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Talk:Connecticut Western Reserve

Western Reserve Road
Who was the original surveyor of Western Reserve Road? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.239.115.244 (talk) 22:34, 22 December 2004 (UTC)

 * Which one? According to the article at Streetsboro, Ohio, "In 1825, a turnpike from Cleveland to Wellsville, Ohio (better known as State Route 14) was laid by Frederick Wadsworth, Samuel Cowles, John Strauyhen and Titus Street. Street agreed to give enough land to make it through the township. In 1827, the turnpike was completed."  Is this the Western Reserve Road to which you refer? -- SwissCelt 20:56, 4 August 2005 (UTC)

Architecture in the Western Reserve
I eliminated the wording that denoted there was a "Western Reserve" style of architecture noted for its six over one light window; this is pure gibberish. My reasoning is thus: user: stude62 user talk:stude62 03:33, 24 Jan 2005 (UTC)
 * An architectural style is not determined by window light (panes of glass) placement.
 * At the time the Reserve was settled, the manufacturing of large expanses of plate glass had not yet been made practical.
 * The era of design that corresponds to the settlement period is Federal, Georgian and Greek Revival.

County formation
I'm not sure how much detail is needed in this article, but I corrected a statement that CWR became a part of the Northwest Territory in 1800 with the formation of Trumball County. That was not correct and I'm not sure if it is correct to imply that Trumball County was the first county government over the area. Washington County was the initial county of the Northwest Territory (NWT) and included most of the eastern half of Ohio, including roughly all the CWR east of the Cuyahoga River. Wayne County was established in 1796 and included all of northwest Ohio west of the Cuyahoga. Jefferson County was formed out of Washington County in 1797 and included the CWR east of the Cuyahoga. Trumball County was formed in 1800 from parts of Wayne and Jefferson counties and its boundaries corresponding to that of the CWR. older ≠ wiser 14:09, Feb 16, 2005 (UTC)

 * OK, with a bit of further research, it appears that jurisdiction over the CWR was a matter of some dispute until Connecticut made a final cession in 1800 (after which the NWT government established Trumbull County). Although Connecticut "reserved" this land (hence the name) when it ceded claim to other western lands, the area was also defined as being within the Northwest Territory when it was established. Arthur St. Clair, Governor of the Northwest Territory, established Washington County be declaration on the July 26, 1788, and included within it the land of CWR east of the Cuyahoga. Similarly, this land was included in the later creation of Jefferson County on July 29, 1797, also by declaration of St. Clair. Wayne County was created by declaration of the Secretary of the NWT in St. Clair's absence (and there was a bit of a dust-up over it). However, the residents of the CWR were faced with a dilemma, since all records of their land purchases were kept with Connecticut rather than under the jurisdiction of the NWT. To clarify the jurisdictional confusion, the residents petitioned Connecticut to cede the territory in 1800. Here are a few links for further reading Washington County History, Maps of Ohio County formation, Congressional Report No. 51 (exhaustive and tedious reading, but thorough). — Preceding unsigned comment added by Bkonrad (talk • contribs) 21:57, 16 February 2005 (UTC)

Modern Use
I removed the following sentence from the article: The latter name [Western Reserve] is still used to describe the northeastern corner of Ohio.  This is a historic term, and I don't believe anyone refers to NE Ohio as such, except in a historic sense. Specifically, one only hears "Homestead X was the first in the Historic Western Reserve," which indicates that the name is old, and no longer in common use. If anyone can find a source verifying that the area is still commonly called the Western Reserve, such as a news broadcast saying "riots continued today throughout much of the Western Reserve," please feel free to put the sentence back in. Confiteordeo 05:23, 19 August 2006 (UTC)

 * Here are some examples of modern use: Western Reserve Public Media, the new name of the organization originally encompassing public television stations WNEO and WEAO; the Western Reserve Transit Authority, the public transportation agency serving metro Youngstown; and Ballet Western Reserve, also serving Youngstown.  Many other examples can be found. -- JeffBillman (talk) 16:27, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

 * I can attest the term is still used to describe Northeast Ohio by people in the Youngstown area. -- Mwalcoff (talk) 04:56, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

History
The History section sort of peters out. What happened to it: that is, how did it subsequently become part of Ohio? Jeff Worthington 14:04, 7 October 2006 (UTC)

Beyond this, the History section starts in the middle or end of the story. There should be some explanation of Connecticut's initial claim and what that encompassed as well as why it ceded some of it after the American Revolution. Starting in the middle makes no sense. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2601:182:4381:E60:701E:95C9:709D:C624 (talk) 22:01, 23 July 2020 (UTC)

Owned by CT or part of CT?
One thing that's never really been clear to me is whether Connecticut actually treated the Reserve as part of the state, or whether it was just regarded as land that Connecticut could sell and/or give to its veterans. Was the Reserve organized into counties by the Connecticut government? Could residents vote in Connecticut elections? Was it part of any US Congressional districts for Connecticut? --Jfruh (talk) 23:34, 31 December 2009 (UTC)

 * I don't think it ever was part of the state, no. I've never heard of towns such as Ravenna, Warren, and Hudson-- or even Cleveland-- referred to as being in Connecticut, as was the case with Wheeling (now Wheeling, West Virginia) or Lexington (Lexington, Kentucky), both of which originally were a part of Virginia. -- JeffBillman (talk) 22:41, 30 March 2010 (UTC)

 * On pages 26 - 27 of Summers, Thomas J.: History of Marietta, The Leader Publishing Co., Marietta, Ohio (1903). google book online,it says: "....On May 26,1786,the State of Connecticut ceded to the United States her claim to the territory, reserving, however, what is known as the 'Western Reserve of Connecticut,' containing 3,666,621 acres near Lake Erie, which she held till 1800, when she surrendered this also. These claims of Virginia and Connecticut were recognized by the United States in no way as to jurisdiction, but only as to ownership." In "History of the Western Reserve" google book online on page 9, the author says that Connecticut considered the tract a "white elephant", and when the company paid $1,200,000 for it, it was their baby.            Roseohioresident (talk) 22:11, 29 July 2010 (UTC)

 * Interesting! As far as Connecticut was concerned, the Western Reserve was a part of the state ("New Connecticut") for fourteen years and was governed as such. Albert E. Van Dusen in Connecticut (New York: Random House, 1961): "The part of Ohio most intimately associated with Connecticut is the Western Reserve. When Connecticut yielded her claims to any Pennsylvania land by a deed of cession to Congress in 1786 [see Susquehanna Settlers], the state specifically 'reserved' a strip of land bordering upon Lake Erie and Pennsylvania, 120 miles wide from east to west.... Congress accepted this reservation, and the area ... was governed by Connecticut until 1800." (p. 199). It's documented at the Connecticut State Library . There was no Ohio version of Westmoreland County, Connecticut, but then again Trumbull County, Ohio wasn't named after Jonathan Trumbull by accident. The Firelands to me also prove that Connecticut considered the Western Reserve as much a part of the state as Michigan would consider the upper penninsula or maybe Florida does her islands -- part of the state, but not at the core. That is, becuase they paid Connecticut taxes! . Best, Markvs88 (talk) 23:13, 29 July 2010 (UTC)

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Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller

Arnold Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller (13 July 1913 – 16 April 2012) was a Danish shipping magnate. He was a longtime figure at A.P. Moller–Maersk Group, which was founded by his father.

Personal life
Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller was born in Hellerup, the son of a Danish father, Arnold Peter Møller, founder of the A.P. Moller–Maersk Group and an American mother of Irish and German descent, Chastine Estelle Roberta (née McKinney) Møller. Mærsk married his high-school sweetheart, Emma Neergaard Rasmussen in 1940 and remained married to her until her death in 2005. They had three daughters: Leise (born 1941), Kirsten, Mrs Olufsen (born 1944), and Ane, Mrs Uggla (born 1948). He ranked 557th-wealthiest person in the world (2007) on the Forbes list with an estimated fortune of 142 billion Danish kroner, which made him the wealthiest person in Denmark until his death.

Business activities
Møller became a partner in the A.P. Moller–Maersk Group in 1940. When Denmark was occupied by Germany during World War II Møller went into exile in the United States and ran the family business from New York until his return to Denmark in 1947. Møller became CEO and chairman on his father's death in 1965. In 1970, Møller became the first non-American member of the board of IBM, a position he held until 1984.

Møller stepped down as CEO in 1993 in favour of Jess Søderberg, but stayed on as chairman of the board until 2003 when, at age 90, he retired completely. He personally controlled a substantial portion of the company's shares until his death. At his death he was Denmark's second-richest man after Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen, according to the Forbes List of Billionaires 2007. This is disputed by the Danish financial magazine Berlingske Nyhedsmagasin, which placed Møller as number one in Denmark and estimated his fortune in 2006 as 141.2 billion DKK, and his personal wealth at 7.0 billion DKK. Most of Møller's fortune was placed in foundations controlling the A.P. Moller–Maersk Group, in which he held a controlling interest.

North Sea oil
In 1962, A.P. Møller–Maersk A/S was granted concession to survey and exploit oil and natural gas resources in Denmark, rendering a monopoly-like status to Maersk. The 40-year agreement was renewed in 2003, causing some discussion. The levy paid to the state is not influenced by fluctuating oil price, meaning Maersk could gain a much larger profit in times with high oil prices. The levy is 69 percent, lower than Norway's (80 percent). The UK raised the oil levy in 2006 due to high prices. As of November 2007, the price of oil had risen from US$22 to $96 per barrel, since the agreement of 2003, meaning that in 40 years' time, the company would not just earn the expected profit of 87 billion kroner, but 346 billion kroner, overall. Government parties declined to change the agreement or raise the oil levy. The oil and gas was reclaimed by Mærsks Olie og Gas A/S and Dansk Undergrunds Consortium (DUC), owned by A.P. Møller–Maersk A/S (39%), a subcompany of Royal Dutch Shell (46%) and Chevron Denmark Inc. (15%).

