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Thrasamund

Thrasamund (b.450–d.523), became King of the Vandals and Alans in 496, the fourth king in a line of rulers over the North African Kingdom of the Vandals. He was the son of Gento and the grandson of the Vandal Kingdom's founder, Gaiseric. Thrasamund ruled longer than any other Vandal king in Africa aside from his grandfather. He was known for his commitment to Arianism and for his antagonism towards Catholics. Upon his death in 523, Thrasamund was succeeded by his cousin, Hilderic.

Early life
Thrasamund was born to Gaiseric's son, Gento, and became king in 496 after his brother, King Gunthamund died. Upon Gunthamund's death, Thrasamund was one of only two living grandsons of Gaiseric and inherited the throne in accordance with a law enacted by his grandfather, which bestowed the kingship on the eldest male member of a deceased king's family.

The Byzantine historian Procopius described Thrasamund as "especially good-looking" and quipped that the Vandal king was "gifted with discretion and high-mindedness."

Reign
During Thrasamnund's monarchy, the Vandals in North Africa enjoyed lengthy periods of relative peace, the economy was flourishing, and cultural life was thriving. The Vandal king Thrasamund has been depicted as a "scholar king" in a number of poems from the sixth-century. More specifically, one poem by Florentinus praised Thrasamund's reverence, foresight, bravery, vigorous education, and intelligence, while claiming that with him as king, "the citadel of Carthage shines forth steadily". Florentinus essentially casts Thrasamund in the very "mold of a Roman emperor" and depicts him as having created a favorable cultural environment for scholarly debate, including over matters of theology.

If Procopius can be believed, Thrasamund did not take a hard line against Catholics like his immediate Vandal predecessors had, but instead sought more earnestly to coerce them at first. To ensure his authority, Thrasamund required annual oaths of loyalty from his subordinates, indicated by panegyrics from contemporaneous figures. To his credit perhaps, his ascension was marked by substantial changes in the Vandal regnum's diplomatic situation.

Ties to Theodoric the Great
Perhaps to strengthen the bonds among the barbarian kingdoms, Theoderic the Great married his widowed sister Amalafrida to Thrasamund, providing a dowry consisting of the promontory of Lilybaeum in Sicily, and a retinue of a thousand elite troops and five thousand armed retainers. It is conceivable that such a sizable contingent of Goths surrounding Amalafrida was Theodoric's way of ensuring he could intervene in Vandal affairs if necessary and could have potentially made Thrasamund a "subordinate" to the Ostrogothic king. After all, historian Hans-Ulrich Wiemer points out that Thrasamund's force strength was only about twice what Theodeoric sent with Amalafridfa. A panegyric from 507 celebrated Vandal "obedience" to Theodoric's rule and the Roman statesman Cassiodorus—serving in Theodoric's employ—implied that one of Italy's great enemies had been "brought to heel by Gothic diplomacy". Austrian historian Herwig Wolfram places the date of the marriage between Amalafrida and Thrasamund at around 500. This union secured a strong bond between the kingdoms in North Africa and Italy. The arrangements between the three barbarian kingdoms of Vandals, Ostrogoths, and Visigoths—each of which occupied adjacent realms around the Mediterranean—were strengthened by their shared Arianism and could have been "anti-Byzantine in purpose".

Instead of receiving tribute payments, Thrasamund had to be content thereafter with friendly relations between his Vandals and Theodoric's Ostrogoths. Despite this alliance, Thrasamund was unable to aid the Ostrogothic king Theodoric when the Byzantine Navy ravaged the coast of southern Italy, which prevented him from coming to the assistance of King Alaric II of the Visigoths during the Battle of Vouillé, which contributed to a Visigothic defeat. It seems Thrasamund was wary of sending his fleet against the Byzantine emperor, since he appeared to have valued his relationship with the Byzantine emperor Anastasius over any alliance obligations to Theodoric. It would not be the last time that Thrasamund disappointed the Ostrogothic king. Nonetheless, Thrasamund remained "closely allied" to Byzantium.

Sometime in 510, Gesalec—the illegitimate son of the Visigoth king Alaric II—who became king himself and was once recognized by Theodoric, fell from the Ostrogothic monarch's favor and was driven from the throne after losing a key strategic node—the former Visigothic capital at Narbonne; after which, he fled to Thrasamund in Carthage. Thrasamund generously gave Gesalec money, who then returned to his kingdom and formed an army at Aquitaine to fight the Ostrogothic general Ibba. Defeated by Ibba, Geselec tried to flee to the Burgundians but was captured and put to death before reaching them. Feeling again betrayed by Thrasamund for harboring and aiding an identified rival of the Ostrogothic kingdom, Theodoric expressed his displeasure in a letter to his brother-in-law:

Although, to reinforce concord [concordia] with sundry kings, We joined to them, at their request, either nieces or daughters as God inspired Us, still We think We conferred on no one anything comparable to making Our sister, the singular glory of the Amal line, your spouse: a woman your equal in wisdom [prudentia], a woman who can be admired for her council even more than she should be revered by your kingdom.

But I am stunned that, despite the fact that you were obligated by these favors, Gesalec, who joined our enemies while favored by Ourselves, was received into your protection in such a way that, although he came to you abandoned by his forces and bereft of means, yet he was outfitted with a sudden abundance of money and sent over [the Mediterranean] to foreign peoples [gentes exteras]; and though he proved utterly harmless, thanks be to God, he still unveiled the nature of your mind.

What can the rights of foreigners expect, if kinship by marriage [affinitas] deserves such treatment? If he was received in your kingdom out of pity, he should have been held there; if he was expelled for Our sake, then he should not have been sent with riches over to the kingdoms of others, which Our struggles absolutely prevented from becoming hostile to yourself.

Now the undisputed master of the Iberian Peninsula, Theodoric communicated from a place of power, which Thrasamund recognized, remorsefully appealing to Theodoric for forgiveness—a plea accompanied with precious gifts of gold.

Not only did Theodoric forgive Thrasamund, admonishing him accordingly, but he also returned the gold. Historian Peter Heather explains that Theodoric's rejection of a gift and its return was a "calculated insult" and a warning to Thrasamund that "the Vandal kingdom was still on probation". Thrasamund subsequently never again "dared to provoke" the Ostrogothic king.

Moors on the periphery
At the time of his wedding, Thrasamund and his Vandals were already at war with several Moorish kingdoms. Throughout the course of his rule, Thrasamund faced the ongoing threat posed by the Moors along the periphery of his territories, who became increasingly destructive and formidable across north Africa.

In the final year of Thrasamund's reign, the important port city of Leptis Magna was sacked by a mixed army of Moors and Berbers. Procopius describes a battle between the Berbers of Tripoli under Cabaon and the Vandals, in which the Berbers used unusual tactics to defeat the Vandal cavalry. Historian Guy Halsall described the event as a "severe defeat" for the Vandals at Moorish hands in much the way it was for the next Vandal king, which eventually brought intervention to North Africa from Emperor Justinian.

Persecution of Catholics
According to Gregory of Tours, Thrasamund engaged in persecution of Catholics in Spain in order to force them to embrace Arian Christianity. Gregory wrote of a story where a noblewoman was forcibly re-baptized against her will during which, she began to bleed into the water from menstruation while they carried it out. They subsequently killed her by beheading. However, Gregory's jaded version of Thrasamund's stance towards Catholics is not especially reliable according to scholars John Moorhead and Andrew Cain, who avow his chronology was confused and that Gregory was instead describing events that occurred under Gunderic's reign.

Still, Thrasamund was strongly disposed to his Arianism and to traditional Roman culture, and he tried to persuade Catholics across his kingdom to turn away from the faith's doctrine and went so far as to even bribe Catholic officials. In 515, he also participated in a written theological dispute (favoring Arianism as he did) with the leading figure of the Catholics, Fulgentius of Ruspe, whom he invited—along with Arian bishops—to Carthage. Yet none of this intellectual exchange prevented him for persecuting members of the Catholic clergy; for instance, he banished Bishop Eugenius of Carthage and Fulgentius several times, including sending them to Sardinia. Other African clerics were likewise sent into exile at Sardinia by Thrasamund during his reign.

Eventually, Thrasamund ended many years of pressure upon the Catholic Church, which had begun under his uncle Huneric, a move which improved the Vandals' relations with the Byzantine Empire. Procopius states that Thrasamund became "a very special friend of the Emperor Anastasius."

Death
Sometime during 523, Thrasamund died in North Africa and was succeeded by his cousin Hilderic. Shortly in the wake of Thrasamund's death, Hilderic reversed Thrasamund's strict policies towards Nicene Christians and "allowed Catholics to worship freely"; Thrasamund's widow Amalafrida then fled to the Moors on the edge of the Byzacena desert before being captured by the new Vandal king's agents and placed in prison, where she died.

title: Thrasamund


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Gunthamund

Gunthamund (c. 450–496), King of the Vandals and Alans (484–496) was the third king of the north African Vandal Kingdom. He succeeded his unpopular uncle Huneric, and for that reason alone, enjoyed a rather successful reign.

Gunthamund was the second son born to Gento, the fourth and youngest son of Genseric, the founder of the Vandal kingdom in Africa. Because most of Genseric's immediate family was dead, his elder brothers having been murdered by Huneric, When Huneric died on 23 December 484, Gunthamund was the eldest male member of the family. In accordance with Genseric's laws on succession, which decreed that the oldest member of the family would be the successor, he was proclaimed king.

Gunthamund benefited throughout his reign from the fact that the Vandals' most powerful rivals, the Visigoths, Ostrogoths, and the Byzantine Empire, were all heavily involved in wars. Although the Vandals' power had fallen off greatly since its zenith under Genseric, they enjoyed peace under Gunthamund. While he was also an Arian, Gunthamund eased up on Huneric's persecutions of Catholic Christians, which reduced unrest in the kingdom, and stabilized the kingdom's economy, which had been on the verge of collapse.

