Friday, October 2, 2009
Introduction
Hello fellow bloggernauts, My name is Marty Reed. I am 20 years old. My major is history. What I intend to do with it is go into secondary education and teach snott nosed smart kids a thing or two about history. Also I am on GVSU's Rowing and yes it is a tough but rewarding sport. If you want to know me more please ask. Thank you.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
The Man Behind The First Crusade
For my critical book review for this class I have chosen a book titled The First Crusade: A New World History, by Thomas Asbridge. So far as I have read the book has centered around Pope Urban II and his famous speech at Clermont. Within which he called all European christians to arms against the Muslims who held power in the holy city of Jerusalem. Since I am reading this book right now I thought that a good topic for this first blog would be to talk about the life of Pope Urban II leading up to his Speech at Clermont.
Pope Urban II was born to the noble de Lagery family of Chatillon-sur-Marne, northern France, around the year 1035. Urban grew up in a region of north-eastern France known as the Champagne region. This was an extremely localized environment where even the nobles were not likely to have traveled more than a hundred kilometer from home within their life time. This area was controlled by a class of noble warriors, which was dominated by the knightly profession. This area where Urban grew up was an exceptionally violent society, which was dominated by bloody feud and vendetta. Everyone throughout this region, including the more peacefull nobles took part in the plunder.
Although there was much violence in the area in which Urban grew up, he was still always surrounded by the christian religion. Most people within this society was extremely dedicated to their faith and their daily lives were run by its principles. Most of Urban's early life was dominated by the struggle to avoid sin and attain heavenly salvation. In order to obtain this goal Urban turned to a monastic life style. Within a monasticism Christians dedicate their lives to prayer and the service of God, within an enclosed environment. They embrace the principles of poverty, chastity, and obedience. In order to live within in this type of life style Urban was sent to study at the cathedral school of Rheims, as a young man. He soon joined the church in Rheims and attained the position of archdeacon.
Urban remained in Rheims until his mid thirties, when he made a major decision, choosing to become a monk. Urban joined probably the most influential and respected monastery at the time, the Burgundian house of Cluny. While in Cluny Urban's administrative skills did not go unnoticed for long. By 1074, he had risen to become the grand prior of Cluny, which is second in command to the abbot. While holding this position Urban helped to uphold Cluny's reputation as a stronghold for uncompromising spiritual purity.
Urban's career did not end in Cluny though. While he was there he enjoyed a mutually beneficial alliance with Rome. This lead to his recruitment to become cardinal-bishop of Ostia, one of the most powerful ecclesiastical offices in Italy, around 1080. In the winter of 1084 and 1085 Urban worked in Germany as the papal legate for the man who had brought him to Italy, Pope Gregory VII. While in Germany Urban worked to gain support for Gregory in his struggle against the Holy Roman Empire.
In 1088, after the death of Gregory in 1087 and the short lived papacy of Victor III, Urban was finally elected pope. Although Urban to gain great power, his papacy began in a position of great weakness and vulnerability. In 1088 the Latin West seemed ready to turn their backs on Urban and side with his rival to the papal throne, Clemont III. It was not until 1094 that Urban recovered possession of the Lateran Palace in Rome through bribery and even then he did not have a strong hold over the city. He did begin to gradually restore papal authority though and in march of 1095, while Urban was in the southern Italian City of Piacenza a messenger from the embassy in Constantinople, the capital of the Greek Christian Empire of Byzantium, arrived. He appealed for military aid from their Christian brothers in the West against their Islamic neighbors. This is the request that would eventually lead to Urban's speech at Clermont on November 27th 1095.
Asbridge, Thomas. The First Crusade: A New History. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc, 2004. Print.
Pope Urban II was born to the noble de Lagery family of Chatillon-sur-Marne, northern France, around the year 1035. Urban grew up in a region of north-eastern France known as the Champagne region. This was an extremely localized environment where even the nobles were not likely to have traveled more than a hundred kilometer from home within their life time. This area was controlled by a class of noble warriors, which was dominated by the knightly profession. This area where Urban grew up was an exceptionally violent society, which was dominated by bloody feud and vendetta. Everyone throughout this region, including the more peacefull nobles took part in the plunder.
