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Duchy of Saxony

The Duchy of Saxony (Hartogdom Sassen, Herzogtum Sachsen) was originally the area settled by the Saxons in the late Early Middle Ages, when they were subdued by Charlemagne during the Saxon Wars from 772 and incorporated into the Carolingian Empire (Francia) by 804. Upon the 843 Treaty of Verdun, Saxony was one of the five German stem duchies of East Francia; Duke Henry the Fowler was elected German king in 919.

Upon the deposition of the Welf duke Henry the Lion in 1180, the ducal title fell to the House of Ascania, while numerous territories split from Saxony, such as the Principality of Anhalt in 1218 and the Welf Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg in 1235. In 1296, the remaining lands were divided between the Ascanian dukes of Saxe-Lauenburg and Saxe-Wittenberg, the latter obtaining the title of Electors of Saxony by the Golden Bull of 1356.

Geography

The Saxon stem duchy covered the greater part of present-day Northern Germany, including the modern German states (Länder) of Lower Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt up to the Elbe and Saale rivers in the east, the city-states of Bremen and Hamburg, the Westphalian part of North Rhine-Westphalia, and the Holstein region (Nordalbingia) of Schleswig-Holstein. In the late 12th century, Duke Henry the Lion also occupied the adjacent area of Mecklenburg (the former Billung March).

The Saxons were one of the most robust groups in the late tribal culture of the times, and eventually bequeathed their tribe's name to a variety of more and more modern geopolitical territories, such as Old Saxony (Altsachsen), Upper Saxony, the Electorate, the Prussian Province of Saxony (in present-day Saxony-Anhalt), and the Kingdom of Saxony, the latter corresponding with the German Free State of Saxony, which bears the name today, despite its territory not having been part of the medieval duchy (see map on the right).

Older stem duchy
According to the Res gestae saxonicae by tenth century chronicler Widukind of Corvey, the Saxons had arrived from Britannia at the coast of Land Hadeln in the Elbe-Weser Triangle, called by the Merovingian rulers of Francia to support the conquest of Thuringian kingdom, a seeming reversal of the English origin myth where Saxon tribes from the region, under the leadership of legendary brothers Hengist and Horsa, invade post-Roman Britannia. (see Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain).

The Royal Frankish Annals mention a 743 Frankish campaign led by the Carolingian Mayor of the Palace Carloman against the Saxons, followed by a second expedition together with his brother Pepin the Short the next year. In 747 their rebellious brother Grifo allied with Saxon tribes and temporarily conquered the stem duchy of Bavaria. Pepin, Frankish king from 750, again invaded Saxony and subdued several Westphalian tribes until 758.

In 772, Pepin's son Charlemagne started the final conquest of the Saxon lands. Though his ongoing campaigns were successful, he had to deal with the fragmentation of the Saxon territories in Westphalian, Eastphalian, Angrian, and Nordalbingian tribes, demanding the conclusion of specific peace agreements with single tribes, which soon were to be broken by other clans. The Saxons devastated the Frankish stronghold at Eresburg; their leader (Herzog) Widukind refused to appear at the 777 diet at Paderborn, retired to Nordalbingia and afterwards led several uprisings against the occupants, avenged by Charlemagne at the Massacre of Verden in 782. Widukind allegedly had to pledge allegiance in 785, having himself baptised and becoming a Frankish count. Saxon uprisings continued until 804, when the whole stem duchy had been incorporated into the Carolingian Empire.

Afterwards, Saxony was ruled by Carolingian officials, e.g. Wala of Corbie (d. 836), a grandson of Charles Martel and cousin of the emperor, who in 811 fixed the Treaty of Heiligen with King Hemming of Denmark, defining the northern border of the Empire along the Eider River. Among the installed dukes were already nobles of Saxon descent, like Wala's successor Count Ekbert, husband of Saint Ida of Herzfeld, a close relative of Charlemagne.

Younger stem duchy
Ida of Herzfeld may have been an ancestor of the Saxon count Liudolf (d. 866), who married Oda of Billung and ruled over a large territory along the Leine river in Eastphalia, where he and Bishop Altfrid of Hildesheim founded Gandersheim Abbey in 852. Liudolf became the progenitor of the Saxon ducal, royal and imperial Ottonian dynasty; nevertheless his descendance, especially his affiliation with late Duke Widukind, has not been conclusively established.

Subdued only a few decades earlier, the Saxons rose to one of the leading tribes in East Francia; it is however uncertain if the Ottonians already held the ducal title in the ninth century. Liudolf's elder son Bruno (Brun), progenitor of the Brunswick cadet branch of the Brunonen, was killed in a battle with invading Vikings under Godfrid in 880. He was succeeded by his younger brother Otto the Illustrious (d. 912), mentioned as dux in the contemporary annals of Hersfeld Abbey, which, however, seems to have been denied by the Frankish rulers. His position was strong enough to wed Hedwiga of the Babenberg, daughter of mighty Duke Henry of Franconia, princeps militiae of King Charles the Fat. As all of Hedwiga's brothers were killed in the Franconian Babenberg feud with the rivalling Conradines, Otto was able to adopt the strong position of his father-in-law and to evolve the united Saxon duchy under his rule.