Unfortunately for the Vandals, Gunthamund died in his mid-forties and thus did not reign for a long time. He was succeeded by his brother Thrasamund, who was not as effective in ruling the kingdom.

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title: Gunthamund


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War of Jenkins' Ear

The War of Jenkins' Ear (Guerra del Asiento) was a conflict lasting from 1739 to 1748 between Britain and Spain. The majority of the fighting took place in New Granada and the Caribbean Sea, with major operations largely ended by 1742. It was related to the 1740 to 1748 War of the Austrian Succession. The name was coined in 1858 by British historian Thomas Carlyle, and refers to Robert Jenkins, captain of the British brig Rebecca, whose ear was allegedly severed by Spanish coast guards while searching his ship for contraband in April 1731.

Response to the incident was tepid until opposition politicians in the British Parliament, backed by the South Sea Company, used it seven years later to incite support for a war against Spain, hoping to improve British trading opportunities in the Caribbean. They also wanted to retain the lucrative Asiento de Negros, a contract issued by Spain to British merchants granting them permission to sell slaves in Spanish America, which is why the Spanish call it the Guerra del Asiento. The failed British attack at the Battle of Cartagena de Indias in 1741 resulted in heavy British casualties, primarily from disease and was not repeated.

Apart from minor fighting in Florida, Georgia, and Havana, after 1742 the conflict was largely subsumed into the War of the Austrian Succession, which involved most of the powers of Europe, and ended with the 1748 Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle. Great Britain failed to achieve its territorial and economic ambitions, and Spain successfully defended its possessions in the Americas. The war is remembered in British naval history for Admiral George Anson's voyage around the world from 1740 to 1744.

Background
The war was traditionally seen as a dispute between Britain and Spain over access to markets in Spanish America. More recent historians argue trade was only one of a number of issues, including tensions over British colonial expansion in North America. They suggest the decisive factor in turning an economic dispute into war was the domestic political campaign to remove the Whig government led by Robert Walpole, Prime Minister since 1721.

The 18th-century economic theory of mercantilism viewed trade as a finite resource; since countries could in theory only increase their share at the expense of their rivals, wars were often fought over purely commercial issues. The 1713 Treaty of Utrecht gave British merchants access to markets in Spanish America, including the Asiento de Negros, a monopoly to supply 5,000 slaves a year. Another was the Navio de Permiso, permitting two ships a year to sell 500 tons of goods each in Porto Bello in Panama, and Veracruz in Mexico. These rights were assigned to the South Sea Company, acquired by the British government in 1720.

However, the value of these rights was insignificant compared to the trade between Britain and mainland Spain, which a leading City of London merchant called 'the best flower in our garden.' British goods were imported through Cadiz, either for sale locally or re-export to Spanish colonies, with Spanish dye and wool going in the other direction. The asiento itself was marginally profitable and has been described as a 'commercial illusion'; between 1717 and 1733, only eight ships were sent from Britain to the Americas. Previous holders made money by carrying smuggled goods that evaded customs duties, demand from Spanish colonists creating a large and profitable black market.

Accepting that smuggling was too lucrative and widespread to stop altogether, the Spanish tried to manage it and sometimes used it as an instrument of policy. During the 1727 to 1729 Anglo-Spanish War, French ships carrying contraband were let through, while British ships were stopped and severe restrictions imposed on British merchants in Cadiz. This was reversed during the 1733 to 1735 War of the Polish Succession, when Britain supported Spain.

Under the 1729 Treaty of Seville, the Spanish were allowed to board British vessels trading with the Americas and check them for contraband. In 1731, the brig Rebecca was stopped off the coast of Cuba and found to be carrying an illegal cargo of sugar; during the search, its captain Robert Jenkins later alleged he had been tortured and his ear partially amputated by coastguard officers. While deprecating such treatment, the Royal Naval commander in Port Royal admitted those involved in what he described as "clandestine trade" could not complain if their cargoes were confiscated and often indulged in violence themselves. Such incidents were seen as the cost of doing business and it was quickly forgotten after the Spanish eased restrictions in 1732.

Tensions increased after the founding of the British colony of Georgia in 1732, which Spain considered a threat to Spanish Florida, vital to protect shipping routes with mainland Spain. For their part, the British viewed the 1733 Pacte de Famille between Louis XV and his uncle Philip V as the first step in being replaced by France as Spain's largest trading partner. A second round of Spanish "depredations" in 1738 led to demands for compensation, with Tory-backed newsletters and pamphlets presenting them as being inspired by France. Linking these allowed the opposition to imply the government's failure to act was due to George II's concerns over exposing Hanover to French attack. In support of their campaign against Walpole, the Tories exhibited Jenkins in the House of Commons and it was at this point that the incident became widely known.

The January 1739 Convention of Pardo set up a Commission to resolve the Georgia-Florida boundary dispute and agreed Spain would pay damages of £95,000 for ships seized. In return, the South Sea Company would pay £68,000 to Philip V as his share of profits on the asiento. Despite being controlled by the government, the company refused and Walpole reluctantly accepted that war could not be avoided. On 10 July 1739, the Admiralty was authorised to begin naval operations against Spain and on 20th, a force under Admiral Vernon sailed for the West Indies. He reached Antigua in early October; on 22 October, British ships attacked La Guaira and Puerto Cabello, principal ports of the Province of Venezuela and Britain formally declared war on 23 October 1739.

Name
The incident that gave its name to the war had occurred in 1731, off the coast of Florida, when the British brig Rebecca was boarded by a party from the Spanish patrol boat La Isabela, commanded by the guarda costa (effectively privateer) Juan de León Fandiño. After boarding, Fandiño cut off the left ear of the Rebecca's captain, Robert Jenkins, whom he accused of smuggling (although Franklin's Pennsylvania Gazette for 7 October 1731, says it was Lieutenant Dorce). Fandiño told Jenkins, "Go, and tell your King that I will do the same, if he dares to do the same." In March 1738, Jenkins was ordered to testify before Parliament, presumably to repeat his story before a committee of the House of Commons. According to some accounts, he produced the severed ear as part of his presentation, although no detailed record of the hearing exists. The incident was considered alongside various other cases of "Spanish Depredations upon the British Subjects", and was perceived as an insult to Britain's honour and a clear casus belli.

The conflict was named by essayist and historian Thomas Carlyle, in 1858, 110 years after hostilities ended. Carlyle mentioned the ear in several passages of his History of Friedrich II (1858), most notably in Book XI, chapter VI, where he refers specifically to "the War of Jenkins's Ear".

First attack on La Guaira (22 October 1739)
Vernon sent three ships commanded by Captain Thomas Waterhouse to intercept Spanish ships between La Guaira and Porto Bello. He decided to attack a number of vessels that he observed at La Guaira, which was controlled by the Royal Guipuzcoan Company of Caracas. The governor of the Province of Venezuela, Brigadier Don Gabriel de Zuloaga had prepared the port defences, and Spanish troops were well-commanded by Captain Don Francisco Saucedo. On 22 October, Waterhouse entered the port of La Guaira flying the Spanish flag. Expecting attack, the port gunners were not deceived by his ruse; they waited until the British squadron was within range and then simultaneously opened fire. After three hours of heavy shelling, Waterhouse ordered a withdrawal. The battered British squadron sailed to Jamaica to undertake emergency repairs. Trying later to explain his actions, Waterhouse argued that the capture of a few small Spanish vessels would not have justified the loss of his men.

Capture of Portobelo (20–22 November 1739)
Prior to 1739, trade between mainland Spain and its colonies was conducted only through specific ports; twice a year, outward bound ships assembled in Cadiz and the Flota escorted to Portobelo or Veracruz. One way to impact Spanish trade was by attacking or blockading these ports but as many ships carried cargoes financed by foreign merchants, the strategy also risked damaging British and neutral interests.

During the 1727 to 1729 Anglo-Spanish War, the British attempted to take Portobelo but retreated after heavy losses from disease. On 22 November 1739, Vernon attacked the port with six ships of the line; it fell within twenty-four hours and the British occupied the town for three weeks before withdrawing, having first destroyed its fortifications, port and warehouses.

The victory was widely celebrated in Britain; the song "Rule Britannia" was written in 1740 to mark the occasion and performed for the first time at a dinner in London honouring Vernon. The suburb of Portobello in Edinburgh and Portobello Road in London are among the places in Britain named after this success, while more medals were awarded for its capture than any other event in the eighteenth century.

However, taking a port in Spain's American empire was considered a foregone conclusion by many Patriot Whigs and opposition Tories. They now pressed a reluctant Walpole to launch larger naval expeditions to the Gulf of Mexico. In the longer term, the Spanish replaced the twice yearly Flota with a larger number of smaller convoys, calling at more ports and Portobelo's economy did not recover until the building of the Panama Canal nearly two centuries later.

First attack on Cartagena de Indias (13–20 March 1740)

Following the success of Portobelo, Vernon decided to focus his efforts on the capture of Cartagena de Indias in present-day Colombia. Both Vernon and Edward Trelawny, governor of Jamaica, considered the Spanish gold shipping port to be a prime objective. Since the outbreak of the war, and Vernon's arrival in the Caribbean, the British had made a concerted effort to gain intelligence on the defences of Cartagena. In October 1739, Vernon sent First Lieutenant Percival to deliver a letter to Blas de Lezo and Don Pedro Hidalgo, governor of Cartagena. Percival was to use the opportunity to make a detailed study of the Spanish defences. This effort was thwarted when Percival was denied entry to the port.

