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Japan Won The First Major War That Began In The 20th Century

By
thehistorianshut
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(Japanese assault against Russian forces, c. October 10,1904, from Le Patriote Illustré, [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

 

The 20th century was filled to the brim with wars, including two world wars and multiple communist revolutions. A slew of conflicts were caused by the Cold War between capitalist democracies and communist regimes, which made the 20th century a tense and weary hundred years. The first nation to win a major war that began and ended in that fateful century, however, was none other that the newly modernized country of Japan.

After the 1850s, Japan shed its isolationism and leaped toward modernization. With land forces trained in German strategy, a navy modeled after Britain and an education system inspired by the United States, Japan quickly became a power to be reckoned with. The Japanese proved their newfound capabilities by defeating a major western power in warfare.

The conflict was the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905), where Russia and Japan faced off to determine who would control Korea. The Japanese struck fast. They blockaded a Russian Fleet in Port Arthur and occupied Korea. Next, the Japanese pushed up towards Mongolia and Manchuria. The armies of Japan and Russia finally met in the great Battle of Mukden (February-March, 1905). In one of the largest battles in history, approximately 292,219 Russians faced off against 208,342 Japanese. Japan won the day, but both sides lost tens of thousands of men. Japan sealed its victory over Russia when it destroyed another large Russian fleet in May, prompting Russia to concede defeat on September 5, 1905.

Source:

  • Warfare in the Western World: Military Operations Since 1871, by Robert A. Doughty and Ira D. Gruber et al. Massachusetts: D. C. Heath and Company, 1996.

Murasaki Shikibu

By
thehistorianshut
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Murasaki Shikibu (c. 11th Century)

“You had better not bring up my failings as though they were none of yours!”

  • From Murasaki Shikibu’s The Tale of Genji (chapter 6), translated by Royall Tyler (Penguin Classics, 2003).

 

Alexander The Great Was As Adept At Literature As He Was At War

By
thehistorianshut
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(Sculpted portrait of Alexander the Great by Andrea del Verrocchio (1436–1488), [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

 

Anyone who knows anything about Alexander the Great knows that the man was a military genius. He trained vigorously for war from the age of seven, or eight, and when he ascended to the throne of Macedonia, he conquered most of his known world in an unprecedented winning streak of victorious battles. He expanded around the eastern edge of the Mediterranean, stopping when he reached Egypt. Then, he marched his army further east, conquering the Persian Empire, and other peoples, all the way to modern Pakistan, where the threat of mutiny ground Alexander’s conquests to a halt. Though his conquests are what Alexander remains best known for today, he had another passion—literature.

As a Macedonian nobleman, Alexander had great exposure to a diversity of cultures and languages. The Macedonian kings often brought some of the greatest Greek artists and writers of the day to the Macedonian court. The polygamous nature of the Macedonian kings, and the many slaves that the royal court kept, also contributed to the multitude of languages and artistic ideas circulating in Macedonia. Besides knowing the ancient Greek language, Alexander grew up with the dialect of ancient Macedonia and was exposed to the speech of Epirus by way of his mother, as well as the Persian language from emissaries living as guests in his father’s court. Language, however, was not all he was exposed to in his youth. Alexander also had access to Greek literature, poetry and mythology.

Alexander began his training in literature much earlier than his training for war. He read a wide variety of writings: Plays of tragedy and comedy, and tomes of history, philosophy and poetry all filled Alexander’s curriculum. Poetry, especially about the gods, deeply interested the young noble. He memorized many of the works he read, including the poems of Pindar, Euripides, and especially Homer. Many of the early sources that wrote abut Alexander the Great mention that if a line from an epic poem was stated, the conqueror could finish the line, and relate which poem the quote came from. He could quote epic poems like the Christian saints of old could quote the Bible.

The writings that Alexander read did not only interest him, they helped to shape and reinforce the competitive nature that would drive the young king to greatness. The Macedonian kings believed that their line could be traced back to Achilles, and even further back, to Zeus. As such, when Alexander read stories such as the Iliad, to him he was not just reading literature—he saw such stories as histories of his ancestors. For the rest of his life, Alexander the Great would judge his own accomplishments by comparing himself to the heroes of myth. His competition with the larger-than-life figures of mythology, some may argue, may have been another battle that Alexander the Great won, among his many accomplishments.