In 911, the East Frankish Carolingian dynasty went extinct with the death of King Louis the Child, whereafter the dukes of Saxony, Swabia and Bavaria met at Forchheim to elect the Conradine duke Conrad I of Franconia king. One year later, Otto's son Henry the Fowler succeeded his father as Duke of Saxony. According to the medieval chronicler Widukind of Corvey, King Conrad designated Henry his heir, thereby denying the succession of his own brother Eberhard of Franconia, and in 919 the Saxon duke was elected King of East Francia by the assembled Saxon and Franconian princes at Fritzlar. Henry was able to integrate the Swabian, Bavarian and Lotharingian duchies into the imperial federation, vital to handle the continuous attacks by Hungarian forces, whereby the Saxon troops about 928/929 occupied large territories in the east settled by Polabian Slavs. Henry's eastern campaigns to Brandenburg and Meissen, the establishment of Saxon marches as well as the surrender of Duke Wenceslaus of Bohemia marked the beginning of the German eastward expansion (Ostsiedlung).

House of Billung

 * 936: Upon Henry's death at Memleben, his son Otto I succeeded him. According to Widukind, he was crowned king at Aachen Cathedral, with the other German Dukes Gilbert of Lorraine, Eberhard of Franconia, Arnulf of Bavaria and Herman of Swabia paying homage to him. He appoints Hermann Billung as princeps militiae or "Markgraf" in the Billung March with orders to subdue the Slavic Lutici beyond the Elbe River.
 * 961: Otto I leaves for Italy and his lieutenant margrave Hermann Billung becomes the administrator of Saxony. Before his death he was in all but name the duke of Saxony.
 * 973: Hermann Billung dies in Quedlinburg and shortly after Otto I dies in Memleben. Otto II becomes Emperor and he make Hermanns son Bernhard I Billung the first duke of Saxony of the Billung House.
 * 983: Danish uprising in Hedeby. Slavonian uprising in Northalbingia.
 * 1011: Duke Bernhard I Billung dies; his son Bernhard II becomes duke.
 * 1042: Ordulf Billung, son of Bernhard II, marries Wulfhild, the half-sister of King Magnus of Denmark and Norway. Danes and Saxons fight against the Wends.
 * 1059: Ordulf Billung becomes Duke after the death of his father.
 * 1072: Magnus Billung becomes Duke.
 * 1106: Duke Magnus dies without heir, ending the Billung dynasty. The Billung territory becomes part of the Welf and Ascanian countries. Lothar of Supplinburg becomes Duke of Saxony.
 * 1112: Otto of Ballenstedt created Duke by Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor.
 * 1115: Victory of Lothar of Supplinburg in the battle of Welfesholz over King Henry V.
 * 1125: Lothar of Supplinburg elected as German King and crowned Emperor, as Lothar II.
 * 1137 Death of Lothar. The Welf Henry X the Proud, Duke of Bavaria since 1126, had been appointed Lothar's successor (who died without a male heir) as Duke of Saxony. However, as he was not officially invested and it would make him far too powerful, his claim is not recognized by his rivals.
 * 1138: Henry X loses the election for King of the Germans against Conrad of Hohenstaufen. Insisting to hold both duchies, Bavaria and Saxonia, a claim Conrad opposes, Henry refuses an oath of allegiance and is consequently stripped of all his titles. The Duchy of Saxony is granted to the Ascanian Albert the Bear.
 * 1139: Due to his marriage to Lothar's only daughter Gertrude of Supplingenburg, Henry still holds substantial lands within the Duchy of Saxony. Henry fiercely resists Albert's attempts to take possession of Saxony. Preparing an attack on the Duchy of Bavaria, Henry X dies unexpectedly.
 * 1141: Albert the Bear renounces the Duchy of Saxony and the title (as well as the Duchy of Bavaria) is granted to Henry X's adolescent son Henry the Lion.

Henry the Lion
In 1142, King Conrad III of Germany granted the ducal title to the Welf scion Henry the Lion (as Duke Henry III). Henry gradually extended his rule over northeastern Germany, leading crusades against the pagan Wends. During his reign, Henry massively supported to the development of the cities in his dominion, such as Brunswick, Lüneburg and Lübeck, a policy ultimately contributing to the movement of the House of Welf from its homelands in southern Germany to the north.

In 1152, Henry supported his cousin Frederick III of Swabia, to be elected King of Germany (as Frederick I Barbarossa), likely under the promise of granting the Duchy of Bavaria back to Henry. Henry's dominion now covered more than two thirds of Germany, from the Alps to the North Sea and the Baltic Sea, making him one of the mightiest rulers in central Europe, and thus also a potential threat for other German princes and even Barbarossa.

