User:Soranin/Sandbox4

The Fall

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"I first caught sight of the Emperor and was struck by the size of the man, and although cumbersome and heavy, he was still a mighty figure. The look of his bright eyes made quite an impression on me. As he passed where I was standing he raised his head for a second and to this day I can remember what it felt as our eyes met. It was a look as cold as steel, in which there was something threatening, almost frightening, and it struck me like a blow." - French artist Alexandre Benois, on meeting Alexander Ill (Memoirs)

After his father's assassination in 1881, Alexander III assumed the title of Tsar and began his 13-year reign, which was characterized by fierce, autocratic rule. Although he stabilized the government and enjoyed peace with neighboring Europe and Asia, he did so at the expense of the working class and peasantry, crushing liberal opposition, sending thousands of political dissidents into Siberian exile, and abolishing the free press. He was known to be an imposing, brutish figure with formidable physical strength and an iron will.

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In late October of 1888, Alexander and his family were aboard the Imperial Train en route to St-Petersburg from Crimea. While the family was eating in the dining car, the train derailed at high speed and crashed near Borki station. According to the official version of events, Alexander held the collapsed roof of the ruined car on his shoulders while his children clambered from the wreckage. Investigations into the cause of the crash have yielded inconclusive results.

In 1894 Alexander III died from kidney failure. It has been speculated that the onset of infection was related to injuries he sustained during the Borki train disaster...

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The Tunguska event, or Tunguska blast, or Tunguska explosion, was an enormously powerful explosion that occurred near the Podkamennaya Tunguska River in what is now Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia, at about 7:14 a.m. KRAT (0:14 UT) on June 30 (OS. June 17), 1908.

The explosion is believed to have been caused by the air burst of a large meteoroid or comet fragment at an altitude of 5-10 kilometres (3-6 mi) above the Earth's surface. Different studies have yielded varying estimates of the object's size, with general agreement that it was a few tens of metres across.

"At breakfast time I was sitting by the house at Vanavara Trading Post ,40 miles south of the explosion, facing north. I suddenly saw that directly to the north, over Onkoul's Tunguska Road, the sky split in two and fire appeared high and wide over the forest. The split in the sky grew larger, and the entire northern side was covered with fire. At that moment I became so hot that I couldn't bear it, as if my shirt was on fire; from the northern side, where the fire was, came strong heat. I wanted to tear off my shirt and throw it down, but then the sky shut closed, and a strong thump sounded, and I was thrown a few metres.” - Testimony of S. Semenov, as recorded by Leonid Kulik's expedition in 1930.

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Nikola Tesla (10 July 1856 — 7 January 1943) was an inventor, mechanical engineer, and electrical engineer. He was an important contributor to the birth of commercial electricity, and is best known for his many revolutionary developments in the field of electromagnetism in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Because of his 1894 demonstration of wireless communication through radio and as the eventual victor in the War of Currents, he was widely respected as one of the greatest electrical engineers who worked in America. Tesla demonstrated wireless energy transfer to power electronic devices as early as 1893, and aspired to intercontinental wireless transmission of industrial power in his unfinished Wardenclyffe Tower project.

Because of his eccentric personality and his seemingly unbelievable and sometimes bizarre claims about possible scientific and technological developments, Tesla was ultimately ostracized and regarded as a mad scientist by many late in his life.

The Chain

Following the events of The Fall, Orelov defected to the United States only to have his wife and daughter torn from him during one of the Palmer Raids.

The Palmer Raids were attempts by the United States Department of Justice to arrest and deport radical leftists, especially anarchists, from the United States. The raids and arrests occurred in November 1919 and January 1920 under the leadership of Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer. Though more than 500 foreign citizens were deported, including a number of prominent leftist leaders, Palmer's efforts were largely frustrated by officials at the U.S. Department of Labor who had responsibility for deportations and who objected to Palmer's methods. The Palmer Raids occurred in the larger context of the Red Scare, the term given to fear of and reaction against political radicals in the U.S. in the years immediately following World War I.

On August 1, 1919, Palmer put 24 year old J. Edgar Hoover in charge of a new division of the Justice Department's Bureau of Investigation; the General Intelligence Division. It would investigate the programs of radical groups and identify their members.

The Boston Police Strike in early September proved the nation had not emerged united from the war. On October 17, the Senate passed a unanimous resolution demanding Palmer explain what actions he had or had not taken against radical aliens and why.

At 9 pm on November 7, 1919, a date chosen because it was-the second anniversary of the Bolshevik revolution, agents of the Bureau of Investigation, together with local police, executed a series of well-publicized and violent raids against the Russian Workers in 12 cities. Newspaper accounts reported some were "badly beaten” during the arrests. Many later swore they were threatened and beaten during questioning. Government agents cast a wide net, bringing in some American citizens, passers-by who admitted being Russian, some not members of the Russian Workers. Others were teachers conducting night school, classes in space shared with the targeted radical group. Arrests far exceeded the number of warrants. Of 650 arrested in New York City, the government managed to have just 43 deported.

Brahman

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Rangit Singh (13 November 1780 - 27 June 1839) founded the Sikh Empire, which extended across the Punjab region to the northwest of India from 1799 to 1849.

He was the son of a small faction leader at the head of a misl, one of numerous entities comprising the region at that time. During childhood, he suffered from smallpox which resulted in the loss of one eye. He succeeded his father at the age of twelve.

During the summer of 1799, Ranjit Singh conquered the misl of Lahore, the economic — capital of the region, with the ensuing expansion leading to his being crowned Maharajah of Punjab at twenty years of age. He then launched an attack on the Afghans, acquiring many territories where Islam was the predominant religion.

Although some of their conquests were violent, the Sikh Empire proved to be very progressive and open-minded for the times. All religions were freely allowed there, and the very rigid Hindu system of social castes did not apply in the Sikh religion, in which all men were considered equal. With the annexation of Kashmir to the north and Sindh to the south, Muslims represented more than 70% of subjects in the Sikh Empire.

Wanting to have his memory live on in the Sikh religion, Ranjit Singh ordered the sacred temple of Harmandir Sahib to be adorned. He had marble installed there, and had the exterior covered entirely in gold leaf. From then on, the western world referred to the sacred center of the Sikh religion and culture as the “Golden Temple”.

Even today, Ranjit Singh is venerated by Sikhs across the entire world as one of the great heroes of their culture. A bronze statue approximately seven meters high (22 feet) representing Maharajah Singh was unveiled in the vicinity of the Indian Parliament in August 2003.

