Mr. Storyteller

The Decline Of A Nation: The Battle of Pease River

2011-08-25T00:15:00.064-05:00

Even though coming from the actual thoughts of American's today, the Battle of Pease River seemed to be a characterizing moment in our own history that's about to uncover achievement through the Natural Law of Cause and Effect.

It was late-December around 1860 when twenty-three-year-old Sul Ross lead a gaggle of Texas Rangers right up the steep canyon walls of the Pease River Valley alongside Mule Creek (near present-day Fort Worth) bent upon obliterating a Comanche Indian camp. Merely whatever they discovered wasn't one of several small nomadic groups that popped up around the Great Plains, nevertheless the primary artery of the Comanche Region. Charles Goodnight, a twenty-four-year-old "destined to turn into one of Texas wonderful livestock ranchers" , had started a full expedition from Fort Belknap to Pease River and recruited Ross as being the commander.

Who were the Comanches?

Certainly at its peak, the Comanche Nation numbered above ten thousand, and their terrain prolonged over the breadth of the Great Plains from Mexico towards the Northern border. They were often known as some of the most skilled horsemen who ever lived, employing the earliest mounted war parties, therefore overcoming fights with other Native american Nations and alien settlers. But, mostly they embodied a true free society (albeit not for the females).

"The Comanche man was gloriously, totally free. He was susceptible to no church...no priest class, no military societies, no state, no law enforcement officials, no public law, no domineering clans or powerful families, no demanding policies of personal behavior...free to come and go as he pleased. This was seen by many people...as an American kind of liberty."

On later on a December day in 1860, the Comanches never awaited the white man crossing a long way within their native lands. They were wrong, and their mistake came at the worst time. The town was preparing to advance to their winter camp with "sixty-nine pack-mule loads of buffalo meat-something greater than fifteen thousand lbs of it-and three hundred seventy horses" 3 all harnessed by Captain Ross's Rangers.

It was absolutely much more of a massacre than a battle; a couple of braves, but mostly females and little ones were slaughtered. Even though the Comanches regarded the battle to be a shame, nevertheless Chief Peta Nocana died a gallant death defending his tribe.

Particulars of squaws or braves slaughtered were never an element of the fiery tale that spread through the taverns of Texas; within the eyes of the Texans it absolutely was a turn in the war to decimate the Comanche Nation. They did not recognize how American expansion within the verdant grassland of the Great Plains obligated the buffalo to move south and away which caused malnourishment and deprival to thousands of Indian lives.

A nation's food source is lost

In reaction to the Rangers' hatred, Comanches looted and attacked the Texas homesteads along with a savage vengeance, raping the women and burning houses with fire. However, that hopeless December day, a tear ripped through the heart of their motherland that has not yet been given back: the Comanche's food supply was compromised that winter of 1860-not the whole nation, but many souls suffered hunger.

It's likely that the Dust Bowl years of 1930-40 within the Great Plains accounted for some retribution when severe drought generated an extreme loss-100,000,000 acres of farmland turned unproductive dirt. But, as unpleasant as that was, it may not be regarded as a completed circle.

The Natural Law of Cause and Effect even so turns in the palm of the Infinite's Hand. We are going to all endure the loss of our nation's food supply. But, with caring understanding, then to the the majority of extent, you will end up free of the outcomes of our nation's past actions.

Common Misconceptions In History: Vikings' Horned Helmets

2011-08-16T22:01:00.002-05:00

Bad news guys, do you remember all those movies about vikings? Remember how they acted so barbarous, sacked every village, raped the women, ate a whole bunch of food and wore those awesome horned helmets? Well, I'm gonna have to disappoint you by telling you that vikings never wore horned helmets (sorry Minnesota Vikings fans).

Such stereotype was propagated by a Swedish society of poets and authors that wanted to mix the Viking culture with the Nordic mythology and some of the aspects of the Nordic Bronze Age, even though they are 2,000 years apart. This was done in order to associate the vikings with the classical world which was long idealized by Europe. Some helmets were found in an excavation site in Denmark but they were used for rituals back in the 7th century, during the Germanic Iron Age, but it seems it was confused with the Viking Age. The purpose of the helmets was not proven on the time of their discovery so it became a popular belief that vikings wore these helmets due to their mean looks.

