The History Temple

General Sherman's March to the Sea

noreply@blogger.com (Arthur.R) — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 04:12:00 +0000

"Sherman's March to the Sea" is the name given by historians to describe the Savannah Campaign conducted across Georgia during November-December 1864 by Maj. Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman of the Union Army during the American Civil War.

The campaign began with Sherman's troops leaving the captured city of Atlanta, Georgia on November 15 and ended with the capture of the port of Savannah on December 21. The military campaign had inflicted significant damage, particularly to industry and infrastructure and civilian property, keeping in step with Gen. Sherman's doctrine of total war. One military historian wrote that Sherman "defied military principles by operating deep within enemy territory and without lines of supply or communication. He destroyed much of the South's potential and psychology to wage war."

Gen. Sherman and U.S. Army commander, Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant believed that the Civil War would end only if the Confederacy's strategic, economic and psychological capacity for warfare were decisively broken. Sherman therefore applied the principles of scorched earth.

He ordered his troops to burn crops, kill livestock, consume supplies, and destroy civilian infrastructure along their path. This policy is often considered a component strategy of total war.

For thirty-six days that army moved through Georgia, with very little opposition, pillaging the countryside. It was a sort of military promenade, requiring very little military skill in the performance, and as little personal prowess, as well trained union troops were deployed against defenseless citizens. It was grand in conception, and easily executed.

Gen. Sherman's forces were composed of four army corps, the right wing commanded by Gen. O. O. Howard, and the left wing by Gen. H. W. Slocum. Howard's right was composed of the corps of Generals Osterhaus and Blair, and the left of the corps of Gen. J. C. Davis and A. S. Williams. General Kilpatrick commanded the cavalry, consisting of one division.

Many deeds that tested the prowess and daring of the soldiers on both sides on the march. Kilpatrick's first dash across the Flint River and against General Joseph Wheeler's cavalry, and then towards Macon, burning a train of cars and tearing up the railway, gave the Confederates a suspicion of Sherman's intentions. There was widespread consternation in Georgia and South Carolina, for the invader's destination was uncertain.

Confederate General P. G. T. Beauregard was sent from the Appomattox to the Savannah to confront the Yankee army. He sent before him a manifesto in which he said, "Destroy all the roads in Sherman's front, flank, and rear," and, "be trustful in Providence." Benjamin H. Hill, of Georgia., in the Confederate Congress at Richmond wrote to the people of his State: " Every citizen with his gun and every negro with his spade and axe can do the work of a soldier. You can destroy the enemy by retarding his march. Be firm!" The representatives of Georgia in the Confederate Congress called upon their people to fly to arms.

Sherman's entire force numbered 60,000 infantry and artillery and 5,500 cavalry. On Nov. 11 Sherman cut the telegraph wires that connected Atlanta with Washington, and his army became an isolated column in the heart of an enemy's country. It began its march for the sea on the morning of the 14th, when the entire city of Atlanta—excepting its courthouse, churches, and dwellings—was committed to the flames.

On December 9th the Federal army reached the neighborhood of Savannah. The city was defended by confederate General Hardee with 10,000 men, and was well protected by forts and by the rice swamps which had been flooded. Though cannonading was kept up for a number of days between attackers and defenders, the city was not hurt. After cooperation had been established between Sherman and the Federal gunboats on the coast and in the mouths of the rivers, Hardee saw that it would be impossible to hold Savannah, and in order to save his army he withdrew across the Savannah River into South Carolina, on December 21st.

On the following day Sherman entered Savannah and sent this telegram to President Lincoln: "I beg to present you as a Christmas gift the City of Savannah, with one hundred and fifty guns and plenty of ammunition, also about twenty-five thousand bales of cotton."

No other campaign in the entire war has contributed more to keeping alive sectional feeling than Sherman's march through Georgia and South Carolina. The march began in November, after the crops had been gathered. The "bummers" found the barns bursting with grain, fodder, and peas, the outhouses full of cotton, the yards crowded with hogs, chickens, and turkeys.

The soldiers in the Southern armies were starving, not because there was no food, but because the rail roads had been destroyed and it was impossible to send supplies to the front. Sherman was not content simply to use what food and supplies he needed, but boasted that he would "smash things to the sea" and make Georgia howl. His men entered dwellings, taking everything of value that could be moved, such as silver plate and jewelry; and killed and left dead in the pens thousands of hogs, sheep and poultry. Many dwellings were burned without any justification.

Sherman in his own Memoirs testifies to the conduct of his men, estimating that he had destroyed $80,000,000 worth of property of which he could make no use. This he describes as "simple waste and destruction." One of the most serious aspects of his work was the destruction of the railroads; the Central from Macon to Savannah, for instance, was almost totally ruined.

The History of French Indo-China

noreply@blogger.com (Arthur.R) — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 11:41:00 +0000

For over two-thousand years the people of Vietnam have fought off invading armies from ancient Chinese rulers to present-day super powers all the while struggling to maintain their indigenous identity and culture.

One such super power was France. And from 17th century with the establishment of Jesuit missions to 1954 and the battle of Dien Bien Phu the French had influence on Indochina.

French Indochina was formed in October 1887 from the territories of Annam, Tonkin, Cochinchina, which all together form modern-day Vietnam, and the Kingdom of Cambodia- Laos was added after the Franco-Siamese War.

European involvement in Viet Nam was confined to trade during the 18th century, though in 1787 Pigneau de Béhaine, a French Catholic priest, petitioned the French government and organized French military volunteers to aid Nguyễn Ánh in retaking lands lost to the Tây Sơn. His troops fought in the service of France until 1802.

France was heavily involved in Vietnam in the 19th century; protecting the work of the Paris Foreign Missions Society in the country was often presented as a justification. As time went on the Nguyễn Dynasty increasingly saw Catholic missionaries as a threat to their way of life.

