Category Archives: History

Hundred Days

26 February 2025 By in Biography, History, History Tags: , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Napoleon Bonaparte, reeling from his disastrous Russian campaign of 1812 and suffering significant losses to the Sixth Coalition in 1813, faced a decisive defeat at the Battle of Leipzig in October of that year. With his options exhausted and his army depleted, Napoleon abdicated his throne on 11 April 1814, and was exiled to Elba, a small island off the coast of Tuscany.

After approximately ten months in captivity, Napoleon executed a daring escape on 26 February 1815, orchestrated by loyal supporters and a small contingent of soldiers. He landed in France and marched triumphantly into Paris on 20th of March, reclaiming his title as Emperor and ushering in his second reign. This brief resurgence, however, ended with his defeat at the Battle of Waterloo on 18 June 1815, at the hands of the Duke of Wellington and Prussian Field Marshal Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher. The victorious Anglo-Prussian forces entered Paris on 7th of July restoring King Louis XVIII to the French throne and effectively concluding Napoleon’s reign—later dubbed the “Hundred Days” (20 March to 8 July) in historical accounts.

Unable to flee to the United States as he had hoped, Napoleon surrendered to the British Navy and was transported to England. From there, he was exiled to the remote island of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic, arriving there on 15 October 1815. He spent his final years there, dying on 5 May 1821.

Source: Napoleon by André Castelot, 1991. Graphic: Battle of Waterloo by William Sadler, 1815 (Public Domain).

The First English Wine Auction

20 February 2025 By in History, Wine Tags: , , , , , Leave a comment

On 20 February 1673, London’s Garraway’s Coffee House, located just north of London Bridge and the Tower of London, held the first recorded wine auction in England. Instead of the traditional “going, going, gone” and a bang of a gavel method, this auction was conducted “to the candle.” In this form of bidding, participants could place bids until a one-inch candle burned out, which typically took only a minute or two. The purpose of this method was to create an unpredictable end time, preventing last-second bids and encouraging bidders to make their best offers early.

London coffee houses in general, and Garraway’s in particular, served as trading houses for commodities and shares. At Garraway’s, tea merchants and trading shares in companies associated with South Sea trade were the main order of business. All that remains today of the coffee house is a plaque informing the public that people of quality frequented this area.

Trivia: Garraway’s Coffee House appears in at least two of Charles Dickens’ novels: The Pickwick Papers and Little Dorrit. In Chapter 37 of The Pickwick Papers, Samuel Pickwick meets his lawyer, Mr. Serjeant Snubbin, at Garraway’s to discuss his case, where he is being sued by his landlady for breach of promise. The opposing lawyer for the landlady is the theatrical blowhard, Mr. Serjeant Buzfuz. Dickens remains the absolute master of character names. In Chapter 21 of Little Dorrit, Arthur Clennam visits “wharves, docks, the Custom House, Garraway’s Coffee House, and the Jerusalem Coffee House” as he attempts to piece together his family’s business and financial affairs.

Source: This Day in Wine History. Novels of Dickens. Wikipedia. Graphic: Photo of Garraway’s Coffee House, 1873. Public Domain.

The Legacy of John Locke

13 February 2025 By in History, Philosophy, Politics Tags: , , , , , Leave a comment

The English Bill of Rights was signed into law on 13 February 1689, creating the constitutional monarchy that still exists today, albeit with the monarchy reduced to a figurehead status.

The coronation of William III and Mary II was conditional on their agreeing to the terms stipulated in the Bill of Rights, which included, among others, free speech for members of Parliament, the freedom to bear arms for self-defense, freedom from cruel and unusual punishment, and the establishment of due process.

The Bill of Rights was primarily drafted by members of the English Parliament in response to the abuses of power by King James II, who was overthrown in the Glorious Revolution of 1688.

John Locke’s “Second Treatise of Government” had a significant influence on the English Bill of Rights of 1689. Locke was a proponent of natural rights, the social contract, and the separation of powers, which were foundational to the development of constitutional government. His work emphasized that government should be based on the consent of the governed and that individuals have inherent rights to life, liberty, and property.

Source: JohnLocke.net. Graphic: John Locke, 1697, Public Domain.

Falcon Heavy

6 February 2025 By in History Tags: , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Seven Years ago on 6 February 2018, SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy made its maiden voyage, carrying a Tesla Roadster with Starman in the driver’s seat. The rocket is designed to go beyond low Earth orbit but is not certified to carry any sentient biologics.

