The fact that the term “Iron Lady” was first used as an insult against the promising politician Margaret Thatcher in the Soviet Union only served to increase its notoriety among the British population. It took the Iron Lady three years after joining the Conservative Party to become the first woman Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and also of the Europe.
In 1976, Margaret Thatcher was dubbed “Iron Lady” by a Soviet journalist
In January 1976, the Soviet army newspaper Red Star (or “Krasnaya Zvezda”) released an article denouncing the British politician Margaret Thatcher in response to her charge that Moscow was attempting global control. As head of the conservative party in Britain’s opposition, Thatcher had a prominent role.
The document was discovered by Robert Evans, who was the Moscow bureau head for Reuters at the time. After reading the piece scathing of Thatcher, he was inspired to write his own news. Evans rendered the original Russian headline, which was authored by an army commander called Yuri Gavrilov, as “Iron Lady Wields Threats.”
Iron Lady was a nickname that Yuri Gavrilov made up and attributed to the British.
Margaret Thatcher during the 1976 Iron Lady speech. (Credit: Margaret Thatcher Foundation)
Evans’s report read: “British Tory leader Margaret Thatcher was today dubbed ‘the Iron Lady’ by the Soviet Defense Ministry newspaper Red Star.” A week later, in 1976, Margaret Thatcher made the following announcement to raucous applause at a speech at Selborne Hall: “I stand before you tonight in my Red Star chiffon evening gown. My face softly made up and my fair hair gently waved, the Iron Lady of the Western world. A cold war warrior, an amazon philistine, even a Peking plotter. Well, am I any of these things? … Yes I am an iron lady, after all it wasn’t a bad thing to be an iron duke, yes if that’s how they wish to interpret my defence of values and freedoms fundamental to our way of life.”
During the campaign that brought her to office in 1979 and made her Europe’s first woman prime minister, she was known as the “Iron Lady,” which bolstered her image at a time when she was belaboring a collapsing left-wing Labour administration as soft on the Russians.
The fact that the name “Iron Lady” originated in the Soviet Union as an insult only added to its popularity. The Iron Lady eventually became Prime Minister of Britain three years after her election to the conservative party.
Who was Margaret Thatcher?
Margaret Roberts, the future First Lady of England, was born in a tiny village in the East Midlands in 1925. Her family ran a Methodist grocery store. Her parents instilled in her the value of hard work and desire, which served her well. For her chemistry studies at the esteemed Oxford University, she obtained a scholarship in 1943. She entered her first municipal election at the ripe old age of 24. While she didn’t win that election, nine years later she was able to become a Member of Parliament for a North London district.
Her political career continued to the highest levels of the British government. In 1968, she entered politics and by 1970 had risen to the position of Minister of Education and Science, under the Pensions Minister. She became the first woman to head the Conservative Party at the age of 49, setting her on the path to Prime Minister, a post she held for three terms beginning in 1979. That she was the head of state for a western nation was a historic first for women. The United Kingdom was experiencing a crisis on several fronts, and she was put in charge of addressing them all. Her inflexibility and the unpopularity of her reforms earned her the moniker “Iron Lady.”
What was Margaret Thatcher’s policy?
The Prime Minister has adopted hard lines on a wide range of challenges facing the country’s population in an effort to turn things around. For instance, in 1982, Argentine commandos assaulted two British islands during the Falklands War with the greatest armed force since World War II. In just a few weeks, the territories were retaken at a cost of 293 British and 712 Argentine fatalities.
The uprising in Northern Ireland against British control in the early 1980s also sent shockwaves across the rest of the United Kingdom. The Iron Lady was unfazed by the demands of the hunger-striking IRA militants, who were already imprisoned. Several of them did not survive.
When it came to the economy, Margaret Thatcher wasted no time launching a radical privatization initiative. Spending on the public sector was cut in half, allowing the government to restock its coffers. Financial markets were deregulated, the labor market was liberalized, foreign investment flooded in, and the stock market skyrocketed, all despite significant periods of disfavor. She also pursued efforts to reduce the United Kingdom’s EC rebate, which she obtained in 1984.
During her second time in power, she was tested by the miners’ revolts, but she demonstrated she was unyielding by not caving to the big strikes that plagued the country. After a year of fighting, six people were killed and another 200,000 were injured before the mines were shut down in 1985.