Their barbarity, savageness, their dirty and hairy looks, are other misconceptions. The responsible for this were the non-Scandinavian Christians (who were extremely clean) mostly due to misunderstanding regarding paganism. Viking tendencies were often misreported and they regarded vikings as savages and claimed they were unclean.

Common Misconceptions In History: Roman Vomit Rooms - Vomitorium

2011-08-14T23:45:00.002-05:00

It is a common misconception that people thought that the Romans had a room built specifically to vomit. It's been said that Romans were gluttons, therefore after eating a meal they'd vomit so they could come back and eat more, but there's never been a room built for that purpose. Not saying that they didn't throw up, in fact they did and it was part of the dinner experience in ancient Rome.

Where was this misconception used? An example is this publication by Col William Hunter, dated 1915:

The residents of Pompeii had fine plumbing, baths and luxuries. They had a place called a vomitorium. The old Roman sports were gluttons; they stuffed themselves, then went to the vomitorium and threw up so they could eat more.

So what is a vomitorium? Well, a vomitorium is merely a passage, in shape of an archway, wide and long enough that can fit many people in it so they can enter or evacuate a building quickly. It was commonly used in Roman amphitheaters. The root word of vomitorium comes from the latin vomere, which means "spew out" or "throw up" hence the similarity.

Seppuku

2011-06-27T15:28:00.001-05:00

I know what you're thinking and no, it's not any manga series or anything related. You've probably seen this ritual in movies such as The Last Samurai or the film "Seppuku" (1962). Throughout history, we've learned that the Japanese people are VERY strict when it comes to family honor and honor for himself. Japanese and this ritual consisted on dieing with honor, so the enemy wouldn't capture them. Or when one commits a shameful act, he would perform seppuku.

Seppuku means "stomach cutting" in japanese and it was first considered as a ritual reserved for samurais only, because it became a key part of the bushido code. The ritual has been carried away to the 20th century but performed only by a few. It consists of slashing your abdomen from left to right with a tantō, a 15-30 cms knife, disemboweling your organs and then he would stretch his neck and a second person would behead him.

This is a ritual that has been carried out for almost a thousand years and it requires preparation. The samurai would bath, wear a white robe and then eat his favorite meal, then he'd write a death poem as preparation to the next life and at last, perform seppuku.

While this form of voluntary seppuku is the most appropriated one, there's also obligatory seppuku, which was the most common and was performed by samurais that had committed a serious crime.

Another form of seppuku which is more painful is called jūmonji giri and in this one there's no second person to behead the samurai, he dies of his wounds and loss of blood. It consists of making an horizontal cut and a second and more painful vertical cut to the abdomen, making a cross-like wound.

Boxer Rebellion

2011-06-25T18:28:00.003-05:00

Not many schools teach about this subject, they might mention it in some kind of timeline but I had to make a presentation for college in order to get a good grade and I made it about the Boxer Rebellion. Teacher was pleased and I got an A+. It was a long yet interesting presentation but I'm gonna narrow it down. Enjoy!

Right after the Opium Wars, check out 5 Most Pointless Wars for more info about them, China had been humiliated by the Treaty of Tianjing and by the loss of the Second Opium War. Christianity and foreign powers had taken control of China so a new movement called "Righteous Harmony Society", or Boxers, rose against foreigners in order to take their land back and expel them. It was a nationalist movement in which every class participated, even the Chinese government, to eradicate foreigners.

In order to protect their interests, foreign powers called for help to their countries so foreigners formed an alliance called The Eight-Nation Alliance, consisting on countries such as Japan, Russia, U.S.A., U.K., France, Italy, Germany and Austria. The Boxers declared war on them and the Legation Quarter, where the foreigners were taking shelter, was under siege for 55 days by the Boxers and the Imperial Army. Then the Eight-Nation Alliance arrived at China and defeated the Imperial Army and the Boxers. The Boxer Protocol was signed in 1901, claiming indemnity for the damages over a course of 39 years, which consisted of 450 million taels of silver plus interests, they also had to let the foreign powers establish their armies in Beijing and give some territories to the Powers.

5 Most Pointless Wars

2011-06-11T11:39:00.003-05:00

Throughout history, civilizations have always sought more territories, military hegemony, power and economic superiority above the others. There are also internal wars, such as civil wars and revolutions (i.e. Spanish civil war, American civil war, French revolution) to throw off the country's ruler and establish a new type of government or elect a new ruler for the country's sake.

