Artur Phleps (29 November 1881 – 21 September 1944) was an Austro- Hungarian, Romanian and Nazi officer who was an SS-Obergruppenführer und General der Waffen-SS in the Waffen-SS during World War II. He was an Austro-Hungarian Army officer before and during World War I. During the interwar period, he joined the Romanian Army and became an adviser to King Carol. After he spoke out against the government, he was made to leave the army. In 1941 he joined the Waffen-SS. He saw action on the Eastern Front before raising two Waffen-SS mountain divisions and one corps in occupied Yugoslavia. Units under his command committed many crimes against the civilian population of the Independent State of Croatia. This became controversial when his onetime translator, Kurt Waldheim, successfully ran for the Austrian presidency in the 1980s. In addition to the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, Phleps was awarded the German Cross in Gold, and, posthumously, was awarded the Oak Leaves to his Knight's Cross.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artur_Phleps

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1776:

American Revolutionary War: The Great Fire of New York (depicted) broke out during the British occupation of New York City, destroying up to 1,000 buildings. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Fire_of_New_York_%281776%29

1918:

World War I: The Battle of Nazareth ended with the British Empire victorious over the Ottomans. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Nazareth

1958:

The first section of Interstate 80 in Iowa opened in the Des Moines metropolitan area. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstate_80_in_Iowa

2001:

Several British Muslim youths in Peterborough, England, murdered 17-year-old Ross Parker, leading to debate over whether the British media failed to cover racially-motivated crimes with white victims. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Ross_Parker

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

repose: 1. (uncountable) Temporary cessation from activity to rest and recover, especially in the form of sleep; rest; (countable) an instance of this; a break, a rest; a sleep. 2. (by extension, Christianity) 3. (uncountable) Of the Virgin Mary: death; also assumption into heaven. 4. (countable, Eastern Orthodoxy) The festival honouring the assumption of the Virgin Mary into heaven, celebrated on August 15. 5. (uncountable) The state of being peacefully inactive or relaxed, or being free from disturbances or worries; calmness, ease, peace, quietness. 6. (uncountable) Calmness of the mind or temperament; composure. 7. (uncountable) Of the face, a muscle, etc.: the state of being relaxed and not in tension. 8. (uncountable) The state of lying still and unmoving; calmness, tranquillity; (countable) an instance of this. 9. (uncountable, archaic) Relief or respite from something exhausting or unpleasant; (countable) an instance of this. 10. (uncountable, archaic) Confidence, faith, or trust in something. 11. (uncountable, architecture, art) The arrangement of elements of an artwork, a building, etc., that is restful and soothing to a viewer; harmony. 12. (uncountable, chiefly chemistry) The state of leaving something alone or untouched; (countable) an instance of this. 13. (uncountable, engineering, physics) Chiefly in the form point of repose, position of repose, etc.: absence of motion; equilibrium; (countable) a position where an object is not moving and at rest. 14. (uncountable, chiefly geology) Of a natural phenomenon, especially the eruption of a volcano: the state of temporary cessation of activity; dormancy, quiescence. 15. (obsolete) 16. (countable) A piece of furniture on which one can rest, especially a couch or sofa. 17. (countable) A place of rest. 18. (painting, uncountable) The technique of including in a painting an area or areas which are dark, indistinct, or soft in tone so that other areas are more prominent, or so that a viewer can rest they eyes when looking at them; (countable) such an area of a painting. [...] https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/repose

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

It's coming to America first The cradle of the best and of the worst It's here they got the range And the machinery for change And it's here they got the spiritual thirst It's here the family's broken And it's here the lonely say That the heart has got to open In a fundamental way Democracy is coming to the U.S.A.   --Leonard Cohen https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Leonard_Cohen