Territorial conflict in the Indochinese peninsula led to the Franco-Siamese War of 1893. In 1893 the French authorities in Indochina used border disputes, followed by the Paknam naval incident, to provoke a crisis. Soon after, French gunboats appeared at Bangkok, and demanded the cession of Lao territories east of the Mekong and got it.

The French continued to pressure Siam and in 1906–1907 they manufactured another crisis. This time Siam had to concede French control of territory on the west bank of the Mekong opposite Luang Prabang and around Champasak in southern Laos, as well as western Cambodia. France also occupied the western part of Chantaburi.

February 10, 1930 marked an uprising by Vietnamese soldiers in the French colonial army's Yen Bai garrison. The "Yên Bái mutiny" was sponsored by the Việt Nam Quốc Dân Đảng (VNQDD). VNQDD for the Vietnamese Nationalist Party. The attack was the largest disturbance against the colonisation of Vietnam since Phan Dinh Phung and the "Can Vuong monarchist movement" of the late 19th century. The aim of the revolt was to inspire a wider uprising among the general populace in an attempt to overthrow the colonial authority.

The VNQDD had previously attempted to engage in clandestine activities aimed to undermine French rule, but increasing French scrutiny on their activities led to their leadership group taking the risk of staging a large scale military attack in the Red River Delta in northern Vietnam.

During the Second World War Thailand took the opportunity of French weaknesses to reclaim previously lost territories, resulting in the French-Thai War between October 1940 and 9 May 1941.

The Thai forces generally did well on the ground, but Thai objectives in the war were limited. In January, Vichy French naval forces decisively defeated Thai naval forces in the Battle of Koh Chang. The war ended in May at the instigation of the Japanese, with the French agreeing to minor territorial gains for Thailand.

French forces were not in a strong enough position to immediately reassert their authority in their former colony, French Indochina, after the Japanese invaders withdrew at the end of World War II.

In the north, the Vietminh, a political party led by Ho Chi Minh, proclaimed the independent Democratic Republic of Vietnam. France agreed to recognize Vietnam as a free state within the French Union, but negotiations dragged on.

In December 1946, Vietminh forces attacked French garrisons, and during the ensuing years guerrilla activity increased in the countryside. In 1949, a Vietnamese provisional government, headed by Emperor Bao Dai, was established, which was recognized by France and, in 1950, by the United States.

The communist-dominated Vietminh rejected any remnant of French authority and consequently attacked French outposts along Vietnam's border with China, from whom they received substantial military aid. In 1951, the Vietminh created a common front with communist groups in Laos and Cambodia, also known as Kampuchea, and became more and more aggressive.

They were led by General Vo Nguyen Giap, who launched an attack on March 13, 1954, against the strategic French stronghold at Dien Bien Phu in northwestern Vietnam. Giap's siege lasted 56 days; his Vietminh troops continually attacked with artillery and mortar fire until the French defenders, short of ammunition, surrendered on May 7, 1954.

On April 27, 1954, the Geneva Conference produced the Geneva Agreements supporting the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Indochina, granting it independence from France, declaring the cessation of hostilities and foreign involvement in internal Indochina affairs.

Who is Santa Claus?

noreply@blogger.com (Arthur.R) — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 13:09:00 +0000

Santa Claus, also known as Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle or simply "Santa", is a legendary figure who, in many Western cultures, brings gifts to the homes of the good children during the late evening and overnight hours of Christmas Eve, December 24 or on his Feast Day, December 6 (Saint Nicholas Day). The legend may have part of its basis in hagiographical tales concerning the historical figure of gift giver Saint Nicholas. A nearly identical story is attributed by Greek and Byzantine folklore to Basil of Caesarea. Basil's feast day on January 1 is considered the time of exchanging gifts in Greece.

While Saint Nicholas was originally portrayed wearing bishop's robes, today Santa Claus is generally depicted as a plump, jolly, white-bearded man wearing a red coat with white collar and cuffs, white-cuffed red trousers, and black leather belt and boots. This image became popular in the United States and Canada in the 19th century due to the significant influence of caricaturist and political cartoonist Thomas Nast. This image has been maintained and reinforced through song, radio, television, and films. In the United Kingdom and Europe, his depiction is often identical to the American Santa, but he is commonly called Father Christmas.

One legend associated with Santa says that he lives in the far north, in a land of perpetual snow. The American version of Santa Claus says that he lives at his house on the North Pole, while Father Christmas is often said to reside in the mountains of Korvatunturi in Lapland Province, Finland. Santa Claus lives with his wife Mrs. Claus, a countless number of magical elves, and eight or nine flying reindeer. Another legend of Santa says that he makes a list of children throughout the world, categorizing them according to their behavior ("naughty" or "nice") and that he delivers presents, including toys, candy, and other gifts to all of the good boys and girls in the world, and sometimes coal to the naughty children, on the single night of Christmas Eve. He accomplishes this feat with the aid of the elves who make the toys in the workshop and the reindeer who pull his sleigh.

Santa Claus, also known as Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle or simply "Santa", is a legendary figure who, in many Western cultures, brings gifts to the homes of the good children during the late evening and overnight hours of Christmas Eve, December 24 or on his Feast Day, December 6 (Saint Nicholas Day). The legend may have part of its basis in hagiographical tales concerning the historical figure of gift giver Saint Nicholas. A nearly identical story is attributed by Greek and Byzantine folklore to Basil of Caesarea. Basil's feast day on January 1 is considered the time of exchanging gifts in Greece.