Although all wars are unnecessary and conflicts between countries could be resolved by diplomatic means, there are some wars that are simply POINTLESS because either the reason to start the war is the flimsiest excuse to invade a country or the pre-war and post-war results are the same or even worse.

This is my top 5 for the most pointless wars throughout history, but let me remind you, they're not arranged in any specific order and I picked them based on my own judgement, but everyone could have their own opinion about it and think otherwise.

Pastry War
April 1838 - March 1839

Most of you probably haven't heard of this event so I'm gonna narrow it down. The decades following Mexico's Independence were characterized by economical, social and political instability. At that point, Mexico was indebted to countries such as U.S., France and England. Remontel, a French pastry cook, owned a shop in Mexico City. Some say Mexican officers ate some cakes and didn't pay the bill, other say they just looted the shop. Anyway, Remontel sailed to France, appealed to King Louis-Philippe I and demanded $600,000 pesos in damages to his shop. It was a lot of money back then and Mexico already had an ongoing debt with France so the Mexican government refused to pay.

Remontel came back to Mexico but not to visit it's beautiful beaches, he arrived to Veracruz with a fleet of 10 ships and 20 more under the command of Charles Baudin. He ordered the blockade of the whole Gulf, confiscated all the boats, giving them an ultimatum, threatening to invade if Mexico refused to pay. Mexico's Navy was also seized and from 27 November to 5 December 1938 Admiral Charles Baudin engaged heavy fire on Fort San Juan de Ulua, seizing the port of Veracruz.

Santa Anna, a retired General and ex-president, came back from retirement to fight against the French. The result? He got shot in the leg and had it amputated. He used it as propaganda and everyone claimed him a national hero. Anyway, thanks to English diplomatic intervention, Santa Anna managed to sign a treaty with the French and promised to pay up.

Vietnam War
November 1955 - April 1975

Military conflict between communist North Vietnam, supported by Russia, China, North Korea and anti-communist South Vietnam supported primarily by the United States.
When Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam gained independence back in 1954, Vietnam was divided into Communist North and Anti-communist South. The U.S. were afraid of Vietnam becoming communist and creating a "domino effect" on the surrounding countries (Burma, Japan, India, Thailand, the Philippines, Laos and Cambodia) so they aided South Vietnam with money and later on 1963, they sent about 16,000 troops to fight communism.

By 1968, at the time of the Tet Offensive, the war escalated quickly and there were about 530,000 U.S. troops fighting a war that wasn't theirs, facing terrible fighting conditions, many became angry, suffered from low morale and some used drugs.In 1970, the U.S. bombed Cambodia to destroy North Vietnamese supplies, violating Cambodian neutrality. In 1971 Nixon faced pressure from the anti-war protests in the U.S. so he began withdrawing troops, giving South Vietnam a greater responsibility for fighting their own war.

By 1973, most of the troops were withdrawn and war's budget was cut significantly. Despite signing a peace treaty, the fighting between North and South Vietnam continued untill the Fall of Saigon in 1975. War casualties? Around 58,000 American lives, 350,000 casualties and more than 3 million civilians.
By the end of the war, North and South united as intended at the beginning but at a much, much higher cost.

First and Second Opium War
First Opium War 1839 - 1842; Second Opium War 1856 - 1860

Since maritime trade between Europe and China began, China was characterized by adopting a defensive posture, also called isolationism, against Westernization because they didn't want the Occidental's ideological and cultural influence over their people. By the 19th century China's population escalated to 450 million people, up from 200 million from the previous century and was ruled by the Qing Dynasty. In 1757, the Canton System was established, limiting the ports on which European traders could do business. It also restricted foreign traders from residing in China. During the 18th century, Western countries began importing opium into China, since China was largely populated and there was a high demand on silk, tea and porcelain (hence the word "fine china") from Europeans.

Opium was a common remedy for diarrhea, but other people began using it in different ways. British India and Turkey were the largest opium producers so Britain began exporting large quantities of opium into China by 1775. They were making huge profits from the growing number of Chinese addicts. The government in Peking noted that the foreigners seemed intent on dragging down the Chinese through the encouragement of opium addiction so Emperor Dao Guang demanded action.