To expand his rule, Henry continued to claim titles of lesser families, who left no legitimate heir. This policy caused unrest among many Saxon nobles and other German princes, first and foremost his father's old enemy, Albrecht the Bear. During Barbarossa's fourth Italian campaign in 1166, a league of German Nobles declared war on Henry. The war continued until 1170, despite several attempts of the Emperor to mediate. Ultimately, Henry's position remained unchallenged, due to Barbarossa's favourable rule.

In 1168, Henry married Matilda Plantagenêt, the daughter of Henry II of England and Eleanor of Aquitaine and sister of Richard Lionheart.

The following years led to an estrangement between Barbarossa and Henry. Henry ceased to support the Emperor's Italy campaigns, which were all proven unsuccessful, as massively as he used to, and instead focused on his own possessions. In 1175 Barbarossa again asked for support against the Lombard League, which Henry is said to have refused bluntly, even though Barbarossa kneeled before him. Records of this event were not written until several years later, and sources are contradictory, depending on whom the author favoured. Nevertheless, lacking the support of the Saxons the following Battle of Legnano was a complete failure for the Emperor.

When the majority of the realm's princes had returned from Italy, Henry's refusal was instantly exploited to weaken his position. Views differ, whether Barbarossa initiated Henry's downfall or if it was orchestrated by the princes first and foremost.

Between 1175 and 1181, Henry was charged with several accusations, such as violating the honour of the realm (honor imperii), breach of the peace, and treason. If he were to follow the summons to the Hoftag, Henry would've acknowledge the charges as rightful, and therefore refused all summons. In 1181, he was ultimately stripped of his titles. Unwilling to give up without a fight, Henry already had dealt the first blow in 1180 against the city of Goslar, which he had coveted for several years already. During the following war, Henry's domestic policy and the treatment of his vassals proved fatal, and his power quickly crumbled. In 1182, Henry the Lion ultimately went into Exile, joining the court of his father-in-law, Henry II of England. Following the death of his wife and also of the Emperor, the latter while participating in the Third Crusade, Henry returned to Brunswick in 1189 and briefly tried to regain the lost lands. After several setbacks, Henry made peace with Barbarossa's son and heir, King Henry VI, Holy Roman Emperor.

The ancient stem duchy of Saxony was partitioned in some dozens of territories of imperial immediacy by Barbarossa, and ceased to exist. The western part was split amongsy several minor counties and bishoprics, as well as the newly formed Duchy of Westphalia. In the east, the Ascanians, the Welf's old rivals, finally gained a severely belittled Duchy of Saxony, occupying only the easternmost, comparably small, territories along the river Elbe around Lauenburg upon Elbe and around Wittenberg upon Elbe. Limiting the lands the Ascanians gained along with the ducal title to these eastern territories caused the migration of the name Saxony from north-western Germany to the location of the modern Free State of Saxony.

The deposed ducal House of Welf could maintain its allodial possessions, which did not remain as part of the Duchy of Saxony after the enfeoffment of the Ascanians. The Welf possessions were elevated to the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg (also Brunswick and Lunenburg) in 1235. This duchy continued to use the old Saxon coat-of-arms showing the Saxon Steed in argent on gules, while the Ascanians adopted for the younger Duchy of Saxony their family colours, a barry of ten, in sable and or, covered by a crancelin of rhombs bendwise in vert, symbolising the Saxon dukedom.

House of Ascania
In 1269, 1272, and 1282 the co-ruling brothers John I and Albert II gradually divided their governing competences within the then three territorially unconnected Saxon areas (Hadeln, Lauenburg, and Wittenberg), thus preparing a partition.

After John I had resigned in 1282 in favour of his three minor sons Eric I, John II and Albert III, followed by his death three years later, the three brothers and their uncle Albert II continued the joint rule in Saxony.

In 1288, Albert II applied to King Rudolph I for the enfeoffment of his son and heir Duke Rudolph I with the Palatinate of Saxony, which ensued a long lasting dispute with the eager clan of the House of Wettin. When the County of Brehna was reverted to the Empire after the extinction of its comital family, the king enfeoffed Duke Rudolph. In 1290, Albert II gained the County of Brehna and in 1295 the County of Gommern for Saxony. King Wenceslaus II of Bohemia succeeded in bringing Albert II in favour of electing Adolf of Germany, as new emperor (Albert II signed an elector pact on 29 November 1291 that he would vote the same as Wenceslaus). On April 27, 1292, Albert II, with his nephews still minor, wielded the Saxon electoral vote, electing Adolf of Germany.

