World History Blog

The Soldier in Later Medieval England

2009-07-26T01:32:00.000-07:00

The Soldier in Later Medieval England is a searchable database of medieval soldiers, including muster rolls and treaty rolls for the years 1369 to 1453 and garrison records from the occupation of Normandy from 1415 to 1453. This is a well done project.

From the site:

The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) has awarded a Research Grant worth just under £500,000 to Dr Adrian Bell of the ICMA Centre and Professor Anne Curry of the University of Southampton to challenge assumptions about the emergence of professional soldiery between 1369 and 1453.

The project has an innovative methodological approach and will be producing an on-line searchable resource for public use of immense value and interest to genealogists as well as social, political and military historians. The project employs two Research Assistants over three years and also includes one Doctoral Research Studentship - all of whom began work on 1st October 2006. The whole team is working on a jointly authored book, conference papers, and articles.

A pilot project database is now available for searching.

Aurora Trust and the Aurora Institute of Maritime Studies

2009-07-25T20:32:00.000-07:00

Find out about the discoveries made by Aurora's marine archeologists and ocean scientists at Aurora Trust and the Aurora Institute of Maritime Studies. See images and maps revealing ancient shipwrecks on the Mediterranean's sea floor.

From the site:

The Aurora Trust was formed by Craig Mullen and Ian Koblick to advance the world’s understanding of the ocean environment, most particularly its marine cultural heritage hidden for thousands of years on the seafloor and to educate the public concerning the historic role the oceans have played in connecting different cultures; its commerce and conflicts.

Aurora has assembled a world class team of marine archeologists and ocean scientists to undertake exploration of the seafloor in search of the lost remains of our maritime past. The Aurora team, utilizing state of the art tools to explore the ocean depths has made numerous magnificent discoveries in the marginal waters of countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea.

To help disseminate its discoveries and publicize those of other similar groups exploring the words oceans, Aurora has established the Aurora Institute for Marine Studies (AIMS) to serve its educational objectives. AIMS provides educational forums; sponsors academic research and related publications to broaden the spread of knowledge.

Book Review: The Oxford Illustrated History of Britain

2009-07-24T09:30:00.000-07:00

The Oxford Illustrated History of Britain

Review by Joyce Salisbury, Central Michigan University

Morgan, Kenneth O., Editor. The Oxford Illustrated History of Britain. Oxford University Press, 2009. 670 pp, $23.07 in paperback.

The Oxford Illustrated History of Britain, edited by Kenneth O. Morgan, is an updating of the book first published in 1984. Morgan is a respected historian and life peer of the British Academy. The book is comprised of ten chapters, each written by a different historian. The final chapter, covering most of the 20th century, and the epilogue, covering 2000 to 2008, are both written by Morgan, who has written numerous works on 20th century British history, including such works as Britain since 1945: The People’s Peace, Age of Lloyd George: The Liberal Party and British Policies, and Twentieth-Century Britain: A Very Short Introduction. The book, as its name implies, is indeed copiously illustrated with color plates, maps, and black and white photos. The illustrations are not meant as mere “physical embellishments,” but as “vital explanatory tools in demonstrating the key points in the narrative.” The photos and illustrations are crisp and clear and since the book is printed on acid-free paper, they should stay that way for many years to come.

The publisher’s description of the book reads:

When readers open The Oxford Illustrated History of Britain, they will find themselves immersed in an experience that can’t be found anywhere else. As ten leading historians take turns narrating the dramatic history of Britain over the past 2,000 years, carefully chosen pictures and maps illuminate their words, making this story all the more vivid and difficult to forget.

Notably, this new edition – the first in 20 years – brings this history into the twenty-first century, covering the changes to British society and culture during the Blair years and examining the invasion of Iraq and its aftermath. As readers move from Roman Times to the present day, a vivid, sometimes surprising picture emerges of a country that constantly dealt with the turmoil of change. Despite many political and economic tensions, the authors show that consensus is just as important to this country’s narrative, and in turn bring out that special awareness of identity which has been such a distinctive feature of British society.