In 1838, the court suppressed the legalization of opium, so authorities started arresting Chinese opium dealers and confiscating opium from foreign traders and burning it. In response, British troops were sent to Canton to enforce the terms of settlement. The Chinese were no match to British military technology so they were forced to sign the Treaty of Nanking, granting indemnity to Britain, opening 5 ports and the ceding Hong Kong. The "most favored nation" treatment came to be extended so far that China's right to rule was limited, starting a period called "the century of humiliation".

European imperialism proved to be disastrous for China.When the court refused to accept foreign ambassadors and obstructed the trade clauses of the treaties, disputes led to the Second Opium War and ended with another disastrous defeat for China and subsequently forcing the Chinese government to sign the humiliating Treaty of Tianjin, which implied that heavy indemnities had to be paid by China, and more territory and control were taken over by the foreigners. They also had to open 11 more ports and allow foreigners to travel around China, which back then, was banned. The result was the legalization of opium, total humiliation for a nation full of tradition and a rich culture, the loss of territory and westernization, which eventually led to the Boxer Rebellion.

Falklands War
April 1982 - June 1982

Located east of Argentina, the Falklands Islands have been long disputed between Argentina and the United Kingdom. Argentina had been under military dictatorship since 1976 and was in the middle of an economic crisis. In order to divert public attention away from the economic crisis and the regime's ongoing human rights violations, General Leopoldo Galtieri wanted to claim the islands, believing that the UK would never respond militarily.

On 2 April 1982, Argentine forces mounted an attack on the Falklands Islands, throwing off Governor Rex Hunt from the Government House. The UK responded with a naval task force, air strikes and aircraft fights. The conflict lasted 74 days and the result was the death of 257 British and 649 Argentine soldiers, sailors, and airmen, and the deaths of three civilian Falkland Islanders. Argentina's loss also sparked more protests against the military government, which hastened it's downfall. It's said to be the "cleanest" war on the matter of civilian deaths in the whole century.

Korean War
June 1950 - July 1953

Military conflict and proxy war between North Korea, supported by the USSR and People's Republic of China, and South Korea, supported by the U.S. and the United Nations. From 1910 until 1945, Korea was a Japanese-ruled country. It was considered an industrialized colony and provided Japan with many supplies, using Korea's food, livestock and metals for WW II. Towards the end of WW II, as planned on a US-USSR agreement, the USSR declared war on Japan and Soviet troops occupied the northern part of the peninsula and waiting for the U.S. troops arrival at the south part of the peninsula, dividing Korea in two with the 38th parallel as a boundary. It literally Then, by the end of WW II, both countries' troops remained there because both sought to control the peninsula.

The peninsula was unilaterally divided by the allies without consulting the Koreans. A U.S.-USSR joint commission decided that the country would become independent after a five-year trusteeship because both sides had different ideologies. The Koreans were mad at this because after 35 years of Japanese rule, they didn't want another foreign occupation. The U.S. created an anti-communist puppet government, led by Syngman Rhee, on South Korea while the USSR created a communist government, led by Kim Il-Sung, on North Korea. Soviet troops withdrew as agreed in 1948 and U.S. troops withdrew in 1949. By Sunday 25 June 1950, North Korean troops crossed the 38th parallel and invaded South Korea. The war escalated and the USSR sent weapons to North Korea, along with China joining forces with N.K.and the U.S. - U.N. intervention with South Korea. South Korea troops were poorly armed and inexperienced so they begged the U.S. and hence the U.N. for help.

Territorial gain often changed with North Korea almost controlling all of it but then they were repelled until the border stabilized and the border is still the 38th parallel. Around 2.5 million civilians were killed/wounded, 990,000 South Korean troops killed/wounded/missing, while North Korea suffered from 214,000 to 520,000 casualties.

Harvard History

2011-05-23T17:22:00.012-05:00

Statue of three lies

So I watched the "Social Network" movie for the 2nd time and I came across this scene where they're at this fraternity initiation ritual and they're standing next to Harvard's statue of three lies and it came across my mind that it'd be nice to write an article about this old and prestigious college.