While Saint Nicholas was originally portrayed wearing bishop's robes, today Santa Claus is generally depicted as a plump, jolly, white-bearded man wearing a red coat with white collar and cuffs, white-cuffed red trousers, and black leather belt and boots. This image became popular in the United States and Canada in the 19th century due to the significant influence of caricaturist and political cartoonist Thomas Nast. This image has been maintained and reinforced through song, radio, television, and films. In the United Kingdom and Europe, his depiction is often identical to the American Santa, but he is commonly called Father Christmas.

One legend associated with Santa says that he lives in the far north, in a land of perpetual snow. The American version of Santa Claus says that he lives at his house on the North Pole, while Father Christmas is often said to reside in the mountains of Korvatunturi in Lapland Province, Finland. Santa Claus lives with his wife Mrs. Claus, a countless number of magical elves, and eight or nine flying reindeer. Another legend of Santa says that he makes a list of children throughout the world, categorizing them according to their behavior ("naughty" or "nice") and that he delivers presents, including toys, candy, and other gifts to all of the good boys and girls in the world, and sometimes coal to the naughty children, on the single night of Christmas Eve. He accomplishes this feat with the aid of the elves who make the toys in the workshop and the reindeer who pull his sleigh.

The History of Halloween

noreply@blogger.com (Arthur.R) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 05:56:00 +0000

Halloween's Orgins

Halloween has origins in the ancient Celtic festival known as Samhain [pronounced: sow- wen] (Irish pronunciation: [ˈsˠaunʲ]; from the Old Irish samhain, possibly derived from Gaulish samonios).The festival of Samhain is a celebration of the end of the harvest season in Gaelic culture, and is sometimes regarded as the "Celtic New Year". Traditionally, the festival was a time used by the ancient Celtic pagans to take stock of supplies and slaughter livestock for winter stores. The ancient Celts believed that on October 31 the boundary between the world and the otherworld dissolved, and the dead become dangerous for the living by causing problems such as sickness or damaged crops. The festivals would frequently involve bonfires, into which the bones of slaughtered livestock were thrown. Costumes and masks being worn at Halloween goes back to the Celtic traditions of attempting to copy the evil spirits or placate them, in Scotland for instance where the dead were impersonated by young men with masked, veiled or blackened faces, dressed in white.

Origin of name

The term Halloween, originally spelled Hallowe’en, is shortened from All Hallows’ Eve ("All Hallows' Eve") [eve is an abbreviation of even, an older word for evening. Halloween gets -een as a contraction of even to e'en], from the Old English term eallra hālgena ǣfen meaning "All Hallow' Evening", as it is the eve of "All Hallows’ Day", which is now also known as All Saints’ Day. It was a day of religious festivities in various northern European pagan traditions, until Popes Gregory III and Gregory IV moved the old Christian feast of All Saints’ Day from May 13 (which had itself been the date of a pagan holiday, the Feast of the Lemures) to November 1. In the 9th century, the Church measured the day as starting at sunset, in accordance with the Florentine calendar. Although All Saints’ Day is now considered to occur one day after Halloween, the two holidays were, at that time, celebrated on the same day. Also Halloween is a time were both the living and the dead can be together again in this one holiday.

Symbols of Halloween

A traditional Irish halloween Jack-o'-lantern from the early 20th century on display in the Museum of Country Life, Ireland.

On All Hallows’ eve, the ancient Celts would place a skeleton on their window sill to represent the departed. Originating in Europe, these lanterns were first carved from a turnip or rutabaga. Believing that the head was the most powerful part of the body, containing the spirit and the knowledge, the Celts used the "head" of the vegetable to frighten off the embodiment of superstitions.[citation needed] Welsh, Irish and British myth are full of legends of the Brazen Head, which may be a folk memory of the widespread ancient Celtic practice of headhunting - the results of which were often nailed to a door lintel or brought to the fireside to speak their wisdom.

The name jack-o'-lantern can be traced back to the Irish legend of Stingy Jack, a greedy, gambling, hard-drinking old farmer. He tricked the devil into climbing a tree and trapped him by carving a cross into the tree trunk. In revenge, the devil placed a curse on Jack, condemning him to forever wander the earth at night with the only light he had: a candle inside of a hollowed turnip. The carving of pumpkins is associated with Halloween in North America where pumpkins are both readily available and much larger- making them easier to carve than turnips. Many families that celebrate Halloween carve a pumpkin into a frightening or comical face and place it on their doorstep after dark. The American tradition of carving pumpkins preceded the Great Famine period of Irish immigration and was originally associated with harvest time in general, not becoming specifically associated with Halloween until the mid-to-late 19th century.

The imagery surrounding Halloween is largely an amalgamation of the Halloween season itself, works of Gothic and horror literature, in particular novels Frankenstein and Dracula, and nearly a century of work from American filmmakers and graphic artists, and British Hammer Horror productions, also a rather commercialized take on the dark and mysterious. Halloween imagery tends to involve death, evil, the occult, magic, or mythical monsters. Traditional characters include the Devil, the Grim Reaper, ghosts, ghouls, demons, witches, pumpkin-men, goblins, vampires, werewolves, martians, zombies, mummies, pirates, skeletons, black cats, spiders, bats, owls, crows, and vultures.

Particularly in America, symbolism is inspired by classic horror films (which contain fictional figures like Frankenstein's monster and The Mummy). Elements of the autumn season, such as pumpkins, corn husks, and scarecrows, are also prevalent. Homes are often decorated with these types of symbols around Halloween.

The two main colors associated with Halloween are orange and black.

Historical Art Vol. 1

noreply@blogger.com (Arthur.R) — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 06:47:00 +0000

A poet once wrote:
“Art is not a study of positive reality,
it is the seeking for ideal truth.”