The editor’s purpose is to “disentangle the main political, social, economic, religious, intellectual, and cultural features of these islands.” By concentrating on the “main” points of British history, Morgan is able to cover more than 2,000 years of British history in one very readable volume. Although each chapter is written by a different historian, the result reads like one cohesive narrative. It is a book that can be read through like any other book or the reader can select the chapters of particular interest and then move on to the books suggested in the “Further Reading” section. The book contains no footnotes which makes for smooth reading. Direct quotes are generally prefaced with the title of the work from which they are taken, but no page numbers, etc., are provided.

Comparing the book to the 1984 edition, most of the chapters remain the same. Only the chapters on The Tudor Age and the Twentieth Century have more than minor editorial changes. And, of course, the Epilogue, which brings the history of Britain up to the year 2008, is completely new. The Tudor Age chapter was extensively rewritten, but the substance of the chapter remains the same. The writing is now easier to read and most of the Latin phrases are now rendered in English.

Back material includes: Further reading suggestions for each chapter, broken down by subjects such as politics and government; religion, ideas and culture; society and economy; imperialism; biographies; among others; a chronology of British history from 55 BC to 2008; genealogies of the various ruling families, beginning with the House of Wessex in 802; a list of prime ministers from 1721 to present and a detailed index.

Twitter: British Monarchy

2009-07-17T03:51:00.000-07:00

This has got to be historic. Twitter: British Monarchy has the official Twitter stream for the British Monarchy, featuring news and updates about Royal events.

If only King John had had Twitter. Maybe good PR would have prevented the Magna Carta...

Apollo 11: Why the Moon Still Matters

2009-07-13T03:36:00.000-07:00

3 Yes, this is my second post in a row about the Apollo Moon Landings. However, it is the fortieth anniverary of the first of them. And, is this not the most historic event in human history? We actually went to the Moon! When are we going to go back?

Apollo 11: Why the Moon Still Matters - In 1969, Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon. Forty years later, New Scientist writers look at the impact the Apollo landings had, and the future of lunar exploration.

From the site:

On 20 July 1969, the Apollo 11 mission landed two men on the moon. Just three years and five more crewed missions later, our visits came to an end. Yet the scientific legacy of the Apollo programme has been profound. Here we report on how it gave us a new understanding of the universe and how Neil Armstrong's "small step" opened a new chapter in history that continues to unfold today.

We Choose the Moon

2009-07-12T03:25:00.000-07:00

We Choose the Moon - This is an Interactive web site recreating the historic Apollo 11 mission in real time. Listen to the live transmissions between the astronauts and Mission Control, follow the mission on Twitter, and view archived Apollo 11 photos and video.

Free European History Courses

2009-07-08T06:07:00.000-07:00

Several universities are putting complete courses online for free now. Visitors can peruse course materials and watch lectures even if they do not get any academic credit for it. MIT is probably the best known for this but some other schools are as well including Notre Dame and the University of Washington.

Here are three example courses dealing with European history:

The Ancient World: Rome - This MIT course is from 2005. This course elaborates the history of Rome from its humble beginnings to the fifth century A.D. The first half of the course covers Kingship to Republican form; the conquest of Italy; Roman expansion: Pyrrhus, Punic Wars and provinces; classes, courts, and the Roman revolution; Augustus and the formation of empire. The second half of the course covers Virgil to the Vandals; major social, economic, political and religious trends at Rome and in the provinces. Emphasis is placed on the use of primary sources in translation.