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The Koh-i-Noor is a 105-carat diamond. Almost certainly one of the most desirable gems on the planet, it has passed through the hands of many dynasties on the Indian subcontinent. There are some who believe the diamond to be the fabled Syamantaka Mani, perhaps the most famous jewel in Hindu mythology, supposed to be blessed with magical powers.

In 1850, the diamond was confiscated from the Sikh Empire by the British East India Company and became part of the British Crown Jewels when Queen Victoria was proclaimed Empress of India in 1877. The diamond is currently set into the Crown of Queen Elizabeth and is on display at the Tower of London.

It is believed that the Koh-i-Noor carries with it a curse which affects men who wear it, but not women. All the men who owned it have either lost their throne or had other misfortunes befall them. Queen Victoria is the first reigning monarch to have worn the gem. Since Victoria's reign, the stone has generally been worn by the Queen Consort, never by a male ruler.

Amritsar

Situated in the northwest of India in the Punjabi state, Amritsar is the spiritual center of the Sikh community. The city owes its name to the sacred pool constructed in 1573 by Ram Das, the fourth ranked guru in Sikhism. In 1588 his successor Guru Arjan ordered the construction of a sacred place at the same location where Guru Nanak, the very first guru, would go to meditate. The Harmandir Sahib, known in the western world as the “Golden Temple”, was completed in 1604. Guru Arjan had the manuscript of his commandments installed there. His writings today are the basis of the Sikh faith, which considers this book as the words of its last living guru.

In 1801, Ranjit Singh was crowned Maharajah of Punjab, subsequently creating the Sikh Empire. During his reign, Amritsar became the region's capital.

Assassins

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Salem

In 1692, a quiet puritan colony was the setting for disturbing events that would echo down the ages...

In 1626, a small group of Puritans founded the town Salem on the mouth of the Naumkeag river. They obtained a charter from the British monarchy that gave them the right of free rule so they could practice their Puritan beliefs free from the interference of the Church of England. It was that charter that created the perfect conditions for the horrors to come...

The map of Salem and the surrounding areas, created by W.P. Upnam in 1866, shows the location of the important landmarks and villages of the time and sets the scene for the events that unfolded. It also demonstrates the enduring fascination Salem and the Witch Trials have held for researchers, cartographers, writers and artists down the ages. The Victorian era produced much of the research and data that informs historians today.

While the name "Salem" is mostly associated with the Witch Trials, it actually refers to both Salem Village (now called Danvers) and Salem Town. The first accusations of witchcraft . were made in Salem Village, but the courts, and therefore the trials, were held in nearby Salem Town. However, the accused came from all over Essex County. In fact, the vast majority of the accused were from the nearby village of Andover, Ipswich, Beverly, Haverhill, Topsfield and Gloucester, among others.

These towns were in the midst of economic and social upheaval in 1692, but the beginning of the tragedy that was the Witch Trials could conceivably be traced back to the arrival in Salem Village of one Samuel Parris. A former plantation owner from Barbados, and secretly a member of the Templar Order, Parris accepted the position of Village Minister and arrived with his wife, Elizabeth, his daughter Betty, his niece Abigail Williams, and the house Slave, Tituba.

According to historians, it was the actions of Betty and Abigail that would lead to the deaths of nineteen people...

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Salem

Life in the Massachusetts bay colony was hard, and life as a puritan was even harder...

In 1692, a mysterious form of hysteria overtook the inhabitants of several sleepy Massachusetts towns. The circumstances that hysteria was borne out of go a little way to explaining how so many people lost their lives, and they are far from simple...

In the years leading up to 1692, Salem Town and the surrounding villages had been In a state of near constant turmoil. Despite being issued a charter in 1629, after the establishment of the colony, that would allow them to practice their Puritan beliefs, the people of Salem were subject to numerous changes In government. These were influenced in large part by the shifting politics and civil war taking place in Britain, which had a significant impact on migration to the colonies.

The increasingly insular members of the Massachusetts colony were well- suited to self-governance, however, and elected their own leaders who supported and reflected their religious beliefs. It was a controlling environment. Puritanism was an extreme form of Protestantism, with origins in Calvinism, that believed wholeheartedly in Original Sin. However, where Calvinists believed they could seek salvation through good deeds, and therefore absolve themselves of sin, Puritans instead believed they were the chosen people of God, and were therefore required to live by the teachings of the scriptures and set an example for the heathen ways of the Anglican and Catholic churches. Church attendance was absolutely mandatory, and Puritan life revolved around the meetinghouse, with villagers and townspeople required to attend services lasting two to three hours every Wednesday and Sunday. This atmosphere of fear and control was fed by the Puritan belief in the Devil, and in witchcraft. It was an accepted fact of life that the Devil existed, and was constantly trying to tempt the Puritans into blasphemous behavior.

The Massachusetts Bay Colony was also subjected to devastatingly cold winters, and the land was not Ideally suited to farming. Crop yields were poor, food was scarce, and the long winters were dangerous, not least due to increasingly frequent attacks by Native Americans on British settlements along the East Coast. With internal fighting, and external threats, life in the colony was fraught with anxiety and paranoia.

However, over time, increased prosperity in Salem Town, a port engaged in trade, shipbuilding and fishing, resulted in a wealthy merchant class, who had little in common with the poorer farmers who lived in Salem Village and other outlying settlements. This led to simmering tensions between the town and village, as the villagers believed they were due greater autonomy. However, they were not united tn this belief, as around half of the villagers remained loyal to the town and wished to remain affiliated with it. The issue was couched In religious terms; the villagers seeking autonomy felt that the thriving economy of Salem Town , made it too "individualistic", which was : directly opposed to the communalism that a Puritan belief system called for. Eventually, Salem Village was allowed its own church, and was given the freedom to employ and support their own minister - one named Samuel Parris.

This was not enough to quell the mutterings of the discontented, though, and other issues began to come to light. Factions developed within factions, and tensions rose further still. When the villagers refused to support Parris and his family, bitterness and anger flourished on all sides...

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Salem

The trials and "evidence" that condemned 24 men and women to death...

It was on June 2nd of the year 1692 that the famous trials of Salem began. The Governor of Massachusetts, William Phips, created a Court of Oyer and Terminer to try the cases. These courts, so named for their Anglo-French roots, were commissioned to hear (oyer) and determine (terminer) felonies, treasons, and misdemeanors. The court was comprised of seven members of the community, including William Stoughton. It was these seven men who would condemn 19 people to death, and allow the deaths In prison of five more.

