[28145] | 1 | <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8" standalone="no"?>
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| 2 | <!DOCTYPE Archive SYSTEM "http://greenstone.org/dtd/Archive/1.0/Archive.dtd">
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| 3 | <Archive>
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| 4 | <Section>
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| 5 | <Description>
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| 6 | <Metadata name="gsdlsourcefilename">import/englishhistory.net/tudor/maryqos-letter.html</Metadata>
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| 7 | <Metadata name="gsdldoctype">indexed_doc</Metadata>
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| 8 | <Metadata name="Plugin">HTMLPlugin</Metadata>
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| 9 | <Metadata name="FileSize">5819</Metadata>
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| 10 | <Metadata name="Source">maryqos-letter.html</Metadata>
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| 11 | <Metadata name="SourceFile">maryqos-letter.html</Metadata>
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| 12 | <Metadata name="Language">en</Metadata>
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| 13 | <Metadata name="Encoding">windows_1252</Metadata>
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| 14 | <Metadata name="Content">Primary Sources: The last letter of Mary, queen of Scots, 1587</Metadata>
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| 15 | <Metadata name="Title">Primary Sources: The last letter of Mary, queen of Scots, 1587</Metadata>
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| 16 | <Metadata name="FileFormat">HTML</Metadata>
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| 17 | <Metadata name="URL">http://englishhistory.net/tudor/maryqos-letter.html</Metadata>
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| 18 | <Metadata name="UTF8URL">http://englishhistory.net/tudor/maryqos-letter.html</Metadata>
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| 19 | <Metadata name="dc.Subject">Tudor period|Others</Metadata>
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| 20 | <Metadata name="Identifier">HASH01e46681519f37f8a8760f42</Metadata>
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[28241] | 21 | <Metadata name="lastmodified">1378708192</Metadata>
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| 22 | <Metadata name="lastmodifieddate">20130909</Metadata>
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| 23 | <Metadata name="oailastmodified">1378708674</Metadata>
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| 24 | <Metadata name="oailastmodifieddate">20130909</Metadata>
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[28145] | 25 | <Metadata name="assocfilepath">HASH01e4.dir</Metadata>
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| 26 | <Metadata name="gsdlassocfile">maryqos-letter.gif:image/gif:</Metadata>
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| 27 | <Metadata name="gsdlassocfile">maryqos1565cr.jpg:image/jpeg:</Metadata>
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| 28 | </Description>
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| 29 | <Content>
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| 30 |
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| 31 | <div align="center">
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| 32 | <center>
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| 33 | <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="4" width="94%">
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| 34 | <tr>
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| 35 | <td valign="bottom" colspan="3">
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| 36 | <p align="center">&nbsp;<br>
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| 37 | <p align="center">
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| 38 | <img border="0" src="_httpdocimg_/maryqos-letter.gif" width="331" height="87"><p align="center">&nbsp;</td>
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| 39 | </tr>
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| 40 | <tr>
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| 41 | <td></td>
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| 42 | <td></td>
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| 43 | <td></td>
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| 44 | </tr>
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| 45 | <tr>
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| 46 | <td valign="top" width="48%" bgcolor="#FFFFE8">
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| 47 | <font size=-1>
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| 48 | <img border="1" src="_httpdocimg_/maryqos1565cr.jpg" align="left" width="175" height="236">Mary Stuart
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| 49 | wrote this letter on 8 February 1587, completing it just six hours before her
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| 50 | execution at Fotheringhay Castle.&nbsp; </font>
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| 51 | <p>
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| 52 | <font size=-1>It is addressed to her former brother-in-law,
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| 53 | King Henry III of France.&nbsp; She had written to him regularly throughout
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| 54 | her imprisonment in England.&nbsp; The letter is a remarkable document.&nbsp;
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| 55 | Mary clearly believes she is dying as a martyr to her Catholic faith.&nbsp;
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| 56 | She also displays genuine concern for the loyal servants who joined her
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| 57 | English imprisonment.</font></p>
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| 58 | <p>
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| 59 | <font size=-1>It should be noted that Henry III did not provide the
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| 60 | wages and pensions which Mary so poignantly sought.&nbsp; It was King Philip II of
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| 61 | Spain who honored her last wishes.</font></p>
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| 62 | <p><br>
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| 63 |
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| 64 | </td>
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| 65 | <td width="4%"></td>
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| 66 | <td valign="top" width="48%">
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| 67 |
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| 68 |
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| 69 |
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| 70 | 8 February 1587
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| 71 |
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| 72 | <br>To the most Christian king, my brother and old ally,
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| 73 |
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| 74 | <p>Royal brother, having by God's will, for my sins I think, thrown myself
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| 75 |
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| 76 | into the power of the Queen my cousin, at whose hands I have suffered much
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| 77 |
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| 78 | for almost twenty years, I have finally been condemned to death by her
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| 79 |
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| 80 | and her Estates.&nbsp; I have asked for my papers, which they have taken
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| 81 |
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| 82 | away, in order that I might make&nbsp;my
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| 83 |
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| 84 | will, but I have been unable to recover anything of use to me, or even
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| 85 |
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| 86 | get leave either to make my will freely or to have my body conveyed after
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| 87 |
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| 88 | my death, as I would wish, to your kingdom where I had the honor to be
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| 89 |
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| 90 | queen, your sister and old ally.
