The Russian Imperial Yacht Standart

The Russian Imperial Yacht Standart, serving Emperor Nicholas II and his family, was in her time (late 19th/early 20th century) the largest Imperial Yacht afloat. After the Russian Revolution the ship was placed in drydock until 1936, when she was converted to a minelayer. During World War II she played a significant role in the defence of Leningrad.

The Imperial Yacht Standart was built by order of Emperor Alexander III of Russia, and constructed at the Danish shipyard of Burmeister & Wain, beginning in 1893. She was launched on 21 March 1895 and came into service early September 1896.

Standart was fitted out with ornate fixtures, including mahogany panelling, crystal chandeliers, and other amenities that made the vessel a suitable floating palace for the Russian Imperial Family. The ship was manned and operated by a crew from the Russian Imperial Navy. During the reign of Nicholas II, Standart was commanded by a naval Captain, although the official commander was a Rear Admiral. Her commander in 1914 was Nikolai Pavlovich Sablin.

In 1907, Standart ran aground on an uncharted rock off the Finnish coast. Although damaged, the ship did not sink and was repaired and soon returned to service. The Russian Imperial Family was vacationing on the Standart during the Summer of 1914, when they received the news of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, in Sarajevo. With the outbreak of World War I, Standart was placed in dry dock.

After the fall of the Romanov Dynasty, Standart was stripped down and pressed into naval service. The ship was renamed 18 marta (18 March), and later Marti. In 1932-1936, Marti was converted into a minelayer by the Marti yard in Leningrad. During the Second World War, Marti served in the Baltic, laying mines and bombarding shore positions along the coast. On 23 September 1941, Marti was damaged in an air attack at Kronstadt, but later repaired and continued service until the end of the war.

After the war, Marti was converted into a training ship and renamed Oka in 1957. She continued serving in that role until she was scrapped at Tallinn, Estonia, in 1963.

Thank you Merja for this nice card.

Tiannv - the fairy

This lovely card was sent to me by Wenshiqi from China. She tells me that the picture on the card is a cartoon image of a role in a Peking opera. They call her "Tiannv"(a fairy), something like chang-e (the goddess of the moon in chinese culture). 

Painting by Frans Hals

This is a painting by Frans Hals a dutch artist. It depicts a meeting of officers and NCOs of the security detail. A 1633 Frans Hals painting in the Frans Hals  Museum, Haarlem.

This lovely card was sent to me by Laury.  She says that this is a typical dutch painting from the 17^th Century. The man shown at the bottom of the picture is Colonnel Yohan Claese Loo. This painting it seems was an inspiration for a self-portrait by William Merritt Chase. 

Helmond, Netherlands

Helmond is a municipality and a city in the province of North Brabant in the southern Netherlands. It is quite near Eindhoven a big city. Eindhoven is known for many things, amongst them PSV Eindhoven the football club. If luck favours them Eindhoven may host the 2018 FIFA World Cup there. Helmond has many textile companies. The Vlisco factory is located next to the Zuid-Willemsvaart canal which runs through the city. Helmond is home of the professional football team of Helmond Sport. The centre of Helmond has a castle which was built by Jan III van Berlaer around 1350.

This pretty card which sends greetings from Helmond was sent to me by Brigite and John who live in Helmond and are very proud of it. I would be too if I lived in such a nice town!

The National Sanctuary Complex "Sophia of Kiev"

The National Sanctuary Complex "Sophia of Kiev" is a state museum administration in Kiev and Sudak responsible for maintenance and preservation of some of its most precious historic sites. The card shows a large portion of the National Sanctuary complex in Kiev.

·         Complex of Saint Sophia Cathedral, prime landmark

·         Golden Gates, part of Sofia of Kiev since 1983

·         St. Cyril's Monastery, created in 1929, it was transferred to Sofia of Kiev in 1965

·         St Andrew's Church, part of All-Ukrainian Historic Site 1935, it was transferred to Sofia of Kiev in 1939 and 1968.

The creation of the cultural preserve (sanctuary) in 1934 by the order of the authorities of the Soviet Ukraine at the site of the Saint Sophia Cathedral has likely saved one of the holiest sites in Eastern Europe from destruction during the Soviet-wide anti-religious campaign of early 1930s. The preserve was established in place of the cathedral of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church that was dissolved in 1930. The museum's responsibilities were gradually expanded to other historic locations of Kiev.

In 1994, the sanctuary was accorded its current status of “National”. This card shows the many important monuments and churches in Kiev. Julia who lives in Kiev sent me this card.

The Cathedral of Our Lady

The Cathedral of Our Lady is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Antwerp, Belgium. Today's see of the Diocese of Antwerp was started in 1352 and, although the first stage of construction was ended in 1521, has never been 'completed'. In Gothic style, its architects were Jan and Pieter Appelmans. It contains a number of significant works by the Baroque painter Peter Paul Rubens, as well as paintings by artists such as Otto van Veen, Jacob de Backer and Marten de Vos.

The cathedral is on the list of World Heritage Sites.

Where the cathedral now stands, there was a small chapel of Our Lady from the 9th to the 12th century, which acquired the status of parish church in 1124. During the course of the twelfth century, it was replaced by a larger Romanesque church (80 metres (260 ft) long and 42 metres (138 ft) wide).

In 1352, construction was begun on a new Our Lady’s church which would become the largest Gothic church in the Netherlands. In the beginning, it was to be provided with two towers of equal height. In 1521, after nearly 170 years, the new church of Our Lady was ready. The south tower reached only as far as the third string course.

During the night of 5–6 October 1533, the new church was largely gutted by fire. The completion of the second tower was therefore delayed, which led to its ultimate postponement. Moreover, the church only became cathedral of the bishopric of Antwerp in 1559 but lost this title again from 1801 to 1961, following the Concordat of 1801. During the Iconoclasm of 20 August 1566 (at the start of the Eighty Years' War), Protestants destroyed a large part of the cathedral interior. Later, when Antwerp came under Protestant administration in 1581, a number of artistic treasures were once again destroyed, removed or sold. The restoration of Roman Catholic authority came in 1585 with the fall of Antwerp.

In 1794 the French revolutionaries who conquered the region plundered Our Lady’s Cathedral and inflicted serious damage. Around 1798, the French administration intended to demolish the building but after each blow, the cathedral was able to recover. In 1816, various important works of art were returned from Paris, including three Rubens masterpieces. And over the course of the 19th century, the church was completely restored and refurnished.

Between 1965 and 1993, a complete restoration took place.

My friend Hildegarde sent me this nice card.

Polynesia

A little About the Polynesia 

This legendary 248-foot schooner was acquired by Windjammer in 1975 and christened Polynesia. Originally built in 1938 and christened Argus, she was one of the last of the Portuguese Grand Banks fleet. She was featured in the May 1952 edition of National Geographic magazine and in the late maritime writer, Allen Villers’ book, “The Quest for the Schooner Argus.” Under her new name, Polynesia, she was completely refurbished and air conditioned to blend today's comfort with yesterday's romance and grace, with comfortable luxury accommodations, while still retaining the charm of her maritime history.  

When Windjammer Barefoot Cruises ceased operations in 2007, Polynesia was acquired by Portuguese interests, returned to Portugal and renamed Argus, where she will be providing sail training to youth, a great next step for a true classic.

Thank you Yunju for this lovely card.