The Making of Modern Europe - This is a UC Berkley course from 2008. This introductory course provides essential background to an understanding of Europe today by surveying the elements of its past that went into its making. It begins, roughly, with the "Closing" of Europe to the Islamic world after the conquest of Constantinople by the Ottoman Turks in 1453. It ends with Europe's Re-opening, in the late 20th and early 21st century, symbolized, in part, by the Balkan conflict in the 1990s. As it covers these five and a half centuries, it will look at major landmarks in Europe's social, political, and intellectual development: the Renaissance, the expansion of Europe into the Americas, the breakup of a single Western Christendom into competing religious communities, the construction of the modern state, the Enlightenment, the European revolutions, industrialization, socialism, nationalism, imperialism, Communism and Nazism, the two World Wars, decolonialization, the Cold War, cultural changes in the post-war period, and the breakup of Communism in Eastern Europe. It will close with the continent's current reconfiguration, as former patterns of migration have moved into reverse and the non-European world expands into Europe.

Nineteenth Century Europe - This is a University of Massachusetts from 2008. The course is a political, social and cultural history of Europe from 1815 to 1900, including the history of each major European nation.

Historical Thinking Matters

2009-07-07T05:23:00.000-07:00

Historical Thinking Matters - This site focuses on key topics in U.S. history in order to teach students how to read primary sources critically. It also stresses to students how to critique and construct historical narratives.

It is a project of the Center for History and New Media, George Mason University, and School of Education, Stanford University with support from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and additional support from the Carnegie Corporation of New York. It was also the winner of the American Historical Association's 2008 James Harvey Robinson Prize for an Outstanding Teaching Aid.

From the site:

Historical Thinking Matters is divided into three key sections that can be accessed from the homepage.

Why Historical Thinking Matters:

This Flash movie presents the pedagogical perspective of the site and introduces the concepts and strategies that students will use as they complete the four modules. This section requires a Macromedia Flash Player plug-in (Download) After clicking on “View Why Historical Thinking Matters,” the movie will launch. Follow the prompts on the screen to view the sections of the movie and to complete the interactive elements of the presentation.

Student Investigations:

HTM includes four student investigations that focus on key topics in the standard post-Civil War U.S. History curriculum, which can be accessed by clicking on the images in the center of the homepage, or through the Student Investigations page. Each investigation is composed of the same five elements.

History Carnival 78

2009-07-02T12:53:00.000-07:00

The latest incarnation of the History Carnival is up at http://www.brettschulte.net/CWBlog/2009/07/01/history-carnival-78. The host is Brett Schulte at TOCWOC – A Civil War Blog. The next edition of the History Carnival should appear August 1 at History Today News. Please submit good posts you find this month to the next edition of the History Carnival.

I am Spartacus!

2009-07-01T08:54:00.000-07:00

No, I am Spartacus! I love this Pepsi ad using the classic movie based on Roman history and the famous slave revolt lead by Spartacus. I wish more ads made good use of both popular culture and history. Of course, Spartacus died in battle and was never captured by the Romans but...Hat tip to Weird Universe.

The Alfred Russel Wallace Website

2009-06-29T05:43:00.000-07:00

Alfred Russell Wallace was an important evolutionary theorist in the 19th century. I found a good site dedicated to him at The Alfred Russel Wallace Website. It has details about Alfred Russel Wallace's life and work. It also includes a unique archive of images, FAQ's debunking some of the many myths surrounding Wallace and Darwin, plus information about the A. R. Wallace Memorial Fund and its projects. This is a nice history of science site worth checking out.

From the site:

Alfred Russel Wallace (1823 - 1913) was one of the 19th century's most remarkable intellectuals. His link to Charles Darwin as the co-discoverer in 1858 of evolution by natural selection would alone have secured his place in history, but he went on to make very many other significant contributions, not just to biology, but to subjects as far-ranging as glaciology, land reform, anthropology, ethnography, epidemiology, and even astrobiology. His pioneering work on evolutionary biogeography led to him becoming recognised as that subject’s ‘father’. Beyond this, Wallace is regarded as the pre-eminent collector and field biologist of tropical regions of the 19th century, and his book The Malay Archipelago (which was Joseph Conrad’s favourite bedside reading) is one of the most celebrated travel writings of that century and has never been out of print. Add to the above that Wallace was deeply committed to and a vocal supporter of spiritualism, socialism, and the rights of the ordinary person, and it quickly becomes apparent that he was a man with an extraordinary breadth of interests who was actively engaged with many of the big questions and important issues of his day.

