-day Haiti), Toussaint came to New York in 1789 with his master, Jean Bérard du Pithon, a French noble and prosperous planter who was fleeing the turmoil unleashed in Saint Domingue by the French Revolution. Two years later, his master died without having […]

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Luxemburger Wort: Te Deum and military parade mark National Day

June 25, 2012

  It was an early start for the Grand Ducal family, as they set out to attend the traditional Te Deum church service on Saturday morning, followed by a military parade on the Avenue de la Liberté. At 10.30am the Grand Ducal family was joined by Luxembourg’s ministers, deputies, ambassadors and other figures of political […]

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Video: Order of the Garter Service and Procession at Windsor Castle

June 25, 2012

Order of the Garter Service and Procession at Windsor Castle

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Time Magazine: Surprising Facts About Queen Elizabeth II

June 25, 2012

The Queen has received over 3.5 million items of correspondence during her reign. Since 1952, she has conferred over 404,500 honors and awards. She sent her first e-mail in 1976, from a British army base. About 1.5 million people have attended garden parties at Buckingham Palace or the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Scotland since Elizabeth […]

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Madame Elizabeth ponders the horrors afflicting France during the Revolution

June 25, 2012

To the Abbé de Lubersac. June 25, 1792 This letter will be rather long on its way; but I prefer not to let this opportunity of talking with you pass. I am convinced that you will feel almost as keenly as ourselves the blow that has just been struck us; it is all the more […]

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The Different Roads of the Authentic and Inauthentic Elites

June 25, 2012

When a person acquires a fortune, whether by his own merit or inheritance, two roads lie before him: He can take the arduous road to secure for himself, or his descendants, an entrance into the traditional elites; or he can take the easy path, becoming a toad. The road of assimilation into the traditional elites […]

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June 27 – The Saint-King elected to lead the First Crusade

June 25, 2012

St. Ladislaus (or Ladislas) St. Ladislaus the First, called by the Hungarians László, and in old French, Lancelot, was son of Bela king of Hungary, and born in 1041. By the pertinacious importunity of the people he was compelled, much against his own inclination, to ascend the throne in 1080, the kingdom being then elective. […]

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Beautiful Video – Trooping the Colour 2012 Highlights

June 21, 2012

The Mall 16th June 2012 Video Pictures

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A man never cries except in confessing his sins

June 21, 2012

At three o’clock in the morning of the 2nd of October, 1556, a horseman arrived at Villagarcia by road from Valladolid, and knocked furiously on the door of the castle. The night watchman hastened at the noise from the top of the wall, and asked who went there. “Praised be God,” said the person below. […]

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The jet set

June 21, 2012

The jet set constitutes yet another inauthentic elite. The expression indicates the very wealthy who live to spend money and enjoy life traveling between the most fashionable places. It includes the most disparate persons: a royal princess, a high-rolling gambler, a famous jockey, a scandal-ridden movie star. The criteria for membership are wealth, a taste […]

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June 21 – More Angel than Man

June 21, 2012

St. Aloysius Gonzaga Aloysius Gonzaga was son of Ferdinand Gonzaga, prince of the holy empire, and marquis of Castiglione, removed in the third degree of kindred from the duke of Mantua. His mother was Martha Tana Santena, daughter of Tanus Santena, lord of Cherry, in Piedmont. She was lady of honor to Isabel, the wife […]

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June 22 – He Confronted the Mandate

June 21, 2012

St. Thomas More Saint, knight, Lord Chancellor of England, author and martyr, born in London, 7 February, 1477-78; executed at Tower Hill, 6 July, 1535. He was the sole surviving son of Sir John More, barrister and later judge, by his first wife Agnes, daughter of Thomas Graunger. While still a child Thomas was sent […]

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Ireland’s ancient coronation stone vandalised

June 18, 2012

Ireland’s ancient coronation stone vandalised (via AFP) One of Ireland’s ancient monuments, the Lia Fail standing stone which according to legend served as the coronation stone for the high kings, has been vandalised, the government said Wednesday. Heritage Minister Jimmy Deenihan said the granite Lia Fail, which is Gaelic for Stone of Destiny, appeared…

