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Channel about World's History All questions: @cobbl or @otchebuch
⛵The navy in ancient #India carried out three roles: it was used to transport troops to distant battlefields, participate in actual warfare, and was primarily meant for protecting the kingdom's trade on sea and navigable rivers and the maritime trade routes. The lucrative and highly developed trade with #Egypt, #WestAsia, #Greece, and #Rome led to the growth of navies along India's west coast facing the #ArabianSea, and many dynasties ruling in various parts of India also maintained navies to protect the trade being conducted through huge rivers such as the #Ganga.
On the east coast facing the Bay of #Bengal maritime activities led to colonizing expeditions to #SoutheastAsia. The navies of the South Indian powers were geared towards launching invasions in #SriLanka, separated from India by the Palk Straits. The warships were used in battles which, compared to land battles, remained low in proportion.
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The #Battle of Smolensk in August to September 1943 was the second time the #SovietUnion and the #ThirdReich fought over the city on the Dnieper during the Second World War (1939-45). By the #summer of 1943, the plan by Adolf Hitler (1889-1945) to permanently occupy the USSR was in tatters. The Soviet Red #Army was relentlessly pushing back and recapturing lost cities. Smolensk was to be next in a prolonged three-phase battle that ended any hopes Hitler might have had of winning the German-Soviet #War. Despite logistical #challenges, the Red Army's sheer numbers and #artillery #power allowed them to prevail.
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On Feb 24, 1942, LA plunged into chaos during a false air raid. With Pearl Harbor fresh in mind, 1,400+ rounds were fired at perceived aircraft. Despite hours of gunfire and sightings, no wreckage or enemy was found, making it a bizarre WWII mystery.
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🎨 On this day in 1441: Netherlandish Renaissance painter Jan van Eyck dies.
Jan van Eyck (c. 1390-1441 CE) was famous in his own lifetime for his mastery of oil painting, colouring, naturalistic scenes, and eye for detail.
Amongst his masterpieces are the 1432 CE Ghent Altarpiece, otherwise known as The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb, and the Arnolfini Wedding Portrait, a tour de force in optical illusions. A pioneer of using oils for realistic effects, his work was influential on Renaissance art but especially on Italian artists in the second half of the 15th century CE.
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In the 1930s, Swansea Jack, a black retriever, became a Welsh legend by rescuing 27 people from drowning. Awarded "Dog of the Century," his bravery led to Swansea locals being nicknamed "Jacks." His statue still stands as a tribute to this heroic pup.
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In 1991, eight people sealed themselves in Arizona's Biosphere 2, a $150M airtight ecosystem. For two years, it tested sustainable life for future space habitats, facing challenges. This ambitious experiment provided rich lessons and is now a climate research center.
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During the 19th-century gold and silver rushes, mining towns boomed and then busted, leaving eerie ghost towns behind. These photos capture the grit and silence of America's mining frontier, remnants of a bygone Wild West dream.
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In 1757, Scottish sailor Bruce Gordon was shipwrecked in the Arctic and survived for six years—allegedly with help from a polar bear cub he raised after killing its mother. Named Nancy, she hunted by his side until he was rescued. His tale later inspired The Iceberg Hermit.
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Step back to the 1950s–60s, when long-haul flights offered “sleeper class” with bunk beds, giving passengers a full night’s rest in the sky. These cozy berths made air travel feel more like a train journey—an era of true airborne comfort.
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🗺️ This map illustrates the Russian Empire on the eve of World War I in 1914. Spanning from Eastern Europe to the Pacific Ocean, it was the largest contiguous empire in history. Built through centuries of conquest and colonization, Russia's 19th-20th-century expansion transformed it into a sprawling Eurasian power with complex borderlands.
Following major gains under Catherine the Great (reign 1762-1796), who annexed Crimea and pushed into Poland and the Caucasus, Russian expansion continued through the 19th century. Under Alexander I (reign 1801-1825) and Nicholas I (reign 1825-1855), the empire extended its reach into Central Asia and the Far East. Conquests during the reign of Alexander II (reign 1855-1881) brought territories like Turkestan under Russian control.
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👑 Tsar Nicholas II (reign 1894-1917) was the last of the Romanov emperors, murdered along with his family during the turmoil of the Russian Revolution in 1917. Insisting on maintaining as far as possible the autocratic rule begun by his ancestors, Nicholas failed to address the grievances of his subjects, and with him fell the Russian Empire.
Only just surviving the Russian Revolution of 1905, Nicholas refused to heed the warning signs of a state-wide uprising that involved disgruntled peasantry, ignored workers, the disenchanted middle classes, and reform-seeking liberals.
The tsar's legitimacy to rule was further brought into question following unsavoury and persistent rumours about just how much influence the odd self-proclaimed holy man Grigori Rasputin (1869-1916) had on the royal family and politics, and by the tsar's unwise decision to take personal command of the army in the disastrous First World War (1914-18).
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Here is a stone #Kernos for food offerings of the collected harvest, found at the #Minoan settlement of #Malia, #Crete (1650-1450 BCE). The presence of Malian seal stones throughout central Crete, strongly suggest Malia was a significant trading and commercial centre of the ancient #MinoanCivilisation.