Who succeeded Margaret Thatcher?
When John Major became Prime Minister in 1990, Margaret Thatcher stepped down as Conservative Party leader and as leader of the country. She did not leave politics entirely, however, since two years after her retirement she was made a lord of England and given a seat in the House of Lords. The Iron Lady, who was as divisive as she was revered, faded from the public eye over the years, primarily due to health concerns, and passed away at the age of 87 after suffering a stroke in 2013.
The ancient Incas celebrated the Sun and all it brings with a celebration called the Inti Raymi festival. The legendary Festival of the Inti Raymi was and is still celebrated on the day of the winter solstice, June 24, throughout the Andean regions of the southern hemisphere. The city of Cusco, in the heart of the Andes in Peru, hosts the Inti Raymi, also known as the Festival of the Sun. Cuzco was formerly the Inca Empire‘s capital. Inti Raymi was their most important festival.
There are several venues for the event. The major event starts at the Sun Temple (Coricancha), moves through Cuzco’s Plaza de Armas, and concludes at the city’s stronghold, Sacsayhuamán. About 25,000 people, including 700 actors, attend the Inti Raymi festival every year. Every Peruvian has had this moment at some point in their lives. Because Inti Raymi is still among the most important celebrations in Latin America.
The Inti Raymi festival, held to assure a bountiful crop, often ran for nine days and included elaborate dances, processions, and animal sacrifices in honor of Pachamama. Pachamama gave birth to Inti, the sun god, and Mama Killa, the moon goddess. In 1412, the very first Inti Raymi festival was held. In 1535, the final Inti Raymi was held in front of an Inca Emperor.
What Is the Inti Raymi festival?
The Inti Raymi means “Inti Festival” in Quechua. It is a sacred ritual practiced by the Inca. In Quechua, it is known as the Festival of the Sun (or the Sun God). Inti is the name of the Sun God. The stories attribute his birth to the deity who founded the civilization, “Viracocha.” His true origin is not clear. The roots of the Inti Raymi festival can be traced all the way back to the legendary beginnings of Inca culture. The ritual was most likely first created in the 11th century. The Inti, a god seen as symbolic of the Sun, is the focus of this celebration.
Historically There Were Two Inti Raymi Festivals
During the winter solstice, the Incas celebrated “Wawa Inti Raymi,” or the Festival of the Sun Child, and during the summer solstice, they celebrated “Capac Inti Raymi,” or the Festival of the Great Sun. However, the significance of the sun rising grew over time, and a new cyclical era was represented by the Sun’s rebirth. We can think of it as a local Christmas.
It is important to remember that the fertility of the Earth was another goal of this event. It was the conclusion of harvest and the beginning of potato planting, ushering in a new agricultural cycle. For this reason, the Inti Raymi festival had great significance for the Andean people. A good crop was a reflection of how well the event went.
Participants Wait for Dawn Together at the Inti Raymi Festival
The Sacsayhuamán citadel served as the event’s focal point. Festivities were held at what is now known as Huacaypata Plaza or the Place of the Warrior of Cuzco (or Plaza de Armas). During the Inti Raymi festival, the emperor was in the middle, surrounded by his subjects. Each person joined the others in waiting until dawn. Concurrently, they made sacrifices and performed rituals. And then they visited the Temple of the Sun.
For generations, the Inti Raymi festival was celebrated until viceroy (governor) Francisco de Toledo outlawed it in 1535. During the colonial period, the Spanish and the Catholic Church saw Inti Raymi as a dangerous enemy. The Andeans were coerced into adopting a Christian religion by the invading Spaniards. For the Spaniards, the Inti Raymi festival was a heretical celebration since it had no basis in Christian belief.
The Sun God Inti from the Argentina flag, and the Uruguay flag respectively.
When the priests sought to force their beliefs on the locals, the Inca people responded with this celebration as a gesture of defiance. They engaged in what was known as the “Illness Dance” during these acts of defiance. The spread of idol worship also threatened the continuity of this custom. Spanish conquistadors wiped out festivals and many other customs by destroying religious artifacts.
“Adam and Eve”, in “El Primer Nueva Corónica y Buen Gobierno”, 1615.