The Goddess Durga as Slayer of the Buffalo-Demon Mahisha (Mahishasuramardini), 14th–15th century Nepal

Bowl with Pair of Rabbits, mid-9th–12th century Mimbres peoples

Byzantine Tile, ca. 500 AD

Saint Alexander, ca. 1420

The Triumph of Fame, ca. 1502–4 - Flemish

Tapestry Roundel, first half of the 14th century
Iraq or Iran

LIVE, LEARN AND EXPLORE - Enter the History Temple

Pompeii Art

noreply@blogger.com (Arthur.R) — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 07:45:00 +0000

This magnificent fresco is a megalographia(a depiction of life-size figures) and its origins are very unique. The scene is a detail from a fresco that runs round all four walls of a room in a villa outside Pompeii.

The panels of the fresco appear to show a series of events, and their interpretation are at the center of much debate.

Its commonly thought that the fresco illustrates the initiation of a woman into the secret rites of Dionysus, and it is this theory that gave rise to the name of the Villa of the Mysteries.

The scene pictured above shows the "initiate is flogged, while another woman dances beside her".

Anne Frank: A voice from the past.

noreply@blogger.com (Arthur.R) — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 03:02:00 +0000

Anne Frank once wrote in her diary that -

"Despite everything, I believe that people are really good at heart."

But in the end it was by betrayal that lead to the end of her young and promising life.

On the morning of 4 August 1944, the Achterhuis, the house where Anne Frank and her family hid, was stormed by the German Security Police and soon after Anne was sent to the horrors of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp where she died 7-months later of typhus.

(Survivors suffering from Typhus in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp.)

After the arrest of Anne Frank and her family, her father, Otto Frank was sent to theAuschwitz concentration camp where he languished until being liberated by Russian troops in early January 1945.. Among his few possession was the diary of his beloved daughter- Anne Frank.

(Prisoners of Auschwitz greeting liberators)

Anne Frank’s diary is posthumously published on June 25, 1947, when her father, Otto Frank, printed 1,500 copies in Dutch. It's now printed in many languages and read by people all over the world. And after all these years the diary is still as compelling to read as when it was first printed.

All may not be right in the world but life is what you make it and in these times of despair and uncertainty, History Temple would like to leave you all with just another quote by Anne Frank.

"I don't think of all the misery but of the beauty that still remains."

The Treaty of Paris

noreply@blogger.com (Arthur.R) — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 07:31:00 +0000

The American War for Independence (1775-83) was actually a world conflict, involving not only the United States and Great Britain but also France, Spain, and the Netherlands. The peace process brought a vaguely formed, newly born United States into the arena of international diplomacy, playing against the largest, most sophisticated, and most established powers on earth.

The treaty was named for the city in which it was negotiated and signed.

Cornwallis surrender at Yorktown in the Fall of 1781 and as a result marked the end of the Revolutionary War. And even though the United States had won her independence minor battles between the British and the colonists continued for another two years.

In February of 1783 George III issued his Proclamation of Cessation of Hostilities, culminating in the Peace Treaty of 1783. Signed in Paris on September 3, 1783, the agreement — also known as the Paris Peace Treaty — formally ended the United States War for Independence.

In addition to giving formal recognition to the U.S. and when it was all done the treaty: established U.S. boundaries, specified certain fishing rights, allowed creditors of each country to be paid by citizens of the other, restored the rights and property of Loyalists, opened up the Mississippi River to citizens of both nations and provided for evacuation of all British forces.

Representing the delegation from The United States were John Adams, Benjamin Franklin and John Jay, all of whom signed the treaty.

Aztec Warriors

noreply@blogger.com (Arthur.R) — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 06:22:00 +0000

The Aztec army was composed of a variety of classes and ranks, from this they build a hierarchy structure to their army allowing them to organize and go into battle and into war with confidence. The Majority of the army was built around commoners who had the basic training of fighting behind them and were often outside of the warrior ranking system. A smaller part of the army was constructed from Aztec nobility who ranking in the army was denoted by their achievements, these were the professional warriors whose full time occupation was battle and war.

Only the bravest Aztec warriors who fought well in battle could become either jaguar or eagle warriors. These Aztec warriors were said to have been possessed the power of the Jaguar or Eagle while they wore their customs in battle. And it is this reputation that made them the respected and feared.

The Aztec army consisted of Eagle warriors and Jaguar warriors. The Eagle warriors generally carried spears, and had eagle plumage as their uniform. They were the rank and file troops of the Aztec army, and wore no armor.

The best of the Eagle warriors were promoted to Jaguar warrior, who carried obsidian swords and wooden shields. Jaguar warriors were the Aztec crack-troops, and were highly feared by other Meso-American civilizations for their martial prowess.

For a commoner to rise in status it would have to be proved in battle and taking captives was a big factor. The Aztec’s were known to not instantly kill their enemies or victims, but to bring them home to their ruler who would sacrifice them in ritual ceremonies. This would be part of the training for a young man that he would have to capture prisoners to show his skill in battle, if they were to capture more they would be further on the road to being a prestigious eagle or Jaguar warrior which was the first available rank not limited to nobility.

Eagle Warriors
The First type of Aztec warrior was the Eagle Warrior. The Eagle Warriors were the scouts of the Aztec Warriors as well as being good fighters. They were the eyes, ears, the messengers who would find the information necessary to lead and strategize an attack. These warriors often wore helmets adorned with eagle feathers and heads. They adorned their armor with feathers and carried brightly colored shields.

Jaguar Warriors
The second type of Aztec warrior were the Jaguar Warriors. The Jaguar Warriors were considered to be the all out fighting troops and full time warriors. The brute force of the Aztec army, they wore Jaguar skins over their heads with their faces peering out beneath the jaguar mouth.

Otomies
The Otomi name was based on the Otomi who were respected for their vicious fighting style. It is not clear whether the otami were a true type of Aztec rank or whether it was clearly a band of outsiders who found alongside the Aztec’s. Whichever way they were considered allies and fierce fighters.