By the time of his death Wallace was probably the world’s most famous scientist, but since then his intellectual legacy has been almost completely overshadowed by Darwin’s, largely thanks to the “Darwin Industry” of recent decades. This ‘industry’ has led to a highly “Darwinocentric” view of the history of modern biology, and as a result many of the important contributions made by Darwin’s contemporaries, like Wallace, are currently underestimated and undervalued.

Biography of José de San Martín

2009-06-12T01:00:00.000-07:00

A well done history site is Biography of José de San Martín. It is by Pablo A Chami and it is on his personal site. That might mean this site vanishes shortly after I link to it here but as it has been around a few years I trust it may remain in place for some time.

The site has a brief summary of San Martin's life with a time line. It also is liberally illustrated with paintings of San Martin. Chami subititles the page, "Short history of the liberator of Argentina, Chile, and Peru."

From the site:

In January of 1814, San Martin takes control of the North Army, from the hands of its former general, Belgrano, that had returned defeated from the Alto Peru -today the republic of Bolivia-, and since then, they establish a long friendship.

Soon after being San Martin in Tucuman, he realized that it was impossible to conquer Lima city, the capital of Peru, that was the center of the Spanish power, by the terrestrial way of the highs of the Andes. He conceived the idea of crossing the mountain range to Chile and to attack the city of Lima by sea way.

A disease forces him to request license and obtains from the government the nomination of Governor of the Cuyo province. He leaves Tucuman for Mendoza, capital of Cuyo, a city that stands at the foot of the mountain range of the Andes. There he recovers and begins to prepare an army to cross the Andes.

In the year 1816 he sends, representing the province of Cuyo, a delegation to the congress that met in Tucuman, with express orders to insist on the declaration of independence. Because of his insistence, the declaration of the independence from the rule of Spain of the Provincias Unidas del Rio de la Plata -that was the primitive name of what now is the Argentine Republic- was acclaimed in that congress the 9 of July of that year.

The Founding of St. Augustine, 1565

2009-06-11T05:51:00.000-07:00

While browsing the Modern History Sourcebook, I found an interesting account titled The Founding of St. Augustine, 1565. It was written by Francisco Lopez de Mendoza Grajales.

Here is the beginning of the text:

I. THE LORD having granted us favorable weather from the first, five days' sailing brought us in sight of the Lanzarote Islands and Fuerte Ventura. The following Wednesday, July 5, 1565, we reached the Canary Islands, which are two hundred and fifty leagues from Cadiz, where we stopped three days to lay in a supply of wood and water.

The following Sunday, July 8, our fleet, composed of eight ships, under the direction of our general, left the Canary Islands, and proceeded to the Island of Dominica, which was to be conquered from the Caribbee Indians. Unfortunately, the very evening we set sail, our first galley and a patache became separated from us. For two days we coasted up and down, hoping to rejoin them, but without any success; and our admiral, seeing that we should not be able to accomplish it, gave the order for us to sail directly to Dominica, where we were to await them in case they had not arrived before us. During this voyage a shallop, or boat, commanded by Capt. Francesco Sanchez sprung a leak, and, as it got beyond the control of the crew, he asked assistance from us, but it was impossible to give him any. The pilot wishing to continue to sail with the other vessels until they should arrive at their destination, and have the leak repaired there, the captain and a soldier had recourse to their swords to oblige the pilot to return to port, being fearful lest they should be all drowned. The pilot declared himself unable to do this on account of the rough weather, so they decided to make for the cape on the south-west in order to reach the land as soon as possible.