On 7 March 1740, in a more direct approach, Vernon undertook a reconnaissance-in-force of the Spanish city. Vernon left Port Royal in command of a squadron including ships of the line, two fire ships, three bomb vessels, and transport ships. Reaching Cartagena on 13 March, Vernon immediately landed several men to map the topography and to reconnoitre the Spanish squadron anchored in Playa Grande, west of Cartagena. Having not seen any reaction from the Spanish, on 18 March Vernon ordered the three bomb vessels to open fire on the city. Vernon intended to provoke a response that might give him a better idea of the defensive capabilities of the Spanish. Understanding Vernon's motives, Lezo did not immediately respond. Instead, Lezo ordered the removal of guns from some of his ships, in order to form a temporary shore battery for the purpose of suppressive fire. Vernon next initiated an amphibious assault, but in the face of strong resistance, the attempt to land 400 soldiers was unsuccessful. The British then undertook a three-day naval bombardment of the city. In total, the campaign lasted 21 days. Vernon then withdrew his forces, leaving HMS Windsor Castle and HMS Greenwich in the vicinity, with a mission to intercept any Spanish ship that might approach.

Destruction of the fortress of San Lorenzo el Real Chagres (22–24 March 1740)
After the destruction of Portobelo the previous November, Vernon proceeded to remove the last Spanish stronghold in the area. He attacked the fortress of San Lorenzo el Real Chagres, in present-day Panama on the banks of the Chagres River, near Portobelo. The fort was defended by Spanish patrol boats, and was armed with four guns and about thirty soldiers under Captain of Infantry Don Juan Carlos Gutiérrez Cevallos.

At 3 pm on 22 March 1740, the British squadron, composed of the ships Stafford, Norwich, Falmouth and Princess Louisa, the frigate Diamond, the bomb vessels Alderney, Terrible, and Cumberland, the fireships Success and Eleanor, and transports Goodly and Pompey, under command of Vernon, began to bombard the Spanish fortress. Given the overwhelming superiority of the British forces, Captain Cevallos surrendered the fort on 24 March, after resisting for two days.

Following the strategy previously applied at Porto Bello, the British destroyed the fort and seized the guns along with two Spanish patrol boats.

During this time of British victories along the Caribbean coast, events taking place in Spain would prove to have a significant effect on the outcome of the largest engagement of the war. Spain had decided to replace Don Pedro Hidalgo as governor of Cartagena de Indias. But, the new governor-designate, Lieutenant General of the Royal Armies Sebastián de Eslava y Lazaga had first to dodge the Royal Navy in order to get to his new post. Starting from the Galician port of Ferrol, the vessels Galicia and San Carlos set out on the journey. Hearing the news, Vernon immediately sent four ships to intercept the Spanish. They were unsuccessful in their mission. The Spanish managed to circumvent the British interceptors and entered the port of Cartagena on 21 April 1740, landing there with the new governor and several hundred veteran soldiers.

Second attack on Cartagena de Indias (3 May 1740)
In May, Vernon returned to Cartagena de Indias aboard the flagship HMS Princess Caroline (1728) in charge of 13 warships, with the intention of bombarding the city. Lezo reacted by deploying his six ships of the line so that the British fleet was forced into ranges where they could only make short or long shots that were of little value. Vernon withdrew, asserting that the attack was merely a manoeuver. The main consequence of this action was to help the Spanish test their defences.

Third attack on Cartagena de Indias (13 March – 20 May 1741)

The largest action of the war was a major amphibious attack launched by the British under Admiral Edward Vernon in March 1741 against Cartagena de Indias, one of Spain's principal gold-trading ports in their colony of New Granada (today Colombia). Vernon's expedition was hampered by inefficient organisation, his rivalry with the commander of his land forces, and the logistical problems of mounting and maintaining a major trans-Atlantic expedition. The strong fortifications in Cartagena and the able strategy of Spanish Commander Blas de Lezo were decisive in repelling the attack. Heavy losses on the British side were due in large part to virulent tropical diseases, primarily an outbreak of yellow fever, which took more lives than were lost in battle.

The extreme ease with which the British destroyed Porto Bello led to a change in British plans. Instead of Vernon concentrating his next attack on Havana as expected, in order to conquer Cuba, he planned to attack Cartagena de Indias. Located in Colombia, it was the main port of the Viceroyalty and main point of the West Indian fleet for sailing to the Iberian Peninsula. In preparation the British gathered in Jamaica one of the largest fleets ever assembled. It consisted of 186 ships (60 more than the famous Spanish Armada of Philip II), bearing 2,620 artillery pieces and more than 27,000 men. Of that number, 10,000 were soldiers responsible for initiating the assault. There were also 12,600 sailors, 1,000 Jamaican slaves and macheteros, and 4,000 recruits from Virginia. The latter were led by Lawrence Washington, the older half-brother of George Washington, future President of the United States.

Colonial officials assigned Admiral Blas de Lezo to defend the fortified city. He was a marine veteran hardened by numerous naval battles in Europe, beginning with the War of the Spanish Succession, and by confrontations with European pirates in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean, and Barbary pirates in the Mediterranean Sea. Assisting in that effort were Melchor de Navarrete and Carlos Desnaux, with a squadron of six ships of the line (the flagship vessel Galicia together with the San Felipe, San Carlos, África, Dragón, and Conquistador) and a force of 3,000 soldiers, 600 militia and a group of native Indian archers.

Vernon ordered his forces to clear the port of all scuttled ships. On 13 March 1741, he landed a contingent of troops under command of Major General Thomas Wentworth and artillery to take Fort de San Luis de Bocachica. In support of that action, the British ships simultaneously opened with cannon fire, at a rate of 62 shots per hour. In turn, Lezo ordered four of the Spanish ships to aid 500 of his troops defending Desnaux's position, but the Spanish eventually had to retire to the city. Civilians were already evacuating it. After leaving Fort Bocagrande, the Spanish regrouped at Fort San Felipe de Barajas, while Washington's Virginians took up positions in the nearby hill of La Popa. Vernon, believing the victory at hand, sent a message to Jamaica stating that he had taken the city. The report was subsequently forwarded to London, where there was much celebration. Commemorative medals were minted, depicting the defeated Spanish defenders kneeling before Vernon. The robust image of the enemy depicted in the British medals bore little resemblance to Admiral Lezo. Maimed by years of battle, he was one-eyed and lame, with limited use of one hand.

On the evening of 19 April, the British mounted an assault in force upon Castillo San Felipe de Barajas. Three columns of grenadiers, supported by Jamaicans and several British companies, moved under cover of darkness, with the aid of an intense naval bombardment. The British fought their way to the base of the fort's ramparts where they discovered that the Spanish had dug deep trenches. This effectively rendered the British scaling equipment too short for the task. The British advance was stymied since the fort's walls had not been breached, and the ramparts could not be topped. Neither could the British easily withdraw in the face of intense Spanish fire and under the weight of their own equipment. The Spanish seized on this opportunity, with devastating effect.

Reversing the tide of battle, the Spanish initiated a fixed bayonet charge at first light, inflicting heavy casualties on the British. The surviving British forces retreated to the safety of their ships. The British maintained a naval bombardment, sinking what remained of the small Spanish squadron (after Lezo's decision to scuttle some of his ships in an effort to block the harbour entrance). The Spanish thwarted any British attempt to land another ground assault force. The British troops were forced to remain aboard ship for a month, without sufficient reserves. With supplies running low, and with the outbreak of disease (primarily yellow fever), which took the lives of many on the crowded ships, Vernon was forced to raise the siege on 9 May and return to Jamaica. Six thousand British died while only one thousand Spanish perished.

Vernon carried on, successfully attacking the Spanish at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. On 5 March 1742, with the help of reinforcements from Europe, he launched an assault on Panama City, Panama. In 1742, Vernon was replaced by Rear-Admiral Chaloner Ogle and returned to England, where he gave an accounting to the Admiralty. He learned that he had been elected MP for Ipswich. Vernon maintained his naval career for another four years before retiring in 1746. In an active Parliamentary career, Vernon advocated for improvements in naval procedures. He continued to hold an interest in naval affairs until his death in 1757.

News of the defeat at Cartagena was a significant factor in the downfall of the British Prime Minister Robert Walpole. Walpole's anti-war views were considered by the Opposition to have contributed to his poor prosecution of the war effort.

The new government under Lord Wilmington wanted to shift the focus of Britain's war effort away from the Americas and into the Mediterranean. Spanish policy, dictated by the queen Elisabeth Farnese of Parma, also shifted to a European focus, to recover lost Spanish possessions in Italy from the Austrians. In 1742, a large British fleet under Nicholas Haddock was sent to try and intercept a Spanish army being transported from Barcelona to Italy, which he failed to do having only 10 ships. With the arrival of additional ships from Britain in February 1742, Haddock successfully blockaded the Spanish coast failing to force the Spanish fleet into an action.

Lawrence Washington survived the yellow fever outbreak, and eventually retired to Virginia. He named his estate Mount Vernon, in honour of his former commander.

Anson expedition

The success of the Porto Bello operation led the British, in September 1740, to send a squadron under Commodore George Anson to attack Spain's possessions in the Pacific. Before they reached the Pacific, numerous men were killed by disease, they had to outrun pursuing Spanish naval vessels, and ultimately the fleet found itself in no shape to launch any sort of attack. Anson reassembled his force in the Juan Fernández Islands, allowing them to recuperate before he moved up the Chilean coast, raiding the small town of Paita. He reached Acapulco too late to intercept the yearly Manila galleon, which had been one of the principal objectives of the expedition. He retreated across the Pacific, running into a storm that forced him to dock for repairs in Canton. After this he tried again the following year to intercept the Manila galleon. He accomplished this on 20 June 1743 off Cape Espiritu Santo, capturing more than a million gold coins.

Anson sailed home, arriving in London more than three and a half years after he had set out, having circumnavigated the globe in the process. Less than a tenth of his forces had survived the expedition. Anson's achievements helped establish his name and wealth in Britain, leading to his appointment as First Lord of the Admiralty. One of his ships, HMS Wager, was presumed lost in the storms round Cape Horn the survivors would later take part in a sensational public inquiry concerning allegations of mutiny, cannibalism, and murder among the Wager's crew.