Andean painters always found a way to infuse Andean ideas, like the belief in the Inti and the Mama Quilla or Killa (Inti’s sister and wife), into their artwork, even when it was about something totally different, such as the Adam and Eve drawing above. The painters used symbols from their old faith in works designed to reflect Christianity. Stories and beliefs about the Inca religion were passed down over the ages through word of mouth thanks to this sentiment. For this reason, the Inti Raymi festival has endured longer than expected.
Inti Raymi Represents the Bond Between the Sun and His Sons
Potato harvest in the Inti Raymi month of June. (Artist: Herbert M. Herget)
To celebrate the Inti Raymi festival, the Incas assembled their subjects in Cuzco. People gathered in droves in Huacaypata Plaza (Plaza de Armas Cusco) to witness the transport of ancestral mummies. They were in pristine condition and brought from the adjacent temples for the celebration. Celebration dances lasted all day long, from sunrise to night, while celebrants drank chicha (the beer of the Incas)and inhaled the smoke of coca fires.
When the Inti Raymi festival rolled around, it always brightened up the darkest days of winter. Because the Incas were afraid that the Sun (their father) would desert them, they decided that the shortest day of the year, June 24, was the best option for this festival. Because June 24 is the winter solstice in the Southern Hemisphere. The event was held annually on the winter solstice when the Sun was at its furthest distance from Earth. Tens of thousands gathered in a last-ditch effort to convince the Sun God to revive their crops.
The Inti Raymi Festival Was Revived in 1940
Since 1940, however, the celebration has been revitalized as Cuzco’s citizens rediscover their indigenous devotions. The Peruvian people still celebrate their largest feast on June 24. It was Faustino Espinoza Navarro, a Peruvian playwright and actor, who revived this Inca holy event. He based the details of the Inti Raymi festival on the descriptions of the event in the “Royal Comments of the Inca” by the Spanish soldier Garcilaso de la Vega (1612). He founded the Cuzco Academy of the Quechua Language and rescued the Inti Raymi festival. Initially, just the religious rite was reconstructed based on the writings of Garcilaso de la Vega.
Since 1944, on June 24th, 1.25 miles (2 kilometers) from the original site of the celebration in the heart of Cusco, a dramatic depiction of the Inti Raymi has been held in Saksaywaman. This festival has evolved into a true show for both locals and visitors to Peru with a well-planned and executed production.
Experts in archaeology, history, and academia did the legwork required to recreate the ancient Inti Raymi festival as accurately as possible. Modern Inti Raymi is still a massive celebration, but it no longer has a mummy procession or animal sacrifice. It starts at sunrise in front of the Coricancha, the Temple of the Sun, and concludes at the Sacsayhuamán citadel district, known for its massive stone walls.
On June 24, locals in Cusco, Peru, offer tourists and travelers the best ways to celebrate the festival. Throughout the day, there are several celebrations and religious observances. The city is made more colorful by the many street fairs and concerts held in the central Plaza de Armas. As one of Latin America’s largest celebrations, Inti Raymi ranks just behind Rio de Janeiro’s own Carnaval.
This day represents the endurance of Peruvian religious and cultural identity over centuries of colonialism and Christianization.
Sacsayhuamán
The Sacsayhuamán fortress is the main piece of the Inti Raymi festival. It is a fortification designed to resemble the head of a puma, a highly revered animal in Inca culture. These ruins are the most impressive of all of Cusco’s environs. The Quechua meaning of the word “Sacsayhuamán” is “satisfied falcon.” Built by the Incas, the citadel had impressive defenses in the shape of a ziggurat, with three stories (representing the puma’s teeth) to keep invaders out.
What method was employed to move these massive pieces of limestone and completely encapsulate and assemble them is unknown. It is important to note that one of the stones in this structure is over 26 feet (8 meters) in length and weighs more than 300 tons. Furthermore, the fortification was made up of three towers. Tradition has it that one of them would have an underground passageway system leading all the way to the Temple of the Sun. However, only around 20% of the original buildings survived.
A Look at How the Inti Raymi Festival Is Celebrated
9:00 am – Coricancha: The devotion of the Sun
At nine in the morning, people gather in front of Coricancha or Qoricancha (meaning, “the corral of gold”) and also known as the Temple of the Sun, to begin the Festival of the Sun.