Thus it happened that we were obliged to leave them, which we did with deep regret and great anxiety as to what would become of them. The five vessels which remained of our fleet had a prosperous voyage the rest of the way, thanks to our Lord and His Blessed Mother. Up to Friday, the 20th, we had very fine weather, but at ten o'clock that day a violent wind arose, which by two in the afternoon had become the most frightful hurricane one could imagine. The sea, which rose to the very clouds, seemed about to swallow us up alive, and such was the fear and apprehension of the pilot and other sailors that I exerted myself to exhort my brethren and companions to repentance. I represented to them the passion of our Lord Jesus Christ, His justice and His mercy, and with so much success that I passed the night in confessing them.

You can read the entire account at the link above if this is of interest to you.

Free African History Courses

2009-06-10T06:00:00.001-07:00

Several universities are putting complete courses online for free now. Visitors can peruse course materials and watch lectures even if they do not get any academic credit for it. MIT is probably the best known for this but some other schools are as well including Notre Dame and the University of Washington.

Here are three example courses dealing with African history:

AIDS and Poverty in Africa - This MIT course was loaded in the Spring of 2005. The course description reads, "This is a discussion-based interactive seminar on the two major issues that affect Sub-Saharan Africa: HIV/AIDS and Poverty. AIDS and Poverty, seemingly different concepts, are more inter-related to each other in Africa than in any other continent. As MIT students, we feel it is important to engage ourselves in a dynamic discussion on the relation between the two - how to fight one and how to solve the other."

Exploring a Romano-African City: Thugga - This is a course from the Open University in the UK. The course introduction notes, "This unit focuses on a detailed investigation into the archaelogy and history of a Roman North African city. You will watch the video sequence ‘Exploring Thugga’ and undertake activities identifying Roman and indigenous elements in the city. You then investigate Roman and indigenous cultural elements in the archaeology of Africa; here you will watch two brief video sequences on mosaics, continue your study of the ‘Exploring Thugga’ video, and view ‘Culture and identity in the houses of the Roman élite’."

Medicine, Religion and Politics in Africa and the African Diaspora - This course is also from MIT and is from 1995. The course description reads, "This course provides an exploration of colonial and postcolonial clashes between theories of healing and embodiment in the African world and those of western bio-medicine. It examines how Afro-Atlantic religious traditions have challenged western conceptions of illness, healing, and the body and have also offered alternative notions of morality, rationality, kinship, gender, and sexuality. It also analyzes whether contemporary western bio-medical interventions reinforce colonial or imperial power in the effort to promote global health in Africa and the African diaspora."

Soldiers of Gloucestershire Museum

2009-06-09T12:37:00.000-07:00

Soldiers of Gloucestershire Museum - Gloucester's museum portraying the history of regiments, the Glorious Glosters Regiment and theirs antecedents. Also features an online shop selling military books, and regimental souvenirs as well as genealogy search to find military ancestors.

From the site:

We portray the history of our famous regiments, The Gloucestershire Regiment (The Glorious Glosters), their antecedents The 28th & 61st Regiments of Foot & The Royal Gloucestershire Hussars.

Traditionally both have recruited from the County and the surrounding areas including Cheltenham, Cirencester, Stroud, Tewkesbury, The Forest of Dean and from Bristol. Indeed, there are few local families who over the generations have not been associated with either of these regiments.

The Museum does not seek to glorify war. It does, however, show how both regiments have faced up to the challenges and strains that soldiering around the world, both in peace and war can bring. It is a tribute not only to their traditions and achievements but also to their centuries long links with the County.

Complete Primate Skeleton From the Middle Eocene of Messel in Germany: Morphology and Paleobiology

2009-05-22T04:32:00.000-07:00

There is PLoS ONE report, with photos, for the Darwinius masillae fossil, known as the Ida fossil or "missing link". It is titled Complete Primate Skeleton From the Middle Eocene of Messel in Germany: Morphology and Paleobiology. Darwinius masillae represents the most complete fossil primate ever found, including both skeleton, soft body outline and contents of the digestive tract.

Time has a more readable account of this find at Ida: Humankind's Earliest Ancestor! (Not Really).