Florida
In 1740, the inhabitants of Georgia launched an overland attack on the fortified city of St. Augustine in Florida, supported by a British naval blockade, but were repelled. The British forces led by James Oglethorpe, the Governor of Georgia, besieged St. Augustine for over a month before retreating, and abandoned their artillery in the process. The failure of the Royal Navy blockade to prevent supplies reaching the settlement was a crucial factor in the collapse of the siege. Oglethorpe began preparing Georgia for an expected Spanish assault. The Battle of Bloody Mose, where the Spanish and free black forces repelled Oglethorpe's forces at Fort Mose, was also a part of the War of Jenkins' Ear.

French neutrality
When war broke out in 1739, both Britain and Spain expected that France would join the war on the Spanish side. This played a large role in the tactical calculations of the British. If the Spanish and French were to operate together, they would have a superiority of ninety ships of the line. In 1740, there was an invasion scare when it was believed that a French fleet at Brest and a Spanish fleet at Ferrol were about to combine and launch an invasion of England. Although this proved not to be the case, the British kept the bulk of their naval and land forces in or near southern England to act as a deterrent.

Many in the British government were afraid to launch a major offensive against the Spanish, for fear that a major British victory would draw France into the war to protect the balance of power.

Invasion of Georgia
In 1742, the Spanish launched an attempt to seize the British colony of Georgia. Manuel de Montiano commanded 2,000 troops, who were landed on St Simons Island off the coast. General Oglethorpe rallied the local forces and defeated the Spanish regulars at Bloody Marsh and Gully Hole Creek, forcing them to withdraw. Border clashes between the colonies of Florida and Georgia continued for the next few years, but neither Spain nor Britain undertook offensive operations on the North American mainland.

Second attack on La Guaira (2 March 1743)

The British attacked several locations in the Caribbean with little consequence to the geopolitical situation in the Atlantic. The weakened British forces under Vernon launched an attack against Cuba, landing in Guantánamo Bay with a plan to march the 45 miles to Santiago de Cuba and capture the city. Vernon clashed with the army commander, and the expedition withdrew when faced with heavier Spanish opposition than expected. Vernon remained in the Caribbean until October 1742, before heading back to Britain; he was replaced by admiral Chaloner Ogle, who took command of a sickly fleet. Fewer than half the sailors were fit for duty. The following year, a smaller fleet of Royal Navy led by commodore Charles Knowles raided the Venezuelan coast, on 2 March 1743 attacking newly La Guaira controlled by Royal Guipuzcoan Company of Caracas whose ships had rendered great assistance to the Spanish navy during War in carrying troops, arms, stores and ammunition from Spain to her colonies, and its destruction would be a severe blow both to the Company and the Spanish Crown.

After a fierce defence by Governor Gabriel José de Zuloaga's troops, Commodore Knowles, having suffered 97 killed and 308 wounded over three days, decided to retire west before sunrise on 6 March. He decided to attack nearby Puerto Cabello. Despite his orders to rendezvous at Borburata Keys—4 mi east of Puerto Cabello—captains of the detached Burford, Norwich, Assistance, and Otter proceeded to Curaçao. The commodore angrily followed them in. On 28 March, he sent his smaller ships to cruise off Puerto Cabello, and once his main body had been refitted, went to sea again on 31 March. He struggled against contrary winds and currents for two weeks before finally diverting to the eastern tip of Santo Domingo by 19 April.

Merger with wider war
By mid-1742, the War of the Austrian Succession had broken out in Europe. Principally fought by Prussia and Austria over possession of Silesia, the war soon engulfed most of the major powers of Europe, who joined two competing alliances. The scale of this new war dwarfed any of the fighting in the Americas, and drew Britain and Spain's attention back to operations on the European continent. The return of Vernon's fleet in 1742 marked the end of major offensive operations in the War of Jenkins' Ear. France entered the war in 1744, emphasizing the European theatre and planning an ambitious invasion of Britain. While it ultimately failed, the threat persuaded British policymakers of the dangers of sending significant forces to the Americas which might be needed at home.

Britain did not attempt any additional attacks on Spanish possessions. In 1745, William Pepperrell of New England led a colonial expedition, supported by a British fleet under Commodore Peter Warren, against the French fortress of Louisbourg on Cape Breton Island off Canada. Pepperrell was knighted for his achievement, but Britain returned Louisbourg to the French by the Treaty of Aix-La-Chapelle in 1748. A decade later, during the Seven Years' War (known as the French and Indian War in the North American theatre), British forces under Lord Jeffrey Amherst and General Wolfe recaptured it.

Privateering
The war involved privateering by both sides. Anson captured a valuable Manila galleon, but this was more than offset by the numerous Spanish privateering attacks on British shipping along the transatlantic triangular trade route. They seized hundreds of British ships, looting their goods and slaves, and operated with virtual impunity in the West Indies; they were also active in European waters. The Spanish convoys proved almost unstoppable. During the Austrian phase of the war, the British fleet attacked poorly protected French merchantmen instead.

Lisbon negotiations
From August 1746, negotiations began in the city of Lisbon, in neutral Portugal, to try to arrange a peace settlement. The death of Philip V of Spain had brought his son Ferdinand VI to the throne, and he was more willing to be conciliatory over the issues of trade. However, because of their commitments to their Austrian allies, the British were unable to agree to Spanish demands for territory in Italy and talks broke down.

Aftermath

The eventual diplomatic resolution formed part of the wider settlement of the War of the Austrian Succession by the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle which restored the status quo ante. British territorial and economic ambitions on the Caribbean had been repelled,  while Spain, although unprepared at the start of the war, proved successful in defending its American possessions. Moreover, the war put an end to the British smuggling, and the Spanish fleet was able to dispatch three treasure convoys to Europe during the war and off-balance the British squadron at Jamaica. The issue of the asiento was not mentioned in the treaty, as its importance had lessened for both nations. The issue was finally settled by the 1750 Treaty of Madrid in which Britain agreed to renounce its claim to the asiento in exchange for a payment of £100,000. The South Sea Company ceased its activity, although the treaty also allowed favourable conditions for British trade with Spanish America.

George Anson's expedition to the Southeast Pacific led the Spanish authorities in Lima and Santiago to advance the position of the Spanish Empire in the area. Forts were thus built in the Juan Fernández Islands and the Chonos Archipelago in 1749 and 1750.

Relations between Britain and Spain improved temporarily, in subsequent years, due to a concerted effort by the Duke of Newcastle to cultivate Spain as an ally. A succession of Anglophile ministers were appointed in Spain, including José de Carvajal and Ricardo Wall, all of whom were on good terms with British Ambassador Benjamin Keene, in an effort to avoid a repeat of hostilities. As a result, during the early part of the Seven Years' War between Britain and France, Spain remained neutral. However, it later joined the French side and lost Havana and Manila to the British in 1762; although both were returned as part of the peace settlement, in exchange the Spanish ceded Florida to the British.

The War of Jenkins' Ear is commemorated annually on the last Saturday in May at Wormsloe Plantation in Savannah, Georgia.

Other resources

 * Tobias Smollett. "Authentic papers related to the expedition against Carthagena", by Jorge Orlando Melo in Reportaje de la historia de Colombia, Bogotá: Planeta, 1989.
 * Gary B. Nash and Julie Roy Jeffrey. The American People: Creating a Nation and Society (8th ed., 2016).
 * Quintero Saravia, Gonzalo M. (2002). Don Blas de Lezo: defensor de Cartagena de Indias. Editorial Planeta Colombiana, Bogotá, Colombia. ISBN 958-42-0326-6. In Spanish.

title: War of Jenkins' Ear


text:
Talk:Cosine

Shall we also redirect each of the edit-links in the Star Wars article to the Star Wars article? Edit links are useful - they tell a person quickly that a subject needs to be defined (thus encouraging article creation). Math was one of my lessor-liked subjects, but I could imagine a great little article about this function. --maveric149 —Preceding undated comment added 21:04, 3 May 2002

Before, the Cosine was redirected to Sine, and the Sine article replicated the material from trigonometric function. I consolidated everything in the trig function article and redirected Sine and Cosine there. Pretty much all information that applies to cosine also applies to sine in slightly modified form, that's why it makes sense to treat them together. If I leave Sine and Cosine open, I'm afraid someone will come around and again duplicate the material from trigonometric function. AxelBoldt —Preceding undated comment added 21:56, 3 May 2002

 * Fair enough -- objection retracted. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Mav (talk • contribs) 22:40, 3 May 2002

Restoring redirect
See the previous item on this discussion page for why this should remain redirected to trigonometric functions. To have a separate article on "cosine", there would have to be some insight in it that cannot be fit into the latter article; none is present here. And this version is poorly written: using "trigonometry" twice in the lead sentence in this way is redundant; "The definition of the cosine is as follows: Cosine=adjacent leg/hypotenuse." is way too vague, since it hasn't even been mentioned that a right triangle is being referred to; "It is abbreviated as cos θ" is inadequate because θ has not been previously mentioned or defined; "For instance, the cosine of a triangle with a hypotenuse measuring 5 feet and an adjacent leg measuring 4 feet, the cosine is 5/4=1.25." is not even a grammatical sentence; "As you can see,...." is no good because second person references are to be avoided in an encyclopedia.

Please do not replace the redirect again until you first obtain a consensus to do so. Duoduoduo (talk) 19:33, 24 June 2012 (UTC)

title: Talk:Cosine


text:
Talk:Game

Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment
This article was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment, between 7 July 2020 and 14 August 2020. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): Ikhan94.