New College

New College or Harvard, back in the day

Harvard was founded in 1636 by vote of the Great and General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, making it the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. Initially called "New College" or "the college at New Towne", the institution was renamed Harvard College on March 13, 1639. It was named after John Harvard, a young English clergyman from Southwark, London, an alumnus of the University of Cambridge, where he recieved his Bachelor of Arts degree, who bequeathed the College his library of four hundred books and £779 pounds sterling, which was half of his estate.
Harvard is one of the nine institutions chartered in the American Colonies called The Colonial Colleges. Seven of the nine colonial colleges are part of the Ivy League athletic conference: Harvard, Yale, Penn, Princeton, Columbia, Brown, and Dartmouth. The two colonial colleges not in the Ivy League are now both public universities—The College of William & Mary and Rutgers University, the state university of New Jersey. Harvard's history, influence, and wealth have made it one of the most prestigious universities in the world.

Presitge

Harvard Shield

Harvard University has 12 degree granting Schools in addition to the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study. The University has grown from nine students with a single master to an enrollment of more than 20,000 degree candidates including undergraduate, graduate, and professional students. There are more than 360,000 living alumni in the U.S. and over 190 other countries. Harvard has the largest financial endowment of any academic institution in the world, standing at $27.4 billion as of September 2010. Eight U.S. Presidents have graduated with a degree from Harvard and 75 Nobel Laureates have been affiliated with the university as students, faculty, or staff. Harvard is also the alma mater of sixty-two living billionaires, the most in the country. The Harvard University Library is the largest academic library in the United States, and the second largest library in the country, right after The Library of Congress.

U.S. Presidents and Honorary College Degrees

After George Washington kicked the British in 1776, Harvard confered an honorary degree upon the General. Since then, a few other men who were, or were to become U.S. presidents, have recieved honorary college degrees:

John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, John Quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson, Ulysses S. Grant, William Howard Taft, Woodrow Wilson, Herbert C. Hoover, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy.

Nowadays, you can get your degree online and its way cheaper but the live college experience is much better.
I wanna go to a prestigious college and get a Bachelor of History degree, so I'm gonna put a donate button on the side bar soon so you can colaborate on my quest to going to college (I wanna get a scholarship) and get my degree.

Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harvard_University

http://www.news.harvard.edu/guide/content/history-harvard-university/

Pigeon Photography

2011-05-20T10:42:00.004-05:00

Pigeon photography was an aerial photography technique invented in 1907 by the German apothecary Julius Neubronner, who also used pigeons to deliver medications. A homing pigeon was fitted with an aluminum breast harness to which a lightweight time-delayed miniature camera could be attached. Neubronner's German patent application was initially rejected, but was granted in December 1908 after he produced authenticated photographs taken by his pigeons.

He publicized the technique at the 1909 Dresden International Photographic Exhibition, and sold some images as postcards at the Frankfurt International Aviation Exhibition and at the 1910 and 1911 Paris Air Shows. The lack of military or commercial interest in the technology after the First World War led Neubronner to abandon his experiments, but his idea was briefly resurrected in the 1930s by a Swiss clockmaker, and reportedly also by the German and French militaries and the American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). They used pigeons to fly over hostile domains and take pictures. The reason why they didn’t want pigeon photography was because they were as unreliable as life insurance and as expensive as web hosting.

The construction of sufficiently small and light cameras with a timer mechanism, and the training and handling of the birds to carry the necessary loads, presented major challenges, as did the limited control over the pigeons' position, orientation and speed when the photographs were being taken. In 2004 the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) used miniature television cameras attached to falcons and goshawks to obtain live footage, and today some researchers, enthusiasts and artists similarly employ small digital photo or video cameras with various species of wild or domestic animals and make them fly over natural domains.

Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pigeons_in_aerial_photography

An Army That Beheads Itself To Intimidate Their Enemies.

2011-05-19T16:16:00.003-05:00

King Goujian of Yue (reigned 496 BCE - 465 BCE) was the king of the Kingdom of Yue Goujian was the son of Marquess Yunchang of Yue.


This is equarry dishonoraburr

King Goujian's reign coincided with arguably the last major conflict of the Spring and Autumn Period, the struggle between Wu and Yue, wherein he eventually led his state to victory, annexing the rival. As such King Goujian is sometimes considered the last of the Five Hegemons.