From the article:

The best European locality for complete Eocene mammal skeletons is Grube Messel, near Darmstadt, Germany. Although the site was surrounded by a para-tropical rain forest in the Eocene, primates are remarkably rare there, and only eight fragmentary specimens were known until now. Messel has now yielded a full primate skeleton. The specimen has an unusual history: it was privately collected and sold in two parts, with only the lesser part previously known. The second part, which has just come to light, shows the skeleton to be the most complete primate known in the fossil record.

Apollo 40th Anniversary

2009-05-21T05:48:00.000-07:00

NASA is celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Apollo Program with an Apollo 40th Anniversary site. It allows online visitors to relive each mission with video, photos, and a unique animated comic. It also has information about Moon Trees and NASA's future Moon exploration plans.

From the site:

It all started on May 25, 1961, when President John F. Kennedy announced the goal of sending astronauts to the moon before the end of the decade. Coming just three weeks after Mercury astronaut Alan Shepard became the first American in space, Kennedy's bold challenge set the nation on a journey unlike any before in human history.

Eight years of hard work by thousands of Americans came to fruition on July 20, 1969, when Apollo 11 commander Neil Armstrong stepped out of the lunar module and took "one small step" in the Sea of Tranquility, calling it "a giant leap for mankind."

Six of the missions -- Apollos 11, 12, 14, 15, 16 and 17 -- went on to land on the moon, studying soil mechanics, meteoroids, seismic, heat flow, lunar ranging, magnetic fields and solar wind. Apollos 7 and 9 tested spacecraft in Earth orbit; Apollo 10 orbited the moon as the dress rehearsal for the first landing. An oxygen tank explosion forced Apollo 13 to scrub its landing, but the "can-do" problem solving of the crew and mission control turned the mission into a "successful failure."

The Kansas Collection

2009-05-20T05:12:00.000-07:00

If you are interested in Kansas history, check out the The Kansas Collection. It presents works on Kansas including Cutler's History of the State of Kansas and the Kansas Historical Quarterly. It also has first-person accounts and reminiscences. of local history.

From the site:

KanColl is searchable! Now you can search only KanColl, or just a category, such as Cutler's History of the State of Kansas or the Kansas Historical Quarterlies. Use double quotemarks, wildcards, or ask the engine to match all words. Or just type in what you're looking for and go! The Kansas Collection website is managed by Susan Stafford and Dick Taylor and was created by Lynn H. Nelson, retired Professor of History at the University of Kansas.

A Failure to Modernize: The Origins of 20th Century Islamic Fundamentalism

2009-05-19T06:02:00.000-07:00

Why has Islamic culture fallen behind the rest of the Western world? Why has it not modernized? The Concord Review has an essay dealing with this titled A Failure to Modernize: The Origins of 20th Century Islamic Fundamentalism. It was written by Tyler Waywell.

From the article:

At the height of the Islamic Empire, the Muslim community was a world leader in both economic status and militarys trength. However, the Islamic world’s failure to modernize its cultural, political, and economic systems has resulted in widespread financial ruin. The inability of the Muslim world to compete in the globalized economy has resulted in chronic povertyand illiteracy, creating conditions in which frustrated youth are willing to embrace new and radical ideologies with the goal of instituting significant change in their societies. Augmented by a history of Western imperialism and aggression upon Muslim lands, modern fundamentalism has grown out of a belief that in order to correct the economic failures that plague the Islamic world, Muslims must disregard all Western influences and return both culturally and spiritually to a time when Islamic society was most dominant.

Epic and Rhetoric: Speech-making and Persuasion in Homer and Apollonius

2009-05-16T05:55:00.000-07:00

This article is a bit tough to read but I found it worthwhile. It is Epic and Rhetoric:Speech-making and Persuasion in Homer and Apollonius and was written by Peter Toohey. It was published in ARACHNION. A Journal of Ancient Literature and History on the Web back in 1995. The journal appears to have died.