Above undated message substituted from Template:Dashboard.wikiedu.org assignment by PrimeBOT (talk) 22:01, 16 January 2022 (UTC)

Huizinga
Huizinga/s definition : a game is the creation of a secondary world, by two or more people, through the acceptance of a set of conventions. Playing is acting in this secondary world according to these conventions, that become rules. Winning is comparing the actions of the participants to the ideal action as defined by these conventions. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 195.113.55.165 (talk) 14:23, 21 January 2016 (UTC)

Caillois definition
I'm not no bonde on wiki En, so I can't make correction myself, so if someone see this, the first point in Caillois definition isn't Fun but Free (activity must be freely chosen). Sorry for my english, I'm french.--216.252.67.30 (talk) 04:01, 22 February 2013 (UTC)

Chinese Numbers?
I was rooting through the list of types of [nQ|games] and I was wondering if someone could help me in defining a particular game and what category it would fall under. The game is called chinese numbers and in the game you have one person running the game and undefined number of people playing. The person running the game places several objects togather in what looks like a predetermined way (in reality any way they want, anything will work) they than ask the group what number this is. The players will look at the object and try to figure out what number it is. The number is actually irrevelant of the object and is determined by the number of words the leader uses when he asks what number it is. An example.

Question:-What number is this?- Answer: 4 Question:-Which number is this on the table?- Answer: 7

The goal is to figure it out, and then watch your friends be tormented that they dont know the answer. If anyone could help me figure out what category this falls under it would be great, so I can learn more about other games like this and help expand it. Thanks. --Beefybot 21:45, 3 December 2006 (UTC)

Riddle
I'd say that qualifies as a riddle or a puzzle. Junuxx (talk) 13:30, 2 January 2008 (UTC)

Have you looked into Pub or Drinking or Logic games ? Salisbury-99 (talk) 08:30, 11 September 2008 (UTC)

Dice Games
aren't those missing from the article? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 217.228.235.236 (talk) 15:12, 27 January 2007 (UTC).

These games are absolutely based on luck Aditya11817w (talk) 03:34, 5 September 2020 (UTC)

Problem with language games and Wittgenstein reference?
I think the reference to Wittgenstein's language games is absolutely appropriate. Why is this considered to stray from the topic of rules? He gives a very interesting and influential philosophical interpretation of game rules as the basis for all linguistic practice.--Agnaramasi 23:44, 31 March 2007 (UTC)

The piece includes: "He subsequently argued that the concept "game" could not be contained by any single definition, but that games must be looked at as a series of definitions that share a "family resemblance" to one another."

In the first place LW did not hold that concepts were "contained in" definitions. This language suggests a metaphysics nowhere present in LW's body of work.

In the second place it was not part of LW's approach to tell us how things "must be looked at." Rather he suggested that we (in this sort of context) look at the ways in which words are actually and usefully applied.

Finally, nowhere did Wittgenstein argue nor in any way suggest that games: "be looked at as a series of definitions" that share a family resemblance. I hope this was just careless composition.

Chess is not a series of definitions, nor is baseball, nor is naughts and crosses, nor is Grand Theft Auto. There is no evidence that Wittgenstein was confused about this.

Therefore...

Please change:

"He subsequently argued that the concept "game" could not be contained by any single definition, but that games must be looked at as a series of definitions that share a "family resemblance" to one another,"

... to:

"Wittgenstein pointed out that we comfortably and usefully apply the term "game" to a range of quite disparate human activities which nevertheless bear to one another what we might call family resemblances."

Done Welcome and thanks. I changed your wording slightly to be more encyclopedic and to avoid the implication of correctness 'pointed out' carries. If 'concluded' is inaccurate, please suggest another verb which also makes it clear that this is his view. Celestra (talk) 21:44, 6 April 2010 (UTC)

Some remarks
There were some things in this article I couldn't really agree on.

First of all, I doubt tic-tac-toe is a game of strategy. I even doubt it is a game. Doesn't one of the definitions require an uncertain outcome? To me and to any person with some logical skill whatsoever, tic-tac-toe is more like a performance of a sequence of moves, very short and always the same.

19:04, 6 April 2010 (UTC)Wikiwikinom (talk) Tic-tac-toe is a game from which children derive hours of amusement.

The sentence above is intelligible to any speaker of English. That is to say that, in it, familiar words are being used in familiar ways. I suggest it would be considered to present a true proposition by anyone familiar with the lexical sense and common usage of the word game, as long as they were also familiar with children.

I suggest that you are presenting a http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persuasive_definition of "game" which narrows the scope of the term to a range which excludes much which common usage and prevelant lexical definitions include.

19:04, 6 April 2010 (UTC)19:04, 6 April 2010 (UTC)19:04, 6 April 2010 (UTC)19:04, 6 April 2010 (UTC)Wikiwikinom (talk) 19:04, 6 April 2010 (UTC)

On the other hand, I don't think Paper, Rock and Scissors is just a chance game. Maybe not at all. There is no chance element like a die or scrambled cards. Of course you don't know for sure what your opponent is going to do, but that applies to chess too, and that's definitely not a game of chance. To me, PR&S is about getting to know your opponents preferences, predicting his or her choice by facial expression and outcome of previous rounds and the like.

The article states that "the concept of fandom began with sports fans". How can we be so sure? Don't the followers of ancient prophets, gods, famous entertainers or generals qualify as fans?

And finally, I don't quite understand from the definitions, what exactly is the difference between a game and living normal, conformist, everyday life?

Junuxx (talk) 14:04, 2 January 2008 (UTC)

Tic-Tac-Toe is a game taught to children. It is an excellent early step in showing how some games (and life) cannot be won. It is also a useful stage in showing how changing the rules -eg to three pegs only which can move - makes it a new game (called 3 mans morris).

I agree that PRS is not a game of chance.

Fandom is of course equal to any charismatic crowd but the word 'fan' ?began with US sports. Salisbury-99 (talk) 08:28, 11 September 2008 (UTC)

Tabletop games
The RPG section should probably be generalized. It's not clear to me why CRPGs deserve special attention here over (say) FPS games. It would, however, make sense to include a section for tabletop and other natural language (PBEM, etc) games, including PnP RPGs, nomic, and Exquisite Corpse. ruinia (talk) 18:41, 7 February 2008 (UTC)

Citation on middle-aged women as gamers
As in, I have one. Or a few, really. But I can't edit this article? :( boo. Here's what I'd link to -- sort of a wiki-clearinghouse page from the International Game Developers Association: http://www.igda.org/wiki/Casual_Games_SIG/Whitepaper/Market_Overview . I figure either that page can be cited, or the whitepapers it cites could be cited. Gus andrews (talk) 03:07, 23 June 2008 (UTC)

Categories - Slippage between articles
The number of sites about games generally, categories of games and specific games is very high. Game is the top article, below which come Tabletop game thence Board games and onwards come many sub-categories and articles.

There is unhelpful slippage between articles. For example Game details some 12 types of game as follows (at Sept 2008) :-

Sports (with Lawn games as a sub-section);

Table games with Board games, Card games, Dice games, Miniature games, Paper and pencil games, and roleplaying games as sub-sections;

Note 1 There is a recent casino-based intervention that Table games are a variant of casino games as opposed to 'slots'.

Note 2 ''Pencil and paper games do not appear to be table games according to the definition used for tabel games. Dice games do not necessarily need a table.'' Video games with Arcade, Computer, Console, Hand-held, Mobile and Online sub-sections.

'''However, Game links to 'List of types of games' which divides into Sports, Table games, Video Games and Others in a significantly different arrangement than in the header article. '''

The sub-group 'Others' is an amalgam of items. Wargames surely should be with miniatures and role-playing. There are others which, provided they use a board on a table, come within the sub-section of board-games called 'abstract' - - - - - -

Furthermore, List of basic game topics under 'Types of games' has yet another different arrangement. It also notes 'for a more comprehensive list' see Game Classification'.

- - - - - - - - -

Categories used by popular game sites such as BoardGameGeek should be considered if any effort is made to regularise these categories. It may be that a multi-layer categorisation should be considered.

Thus "two player only games, three-player only; two or more players;" and so on might be one such layering.

The equipment requirements could be another with board, computer, ball, dice, domino, string etc being a second.

Posted also to Discussion page on List of types of games & List of basic game topics Salisbury-99 (talk) 08:20, 11 September 2008 (UTC)

Mahjong not a domino game
The typical western domino is double ended and thus unlike a mahjong tile. Mahjong merely has a tile which is hard, solid and sometimes made of bone (I refrain from the obvious joke). In play and style, Mahjong is a card game correctly described as being 'rummy'-like. If there is consensus on this change? Salisbury-99 (talk) 14:11, 23 September 2008 (UTC)
 * It's rummy-like, but I think the consensus here is to call it a tile-based game, rather than card game. Percy Snoodle (talk) 19:00, 23 September 2008 (UTC)

 * Dominoes are defined as double-ended pieces with a dividing line. I see no resemblance to a Mahjongg tile and therefore, as yet, no debate as to consensus. Salisbury-99 (talk) 10:19, 11 October 2008 (UTC)
 * I think you misunderstood. Dominoes is a tile-based game.  Not all tile-based games are domino games.  Mahjongg is a tile-based game.  Mahjongg is not a domino game.  What's to debate?  Percy Snoodle (talk) 10:21, 13 October 2008 (UTC)
 * I agree. Both are tile-based games. --Orrelly Man (talk) 10:04, 8 February 2009 (UTC)

Mahjong   [  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.53.108.82 (talk) 16:14, 3 February 2013 (UTC)

What about ballroom dancing?
The main article, as it now stands, begins:

''A game is a structured activity, usually undertaken for enjoyment and sometimes used as an educational tool. Games are distinct from work, which is usually carried out for remuneration, and from art, which is more concerned with the expression of ideas.''