The last document mentioning the joint government of Albert II with his nephews as Saxon fellow dukes dates back to 1295. The definite partitioning of the Duchy of Saxony into Saxe-Lauenburg (Herzogtum Sachsen-Lauenburg), jointly ruled by the brothers Albert III, Eric I and John II, and Saxe-Wittenberg (Herzogtum Sachsen-Wittenberg), ruled by Albert II, took place before September 20, 1296. The Vierlande, Sadelbande (Land of Lauenburg), the Land of Ratzeburg, the Land of Darzing (today's Amt Neuhaus), and the Land of Hadeln are all mentioned as the separate territory of the brothers. Albert II received Saxe-Wittenberg around the eponymous city and Belzig. Albert II thus became the founder of the Ascanian line of Saxe-Wittenberg.

Members of the Welf cadet branch House of Hanover later became prince-electors of the Hanover (as of 1692/1708), kings of Great Britain, Ireland (both 1714), the United Kingdom (1801), and the Hanover (1814).

Territories seceded from Saxony after 1180
A number of seceded territories even gained imperial immediacy, while others only changed their liege lord on the occasion. The following list includes states that existed in the territory of the former stem duchy in addition to the two legal successors of the stem duchy, the Ascanian Duchy of Saxony formed in 1296 centered around Wittenberg and Lauenburg, as well as the Duchy of Westphalia, held by the Archbishops of Cologne, that already split off in 1180.

Westphalia

 * Arms of Westphalia.svg Duchy of Westphalia
 * Arms of the house of Bentheim.svg County of Bentheim
 * Counts_of_Mark_Arms.svg County of Mark
 * Blason Lahr.svg Prince-Bishopric of Münster
 * Wappen Bistum Osnabrück.svg Prince-Bishopric of Osnabrück
 * Ravensberg_Arms.svg County of Ravensberg
 * Arms of the house of Tecklenburg.svg County of Tecklenburg

Angria

 * Bremen-Erzbistum.svg Prince-Archbishopric of Bremen
 * Abbacy of Corvey
 * County of Delmenhorst
 * Diepholz-Grafschaft.PNG County of Diepholz
 * County of Everstein
 * Arms of the house of Hoya.svg County of Hoya
 * COA family de Herren zur Lippe.svg Lordship of Lippe, an allodial possession within the Duchy of Saxony until 1180, gaining disputed imperial immediacy
 * Wappen Bistum Minden.png Prince-Bishopric of Minden
 * Arms of the County of Oldenburg.svg County of Oldenburg
 * Wappen Bistum Paderborn.png Prince-Bishopric of Paderborn
 * Wappen Bistum Verden.png Prince-Bishopric of Verden
 * Armoiries de Waldeck.svg County of Waldeck

Eastphalia

 * Blankenburg.PNG County of Blankenburg, until 1180 a Saxon fief, then a fief of the Prince-Bishopric of Halberstadt
 * Coat_of_Arms_of_Brunswick-Lüneburg.svg County of Brunswick, later the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg (1235), the Welf allodial possessions
 * Party_per_pale_sable_and_or.svg Abbacy of Gandersheim
 * Wappen_Bistum_Halberstadt.png Prince-Bishopric of Halberstadt
 * Wappen_Bistum_Hildesheim.png Prince-Bishopric of Hildesheim
 * County of Hohenstein, seated in Hohenstein
 * Wappen_Erzbistum_Magdeburg.png Prince-Archbishopric of Magdeburg
 * CoA_Mansfeld_County.svg County of Mansfeld
 * Wappen_Landkreis_Quedlinburg_1939.svg Abbacy of Quedlinburg
 * Wernigerode.PNG County of Wernigerode
 * Wappen_Helmstedt.svg Abbey of St. Ludger
 * Reichsabtei_Werden-Helmstedt.svg Werden Abbey

Nordalbingia

 * Schaumburg Holstein Nesselblatt Wappen coat of arms.svg County of Holstein
 * Lübecksiebmacher.jpg Prince-Bishopric of Lübeck
 * CoA Ratzeburg Bishopric 2.svg Prince-Bishopric of Ratzeburg
 * Wappen_Bistum_Schwerin.png Prince-Bishopric of Schwerin

title: Duchy of Saxony


text:
User:MarcusVox

Marcus Vox.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: User:MarcusVox


text:
Amiidae

The Amiidae are a family of basal ray-finned fishes. The bowfin and the eyespot bowfin (Amia ocellicauda) are the only two species to survive today, although additional species in all four subfamilies of Amiidae are known from Jurassic, Cretaceous, and Eocene fossils.

Bowfins are now found throughout eastern North America, typically in slow-moving backwaters, canals, and ox-bow lakes. When the oxygen level is low (as often happens in still waters), the bowfin can rise to the surface and gulp air into its swim bladder, which is lined with blood vessels and can serve as a primitive lung.

Amiidae is a monophyletic group that has numerous synapomorphic characters. Amiidae were widespread and particularly rich in species during the Eocene era. During this era, they appeared to be confined almost exclusively to fresh water.