The company is a major contributor to the Conservative People's Party and Venstre, the two parties forming Denmark's governing coalition from 2001 to 2011. Smaller contributions have been paid to other political parties, including the Danish Social Liberal Party, Danish People's Party, and formerly the Centre Democrats and the Progress Party.

Succession
Upon his death, his youngest daughter Ane Mærsk Mc-Kinney Uggla took over as chairperson of the controlling foundation of Maersk, and announced a plan to keep the organization mostly the same as a conglomerate of loosely-related businesses.

Philanthropy
The Copenhagen Opera House, at a cost of 2.3 billion kroner, is one of the most expensive opera houses ever built; it was donated by The A.P. Møller and Chastine Mc-Kinney Møller Foundation. It is situated directly across the harbour from the royal residence, Amalienborg Palace, and within sight of his Maersk headquarters. In the same area, Møller donated Amaliehaven, a park between the Palace and the harbour, in the 1980s.

Death
Møller died on 16 April 2012, aged 98, just four days after his last public appearance. He was survived by his three daughters.

Distinctions and accolades
Møller was a knight of the Danish Order of the Elephant (awarded 15 December 2000); he was, during his membership of the order, the only person who was neither royal nor a head of state to hold this honour (the nuclear physicist Niels Bohr and founder of the East Asiatic Company Hans Niels Andersen held the same order), which granted him the title His Excellency. He was awarded the honour of Life Honorary Membership of the Baltic Exchange in recognition of his service to shipping by the Baltic. AP Møller-Maersk has conducted business through Baltic Exchange brokers since the early 20th century and its London company has been a Baltic member since 1951.

The Maersk 2013, a new Triple E-class container ship (165,000 metric tons deadweight), IMO:9619907, yard number 4250, ship name Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller, was named for Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller.

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title: Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller


text:
Military history of France

The military history of France encompasses an immense panorama of conflicts and struggles extending for more than 2,000 years across areas including modern France, Europe, and a variety of regions throughout the world.

According to historian Niall Ferguson, France is the most successful military power in history. It participated in 50 of the 125 major European wars that have been fought since 1495; more than any other European state. The first major recorded wars in the territory of modern-day France itself revolved around the Gallo-Roman conflict that predominated from 60 BC to 50 BC. The Romans eventually emerged victorious through the campaigns of Julius Caesar. After the decline of the Roman Empire, a Germanic tribe known as the Franks took control of Gaul by defeating competing tribes. The "land of Francia", from which France gets its name, had high points of expansion under kings Clovis I and Charlemagne, who established the nucleus of the future French state. In the Middle Ages, rivalries with England prompted major conflicts such as the Norman Conquest and the Hundred Years' War. With an increasingly centralized monarchy, the first standing army since Roman times, and the use of artillery, France expelled the English from its territory and came out of the Middle Ages as the most powerful nation in Europe, only to lose that status to the Holy Roman Empire and Spain following defeat in the Italian Wars. The Wars of Religion crippled France in the late 16th century, but a major victory over Spain in the Thirty Years' War made France the most powerful nation on the continent once more. In parallel, France developed its first colonial empire in Asia, Africa, and in the Americas. Under Louis XIV France achieved military supremacy over its rivals, but escalating conflicts against increasingly powerful enemy coalitions checked French ambitions and left the kingdom bankrupt at the opening of the 18th century.

Resurgent French armies secured victories in dynastic conflicts against the Spanish, Polish, and Austrian crowns. At the same time, France was fending off attacks on its colonies. As the 18th century advanced, global competition with Great Britain led to the Seven Years' War, where France lost its North American holdings. Consolation came in the form of dominance in Europe and the American Revolutionary War, where extensive French aid in the form of money and arms, and the direct participation of its army and navy led to the independence of the United States. Internal political upheaval eventually led to 23 years of nearly continuous conflict in the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. France reached the zenith of its power during this period, dominating the European continent in an unprecedented fashion under Napoleon Bonaparte. However, France was ultimately defeated in 1815, and its borders were restored to the same ones it controlled before the Revolution. The rest of the 19th century witnessed the growth of the Second French colonial empire as well as French interventions in Belgium, Spain, and Mexico. Other major wars were fought against Russia in the Crimea, Austria in Italy, and Prussia within France itself.

Following defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, Franco-German rivalry erupted again in the First World War. France and its allies were victorious this time. Social, political, and economic upheaval in the wake of the conflict led to the Second World War, in which France and the Allies were defeated in the Battle of France and almost half of the country was placed under German military occupation for more than four years. The Allies, including the Free French Forces led by a government in exile, eventually emerged victorious over the Axis Powers. As a result, France secured an occupation zone in Germany and a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council. The imperative of avoiding a third Franco-German conflict on the scale of the first two world wars paved the way for European integration starting in the 1950s. France became a nuclear power and, since the late 20th century, has cooperated closely with NATO, the United States and European partners.

Dominant themes

Historian Niall Ferguson argues that France is the most belligerent military power in history. It participated in 50 of the 125 major European wars fought since 1495; more than any other European state. It is followed by Austria which fought in 47 of them; Spain in 44; and England in 43. Out of the 169 most important world battles fought since 387BC, France has won 109, lost 49 and drawn 10.

In the last few centuries, French strategic thinking has sometimes been driven by the need to attain or preserve the so-called "natural frontiers," which are the Pyrenees to the southwest, the Alps to the southeast, and the Rhine River to the east. Starting with Clovis, 1,500 years of warfare and diplomacy has witnessed the accomplishment of most of these objectives. Warfare with other European powers was not always determined by these considerations, and often rulers of France extended their continental authority far beyond these barriers, most notably under Charlemagne, Louis XIV, and Napoleon. These periods of incessant conflict were characterized by their own standards and conventions, but all required strong central leadership in order to permit the extension of French rule. Important military rivalries in human history have come about as a result of conflict between French peoples and other European powers. Anglo-French rivalry, for prestige in Europe and around the world, continued for centuries, while the more recent Franco-German rivalry required two world wars to stabilize.

Starting in the early 16th century, much of France's military efforts were dedicated to securing its overseas possessions and putting down dissent among both French colonists and native populations. French troops were spread all across its empire, primarily to deal with the local population. The French colonial empire ultimately disintegrated after the failed attempt to subdue Algerian nationalists in the late 1950s, a failure that led to the collapse of the Fourth Republic. Since World War II, France's efforts have been directed at maintaining its status as a great power and its influence on the UN Security Council. France has also been instrumental in attempting to unite the armed forces of Europe for their own defense in order to both balance the power of Russia and to lessen European military dependence on the United States. For example, France withdrew from NATO in 1966 over complaints that its role in the organization was being subordinated to the demands of the United States. French objectives in this era have undergone major shifts. Unencumbered by continental wars or intricate alliances, France now deploys its military forces as part of international peacekeeping operations, security enforcers in former colonies, or maintains them combat ready and mobilized to respond to threats from rogue states. France is a nuclear power with the largest nuclear arsenal in Europe, and its nuclear capabilities, just like its conventional forces, have been restructured to rapidly deal with emerging threats.

Early period
Around 390 BC, the Gallic chieftain Brennus made his own way through the Alps, defeated the Romans in the Battle of the Allia and sacked Rome for several months. The Gallic invasion left Rome weakened and encouraged several subdued Italian tribes to rebel. One by one, over the course of the next 50 years, these tribes were defeated and brought back under Roman dominion. Meanwhile, the Gauls would continue to harass the region until 345 BC, when they entered into a formal treaty with Rome. But Romans and Gauls would maintain an adversarial relationship for the next several centuries and the Gauls would remain a threat in Italia.

Around 125 BC, the south of France is conquered by the Romans who called this region Provincia Romana ("Roman Province"), which evolved into the name Provence in French. Brennus' sack of Rome was still remembered by Romans, when Julius Caesar conquered the remainder of Gaul. Initially Caesar met with little Gallic resistance: the 60 or so tribes that made up Gaul were unable to unite and defeat the Roman army, something Caesar exploited by pitting one tribe against another. In 58 BC, Caesar defeated the Germanic tribe of the Suebi, which was led by Ariovistus. The following year he conquered the Belgian Gauls after claiming that they were conspiring against Rome. The string of victories continued in a naval triumph against the Veneti in 56 BC. In 53 BC, a united Gallic resistance movement under Vercingetorix emerged for the first time. Caesar laid siege to the fortified city of Avaricum (Bourges) and broke through the defenses after 25 days, with only 800 out of the 40,000 inhabitants managing to escape. He then besieged Gergovia, Vercingetorix's home town, and suffered one of the worst defeats in his career when he had to retreat to suppress a revolt in another part of Gaul. After returning, Caesar surrounded Vercingetorix at Alesia in 52 BC. The townspeople were starved into submission and Caesar's unique defensive earthworks, protruding towards the city and away from it in order to stop a massive Gallic relief force, eventually forced Vercingetorix to surrender. The Gallic Wars were over.

Gallo-Roman culture settled over the region in the next few centuries, but as Roman power weakened in the 4th and 5th centuries AD, a Germanic tribe, the Franks, overran large areas that today form modern France. Under King Clovis I in the late 5th and early 6th centuries, Frankish dominions quadrupled as they managed to defeat successive opponents for control of Gaul. In 486 the Frankish armies under Clovis triumphed over Syagrius, the last Roman official in Northern Gaul, at the Battle of Soissons. In 491 Clovis defeated Thuringians east of his territories. In 496 he overcame the Alamanni at the Battle of Tolbiac. In 507 he scored the most impressive victory in his career, prevailing at the Battle of Vouillé against the Visigoths, who were led by Alaric II, the conqueror of Spain.