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| 91 |
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| 92 | <p>Tonight, after dinner, I have been advised of my sentence:&nbsp; I am
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| 93 |
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| 94 | to be executed like a criminal at eight in the morning.&nbsp; I have not
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| 95 |
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| 96 | had time to give you a full account of everything that has happened, but
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| 97 |
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| 98 | if you will listen to my doctor and my other unfortunate servants, you
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| 99 |
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| 100 | will learn the truth, and how, thanks be to God, I scorn death and vow
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| 101 |
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| 102 | that I meet it innocent of any crime, even if I were their subject.&nbsp;
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| 103 |
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| 104 | The Catholic faith and the assertion of my God-given right to the English
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| 105 |
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| 106 | crown are the two issues on which I am condemned, and yet I am not allowed
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| 107 |
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| 108 | to say that it is for the Catholic religion that I die, but for fear of
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| 109 |
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| 110 | interference with theirs.&nbsp; The proof of this is that they have taken
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| 111 |
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| 112 | away my chaplain, and although he is in the building, I have not been able
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| 113 |
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| 114 | to get permission for him to come and hear my confession and give me the
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| 115 |
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| 116 | Last Sacrament, while they have been most insistent that I receive the
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| 117 |
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| 118 | consolation and instruction of their minister, brought here for that purpose.&nbsp;
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| 119 |
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| 120 | The bearer of this letter and his companions, most of them your subjects,
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| 121 |
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| 122 | will testify to my conduct at my last hour.&nbsp; It remains for me to
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| 123 |
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| 124 | beg Your Most Christian Majesty, my brother-in-law and old ally, who have
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| 125 |
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| 126 | always protested your love for me, to give proof now of your goodness on
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| 127 |
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| 128 | all these points:&nbsp; firstly by charity, in paying my unfortunate servants
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| 129 |
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| 130 | the wages due them - this is a burden on my conscience that only you can
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| 131 |
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| 132 | relieve:&nbsp; further, by having prayers offered to God for a queen who
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| 133 |
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| 134 | has borne the title Most Christian, and who dies a Catholic, stripped of
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| 135 |
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| 136 | all her possessions.&nbsp; As for my son, I commend him to you in so far
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| 137 |
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| 138 | as he deserves, for I cannot answer for him.&nbsp; I have taken the liberty
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| 139 |
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| 140 | of sending you two precious stones, talismans against illness, trusting
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| 141 |
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| 142 | that you will enjoy good health and a long and happy life.&nbsp; Accept
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| 143 |
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| 144 | them from your loving sister-in-law, who, as she dies, bears witness of
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| 145 |
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| 146 | her warm feeling for you. Again I commend my servants to you.&nbsp; Give
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| 147 |
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| 148 | instructions, if it please you, that for my soul's sake part of what you
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| 149 |
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| 150 | owe me should be paid, and that for the sake of Jesus Christ, to whom I
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| 151 |
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| 152 | shall pray for you tomorrow as I die, I be left enough to found a memorial
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| 153 |
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| 154 | mass and give the customary alms.
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| 155 |
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| 156 | <p>Wednesday, at two in the morning
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| 157 |
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| 158 | <p>Your most loving and most true sister
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| 159 |
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| 160 | <br>Mary R<p>&nbsp;<p align="center"><nt><font size="2">
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| 161 | <a href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=1&amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2frelative%2fmaryqos.html">to the Mary,
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| 162 | queen of Scots website</a></font><p align="center"><a href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=1&amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fprimary.html">
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| 163 | <font size="2">to Primary Sources</font></a></td>
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| 164 | </tr>
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| 165 | </table>
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| 166 | </center>
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| 167 | </div>
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| 168 |
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| 169 |
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| 170 |
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| 173 | </Content>
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| 174 | </Section>
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| 175 | </Archive>
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