The trials were beset by sensationalism, with spectral evidence admitted in the form of testimonies from the afflicted, with displays of possessions and fits prevalent in the proceedings. 'Spectral evidence' was testimony from the afflicted, girls like Abigail Williams and Betty Parris, that the accused had appeared to them in a dream or vision and perpetrated some harm on them. It was admitted as evidence by William Stoughton.

The first victim of this court was Bridget Bishop. She hadnt been the first accused of witchcraft, but was the first to be tried for the simple reason that It was believed her trial would be the easiest to win. Bishop was a well-known figure In Salem, but for the wrong reasons. Married three times, she was regarded as having loose morals and a poor character. She dressed flamboyantly, for the time at least, and was known to engage in drinking and gambling. It was not the first time she had been accused of witchcraft, with rumors flitting around the countryside a few years before. She was brought up before the court on the June 2nd. On the 10th, she hanged.

Sarah Good met the same fate. Desperately poor and pregnant, she could often be seen begging door to door. Along with Sarah Osbourn and Tituba, she was one of the first women accused of witchcraft by the girls Abigail Williams and Betty Parris. She was hanged on July 19th. Four other women were hanged that day: a poor widow named Susannah Martin, a farmer's wife Elizabeth Howe, Rebecca Nurse, and Sarah Wildes. The executions of the latter two show just how dangerous the community in Salem had become if you refused to conform. Nurse was a pious and popular woman, but had a longstanding feud with the wealthy Putnam family, and disapproved of the appointment of Samuel Parris as the new minister. It was the Putnams who were her main accusers. She was found to be not guilty in the original verdict, but the "afflicted" girls protested vehemently, and the jury reconsidered and returned a guilty verdict. Nurse hanged alongside Good and Howe.

Joining them that day was Sarah Wildes, another victim of the Putnam family. Wildes was the wife of the local judge, and had previous brushes with the law to condemn her. She had been accused of fornicating out of wedlock in 1649 when she was 22, and charged with the heinous crime of wearing a silk scarf in 1663. Her marriage to John Wildes enraged his sister, Mary Gould, who used her friendship with the Putnam family to ensure Sarah Wildes stood trial. She hanged.

The Salem Witch Trials are a terrifying example of mob mentality, and the power of religious fervor. 24 people lost their lives between June and September of 1692, the last being Giles Corey. He had refused to enter a plea, and was tortured in a field in Salem Town by being pressed with stones. He died after three days.

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Salem

The end, the aftermath and the legacy...

In the early months of 1693, the last of the trials in Salem were taking place. The fervor of the first hearings had dwindled, and the court of Oyer and Terminer had been dissolved by Governor Phipps in October of the previous year. As the court slowly worked through the charges laid at the feet of those who remained in prison, public support for the trials diminished, and it seemed that the townspeople were slowly waking up to the horrors they had perpetrated. By May of 1693, all those still in prison on charges of witchcraft were released and pardoned.

The year of madness had ended. Lives had been lost. Strangely, however, the lives of the "afflicted girls" - the accusers responsible for the majority of the charges, continued much as they would have done had they never decided to portray themselves as victims. While the dissolving of the court brought a certain amount of closure to the events of 1692 and 1693, it Is interesting to note that only one of the "afflicted" girls ever apologized for her part in the deaths of innocent people.

Ann Putnam Jr had accused sixty-two people of witchcraft, and finally issued a public apology over a decade later, in 1706. Interestingly, her apology was couched In religious terms. She professed herself to be extremely sorry, and believed that, "It was a great delusion of Satan that deceived me in that sad time." The irony would be laughable, if it weren't so awful.

While none of the other girls accepted any blame at any point in their lives, twelve members of the jury did concede that their actions were "sadly deluded and mistaken." Samuel Parris did allow that he "may have been mistaken," in 1694, but the damage to his reputation had already been done, and he was replaced as minister for Salem Village in 1696. His reticence may have been due In part to the fact that his daughter, Betty Parris, was one of the first girls to make any accusations. Betty herself never faced any censure for her part in the trials, and the events had little effect on her at all. She went on to marry and have four children, never being persecuted for her behavior.

William Stoughton had been appointed Lieutenant Governor and Chief Justice of Massachusetts by Governor Phips, and was head judge of the court of Oyer and Terminer until It was dissolved. While many of his decisions were questionable, he was generally held to be a fair man. This was made very clear when Governor Phips attempted to shift his portion of the blame onto Stoughton following the change in public opinion. He did this by chastising Stoughton in a letter to the King of England. This tactic backfired, as Phips was recalled to England, where he died. Stoughton succeeded him as Governor of Massachusetts and served until his death in 1701.

The greatest indication of the horror the members of the community felt for their actions came in October 1711, when a Reversal of Attainder was signed Into law by the Massachusetts legislature. Attainder, in English law, is the metaphorical "stain" caused by high treason or capital crimes. It essentially stripped the receiver of their rights. The order for reversal nullified all the judgments cast against the majority of those convicted. It was also decreed that reparations were to be paid to the families and heirs. A sum totalling almost £600 was distributed, though only to those families that had specifically asked for it. The Reversal of Attainder applied only to those specifically named, and was not exhaustive. Over time, this oversight would be recified, but when Elizabeth Johnson wrote to the committee asking that her name be included, as she too had been condemned, the committee demurred, on the basis that the business was finished with. It is unknown as to whether Johnson ever managed to clear her name.

In 1957, the Massachusetts Governor signed another bill into law, officially apologizing for the Salem Witch Trials and clearing the names of the remaining accused, though not stating them explicitly. This law was amended in 2001 to correct this error. Included in the correction was the name Bridget Bishop, finally cleared over three hundred years after she was the first person to be hanged.

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The Chasqui

Quila is a chasqui, a courier used to carry messages across the Inca empire. Not only were they incredibly strong runners, chasqui were trained to read and decipher the Quipu, or knotted ropes, and pass on the message it held. The Chasqui could, and often would, run up to 240km a day, and so had to be agile and physically very fit.

The chasqui ran along a vast network of purpose built roads and rope bridges that spanned the Inca empire, which at its height was two million square kilometers. There were stopping points called tambos which were used as relay stations for the chasqui to pass the message on to the next runner.