After ten years of economic and political reforms the last phase of the war began, by which time the State of Yue had come a long way from its previous defeat; as described in the Shiji, Ten years of reforms; the state is rich, the warriors well-rewarded. The soldiers charge in the face of arrows like thirsty men heading for drink... making use of Fuchai's expedition to struggle with Jin for hegemony Goujian led his army and successfully attacked the Wu capital, killing the crown prince. In the 24th year of his reign (473 BCE), Goujian led another expedition, laying siege to the capital for three years before it fell. When a surrender from Fuchai was refused, he committed suicide, and Wu was annexed by Yue. After his victory, Goujian ruthlessly killed Fuchai's scholars and his own scholars who helped him, not allowing himself to make the same mistake Fuchai had made by sparing the lives of his enemies.

King Goujian's army was known for scaring its enemies before battle by forcing its front line, composed of criminals sentenced to death, to commit suicide by decapitating themselves.

Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Goujian_of_Yue

10 Interesting Facts About U.S. Presidents.

2011-05-08T16:58:00.004-05:00

10 funny/interesting facts about U.S. presidents you probably haven't heard off.

1.- James Garfield didn’t die from the gunshot wounds from his assassin’s gun; he died of blood poisoning after doctors and experts (including Alexander Graham Bell) tried to remove the bullet from his back with their dirty fingers and instruments, causing him to linger in pain for 80 days before dying. His assassin, Charles Guiteau, later claimed that he didn’t kill the president, the doctors had.ⁱ

^2.-During his second run for presidency, Teddy Roosevelt was shot by a would-be assassin while giving a speech in Milwaukee. He continued to deliver his speech with the bullet in his chest.ⁱ

^3.-Several of his descendants and a few historians claim that John Hanson (1721-1783) is actually the forgotten first president of the United States because he was the first president under the Articles of Confederation.^j

^4.-George Washington’s original ancestral name was de Wessyngton, from a certain William de Hertburn, a twelfth-century noble knight of the manor and village of Wessyngton who later changed his name to de Wessyngton (which is the Norman spelling of Washington).ⁱ

^5.-After President Bush Sr. vomited on the Japanese Prime Minister, a new word entered the Japanese language. Bushusuru means “to do the Bush thing,” or to publicly vomit.^k

^6.-“Teddy Bears” were so named when Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt (1858-1919) refused to shoot a small bear cub one day. The incident was reported in the news, which inspired a toy manufacture to come out with the cute stuffed animals.^a

^7.-President Dwight David Eisenhower (1890-1969) was the only president to serve in both WWI and WWII.^h

^8.-President James Buchanan (1791-1868) quietly but consistently bought slaves in Washington, D.C., and then set them free in Pennsylvania.^g

^9.-Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant, 1822-1885) smoked at least 20 cigars a day and, after a brilliant war victory, a nation of well wishers sent him more than 10,000 cigars. He later died of throat cancer.ⁱ

^10.-John F. “Jack” Kennedy most likely had the most active extramarital sex life of any president. He allegedly slept with Marilyn Monroe, Jayne Mansfield, Audrey Hepburn, Angie Dickinson, stripper Blaze Starr, Marlene Dietrich, and many other women including White House staffers, secretaries, stewardess, campaign workers, strippers, and acquaintances of trusted male friends. The FBI taped sounds of him and Inga Arvad making love.^d

References

^a Boller, Paul F. Jr. 2007. Presidential Diversion: Presidents at Play from George Washington to George W. Bush. Orlando, FL: Harcourt Books.

^d Gregory, Leland H. 1999. Presidential Indiscretions. New York, NY: Dell Publishing.

^g McPhereson, James M., Ed. 2000. “To the Best of My Ability”: The American Presidents. New York, NY: Dorling Kindersley Publishing, Inc.

^h Nelson, Michael, Ed. 1998. The Presidency: A to Z. Washington D. C.: Congressional Quarterly, Inc.

ⁱ O’Brien, Cormac. 2004. Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents: What Your Teachers Never Told You about the Men of the White House. Philadelphia, PA: Quirk Books.

^j Smith, Carter. 2004. Presidents: Every Question Answered. Irvington, NY: Hylas Publishing.

^k Stebben, Gregg and Jim Morris. 1998. White House Confidential: The Little Book of Weird Presidential History. Nashville, TN: Cumberland House Publishing.