Recently, astronomers affiliated with Harvard announced the discovery of an asteroid in an orbit uncomfortably close to Earth. Further research by the red-faced researchers revealed that it was the Tesla roadster launched by SpaceX in 2018. The Tesla is in a heliocentric orbit and is currently on its second trip around the sun, according to Pearson.

To date, Falcon Heavy has inserted 11 payloads into GEO, GTO, HEO, LEO, and heliocentric orbits. It has up to 10 more missions scheduled through 2028. Eventually, the rocket will supposedly be retired when Starship is fully operational.

Source: US News. Person. CNET. Graphic: Falcon Heavy Demo Mission, 2018, copyright SpaceX. Falcon Heavy First Launch 6 February 2018, copyright SpaceX.

The Worst Known Natural Disasters

1 February 2025 By in History, Weather Tags: , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

The three greatest loss of life from natural disasters all occurred in China. Almost 7 million people died in two catastrophic floods and an earthquake.

  1. 1931 China Floods:
    • Death Toll: Estimated around 4 million people.
    • Details: These floods, caused by the overflow of the Yellow River, Yangtze River, and Huai River during an unusually wet summer, led to one of the most catastrophic events in human history. The death toll was from drowning and post-flood starvation.
  2. 1887 Yellow River Flood, China:
  3. 1556 Shaanxi Earthquake, China:
    • Death Toll: Estimated around 830,000 people.
    • Details: 7-8 magnitude earthquake strikes …. China. Majority of inhabitants lived in loess-deposited caves, which collapsed when the quake struck.

Graphic: 1931 China Floods, china-underground.com

Die, Die Again

30 January 2025 By in History, Trivia Tags: , , , , , Leave a comment

On 30 January 1661, Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland, suffered his second death. His first death, possibly from malaria or sepsis, occurred on 3 September 1658. On that day a windstorm of supposedly hurricane strength occurred, which some claimed was the devil coming to collect his due. He was buried with honors almost two months later on 10 November 1658, at the east end of Henry VII’s chapel in Westminster Abbey.

After Cromwell’s first death, the monarchy was restored to power. The new king, expressing his gratitude to Cromwell for giving the country a taste of democracy, had his body exhumed, in preparation for his second death. His body was then hung in chains, a common fate for traitors, then decapitated, with his head placed on a spike that remained on display until 1685. His body, sans the head, was then unceremoniously thrown into a pit.

Source: History Today. World History. RMG. Graphic: Portrait of Oliver Cromwell from the studio of Robert Walker, Property of Sir Brooke Boothby.

Odysseus Cometh

29 January 2025 By in History, Movies Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

The Return: After 20 years of epic battles and mythical monsters, Odysseus (Ralph Fiennes) finally returns to Ithica—an island that seems more like a foreign land than his home. Time hasn’t been kind to our hero, and he’s got a mountain to climb to reclaim his place. Meanwhile, his devoted wife Penelope (Juliette Binoche) clings to hope, even as suitors swarm like wolves to sheep, eager to force her into an unwanted marriage. She faces a grim ultimatum: choose a new husband, or they’ll choose for her—and her son’s life hangs in the balance.

This film is a masterclass in staying true to the source material, with a fresh twist: Odysseus, the weary warrior, must navigate the perils of explaining his prolonged absence and wrestling with a hometransformed by time and neglect.

While the movie may not be packed with non-stop action, it more than compensates with stellar direction from Paolini and powerful performances from Fiennes and Binoche. One medium sized gripe: Fiennes’s tendency for soap operish dramatic pauses, which he also used in excess in “Conclave,” often exceeds the patience of viewers. When William Shatner’s dramatic word chop fades from memory Fiennes Alzheimer pause memes will pick up from that point forward.

Genre: Drama–Great Books–Suspense

Directed by: Uberto Pasolini

Screenplay by: John Coilee, Edward Bond, Uberto Pasolini

Music by: Rachel Portman

Cast: Ralph Fiennes, Juliette Binoche

Film Location: Greece and Italy

ElsBob: 7.0/10

IMDb: 6.2/10

Rotten Tomatoes Critics: 77%

Rotten Tomatoes Popcornmeter: 76%

Metacritic Metascore: 67%

Metacritic User Score: 6.2/10

Theaters: 6 December 2024

Runtime: 116 minutes

Budget: $

Box Office: $899,575

Source: Rotten Tomatoes, IMDb, Metacritic. Graphic: The Return Poster and Trailer, copyright Bleecker Street.