From the article:

The topic, in a sense, is a bogus one — speech-making and persuasion in Homer and Apollonius. There are speakers and speeches enough in Greek epic, but, at least in Homer and Apollonius, there is little recognizable rhetorical elaboration of the classical kind. This, of course, is understandable in the case of Homer: he was writing before rhetoric was invented. Yet, in the case of the Alexandrian writer of epic, Apollonius of Rhodes (composing after Aristotle and the major orators), the absence of speech-making, thus the absence of "primary" rhetoric is striking. In this paper I intend to look, selectively, at several of the speeches in Homer and in Apollonius. My concern, above all, will be to isolate some of the major contrasts between the speech-making habits of Homer and of Apollonius. We will see, I hope, how "rhetorical" Homer can be. We will also see — and this is perhaps the crux of my paper — why Apollonius may have shown so little taste for primary rhetoric.

For the sake of clarity I ought to anticipate here some of my larger conclusions. I will argue above all that Homer's speeches are exteriorized, that they are positive, outwardly directed, and expectantly ameliorative. Apollonius' prominent speeches, on the other hand, reflect an interiorization typified by hesitancy, inwardly turned anger, guile, and passivity. I believe that this difference (registering shared human attitudes, separated in time, which value the "outer", in Homer's case, or the "inner", in Apollonius' case) exemplifies a basic distinction between the two authors. This is a distinction which can also be detected in other fundamental aspects of their compositions: in their attitudes to heroism and the heroic, to women, to eros, and so forth. I believe that Apollonius' text, as we will see it in its speech-making and persuasion, embodies a change in the "discourse" of epic. It may also embody a change which has overtaken the shared Hellenistic mentalite.

The Great Pandemic 1918-1919

2009-04-29T05:44:00.000-07:00

The Great Pandemic 1918-1919 - This site has information on the flu pandemic of 1918. It includes details about life in 1918, a history of the pandemic, and biographies. It was created by the United States Department of Health and Human Services. This is a nicely done and informative site.

I am betting the current pandemic rumors will prove to be true to the levels of 1918. Or of that in Stephen King's The Stand. Unfortunately, the flu is deadly, it mutates, and flu pandemics are a regular part of human history.

Dutch East Indies

2009-03-15T01:33:00.000-07:00

I was fortunate enough to find a good oral history site on the Web the other day. It is the Dutch East Indies. It is the account of Elizabeth van Kampen. She is the daughter of a Dutch plantation manager in Sumatra in the former Dutch East Indies (Indonesia). She describes her childhood and experiences during World War Two.

I hope Elizabeth van Kampen publishes her story in a book. The Web is a good way to share her account with the world. However, I fear it may not be a good long-term storage mechanism. I would hate to see her tale lost after she dies and then something goes bad with her site.

From the site:

After a wonderful youth in the Dutch East Indies, today Indonesia, my family and I went through three and a half years Japanese occupation. I lost my father, I lost the country I loved, I lost everything, but I kept my memories.

My son advised me to start a website and write all those memories down. So here I am, 79 years old, sitting behind my computer, going back to the Dutch East Indies.

Proof of ancient Malaysian civilization found

2009-03-12T06:07:00.000-07:00

There is an exciting bit of history news this morning out of Asia. The following is from a CNN article.

It notes:

Researchers with a Malaysian university said they have uncovered evidence of an iron industry that dates to the 3rd Century, A.D., and proves that ancient civilizations in Southeast Asia were more advanced than once thought.

The archaeologists from the Universiti Sains Malaysia found the remains of an iron smelting site, tools to pump oxygen into the iron smelting process, rooftops of buildings, beads and pots, said Mokhtar Saidan, a professor and leader of the team.

The professor said the discovery confirms that human civilization in the area was more advanced than thought and the site probably was a place for exporting iron in the 3rd Century.

I would like more details about this civilization. Obviously, more work will need to be done. However, this is a good start and hopefully the site being excavated will prove to produce a lot more archaeological treasure.

