Petit Palais

The Petit Palais (small palace) is an art museum in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, France.

It was built for the 1900 Exposition Universelle (universal exhibition), it now houses the City of Paris Museum of Fine Arts (Musée des beaux-arts de la ville de Paris). The Petit Palais is located across from the Grand Palais on Avenue Nicolas II, today Avenue Winston-Churchill. The other façades of the building face the Seine and Avenue des Champs-Elysees.

The Petit Palais is one of the 14 museums of the City of Paris, that have been incorporated since January 1, 2013 in the public corporation Paris Musées.

History

Design Competition

In 1894 a competition was held for the 1900 Exhibition area. The Palais de l'Industrie from the 1855 World’s Fair was considered unfitting and was to be replaced by something new for the 1900 Exhibition. Architects had the option to do what they pleased (alter, destroy, or keep) with the Palais de l’Industrie. In the end, Charles Girault won the competition and built the Petit Palais as one of the buildings that replaced the Palais de l’Industrie. The construction of the Petit Palais began on October 10, 1897 and was completed in April 1900. The total cost of the Petit Palais at the time of the construction was 400,000 pounds.

List of royal palaces

This is a list of royal palaces, sorted by continent.

Africa

 Egypt

 Ethiopia

 Lesotho

 Libya

 Morocco

 Nigeria

 Tanzania

 Tunisia

Americas

 Brazil

 Mexico

Asia

 Afghanistan

 Azerbaijan

 Bhutan

 Brunei

 Cambodia

 People's Republic of China

Volvo Trucks

Volvo Trucks (Swedish: Volvo Lastbilar) is a global truck manufacturer based in Gothenburg, Sweden, owned by AB Volvo. It is the world's second largest heavy-duty truck brand.

Volvo Group was re-organized on January 1, 2012 and as a part of the process, Volvo Trucks ceased to be a separate company and was instead incorporated into Volvo Group Trucks, together with Volvo’s other truck brands.

The first Volvo truck rolled off the production lines in 1928 and in 2011 Volvo Trucks employed about 19,000 people around the world. With global headquarters in Gothenburg, Sweden, Volvo manufactures and assembles its trucks in 15 countries. Volvo Trucks produces and sells over 100,000 units annually.

Volvo Trucks sister truck brands in the Volvo Group Trucks company include Renault Trucks, Mack Trucks and UD Trucks (Nissan Diesel Trucks).

History

When Volvo manufactured its first automobiles in 1927, the first truck was already on the drawing table and in early 1928, the LV series 1 was presented to the public. Though it, by modern standards, was merely a truck, it was an immediate success and 500 units were sold before the summer. It had a 2.0 L 4-cylinder engine rated at 28 hp (21 kW).

Palace

A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop.

The word itself is derived from the Latin name Palātium, for Palatine Hill, the hill which housed the Imperial residences in Rome. In many parts of Europe, the term is also applied to ambitious private mansions of the aristocracy. Many historic palaces are now put to other uses such as parliaments, museums, hotels or office buildings. The word is also sometimes used to describe a lavishly ornate building used for public entertainment or exhibitions.

Etymology

The word "palace" comes from Old French palais (imperial residence), from Latin Palātium, the name of one of the seven hills of Rome. The original "palaces" on the Palatine Hill were the seat of the imperial power while the "capitol" on the Capitoline Hill was the religious nucleus of Rome. Long after the city grew to the seven hills the Palatine remained a desirable residential area. Emperor Caesar Augustus lived there in a purposely modest house only set apart from his neighbours by the two laurel trees planted to flank the front door as a sign of triumph granted by the Senate. His descendants, especially Nero, with his "Golden House" enlarged the house and grounds over and over until it took up the hill top. The word Palātium came to mean the residence of the emperor rather than the neighbourhood on top of the hill.

North America

North America is a continent entirely within the Northern Hemisphere and almost all within the Western Hemisphere. It can also be considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the west and south by the Pacific Ocean, and to the southeast by South America and the Caribbean Sea.

North America covers an area of about 24,709,000 square kilometers (9,540,000 square miles), about 16.5% of the earth's land area and about 4.8% of its total surface. North America is the third largest continent by area, following Asia and Africa, and the fourth by population after Asia, Africa, and Europe.

In 2013, its population was estimated at nearly 565 million people in 23 independent states, or about 7.5% of the world's population, if nearby islands (most notably the Caribbean) are included.

North America was reached by its first human populations during the last glacial period, via crossing the Bering land bridge. The so-called Paleo-Indian period is taken to have lasted until about 10,000 years ago (the beginning of the Archaic or Meso-Indian period). The Classic stage spans roughly the 6th to 13th centuries. The Pre-Columbian era ended with the arrival of European settlers during the Age of Discovery and the Early Modern period. Present-day cultural and ethnic patterns reflect different kind of interactions between European colonists, indigenous peoples, African slaves and their descendants. European influences are strongest in the northern parts of the continent while indigenous and African influences are relatively stronger in the south. Because of the history of colonialism, most North Americans speak English, Spanish or French and societies and states commonly reflect Western traditions.