From this, it would seem that ballroom dancing is a "game". 76.208.248.98 (talk) 06:10, 7 August 2009 (UTC)

 * The next sentence is "However, the distinction is not clear-cut, and many games are also considered to be..." - the whole lead gives a rough definition. There's no need to try to make the opening sentence 100% watertight in isolation. --McGeddon (talk) 09:10, 7 August 2009 (UTC)

Interwiki
Please add zh-yue:遊戲. Thanks. --Telepo (talk) 10:16, 10 December 2009 (UTC)

Definition
I don't have access to the main page, and I was wondering if anyone out there could add the definition of a game from Jesse Schell's of The Art of Game Design: A Book of Lenses. "A game is a problem-solving activity approached with a playful attitude." —Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.219.190.87 (talk) 16:25, 21 February 2010 (UTC)

Art: Expression of ideas?
I can't edit the main "Game" page for some reason, but the first line offers a naive definition of "art", which is contradicted on the very page that the word"art" links to. Anyone up for coming up with a better first sentence/paragraph? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 173.52.129.253 (talk) 01:28, 18 April 2010 (UTC)
 * You are welcome to suggest improvements here. r ʨ anaɢ (talk) 01:42, 18 April 2010 (UTC)

Thanks Rjanag - sorry, didn't realize contributions to the talk page were meant to be appended to the bottom! Anyway, the definition of art on the general "art" page for wikipedia claims "Art is the process or product of deliberately arranging elements in a way to affect the senses or emotions". Here's part of the first sentence on the "game" page: "art, which is more concerned with the expression of ideas".

Focusing on emotions or senses as opposed to "ideas" is a more inclusive definition that allows us to include abstract art, dance and music (and maybe even games, although lets not open that can of worms right now). Anyway, it might seem like a subtle difference but it happens to be something that (video) game community is struggling with right now, which is why I bothered to write this! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 173.52.129.253 (talk) 01:48, 19 April 2010 (UTC)

Edit request from Dawitwiki, 17 November 2010
edit semi-protected

I don't think the first item for a definition of a game should be Ludwig Wittgenstein's "use" of the word "game". Wittgenstein's use of a game should rather be discussed as an EXCEPTION to a definition of a game. Wittgenstein's use of the word "game" is not to show that "game", as we know it, is indefinable. He does NOT offer a definition of the word "game" nor does he intend to define it. It will rather be absurd and oxymoronic to cite him first under "Definition". My suggestion is that you remove his name from this entry unless of course you are using him to explain "family resemblances" and the problem of defining things, including "games", in GENERAL.

Dawitwiki (talk) 02:00, 17 November 2010 (UTC)
 * Red information icon with gradient background.svg Not done: Not a valid reason for deletion. If you have specific suggestions on how to modify or add the text so that it better represents Wittgenstein please add them here. Thanks. -Atmoz (talk) 14:04, 17 November 2010 (UTC)

animals and games?
Many animals engage in activities that might be considered 'games' with each other or toys, especially in their younger age. Should it be mentioned in a article? 95.58.139.97 (talk) 14:27, 28 March 2011 (UTC)
 * If it is notable enough to be supported by reliable sources, go ahead. However, just because young animals' activities are similar to what humans would consider "playing", it doesn't mean it is anything close to what is the subject of the article. Your phrase "might be considered" is a strong clue against the inclusion of this information. If we included it in this form, it would quickly be dismissed as original research -- Nczempin (talk) 17:25, 28 March 2011 (UTC)

Spelling
3.5 Business Games says "Many business games focus on torganizational behaviors" - should it say "organizational"?

124.198.142.94 (talk) 23:46, 4 June 2011 (UTC)

Edit request on 1 December 2011
Mang rene (talk) 10:18, 1 December 2011 (UTC) free download game
 * ❌, non notable-- Jac 16888 Talk 11:46, 1 December 2011 (UTC)

Proposing an improved definition
I'd like to propose an improved definition, one that I sincerely believe is definitive, as opposed to merely descriptive: Game: An activity in which achievement of a goal is challenged by motion, obfuscation, chance, or the actions of opponents. This definition is the result of a careful analysis and I really think it precisely identifies the sufficient and necessary conditions for something to qualify as a game. My analysis on Google Docs. -Jack Bellis Jackbellis (talk) 17:57, 17 September 2012 (UTC)

Chris Crawford rubbish
Chris Crawford's "rules" are drivel and should be removed. It's like the stuff people say in the pub. 81.153.0.101 (talk) 10:26, 17 July 2013 (UTC)
 * Not sure I agree with that. It doesn't seem any worse than anything else in that section, and as a published writer on game design he seems to have sufficient authority to be worth quoting on the subject. --McGeddon (talk) 13:38, 17 July 2013 (UTC)

I absolutely agree. He may be a game designer, but it doesn't change the utter irrelevancy of his definition. High school sports are no longer games since they aren't undertaken for monetary purposes. WesPhil (talk) 12:33, 4 October 2021 (UTC)

"Sexual games"
'...redirects here.'' See, this is why wikipedia, otherwise most worthy project, is not recommended to children. I am pretty convinced a lot of children might type this article name in. And I doubt most people looking for Game care that Sexual Game reditects here. So why is that information in the second sentence? Actually why is it even there, when I never expressed interest in it with my query? Well, I do know why, everybody knows. That's sick, really. 01:27, 16 February 2014 (UTC)94.78.131.202 (talk)
 * I don't think Wikipedia has a policy for being children-friendly. However, I removed that redirection note since this article does not contain anything related to that topic anyway. I personally think a "sexual game" is not really a game, and thus should be in its own article instead. Ahyangyi (talk) 14:22, 22 February 2014 (UTC)
 * I've pointed the actual redirect at eroge, which is what this article's hatnote was suggesting to the reader. --McGeddon (talk) 14:25, 22 February 2014 (UTC)
 * No objection to the edit - just an observation that there are a few "adults only" tabletop-games and party-games (including any game that starts with the prefix "Strip-") so "sexual games" does not exclusively refer to sexually explicit videogames. Rmsgrey (talk) 19:44, 9 July 2014 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 24 December 2014
Information about "Games" redirecting to "Game" should be added on the top of the page (below where it says "For other uses, see Games (disambiguation).").

174.29.175.19 (talk) 23:50, 24 December 2014 (UTC)

❌ This is automatically added if you arrive at the page by trying to go to games if have not been redirected, it doesn't matter - Arjayay (talk) 18:57, 25 December 2014 (UTC)

External links modified
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Video and computer games.
When on social games, individuals go out of their way to cheat, con, even going so far as to reprogram to inhibit another, to remove an individual (or individuals), then those games are no longer games, but clear and definite indications of forms of 'demencia' which go hand in hand with defined sociopathies, severely skewed theologies, and substance abuse. The later agravating any nurtured asimetries in such a form and manner that they would change word definitions in a dictionary by and through force to maintain circular delusions. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 190.39.122.242 (talk) 18:39, 1 February 2017 (UTC)
 * You are so right. When it stops being fun, even for one player, it's no longer a game. Dolberty (talk) 13:25, 21 June 2017 (UTC)

External links modified
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Key components
You forgot the main thing: fun. Also replayability. Dolberty (talk) 10:40, 21 June 2017 (UTC)

Almost any activity can be treated as a game even if not generally thought to be one, hence the reproof "So-and-so is not a game" often administered to boys in particular. Davidnugget (talk) 10:06, 22 October 2017 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 30 April 2018
Add this term name unblocked games in see also because many person want to know about them Gdhakad (talk) 08:30, 30 April 2018 (UTC)
 * Red information icon with gradient background.svg Not done: Please see the policy on external links. Also a "See also" section is for internal wikilinks. — KuyaBriBri Talk 13:40, 30 April 2018 (UTC)

Reference Lua error
Seeing a citation error regarding Lua. Someone needs to fix it. Might look into it later. British Potato (talk) 14:08, 3 September 2019 (UTC)

"Freegamer" listed at Redirects for discussion
A discussion is taking place to address the redirect Freegamer. The discussion will occur at Redirects for discussion/Log/2020 May 15 until a consensus is reached, and readers of this page are welcome to contribute to the discussion. TheAwesome Hwyh  20:31, 15 May 2020 (UTC)

Information under sports and which qualify as games needs clarification
It is stated that racing and gymnastics are not games despite their inclusion in the Olympic Games. I feel this is not a fair comparison and misses the process of what is added to the olympics and how they are chosen. Perhaps the definition used in this section is not quite the best. I suggest comparing and contrasting the definitions and explaining why they’re included in the Olympics despite disagreement as a game. 2603:6010:7601:7D57:A462:631B:C146:DBC0 (talk) 13:42, 14 September 2021 (UTC)

 * Racing and gymnastics can  be games. I do not think this site is very reliable. 92.1.105.195 (talk) 08:57, 25 November 2023 (UTC)

Chris Crawford really needs to go
Does anyone really take this definition seriously? He isn’t particularly qualified to define a game just because he can make them. I think, even as the article suggests, that his definition is entirely non applicable to the majority of what is considered a game. I will remove his section in short time based on these reasons. I don’t believe his definition makes the criteria for anything notable here. WesPhil (talk) 17:42, 23 October 2021 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 25 October 2023
EDP445k (talk) 17:18, 25 October 2023 (UTC)
 * Red information icon with gradient background.svg Not done: No info given.  Wandering  Morpheme   01:38, 26 October 2023 (UTC)

Request link change please
I want to request that "entertainment" in the lead section links to "happiness" instead of what it was intended to so is it possible for someone to fix it please? 2001:FB1:94:A76F:58F:2931:668B:48D9 (talk) 16:48, 29 November 2023 (UTC)

Wrong source
In the opening to the article it reads "[A game] sometimes used as an educational tool" and links to Merriam-Webster. I read the whole MW article and can't find anything that supports this. I'm well aware of educational games but I can't edit the entry so anyone who can fix this, please do, thanks. Fesimco (talk) 09:47, 11 December 2023 (UTC)

title: Talk:Game


text:
Wiltshire

Wiltshire (abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to the west. The largest settlement is Swindon, and Trowbridge is the county town.