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Inca Empire

The complex society of the "New World" that was founded on efficent communication...

Quipus, sometimes also called 'talking knots', were the main method of recording data and communication for the tribes of the Andean area of South America. They took the form of strings of knotted cord, with different colored threads and numbers and positions of knots denoting different information. The name comes from the word for 'knot' in Cusco Quechua, which was the native Inca language. They appear to have been most usually made from cotton or camelid fibres (fashioned from the coats of Llamas and Alpacas, and very similar to wool). The threads often resembled a string mop once all gathered together, and a quipu could have just a few, or several hundred, of threads. Evidence suggests that the threads might sometimes be attached to a carved wooden stick in order to give them more structure, and make them easier for the chasquis to carry.

The quipu remains a mysterious artefact. Very few survived the Spanish conquest, though the earliest known quipus are thought to date from the first millennia AD. They were a crucial part of the success of the Inca Empire, which dominated the Andean region from around 1100 AD until it fell to the Spanish in 1532. It was then that the quipu was replaced by the European writing system, although archaeologists believe that quipus took on a more ritualistic position in society. Many of those that remained were stored in mausoleums alongside those who perished in the Spanish attacks.

The majority of the information relayed in quipus appears to take the form of numbers, recorded in a decimal system. To date, no direct link has been found between the Quechua language and the configuration of the knots and threads on the quipus. There are a number of creditable theories regarding how the information in a quipu can be deciphered, but so far it appears that as a "writing" system, the quipu is unique in being the only known example of a complex language being recorded and transmitted in a three dimensional format.

The "reading" of a quipu relies on understanding the differing configurations of knots. Analysis has already established the numerical links between the three types of knots displayed in quipu, demonstrating the quipu use in accounting systems most effectively. However, it is also suggested that locations and people were recorded using "numbers", or knots, much Like a zip code, but also using different colors of thread or material used to make that thread. Research continues into deciphering exactly how the quipus were able to relay so much information. The surviving quipus, of which there are estimated to be in the region of 700 across the globe, are preserved in the same ways as most delicate of fabrics. While some are now so fragile that touching them would reduce them to dust, others are more robust and can be handled, to better aid the decryption of the messages they hold.

For the Incans, the quipu were read by Quipucamayocs, a specific class of Inca society. They were the accountants and record keepers, and were able to provide the invading Spanish with highly detailed census information about the Empire when it fell. Quipucamayocs were taught the necessary skills along with other high ranking members of the society in the yacha-huasi (literally, "house of teaching") in what was essentially the third year of Inca university. But it was also the chasqui, the carriers of the quipu, who could read them, as they would be trusted with vital additional information. It has been suggested that the system of knots and threads used is similar to musical notation, where the basic Information Is stored, but it is the perfomance of the reader that brings that information to life. Together, the quipu and chasqui made for one of the most efficient means of pre-industrial communication across large areas.

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Inca Empire

The Inca perspective on class, marriage, and the lives of the "chosen women"...

Inca society was well-organized and complex, with a defined class system in place that allowed for little social mobility. The majority of the population was made up of the peasant classes, with a small, educated middle class, and a ruling aristocracy. Like most societies at the time, and indeed, now, It was patriarchal in its construct, though that did not mean that women were not crucial to the overall success of the Empire.

Girls were considered to have come of age at around 14 years old, and were normally married at the age of 16. For boys, they were required to swear an oath of loyalty to the Sapa-Inca, the Emperor, when they turned 15. They did not tend to marry until they were 20 years old. Polygamy was common, and encouraged, among the upper classes, but monogamy was the norm for the peasant class. Emperor Manco, however, only had the one wife and consort, Cura Ocllo, his sister and the mother of his child.

An Inca wedding was by no means a joyous affair. Marriages were generally arranged, and took the form of an economic transaction between two families, rather than a romantic union. The strict caste structure meant that it was Incredibly rare for an aristocrat to marry someone of lower birth, and vice versa. The actual wedding ceremony between an Inca man and woman took the form of a solemn exchange. Once the decision to marry had been reached, often with the involvement of multiple community elders, the man would visit the home of the young woman and place on her right foot a sandal — though some sources counter that the ceremony was completed only once the couple had exchanged the sandals they were both wearing. These differing accounts both still suggest that the Inca placed a great deal of significance on what appears, to modern minds, to be a willingness to walk in each other's footsteps.

The bride would, in turn, give him a number of gifts, including a headband, pin, and a woolen shirt. Once "wed", the couple would begin a life together in a newly built house provided by the groom and his family. However, the Inca society allowed for, and recognized the benefit of, trial marriages. During the trial marriage, the couple in question would live as husband and wife for one, possibly two years, before deciding If they would Like to continue the arrangement. If they chose not to, the woman would return to her parents house and the marriage was effectively dissolved.

While men strictly controlled the running of the empire, the contribution of women was invaluable to its prolonged prosperity, though they may not have been given the status that would suggest as much. Women were traditionally responsible for weaving, and for brewing chicha, the beer made from maize, one of the primary Inca crops. Weaving, In particular, was a prized skill, and accommodations were made within the structure of the society to ensure that it remained so. The acllahausi, literally "House of Women", developed in the Inca Empire between 1438 and 1532. Every town had one of these houses, and they were homes to the "Chosen Women". Every year, a government official would assess the attractiveness of the ten-year-old girls in a town, and the most beautiful would be admitted to the acllahausi, where they would become servants of the state. Before entering the house, they would be taken to the capital, Cuzco, and given an education. The most attractive were reserved for sacrifice, while the others learned trades, such as spinning or brewing.

After fours years in the capital, the girls would either be assigned as concubines to men the ruler wished to honor, or would enter the acllahausi as permanent residents. Generally speaking, noble women who were assigned this life took on more administrative tasks within the house, while lower class women performed the more laborious work. This was the one means by which a lower class woman could change her status in life, as it allowed the possibility of becoming the consort of a wealthy influential man. However, once a woman entered the acllahausi, she was expected to remain chaste for the rest of her life. If this were found not to be the case, then the woman and her lover would both be buried alive. A brutal punishment, but very much in keeping with the harsh realities of life in the Inca Empire.

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Inca Empire

The importance and prestige of ritual sacrifice in an ever-shifting landscape

The incredible success of the Inca Empire more is difficult to understand in modern terms. It established itself, and was destroyed, ina little over a hundred years. Through violence and subjugation, the Inca gained control of vast tracts of land in the Andes, and maintained that control thanks to an intricate and regimented class system.