No One Shall Sleep

20 January 2025 By in History, Music, Music, Poetry Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

“Nessun Dorma,” (No One Shall Sleep) an aria by Giacomo Puccini from the final act of his opera Turandot, is performed by an enigmatic tenor prince who seeks the hand of Princess Turandot. The Princess decrees that any suitor must solve three riddles to win her consent for marriage. The unknown prince answers all the riddles correctly, but the Princess still defers. He then proposes a counteroffer: if she can guess his name, she can have him executed, but if she cannot, she must marry him. In response, the Princess commands that none of her subjects shall sleep until they uncover his name.

Puccini’s opera, left incomplete at his death in 1924, offers a unique interpretation of Carlo Gozzi’s 18th-century play of the same name, which, in turn, drew inspiration from a 12th-century Persian fairy tale by Nizami as part of his poem collection titled Haft Peykar. In the fairy tale, a princess sets impossible riddles for her suitors.

Puccini retains three riddles from Nizami’s tale but alters the third one:

  1. What is born each night and dies each dawn? (hope)
  2. What flickers red and warm like a flame, but is not a flame? (blood)
  3. What is like ice but burns? (Princess Turandot)

(Nizami’s original 3rd riddle: What echoes with countless voices, yet has no voice of its own? (a letter))

Source: Grove Book of Operas edited by Stanley Sadie, 2006. Wikipedia. Graphic: Nessun Dorma by Pavarotti, 2023 copyright Warner Classics.

Cupid and Psyche

19 January 2025 By in Art, History, Novel, Philosophy, Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Cupid and Psyche is the timeless tale of love’s conquering power, overcoming all obstacles in its path. It symbolizes the union of the soul with desire, transcending to a love that goes beyond the physical and the mortal.

The only extant writings of Cupid and Psyche is known from Apuleius’s romance “The Golden Ass,” composed in the 2nd century AD. The tale is likely to have been known as early as the 4th century BC, and Cupid is known as far back as the 8th century BC from Hesiod’s “Theogony.”

In the myth of Cupid and Psyche, with Cupid’s mother Venus as the antagonist, the characters metaphorically act out various emotions and experiences, both mortal and immortal.

Psyche,a mortal more beautiful than the goddess Venus, represents the soul (in Greek, Psyche means soul) and its journey from the tragedy of human life to the transformative power of love for everlasting spiritual fulfillment.

Cupid, tasked by his mother Venus to destroy Psyche for possessing beauty beyond that of a mortal, instead falls in love with her. Cupid embodies love and desire, and the emotional power and unpredictability that it brings to a relationship.

Venus, the goddess of love and beauty, represents jealousy and the obstacles that Psyche battles to realize the completion of her quest for emotional and spiritual fulfillment. Her trials for Psyche reflect the ever-present barriers to true love.

Cupid and Psyche is a story of transcendent transformation over the physical to the triumph of love and the immortality of the soul.

Trivia: In the painting by Gerard, the butterfly floating above Psyche’s head represents, rather redundantly, the soul.

Source: The Golden Ass by Apuleius. The Evolution of Cupid, Erlang Shen, Fatelines, 2022. Graphic: Cupid and Psyche by Francois Gerard, 1798, The Louvre, Public Domain.

Joan of Arc’s Trial

9 January 2025 By in History Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

The trial of Joan of Arc began almost 600 years ago, on 9 January 1431 in Rouen, France. She was captured by allies of the British during the siege of Compiègne in 1430 and tried for heresy. Her interrogation and trial began on 21 February 1431 and concluded on 24 May 1431.

Joan of Arc, also known as the Maid of Orléans, played a crucial role in liberating France from British control during the Hundred Years’ War. For her efforts the British burned her at the stake on 30 May 1431.

Joan of Arc was proclaimed a saint by Pope Benedict XV in 1920, who stated that her life was “proof of the existence of God.” She is the patroness saint of France and women.

Father Chatillon, rector of the Orléans Cathedral, where Joan of Arc attended Mass on 2 May 1429 while in the city to repel the British, commented that she “was a girl who was committed at 17 and died at 19, after having seen her mission through by liberating Orléans and by allowing Dauphin Charles VII to be king of France.”

Source: Tadie, NCR, 2020. Graphic: St. Joan of Arc is Interrogated by The Cardinal of Winchester in her Prison, Paul Delaroche, 1824, Public Domain.