The county has an area of 3485 km2 and a population of 720,060. The county is mostly rural, and the centre and south-west are sparsely populated. After Swindon (183,638), the largest settlements are the city of Salisbury (41,820) and the towns of Chippenham (37,548) and Trowbridge (37,169). For local government purposes the county comprises two unitary authority areas, Swindon and Wiltshire.

Undulating chalk downlands characterize much of the county; the North Wessex Downs in the east, Salisbury Plain in the centre, and Cranbourne Chase in the south. The north-west is part of the Cotswolds, a limestone area. The county's two major rivers are both called the Avon; the northern Avon enters the county in the north-west and flows in a south-westerly direction before leaving it near Bradford-on-Avon, and the southern Avon rises on Salisbury Plain and flows through Salisbury, then into Hampshire.

Salisbury Plain is noted for the Stonehenge and Avebury stone circles, which together are a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and other ancient landmarks. Much of the plain is a training area for the British Army. The city of Salisbury is notable for its medieval cathedral. Large country houses open to the public include Longleat, where there is also a safari park, and the National Trust's Stourhead.

Toponymy
The county, in the 9th century written as Wiltunscir, is named after the former county town of Wilton.

History
Wiltshire is notable for its pre-Roman archaeology. The Mesolithic, Neolithic and Bronze Age people that occupied southern Britain built settlements on the hills and downland that cover Wiltshire. Stonehenge and Avebury are perhaps the most famous Neolithic sites in the UK.

In the 6th and 7th centuries Wiltshire was at the western edge of Saxon Britain, as Cranborne Chase and the Somerset Levels prevented the advance to the west. The Battle of Bedwyn was fought in 675 between Escuin, a West Saxon nobleman who had seized the throne of Queen Saxburga, and King Wulfhere of Mercia. In 878 the Danes invaded the county. Following the Norman Conquest in 1066, large areas of the country came into the possession of the crown and the church.

At the time of the Domesday Survey, the industry of Wiltshire was largely agricultural; 390 mills are mentioned, and vineyards at Tollard and Lacock. In the succeeding centuries sheep-farming was vigorously pursued, and the Cistercian monastery of Stanley exported wool to the Florentine and Flemish markets in the 13th and 14th centuries.

In the 17th century, English Civil War Wiltshire was largely Parliamentarian. The Battle of Roundway Down, a Royalist victory, was fought near Devizes.

In 1794, it was decided at a meeting at the Bear Inn in Devizes to raise a body of ten independent troops of Yeomanry for the county of Wiltshire, which formed the basis for what would become the Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry, who served with distinction both at home and abroad, during the Boer War, World War I and World War II. The Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry lives on as Y (RWY) Squadron, based in Swindon, and B (RWY) Squadron, based in Salisbury, of the Royal Wessex Yeomanry.

Around 1800, the Kennet and Avon Canal was built through Wiltshire, providing a route for transporting cargoes from Bristol to London until the development of the Great Western Railway.

Information on the 261 civil parishes of Wiltshire is available at Wiltshire Council's Wiltshire Community History website which has maps, demographic data, historic and modern pictures and short histories. The local nickname for Wiltshire natives is "Moonrakers". This originated from a story of smugglers who managed to foil the local Excise men by hiding their alcohol, possibly French brandy in barrels or kegs, in a village pond. When confronted by the excise men they raked the surface to conceal the submerged contraband with ripples, and claimed that they were trying to rake in a large round cheese visible in the pond, really a reflection of the full moon. The officials took them for simple yokels or mad and left them alone, allowing them to continue with their illegal activities. Many villages claim the tale for their own village pond, but the story is most commonly linked with The Crammer in Devizes.

Geology, landscape and ecology

Two-thirds of Wiltshire, a mostly rural county, lies on chalk, a kind of soft, white, porous limestone that is resistant to erosion, giving it a high chalk downland landscape. This chalk is part of a system of chalk downlands throughout eastern and southern England formed by the rocks of the Chalk Group and stretching from the Dorset Downs in the west to Dover in the east. The largest area of chalk in Wiltshire is Salisbury Plain, which is used mainly for arable agriculture and by the British Army as training ranges. The highest point in the county is the Tan Hill–Milk Hill ridge in the Pewsey Vale, just to the north of Salisbury Plain, at 295 m above sea level.

The chalk uplands run north-east into West Berkshire in the Marlborough Downs ridge, and south-west into Dorset as Cranborne Chase. Cranborne Chase, which straddles the border, has, like Salisbury Plain, yielded much Stone Age and Bronze Age archaeology. The Marlborough Downs are part of the North Wessex Downs AONB (Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty), a 1730 sqkm conservation area.

In the north-west of the county, on the border with South Gloucestershire and Bath and North East Somerset, the underlying rock is the resistant oolite limestone of the Cotswolds. Part of the Cotswolds AONB is also in Wiltshire, in the county's north-western corner.

Between the areas of chalk and limestone downland are clay valleys and vales. The largest of these vales is the Avon Vale. The Avon cuts diagonally through the north of the county, flowing through Bradford-on-Avon and into Bath and Bristol. The Vale of Pewsey has been cut through the chalk into Greensand and Oxford Clay in the centre of the county. In the south west of the county is the Vale of Wardour. The south-east of the county lies on the sandy soils of the northernmost area of the New Forest.

Chalk is a porous rock, so the chalk hills have little surface water. The main settlements in the county are therefore situated at wet points. Notably, Salisbury is situated between the chalk of Salisbury Plain and marshy flood plains.

Green belt
The county has a green belt mainly along its western fringes as a part of the extensive Avon Green Belt. It reaches as far as the outskirts of Rudloe/Corsham and Trowbridge, preventing urban sprawl particularly from the latter in the direction of Bradford-on-Avon, and affording further protection to surrounding villages and towns from Bath in Somerset.

Climate
Along with the rest of South West England, Wiltshire has a temperate climate which is generally wetter and milder than counties further east. The annual mean temperature is approximately 10 °C. Although there is a marked maritime influence, this is generally rather less pronounced than it is for other south-western counties, which are closer to the sea. July and August are the warmest months with mean daily maxima of approximately 22 °C. In winter mean minimum temperatures of 1 °C or 2 °C are usual and air frost is frequent. In the summer the Azores high pressure affects south-west England; however, convective cloud sometimes forms inland, reducing the number of hours of sunshine. Annual sunshine rates are slightly less than the regional average of 1,600 hours.

In December 1998, there were 20 days without sun recorded at Yeovilton (Somerset). Most of the rainfall in the south-west is caused by Atlantic depressions or by convection, though a proportion is caused orographically (uplift over hills). Autumn and winter are rainiest, caused by Atlantic depressions, which are then most active. Even so, any month can be the wettest or driest in a given year but the wettest is much more likely to be Oct-Mar, and the driest Apr-Sept. In summer, a greater proportion of the rainfall is caused by sun heating the ground leading to convection and to showers and thunderstorms. It is often the northern half of the county that sees most of the showers with south-westerly winds in summer, whereas in the south of the county, the proximity of a relatively cold English Channel often inhibits showers. In autumn and winter, however, the sea is often relatively warm, compared with the air passing over it and can often lead to a higher rainfall in the south of the county (e.g. Salisbury recorded over 200mm of rain in Nov 2009 and January 2014). Average rainfall for the county is around 800 mm, drier parts averaging 700mm (28ins)and the wettest 900mm (around 35ins). About 8–15 days of snowfall is typical. November to March have the highest mean wind speeds, and June to August have the lightest winds. The predominant wind direction is from the south-west.

Economy
This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added (GVA) of Wiltshire at current basic prices with figures in millions of British Pounds Sterling.

The Wiltshire economy benefits from the "M4 corridor effect", which attracts business, and the attractiveness of its countryside, towns and villages. The northern part of the county is richer than the southern part, particularly since Swindon is home to national and international corporations such as Intel, Motorola, Patheon, Catalent (formerly known as Cardinal Health), Becton-Dickinson, WHSmith, Early Learning Centre and Nationwide, with Dyson located in nearby Malmesbury. Wiltshire's employment structure is distinctive in having a significantly higher number of people in various forms of manufacturing (especially electrical equipment and apparatus, food products, and beverages, furniture, rubber, pharmaceuticals, and plastic goods) than the national average.

In addition, there is higher-than-average employment in public administration and defence, due to the military establishments around the county, particularly around Amesbury and Corsham. There are sizeable British Army barracks at Tidworth, Bulford and Warminster, and the Royal School of Artillery is at Larkhill. Further north, RAF Lyneham was home to the RAF's Hercules C130 fleet until 2011; the MoD Lyneham site is now a centre for Army technical training. Wiltshire is also distinctive for the high proportion of its working-age population who are economically active (86.6% in 1999–2000) and its low unemployment rates. The gross domestic product (GDP) level in Wiltshire did not reach the UK average in 1998, and was only marginally above the rate for South West England.

Education
Wiltshire has 30 county secondary schools, publicly funded, of which the largest is Warminster Kingdown, and eleven independent secondaries, including Marlborough College, St Mary's Calne, Dauntsey's near Devizes, and Warminster School. The county schools are nearly all comprehensives, with the older pattern of education surviving only in Salisbury, which has two grammar schools (South Wilts Grammar School and Bishop Wordsworth's School) and three non-selective schools.

There are four further education colleges, which also provide some higher education: New College (Swindon); Wiltshire College (Chippenham, Trowbridge and Salisbury); Salisbury Sixth Form College; and Swindon College. Wiltshire is also home to a University Technical College, UTC Swindon, specialising in engineering. A second UTC, South Wiltshire UTC, was based in Salisbury but closed in August 2020.

Wiltshire is one of the few remaining English counties without a university or university college; the closest university to the county town of Trowbridge is the University of Bath. However, Bath Spa University has a centre at Corsham Court in Corsham, and Oxford Brookes University maintains a minor campus in Swindon (almost 50 km from Oxford). Swindon is the UK's second largest centre of population (after Milton Keynes) without its own university.