The success of the empire relied on the symbiotic relationship between the laboring and elite classes. The Andean mountain range the empire spanned was subject to a variety of natural disasters, situated as it was within the Pacific "Ring of Fire". Volcanic and tectonic disturbances were regular occurrences, and while the Inca government could mitigate for the damage to some extent - thanks to their well-stocked storehouses and practice of redistributing resources in times of strife - an excellent example of centrally controlled disaster relief in a pre-Industrial society - they could not explain the disasters that befell them, nor go any ways toward mitigating against future calamity. And so, like many groups before, and after, them, they turned to religion, or at least, ritual. It is the ritual of human sacrifice In Inca society that has had the greatest impact and It is recorded as being called Qhapaq Hucha, translated as "solemn sacrifice".

The ceremonies of Qhapaq Hucha took place throughout the year, and are generally believed to commemorate a significant event in the life of the Sapa Inca, such as a birth, death, or illness, as well as his succession to the throne. They could also be undertaken In order to prevent natural disasters, or as a part of a major festival. They were complicated events requiring a high degree of organization, as offerings, both human and material, would be transported to the capital city of Cuzco, before they were then redistributed to the provinces in order for the rituals to take place. Archaeological evidence seems to suggest that the majority of ceremonies took place at high-altitude, such as on mountain tops, though some evidence of ceremonies has been found on the shores of Lake Titicaca. The Sapa Inca would perform the first sacrifice, with others taking place in each province at various important huaca, religious sites, in order to ensure no corner of the empire was left without a sacrifice.

The prerequisites for being chosen as a sacrifice were that the child had to be unblemished, completely perfect, without even a freckle, and a virgin. Boys selected were generally under ten years old when they died. Girls could be older, but were normally under sixteen years old. Once selected, the boys were immediately taken to Cuzco, but the girls would often be sent to live in the acclahausi, where they would spend a few years learning to weave and sew, and could sometimes live out their days there, if they were not chosen to go onto become a sacrifice. If they were, however, they would travel to the capital as tributes, along with the offerings of silver, gold and other material goods. They were well looked after to ensure they reached the gods as happy as could be, and were paraded through the city dressed in the finest clothes, before being paired off, one boy, one girl, and killed. There were four primary methods of sacrifice; strangulation; suffocation; a blow to the head; or being buried alive. There is no archaeological evidence to suggest that the Inca removed the hearts of their sacrifices. However, the blood of the tributes would be used to decorate statues of idols.

As the name "solemn sacrifice" suggests, it was a great honor to be chosen to give up your life for the Emperor, and the empire. Indeed, some of the sacrificial victims were Infants who were still being breastfed when they were sent to Cuzco - demonstrating just how highly-esteemed the ritual was in the society. It is hard to conceive of a nursing mother willingly offering her baby up to such a fate. The ritual was sealed with prayers to the Sun God, the Thunder God, to keep the Sapa Inca safe and fruitful, and protect his children from harm.

A crucial discovery in the understanding of the Inca practice of human sacrifice was made in 1995, when an expedition by anthropologist Johan Reinhard and his Peruvian climbing partner, Miguel Zárate, uncovered the remains of a young girl, who became known as Juanita, In a crater on the side of Mt. Ampato in southern Peru. The remains were entirely frozen, and so almost perfectly preserved. Juanita provided the academic community tremendous insight into the Inca ritual, as investigation revealed that she had died as a result of a blow to the head, had eaten a meal of vegetables a few hours before her death, and was wrapped in a highly decorated tapestry for her burial. Other ice mummies were excavated from the same crater, thought to have made their way to that final resting place when a volcanic eruption in the mountain range caused an ice melt. That dislodged the original burial site, and deposited the bodies and the various offerings buried alongside them in the crater. The mummies were remarkably well-preserved, with the clothes and accoutrements of Juanita especially suggesting that she belonged to a wealthy Cuzco family, further solidifying the theory that it was a great honor to die for the glory of the Inca Empire.

10

Inca Empire

The jewel of the Inca Empire - The rise and fall of the city of Cuzco

Just over 11,000 feet above sea level, high in the Peruvian Andes, lies the city of Cuzco. Now a bustling metropolis with half a million inhabitants, it has a rich history Spanning centuries and has been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Nestled in a high mountain valley on the plain left behind by an ancient glacier, it was perfectly placed for access to all parts of the region, as well as being easy to defend.

The site upon which the city of Cuzco stands was first inhabited as early as 900 BCE, but the city did not really begin to take shape until the arrival of the Killke culture, who occupied that particular region of the Andes from 900 - 1200 CE. Archaeological dating suggests that a fortress was constructed in around 1100 CE. Further investigation uncovered the remains of a temple, roadway and aqueduct system, suggesting that, though now overshadowed by the Inca city that grew up around it, this site has always been a center of fairly advanced communities.

When the Inca arrived in the area in the 13th century, Cuzco became the capital of what was to be one of the most advanced civilizations in the medieval world. The city itself was built to a fairly rigid plan, constructed around four highways leading to the four quadrants of the empire. It had two main sectors, the hurin and the hanan. The hurin were the two southern sectors of the empire, while the hanan were the two northern sectors. These were then subdivided once again to delineate the four provinces of the empire. A road from each of these sectors of Cuzco led to the corresponding quarter of the empire. This precise planning suggests there is little truth in the legend that the city was planned and built in the shape of the sacred puma!

As a model of urban planning, Cuzco remains exemplary. The city was organised into very clearly designated areas, with religious and government buildings accompanied by housing for the royal families and elite members of the society, forming something of a residential complex. This is separated from the more mundane areas, but those too were clearly delineated, with sectors for agricultural, artisanal and industrial production forming the surrounding neighborhoods. The center of the city was dominated by two large plazas covered in sand imported from the coast - the Huacaypata (Terrace of Repose) and the Cusipata (Fortunate Terrace) and were the sites of religious and state ceremonies. Overlooking the plazas was the carved stone throne of the King on a raised platform, called the unsu. The plazas also had a giant stone basin covered In gold into which was poured chicha beer. Dominating the scene was the spire, the Sunturwasi, the tallest structure in Cuzco.