Because of its status as the holiest site in all of Inca territory, this temple has attained legendary proportions. It served as a sacred site for Inca rituals honoring the Sun, Moon, and Rain gods.
The Sapa Inca, the “Sun God King” or the “Great Inca,” who serves as a ceremonial leader for the day, prays to the Sun God from this temple during the Inti Raymi festival.
11:00 am – Plaza de Armas: the Coca ceremony
After Sapa Inca has finished his invocation, he and his dancers leave the Temple of the Sun and go to the Plaza de Armas.
There are a lot of important characters in the procession, including the Sapa Inca, his wife Quilla, and a number of nobles and priests.
The second stage of the Inti Raymi festival, known as the Coca ceremony, takes place after the procession reaches the Plaza de Armas.
During the reign of the Inca Empire, the Plaza de Armas (formerly Huacaypata) served as the beating heart of the capital city. Even more importantly, it was the only location of the Inti Raymi festival. The “Great Ushnu,” a pyramid-like structure, was where the event was held. This was the place to make a formal appeal to the gods. Here, at this spot, the Inca perform the Coca ritual in honor of the Sun.
Coca leaves are thrown at the high priest’s feet as part of the process, and he is charged with deciphering the Sun’s intent. After a llama is sacrificed (which is staged), two more priests notify the Inca of the Sun’s will. Because the abundance of the next year’s crops is predicted by the Incan high priests by sacrificing a llama and examining its internal organs.
01:30 pm – Inti Raymi performance at Sacsayhuamán
On the esplanade in front of Sacsayhuamán’s fortification, the Inti Raymi festival finally concludes.
In this final stage, a massive procession is planned, and both visitors and residents are welcome to take part. The Sapa Inca is transported in a sedan chair by four separate parties. There are four groups because Qollasuyu, Kuntisuyu, Antisuyu, and Chinchaysuyu stood in for the four regions that existed during the reign of the Inca Empire.
The rite of the Chicha, the rite of the holy fire, and the rite of the sacred bread (Sankhu) follow that. The last ritual involves giving a llama as a sacrifice (again, staged) to the Sun Father.
When the ceremonies are over, the Quechua people put on a spectacular show that includes a variety of dances, musical performances, and songs spoken in their native language.
After the Inti Raymi Festival
A dance show held for the Inti Raymi festival. (Image: Cancillería del Ecuador, Flickr)
Inti Raymi celebrations last for a whole week. But after the ceremony of the Festival of the Sun, the city of Cusco arranges different animations, such as concerts or the appearance of a fair on the sites.
The Inti Raymi festival is a huge deal in the Andean area, and people come from all over the globe to see it. For many Andean indigenous communities, Inti Raymi is the most significant cultural and spiritual festival that has deep historical roots in pre-Columbian times.
FAQ
What are the Inti Raymi traditions?
The participants fasted for three days while still taking water, eating white maize, and chewing chucam herb. They celebrated the winter solstice on the day of Inti Raymi by facing the rising sun with bare feet.
Who celebrates Inti Raymi?
In the Andean communities of Peru, Argentina, Ecuador, and Bolivia people gather towards the end of June for the annual Festival of Inti Raymi to celebrate and express thanks for the wealth of the soil via colorful ancient traditional rites.
What clothes are worn during Inti Raymi?
During the Inti Raymi, people wear scarves, masks, and feathers and carry spears adorned in gold to look like their ancestor gods and the ancient Inca people of the time. The dresses include the rainbow colors of the Inti Raymi flag.
Who Was Inti?
The Inca sun god Inti was also known as Apu Punchau. Several of the mountain spirits that served the Incan gods were known by the name “Apu.” Inti was the ancestor of all Incas. Each and every Inca temple paid homage to him.
References
“Inti Raymi History”, in Spanish, Web Archive, Elin Tiraymi.
“Inti Raymi Festival of the Sun in Otavalo”, in Spanish, Web Archive, Volunteering Ecuador.
Assuming that everyone is commemorating the same event, shouldn’t the festivities be standardized? Absolutely not. More than any other Christian holiday, Christmas demonstrates how deeply history, culture, and old (“pagan”) rituals have influenced the traditions surrounding Christian celebrations. In other places, Christmas is more like Carnival or New Year’s Eve, but in the West, we celebrate it with Christmas trees, quiet reflection, and candles. Dwarfs, Christmas fellows, and Julbock goats have been known to play pivotal parts in several of these stories, taking the place of Santa Claus and the Christ Child.