Taxonomy
The family is divided into five subfamilies, with 16 genera
 * Amiidae
 * Subfamily Amiinae (latest Cretaceous -Present)
 * Genus Amia
 * Genus †Cyclurus
 * Genus †Pseudoamiatus
 * Subfamily †Amiopsinae (Late Jurassic)
 * Genus †Amiopsis
 * Subfamily †Solnhofenamiinae (Late Jurassic)
 * Genus †Solnhofenamia
 * Subfamily †Vidalamiinae (Early Cretaceous)
 * Genus †Calamopleurus
 * Genus †Maliamia
 * Genus †Melvius
 * Genus †Pachyamia
 * Genus †Vidalamia
 * Subfamily incertae sedis
 * Genus †Nipponamia
 * Genus †Hispanamia
 * Subfamily Sinamiinae (Early Cretaceous)
 * Genus †Siamamia
 * Genus †Khoratamia
 * Genus †Sinamia
 * Genus †Ikechaoamia

title: Amiidae


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Hammersmith nude murders

The Hammersmith nude murders is the name of a series of six murders in West London, England, in 1964 and 1965. The victims, all prostitutes, were found undressed in or near the River Thames, leading the press to nickname the killer Jack the Stripper (a reference to Jack the Ripper). Two earlier murders, committed in West London in 1959 and 1963, have also been linked by some investigators to the same perpetrator.

Despite "intense media interest and one of the biggest manhunts in Scotland Yard's history" the case is unsolved. Forensic evidence gathered at the time is believed to have been destroyed or lost.

Elizabeth Figg
Figg was found dead at 5:10am on 17 June 1959 by police officers on routine patrol in Duke's Meadows, Chiswick, on the north bank of the River Thames. The park had a reputation as a lovers' lane, and prostitutes were known to take their clients there.

Figg's body was found on scrubland between Dan Mason Drive and the river's towpath, approximately 200 yd west of Barnes Bridge. Her dress was torn at the waist and opened to reveal her breasts; marks around the neck were consistent with strangulation. Figg's underwear and shoes were missing, and no identification or personal possessions were found. A pathologist concluded that death had occurred between midnight and 2:00a.m. on 17 June.

A post-mortem photograph of Figg's face distributed to the press was independently recognized by her roommate and her mother.

Extensive searches of the area – including the river bed – failed to find Figg's underwear, black stiletto shoes, or white handbag. A police official theorized that a client had murdered her in his car, after removing her shoes and underwear, and that these and her handbag had then remained in the car after the body was disposed of at Duke's Meadows. The proprietor at The Ship public house, on the opposite side of the river to where Figg was found, said that on the night of the murder he and his wife had seen a car's headlights as it parked in that area at 12:05a.m. Shortly after the lights were switched off, they heard a woman's scream.

Gwynneth Rees
The body of Welsh-born Gwynneth Rees was found on 8 November 1963 at the Barnes Borough Council household refuse disposal site on Townmead Road, Mortlake. The dump was situated 40 yd from the Thames towpath, and approximately 1 mi from Duke's Meadows.

Rees was naked except for a single stocking on her right leg, extending no further up than the ankle. She had been accidentally decapitated by a shovel which workmen had been using to level the refuse.

Hannah Tailford
Tailford was found dead on 2 February 1964 on the Thames foreshore below Linden House – the clubhouse of the London Corinthian Sailing Club – west of Hammersmith Bridge. She had been strangled, several of her teeth were missing, and her underwear had been stuffed into her mouth.

Irene Lockwood
Lockwood was found dead on 8 April 1964 on the foreshore of the Thames at Corney Reach, Chiswick, not far from where Tailford had been found. With the discovery of this victim, police surmised that a serial murderer was at large. Lockwood was pregnant at the time of her death.

Helen Barthelemy
East Lothian-born Barthelemy was found dead on 24 April 1964 in an alleyway at the rear of 199 Boston Manor Road, Brentford. Barthelemy's death gave investigators their first solid piece of evidence in the case: flecks of paint used in car manufacturing. Police felt that the paint had probably come from the killer's workplace; they therefore focused on tracing it to a business nearby.

Mary Fleming
Scottish-born Fleming was found dead on 14 July 1964 outside 48 Berrymede Road, Chiswick. Once again, paint spots were found on the body; many neighbours had also heard a car reversing down the street just before the body was discovered.

Frances Brown
Brown, a native of Edinburgh, was last seen alive on 23 October 1964 by a colleague who saw her get into a client's car; on 25 November her body was found in a car park on Hornton Street, Kensington. She had been strangled. The colleague was able to provide police with an identikit picture and a description of the car, thought to be a grey Ford Zephyr. Brown had testified as a witness for the defence, along with Christine Keeler and Mandy Rice-Davies, at the trial of Stephen Ward in July 1963.

Bridget O'Hara
Irish immigrant Bridget "Bridie" O'Hara was found dead on 16 February 1965 near a storage shed behind the Heron Trading Estate, Acton. She had been missing since 11 January. Once again, O'Hara's body turned up flecks of industrial paint which were traced to an electrical transformer near where she was discovered. Her body also showed signs of having been stored in a warm environment. The transformer was a good fit for both the paint and the heating.