Source:

  • The Campaigns of Alexander by Arrian, translated by Aubrey de Sélincourt. New York: Penguin Classics, 1971.
  • Plutarch’s Life of Alexander in The Age of Alexander: Ten Greek Lives by Plutarch, translated by Ian Scott-Kilvert and Timothy E. Duff. London: Penguin Classics, 1973, 2011.
  • The Library of History, by Diodorus Siculus, edited by Giles Laurén (Sophron Editor, 2014).
  • Alexander the Great: The Story of an Ancient Life, by Thomas R. Martin and Christopher W. Blackwell. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2012.

A Brief Biography Of Benjamin Franklin

By
thehistorianshut
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(Benjamin Franklin Drawing Electricity from the Sky, painted by Benjamin West, circa 1816, [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

 

While there is a long list of impressive founding fathers from the era of the United States Revolution, very few even come close to the brilliance of Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790). The lifestyle and mindset displayed by Franklin served as an early model for American character and continues to be an inspiration for the  ‘American Dream.’ His diligence and unending drive for knowledge and industry continue to enamor those who read his Autobiography and learn about his life. His rags-to-riches story has given hope to generations of people who want to build a better life for themselves through sheer wit and willpower. Over the course of his life, Benjamin Franklin underwent a tremendous transformation, from a poorly educated boy who ran away from his family, to a world-acclaimed statesman, inventor, scientist and diplomat who was received as a guest by at least five kings.

Benjamin was born in 1706 to Josiah and Abiah Franklin; he was one of seventeen children. His father was a struggling soap and candlemaker. Because of Josiah’s money troubles, Benjamin’s education was cut off after only two years of formal schooling. The boy, however, had learned to read—which would become a lifelong passion—and he consumed as much knowledge as he could through any books he managed to scrounge up.

By 1718, Benjamin Franklin (a boy of 12) was sent to his brother, James, to become a printer’s apprentice. Under his brother’s tyrannical authority, Benjamin became adept at printing, and continued his studies from books he bought and borrowed. Benjamin’s brother, James, refused to let him write for the paper, so Franklin developed a scheme to contribute to his brother’s newspaper—he took up pseudonym, Silence Dogood, and snuck his witty contributions into the printing house at night. When Benjamin confessed to his ploy, the newspaper readers were impressed with the young man, but James felt insulted by Benjamin’s boldness. The strained relationship between the brothers reportedly resulted in Benjamin being beaten by James.

By 1723, when Benjamin was 17, he could no longer suffer his brother’s abuses. He decided to flee to Philadelphia, which would become his lifelong home, at least while he was in North America. From Philadelphia, he left and spent a few years in London, where he took up more printing work. In 1726, Franklin returned to Philadelphia, where he quickly, and diligently, constructed a juggernaut of a printing business. Benjamin Franklin’s life really began to take off during the 1730s. First, he married his wife Deborah in 1730 through a common law union. She was technically already married, but her former husband had run away. Franklin also brought the Pennsylvania Gazette(which he bought in 1729) to prominence, began his hugely popular Poor Richard’s Almanack (1733-1758), and helped set up a subscription library. He also became Philadelphia’s postmaster (1737-1753), and would later become the postmaster general for all of the colonies. Alongside the news and almanacks that he printed, he also created pamphlets, distributed propaganda, and sometimes minted currency. By 1748, Franklin was one of the richest men in the colonies. Loaded with enough cash to last the rest of his lifetime, Franklin retired from printing at the age of forty-two.

Though he was retired, Franklin did not let his mind rest. In his retirement, he only replaced the time he spent printing with a new set of jobs, including science, inventing, public works and diplomacy. For Franklin’s various jobs, inventions and writings, see the lists at the end of this biography—for now, just know the lists are impressively lengthy.