Today's Article: Winston Churchill

2011-04-18T21:37:00.005-05:00

Born at Blenheim Palace in 1874, Churchill was a descendant of the duke of Marlborough. He enrolled in the Royal Military College at Sandhurst. After service in Cuba and India he participated in the Battle of Omdurman in the Sudan and published an account of it. A journalist during the Boer war, he was captured by the Boers in 1899. His daring escape made him an instant celebrity. He entered Parliament in 1900 as a Conservative, changed to the Liberals in 1904, and defected again to the Conservatives in 1923.

As first Lord of the Admiralty Churchill organized British naval preparations for war in the Liberal cabinet of Herbert Asquith. When the First World War broke out he strongly argued for the launch of a naval and land attack on Turkey. The failed assault at Gallipolli (1915) led to his removal from the Admiralty. He also lost his seat in Parliament in 1922, but returned two years later and joined the Conservative government of Stanley Baldwin.

Between 1929 and 1939 Churchill did not hold office. He strongly disapproved of Baldwin's Indian policy, which moved towards eventual home rule for India. At the same time he warned against the emerging danger from Nazi Germany.

When the Second World War broke out in 1939, Churchill joined the cabinet of Neville Chamberlain, and he succeeded him as prime minister in May 10, 1940. As war leader Churchill made some of the most memorable speeches ever heard, and he rallied the British people in the face of looming disaster.

Early on he established close relations with President Roosevelt, who began to supply arms to Britain. Although a bitter enemy of the Sowjetunion, he decided to offer a war alliance and give help to the USSR when it was invaded by Germany in 1941. The entry of the United States into the war at the end of the same year gave the Allies the advantage in greater resources, but it also meant that Britain's influence diminished, and Churchill carried less weight at conferences and in the general formation of war strategy.

After the Allied victory in 1945, Churchill - in a surprise result - was voted out of office, however the subsequent election six years later re-installed him for a final term as prime minister.

A man of many talents he won the Nobel prize for literature in 1953. Churchill's witty style can be recognized from the following quote:

'History will be kind to me, because - I intend to write it !'

Today’s Article: Marquis de La Fayette

2011-04-05T23:56:00.003-05:00

So today I bring you guys a kind of extensive article but it’s worth reading it. I bet many of you don’t know but the French aid during the Revolutionary War was crucial at the decisive Battle in Yorktown. La Fayette, a military officer, abolitionist and precursor of the French Revolution, is one of the most important figures of the XVIII century. The revolutionary ideas that he brought from America were the key for the French Revolution. I know it’s too long, but he did so many things for both his people and the Americans that you'll now understand why they call him "Hero of the Two Worlds".

Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette was born in Chavaniac, France in September 1757. His father was Michel Louis Christophe Roch Gilbert Paulette du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette, a Coronel during the Seven Years War against the British, who died by a cannonball. He became a wealthy orphan when her mother died, leaving the inheritance to him.

He joined the army in 1771. France, in an attempt to defeat, or at least weaken, his long time enemy Britain, wanted to send French officers to fight alongside America and in 1777 he sailed to America, without the King’s permission, with his own boat and disguised as a woman, fearing arrest from the British government.

He landed on Georgetown, South Carolina. Continental Congress wouldn’t assign a unit to Lafayette and he almost returned home, until Benjamin Franklin recommended him to George Washington as his right hand, hoping this would ensure the ties between the colonies and France and influence them to aid them with troops.

During the battle of Brandywine, in September 1777, the British outflanked the Americans, forcing them to retreat. Lafayette managed to make a successful retreat but was shot in the leg. After several battles he returned to France in an attempt to obtain more supports from the French to the Americans. He secured 6,000 troops and 5 frigates.

Lafayette returned to America in 1780 in command of French forces that were sent to help. In 1781 he was given command of the defense of Virginia with the rank of major general. He drew English commander Charles Cornwallis into a trap at Yorktown, Virginia; Cornwallis was blockaded by the American forces and by French troops under Admiral de Grasse. Cornwallis's surrender was the high point of Lafayette's military career.

Lafayette returned to France in 1781 and was welcomed as a hero. He, along with Thomas Jefferson, established trade agreements that reduced United States debt with France. He was in a French abolitionist group.

However, the beginning of the Austro-Prussian War in 1782 returned Lafayette as commander of the army of the Ardennes. He was captured and held prisoner until 1797, when Napoleon Bonaparte obtained his release from jail but did not permit him to return to France. He returned to France in 1799 without permission.