Shorn Ones
The Shorn Ones were the most respected and prestigious Aztec warrior rank. Once again as we have seen before in the Aztec warriors their dress was unique to the rank. The Shorn Ones would have cleanly shaved heads with a single long braid in tact from the back of their head. The shorn ones painted their faces with vivid colors to show their ferocity and were renowned for not taking a backwards step in combat.

Depending on their rank and status the Aztec warriors would be armed with various weapons from wooden spears tipped with sharpened rock tips. Slings were used to catapult rocks and stones at their enemies from distance and Wooden maces or clubs were used in closer combat, again with inset stones and rocks what would be use to cut and slice into their opponents. Spears and Shields were also common weapons by the Aztec warriors.

The defeat of the Spanish Armada

noreply@blogger.com (Arthur.R) — Sun, 10 May 2009 05:37:00 +0000

On July 1588 King Philip II of Spain ordered the Spanish Armada on a mission to defeat protestant England lead by Queen Elizabeth I.  The "Enterprise of England", the plan to overthrow England, was not only meant to stamp out English Protestantism but also a message to the country's of western Europe that breaking from the Catholic church would not be tolerated.

In the end the plan to invade England proved to be an not only an expensive military expedition for the Spanish but would also ultimately marked the down fall the Spanish Armada as a world navel power.   And in doing so, also marked Spain's decline as a world power by the end of the war in 1604.

But for the English the fall of the Spanish Armada was a celebrated victory making Sir Francis Drake even more of a hero than he already was and even having an impact on Tudor Christmas celebrations!

At the time of Elizabeth I, Spain controlled what was called the Spanish Netherlands.  This consisted of modern day Holland and Belgium.

Holland didn't like being made to be Catholic and wanted it's independence from Spanish rule.  Protestant ideas had taken root in Holland and many of those in Holland were secret Protestants. If anyone had publicly stated their Protestant beliefs their lives would have been in danger.

Spain used the Inquisition to hunt out Protestants. However, during Elizabeth's reign, the English had been helping the Dutch Protestants in Holland. This greatly angered the king of Spain - Philip II - who wanted to put a stop Protestant beliefs.

He had for a short time been married to Elizabeth I's half-sister, Mary, and when they were married, England was Catholic. With England under his control, Philip could control the English Channel and his ships could have an easy passage from Spain to the Spanish Netherlands. Spanish troops stationed there could be easily supplied.

English 'sea-dogs' for some time had been causing a great deal of damage to Spain's trade in silver. Men such as Sir Francis Drake attacked Spanish shipping off of the West Indies and Spain lost a vast sum of money when the ships carrying silver sunk or had their cargo captured by Drake. To the English, Drake was a hero but to the Spanish he was nothing more than a pirate who, in their view, was allowed to do what he did with the full knowledge of the queen. This the Spanish could not accept.

In 1587, Mary Queen of Scots, was executed in England on the orders of Elizabeth I. Mary was a Catholic and Philip II believed that he had a duty to ensure no more Catholics were arrested in England and that no more should be executed. Mary, Queen of Scots, had also made it clear that if she became queen of England, Philip should inherit the throne after her death.

Hence his decision to attack and invade England.

The Armada had been delayed by bad weather, forcing the four galleys and one galleon to leave the fleet, and was not sighted in England until 19 July, when it appeared off St Michael's Mount in Cornwall. The news was conveyed to London by a system of beacons that had been constructed all the way along the south coast. On that evening the English fleet was trapped in Plymouth harbor by the incoming tide. The Spanish convened a council of war, where it was proposed to ride into the harbor on the tide and incapacitate the defending ships at anchor and from there to attack England; but Medina Sidonia declined to act, choosing to sail to the east and toward the Isle of Wight. Soon afterwards, 55 English ships set out in pursuit from Plymouth under the command of Lord Howard of Effingham, with Sir Francis Drake as Vice Admiral. Howard ceded some control to Drake, given his experience in battle, and the rear admiral was Sir John Hawkins.

Lord Henry Seymour , with Sir William Winter, was ordered with his fleet of forty English and Dutch ships, under command of Justin of Nassau, Admiral of Zealand, to lie off the coast of Flanders, to prevent the intended junction of the forces under the Dukes of Parma, with the Armada.

In a speech to prepare the English people of a possible invasion by the Spanish Queen Elizabeth writes:

"My loving people, we have been persuaded by some that we are careful of our safety, to take heed how we commit ourselves to armed multitudes for fear of treachery; but, I do assure you, I do not desire to live to distrust my faithful and loving people.

Let tyrants fear, I have always so behaved myself, that under God I have placed my chiefest strength and safeguard in the loyal hearts and goodwill of my subjects; and, therefore, I am come amongst you as you see at this time, not for my recreation and disport, but being resolved, in the midst and heat of battle, to live or die amongst you all - to lay down for my God, and for my kingdoms, and for my people, my honour and my blood even in the dust.
I know I have the body of a weak, feeble woman; but I have the heart and stomach of a King - and of a King of England too, and think foul scorn that Parma or Spain, or any prince of Europe, should dare to invade the borders of my realm; to which, rather than any dishonour should grow by me, I myself will take up arms - I myself will be your general, judge, and rewarder of every one of your virtues in the field.

I know already, for your forwardness, you have deserved rewards and crowns, and, we do assure you, on the word of a prince, they shall be duly paid you. For the meantime, my Lieutenant-General Leicester shall be in my stead, than whom never prince commanded a more noble or worthy subject; not doubting but by your obedience to my General, by your concord in the camp, and your valour in the field, we shall shortly have a famous victory over these enemies of my God, of my kingdom and of my people."