Following Clovis, territorial divisions in the Frankish domain sparked intense rivalry between the western part of the kingdom, Neustria, and the eastern part, Austrasia. The two were sometimes united under one king, but from the 6th to the 8th centuries they often warred against each other. Early in the 8th century, the Franks were preoccupied with Islamic invasions across the Pyrenees and up the Rhone Valley. Two key battles during this period were the Battle of Toulouse and the Battle of Tours, both won by the Franks, and both instrumental in slowing Islamic incursions.

Under Charlemagne the Franks reached the height of their power. After campaigns against Lombards, Avars, Saxons, and Basques, the resulting Carolingian Empire stretched from the Pyrenees to Central Germany, from the North Sea to the Adriatic. In 800 the Pope made Charlemagne Emperor of the West in return for protection of the Church. The Carolingian Empire was a conscious effort to recreate a central administration modeled on that of the Roman Empire, but the motivations behind military expansion differed. Charlemagne hoped to provide his nobles an incentive to fight by encouraging looting on campaign. Plunder and spoils of war were stronger temptations than imperial expansion, and several regions were invaded over and over in order to bolster the coffers of Frankish nobility. Cavalry dominated the battlefields, and while the high costs associated with equipping horses and horse-riders helped limit their numbers, Carolingian armies maintained an average size of 20,000 during peacetime by recruiting infantry from imperial territories near theaters of operation, swelling to more with the levies called upon when at war. The Empire lasted from 800 to 843, when, following Frankish tradition, it was split between the sons of Louis the Pious by the Treaty of Verdun.

Middle Ages
Military history during this period paralleled the rise and eventual fall of the armored knight. Following Charlemagne and the breakdown of the Frankish Empire due to civil war and ceaseless Viking incursions, the larger and more logistically difficult to maintain infantry-based armies were abandoned in favor of cavalry supplemented by an improvement in armor: leather and steel, steel helmets, coats of mail, and even full armor added to the defensive capabilities of mounted forces. A smaller and more mobile elite cavalry force quickly grew to be the most important component of armies within French territories and most of the rest of Europe, with the shock charge they provided becoming the standard tactic on the battlefield when it was invented in the 11th century. At the same time, the development of agricultural techniques allowed the nations of Western Europe to radically increase food production, facilitating the growth of a particularly large aristocracy under Capetian France. The rise of castles, which began in France during the 10th century, was partly caused by the inability of centralized authorities to control these emerging dukes and aristocrats. While all vassals and knights were in theory bound to fight for their sovereign when called upon, this period was marked by many feudal local and regional lords using the knights and levied conscripts below them to fight amongst each other, often in defiance or even outright rebellion towards their sovereign. After campaigns designed for plundering, attacking and defending, castles became the dominant feature of medieval warfare.

During the Crusades, there were in fact too many armored knights in France for the land to support. Some scholars believe that one of the driving forces behind the Crusades was an attempt by such landless knights to find land overseas, without causing the type of internecine warfare that would largely damage France's increasing military strength. However, such historiographical work on the Crusades is being challenged and rejected by a large part of the historical community. The ultimate motivation or motivations for any one individual are difficult to know, but regardless, nobles and knights from France generally formed very sizeable contingents of crusading expeditions. Crusaders were so predominantly French that the word "crusader" in the Arabic language is simply known as Al-Franj or "The Franks" and Old French became the lingua franca of the Kingdom of Jerusalem.

In the 11th century, French knights wore knee-length mail and carried long lances and swords. The Norman knights fielded at the Battle of Hastings were more than a match for English forces, and their victory simply cemented their power and influence. Between 1202 and 1343, France reduced England's holdings on the continent to a few small provinces through a series of conflicts including the Bouvines Campaign (1202-1214), the Saintonge War (1242) and the War of Saint-Sardos (1324).

Improvements in armor over the centuries led to the establishment of plate armor by the 14th century, which was further developed more rigorously in the 15th century. However, by the late 14th century and the early 15th century, socioeconomic calamities such as the Black Death, and political crises such as the Jacquerie peasant revolt, and especially the Armagnac-Burgundian Civil War combined with numerous English invasions, all led to French military power declining during the first two phases of the Hundred Years' War. New weapons, including artillery, and tactics seemingly made the knight more of a sitting target than an effective battle force, but the often-praised longbowmen had little to do with the English success. Poor coordination or rough and soft, muddy terrain led to a number of bungled French assaults. The slaughter of knights at the Battle of Agincourt best exemplified this carnage. The French were able to field a much larger army of men-at-arms than their English counterparts, who had many longbowmen. Despite this, the French suffered about 6,000 casualties compared to a few hundred for the English because the narrow terrain prevented the tactical envelopments envisioned in recently discovered French plans for the battle. The French suffered a similar defeat at the Battle of the Golden Spurs against Flemish militia in 1302. When knights were allowed to effectively deploy and attack their opponents in the open field, however, they could be more useful, as at Cassel in 1328 or, even more decisively, at Bouvines in 1214, and Patay in 1429.

Popular conceptions of the third and final phase of the Hundred Years War are often dominated by the exploits of Joan of Arc, but French resurgence was rooted in multiple factors. A major step was taken by King Charles VII, who created the Compagnies d'ordonnance—cavalry units with 20 companies of 600 men each —and launched the first standing army for a dynastic state in the Western world. The Compagnies gave the French a considerable edge in professionalism and discipline, being composed of paid full-time professional soldiers, at a time when the allegiances of the aristocratic knights would often shift to the opposing side. Strong French counterattacks turned the tide of the war. The important victories of Orléans, Patay, Formigny and Castillon allowed the French to win back all English continental territories, except Calais, which was later captured by the French.

Equipment of medieval French sergeants was based on their property:

Ancien Régime

The French Renaissance and the beginning of the Ancien Régime, normally marked by the reign of Francis I, saw the nation become far more unified under the monarch. The power of the nobles was diminished as a national army was created. With England expelled from the continent and being consumed by the Wars of the Roses, France's main rival was the Holy Roman Empire. This threat to France became alarming in 1516 when Charles V became the king of Spain, and grew worse when Charles was also elected Holy Roman Emperor in 1519. France was all but surrounded as Germany, Spain, and the Low Countries were controlled by the Habsburgs. The lengthy Italian Wars that took place during this period eventually resulted in defeat for France and established Catholic Spain, which formed a branch of the Habsburg holdings, as the most powerful nation in Europe, with their dreaded tercios dominating the European battlefield well into the Thirty Years War. Later in the 16th century, France was weakened internally by the Wars of Religion. As nobles managed to raise their own private armies, these conflicts between Huguenots and Catholics all but demolished centralization and monarchical authority, precluding France from remaining a powerful force in European affairs. On the battlefield, the religious conflicts highlighted the influence of the gendarmes, heavy cavalry units that comprised the majority of cavalrymen attached to the main field armies. The pride of the royal cavalry, gendarme companies were often attached to the main royal army in hopes of inflicting a decisive defeat on Huguenot forces, although secondary detachments were also used for scouting and intercepting enemy troops.

After the Wars of Religion, France could do little to challenge the dominance of the Holy Roman Empire, although the empire itself faced several problems. From the east it was facing intense warfare against Ottoman Empire, with which France formed an alliance. The vast Habsburg empire also proved impossible to manage effectively, and the crown was soon divided between the Spanish and Austrian holdings. In 1568, the Dutch declared independence, launching a war that would last for decades and would illustrate the weaknesses of Habsburg power. In the 17th century, the religious violence that had beset France a century earlier began to tear the empire apart. At first France sat on the sidelines, but under Cardinal Richelieu it saw an opportunity to advance its own interests at the expense of the Habsburgs. Despite France's staunch Catholicism, it intervened on the side of the Protestants. The Thirty Years' War was long and extremely bloody, but France and its allies came out victorious, under the leadership of the legendary commanders Condé and Turenne, beginning a long line of unparalleled French marshals who would help usher in a new era of military strategy. After their victory, France emerged as the sole dominant European power under the reign of Louis XIV. In parallel, French explorers, such as Jacques Cartier or Samuel de Champlain, claimed lands in the Americas for France, paving the way for the expansion of the French colonial empire.

The long reign of Louis XIV saw a series of conflicts: the War of Devolution, the Franco-Dutch War, the War of the Reunions, the Nine Years War, and the War of the Spanish Succession. Few of these wars were either clear victories or definite defeats, but French borders expanded steadily anyway. The west bank of the Rhine, much of the Spanish Netherlands, and a good deal of Luxembourg were annexed while the War of the Spanish Succession saw the grandson of Louis placed on the throne of Spain. The French strategic situation, however, changed decisively with the Glorious Revolution in England, which replaced a pro-French king with an enemy of Louis, the Dutch William of Orange. After a period of two centuries seeing only rare hostilities with France, England now became a consistent enemy again, and remained so until the 19th century. To stop French advances, England formed coalitions with several other European powers, most notably the Habsburgs. While these armies had difficulties against the French on land, the British Royal Navy dominated the seas, and France lost many of its colonial holdings. The British economy also became Europe's most powerful, and British money funded the campaigns of their continental allies.

Wars in this era consisted mostly of sieges and movements that were rarely decisive, prompting the French military engineer Vauban to design an intricate network of fortifications for the defense of France. The armies of Louis XIV were some of the most impressive in French history, their quality reflecting militaristic as well political developments. In the mid-17th century, royal power reasserted itself and the army became a tool through which the King could wield authority, replacing older systems of mercenary units and the private forces of recalcitrant nobles. Military administration also made gigantic progress as food supply, clothing, equipment, and armaments were provided in a regularity never before equaled. In fact, the French embedded this standardization by becoming the first army to give their soldiers national uniforms in the 1680s and 1690s.

