Graves (/ˈɡrɑːv/; from French: 'gravelly land') is an important subregion of the Bordeaux wine region. Graves is situated on the left bank of the Garonne river, in the upstream part of the region, southeast of the city Bordeaux and stretch over 50 kilometres (31 mi). Graves is the only Bordeaux subregion which is famed for all three of Bordeaux' three main wine types—reds, dry whites and sweet wines—although red wines dominate the total production. Graves AOC is also the name of one Appellation d'origine contrôlée (AOC) which covers most, but not all of the Graves subregion.
The area encompasses villages including Sauternes, Pessac, Talence, Léognan, Martillac, Saint-Morillon, and Portets.
The name Graves derives from its intensely gravelly soil. The soil is the result of glaciers from the Ice Age, which also left white quartz deposits that can still be found in the soil of some of the top winemaking estates.
The Graves is considered the birthplace of claret. Graves wine production for export dates back to Eleanor of Aquitaine, who married Henry II, King of England, creating a flourishing trade between both countries: wine versus coal and iron. In the Middle Ages, the wines that were first exported to England were produced in this area. At that time, the Médoc subregion north of the city Bordeaux still consisted of marshland unsuitable for viticulture, while Graves were naturally better-drained.
A grave is a location where a dead body (typically that of a human, although sometimes that of an animal) is buried. Graves are usually located in special areas set aside for the purpose of burial, such as graveyards or cemeteries.
Certain details of a grave, such as the state of the body found within it and any objects found with the body, may provide information for archaeologists about how the body may have lived before its death, including the time period in which it lived and the culture that it had been a part of.
In some religions, it is believed that the body must be burned for the soul to survive; in others, the complete decomposition of the body is considered to be important for the rest of the soul (see Bereavement).
The formal use of a grave involves several steps with associated terminology.
The excavation that formed the grave. Excavations vary from a shallow scraping, to removal of topsoil to a depth of 6 feet (1.8 metres), or more where a vault or burial chamber is to be constructed. However, most modern graves in the United States are only 4 feet deep as the casket is placed into a concrete box which prevents a sinkhole, is strong enough to be driven over, and will not float in a flood.
Graves is a surname of English origin. Notable people with the surname include:
A gallows (or scaffold) is a frame, typically wooden, used for execution by hanging, or as a means of torture before execution, as was used when being hanged, drawn and quartered.
Gallows can take several forms:
Occasionally, improvised gallows were used, usually by hanging the condemned from a tree or street light. Hangings from such improvised gallows are usually lynchings rather than judicial executions. In Afghanistan, Taliban used football goals as gallows.
The Cobra Organization is the fictional nemesis of the G.I. Joe Team in the Hasbro toylines and related media. This is an alphabetical listing of Cobra Command members with unique identities.
Bayonet is a Cobra Snow Serpent serving as part of the organization's elite Plague Troopers. He wears a portable life support system due to having survived injuries to his chest by the G.I. Joe team.
Big Boa is Cobra's trainer, and was first released as an action figure in 1987. He was meant to be as an enemy to Rocky Balboa, from the Rocky films, even coming with boxing gloves, but the Rocky character was never released as an action figure. Big Boa is a brutal, unfeeling taskmaster who whips the unruly Cobra Troopers into shape, as these soldiers are not motivated by patriotism, unit loyalty, honor, or sense of duty. Cobra Troopers say he has a voice like a bullhorn, fists the size of frozen turkeys, and the disposition of a bear with a headache.
Big Boa appears in Devil's Due G.I. Joe series. He fights Bazooka, one of four Joes who had just discovered Cobra's influence in the small town of Delhi Hills. Bazooka defeats him in hand-to-hand combat, but Big Boa, like most signs of Cobra influence, is spirited away before the authorities arrive. He also makes an appearance in issue #24. Later, Big Boa is killed along with several Cobra troopers and South American operative Asa Negra in an attack by the Red Shadows. Their bodies are discovered by Joe members Hardball, Rampart, and Glenda. Moments later, the Red Shadows kill the Joes as well. These 'Shadows' are a militia group that seeks to destroy Cobra and G.I. Joe, by slaying key members on each side.
Gallows are an English hardcore punk band from Watford, Hertfordshire. The band was formed in 2005 after the disbandment of founding member Laurent Barnard's previous band, My Dad Joe. Gallows' debut album, Orchestra of Wolves, was distributed in the United States by Epitaph Records, and they were subsequently signed to Warner Bros. Records for a £1 million album contract with up to three options, a deal they were dropped from after one album, Grey Britain. The band has been particularly successful in their native country, with three songs charting on the UK Single Charts, and have been featured in magazines such as Kerrang!, Alternative Press and Rolling Stone.
Gallows formed in 2005 and released their debut album Orchestra of Wolves in 2006 on In at the Deep End Records. The album received acclaim and caught the attention of Bad Religion's Brett Gurewitz, who released it in the US on Epitaph Records, with new tracks including a cover of Black Flag's "Nervous Breakdown". In an interview Gurewitz named Orchestra of Wolves as one of his favourite albums of 2007, praising it as being the best hardcore album since Refused's The Shape of Punk to Come.
Black cross burns,
above our graves.
[x4]
Blood hands rest,
above our graves.
[x4]
Lie with baited breath,
I will not wait for death.
We all share the same fate,
in our graves.
Calling all you helpless souls,
throw down your swords and tools,
and strike a conversation about my blood hands,
there are no words to say, "I just killed a man".