On 27 July, the Armada anchored off Calais in a tightly packed defensive crescent formation, not far from Dunkirk, where Parma's army, reduced by disease to 16,000, was expected to be waiting, ready to join the fleet in barges sent from ports along the Flemish coast. Communications had proven to be far more difficult than anticipated, and it only now became clear that this army had yet to be equipped with sufficient transport or assembled in port, a process which would take at least six days, while Medina Sidonia waited at anchor; and that Dunkirk was blockaded by a Dutch fleet of thirty flyboats under Lieutenant-Admiral Justin of Nassa. Parma desired that the Armada send its light petaches to drive away the Dutch, but Medina Sidonia could not do this because he feared that he might need these ships for his own protection.

There was no deep-water port where the fleet might shelter — always acknowledged as a major difficulty for the expedition — and the Spanish found themselves vulnerable as night drew on. At midnight on 28 July, the English set alight eight fireships, sacrificing regular warships by filling them with pitch, brimstone, some gunpowder and tar, and cast them downwind among the closely anchored vessels of the Armada. The Spanish feared that these uncommonly large fireships were "hellburners", specialised fireships filled with large gunpowder charges, which had been used to deadly effect at the Siege of Antwerp.

Two were intercepted and towed away, but the remainder bore down on the fleet. Medina Sidonia's flagship and the principal warships held their positions, but the rest of the fleet cut their anchor cables and scattered in confusion. No Spanish ships were burnt, but the crescent formation had been broken, and the fleet now found itself too far to leeward of Calais in the rising south-westerly wind to recover its position. The English closed in for battle.

The small port of Gravelines was then part of Flanders in the Spanish Netherlands, close to the border with France and the closest Spanish territory to England. Medina Sidonia tried to re-form his fleet there and was reluctant to sail further east knowing the danger from the shoals off Flanders, from which his Dutch enemies had removed the sea-marks.

The English had learned more of the Armada's strengths and weaknesses during the skirmishes in the English Channel and had concluded it was necessary to close within 100 meters to penetrate the oak hulls of the Spanish ships. They had spent most of their gunpowder in the first engagements and had after Wight been forced to conserve their heavy shot and powder for a final decisive attack near Gravelines. During all the engagements, the Spanish heavy guns proved unwieldy, and their gunners had not been trained to reload — in contrast to their English counterparts, they fired once and then jumped to the rigging to attend to their main task as marines ready to board enemy ships. In fact, evidence from Armada wrecks in Ireland shows that much of the fleet's ammunition was never spent. Their determination to thrash out a victory in hand-to-hand fighting proved a weakness for the Spanish; it had been effective on occasions such as the Battle of Lepanto and the Battle of Ponta Delgada (1582), but the English were aware of this strength and sought to avoid it by keeping their distance.

With its superior maneuverability, the English fleet provoked Spanish fire while staying out of range. The English then closed, firing repeated and damaging broadsides into the enemy ships. This also enabled them to maintain a position to windward so that the heeling Armada hulls were exposed to damage below the water line.

Five Spanish ships were lost. The galleon San Lorenzo ran aground at Calais and was taken by Howard after murderous fighting between the crew, the galley slaves, the English and the French who ultimately took possession of the wreck. The galleons San Mateo and San Felipe drifted away in a sinking condition, ran aground on the island of Walcheren the next day, and were taken by the Dutch. One carrack ran aground near Blankenberge; another foundered.

Many other Spanish ships were severely damaged, especially the Spanish and Portuguese Atlantic-class galleons which had to bear the brunt of the fighting during the early hours of the battle in desperate individual actions against groups of English ships. The Spanish plan to join with Parma's army had been defeated, and the English had afforded themselves some breathing space. But the Armada's presence in northern waters still posed a great threat to England.

The Armada sailed around Scotland and Ireland into the North Atlantic. The ships were beginning to show wear from the long voyage, and some were kept together by having their hulls bundled up with cables. Supplies of food and water ran short, and the cavalry horses were cast overboard into the sea. The intention would have been to keep well to the west of the coast of Scotland and Ireland, in the relative safety of the open sea. However, there being at that time no way of accurately measuring longitude, the Spanish were not aware that the Gulf Stream was carrying them north and east as they tried to move west, and they eventually turned south much further to the east than planned, a devastating navigational error.

Off the coasts of Scotland and Ireland the fleet ran into a series of powerful westerly gales, which drove many of the damaged ships further towards the lee shore. Because so many anchors had been abandoned during the escape from the English fireships off Calais, many of the ships were incapable of securing shelter as they reached the coast of Ireland and were driven onto the rocks. The late 1500s, and especially 1588, were marked by unusually strong North Atlantic storms, perhaps associated with a high accumulation of polar ice off the coast of Greenland, a characteristic phenomenon of the "Little Ice Age". As a result many more ships and sailors were lost to cold and stormy weather than in combat.

Following the gales it is reckoned that 5,000 men died, whether by drowning and starvation or by slaughter at the hands of English forces after they were driven ashore in Ireland; only half of the Spanish Armada fleet returned back home to Spain. Reports of the passage around Ireland abound with strange accounts of brutality and survival and attest to the qualities of the Spanish seamanship. Some survivors were concealed by Irish people, but few shipwrecked Spanish survived to be taken into Irish service, fewer still to return home.

In the end, 67 ships and around 10,000 men survived. Many of the men were near death from disease, as the conditions were very cramped and most of the ships ran out of food and water. Many more died in Spain, or on hospital ships in Spanish harbors, from diseases contracted during the voyage.

The influenza epidemic outbreak of 1918

noreply@blogger.com (Arthur.R) — Wed, 06 May 2009 06:38:00 +0000

"Obey the laws and wear gauze. Protect your jaws from septic paws.”