Although there was much violence in the area in which Urban grew up, he was still always surrounded by the christian religion. Most people within this society was extremely dedicated to their faith and their daily lives were run by its principles. Most of Urban's early life was dominated by the struggle to avoid sin and attain heavenly salvation. In order to obtain this goal Urban turned to a monastic life style. Within a monasticism Christians dedicate their lives to prayer and the service of God, within an enclosed environment. They embrace the principles of poverty, chastity, and obedience. In order to live within in this type of life style Urban was sent to study at the cathedral school of Rheims, as a young man. He soon joined the church in Rheims and attained the position of archdeacon.
Urban remained in Rheims until his mid thirties, when he made a major decision, choosing to become a monk. Urban joined probably the most influential and respected monastery at the time, the Burgundian house of Cluny. While in Cluny Urban's administrative skills did not go unnoticed for long. By 1074, he had risen to become the grand prior of Cluny, which is second in command to the abbot. While holding this position Urban helped to uphold Cluny's reputation as a stronghold for uncompromising spiritual purity.
Urban's career did not end in Cluny though. While he was there he enjoyed a mutually beneficial alliance with Rome. This lead to his recruitment to become cardinal-bishop of Ostia, one of the most powerful ecclesiastical offices in Italy, around 1080. In the winter of 1084 and 1085 Urban worked in Germany as the papal legate for the man who had brought him to Italy, Pope Gregory VII. While in Germany Urban worked to gain support for Gregory in his struggle against the Holy Roman Empire.
In 1088, after the death of Gregory in 1087 and the short lived papacy of Victor III, Urban was finally elected pope. Although Urban to gain great power, his papacy began in a position of great weakness and vulnerability. In 1088 the Latin West seemed ready to turn their backs on Urban and side with his rival to the papal throne, Clemont III. It was not until 1094 that Urban recovered possession of the Lateran Palace in Rome through bribery and even then he did not have a strong hold over the city. He did begin to gradually restore papal authority though and in march of 1095, while Urban was in the southern Italian City of Piacenza a messenger from the embassy in Constantinople, the capital of the Greek Christian Empire of Byzantium, arrived. He appealed for military aid from their Christian brothers in the West against their Islamic neighbors. This is the request that would eventually lead to Urban's speech at Clermont on November 27th 1095.
Asbridge, Thomas. The First Crusade: A New History. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc, 2004. Print.
The Power of the Pharaoh
As we have discussed in class the power that a Pharaoh had to the ability to use was staggering. However, in our discussion we only had the time to scrape the surface of all the things that the Pharaoh had the ability to command. I am astonished every time I read of these so called "God-Kings" and what their people submit to or believed and put themselves through underneath the reign of the Pharaoh. The power of the Pharaoh as a political leader is almost unrivaled through out time.
The original Pharaohs in recorded had the same names as some Egyptian Gods and it is still not known today weather or not these were actually people who lived. The Pharaoh was considered to be a direct descendant of the Gods, meaning that Egyptians believed that a God took the form of the Pharaohs father and impregnated his wife. Meaning that the people of Egypt thought that the Pharaoh had a divine purpose to rule the land and help powers such as the annual flooding of the Nile river every year. Also, the Pharaoh was responsible for mingling with the gods and keeping their kingdom free of chaos which did not always work in the favor of the pharaoh.
Kings and Pharaohs were the figure that the whole administrative government rested on. All decisions made in the Kingdom were made by the Pharaoh. For example they commanded what was done with the harvest, the army and every other aspect within the Kingdom. The amount of resources and power the Pharaoh controlled was astonishing. One of the best examples of this is the great pyramids. The amount of riches and treasure in terms of, gold jewelry and other things, let alone the amount of manpower and labor it took to build a pyramid is still hard to comprehend today.