The 18th century saw France remain the dominant power in Europe, but begin to falter largely because of internal problems. The country engaged in a long series of wars, such as the War of the Quadruple Alliance, the War of the Polish Succession, and the War of the Austrian Succession, but these conflicts gained France little. Meanwhile, Britain's power steadily increased, and a new force, Prussia, became a major threat. This change in the balance of power led to the Diplomatic Revolution of 1756, when France and the Habsburgs forged an alliance after centuries of animosity. This alliance proved less than effective in the Seven Years' War, but in the American Revolutionary War, the French helped inflict a major defeat on the British.

Revolutionary France

The French Revolution, true to its name, revolutionized nearly all aspects of French and European life. The powerful sociopolitical forces unleashed by a people seeking liberté, égalité, and fraternité made certain that even warfare was not spared this upheaval. 18th-century armies—with their rigid protocols, static operational strategy, unenthusiastic soldiers, and aristocratic officer classes—underwent massive remodeling as the French monarchy and nobility gave way to liberal assemblies obsessed with external threats. The fundamental shifts in warfare that occurred during the period have prompted scholars to identify the era as the beginning of "modern war".

In 1791 the Legislative Assembly passed the "Drill-Book" legislation, implementing a series of infantry doctrines created by French theorists because of their defeat by the Prussians in the Seven Years' War. The new developments hoped to exploit the intrinsic bravery of the French soldier, made even more powerful by the explosive nationalist forces of the Revolution. The changes also placed a faith on the ordinary soldier that would be completely unacceptable in earlier times; French troops were expected to harass the enemy and remain loyal enough to not desert, a benefit other Ancien Régime armies did not have.

Following the declaration of war in 1792, an imposing array of enemies converging on French borders prompted the government in Paris to adopt radical measures. August 23, 1793, would become a historic day in military history; on that date the National Convention called a levée en masse, or mass conscription, for the first time in human history. By summer of the following year, conscription made some 500,000 men available for service and the French began to deal blows to their European enemies. Armies during the Revolution became noticeably larger than their Holy Roman counterparts, and combined with the new enthusiasm of the troops, the tactical and strategic opportunities became profound. By 1797 the French had defeated the First Coalition, occupied the Low Countries, the west bank of the Rhine, and Northern Italy, objectives which had defied the Valois and Bourbon dynasties for centuries. Unsatisfied with the results, many European powers formed a Second Coalition, but by 1801 this too had been decisively beaten. Another key aspect of French success was the changes wrought in the officer classes. Traditionally, European armies left major command positions to those who could be trusted, namely, the aristocracy. The hectic nature of the French Revolution, however, tore apart France's old army, meaning new men were required to become officers and commanders.

Besides opening a flood of tactical and strategic opportunities, the Revolutionary Wars also laid the foundation for modern military theory. Later authors that wrote about "nations in arms" drew inspiration from the French Revolution, in which dire circumstances seemingly mobilized the entire French nation for war and incorporated nationalism into the fabric of military history. Although the reality of war in the France of 1795 would be different from that in the France of 1915, conceptions and mentalities of war evolved significantly. Clausewitz correctly analyzed the Revolutionary and Napoleonic eras to give posterity a thorough and complete theory of war that emphasized struggles between nations occurring everywhere, from the battlefield to the legislative assemblies, and to the very way that people think. War now emerged as a vast panorama of physical and psychological forces heading for victory or defeat.

Napoleonic France

The Napoleonic Era saw French power and influence reach immense heights, even though the period of domination was relatively brief. In the century and a half preceding the Revolutionary Era, France had transformed demographic leverage to military and political weight; the French population was 19 million in 1700, but this had grown to over 29 million in 1800, much higher than that of most other European powers. These numbers permitted France to raise armies at a rapid pace should the need arise. Furthermore, military innovations carried out during the Revolution and the Consulate, evidenced by improvements in artillery and cavalry capabilities on top of better army and staff organization, gave the French army a decisive advantage in the initial stages of the Napoleonic Wars. Another ingredient of success was Napoleon Bonaparte himself—intelligent, charismatic, and a military genius, Napoleon absorbed the latest military theories of the day and applied them in the battlefield with deadly effect.

Napoleon inherited an army that was based on conscription and used huge masses of poorly trained troops, which could usually be readily replaced. By 1805 the French Army was a truly lethal force, with many in its ranks veterans of the French Revolutionary Wars. Two years of constant drilling for an invasion of England helped to build a well-trained, well-led army. The Imperial Guard served as an example for the rest of the army and consisted of Napoleon's best handpicked soldiers. Napoleon's huge losses suffered during the disastrous Russian campaign would have destroyed any professional commander of the day, but those losses were quickly replaced with new draftees. After Napoleon, nations planned for huge armies with professional leadership and a constant supply of new soldiers, which had huge human costs when improved weapons like the rifled musket replaced the inaccurate muskets of Napoleon's day during the American Civil War.

This large size came at a cost, as the logistics of feeding a huge army made them especially dependent on supplies. Most armies of the day relied on the supply-convoy system established during the Thirty Years' War by Gustavus Adolphus. This limited mobility, since the soldiers had to wait for the convoys, but it did keep possibly mutinous troops from deserting, and thus helped preserve an army's composure. However, Napoleon's armies were so large that feeding them using the old method proved ineffective, and consequently, French troops were allowed to live off the land. Infused with new concepts of nation and service. Napoleon often attempted to wage decisive, quick campaigns so that he could allow his men to live off the land. The French army did use a convoy system, but it was stocked with very few days worth of food; Napoleon's troops were expected to march quickly, effect a decision on the battlefield, then disperse to feed. For the Russian campaign, the French did store 24 days' worth of food before beginning active operations, but this campaign was the exception, not the rule.

Napoleon's biggest influence in the military sphere was in the conduct of warfare. Weapons and technology remained largely static through the Revolutionary and Napoleonic eras, but 18th-century operational strategy underwent massive restructuring. Sieges became infrequent to the point of near-irrelevance, a new emphasis arose towards the destruction of enemy armies as well as their outmaneuvering, and invasions of enemy territory occurred over broader fronts, thus introducing a plethora of strategic opportunities that made wars costlier and, just as importantly, more decisive. Defeat for a European power now meant much more than losing isolated enclaves. Near-Carthaginian treaties intertwined whole national efforts—social, political, economic, and militaristic—into gargantuan collisions that severely upset international conventions as understood at the time. Napoleon's initial success sowed the seeds for his downfall. Not used to such catastrophic defeats in the rigid power system of 18th-century Europe, many nations found existence under the French yoke difficult, sparking revolts, wars, and general instability that plagued the continent until 1815, when the forces of reaction finally triumphed at the Battle of Waterloo.

French colonial empire
The history of French colonial imperialism can be divided in two major eras: the first from the early 17th century to the middle of the 18th century, and the second from the early 19th century to the middle of the 20th century. In the first phase of expansion, France concentrated its efforts mainly in North America, the Caribbean and India, setting up commercial ventures that were backed by military force. Following defeat in the Seven Years' War, France lost its possessions in North America and India, but it did manage to keep the wealthy Caribbean islands of Saint-Domingue, Guadeloupe, and Martinique.

The second stage began with the conquest of Algeria in 1830, then with the establishment of French Indochina (covering modern Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia) and a string of military victories in the Scramble for Africa, where it established control over regions covering much of West Africa, Central Africa and Maghreb. In 1914 France had an empire stretching over 13,000,000 km2 (6,000,000 mile²) of land and about 110 million people. Following victory in World War I, Togo and most of Cameroon were also added to the French possessions, and Syria and Lebanon became French mandates. For most of the period from 1870 to 1945, France was territorially the third largest nation on Earth, after Britain and Russia (later the Soviet Union), and had the most overseas possessions following Britain. Following the Second World War, France struggled to preserve French territories but wound up losing the First Indochina War (the precursor to the Vietnam War) and granting independence to Algeria after a long war. Today, France still maintains a number of overseas territories, but their collective size is barely a shadow of the old French colonial empire.

From 1815

After the exile of Napoleon, the freshly restored Bourbon monarchy helped the absolute Bourbon king of Spain to recover his throne during the French intervention in Spain in 1823. To restore the prestige of the French monarchy, disputed by the Revolution and the First Empire, Charles X engaged in the military conquest of Algeria in 1830. This marked the beginning of a new expansion of the French colonial empire throughout the 19th century. In that century, France remained a major force in continental affairs. After the 1830 July Revolution, the liberal king Louis Philippe I victoriously supported the Spanish and Belgian liberals in 1831. The French later inflicted a defeat on the Habsburgs in the Franco-Austrian War of 1859, a victory which led to the unification of Italy in 1861, after having triumphed over Russia with other allies in the Crimean War 1854–56. Detrimentally, however, the French army emerged from these victories in an overconfident and complacent state. France's defeat in the Franco-Prussian War led to the loss of Alsace-Lorraine and the creation of a united German Empire, both results representing major failures in long-term French foreign policy and sparking a vengeful, nationalist revanchism meant to earn back former territories. The Dreyfus Affair, however, mitigated these nationalist tendencies by prompting public skepticism about the competence of the military.