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Toads and communism

June 18, 2012

Observing the attitude of these toads toward the communist world, we witness a perplexing fact. Far from being in the vanguard of a broad action against international communism, as their privileged station would seem to demand, many toads promoted conciliation, ever ready to negotiate with and extend Western credit to the communists and their allies. […]

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Reuters: Liechtenstein prince faces vote over veto power

June 14, 2012

The July [1] vote is only on the prince’s right to veto the results of popular referendums; he would retain the right to veto decisions made by parliament. The campaign was triggered last year after Crown Prince Alois said he would block the legalization of abortion in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy if his […]

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Video – Royal family treated to flypast and gun salute

June 14, 2012
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Through self-mastery, Don John of Austria saves the Catholic fleet from self-destruction

June 14, 2012

D. John, satisfied with this information, ordered the decks to be cleared for action, and this time, in agreement with all the Generals, decided to wait at Gomenizza, while the wind, then contrary, did not permit them to make for Lepanto. The bay of Gomenizza is on the Albanian coast, thirty miles southeast of the […]

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Harmful character of the toads

June 14, 2012

Under these conditions, the toads are virtually a cancer within the social body. Far from crowning a harmonic hierarchy of elites, they build their own structure of power, influence, and prestige, without overlapping with the other levels of elites. The dynamism of their anti-natural structure ultimately harms the political, economic, social, and cultural life of […]

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June 16 – Death threats meant nothing to him

June 14, 2012

Saint John Francis Regis Born 31 January, 1597, in the village of Fontcouverte (department of Aude); died at la Louvesc, 30 Dec., 1640. His father Jean, a rich merchant, had been recently ennobled in recognition of the prominent part he had taken in the Wars of the League; his mother, Marguerite de Cugunhan, belonged by […]

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Queen Elizabeth II bestows gallantry honor on Royal Gurkha

June 11, 2012

According to the Manila Bulletin: “A Nepalese soldier in the British army has been given a top bravery award by Queen Elizabeth II for his heroics in Afghanistan… Corporal Dipprasad Pun, 31, said he thought he was going to die and so had nothing to lose in taking on the attackers who overran his checkpoint. […]

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The Emperors of Austria gave public example of their Catholic faith

June 11, 2012

In addition to his seventeen territorial titles, the Emperor was described as “His Apostolic Majesty”: the monarchy was the greatest Roman Catholic power in the world. At an Easter ceremony every year, the Emperor and the Empress washed the feet of the poor, in a humble imitation of Christ…. On the feast of Corpus Christi, […]

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Malaysian prince’s ‘pill’ targets dengue scourge

June 11, 2012

Malaysian prince’s ‘pill’ targets dengue scourge (via AFP) A Malaysian prince is promoting a novel weapon against the worsening scourge of dengue fever: a protein “pill” that starves mosquito larvae and could revolutionise the global dengue fight. It is a fight that is intensifying: more than 2.5 billion people — around 40 percent of Earth’s […]

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Video – Emperor Franz Josef is greeted by his Catholic subjects

June 11, 2012

Nobility.org does not agree that Franz Josef was tyrannical or domineering. Link to video is here: http://gloria.tv/?media=282247 Views of Francis Joseph I, Emperor of Austria-Hungary, and an entourage of military officers and civilians walking down a wide avenue; the street is lined with people greeting the Emperor. Nobility.org Editorial comment: — The proper archetype for […]

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June 13 – He Died Aged 36, But the Whole World Knows Him

June 11, 2012

St. Anthony of Padua Franciscan Thaumaturgist, born at Lisbon, 1195; died at Vercelli, 13 June, 1231. He received in baptism the name of Ferdinand. Later writers of the fifteenth century asserted that his father was Martin Bouillon, descendant of the renowned Godfrey de Bouillon, commander of the First Crusade, and his mother, Theresa Tavejra, descendant […]

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Video: A million Britons cheer Queen’s carriage procession

June 7, 2012
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