Investigation
Chief Superintendent John Du Rose of Scotland Yard, the detective put in charge of the case, interviewed almost 7,000 suspects.

In the spring of 1965, the investigation into the murders encountered a major breakthrough when a sample of paint which perfectly matched that recovered from several victims' bodies was found beneath a concealed transformer at the rear of a building on the Heron Factory Estate in Acton. This factory estate faced a paint spraying shop. Shortly thereafter, Du Rose held a news conference in which he falsely announced that the police had narrowed the suspect pool down to 20 men and that, by a process of elimination, these suspects were being eliminated from the investigation. After a short time, he announced that the suspect pool contained only 10 members, and then three. There were no further known Stripper killings following the initial news conference.

According to the writer Anthony Summers, Hannah Tailford and Frances Brown, the Stripper's third and seventh victims, were peripherally connected to the 1963 Profumo affair. Some victims were also known to engage in the underground party scene in addition to appearing in pornographic movies. Several writers have postulated that the victims may have known each other, and that the killer may have been connected to this scene as well.

Kenneth Archibald
On 27 April 1964, Kenneth Archibald, a 57-year-old caretaker at the Holland Park Lawn Tennis Club, walked into Notting Hill police station and voluntarily confessed to the killing of Irene Lockwood. Archibald was charged with the murder and stood trial at the Old Bailey in June 1964. When asked to plead, he retracted his confession and pleaded not guilty. There was no other evidence to link him to the crime and on 23 June 1964, he was found not guilty by a jury and acquitted by the judge, Mr Justice Neild.

Mungo Ireland
For Du Rose, the most likely suspect was a Scottish security guard called Mungo Ireland, whom Du Rose first identified in a BBC television interview in 1970 as a respectable married man in his forties whom he codenamed "Big John". Ireland had apparently been identified as a suspect shortly after Bridget O'Hara's murder, when flecks of industrial paint were traced to the Heron Trading Estate, where he had worked as a security guard.

Shortly after this connection was made, Ireland committed suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning, leaving a note for his wife that read: "I can't stick it any longer", and finished, "To save you and the police looking for me I'll be in the garage". Whilst seen by many as a strong suspect in the killings, recent research suggests that Ireland was in Scotland when O'Hara was murdered, and therefore could not have been the Stripper. Crime author Neil Milkins said the killings stopped after Ireland's death and the police task force set up to catch the killer was reduced and finally disbanded. Milkins, who wrote the book Who Was Jack the Stripper?, was an investigative consultant for the BBC documentary Dark Son: The Hunt for a Serial Killer. "On the morning that Ireland’s body was found, he had been due to appear before Acton Magistrates Court to face a charge of failing to stop his car after being involved in a road traffic accident," said Milkins. "Did Ireland commit suicide to save facing Acton magistrates over a trifling motoring charge or did John Du Rose push him over the edge with his press statements?" The Scotland Yard Serious Crime Review Group re-investigated the Hammersmith murders between 2006 and 2007 and this resulted in a new conclusion. A statement read: "The circumstantial evidence against Mungo Ireland is very strong and it was the view of the officers conducting the most recent review of this case that he was most likely to be responsible." Although Ireland's work records indicated he was in Scotland on the night of O’Hara's disappearance, Scotland Yard believe it is possible that these may have been falsified.

Freddie Mills
In 2001, reformed gangster Jimmy Tippett Jr. claimed that, during research for his book about London's gangland, he had uncovered information suggesting that British light heavyweight boxing champion Freddie Mills was responsible for the murders. According to Tippett, Kray-era gangsters, including Charlie Richardson and Frankie Fraser, had long suspected Mills of being the murderer.

Mills had previously been linked with the murders by Peter Neale, a freelance journalist from Balham, south London, who told police in July 1972 that he had received information, in confidence, from a serving chief inspector that Mills "killed the nude prostitutes". He also said that this was "common knowledge in the West End. Many people would say, 'Oh, Freddie did them in...'"

Mills was found shot dead in his car, apparently by suicide, in July 1965.

The suggestion that Mills was the Hammersmith nudes murderer originated with gangster Frankie Fraser, who told it to policeman Bob Berry, who told The Sun crime reporter Michael Litchfield. Fraser claimed that the story was confessed by Mills, to Scotland Yard Chief Superintendent John Du Rose, and told by Du Rose to him; but when Du Rose published his autobiography which touched on the 'Hammersmith Nude Murders', there was no mention of Freddie Mills with regard to this case. The claims have since been dismissed. Peter McInnes put the allegations to the investigating officer, who stated that Mills had never been a suspect during the investigation.