When Lafayette returned to the French army in 1782, he was considered a hero. He became a leader in the movement against the French monarchy. In 1789 he took a seat in the Estates General, the French legislature. The adoption of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen (loosely based on the Declaration of Independence) was his idea, and he was given the command of the Parisian National Guard. His popularity declined when he commanded his troops to fire on a mob in 1791 led to his dismissal as command of the guard.

When Napoleon stepped down as emperor in 1814, Lafayette was elected to the Legislative Chamber during the Hundred Days and demanded that Napoleon be kept out permanently. The return of monarchy in 1815 gave Lafayette a position as a leader of the opposition to King Louis XVIII and Charles X. In 1824, Lafayette visited America on a tour that lasted fifteen months. He urged for black people’s emancipation. He also made peace negotiations with Native Americans. Congress rewarded him for his efforts during the Revolutionary War with money and land. When he returned to France in 1825, he was known as the “Hero of Two Worlds”.

Lafayette did not regain political prominence until revolution broke out again in 1830. Named to command the reestablished National Guard, he supported the naming of Louis Philippe as a constitutional monarch. Lafayette died in Paris on May 20, 1834. His biggest influence was as a living symbol—of friendship between France and America, and of the men who wanted a better world but could not accept terror and cruelty as the ways to bring it into being.

Hope you guys like my article, leave suggestions for other articles on the comment section and don't hesitate to ask questions.

Today's Article: Gunfight at the O.K. Corral

2011-03-31T22:27:00.006-06:00

Virgil Ear

Okay, I must admit must of my articles are about U.S. history or U.S. involved
fights, which pretty much makes me an American History lover. So today, by a reader request, I’m writing about the Earp brothers and the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. Just letting you all know that I’m open for requests, just leave me a comment with an interesting subject and I’ll write about it. If I don’t write your article, don’t worry, I’ll consider it for a later one.

Background

Tombstone, Arizona

The shooting happened in a town near the Mexican border called Tombstone, in Arizona. The Earp brothers, Virgil, Wyatt and Morgan were all lawmen. They moved to Tombstone and Virgil became U.S. Deputy Marshal and Tombstone’s town marshal. Morgan and James assisted him. Doc Holliday was a very close friend to the Earps, since he saved Wyatt’s life once. The McLaury’s (Frank and Tom) and the Clanton’s (Ike and Billy), along with Billy Claiborne were outlaws and back then known as Cowboys, not to be confused with ranchers or herders.
Cowboys, as you all know, are organized band of friends who teamed up to commit crimes. The Cowboys were implicated by many crimes and tensions between the Earp family and both of Clanton and McLaury clans increased through 1881, especially between Ike Clanton and Doc Holliday.

The Gunfight

Tensions between both groups increased as the Earps buffaloed (pistol-whipped) both Ike Clanton and Tom McLaury. Frank Clanton arrived to Tombstone to aid his brother after he heard about the tensions between the Cowboys and the Earp family, including a possible gunfight. When he arrived to town, he went to a gun shop, still carrying his weapons, to buy more cartridges.
The sheriff attempted to disarm him but he refused. Behan was in favor of the Cowboys, during the trials though.


Good guys above, bad guys below.

Witness reports indicate that the Cowboys were plotting to kill Doc Holliday and the Earps. Holliday lived near the O.K. Corral so when a peasant walked by and eavesdropped their conversation, he heard them talk about killing Wyatt, so he immediately ran to Wyatt to report what he heard.
The Earps and Doc armed themselves, Doc carrying a double-barreled shotgun and everyone else with a revolver. They walked all the way across the street and into the O.K. Corrall, where the McLaury’s, the Clantons and Billy Claiborne were. They were all armed except for Ike.
The shooting started when Virgil commanded them to throw up their hands, to see their guns. Frank Clanton and Billy McLaury immediately drew their revolvers and cocked them. The 30-sec shooting began, leaving Frank and Tom McLaury and Billy Clanton killed. The next video I’m going to show you is a pretty accurate version of the events, except for the unlimited ammo in Doc’s weapons and Ike shooting from the store next door.

The following year, Morgan was murdered playing billiards. Wyatt, James and a group of friends went after the murders. This ride for vengeance came to be called the Earp vendetta ride.

Enjoy the video, and I hope you liked the article. Leave some suggestions and don’t hesitate to ask questions.