The most impressive building in the city was the Coricancha, the home of the temples (wasí) built in honor of Inti, the sun god, the moon goddess Mama Kilya, the creator god Viracocha, the goddess of Venus, the thunder god Illapa, and finally a temple dedicated to Cuichu, the god of rainbows. Each temple housed a statue and art and relics related to them. The Coricancha was also called the Golden Enclosure, and was considered by the Inca to be the centre of the world. Built from huge stone blocks, It demonstrated the fine masonry skills the Inca are known for, as the stones were neatly slotted together and held without mortar. The one storey temple buildings were thatched, and the doors were covered in sheets of gold. The Temple of the Sun, for the god Inti, was lined with over 700 sheets of beaten gold, while Mama Kilya's temple was lined with sheets of silver, to symbolize the tears of the moon.

Another structure of note in the city was the fortress Sacsahuaman, built by the Emperor Pachacuti. It was thought to have been initially constructed from mud and clay, before being transitioned into a stunning example of the famous Inca skill with stone. With four architects named as designers, It was built by 20,000 people. The Inca Empire had a system of mandatory public service called mit'a which enabled them to build their civic facilities, such as roads, temples, and this fortress. All able-bodied citizens were required to perform a certain number of days service throughout the year. As the wealth of the empire meant that a family could survive very comfortably if only farming for 65 days, the rest of the year would be devoted to mit'a in various forms.

At its height, the city of Cuzco had 40,000 inhabitants, with a further 200,000 living without the city walls. The rapid expanse of the Empire across the Andes meant that an estimated 10 million people were controlled, rigidly, from the city. This inevitably led to tension and rebellions, such as the war in Ecuador that occurred when the second city of the Empire was established in Quito. It was this tension that the Spanish Conquistador Pizarro exploited when he sacked the city and destroyed its splendor. The arrival of the Europeans on the continent also meant the arrival of previously unknown diseases, such as smallpox, which spread rapidly and is thought to have caused the deaths of 65-90% of the population. This confluence of events is ultimately what led to the fall of Cuzco, and, by extension, the end of the Inca Empire.

11(?)

Florence

The city that shaped the modern western world

Nestled in the hills of Tuscany is Florence. Firenze. Founded in 59BCE by Julius Caesar, it survived fear and famine, and became the birthplace of the modern Italian language. By the beginning of the 15th century, it had become one of the largest cities in Europe. It was there that the Renaissance flourished. This was thanks in large part to the Medici family. Originally textile traders, they capitalized on their wealth and rose to prominence in the 15th century, going on to found the Medici Bank, the largest in Europe at the time. This gave them unparalleled power in the region, especially in Florence. They encouraged the arts and humanism to thrive in the city where they made their home, and were visible at every level of government, even producing three Popes. While there were internal difficulties associated with such a large and powerful dynasty, their influence is eternal. Generations of Medici commissioned work from those who would become the great masters of Modern Art: Michaelangelo, Donatello, and Leonardo Da Vinci, to name but a few. In doing so, the Medici family shaped the modern world.

13

Giotto's Campanile

The Lily of Firenze

Marking one of the finest examples of Florentine Gothic architecture, Giotto's Campanile is the free-standing bell tower of the Cathedral di Santa Maria del Fiore, located on the Piazza del Duomo in central Florence.

Clad in white, red and green marble, the resplendent square construction is considered one of the most beautiful campanile in alLof Italy. Featuring numerous works of art (including sculptures by Donatello and Andrea Pisano), the building also houses seven bells of varying size.

Conceived by the eminent painter and architect, Giotto di Bondone, the first stone was laid on July 19th 1334, with the tower reaching completion in 1359. Standing at 277.9ft, the tower's summit can be reached by climbing its 414 steps and offers breathtaking views of Florence and its surrounding area.

Templars

1

The Order that would save humankind...

The Order of the Knights Templar is a secret organization that has operated globally for millennia. While the story of the Order's origin has been lost to the sands of time, it is believed to have taken an active role in the shaping of humanity since it freed itself from enslavement to the mysterious progenitor race known as The Ones Who Came Before.

The Templars have worked tirelessly towards a better future for humanity, and have been instrumental in bringing about significant change and progress in the world. However, it is this very desire for a better world, and the methods by which the Templars believe it will be attained, that puts them in direct opposition to the Assassin Brotherhood.

The Templars believe that it is though control and guidance that humankind will achieve perfection - in essence, freedom through control - whereas the Assassins believe It Is though individual self-expression and open access to all knowledge that humankind will reach its full potential. These two ideologies have a similar goal; it is the method by which they Intend to reach it that differs, and has caused centuries of bloodshed.

The Templars [sic] ideology has attracted some of the greatest minds of all ages to their cause, the most remarkable and successful of which have often been - men and women of science, and they have suffered greatly for their beliefs. As visionaries, the ideas they championed were usually significantly before their time, which left them vulnerable to attack and censorship. Never was this more true than during the Dark Ages in Europe, where countless brilliant minds were silenced and made to suffer for their foresight.

In the 12th century, the leading Templars were able to align themselves with the Church, and so were able to pursue their agendas free from persecution. However, their main goal, the betterment of humanity though scientific and technical knowledge, was never made public, and remained a closely guarded secret. For almost two hundred years, the Templars were able to steer a course for humankind that would bring about great advances In medicine, the military, even in basic living conditions. They were influencers, advising kings and emperors on how best to rule.

They were also under attack. Their numbers were being systematically depleted by the Assassin Brotherhood. The issue came to a head in the 13th century when the Templars were denounced as heretics, and forced to disband. This decision was taken by the last publicly recognized Grand Master of the Order of the Knights Templar, Jaques de Molay. Making the ultimate sacrifice, he was burned at the stake, letting everyone think that the Templar Order would die with him. Unbeknownst to them, however, de Molay had selected nine trusted members of the Order to go forth into the world and spread the Templars philosophy, armed with their knowledge of The Ones Who Came Before. In doing this, de Molay ensured that the Order would live on, and could continue to work towards their ultimate goal.

The Order entered what they now consider to be a dark age. Despondency and corruption were rife, with leadership coming from those who had little respect for the original altruistic philosophy. Despite this, the Templars were still at the vanguard of scientific development during this time, and loyal members worked tirelessly toward their ultimate goal. The European colonization of the New World gave the Templars the opportunity to recover and rebuild, and the chance to retaliate and turn the tables on their foe, wiping out much of the Brotherhood leadership, and destroying any Assassin influence in the region.

The Templar Order's goals have evolved over time, with the dawning of the 20th century marking a turning point for the organization.