Christmas in South America
It is summertime in South America during Christmas. (Image: Unsplash)
Even though it may be 104 degrees Fahrenheit (40 degrees Celsius) outside, South Americans celebrate Christmas by setting up nativity scenes beneath palm trees and singing carols about “Silent Night” to the beat of samba music. Pine trees and cacti are decorated with Christmas candles in place of traditional fir and spruce trees. While in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, a massive papier-mache tree stands in the city’s central plaza.
Christmas bullfights and the Christmas lottery, both of which date back to Spanish colonial rule, are musts for many South Americans. German immigrants have brought their Christmas customs to the Andean highlands of Chile and Peru. In La Paz, it is now fashionable to adorn an imported fir tree with cotton balls in place of snow on Christmas Day. Recently, Brazil has seen Santa Claus arrive by helicopter. So, they have a more contemporary version of Santa Claus.
Yule logs, almond candy, and nativity sets
Yule hearth fire (Image: Pixabay)
Christmas in most Romance nations, such as Spain, Portugal, France, Italy, Romania, and Switzerland, wasn’t always a solemn family affair. Traditional midnight masses, particularly in Italy, may turn into a huge and showy performance, with the nativity scene serving as the showpiece. People shop for traditional Christmas treats like almond sugar and “panettone” in the vibrant markets that are open throughout the day.
Many French households still use the Yule log, or Bûche de Noël as the centerpiece of their holiday fireplace. The ritual of setting a Yule log on fire is associated with Pagan solstice festivities and bonfires. Many other symbols of divine light, like the Yule log, are used in winter solstice and Christmas celebrations.
The Christmas tree is gaining popularity in the country after being brought over from Germany in recent decades.
Scandinavian celebration of Christmas
Christmas dwarves. 1940, Erik Forsman. (P. Domain)
Neither Santa Claus nor the golden Christ Child were originally part of the Scandinavian celebration of Christmas (“Jul” or “Jol”). Instead of a human, Santa Claus in Norwayis Julenissen which are basically Christmas dwarfs. In Sweden, Santa Claus is Jultomte or just Tomte, who are also dwarfs. The gifts are not presented but rather tossed into the room with a resounding roar. That’s why the Christmas gifts are called “Julklapp” or “Christmas knock.” Every participant, as in a parlor game, must choose for themselves which present is planned for them. However, Santa Claus has been steadily replacing the Scandinavian dwarfs in recent decades.
Once upon a time, “Julbock” (Christmas goat or Yule goat) roamed the countryside in Norway and Sweden by the hundreds. Gifts were delivered on Christmas Day by a Julbock. Thor, the Norse deity of thunder and lightning, was often shown riding high in the sky on a chariot pulled by two goats, which may explain why the goat was so widely celebrated.
19th century Christmas card “God Jul” by Jenny Nyström. (P. Domain)
After a while, Julbock attained a new prank role. During Christmas, a group of young men would wear masks made of fur and birch bark, and in exchange for entertainment and presents, they would hand out compliments and criticisms to people. In this way, the Christmas goat would help ensure that everyone followed the tradition of getting new clothes for the holiday.
There was a time when the “thirteen Yule lads” would show up in Iceland in the days leading up to the holiday. These strange men took food from people, scared the kids, and got into all sorts of other trouble. Yet even they have been “tamed” through time to the point that they now carry presents to grateful recipients.
The mistletoe tradition
On the evening of December 24-25, Santa Claus delivers gifts to good boys and girls in England and the United States. He does deliver gifts through his reindeer-drawn sleighs, and dwarf helpers. After a Christmas Eve dinner of turkey and flaming Christmas pudding, children in England are given permission to dress up for Christmas. There is dancing, and anybody standing under the hanging mistletoe would kiss each other.
This tradition was intended to increase the likelihood of a girl getting married, since it is possible that she will still be single by Christmas if she does not get a kiss. The practice calls for taking one berry after every kiss.