What I found most interesting is that from inscriptions being studied today, the almighty Pharaohs had a very difficult time making friends and many people did not like the Pharaoh. Even when this ruler commanded the respect of all the people within his kingdom he or she had a difficult time viewing anyone as equal and lived a somewhat lonely life. I do not mean lonely in sense that the Pharaoh dint have anyone around, being surrounded by advisers and priests, but never having someone that they could relate to.
For more information about Pharaohs and Kings of Egypt this website provided a good resource. http://www.reshafim.org.il/ad/egypt/administration/pharaoh.htm. Another valuable resource that can give a basic knowledge of pharaohs: http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/pharaohs.htm.
The original Pharaohs in recorded had the same names as some Egyptian Gods and it is still not known today weather or not these were actually people who lived. The Pharaoh was considered to be a direct descendant of the Gods, meaning that Egyptians believed that a God took the form of the Pharaohs father and impregnated his wife. Meaning that the people of Egypt thought that the Pharaoh had a divine purpose to rule the land and help powers such as the annual flooding of the Nile river every year. Also, the Pharaoh was responsible for mingling with the gods and keeping their kingdom free of chaos which did not always work in the favor of the pharaoh.
Kings and Pharaohs were the figure that the whole administrative government rested on. All decisions made in the Kingdom were made by the Pharaoh. For example they commanded what was done with the harvest, the army and every other aspect within the Kingdom. The amount of resources and power the Pharaoh controlled was astonishing. One of the best examples of this is the great pyramids. The amount of riches and treasure in terms of, gold jewelry and other things, let alone the amount of manpower and labor it took to build a pyramid is still hard to comprehend today.
What I found most interesting is that from inscriptions being studied today, the almighty Pharaohs had a very difficult time making friends and many people did not like the Pharaoh. Even when this ruler commanded the respect of all the people within his kingdom he or she had a difficult time viewing anyone as equal and lived a somewhat lonely life. I do not mean lonely in sense that the Pharaoh dint have anyone around, being surrounded by advisers and priests, but never having someone that they could relate to.
For more information about Pharaohs and Kings of Egypt this website provided a good resource. http://www.reshafim.org.il/ad/egypt/administration/pharaoh.htm. Another valuable resource that can give a basic knowledge of pharaohs: http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/pharaohs.htm.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
The destruction of Ur and the fall of Rome
As we learned in class the nomadic Elamites sacked and destroyed the city of Ur around 2000 BCE. Ur had become a great city and the center of Mesopotamia. The Elamites being nomadic grassland people rose in rebellion and overthrew the third dynasty of Ur and destroyed the city. Approximately 2,400 years later in 410 AD the Goths also overthrew a pinnacle city. They were able to sack Rome. It is amazing that the cities’ greatest enemies turned out to be groups of nomads and barbarians.
The Goths were lead by their king Alaric. Alaric had once fought with the Romans as a mercenary solder. He led a legion of Goths fighting for the emperor. In a battle he lost many men and after the victory was never recognized as a hero and was never granted a high rank in the Roman army. The alliance between the Goths and the Romans collapsed within months. The Goths turned on the Romans and used their own technology to destroy Rome. Much like the Elamites used horses and chariots to go long distances quickly, the Goths used the Roman’s own road system against them. They were able to mass an army and quickly move through Italy. They sacked cities and towns as they pleased while marching on Rome.
When they reached Rome they laid siege and made sure to cut off all food and supplies. Once the food ran out and the bodies started stacking up the senators struck a deal with Alaric. Alaric demanded all slaves of barbarian nations be released, thousands of pounds of gold, silver, and pepper. In return the Goths would leave Rome unharmed. The senators agreed. Alaric and his Goths left with 40,000 liberated slaves and wagons full of loot.
Alaric then again asked the emperor for a military title, specifically commander of Rome’s army in the western provinces. Instead of granting or denying Alaric the position the emperor instructed his men never to grant high rank to a barbarian. The king of the Goths Alaric was insulted and again marched on Rome. They again laid siege to the city but this time in the middle of the night on August 24, 410 someone opened the gates from inside Rome. It was never discovered who let them in but the barbarian Goths flooded the streets and sacked Rome.