Following decades of innovation and Invention, culminating in the astounding technological and scientific advancements seen during the Industrial Revolution, the Templars recognized that continued progress at that rate could lead them to their goal faster and more successfully than they had ever dreamed. Capitalism would be the tool that would allow the leaps in development that the Templars knew were within their reach.

In the uncertain days before the Second World War, Abstergo Industries was formed. For the second time In Its history, the Templars had a public face, although the true aims of the Order, and the very existence of the Order itself, remained a secret. Only a few employed by Abstergo were Templars. Through the work of its many divisions, Abstergo would provide the means by which the Templars notion of a perfectly functioning capitalist society could be brought about. As a multinational corporation with concerns spanning all areas of modern life, Abstergo was the perfect front for the Templar Order to pursue their agenda.

While their methods and goals have evolved, at its root the Templar Order believes in the betterment of humanity through technological and scientific advancement. For centuries uncounted, the search for relics left by The Ones Who Came Before, called Pieces of Eden, has occupied the Order. Significant resources have been devoted to acquiring as many of these unique artifacts as possible, in order that the technology they possess is harnessed and can be used for the greater good of humanity.

2

The City, the Sea and the Shanghai Bund...

Today, Shanghai Is not just China's largest city but also the world's. It has a population of 24 million people and is the country's financial and economic hub, as well as being the world's busiest container shipping port. And it's the port that has made the city - sat on the Huangpu River - a manmade tributary of the Yangtze River, a source of international intrigue, power struggles and hostility.

Shanghai was one of a number of ports opened up to foreigners after the signing of the Treaty of Nanking in 1842. The treaty was struck between China and Britain and it was agreed that land would be given over to the British in the city so they could more closely control their interests.

Naturally, the new arrivals chose to be situated where they could keep the keenest eye on those interests - the banks lining the Huangpu River. And with them they brought their own aesthetics and styles. Westernised buildings began to appear along a section of the riverfront known as The Bund. The British were joined by the United States in 1844 and a Concession was granted to the French in 1848. In 1868, the foreign powers consolidated their hold into the Shanghai International Settlement and a legal and bureaucratic headache of epic proportions was born for all involved.

The running of the Settlement fell to the largely British-controlled Shanghai Municipal Council (SMC). As western influence made itself felt, the SMC took over virtually all aspects of daily life within the Settlement, despite the fact that It was not actually a foreign colony - it was still, on paper, controlled by the Chinese government, and should have been operated along the lines of an embassy or foreign consulate.

However, it was very much a self-contained entity. The SMC acquired local companies to provide power and utilities; it had its own police force and legal system; it even controlled the transport network, its trams and rickshaws. Drivers of the latter were said to need three licenses to ply their trade - one for the Chinese areas of the city, one for the Settlement, and another for the French Concession! Such rigorously maintained bureaucracy naturally led to friction with the local Chinese and the British found themselves at the receiving end of a serious international incident when members of the Shanghai Municipal Police opened fire on Chinese protestors on May 30th, 1925.

The Municipal Police was largely recruited from locals, but foreigners, once again largely British and Commonwealth officers, filled the higher ranks; there was also a large contingent of Japanese. Within the Settlement, Japanese-controlled cotton mills had become the focus of sometimes-violent demonstrations. After a Japanese foreman shot one of the demonstrators, rioting, mass protests and strikes followed.

The situation was exacerbated by the arrest of a number of Chinese students within the Settlement. Crowds gathered outside the police station where they were being held. Naturally, reports of what followed are at best confused, with the policemen in the Station claiming that the crowd had turned violent and were attempting to force their way into the station, hoping to release the imprisoned students. In the melee, the officer in charge apparently opened fire on the protestors, triggering a volley from his men. As many as nine people in the crowd were killed and many others gravely injured.

The incident instigated a wave of rioting and strikes that left hundreds dead and seriously threatened foreign, and in particular British, interests in the Settlement. However, while Britain did not find itself directly culpable for the shootings, the threat to the Settlement's economic wellbeing, as well as pressure from its foreign partners, was enough to institute major change to the way the Settlement was run.

Despite the sometimes-volatile nature of the Settlement, it maintained a reputation for luxury and wealth. The Roaring Twenties were not lost on the foreigners living in Shanghai and the Settlement brimmed with nightclubs and dancehalls that swung to the raucous sound of Jazz.

The Bund itself housed a number of luxury hotels, banks and offices, built in a plethora of styles - Gothic, Renaissance, Neo-Classical and, of course, Art Deco. Amongst the most famous is the Shanghai Club Building, built in 1864 to house a men's club for members of the then British Concession. The original was torn down and replaced in 1910 by a Baroque Rival structure six storeys high that remained one of Shanghai's most exclusive venues during the 1920s. Another, the Palace Hotel, was the vision of Sir Victor Sassoon. Construction began in 1927, and the building, which survived the Japanese Invasion of 1937, remians a jewel on the Bund, and one of Shanghai's most popular attractions.

4

Du Yusheng and the Green Gang that ran Shanghai

The chaos and terror that filled a streets of Shanghai in April 1927 was orchestrated and controlled by some of the most powerful and notorious men in the city. One of them was Du Yusheng. In the refined French Concession of the International settlement .

Born in the eastern provincial town of Gaogiao, his family moved to the nearby city of Shanghai when Du was just a year old. The move was not an auspicious one, as his mother died shortly afterwards in childbirth, his sister was sold into slavery, his father died, and his step-mother disappeared and was never seen again. With no family to support him, Du returned to the countryside to live with his grandmother.

He returned to the city when he was fourteen years old and managed to secure a job in the French Concession, working on a fruit stall. His nefarious tendencies made themselves known early on, as he was fired from that role for theft. Unwilling, or unable, to return to his home town, he scraped together a meager living on the streets, eventually becoming a bodyguard in a brothel, aged only sixteen. It was this job that solidified his position as a member of the underworld, and it was In this brothel that he first became aware of the Green Gang, the secret society and criminal organization that was flourishing in the disorganization and confusion of the International Settlement and French Concession at that time. Du was intrigued, trusted and quickly became a member.

Still. a child by any standards, Du's life course was now set. After some time as a minor gang member, he was introduced to Huang Jinrong, the notorious mob boss who moonlighted as the highest ranking Chinese detective in the French Concession police. While not actually a member of the Green Gang himself, his wife, also a highly accomplished criminal, took a shine to Du, and elevated him to the coveted position of gambling and opium enforcer throughout the territory she controlled. This prestigious position allowed Du to indulge himself with the finer things in life. He dressed in the best fabrics, pure Chinese silk, and was often surrounded by beautiful, biddable, women. He was even able to buy a mansion in the French Concession, which he set about filling with wives and concubines. This was before he truly came into the power that would change the course of Chinese history.

