Great or small, we must do our duty. 3.08 Second Sons
history meme. four presidents: nelson mandela, president of south africa (1994-1999).
Nelson Mandela’s contribution and dedication to South Africa’s struggle in achieving freedom and equal rights for every South African led to his popularity and respect in South Africa. In the 1950s, Mandela began working on ending the apartheid. In 1964, he was arrested and imprisoned for trying to overthrow the government, but continued his fight even from his prison cell. After his release in 1990, Mandela traveled throughout the world trying to earn money to support the anti-apartheid movement. Mandela continued to advocate equality for all South Africans regardless of their ethnic backgrounds. In 1993, Mandela earned the Nobel Peace Prize for his work in improving human rights. In 1994, Nelson Mandela became the first black South African to be elected as president of his country. His presidency was characterized by the successful negotiation of a new constitution for South Africa, but his main focus was the restructuring of South Africa after the damage done by the apartheid. (x)
history meme. seven pairings: queen victoria and prince albert.
She was an 18-year-old young woman who had just become Queen of England in 1837. He was her cousin and they married in 1840. Queen Victoria was most pleased with her new husband. She wrote to her uncle Leopold thanking him “for the prospect of great happiness you have contributed to give me in the person of dear Albert. “He possesses every quality that can be desired to make me perfectly happy.” Berkshire historian Jane Walton says: “He had actually been her right-hand man, he had helped with all the business, he’d taken the load of monarchy off her shoulders to a certain extent. “He devoted himself to sorting out the Royal finances, so much so they could afford to buy Osborne House - a home of their own that was their private residence.” For 21 years they lived in close harmony and had a family of nine children, many of whom married into the European monarchy. Prince Albert died of typhoid at Windsor on 14 December 1861. Victoria was overwhelmed by grief and remained in mourning until the end of her life. Cliveden in Berkshire offered some peace and quiet during political difficulties, such as when the Second Reform Act was going through the House Of Commons in 1867. She would arrive at Cliveden with a 90-strong entourage and a huge portrait of Albert, which she positioned on an easel at the end of the bed she stayed in, and a smaller portrait by her pillow. Jane says: “The one by her pillow was actually a portrait of Albert sleeping, so when she woke up it was as if Albert was still there.” (x)
history meme. ten moments: Martin Luther posts ‘The Ninety-Five Theses’ on the door of the Castle Church of Wittenberg.
15 OCTOBER 1517. Officially entitled The Ninety-Five Theses on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences, this document is widely considered to be the catalyst for the Protestant Reformation. It criticized the abuse of power by the clergy and the sale of indulgences, arguing that it was a violation of the original intention of confession and penance, and that Christians were being falsely told that they could find absolution through the purchase thus making the act of absolution a financial transaction rather than a spiritual one. (This criticism was prompted by the indulgence imposed by Pope Leo X, the purpose of which was to build St. Peter’s Cathedral in Rome.)
history meme. ten moments: the duel between Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton at Weehawken, New Jersey.
On the morning of July 11, 1804, Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton were rowed across the Hudson River in separate boats to a secluded spot near Weehawken, New Jersey. There, in accord with the customs of the code duello, they exchanged pistol shots at ten paces. Hamilton was struck on his right side and died the following day. Though unhurt, Burr found that his reputation suffered an equally fatal wound. In this, the most famous duel in American history, both participants were casualties. […] they managed to make a dramatic final statement about the time of their time. Honor mattered because character mattered. And character mattered because the fate of the American experiment with republican government still required virtuous leaders to survive. Eventually, the United States might develop into a nation of laws and established institutions capable of surviving corrupt or incompetent public officials. But it was not there yet. It still required honorable and virtuous leaders to endure. Both Burr and Hamilton came to the interview because they wished to be regarded as part of such company. (The Founding Brothers, Joseph J. Ellis)
history meme. three inventions: gunpowder.
Gunpowder dates back to 800 BC, according to discovered Chinese accounts of formulas for its production. The invention of guns and cannons followed in the 12th century with predecessors of the gun being seen as early as the 10th. The turbulent time during this period contributed to the rapid spread of the use of gunpowder, which led to the creation of the first armies being equipped with firearms. The expansion of the gunpowder followed the Mongols in the 13th century; the earliest gunpowder formula recorded in Europe was by Roger Bacon in 1267. Despite the fact that natural sources of gunpowder can only be found in China and India, it was Europe that picked up the leading role in the advancement of gunpowder technology after the 14th century. During late medieval times, European countries, unlike China, were constantly waging wars against each other due to limited resources and close borders. However, before the introduction of gunpowder and firearms, warfare in Europe was limited to those of higher social class because the cost of armor and weapons was very high. Therefore, the ability to wage wars was restricted to the hands of rulers who had the resources to purchase expensive armor and weapons. However, the eventual introduction of gunpowder gave peasants the power to challenge authority. With the decentralization of military power, gunpowder gave administrative power back to the common people that inevitably led to the breakdown of the old feudal system. (x)
history meme. five assassinations: Martin Luther King Jr., by James Earl Ray
At 6:05 P.M. on Thursday, 4 April 1968, Martin Luther King was shot dead while standing on a balcony outside his second-floor room at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. News of King’s assassination prompted major outbreaks of racial violence, resulting in more than 40 deaths nationwide and extensive property damage in over 100 American cities. James Earl Ray, a 40-year-old escaped fugitive, later confessed to the crime and was sentenced to a 99-year prison term. (x)
history meme. five assassinations: Julius Caesar, by Senators of Rome
15 MARCH 44BC. On the Ides of March, Julius Caesar entered the Senate. There he was stabbed to death by around forty senators, members of the ruling class and paragons of education and intellect in the society of Ancient Rome. Only twenty-one names of these conspirators, self-styled as “The Liberators”, survive history and nearly all of them staunchly defended the so-called sancitity of the Republic threatened, allegedly, by the quick rise to tyrannical power of Julius Caesar. However, the death of the “tyrant” had also led to the end of the Republic for which he was killed. Civil war broke out, with Mark Antony on one side and Octavian, Caesar’s legal heir, on the other. Eventually, Mark Antony fled to Egypt, where he would be defeated by Octavian. Octavian became Augustus, the first Emperor and founder of the Roman Empire, and ushered in the era of Pax Romana.
history meme. nine kings/queens: Saladin (1138-1187), sultan of Egypt, Syria, Yemen, and Palestine, founder of the Ayyubid dynasty.
Considered to be the one the greatest of Muslim heroes, Saladin was a prominent player during the time of the Crusades. He retook the city of Jersusalem from the Franks, having been victorious at the Battle of Hattin in 1187. He’s famed for his humane treatment of the Christian population of Jerusalem, often contrasted against the manner with which the Christian Crusaders treated the Muslims and the Jews upon their first arrival in Jerusalem.
history meme. ten moments: the funeral of Edward VII.
10 MAY 1910. His funeral at Windsor, following a procession through the streets of London, was one of the largest gatherings of European royalty ever to take place. It was also one of the last assemblies of its kind before the First World War shattered the bonds that united the interwoven monarchies. The conflict would destroy two of the most powerful royal houses and leave several of the others severely weakened as the political map of the continent was redrawn. (x)