World War I claimed an estimated 16 million lives. The influenza epidemic that swept the world in 1918 killed an estimated 50 million people. One fifth of the world's population was attacked by this deadly virus. Within months, it had killed more people than any other illness in recorded history.

The plague emerged in two phases. In late spring of 1918, the first phase, known as the "three-day fever," appeared without warning. Few deaths were reported. Victims recovered after a few days. When the disease surfaced again that fall, it was far more severe. Scientists, doctors, and health officials could not identify this disease which was striking so fast and so viciously, eluding treatment and defying control. Some victims died within hours of their first symptoms. Others succumbed after a few days; their lungs filled with fluid and they suffocated to death.

The plague did not discriminate. It was rampant in urban and rural areas, from the densely populated East coast to the remotest parts of Alaska. Young adults, usually unaffected by these types of infectious diseases, were among the hardest hit groups along with the elderly and young children. The flu afflicted over 25 percent of the U.S. population. In one year, the average life expectancy in the United States dropped by 12 years.

It is an oddity of history that the influenza epidemic of 1918 has been overlooked in the teaching of American history. Documentation of the disease is ample, as shown in the records selected from the holdings of the National Archives regional archives. Exhibiting these documents helps the epidemic take its rightful place as a major disaster in world history.

History of Etruscan civilization

noreply@blogger.com (Arthur.R) — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 02:38:00 +0000

The inhabitants of Lemnos represented a pocket of pre-indo-european speaking people, whose language was similar to Etruscan. There are difficulties with that theory when one examines the alphabet and the language in some detail. The Stele is dated at approximately 600, and uses an alphabet used in Northern Etruria at that time. The first evidence of Etruscan inscriptions dates to about 750 BCE, and use a script which was based on the early Euboean alphabet, learned from the Greeks at Cumae. The Greeks first established their colony at Cumae in about 750 BCE, yet there was evidence of the Etruscans in Italy well before this time. If the Lemnos stele was an isolated outlier of a pre-indo european language, then the alphabet is too similar to Etruscan for it to have developed from any other source. It is more likely to represent an isolated colony of either Pelasgians.

The Northern provenance theory, which bases its evidence on the similarities of Raetian and Etruscan languages has one major flaw, in that the Raetian Alpine inscriptions are much later, and are more consistent with later Etruscan influences, or associated with the scattering of the Northern Etruscans as a result of Celtic incursions.

Modern archaeologists have come to suggest that the history of the Etruscans can be traced relatively accurately, based on the examination of burial sites, artifacts, and writing. The descendants of the Villanovan people in Etruria in central Italy, a separate Etruscan culture emerged in the beginning of the 7th century BC, evidenced by the inscriptions in a language similar to Euboean Greek. The burial tombs, some of which had been fabulously decorated, promotes the idea of an aristocratic city-state, with centralized power structures maintaining order and constructing public works, such as irrigation networks, roads, and town defenses.

There are problems with all theories which suggest that the truth is far more complicated as always.A likely solution is that the "Etruria" was autochthonous but were subjected to cultural influences and immigrants at various stages in their history. The nature of these cultural influences are nowadays understood much better. The result of this was a gradual development of an Etruscan civilization. The influx at some time of a group from Lydia is not inconsistent with this Neo Autochthonous theory which is gaining more and more acceptance.

There is no precise time when we can say that the Etruscan civilization began. According to the libri fatales as described by Censorinus, the date can be calculated at 968 BCE, but it was a gradual change that came over the land that was to become Etruria. Between the 10th and the 8th century BCE, several things began to happen: There was a drift from scattered village settlements into urbanised centres. The incidence of cremations decreased in favor of inhumation. Land was cleared and drained on a massive scale. Trade with the Aegean commenced, evident from the appearance of Greek artifacts.

The plentiful deposits of metals on Elba and the nearby coastline, and the bounty of Etruscan agriculture resulted in growing prosperity for the Etruscans. Bulk export trade typically used large shipping amphorae, and metal ingots have also been found in several sites.

By the end of the 7th Century BCE, Etruscan territory had expanded to include parts of Northern italy, with the Po Valley league, and the Etruscan city states held sway over large areas of Latium, including Rome, and Campania to the South.

With the increasing trade and the specialization of crafts, the application of new techniques, particularly in metal extraction and agriculture, the living standard improved. This corresponded to an exponential increase in demographic growth. The Etruscan aristocracy increased in power, authority and wealth. They were buried in rich tombs or necropolises next to cities such as Tarquinia, Caere, Vulci and Veii.

Greek immigrants started to arrive and began to exert a significant influence in the art and culture of Etruria.

It was also during this period that grapes were introduced to the Italian peninsula. Grape seeds found in early Etruscan grave sites in Chiusi, show that the predecessor of Chiante had arrived. Craters and other vessels of Greek design started to appear.

The Orientalizing Period is generally taken as the period between the end of the 8th Century until the late 7th Century BCE. It is so called because of the eastern influence in art and artifacts. Typical of this period was the Regolini Galassi tomb at Caere, in which were found objects with obvious Egyptian and Eastern influence such as Ostrich eggs, Sphinxes, scarabs and lions with an Assyrian like character.

During this period, the Etruscans began to take control of sea trade particularly in the Tyrrhenian sea, and the control of sea routes to Campania, where a strong Etruscan core settled around Capua and Salerno.

The orientalization period was not unique to the Etruscans, and a similar trend of eastern influence was evident in the Greek cities of the Archaic age.

With the increasing trade and the specialization of crafts, the application of new techniques, particularly in metal extraction and agriculture, the living standard improved. This corresponded to an exponential increase in demographic growth. The Etruscan aristocracy increased in power, authority and wealth. They were buried in rich tombs or necropolises next to cities such as Tarquinia, Caere, Vulci and Veii.

Greek immigrants started to arrive and began to exert a significant influence in the art and culture of Etruria.