Metropolitan Police officer
David Seabrook, in his book Jack of Jumps (2006), wrote that a former Metropolitan Police detective was a suspect in the opinion of several senior detectives investigating the case. Owen Summers, a journalist for The Sun newspaper, had previously raised suspicion about the unnamed officer's involvement in a series of articles published by the newspaper in 1972, and Daily Mirror journalist Brian McConnell followed a similar line of inquiry in his book Found Naked and Dead in 1974. He was also considered by Dick Kirby, a former Metropolitan Police detective, in his book Laid Bare: The Nude Murders and the Hunt for 'Jack the Stripper' (2016), in which Kirby referred to him only as "the Cop".

Tommy Butler
In their book The Survivor (2002), Jimmy Evans and Martin Short allege the culprit was Superintendent Tommy Butler of the Metropolitan Police's Flying Squad. Butler died in 1970.

Harold Jones
The Crime & Investigation channel's Fred Dinenage: Murder Casebook put forward the theory in 2011 that the killer could have been Harold Jones, a convicted murderer from Wales. Jones killed two girls in 1921 in his home town of Abertillery. Because he was 15 at the time, he was not liable for the death penalty and instead received a life sentence. He was released from Wandsworth prison in 1941, at the age of 35, for exemplary behaviour. He is believed to have then returned to Abertillery, and visited the graves of his victims. By 1947, Jones was living in Fulham, London. All the Stripper murders had similar features to his early murders, with no sexual assault, but extreme violence inflicted on the victims. Due to poor record-keeping, he was never considered as a possible suspect by the police. Jones died in Hammersmith in 1971.

The Welsh writer Neil Milkins, in Who Was Jack the Stripper? (2011), also concluded that Jones was the perpetrator. While researching Jones for his book Every Mother's Nightmare, Milkins had traced the murderer's movements: "[H]e turned up in Fulham in the late 1940s calling himself Harry Stevens, and stayed at that address in Hestercombe Avenue until 1962, at which point he disappeared again. I came across the Jack the Stripper case on the internet and realised that in the same three years Jones' whereabouts remained unknown – 1962 to 1965 – a number of prostitutes had been murdered in the same west London area."

In January 2019 the possible involvement of Jones was re-examined in the 90-minute documentary Dark Son: The Hunt for a Serial Killer broadcast on BBC Two. Criminologist Professor David Wilson and an investigative team, including former detective Jackie Malton and forensic psychologist Professor Mike Berry, use contemporary policing techniques such as geographic profiling and offender profiling to see if the crimes of Jones the boy can be measured against those of the London killer. There are many similarities.

In the media
The murders have been the subject of several television documentaries:
 * Great Crimes and Trials documentary series – "The Hammersmith Murders" episode, first broadcast in the UK by BBC in 1993.
 * Fred Dinenage: Murder Casebook documentary series – "Murders That Shocked a Nation: The Welsh Child Killer", first broadcast in the UK by CI in 2011.
 * Dark Son: The Hunt for a Serial Killer (2018) – BBC documentary. This was filmed in both London and Abertillery, and contributors include criminologist David Wilson and writer Robin Jarossi, author of The Hunt for the '60s Ripper.

In fiction
The crime novel Goodbye Piccadilly, Farewell Leicester Square (1969), written by Arthur La Bern, is loosely based on the case. The book was adapted for the Alfred Hitchcock movie Frenzy (1972). The case also inspired The Fiend (1972), in which a misogynistic serial killer leaves his naked victims across London.

The crime novel Bad Penny Blues (2009) by Cathi Unsworth is closely based on the case.

title: Hammersmith nude murders


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Washington Adventist University

Washington Adventist University is a private Seventh-day Adventist university in Takoma Park, Maryland.

History

Washington Adventist University was established in 1904 by the Seventh-day Adventist Church as Washington Training College. In 1907, it was renamed Washington Foreign Mission Seminary, in 1914, Washington Missionary College, in 1961, Columbia Union College, and in 2009 received its current name.

In 2007, WAU nearly accepted a $25 million bid for the radio station owned by WAU, WGTS 91.9FM, from American Public Media Group. WGTS listeners and supporters ran multiple campaigns against the sale for months before the board of trustees voted against selling the radio station in September 2007. WAU would have used the sale payment to pay down about $5 million in debts and to increase its endowment of $4 million. The school, which has an enrollment of about 1,000 students, also anticipated that the proceeds would pay for constructing the first new building on campus in 37 years.

In 2008, President Weymouth Spence announced he would eliminate or freeze up to 22 faculty and staff positions in order to restructure the school's curriculum and relieve WAU's multimillion-dollar debt. The announcement came as part of Spence's plan to restructure WAU into a health science-focused institution. As a result, some students and faculty expressed uncertainty and displeasure to local and school-wide media regarding the change in school focus.

Academics
WAU is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education and approved by the Adventist Accrediting Association of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists and the Maryland Higher Education Commission. Professional accreditations include the Department of Baccalaureate and Higher Degree Programs of the National League for Nursing, the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs, and the Maryland State Department of Education.

