Glastonbury started in 1970 as a free-spirited farm gig for 1,500 people and became a global festival

pop & funWikipedia1970 · Somerset, England

Glastonbury started in 1970 as a free-spirited farm gig for 1,500 people and became a global festival

the gist

Glastonbury began on September 19, 1970, when dairy farmer Michael Eavis hosted a Pop, Blues and Folk Festival on his Worthy Farm in Somerset, attended by 1,500 people. He had been inspired by an open-air concert at the Bath Festival. The 1971 event was called the Glastonbury Fair and featured a Pyramid Stage built as a one-tenth replica of the Great Pyramid. The festival was revived in 1979 and grew into an annual fixture, with a crowd limit that has risen to more than 100,000. In 1994 the Pyramid Stage burned down a week before the festival, and the event continued with a temporary stage.

so what

Glastonbury shows how a small community event can turn into one of the world's biggest music festivals, while still donating large sums to charities. Its growing ties with dance music and mainstream television also shaped British popular music.

fun fact

Glastonbury's money has gone largely to charities such as Oxfam, Greenpeace and WaterAid, which volunteers help support at the festival in exchange for free entry.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia · text CC BY-SA 4.0

Image: Wikimedia Commons

source: Wikipedia ↗

historyWikipediaclassic1336–1565 · Karnataka, India

Hampi was once one of the world's largest cities, until its Vijayanagara capital was destroyed in 1565

the gist

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.

how it works

The city was built around a fortified core with temples, markets and water structures along the river, supplied by an extensive network of roads and waterworks. When the empire fell, the city was not rebuilt, so its stone monuments were left standing.

so what

Hampi shows how quickly a great city can vanish after a military defeat, and how a ruined capital can remain sacred. Its ruins give historians a view of medieval South Asia that few other sites can match.

fun fact

The name Hampi comes from Pampa, an old name for the Tungabhadra River.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia · text CC BY-SA 4.0

Image: Wikimedia Commons

source: Wikipedia ↗

2 min

politicsshortCNA2:01

False allegations about Singapore’s hand in Indonesia’s markets and a made-up meeting

from CNA

CNA Verify has found close to 400 posts pushing falsehoods tying Singapore to Indonesia’s stock market rout and to a secret meeting that never took place. Together, they drew nearly 12 million views, and some were circulated by accounts that appeared to be working in concert, across multiple social media platforms.

Here’s how the disinformation campaign targeting Singapore was uncovered.

on YouTube: CNA ↗