First World War

In World War I, the French, with their allies, managed to hold the Western front and to counterattack on the Eastern front and in the colonies until the final defeat of the Central Powers and their allies. After major conflicts such as the Battle of the Frontiers, the First Battle of the Marne, the Battle of Verdun, and the Second Battle of the Aisne—the last resulting in tremendous loss of life and mutiny within the army—the French proved to be enough of a cohesive fighting force to counterattack and defeat the Germans at the Second Battle of the Marne, the first in what would become a string of Allied victories that ended the war. The Treaty of Versailles eventually returned Alsace-Lorraine to France. The French military, civilian and material losses during the First World War were huge. With more than 1.3 million military fatalities and more than 4.6 million wounded, France suffered the second highest Allied losses, after Russia. As a result, France was adamant on the payment of reparations by Germany. The organised failure of the Weimar Republic to pay reparations led to the Occupation of the Ruhr by French and Belgian forces.

Second World War
A variety of factors—ranging from smaller industrial base to low population growth and obsolete military doctrines—crippled the French effort at the outset of World War II. The Germans won the Battle of France in 1940 despite the French often having better planes and tanks than their opponents whereas they were lacking modern weaponry for the infantry, the main problem although was the unexistant doctrine to synchronize the tanks alongside the plane, as tanks were not used as a primary force but rather as support for infantry, without planning an anti-air protection for them. their use as primary force were made in very rare occasion, when commanded by Charles de Gaulle for example, only a tank crew division commander by the time of 1940. Prior to the Battle of France, there were sentiments among many Allied soldiers, French and British, of pointless repetition; they viewed the war with dread since they had already beaten the Germans once, and images of that first major conflict were still poignant in military circles. The costs of World War I along with the now stale doctrine employed by the French Army (while the Germans were developing a doctrine which stressed initiative from junior commanders and combining different arms, the French sought to minimize casualties through a rigorously controlled type of battle and a top down command structure) forced the French to look for more defensive measures. The Maginot Line was the result of these deliberations: the French originally allocated three billion francs for the project, but by 1935 seven billion had been spent. The Maginot Line succeeded in holding off the German attack. However, while the French thought that the main weight of the German attack would arrive through central Belgium, and accordingly deployed their forces here, the assault actually came further south in the Ardennes forest. The Third Republic collapsed in the ensuing conflict.

After the defeat, Vichy France cooperated with the Axis powers until 1944. Charles de Gaulle exhorted the French people to join the allied armies, while the French Vichy forces participated in direct action against Allied forces, inflicting casualties in some cases.

The Normandy landings in that year were the first step towards the eventual liberation of France. The Free French Forces, under de Gaulle, had participated widely throughout previous campaigns, and their large size made them notable at the end of the war. As early as the winter of 1943, the Free French already had nearly 260,000 soldiers, and these numbers only grew as the war progressed. The French Resistance had also a significant contribution, participating also actively in the liberation of France. At the end of the war, France was given one of four occupation zones in Germany, in Berlin and Austria.

Post-1945 warfare

Following the 1939–45 war, decolonization spread through the former European empires.

Following the First Indochina War, they withdrew from Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. The military also tried to keep control of Algeria during the Algerian War, when French forces attempted to defeat the Algerian rebels. Despite its military victory, France granted independence to Algerians. French Algeria was home to over a million of settlers (known as Pieds-Noirs), de Gaulle's decision to grant independence to Algeria, almost led to a civil war, supported by various Pied-Noir, Harki and nationalist factions, including the FAF and the OAS. Related to and during the Algerian war France participated in the Suez Crisis with Israel and the UK.

By 1960 France had lost its direct military influence over all of its former colonies in Africa and Indochina. Nonetheless, several colonies in the Pacific, Caribbean, Indian Oceans and South America remain French territory to this day and France kept a form of indirect political influence in Africa colloquially known as the Françafrique.

As President of the French Republic, Charles de Gaulle oversaw the development of French atomic weapons and promoted a foreign policy independent of U.S. influence. He also withdrew France from the NATO military command in 1966—although remaining a member of the western alliance. The effect of withdrawal was reduced by continued cooperation between the French military and NATO, though France did not formally rejoin the NATO military command until 2009.

France intervened in various post-colonial conflicts, supporting former colonies (Western Sahara War, Shaba II, Chadian–Libyan conflict, Djiboutian Civil War), NATO peacekeeping missions in war-torn countries (UNPROFOR, KFOR, UNAMIR) and many humanitarian missions.

As a nuclear power and having some of the best trained and best equipped forces in the world, the French military has now met some of its primary objectives which are the defense of national territory, the protection of French interests abroad, and the maintenance of global stability. Conflicts indicative of these objectives are the Gulf War in 1991—when France sent 18,000 troops, 60 combat aircraft, 120 helicopters, and 40 tanks —and Mission Héraclès in the War in Afghanistan, along with recent interventions in Africa.

African interventions during the early 21st century include peacekeeping actions in Côte d'Ivoire, which involved brief direct fighting between the French and Ivorian armies in 2004; under the mandate of Nicolas Sarkozy, French forces returned to Côte d'Ivoire in 2011 to remove the Ivorian president. In the same year, France played a pivotal role in the 2011 military intervention in Libya against Muammar Gaddafi. The year after, France intervened in Mali during that country's civil war, as Islamist militants appeared to threaten the south after seizing control of the arid north. Changes in the government of France, including Socialist François Hollande becoming president in 2012 after years of center-right governance, have done little to alter Paris' foreign policy in Africa.

Hollande also proposed French military involvement in the Syrian civil war in the wake of chemical attacks French intelligence reports linked to the forces of President Bashar al-Assad in mid-2013.

France has encouraged military cooperation at an EU level, starting with the formation of the Franco-German Brigade in 1987 and Eurocorps in 1992, based in Strasbourg. In 2009 a battalion of German light infantry was moved to Alsace, the first time German troops had been stationed in France since the Nazi occupation of World War II. This process has not been immune to budget cuts—in October 2013 France announced the closure of her last infantry regiment in Germany, thus marking the end of a major presence across the Rhine although both countries will maintain around 500 troops on each other's territory. As fellow members of the UN Security Council with many interests and problems in common, the UK and France have a long history of bilateral collaboration. This has occurred both at government level and in industrial programmes like the SEPECAT Jaguar whilst corporate mergers have seen Thales and MBDA emerge as major defence companies spanning both countries. The financial crisis of 2007–08 led to renewed pressure on military budgets and the "austerity alliance" enshrined in the Lancaster House Treaties of 2010. These promised close integration in both procurement and at an operational level, reaching into the most sensitive areas such as nuclear warheads.

French Air and Space Force

The Armée de l'Air became one of the first professional air forces in the world when it was founded in 1909. The French took active interest in developing their air force and had the first fighter pilots of World War I. During the interwar years, however, particularly in the 1930s, the technical quality fell when compared with the Luftwaffe, which crushed both the French and British air forces during the Battle of France. In the post–World War II era, the French made a concerted and successful effort to develop a homegrown aircraft industry. Dassault Aviation led the way forward with their unique and effective delta-wing designs, which formed the basis for the famous Mirage series of jet fighters. The Mirage repeatedly demonstrated its deadly abilities in the Six-Day War and the Gulf War, becoming one of the most popular and well-sold aircraft in the history of military aviation along the way. Currently, the French are awaiting the A400M military transport aircraft, which is still in developmental stages, and the integration of the new Rafale multi-role jet fighter, whose first squadron of 20 aircraft became operational in 2006 at Saint-Dizier. In 2020 it was renamed the Armée de l'Air et de l'Espace, or French Air and Space Force.

French Navy

Medieval fleets, in France as elsewhere, were almost entirely composed of merchant ships enlisted into naval service in time of war, but the early beginnings of the French naval history goes back to that era. The first battle of the French Navy was the battle of Arnemuiden (23 September 1338), where it defeated the English Navy. The battle of Arnemuiden was also the first naval battle using artillery. It was later defeated by an Anglo-Flemish fleet at the Battle of Sluys and, with Castilian help, managed to beat the English at La Rochelle—both battles playing a crucial role in the development of the Hundred Years War. However, the navy did not become a consistent instrument of national power until the 17th century with Louis XIV. Under the tutelage of the "Sun King," the French Navy was well financed and equipped, managing to resoundingly defeat a combined Spanish-Dutch fleet at the Battle of Palermo in 1676 during the Franco-Dutch War, although, along with the English navy, it suffered several strategic reversals against the Dutch, who were led by the brilliant Michiel de Ruyter. It scored several early victories in the Nine Years War against the Royal Navy and the Dutch Navy. Financial difficulties, however, allowed the English and the Dutch to regain the initiative at sea. A perennial problem for the French Navy was the strategic priorities of France, which were first and foremost tied to its European ambitions. This reality meant that the army was often treated better than the navy, and as a result, the latter suffered in training and operational performance. The 18th century saw the beginning of the Royal Navy's domination, which managed to inflict a number of significant defeats on the French. However, in a very impressive effort, a French fleet under de Grasse managed to defeat a British fleet at the Battle of the Chesapeake in 1781, ensuring that the Franco-American ground forces would win the ongoing Siege of Yorktown. Beyond that, and Suffren's impressive campaigns against the British in India, there was not much more good news. The French Revolution all but crippled the French Navy, and efforts to make it into a powerful force under Napoleon were dashed at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, where the British all but annihilated a combined Franco-Spanish fleet. The disaster guaranteed British naval domination until the end of the Napoleonic wars.

Later in the 19th century, the navy recovered and became the second finest in the world after the Royal Navy. It conducted a successful blockade of Mexico in the Pastry War of 1838 and obliterated the Chinese navy at the Battle of Foochow in 1884. It also served as an effective link between the growing parts of the French empire. The navy performed well during World War I, in which it mainly protected the naval lanes in the Mediterranean Sea. At the onset of the war, the French had a large fleet in the Mediterranean whive no less than seven battleship & six heavy cruiser. French defeats in the early stages of World War II, however, forced the British to attack the French fleet moored at Mers-el-Kebir in order to prevent the threat she fall to the Germans, the remaining of French fleet scuttled herself at Toulon for prevent the 7th Panzer Division to capture the fleet, two years later.