The university offers undergraduate Associate and bachelor's degrees, as well as several certificate programs. Graduate programs include the following: MBA, Masters of Nursing with Business Leadership, Masters in Public Administration, Masters of Religion, and Masters in Psychology. Adult evening courses towards accelerated bachelor's degree programs are also available from the School of Graduate and Professional Services.

The current president of the college is Weymouth Spence, who has announced plans for structural changes to attempt to revitalize the school. The changes are described in detail in a document called The Plan. President Spence succeeded Randal Wisbey, who left in 2007 for La Sierra University. The resident agent is The Corporation Trust, Inc., in Baltimore, MD.

Student life
The student body is diverse with students attending from a reported 40 states and 47 countries.

WAU has 16 separate student clubs/organizations, including 6 honor societies. WAU is recognized with a premier music department and award-winning music ensembles. The New England Youth Ensemble (NEYE), WAU's resident orchestra, is one of North America's most traveled orchestras. Under the direction of faculty member Preston Hawes, the Carnegie Scholars Program of the NEYE affords qualified students a mentoring relationship with professional musicians of its parent organization, the New England Symphonic Ensemble, the resident orchestra of MidAmerica Productions in New York City. The Music Department features two choral groups, the Columbia Collegiate Chorale, and the elite performing vocal ensemble ProMusic. The Washington Concert Winds holds a yearly band festival where a newly commissioned work, composed specifically for the occasion is premiered each spring semester. The Music Department is housed in a newly constructed building, the Lois and Leroy Peters Music Center.

Other groups include the following:
 * BSU Gospel Choir
 * Mock trial team
 * Newspaper/college journal
 * Ethnic groups
 * Political groups
 * Social service groups
 * Student Association

WAU also features a Sports-Acrobatics Exhibition Team. The Acro-Airs have performed across the country and for a variety of venues. The team does performances at schools and community events where they spread the message of healthy living including abstaining from drugs, alcohol, and tobacco. Washington Adventist University's Acro-Airs also perform half-time shows for NBA games. They have performed at games for the Washington Wizards, Indiana Pacers, New York Knicks, and others. A recent performance was at the "Discover Strathmore Open House 2009", which was sponsored in part by the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Baily Circus.

The Columbia Journal serves as the campus newspaper.

Many of the student body are members of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, though students of all faiths and belief systems may enroll. Weekly church services are held at the campus church, Sligo Church.

Athletics
The Washington Adventist athletic teams are called the Shock. The university is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), primarily competing as an NAIA Independent within the Continental Athletic Conference since the 2014–15 academic year. They also compete as a member of the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) since the 2013–14 academic year. The Shock previously competed in the NCAA Division II ranks as an NCAA D-II Independent, which they withdrew from at the end of the 2012–13 school year.

Washington Adventist compete in nine intercollegiate varsity sports: Men's sports include basketball, cross country and soccer; while women's sports include basketball, cross country, softball, soccer and volleyball. The university also houses a showcase acrobatics team known as the Acro-Airs.

Intramurals
In addition to intercollegiate athletics, WAU offers intramural sports for men and women. Sports facilities and activities are available to students. A volleyball club, fitness club, sports fields, and weight room complement the program.

Accomplishments
The 2008 men's baseball team won the USCAA National Championship, the first national championship in the school's history. The "Iron Nine" of the Washington Adventist University baseball team played in three national championship games between 2006 and 2009. Along with winning the title in 2008 they have been national runners-up in 2006 and 2009.

Withdrawals
In recent years, WAU eliminated their men's volleyball program, along with the baseball, softball, and men's and women's track and field program.

Study abroad opportunities
Washington Adventist University co-sponsors Adventist Colleges Abroad, a program in which qualified students study overseas while completing requirements for graduation at Washington Adventist University. This language and cultural immersion is available in eight locations: Argentina, Austria, Brazil, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, and Spain, WAU undergraduate students may also study business courses in England through an exclusive partnership program with Newbold College just outside London, England.

Notable alumni

 * Leonard Lee Bailey – 1964 – pediatric heart surgeon
 * Roscoe Bartlett – 1947 – Republican in United States House of Representatives formerly representing Maryland's 6th congressional district
 * Hans-Jørgen Holman, Norwegian-American musicologist and educationalist.
 * H. M. S. Richards – 1919 – pioneer radio broadcaster and founder of the Voice of Prophecy media ministry
 * Rachel Roy – 1996 – fashion designer
 * Thomas L. Saaty – 1948 – mathematician and inventor of the Analytic Hierarchy Process
 * Nicholas Sarwark – 1998 – Libertarian Party activist
 * Benjamin G. Wilkinson – major contributor to the King-James-Only Movement with his book Our Authorized Bible Vindicated
 * Ted N. C. Wilson – 1971 – General Conference president of the Seventh-day Adventist Church
 * Charles F. McMillan – 1977 – tenth director of the Los Alamos National Laboratory

title: Washington Adventist University