Service Children's Education has its headquarters in Trenchard Lines in Upavon, Wiltshire.

Demographics
The county registered a population of 680,137 in the 2011 Census. Wiltshire (outside Swindon) has a low population density of 1.4 persons per hectare, when compared against 4.1 for England as a whole.

Historical population of Wiltshire county:

Europe
At the 2016 European Union membership referendum, Wiltshire voted in favour of Brexit.

Westminster Parliamentary
At the 2019 general election, all seven Wiltshire constituencies (including the two Swindon constituencies) returned Conservative MPs. The two Swindon constituencies are seen as marginal, bellwether constituencies between Labour and the Conservatives. Conversely, the Chippenham constituency is traditionally contested between the Liberal Democrats and Conservatives, with Liberal Democrat Duncan Hames holding the seat until 2015. The Liberal Democrats also finished second in Devizes, North Wiltshire and Salisbury whereas Labour, in addition to the two Swindon seats, finished second in Wiltshire South West.

The 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies' initial proposals recommended wide-ranging changes to Wiltshire's electoral boundaries which would see the North Wiltshire seat extended across the county border into Gloucestershire.

Councils
The ceremonial county of Wiltshire consists of two unitary authority areas, Wiltshire and Swindon, governed respectively by Wiltshire Council and Swindon Borough Council. As a result of elections held in 2021, Wiltshire Council comprises 61 Conservatives, 27 Liberal Democrats, seven Independents and three Labour members. Swindon Borough Council has 34 Conservative councillors and 23 Labour members.

Until the 2009 structural changes to local government, Wiltshire (apart from Swindon) was a two-level county, divided into four local government districts – Kennet, North Wiltshire, Salisbury and West Wiltshire – which existed alongside Wiltshire County Council, covering the same area and carrying out more strategic tasks, such as education and county roads. However, on 1 April 2009 these five local authorities were merged into a single unitary authority called Wiltshire Council. With the abolition of the District of Salisbury, a new Salisbury City Council was created at the same time to carry out several citywide functions and to hold the city's charter.

Sport
The county is represented in the Football League by Swindon Town, who play at the County Ground stadium near Swindon town centre. They joined the Football League on the creation of the Third Division in 1920, and have remained in the league ever since. Their most notable achievements include winning the Football League Cup in 1969 and the Anglo-Italian Cup in 1970, two successive promotions in 1986 and 1987 (taking them from the Fourth Division to the Second), promotion to the Premier League as Division One play-off winners in 1993 (as inaugural members), the Division Two title in 1996, and their promotion to League One in 2007 after finishing third in League Two.

Chippenham Town is the area's highest-ranked non-league football club; they currently play in the National League South after winning the Southern Premier League in 2016/17, with a league record points tally of 103. After Salisbury City went into liquidation in 2014, a new club, Salisbury, was formed in 2015 and will play in the National League South for the 24/25 season.

Wiltshire County Cricket Club play in the Minor Counties league.

Swindon Robins Speedway team, who competed in the top national division, the SGB Premiership, had been at their track at the Blunsdon Abbey Stadium near Swindon since 1949. In 2020 they stopped racing due to the Covid-19 Pandemic and subsequently announced in 2022 that they would not be returning. Swindon Wildcats compete in the English Premier Ice Hockey League, the second tier of British ice hockey, and play their home games at Swindon's Link Centre.

Principal settlements
Wiltshire has twenty-one towns and one city: A list of settlements is at List of places in Wiltshire.
 * Amesbury
 * Bradford-on-Avon
 * Calne
 * Chippenham
 * Corsham
 * Cricklade
 * Devizes
 * Highworth (Borough of Swindon)
 * Larkhill
 * Ludgershall
 * Malmesbury
 * Marlborough
 * Melksham
 * Mere
 * Royal Wootton Bassett
 * Salisbury (city)
 * Swindon (Borough of Swindon)
 * Tidworth
 * Trowbridge
 * Warminster
 * Westbury
 * Wilton

Media
Local TV coverage is covered by BBC West and ITV West Country; however, Swindon and Salisbury receive BBC South and ITV Meridian.

The county's local radio stations are BBC Radio Wiltshire, Heart West, Greatest Hits Radio South West and Greatest Hits Radio South (covering Salisbury and surrounding areas).

County-wide local newspapers are the Gazette and Herald and Wiltshire Times.

Places of interest

Places of interest in Wiltshire include: • Arc Theatre, at the Trowbridge campus of Wiltshire College Drama-icon.svg

• Ashcombe House HH icon.svg

• Avebury, Neolithic stone circle UKAL icon.svg

• Avebury Manor and Garden HH icon.svg

• Avon Valley Path UKAL icon.svg

• Barbury Castle CP icon.svg

• Bentley Wood UKAL icon.svg

• Bowood House HH icon.svg

• Caen Hill Locks, Devizes

• Castle Combe village

• Castle Hill, Mere UKAL icon.svg

• Central Government War Headquarters, Corsham, underground nuclear bunker with accommodation for 4000

• Cherhill White Horse

• Chisbury Chapel AP Icon.svg

• Coate Water, East Swindon CP icon.svg

• Corsham Court HH icon.svg

• Cotswold Water Park

• The Courts Garden, Holt

• Crofton Pumping Station

• Edington Priory AP Icon.svg

• Fonthill Abbey AP Icon.svg

• Great Chalfield Manor

• Iford Manor and gardens HH icon.svg

• Kennet and Avon Canal Museum, Devizes Museum icon (red).svg

• Kennet Avenue, Avebury UKAL icon.svg

• King Alfred's Tower, Stourhead

• Lacock Abbey HH icon.svg

• Lacock village, largely owned by the National Trust

• Littlecote House HH icon.svg

• Longleat Safari Park CP icon.svg HH icon.svg

• Ludgershall Castle

• Lydiard Park & House, West Swindon CP icon.svg HH icon.svg

• Malmesbury Abbey AP Icon.svg

• Maud Heath's Causeway, near Chippenham

• Mompesson House, Salisbury

• Old Sarum, the site of the former cathedral UKAL icon.svg

• Philipps House & Dinton Park

• Richard Jefferies Birthplace and Museum, near Swindon Museum icon.svg

• REME Museum Museum icon (red).svg

• River Thames UKAL icon.svg

• Salisbury Cathedral AP Icon.svg

• The Salisbury Museum Museum icon.svg

• Science Museum library and archives, Wroughton

• Shearwater Lake

• Silbury Hill

• Stonehenge

• Stourhead

• Swindon and Cricklade Railway HR icon.svg

• Swindon Steam Railway Museum HR icon.svg

• Trafalgar House HH icon.svg

• Wardour Castle CL icon.svg

• West Kennet Long Barrow UKAL icon.svg

• Westbury White Horse

• Westwood Manor HH icon.svg

• Woodhenge UKAL icon.svg

• Wilton House HH icon.svg

• Wilton Windmill

• Wilts & Berks Canal

• Wiltshire Museum, Devizes Museum icon.svg

• Win Green Down UKAL icon.svg Areas of countryside in Wiltshire include:
 * Cranborne Chase UKAL icon.svg
 * Marlborough Downs UKAL icon.svg
 * Salisbury Plain UKAL icon.svg
 * Vale of Pewsey UKAL icon.svg

Road
Roads running through Wiltshire include The Ridgeway, an ancient route, and Roman roads the Fosse Way, London to Bath road and Ermin Way. National Cycle Route 4 and the Thames Path, a modern long distance footpath, run through the county.

Routes through Wiltshire include:
 * A4 road
 * M4 motorway / M4 Corridor
 * A303 trunk road
 * A350 road
 * A417 road

Navigable inland waterways

 * River Thames
 * Kennet and Avon Canal

Canals subject to restoration

 * Thames and Severn Canal
 * North Wilts Canal
 * Wilts & Berks Canal

Rail
Three main railway routes, all of which carry passenger traffic, cross Wiltshire. Other routes include: The major junction stations are Salisbury and Westbury, and important junctions are also found at Swindon, Chippenham and Trowbridge.
 * Great Western Main Line (Swindon and Chippenham)
 * Wessex Main Line (Bradford-on-Avon, Melksham, Trowbridge, Westbury, Warminster, Salisbury; connects to Chippenham)
 * West of England line (Salisbury and Tisbury)
 * Reading to Taunton Line
 * Heart of Wessex Line
 * Golden Valley Line
 * South Wales Main Line

There is also the Swindon and Cricklade Railway in the Thames Valley.

In general, Wiltshire is well served by rail, with 14 stations within its boundaries, although towns not served include Calne, Marlborough and Devizes. Several destinations on bus routes, including the aforementioned three towns, have integrated through ticketing where one ticket may be bought to cover both the bus and rail journey.

Air
Airfields in Wiltshire include Old Sarum Airfield and Clench Common Airfield. RAF Lyneham was an air transport hub for British forces until its closure in 2012. Airports with scheduled services near Wiltshire include Bournemouth Airport, Bristol Airport, Cardiff Airport, Exeter Airport, Gloucestershire Airport, Oxford Airport, Heathrow Airport and Southampton Airport.

title: Wiltshire


text:
Single-occupancy vehicle

A single-occupancy vehicle (SOV) is a privately operated vehicle whose only occupant is the driver. The drivers of SOVs use their vehicles primarily for personal travel, daily commuting and for running errands. The types of vehicles include, but are not limited to, sport utility vehicles (SUVs), light-duty trucks, and any combination thereof, along with all the various van and car sizes, but would generally be taken to exclude human-powered vehicles such as bicycles. This term is used by transportation engineers and planners. SOVs contrast with high-occupancy vehicles (HOV), which have two or more occupants. Keep in mind that SOV in this context refers to a status and usage, not the vehicle type.

title: Single-occupancy vehicle