In the 1750s, and for the rest of his life, Franklin divided his time between carrying out scientific experiments and representing the colonies in London. He was also the United States’ primary diplomat in Paris during the American Revolution. His wife, Deborah, never traveled with him to Europe; she was apparently afraid of the ocean. She stayed in Philadelphia while Benjamin traveled to London and Paris. Deborah died in 1774 and Franklin quickly fell into his most apparent vice—he was a notorious flirt.

Franklin, despite his romantic scandals, remained an incredibly well liked figure. At least, by people other than his son, William. William and his father disagreed on the American Revolution, and they could never reconcile. Politically, Franklin was a member of the Pennsylvania Assembly, and later, the Second Continental Congress. He also aided in the drafting of the Declaration of Independence, and helped negotiate the Treaty of Paris in 1783. After the war, he also participated in the Constitutional Convention. While Franklin was a zealous colonial patriot, his son William was an equally stalwart loyalist—William was the governor of New Jersey during the Revolution, and was ultimately stripped of power. When Benjamin Franklin died in 1790, William was all but removed entirely from his father’s will.

Around 20,000 people attended Benjamin Franklin’s funeral, showing their respect to one of the greatest visionaries of the revolutionary period. A crisp and witty line about Franklin’s work ethic and ingenuity would probably be the proper way to end this biography, but lists of his various jobs, inventions and writings should make Benjamin Franklin’s legacy more palpable.

 

Jobs:
  • Printer (Poor Richard’s Almanack, minting, propaganda, news etc…)
  • Alderman
  • Councilman
  • Burgess
  • Justice of the Peace
  • Postmaster General
  • Plenipotentiary of France (and general diplomacy)
Inventions/Public Works:
  • Town watch/ militia/police organization
  • Fire-fighting company
  • Academy of Pennsylvania (now University of Pennsylvania)
  • Funding for a city hospital
  • Lightning rods
  • Clocks
  • Book retrieval device
  • Letter copier
  • Franklin Stove
  • Armonica
  • Subscription library
  • Swimming fin
  • Rocking-chair modifications
  • American Philosophical Society
Writings/Experiments Subjects:
  • Yellow Fever
  • Cancer
  • Water (rain, springs, gulfs, ice)
  • Astronomy
  • Hot-air balloons
  • Magnetism
  • Sleep
  • Demography
  • Heat absorption
  • Agriculture
  • Chess
  • War strategy
  • Literature
  • Silk farming/silkworms
  • Possibility of boats made of ice
  • Trade/economics
  • Archaeology/paleontology
Written by C. Keith Hansley
Source:

St. Teresa of Avila

By
thehistorianshut
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St. Teresa of Avila (c. 1515-1582)

“True perfection consists in the love of God and of our neighbor, and the more nearly perfect is our observance of these two commandments, the nearer to perfection we shall be.”

  • From Interior Castle (First Mansions, chapter II) by St. Teresa of Avila, translated by E. Allison Peers (Dover Publications, 2007). The background image of St. Teresa is licensed under Creative Commons 4.0 (CC 4.0).

 

Virgil

By
thehistorianshut
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Virgil (79-19 BCE)

“Fear exposes the lowborn man at once.”

  • From The Aeneid (Book IV) by Virgil, translated by Robert Fagles (Penguin Classics, 2010).

 

The First Airplane To Take Off From An Aircraft Carrier Was Launched From The USS Birmingham in 1910

By
thehistorianshut
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(Eugene Burton Ely flies his Curtiss pusher biplane from USS Birmingham (Scout Cruiser No. 2), in Hampton Roads, Virginia, during the afternoon of 14 November 1910, [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

 

In 1910, a major milestone in aviation history was set. On that day, a biplane took to the skies from the deck of the USS Birmingham. It was the first time in history that a plane took off from an aircraft carrier, but that particular flight was just a test, and was not carried out in a war environment. The first country to formally launch airplanes from aircraft carriers in warfare was Britain during World War I. In December, 1914, they carried out a seaborne raid against the German base of Cuxhaven. The attack did little damage, but set a precedent for future warfare.

For most of WWI, there was a major problem with aircraft carriers—the ships had no landing strips. The planes could not come back and land on the carriers. Landing zones had to be established elsewhere.  Only in the last year of WWI (1918) did the British improve the carrier with the addition of a landing strip, though landing on aircraft carriers remained a highly dangerous process, even during WWII. Nevertheless, the modern aircraft carrier was born, and would play a leading role in the Pacific War of WWII.