Currently, French naval doctrine calls for two aircraft carriers, but the French currently only have one, the Charles de Gaulle, due to restructuring. The navy is in the midst of some technological and procurement changes; newer submarines are under construction and Rafale aircraft (the naval version) are currently replacing older aircraft.

Foreign Legion
The Foreign Legion was created in 1831 by French king Louis-Philippe to allow the incorporation of foreign nationals into the French Army. Over the past century and a half, it has gone on to become one of the most recognizable and lauded military units in the world. The Legion had a very difficult start; there were few non-commissioned officers, many of the soldiers could not speak French, and pay was often irregular. The Legion was soon transferred to fight in Algeria, performing moderately successfully given its condition. On August 17, 1835, the commander of the Legion, Colonel Joseph Bernelle, decided to amalgamate all the battalions so that no nationality was exclusively confined to a particular battalion; this helped ensure that the Legion did not fragment into factions.

Following participation in Africa and in the Carlist Wars in Spain, the Legion fought in the Crimean War and the Franco-Austrian War, where they performed heroically at the Battle of Magenta, before earning even more glory during the French intervention in Mexico. On April 30, 1863, a company of 65 legionnaires was ambushed by 2,000 Mexican troops at the Hacienda Camarón; in the resulting Battle of Camarón, the legionnaires resisted bravely for several hours and inflicted 300–500 casualties on the Mexicans while 62 of them died and three were captured. One of the Mexican commanders, impressed by the memorable intransigence he had just witnessed, characterized the Legion in a way they've been known ever since, "These are not men, but devils!"

In World War I, the Legion demonstrated that it was a highly capable unit in modern warfare. It suffered 11,000 casualties in the Western Front while conducting brilliant defenses and spirited counter-attacks. Following the debacle in the Battle of France in 1940, the Legion was split between those who supported the Vichy government and those who joined the Free French under de Gaulle. At the Battle of Bir Hakeim in 1942, the Free French 13th Legion Demi-Brigade doggedly defended its positions against a combined Italian-German offensive and seriously delayed Rommel's attacks towards Tobruk. The Legion eventually returned to Europe and fought until the end of the Second World War in 1945. It later fought in the First Indochina War against the Viet Minh. At the climactic Battle of Dien Bien Phu in 1954, French forces, many of them legionnaires, were completely surrounded by a large Vietnamese army and were defeated after two months of tenacious fighting. French withdrawal from Algeria led to the collapse of the French colonial empire. The legionnaires were mostly used in colonial interventions, so the destruction of the empire prompted questions about their status. Ultimately, the Legion was allowed to exist and participated as a rapid reaction force in many places throughout Africa and around the world.

Historiography and memory

 * Forrest, Alan. The Legacy of the French Revolutionary Wars: The Nation-in-Arms in French Republican Memory (Cambridge University Press, 2009)
 * Messenger, Charles, ed. Reader's Guide to Military History (2001) 948pp; Evaluation of thousands of books on military history, many of them involving France.

In French

 * Bertaud, Jean-Paul, and William Serman. Nouvelle histoire militaire de la France, 1789–1919 (Paris, Fayard: 1998); 855pp

title: Military history of France


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Let's Face It

 Let's Face It is the fifth studio album by American ska punk band The Mighty Mighty Bosstones. It was released on March 11, 1997, by Mercury Records and Big Rig Records.

The album sold very well due to the success of its single "The Impression That I Get", which reached No. 1 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. Also faring well were the album's other two singles, "Royal Oil" (No. 22) and "The Rascal King" (No. 7). The album itself reached No. 27 on the Billboard 200 (the only Bosstones album to enter the top 50). The album has been certified platinum.

Let's Face It was rereleased on vinyl by Asbestos Records in 2013.

Reception
Let's Face It has received positive reviews. Sputnikmusic's Adam Thomas called the album "a quintessential piece of '90s ska" and concluded that it "shows The Mighty Mighty Bosstones at the top of their game and is one of the greatest ska-punk albums to come out of the nineties." AllMusic's Steve Huey also gave the album a positive review, writing: "Even if the production is a tiny bit slick, and the playing time is rather short... it's still difficult to view Let's Face It as anything but a rousing success and easily one of the band's best albums." Stephen Thompson of The A.V. Club wrote that "for every misfire like the preachy title track, there's an infectious anthem that begs to be blared from every window in the city. Play 'The Rascal King' or 'The Impression That I Get' as loud as you can get away with, and ask yourself if the Bosstones aren't back." David Fricke of Rolling Stone was more reserved in his praise, criticizing the album's "flat" production.

In 2004, Let's Face It was ranked No. 36 in a Kerrang! reader poll of the 50 greatest punk albums.

12-inch vinyl edition
The track "Wrong Thing Right Then" was previously available on the soundtrack to Meet the Deedles.

Personnel
Credits adapted from liner notes.

The Mighty Mighty Bosstones

 * Dicky Barrett – lead vocals, artwork
 * Nate Albert – guitar, backing vocals
 * Joe Gittleman – bass, backing vocals
 * Tim "Johnny Vegas" Burton – saxophone, backing vocals
 * Kevin Lenear – saxophone
 * Dennis Brockenborough – trombone
 * Joe Sirois – drums
 * Ben Carr – Bosstone, backing vocals

Additional personnel

 * Paul Q. Kolderie – production, engineering
 * Sean Slade – production, engineering
 * Brian Dwyer – trumpet
 * Dan McLaughlin – trumpet
 * John Rosenberg – keyboards, backing vocals
 * Bob Ludwig – mastering

title: Let's Face It


text:
Mikhail Prokhorov

Mikhail Dmitrievich Prokhorov (Михаил Дмитриевич Прохоров; born 3 May 1965) is a Russian-Israeli businessman, politician, and former owner of the Brooklyn Nets.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Prokhorov obtained Russian state-owned metals assets at prices far below market value in Russia's controversial loans-for-shares privatization program. His company, Norilsk Nickel, became the world's largest producer of nickel and palladium. He is the former chairman of Polyus Gold, Russia's largest gold producer, and the former President of Onexim Group. As of December 1, 2021, Bloomberg Billionaires Index estimates his wealth at US$14.0 billion and has named him the 148th richest person in the world, while Forbes Magazine lists his wealth at US$11.5 billion and the 193rd richest person in the world.

In 2011, Prokhorov ran as an independent candidate in the 2012 Russian presidential election. He was third in voting, amassing 7.98 percent of the total vote. In June 2012, he declared the establishment of the new Russian political party called Civic Platform.

In April 2022, Prokhorov immigrated to Israel and received Israeli citizenship under the Law of Return.

Early life
Prokhorov was born in Moscow to Tamara and Dmitri Prokhorov. On his paternal side his grandparents were Russians, relatively wealthy peasant farmers (known as kulaks) who were persecuted as class enemies under the Bolsheviks and again under Stalin. His father, one of eight children, grew up poor, after his family "lost everything and was forced to flee from one part of Siberia and restart life in another". He has one sibling, an elder sister, Irina. On his maternal side his grandfather was Russian, and his grandmother Anna Belkina, was a Jewish microbiologist who remained in Moscow during World War II to make vaccines while her daughter Tamara was moved east to safety.

Dmitri Prokhorov was trained as a lawyer and handled international relations for the Soviet Committee of Physical Culture and Sport. Tamara Prokhorova was a materials engineer at the Institute for Chemical Machine-Building. As part of his job, Dmitri Prokhorov had the opportunity to travel abroad. His wife worked as an engineer for a research group at the institute specializing in plastics. They died within a year of each other, both from heart disease when they were in their late 50s. Mikhail Prokhorov's sister, Irina, who "runs his philanthropic organizations, an erudite literary magazine, and a publishing house ... lives in a wing of his mansion west of Moscow".

In 1989, he graduated from the Moscow Finance Institute. From 1989 to 1992, he worked in a management position at the International Bank for Economic Cooperation. Thereafter, he shortly served as head of management board of the MFK bank (International Finance Company) («Международная финансовая компания» (МФК)) and then in 1993 the newly formed United Export-Import Bank ("ОНЭКСИМ-банк") (Uneximbank; akas: Onexim Bank; Oneksimbank), with Alexander Khloponin, a friend from college, and Vladimir Potanin, to whom he was introduced by Khloponin and who became his business partner. Oneksimbank is the financial twin of MFK and was also known as the ONEKSIMbank-MFK banking group which was also close to Andrey Vavilov.

Business career
In 1992, at the age of 27, Prokhorov partnered with Potanin to run Interros, a holding company that they used in 1995 to effect the purchase of Norilsk Nickel, one of Russia's largest nickel and palladium mining and smelting companies. During the largely un-regulated privatization of former state-controlled industries after the collapse of the USSR, Prokhorov and Potanin (the latter by then a deputy prime minister who oversaw privatization) were able acquire the shares from the workers of Norilsk Nickel for a fraction of their estimated market value and seize ownership of the company. When he departed in 2007, Prokhorov's share of the company was worth US$7.5 billion.

Prokhorov's first major financial success came at MFK, which became a depository institution for the government. The bank acquired Soviet assets in the amount of US$300 to US$400 million. Prokhorov held the post of chairman of the board from 1992 until 1993. In 1993, Prokhorov became the chairman of the board for Potanin's Onexim Bank, which, in 1993, became the paying agent for Finance Ministry bonds and a servicing bank for the City of Moscow's external economic activities. In May 1994, Onexim Bank focused on large clients in foreign economic activity especially in the sectors of oil and gas, chemical and metallurgical industries. In 1994, Onexim became the depository and paying agent for Russian Treasury obligations, and in 1995, it became the authorized bank for the federal agency dealing with bankrupt enterprises.