More information can be found in
Craughwell, Thomas J. How The Barbarian Invasions Shaped the Modern World The Viking, Vandals, Huns, Mongols, Goths, and Tartars Who Razed The Old World And Formed The New. Beverly, MA: Fair Winds Press, 2008. Print.
The Goths were lead by their king Alaric. Alaric had once fought with the Romans as a mercenary solder. He led a legion of Goths fighting for the emperor. In a battle he lost many men and after the victory was never recognized as a hero and was never granted a high rank in the Roman army. The alliance between the Goths and the Romans collapsed within months. The Goths turned on the Romans and used their own technology to destroy Rome. Much like the Elamites used horses and chariots to go long distances quickly, the Goths used the Roman’s own road system against them. They were able to mass an army and quickly move through Italy. They sacked cities and towns as they pleased while marching on Rome.
When they reached Rome they laid siege and made sure to cut off all food and supplies. Once the food ran out and the bodies started stacking up the senators struck a deal with Alaric. Alaric demanded all slaves of barbarian nations be released, thousands of pounds of gold, silver, and pepper. In return the Goths would leave Rome unharmed. The senators agreed. Alaric and his Goths left with 40,000 liberated slaves and wagons full of loot.
Alaric then again asked the emperor for a military title, specifically commander of Rome’s army in the western provinces. Instead of granting or denying Alaric the position the emperor instructed his men never to grant high rank to a barbarian. The king of the Goths Alaric was insulted and again marched on Rome. They again laid siege to the city but this time in the middle of the night on August 24, 410 someone opened the gates from inside Rome. It was never discovered who let them in but the barbarian Goths flooded the streets and sacked Rome.
More information can be found in
Craughwell, Thomas J. How The Barbarian Invasions Shaped the Modern World The Viking, Vandals, Huns, Mongols, Goths, and Tartars Who Razed The Old World And Formed The New. Beverly, MA: Fair Winds Press, 2008. Print.
Monday, September 28, 2009
A Brief Summary of Aztec Mythology
In order to fully comprehend Aztec mythology, it is important to have a basic knowledge of how the Aztec empire came to be. The Aztecs lived in central Mexico beginning in the twelve hundreds. They weren’t composed of a single group of people, but of multiple groups with varying stories and beliefs. During the thirteen hundreds, the Aztecs formed a city state known as Tenochtitlan, located in current day Mexico City. They continued to grow in unity, and by the late fourteen hundreds successfully conquered a large empire. The diverse population greatly influenced their beliefs, deities, and mythologies.
The ancient myths revolved around three basic themes. First, the Aztecs emphasized the value of sacrifice. They believed that their gods continually sacrificed their lives to better the earth. In an attempt to satisfy their gods, they made sacrifices often. Thoughts of sacrifice and death did not have a negative connotation, but instead brought thoughts of fertility and rebirth. The second theme to keep in mind is the idea that all people had a predetermined fate. They tried to determine the positive or negative influences of gods on their destiny. Many people are familiar with the game played by Aztecs in courts with a rubber ball, in which participants attempt to shoot the ball through a hoop with various body parts. What most people do not realize is that the game was actually a religious ritual that signified the earthly desire to control destiny. The third theme to watch for in Aztec mythology is that of duality. In reading ancient mythology, one will find that most gods or goddesses have two roles. They usually came in pairs, and sometimes could be found with more than one identity.
Many Aztec myths involve the creation of some element in nature. The most common myths include the creation of the earth, the creation of the Milky Way, the creation of the sun and moon, and the creation of people. There was also the story of five suns. This story says that there were four worlds that existed before the Aztecs, plus the one in which they lived. Each world ended with some disastrous event, such as a hurricane or fire, which destroyed everything. The fourth world ended with a flood. This leads into the creation of the fifth sun, or our current earth.