Source:

  • Warfare in the Western World: Military Operations Since 1871, by Robert A. Doughty and Ira D. Gruber et al. Massachusetts: D. C. Heath and Company, 1996.

In 1700, Japan Had The Largest City In The World And Was One Of The Most Urban Countries Of Its Age

By
thehistorianshut
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(Cherry Blossom Time in Nakanochō of the Yoshiwara, by Utagawa Hiroshige (Japan, Edo, 1797-1858), [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)
Warning: Statistics Imminent

 

In Europe, by the 1700s, the Renaissance had come and gone, eventually leading to the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. The Protestant Reformation had drawn a tense divide between nations who followed Catholic belief, and those who found the authority of the pope to be corrupt. Europeans had also spent more than two centuries exploring and colonizing both near and faraway lands. With all of Europe’s impressive growth and development, by 1700, Europe still was nowhere near the top of the world’s most urbanized regions on earth.

The reigning champion of urbanization in 1700 was none other than Japan. The island country likely had the largest city in the world at that time—Edo (now Tokyo) had around one million residents in 1700. Edo was not the only sizable city in Japan. Kyoto and Osaka were also around the same size as London, England and Paris, France, all estimated to house around 350,000 people in 1700. One-tenth of the Japanese population lived in communities that had over 10,000 residents. Even more impressive, was that five or six percent of Japan’s population lived in cities with more than 100,000 people, like Edo, Osaka and Kyoto. In 1700, Japan had more than double the percentage of urbanization than its contemporary European peers.

Here are some tidy facts about the world in 1700:

  • 5-6% of Japanese people resided in cities with populations higher than 100,000.
  • 2% of Europeans lived in cities with populations greater than 100,000.
  • 10% of Japan lived in communities over 10,000 in population.
  • Edo, Japan, had around 1 million residents.
  • Kyoto and Osaka had populations of around 350,000 people.
Written by C. Keith Hansley
Source:
  • A Modern History of Japan: From Tokugawa Times to the Present, by Andrew Gordon. New York: Oxford University Press, 2002.

Friedrich Nietzsche

By
thehistorianshut
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Friedrich Nietzsche (German Philosopher, 1844-1900)

“On the contrary, let me declare expressly that in the days when mankind was not yet ashamed of its cruelty, life on earth was more cheerful than it is now that pessimists exist.”

  • From Friedrich Nietzsche’s On the Genealogy of Morals (second essay, section 7), translated by Walter Kaufmann in Basic Writings of Nietzsche (Modern Library, 1995, 2000).

 

The Caribbean Buccaneers Of The 17th And 18th Centuries Were Named After Cooking Equipment

By
thehistorianshut
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(The Buccaneer, c. 1905, painted by Howard Pyle (1853-1911), [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

 

Most people know that buccaneers were a type of pirate. Fewer know that they were a specific group of pirates that mainly harassed Spanish ships and coastal cities in the Caribbean. Finally, only those few people addicted to history and random facts would delve deep enough to discover that the buccaneers were named after cooking utensils used to prepare their favorite food—barbecued, or smoked, meats.

After the Caribbean buccaneers finished a raid on an unfortunate harbor-town, or stole the goods of a merchant vessel, the crews of the pirate ships would find a secluded beach on an island and hunt for food. The most available game for hunting on most Caribbean islands were native amphibious creatures. Fortunately for the buccaneers, they actually had a fondness for turtle. When the crew captured the unlucky turtle of the day (or night), along with anything else they could trap and hunt, they would bring out their boucans (wooden spits) and roast their catch. They would also gather turtle eggs to later be fried in animal fat. Nevertheless, their favorite food, and the meal they were best known for, was the smoked or barbecued meat they prepared with their wooden boucans—hence the name, buccaneers.

Written by C. Keith Hansley

Source:

  • Outlaws of the Atlantic: Sailors, Pirates and Motley Crews in the Age of Sail, by Marcus Rediker. Boston: Beacon Press, 2014.
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