It was also during this period that grapes were introduced to the Italian peninsula. Grape seeds found in early Etruscan grave sites in Chiusi, show that the predecessor of Chiante had arrived. Craters and other vessels of Greek design started to appear.

The Orientalizing Period is generally taken as the period between the end of the 8th Century until the late 7th Century BCE. It is so called because of the eastern influence in art and artifacts. Typical of this period was the Regolini Galassi tomb at Caere, in which were found objects with obvious Egyptian and Eastern influence such as Ostrich eggs, Sphinxes, scarabs and lions with an Assyrian like character.

During this period, the Etruscan began to take control of sea trade particularly in the Tyrrhenian sea, and the control of sea routes to Campania, where a strong Etruscan core settled around Capua and Salerno.

The orientalization period was not unique to the Etruscan, and a similar trend of eastern influence was evident in the Greek cities of the Archaic age.

Etruscan expansion was focused both to the north beyond the Apennines and into Campania. Some small towns in the 6th century BC have disappeared during this time, ostensibly consumed by greater, more powerful neighbors. However, there exists no doubt that the political structure of the Etruscan culture was similar, albeit more aristocratic, to Magna Graecia in the south.

The mining and commerce of metal, especially copper and iron, led to an enrichment of the Etruscans and to the expansion of their influence in the Italian peninsula and the western Mediterranean sea. Here their interests collided with those of the Greeks, especially in the sixth century BC, when Phoceans of Italy founded colonies along the coast of France, Catalonia and Corsica. This led the Etruscans to ally themselves with the Carthaginians, whose interests also collided with the Greeks.

Around 540 BC, the Battle of Alalia led to a new distribution of power in the western Mediterranean Sea. Though the battle had no clear winner, Carthage managed to expand its sphere of influence at the expense of both the Etruscans and the Greeks, and Etruria saw itself relegated to the northern Tyrrhenian Sea.

From the first half of the fifth century, the new international political situation meant the beginning of the Etruscan decline. In 480 BC, Etruria's ally Carthage was defeated by a coalition of Magna Graecia cities led by Syracuse. A few years later, in 474, Syracuse's tyrant Hiero defeated the Etruscans at the Battle of Cumae. Etruria's influence over the cities of Latium and Campania weakened, and it was taken over by Romans and Samnites.

In the fourth century, Etruria saw a Gallic invasion end its influence over the Po valley and the Adriatic coast. Meanwhile, Rome had started annexing Etruscan cities.

At the beginning of the 1st century BC, Rome annexed all the Etruscan territory.

The institution of kingship was general. Many names of individual Etruscan kings are recorded, most of them in a historical vacuum, but with enough chronological evidence to show that kingship persisted in Etruscan city-culture long after it had been overthrown by the Greeks and at Rome,[1] where Etruscan kings were long remembered with suspicion and scorn. When the last king was appointed, at Veii, the other Etruscan cities were alienated, permitting the Romans to destroy Veii.[2] It is presumed that Etruscan kings were leaders of religious cult and in warfare. The paraphernalia of Etruscan kingship is familiar because it was inherited at Rome and adopted as symbols of the republican authority wielded by the consuls: the purple robe, the staff or scepter topped with an eagle, the folding cross-framed seat, and most prominent of all, the fasces carried by a magistrate, which preceded the king in public appearances.[3]

The tradition by which the Etruscan cities could come together under a single leader was the annual council held at the sacred grove of the Fanum Voltumnae, the precise site of which has exercised scholars since the Renaissance. In times of no emergency, the position of praetor Etruriae, as Roman inscriptions express it, was no doubt largely ceremonial and concerned with cultus.

Mongols in the Holy Land

noreply@blogger.com (Arthur.R) — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 10:22:00 +0000

The death of the great Genghis Khan in 1223 marked Mongol expansion into Asia-minor. He was succeeded in the east by his grandson Kublai, who went to conquer China. In the west, Hulagu, another grandson, succeeded (a third was the founder of the Golden Horde in Russia). It was Hulagu who crossed the Oxus River in 1254 with a huge army, intending to conquer all the way to the Mediterranean and to destroy Islam. Hulagu was a pagan, but he and his court was very favorable to the Christians.

Hulagu first swept into Persia, then he turned on Baghdad. The Caliph Nasir had died in 1255 and was succeeded by Musta`sim, who lacked the drive needed to withstand the Mongols. Hulagu demanded the complete surrender of the city, which the Caliph could not do, though everyone understood the alternative was utter destruction.

A Muslim army tried to interpose itself between the horde and the city, but Hulagu's engineers trapped the army by cutting the dikes on the Tigris River. He then laid siege to the city. As the walls were falling, the Caliph and his entire family came in person to surrender, but it was too late. All the males were taken out and killed, including the Caliph himself, and the city was sacked so thoroughly that it did not recover until modern times. The sack of Baghdad went on for over a month. Perhaps a hundred thousand were killed.

This ended the Abbasid Caliphate. After Baghdad fell, other cities followed. Damascus yielded and was spared. Aleppo resisted and was sacked. Egypt was next on the list, but events intervened to distract the Great Khan.

Hulagu himself had to go north, for his brother in the Golden Horde was inclining toward Islam and was horrified by Hulagu's treatment of the faithful. The Khan kept most of his troops in the north, but sent his general Kitbogha to deal with the Egyptians.

Kitbogha commanded mainly Turks, drawn in fact from much the same sources as the Mameluks he was facing. The Egyptian Mameluks raised an army commanded by the Sultan Qutuz and his great general Baibars. At Ain Jalut (the Springs of Goliath) near Nazareth, the two armies met (September 1260). It was a ferocious battle, but Baibars distinguished himself. The Mongols were defeated and Kitbogha was killed, supposedly by Baibars himself.