"Banks holding government funds earned handsome fees and paid minimal interest at a time when inflation was in the triple digits."

In the 1990s, the Russian government needed loans to operate. Prokhorov partnered with Potanin. Their Onexim bank ran auctions for the government, in which bidders won the right to loan the Russian government money. Onexim and its affiliates were the winning bidders at the Norilsk Nickel and other auctions they conducted. The Russian government secured the loans with blocks of shares of the newly privatized state enterprises. The government never repaid the loans, and, as a result, Onexim received ownership of the collateral, which was the shares in the privatized enterprises.

"When cash privatization eventually replaced the failing voucher privatization phase, the government came up with a scheme to leverage the privatization process and quickly raise money for its cash-strapped operations. Under the 'loans for shares' program, the administration sold off majority stakes in some of its prized companies in the energy, telecommunications, and metallurgical sectors in exchange for loans taken from the new private sector banks owned by rich businessmen. According to the terms of the loan, the lender could stake equity ownership in the company if the government failed to repay the loans by September 1996. Auctions conducted under the 'loans for shares' program were executed in such a way that only the few businessmen who owned these banks were allowed to partake in auctions. Following these bogus auctions, the majority stakes in some of the biggest Russian companies were acquired by a small number of major banks at abysmally low prices. These businessmen also bankrolled Yeltsin's 1996 presidential election victory, exerting their influence over the then president."

Onexim purchased Sidanko, which was a part of the Novolipetsk metallurgical industrial complex, and also the Novorossiisk marine shipping company and a large share of the Northwest marine shipping company. All of these enterprises were purchased by Prokhorov and Potanin for approximately one third of their estimated market value.

In April 1996, Prokhorov was appointed to the Board of Directors of Norilsk Nickel (which then still belonged to the state). In November 1995, Onexim Bank won 38% of Norilsk Nickel in a loans-for-shares auction for US$170.1 million, US$100,000 (or less than 1%) higher than the bid starting price. At the time, Norilsk produced 25% of the world's nickel output.

Onexim managed the Norilsk Nickel auction, with a reservation price of US$170 million. It arranged three bids from affiliates, all at US$170 or US$170.1 million. Rossiiski Kredit Bank offered US$355 million, more than twice the starting amount. However, Onexim disqualified Rossiiski Kredit's bid on the basis that the bid amount exceeded Rossiiski Kredit's charter capital (the nominal value of its outstanding shares). The auction rules required Onexim to provide any objections in advance of the auction, to give bidders time to cure them. None of the submitted bids even closely approximated the market value of Norilsk Nickel, which had annual profits of around US$400 million.

60 Minutes, the American news program, interviewed Prokhorov. The program alleged that: "'Kremlin leaders gave him what amounts to an insiders opportunity to buy one of the state's most valuable assets. It was acquired from the Kremlin in a so-called auction for the measly sum of a few hundred million dollars in a process that even Prokhorov's business partner admits wasn't perfect, and probably not even legal under Western standards. But it was legal in Russia'."

During the interview, Russian business correspondent Yulia Latynina stated about the auction of Norilsk Nickel, "Yes, it was rigged. But, it cannot be explained in normal economic terms to an outsider, especially an American. You had robber barons, we have oligarchs."

In December 2011, Prokhorov capped a year of higher-profile political activity in Russia with the December declaration that he would run as an independent in the 2012 presidential elections. He took third place in these elections with 7.98% of the vote. In June 2012, he declared the establishment of a new political party called the “Party of Civic Platform”. He resigned his positions as Chairman of Polyus Gold and President of the ONEXIM Group to enter politics in June 2011.

In August 2017, Prokhorov agreed to sell 7% of Rusal to fellow billionaire Viktor Vekselberg for $503.9 million. Talks between the two had stalled earlier in the year with Prokhorov selling 3.3% via an accelerated bookbinding.

In October 2017, Prokhorov and Viktor Vekselberg sold 3% of Rusal for $315 million in an accelerated bookbuilding. The sale of Prokhorov's 0,7% reduced his stake in the company to 6%.

Norilsk Nickel
After selling off most of Norilsk's non-mining assets, Prokhorov moved to modernize a highly complex mining operation which required icebreakers to transport metal over the frozen Arctic region. Prokhorov invested in an innovative Finnish freighter that did not require icebreakers. Norilsk Nickel is headquartered in Moscow. Environmental and labor conditions are harsh, and pollution remains a problem; Prokhorov has invested heavily in pollution control. However, despite these efforts, the mining areas continue to suffer from a high level of pollution. He converted Norilsk's gold-mining interests into the US$8.5 billion corporation Polyus Gold, Russia's largest gold producer. In 2003, he oversaw the acquisition of Stillwater Mining, his first international venture. He resigned as Norilsk CEO in February 2007 and declared his intention to separate his assets from those of long-time partner Vladimir Potanin. The two engaged in protracted negotiations to separate the conglomerate Interros, which the duo co-owned since the 1990s, into separate holdings.

ONEXIM Group
In May 2007, following the decision to exit Interros, Prokhorov launched the private investment fund ONEXIM Group, with assets valued at US$17 billion at the time. As the separation from Interros proceeded, and as other industries caught Prokhorov's attention, the group rapidly changed its investment profile. In April 2008, Prokhorov sold his 25% plus two shares stake in Norilsk Nickel to United Company RUSAL, another mining conglomerate controlled by his fellow billionaire Oleg Deripaska, in exchange for some 14% of Rusal stock, about US$5 billion in cash, and additional payment obligations of US$2 billion. The deal has been singled out as a major success for Prokhorov as only three months later, following a dip in oil prices, a disastrous stock market crash halved the value of most Russian companies, including Norilsk. He emerged as one of the very few businessmen to have cashed out in time. However, his wealth has also been affected, as the value of his remaining interests in various companies (including Rusal and Open Investments) declined sharply, and as the remaining payment from Rusal had to be postponed but has since been fully paid.

In September 2008, ONEXIM Group acquired 50% of Renaissance Capital, a major Russian investment bank which has reportedly encountered liquidity problems. ONEXIM purchased a small bank, renaming it IFC (for the bank which Prokhorov had run in the early 1990s). One of ONEXIM Group's divisions focuses on the development of nanotechnology investing in high-technology projects such as white LEDs. One of the key areas of development is the production of materials with ultra–tiny structures used in energy generation and medicine. As part of that focus, ONEXIM purchased Optogan in 2008.

In June 2007, the Russian Prime Minister, Mikhail Fradkov, announced the formation of the Government Council for Nanotechnology, to oversee the development of nanotechnology in the country. Prokhorov was one of 15 individuals appointed to the council, which was to be chaired by then-First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov.

In July 2009, the shareholders of RBC Information Systems agreed with Prokhorov's ONEXIM Group to sell an additional 51% stake for US$80 million, half of which went to pay off debts. The deal was closed in 2010. Prokhorov has business interests in mining and metallurgy (Polyus Gold, Intergeo, stake in Rusal), financial services (IFC-Bank, Soglassye insurance company, half of Renaissance Capital), utilities (stake in Quadra), nanotech, media (JV!) and real estate development (Open Investments).

In 2016, Onexim sold its 20% stake in Uralkrali, and is considering selling off assets including United Co. Rusal, Opin PJSC and Quadra.

In January 2022, ONEXIM Group sold 82.47% of the energy company PJSC Quadra to a subsidiary of Rosatom State Corporation.

International investments and patronage
Prokhorov owns a number of international investments. In Israel, he owns two private hospitals, where he has paid for the medical treatment of friends such as Alla Pugacheva.

In March 2004, Prokhorov founded the Cultural Initiatives Foundation (as part of the Mikhail Prokhorov Foundation). It is headed by Prokhorov's elder sister, Irina, a prominent Russian publisher. At one time, he financially supported CSKA Moscow's basketball, hockey and football clubs, and is a member of the Supreme Council of the Sport Russia organization. He serves as president of the Russian Biathlon Union. He is also an avid freeride/freestyle jet skier. He performs tricks on a jet ski in a professional stand-up achievement. In the 60 Minutes interview he stated that a backflip is his most impressive trick.

In September 2009, he made an offer to buy a controlling interest in the New Jersey Nets of the National Basketball Association and half of a project to build a new arena in Brooklyn. On 11 May 2010, the NBA approved the sale of the Nets to Prokhorov, making him the majority owner of the team with an 80% stake. He also acquired a 45% interest in the new Barclays Center sports and entertainment arena.

He became the first non-North American team owner in the NBA. In December 2011, after announcing his run for the Russian presidency, the NBA confirmed that Prokhorov's ownership interest would not need to be altered in the event of his election (Herb Kohl, a then sitting but since retired U.S. Senator, owned the Milwaukee Bucks at the time). On 30 April 2012, the Nets officially made the move to Brooklyn, rebranding themselves as the Brooklyn Nets.

In October 2017, reports continued to circulate that Prokhorov was moving closer to closing the sale of 49 percent of the Brooklyn Nets. On 27 October, ESPN reported that Prokhorov had agreed to sell the 49 percent to Taiwanese-Canadian businessman Joseph Tsai, co-founder and executive vice chairman of Alibaba. The stake was valued at $1.2 billion. On 18 September 2019, Prokhorov sold the remaining 51 percent of the Nets to Tsai. According to Dmitry Razumov, CEO of Onexim, Prokhorov's investment was less than $1.5 billion, and the overall sale was estimated at $3.5 billion, with an income of about $2 billion.

Prokhorov controls, and is one of the largest investors in, Sensorium Corp, a virtual reality company.