In 1924, Huang Jinrong was arrested for the savage beating of the son of a warlord. He stepped down from his public positions immediately, and handed control of his criminal empire over to Du. In one fell swoop, he became the “zongshi” - the grandmaster of the underworld. He was controller of gambling dens, prostitution, and protection rackets, and, with the compliance of the police and colonial government, he ran the opium trade in and out of the French Concession. However, he also established a number of legitimate corporations, such as Shanghai's largest shipping company, and two banks. It was the opium trade that would plague him though, as he became heavily addicted to the drug.

Politically, the Green Gang had significantly benefited from the disjointed government of the Shanghai International Settlement and French Concession. In this murky legal environment, organized crime was allowed to thrive, driven by mass Immigration to the city and a favoring of ancestral ties. Yusheng and Jinrong became acquainted as they were both natives of the Suzhou area. As their power and Influence grew, the Green Gang were often hired by the Kuomintang to put down strikes and disrupt labor meetings. Working with other criminal organizations, the Green Gang were instrumental in the White Terror massacre of April 1927, which saw 9,000 pro-Communist strikers brutally killed tn the Shanghai streets on the orders of Chiang Kai-Shek. Following this, Du Yusheng was appointed the President of the Board of Opium Suppression, in a specatularly brazen move on the part of Chiang Kai-Shek. Du Yusheng was now unequivocally in control of the entirety of China's opium trade.

He used this position as a means to further the causes of the Nationalist army, and amassed sufficent politcal power and prestige tn that role that he was able to build and dedicate a temple to his own family. The three days of celebrations saw the great and good visiting to pay their respects. A few months after It opened, however, Yusheng had converted two of the private wings of the building to the manufacture of heroin.

Du Yusheng was not able to maintain his close relationship with Chiang Kai-Shek. The war between Japan and China that started in 1937 brought to light many of the differences in idealogy between the two. Having fled to exile in Hong Kong, Du Yusheng did not return to Shanghai until 1945. Far from being greeted as the returning hero, as he imagined, he found his position diminshed beyond recognition. He returned to Hong Kong in 1949, and eventually died there in 1951.

5

On April 12, 1927, the course of Chinese history was changed forever when General Chiang Kai Shek, leader of the Nationalist army, conclusively split with the Communist Party of China. Marshaling his troops, the Nationalist army carried out a purge of Communist Party members and supporters in the streets of Shanghai. An estimated 400 people lost their lives, but at least 5,000 were recorded as missing. The Purge, as it became known, laid the groundwork for what were to be some of the most turbulent years of Chinese history.

6

The Barbary Coast

The Barbary Coast (also known as the Berber Coast), was the term used by Europeans from the 16th-19th centuries to refer to the area of coastal regions of West Africa, particularly Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya - the collective land of the Berber people.

Rich in gold, ivory, and pepper, the region attracted the interest of several imperial powers and trade routes were soon established, leading to a dramatic increase In piracy.

Famed for the corsairs and privateers that dominated its waters from the 16th century onwards, the Barbary Coast also became notorious for its Slave trade.

From bases in North Africa, Barbary pirates raided ships traveling through the Mediterranean, plundering cargo and enslaving crew. Raids were also conducted along the seaside towns of Western Europe, with thousands of men, women and children captured, regardless of their race or religion. This eventually led to the Barbary Wars of the early 17th century.

7

Tripoli : The Mermaid of the Mediterranean

Founded in the 7th century BC by the Phoenicians, Tripoli (originally named Oea) is the capital and largest city in the State of Lybia.

With a history spanning several centuries, the city was held by a number of multinational states during its formative years, including the Roman and Spanish Empires, before falling to Ottoman rule in the mid-fourteenth century.

Named for the three cities encompassing the province, the Eyalet of Tripolitania quickly became one of most impressive territories along the North African Coast. Governed by a series of 'Pashas' and 'Deys', the city remained largely independent from the Sultan, despite remaining under nominal Ottoman rule.

Ruling from 1766-1838, Yusuf Karamanli was the most infamous of his dynasty. With the city a base of operation for Barbary corsairs, tensions soon escalated between the United States and North Africa. Numerous American vessels fell foul to the state's piratical practices and, following the Pasha's demand for an increase in tribute, a naval force was sent from the US to blockade the city.

These acts would lead to the Barbary Wars of the early 19th century, leaving the Ottoman Empire with little choice but to comply with the demands of the United States.

Locus

1

The Original Private Eyes

Founded In 4850 by Allan Pinkerton - an immigrant barrel-maker turned Chicago police detective - the PINKERTON NATIONAL DETECTIVE AGENCY was one of Americas most notorious crime-prevention and private security firms of the late nineteenth century.

Though Pinkerton initially specialized in train robberies and counterfeiting cases, after foiling a plot to assassinate Abraham Lincoln - who would later hire the agency as his personal 'secret service' during the American Civil War - the fledgling enterprise garnered a reputation as America's go-to office for counter-intelligence and security operations. By the early 1870s it had grown into the largest private law enforcement organization in the world.

Adhering to a strict code of ethics and defined by its striking company logo (the supposed inspiration of the term 'private eye'), at its heyday, the Pinkerton agency had more agents under its employ than the standing US army and, using its extensive collection of mugshots, established the world's first criminal database. Frequently subcontracted for espionage operations by the US government, the agency also remained a favorite of the railroad companies, gaining legendary status for its role in the hunt and capture of outlaws like Wild Bill and Jesse James. But, as the century drew to a close and ownership passed to Allan's sons, Robert and William, the agency's public perception would take a turn for the worse.

Pinkerton's involvement with the labor strikes of the 1890s would ultimately prove their downfall. The company's past use of heavy-handed tactics, coupled with accusations of violence from union sympathisers, soon led to public outcry, culminating In the events of the Homestead Strike of 1892 when a firefight involving 300 Pinkerton agents led to the death of 16 men. Pinkerton's reputation was left in tatters and the company would spend years struggling to rebuild it.

Nevertheless, the Pinkerton agency endured, and today Pinkerton Inc. has grown into a billion dollar multinational organization, remaining one of the world's leading providers of security.