After the flood, two gods found the earth with a vicious monster in the sea. They knew people could never inhabit the earth while the monster could cause harm with her sharp teeth. To defeat the monster, they descended to earth and transformed into two powerful serpents. Together, they tore the monster into two halves. The upper half of the body became the sky, while the lower half became the earth. Other parts of her body were used to form different natural elements. For example, her crocodile back formed mountains, her hair formed trees and shrubs, her skin formed grass, rivers flowed from her mouth, and her eyes formed small ponds. The identifiable theme in this myth is that of duality, since two gods worked together to defeat the monster.
Following the creation of the earth, the gods realized the need to bring warmth to the earth using the sun. In order to do so, one god needed to sacrifice himself by stepping into a fire. One god deemed himself the most worthy of the sacrifice due to his wealth and offerings. However, a second, more humble, god also approached the fire and prayed for courage to sacrifice himself. After four days of praying, the wealthy god approached the fire. However, he was too cowardly and could not commit the sacrifice. On the other hand, the humble god was brave enough to jump into the fire. Feeling angry and worthless, the wealthy god sacrificed himself in an attempt to steal the glory. This angered the rest of the gods who decided one light should not shine as bright as the other, and should always follow the first. Thus, the second light became the moon. In this myth, two themes are easily recognizable, one being the need for sacrifice and the other being the idea of duality, since there were two sacrifices.
The next few myths involve the creation of the Milky Way, the creation of people, and the creation of food. To read about these myths, a more detailed version of the myths I already explained, or many other myths, visit this site, which contains excerpts from the book The Eagle on the Cactus: Traditional Tales from Mexico.
http://books.google.com/books?id=ng3AkBVlyUAC&pg=PA43&lpg=PA43&dq=aztec+mythology+stories&source=bl&ots=Nl6vCMYmrS&sig=13-oWcV10LpSXzOTkK4OKnse4P4&hl=en&ei=9hXBSt-bDo6f8Aa3_r2lAQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1#v=onepage&q=&f=false
Also, to read more about the background of Aztecs and their myths, the site I used is http://www.mythencyclopedia.com/Ar-Be/Aztec-Mythology.html.
The ancient myths revolved around three basic themes. First, the Aztecs emphasized the value of sacrifice. They believed that their gods continually sacrificed their lives to better the earth. In an attempt to satisfy their gods, they made sacrifices often. Thoughts of sacrifice and death did not have a negative connotation, but instead brought thoughts of fertility and rebirth. The second theme to keep in mind is the idea that all people had a predetermined fate. They tried to determine the positive or negative influences of gods on their destiny. Many people are familiar with the game played by Aztecs in courts with a rubber ball, in which participants attempt to shoot the ball through a hoop with various body parts. What most people do not realize is that the game was actually a religious ritual that signified the earthly desire to control destiny. The third theme to watch for in Aztec mythology is that of duality. In reading ancient mythology, one will find that most gods or goddesses have two roles. They usually came in pairs, and sometimes could be found with more than one identity.
Many Aztec myths involve the creation of some element in nature. The most common myths include the creation of the earth, the creation of the Milky Way, the creation of the sun and moon, and the creation of people. There was also the story of five suns. This story says that there were four worlds that existed before the Aztecs, plus the one in which they lived. Each world ended with some disastrous event, such as a hurricane or fire, which destroyed everything. The fourth world ended with a flood. This leads into the creation of the fifth sun, or our current earth.
After the flood, two gods found the earth with a vicious monster in the sea. They knew people could never inhabit the earth while the monster could cause harm with her sharp teeth. To defeat the monster, they descended to earth and transformed into two powerful serpents. Together, they tore the monster into two halves. The upper half of the body became the sky, while the lower half became the earth. Other parts of her body were used to form different natural elements. For example, her crocodile back formed mountains, her hair formed trees and shrubs, her skin formed grass, rivers flowed from her mouth, and her eyes formed small ponds. The identifiable theme in this myth is that of duality, since two gods worked together to defeat the monster.