Book Review: The Mental Floss History of the World: An Irreverent Romp through Civilization's Best Bits

2009-03-11T00:01:00.000-07:00

Over the Christmas break, I had the good fortune to read The Mental Floss History of the World: An Irreverent Romp through Civilization's Best Bits. The book is by Erik Sass, Steve Wiegand, Will Pearson, and Mangesh Hattikudor. Although it has taken me several months to get into a reviewing mood, I really liked this book.

I guess this should not be a surprise to me. Two of my favorites sites on the Web (Weird Universe and News of the Weird) play on how strange and silly people often are. History is like that too. A book taking a light-hearted approach like that is bound to appeal to Dr. Miland Brown.

Here is the publisher's description of the book:

History is . . . (a) more or less bunk. (b) a nightmare from which I am trying to awaken. (c) as thoroughly infected with lies as a street whore with syphilis.

Match your answers:(1) Stephen Daedalus of James Joyce's Ulysses (2) Henry Ford (3) Arthur Schopenhauer

It turns out that answer need not be bunk, nightmarish, or diseased. In the hands of mental_floss, history's most interesting bits have been handpicked and roasted to perfection. Packed with little-known stories and outrageous—but accurate—facts, you'll laugh yourself smarter on this joyride through 60,000 years of human civilization. Remember: just because it's true, doesn't mean it's boring!

By the way, the answers are (a) 2, (b) 1, and (c) 3.

Obviously, a book like this can not be comprehensive. The authors amusingly note, "Sadly, HarperCollins rejected our 500-million page manuscript as 'overenthusiastic' and 'hard on the back.' And while this version omits a few details, we think we did alright."

The book starts with pre-history and works up to the 21st Century. The book briefly summarizes major historical points (and absurdities) and provides telling numbers for each chapter. The prose is easy to read and just as you are about to take it too seriously satire is inserted that often hits close to some unfairness or illogic in the minds of our ancestors.

This tome attempts to be a multicultural history of the world. It does not cover just European or American tinted history which often pervades world history books. The Aztecs, the Japanese, the Muslims, and others are stitched effectively into the story of the world. From my perch, this makes this work a good complement to the inadequate coverage of the historical developments in other non-Western parts of the planet. However, it is not politically correct. Easily offended academics should skip this book. Don't worry, I doubt you were going to assign it as a class reading anyway.

If you like history and have a sense of humor, buy this book or get it from your local library. I think you will have a good time and learn a few new historical facts.

Hannibal: The Annihilator

2009-03-10T06:09:00.000-07:00

The History Channel has a new series. And amazingly, it has nothing to do with the occult, monsters, UFOs, or Hitler! It is called Battles BC. The first episode was on last night and it was titled Hannibal: The Annihilator.

Here is a description from the official site:

Hannibal's merciless attacks on Roman soil dealt a near fatal blow to the soon-to-be Empire. Sworn by his father to a blood oath against the Romans, Hannibal of Carthage does the unthinkable... he marches 40 war elephants and a massive army over the Alps to gain an element of surprise. In three key battles--Hannibal uses terrain, intimidation and his iron will to annihilate the Roman Legions, killing every Roman soldier that he possibly can.

The show has flashy background and sound track which reminded me of 300. I am sure this was done intentionally. It also offered commentary from four interesting experts whose words were blended smoothly together by the editing.

The bulk of the episode deals with Hannibal's early life, the beginning of the Second Punic War, Hannibal crossing the Alps, and his early battles in Italy. Several battles which Hannibal won in convincing fashion are described and analyzed in detail. However, the episode basically ends with the Roman disaster at Cannae.

I wish the episode had put the battles covered in the larger context of the Second Punic War. Better coverage of the later years of the war, including his defeat in North Africa at the Battle of Zama, would have left viewers with a better understanding of Hannibal's life and legacy. Nonetheless, the show was entertaining and educational. I will plan on watching future episodes.