Controversies
At a Christmas party for the Russian nouveau riche at the French Alpine resort of Courchevel in January 2007, he was arrested on suspicion of arranging prostitutes for his guests. After three days, he was released without charge. In September 2009, Prokhorov was officially cleared from this charge and the court case was dismissed. According to the French prosecutor, he had paid all expenses for the single women to travel to France, but they were not professional prostitutes or working for a prostitution agency.

Prokhorov made headlines in early March 2010 when he was forced to forfeit a £36 million deposit he had placed on the £360 million Villa Leopolda in the French Riviera in 2008. Under French property law, once an initial sale contract has been signed, a deposit can be refunded only during a seven-day cooling-off period. On 2 March 2010, a court at Nice in France ruled that the villa's owner, 71-year-old Lily Safra, could keep the £36 million deposit, plus £1 million in interest.

Regarding Prokhorov's political efforts and the Right Cause party, critical commentators claim that the entire endeavor is just a project of the Kremlin closely curated by Vladislav Surkov and that Prokorov was effectively appointed to be the party leader rather than being chosen by independently minded party members. According to them, the "puppet party" was designed to divert opposition voters by using liberal rhetoric.

Prokhorov had run the Russian Biathlon Union from 2008 to 2014 and offered legal services to disqualified Russian biathletes.

Prokhorov is one of many "Russian oligarchs" named in the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, CAATSA, signed into law by President Donald Trump in 2017.

Russian politics
In May 2011, Prokhorov announced a plan to join the leadership of the Russian pro-business political party Right Cause. While not antagonistic to the Kremlin, the party was seen as likely to support President Dmitry Medvedev rather than Prime Minister Vladimir Putin if the latter entered the 2012 presidential race. In June of that year, Prokhorov was elected to the leadership of the party at the Right Cause Party Congress of 2011. At the acceptance ceremony, Prokhorov officially criticized the present ruling tandem of Medvedev-Putin, the structure of Russia, and vowed to bring Russia back to a stable development course. However, in September 2011, Prokhorov reversed course and resigned from Right Cause, "condemning it as a 'puppet Kremlin party' micromanaged by a 'puppet master' in the president's office ... Vladislav Y. Surkov".

In 2014, Prokhorov announced that he was considering moving control of his ownership in the Brooklyn Nets to one of his Russian-based subsidiaries, in an attempt to comply with Putin's order, signed into law in 2013, that no Russian politicians should have foreign assets and equity, and that all Russian companies should be registered and pay tax locally.

In 2016, Prokhorov ran afoul of Putin when his media group Onexim, specifically RBC Media, published articles and news reports on the Panama Papers and Putin's son-in-law Kirill Shamalov's connections and offshore assets. Onexim offices were raided by the Federal Security Service as well as tax department officials, in April 2016. The raids were officially described as part of an investigation into another bank but the FSB reported that tax violations were discovered at "a number of commercial structures".

A number of media journalists, including editor-in-chief of RBC Media, were fired after the raid, amid rumors of pressure and opposition from the Kremlin.

In June 2012, he became the leader of the Civic Platform Party. In 2015, Prokhorov resigned as leader of the party and left it.

2012 presidential campaign
In December 2011, after the legislative elections, Prokhorov announced that he would contest the 2012 presidential election against Vladimir Putin as an independent. He called it "probably the most important decision of my life". According to Communist leader Gennady Zyuganov and opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, both saw the move as inspired by the Kremlin. According to Nemtsov, it was an attempt "to preserve Putin's regime". He collected 2 million signatures needed to allow him to run for the presidency. Prokhorov said he would not base his campaign on criticism of Putin. "Criticism must make up no more than 10% ... I would like to focus on the things I would do," he said.

On 4 March 2012 presidential polling, Prokhorov gained 7.98% of the vote. According to a poll by VTSIOM, his candidacy was known by only 8% of the Russian electorate.

On election day, Prokhorov said: "Initially I had no illusions that I was going to the presidential elections, which are, in fact, dishonest. Obviously, preferences were made in favor of one candidate".

Lawsuit against Grigory Rodchenkov
Following Russia's banning from the 2018 Winter Olympics and the stripping of medals from multiple Russian athletes, in February 2018, Prokorov agreed to finance a defamation lawsuit in New York against Grigory Rodchenkov, the former mastermind behind Russia's state sponsored Olympic doping program. The suit claims that Rodchenkov defamed three Russian biathletes — Olga Zaytseva, Yana Romanova and Olga Vilukhina — when Rodchenkov included them on a list of athletes who took performance-enhancing drugs as part of a state-controlled program that corrupted the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. The women, who were stripped of the silver medal they won as part of a relay team, are seeking $10 million each in damages.

In April 2018, Rodchenkov, through his lawyer, Jim Walden, countersued Prokhorov under New York's anti-SLAPP law asserting that Prokhorov's suit was frivolous and intended to limit an individual's First Amendment rights to free speech. According to published reports, the countersuit is likely to seek the names of other individuals who are financing the lawsuit against Rodchenkov as well as information about the assets of Prokhorov.

Walden said he believes Prokhorov's lawsuit was intentionally designed to uncover Rodchenkov's whereabouts in the United States and allow agents of the Russian government to find him.

Personal life
Prokhorov has never been married, but has been engaged twice. Shortly after purchasing the Nets, he vowed to get married if the Nets had not won the NBA championship within five years. In July 2015, he rescinded the pledge, saying that NBA Commissioner Adam Silver had "taken his place" by marrying in May. While Prokhorov was romantically linked to Ksenia Sobchak in the media, he has not named any specific woman as a possible bride, only that he might marry, and has never done so.

Awards
In August 2006, he was awarded the Order of Friendship for his significant contribution to the growth of Russia's economic potential, when the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, signed an order for the granting of state honors on 18 August 2006. In March 2011, he was bestowed with the French Legion of Honour. France's ambassador to Moscow, Jean de Gliniasty, presented it at the French embassy in Moscow.

title: Mikhail Prokhorov


text:
Michigan Supreme Court

The Michigan Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is Michigan's court of last resort and consists of seven justices. The Court is located in the Michigan Hall of Justice at 925 Ottawa Street in Lansing, the state capital.

Operations
Each year, the Court receives approximately 2,000 new case filings. In most cases, the litigants seek review of Michigan Court of Appeals decisions, but the Supreme Court also hears cases of attorney misconduct (through a bifurcated disciplinary system comprising an investigation and prosecution agency – the Attorney Grievance Commission – and a separate adjudicative agency – the Attorney Discipline Board), judicial misconduct (through the Judicial Tenure Commission), as well as a small number of matters over which the Court has original jurisdiction.

The Court issues a decision by order or opinion in all cases filed with it. Opinions and orders of the Court are reported in an official publication, Michigan Reports, as well as in Thomson West's privately published North Western Reporter.

Administration of the courts
The Court's other duties include overseeing the operations of all state trial courts. It is assisted in this endeavor by the State Court Administrative Office, one of its agencies. The Court's responsibilities also include a public comment process for changes to court rules, rules of evidence and other administrative matters. The court has broad superintending control power over all the state courts in Michigan.

Article 6, Section 30 of the Michigan Constitution creates the Michigan Judicial Tenure Commission. This is an agency within the judiciary, having jurisdiction over allegations of judicial misconduct, misbehavior, and infirmity. The Supreme Court is given original, superintending control power, and appellate jurisdiction over the issue of penalty (up to and including removal of judges from office).

History
The Michigan Supreme Court can be dated back to the Supreme Court of Michigan Territory, established in 1805 with three justices. These justices served for indefinite terms. In 1823, the terms of justices were limited to four years.

The Michigan Supreme Court was the only court created by the first Michigan constitution in 1835. It had three members and each also oversaw one of the three judicial circuits, located in Detroit, Ann Arbor and Kalamazoo. The court needed a quorum of two to operate and members were appointed to seven-year terms by the governor with the consent of the senate. In 1838, Justice William A. Fletcher proposed a new plan for the court that the legislature approved. This increased the number of circuits to four and thus expanded the bench to four justices, but left the quorum at two.

In 1848, the court was expanded to five justices and the 1850 Michigan constitution provided that they be elected for six-year terms. In 1858, the Circuit Courts were split from the Supreme Court, so justices now only served on the Michigan Supreme Court and reduced its size to only four justices, one of whom was the Chief Justice.

In 1887, the court was expanded to five justices each serving for ten years. The court was again expanded in 1903 to eight justices serving terms of eight years. In 1964, the new state constitution provided that the next justice to leave the court would not be replaced to reduce the court to seven members, which was achieved when Justice Theodore Souris declined to run for re-election in 1968, leaving the court with seven members since January 1, 1969.

Composition
The Supreme Court consists of seven justices who are elected to eight-year terms. Candidates are nominated by political parties and are elected on a nonpartisan ballot. Supreme Court candidates must be qualified electors, licensed to practice law in Michigan for at least five years, and under 70 years of age at the time of election. Vacancies are filled by appointment of the Governor until the next general election. Every two years, the justices elect a member of the Court to serve as Chief Justice.

The Michigan Constitution allows vacancies on the state Supreme Court to be initially filled by the Governor, with that appointee serving until the next general election, at which time the elected winner is seated to fill the remaining portion of the vacated term.

Current justices
Following the 2012 election, the court had a 4–3 conservative Republican majority, with Robert P. Young Jr. serving as Chief Justice. After the resignation of Justice Diane Hathaway and appointment of David Viviano in 2013, there was a 5–2 Republican majority. After the 2018 election, the court reverted to a 4–3 conservative Republican majority with the election of Megan Cavanagh.

In 2020, Bridget Mary McCormack was re-elected as Chief Justice and Elizabeth M. Welch was elected as Justice, giving the Democrats a 4–3 majority on the court starting January 1, 2021. This also made the court majority female for the fourth time in state history.

The current justices of the Michigan Supreme Court are:

title: Michigan Supreme Court