Bibliography:
Ehorn, Lee Ellen; Hewlett, Shirely J.; Hewlett, Dale M. (1995). December Holiday Customs. Lorenz Educational Press. ISBN 978-1-4291-0896-6.
Many mysteries surround Christmas, including the origins of Santa Claus and the 25th of December, the day we celebrate Christmas. Despite the fact that it has become more commercialized, Christmas remains a festival with profound roots in our culture. It’s hardly surprising that this holiday has a plethora of traditions because of this. However, their histories are often shrouded in mystery. For what reason is it that Christmas is always celebrated on December 25?
Christmas vs. the winter solstice
As the saying goes, “For on the 25th of December occurs this incision, which is a turning point, and it begins to grow the day when the light gets the increase…” (“Epiphanius,” 310–403 AD)
It’s not a fluke that Christmas is observed on December 24 and 25. It is not so much because Jesus Christ was traditionally born on this day, but because of the importance this day has always had throughout history, even before the advent of Christianity. This day, the winter solstice, was a gift from the gods. The winter solstice is the day at which daylight hours once again start to lengthen. Almost every culture and faith have a ritual or holiday honoring the “winning of the light over darkness.”
A celebration of the sun gods on the winter solstice
Slaying of the bull: The Indo-Iranian god Mithras (Akkadian for “contract”) was revered as the patron of contract, friendship, and order by devotees of Mithraism in the Roman world.
In the early centuries, Christianity was only one of many religions practiced in the Mediterranean area, and as a result, many different cults and practices merged. Mithraism was widely practiced, as were festivals honoring Dionysus, the deity of the Thracians. In ancient Greece, Dionysus was revered as a deity of growth and fertility. Days “grew” to show his impact on the world. Conversely, those who adhered to the Mithraic religion honored an Indian deity of light.
This faith spread from Mesopotamia and the Near East with the rise of the Roman Empire and was officially recognized as the Roman state religion in the 4th century CE. Since then, the winter solstice had been recognized as an imperial feast, the birth of the “Sol Invictus” (the “invincible sun”). Winter solstice celebrations honoring the birth of a deity are not unique to Christianity. In ancient Egypt, this same day marked the feast of the goddess Isis and the birth of the child Horus. Sol Invictus was originally a Syrian god. The Saturnalia, the festival of Saturn, was part of Sol Invictus worship as well.
When exactly was the birth of Christ?
Sol Invictus in the Planetarium mosaic. (Image: Daniel González Acuña)
Christianity faced severe competition from long-standing religions and traditions as it struggled to gain a foothold in the ancient world. To the first Christians, the only festival was Passover; they had not yet comprehended celebrating Jesus’ birth. Church authorities didn’t try to pin down certain dates in Christ’s life or the year he was born until after the new religion had already taken hold and grown. After that, they tried to form a calendar of celebrations.
According to the mythology and these calculations, Christ could not have been born in the midst of winter. The birth would have occurred between spring and fall if the “there were shepherds camping in the neighborhood” (Luke 2:8) hint was to be accepted, as it is the only time of year when Judean shepherds would have been outdoors with their flocks. This reasoning also hinted at the days of March 28th, April 2nd, or May 20th. Yet it was obvious from the start that these rather obscure dates would not be able to impose themselves against the well-established festivals of the “Pagan” cults. The church had to do something about it.
The incorporation of a Pagan holiday
The Apostolic Tradition is credited to a Roman statue, perhaps of Hippolytus, discovered in 1551.
When Pope Hippolytus promoted December 25 as the date of Christ’s birth, the Church went on the offensive in the year 217. He planned to gradually inject Christian significance into the holiday’s traditional Pagan context. During this period, Christian belief and practice grew and gained more traction.
Everything was ratified in the year 330: Emperor Constantine made Christianity the official state religion of Rome and abruptly converted the ancient sun deity of Sol Invictus to the Christian god, who became known as “Lux Mundi” (Light of the World) and “created the sun of justice.” As a result, the date of Christ’s birth, December 25, has been set as a dogma of the Christian faith ever since the year 381.
However, it took many centuries for the new Christian celebration to triumph over the preexisting Germanic and Celtic sun and fertility rituals around the winter solstice in Central and Northern Europe. It wasn’t until a synod in central Europe in 813 that December 25 was officially recognized as a universal church feast instead of a Pagan festival.