Following the creation of the earth, the gods realized the need to bring warmth to the earth using the sun. In order to do so, one god needed to sacrifice himself by stepping into a fire. One god deemed himself the most worthy of the sacrifice due to his wealth and offerings. However, a second, more humble, god also approached the fire and prayed for courage to sacrifice himself. After four days of praying, the wealthy god approached the fire. However, he was too cowardly and could not commit the sacrifice. On the other hand, the humble god was brave enough to jump into the fire. Feeling angry and worthless, the wealthy god sacrificed himself in an attempt to steal the glory. This angered the rest of the gods who decided one light should not shine as bright as the other, and should always follow the first. Thus, the second light became the moon. In this myth, two themes are easily recognizable, one being the need for sacrifice and the other being the idea of duality, since there were two sacrifices.
The next few myths involve the creation of the Milky Way, the creation of people, and the creation of food. To read about these myths, a more detailed version of the myths I already explained, or many other myths, visit this site, which contains excerpts from the book The Eagle on the Cactus: Traditional Tales from Mexico.
http://books.google.com/books?id=ng3AkBVlyUAC&pg=PA43&lpg=PA43&dq=aztec+mythology+stories&source=bl&ots=Nl6vCMYmrS&sig=13-oWcV10LpSXzOTkK4OKnse4P4&hl=en&ei=9hXBSt-bDo6f8Aa3_r2lAQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1#v=onepage&q=&f=false
Also, to read more about the background of Aztecs and their myths, the site I used is http://www.mythencyclopedia.com/Ar-Be/Aztec-Mythology.html.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
What You Need to Know: My Blog & Me
Here you will find weekly posts covering a wide range of topics relating to world history up to 1500. I am assuming that most everyone that reads this blog has at least a minor interest in history (otherwise, why else would you be reading this?). However, for those of you that have a hard time retaining interest in the subject, you have found the right blog! In my weekly posts, I hope to keep it short and simple. I will do the honors of picking out information from longer texts, so that I can pass anything interesting along to you in a shorter version. Most weeks, the topics I write about will correlate with those of my classmates. However, there will be a few weeks where we write about non-related topics. In these posts, I will be providing information about Latin America.
So now you are probably wondering who exactly will be writing these posts. My name is Trisha Bravata. I am currently in my third year at Grand Valley State University, seeking a business degree with a spanish minor. I know, that does not make sense- a business major writing a history blog? However, that is exactly why you will be able to enjoy my posts. If I can tolerate writing about it, you will probably enjoy reading about it. Trust me, I will not write about anything I think is boring! Anyways, let's get back on track. I graduated from East Kentwood High School in 2007. In my free time I enjoy playing softball, reading, and taking road trips to visit friends. I also make frequent trips to hobby lobby, where I spend more money than I earn working with Advantage Health Physicians Network, but at least I have a cute and decorated house to show for it. I have never written in a blog before, but I look forward to entertaining you all with my most recent thoughts.
So now you are probably wondering who exactly will be writing these posts. My name is Trisha Bravata. I am currently in my third year at Grand Valley State University, seeking a business degree with a spanish minor. I know, that does not make sense- a business major writing a history blog? However, that is exactly why you will be able to enjoy my posts. If I can tolerate writing about it, you will probably enjoy reading about it. Trust me, I will not write about anything I think is boring! Anyways, let's get back on track. I graduated from East Kentwood High School in 2007. In my free time I enjoy playing softball, reading, and taking road trips to visit friends. I also make frequent trips to hobby lobby, where I spend more money than I earn working with Advantage Health Physicians Network, but at least I have a cute and decorated house to show for it. I have never written in a blog before, but I look forward to entertaining you all with my most recent thoughts.
Introduction
Hello, my name is Macie Deal. I am a junior at Grand Valley and my major is pre-nursing. I eventually will like to become a Nurse Practitioner at a Family Doctor's Office, but that probably will not happen for quite some time. I am originally from Vestaburg, MI, but I now live in Grand Rapids and I love it! Whenever I have free time, which is not often, I like to go shopping, hang out with my friends and family, and play with my new puppy, Remington.
I hope that people will learn more about history by reading my postings in this blog. Also, I hope that I will be able to learn by reading other people's postings as well as by researching my own.
I hope that people will learn more about history by reading my postings in this blog. Also, I hope that I will be able to learn by reading other people's postings as well as by researching my own.
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