Centralised settlements like Malia often had grand palace complexes, and there is evidence to suggest Minoans revered bulls, since these complexes also contained sacred bull horns. The association of Minoan culture with regal buildings and bulls all probably gave rise to the legend from #GreekMythology of King #Minos, ruler of #Knossos, and the #Athenian hero #Theseus who killed the #minotaur which dwelt in the labyrinth of the same city. 📷 by Mark Cartwright. #AncientHistory #AncientGreece #History
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⚔️The Italo-Ethopian Wars: #Italy occupied #Ethiopia for five years, from 1935 to 1941, following a mass-scale invasion launched by the fascist dictator Benito #Mussolini (1883-1945). However, Ethiopia had been a long-aimed colonial objective of Italy, which had already tried to invade the country in 1896 but was eventually defeated at the Battle of Adwa. Mussolini was determined to show that fascism could avenge the humiliation of Adwa and realise the dream of a new empire for Rome.
On 3 October 1935, without a formal declaration of #war, Italy started the invasion of Ethiopia from the two colonies of Eritrea and Somalia. Italy was soon denounced by the League of Nations; it was condemned and sanctioned. However, the sanctions were completely ineffective.
The first phase of the war was followed in January 1936 by a counteroffensive. However, the lack of coordination between the #military commands weakened the Ethiopian front, leading to its defeat at the Battle of Tembien on 20-24 January.
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🚢 Day 3 of 7 Famous Ships in History: SS Great Eastern
The SS Great Eastern was a steam-powered #ship designed by Isambard Kingdom #Brunel (1806-1859) which sailed on its maiden #voyage from Liverpool to New York in June 1860. At the time, it was by far the largest passenger ship ever built, a record it would hold for 49 years. Great Eastern laid the first cross-#Atlantic telegraph cable in 1866.
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The ancient historian #Josephus, in his account of Herod the Great's Harbor at the #CaesareaMaritima, mentions three colossi on the left and three on the right of the entrance. (Wars, 1.21.6) Likely bronze images of #Caesar, #Juno, and #Neptune, their towering height was meant to impress all those entering, conveying the power of #Rome.
The image of the three colossi you see is part of the collaborative creation of Lithodomos and Patrick Scott Smith. Using archaeological reports by Avner Raban, John Oleson, Robert Hohlfelder (and others), along with comparative analysis of known #AncientRoman construction techniques, Josephus' eyewitness descriptions, and Herodian fortification work at #Jerusalem and #Masada, the image captures what it would have been like to gaze up at the statues when visiting the city. #AncientHistory #AncientWorld #WorldHistory #RomanEmpire
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Before shutter shades, West African Akan chiefs wore golden barred spectacles. Not for sight, these solid gold frames symbolized divine status, forbidding eye contact. A bold statement of power and spiritual leadership.
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👑 On this day in 138 CE: Emperor Hadrian dies of heart failure at his residence on the bay of Naples, Baiae; he is buried at Rome in the Tomb of Hadrian beside his late wife, Vibia Sabina.
Hadrian (l. 78-138 CE) was emperor of Rome (r. 117-138 CE) and is recognized as the third of the Five Good Emperors (Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, and Marcus Aurelius) who ruled justly. His reign marked the height of the Roman Empire, usually given as c. 117 CE, and provided a firm foundation for his successor.
Hadrian was deeply interested in literature – especially Greek literature – and Egyptian mysticism and magic. He was among the most highly cultured of the Roman emperors – even among the famous best five – wrote his own poetry and other works, and insisted on personally supervising as many of the building projects he had commissioned as he possibly could.
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The #Narrative of the Life of Henry Box Brown (1851) is the #autobiography of Henry Box Brown (l. c. 1815-1897), who became the most #famous fugitive slave of his time when he had himself shipped in a box from Richmond, Virginia, to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on 29 March 1849. The #book became a #bestseller, and Brown a popular #celebrity.
In his work, Brown says that he was not treated badly during his time as a salve, but nevertheless was acutely aware that he was regarded as their property with no #agency, no #autonomy, and completely at their mercy to do with him whatever they pleased whenever they might. Though Brown had an agreement with his master that Brown would pay him regularly so that his wife and children would never be sold, in early 1849 or late 1848, however, the master, one William Barret, after accepting the payment, sold Brown's family to a minister in North Carolina.
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😘 Happy International Kissing Day!
😘 The famous balcony scene (Act II Scene II) in William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, oil on canvas painting by Frank Bernard Dicksee, 1884. Southampton City Art Gallery.
💋 The Kiss of the Enchantress by Isobel Lilian Gloag (c. 1890), inspired by Keats's Lamia, depicts Lamia as half-serpent, half-woman.
#InternationalKissingDay #RomeoAndJuliet #Art #Painting #ArtHistory #WorldHistoryEncyclopedia
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The #US-#Mexican War of 1846-1848, triggered by the US annexation of #Texas and a disputed border at the #RíoGrande. Under President James K. Polk (1845-1849) and a succession of Mexican leaders, fighting spread from the #GulfCoast to the #Pacific, reshaping #NorthAmerica's political map.
The conflict unfolded in three main theaters. In the north, US armies pushed across the Río Grande and secured the frontier, halting Mexican counteroffensives. In the west, naval squadrons and volunteer columns occupied #California and #NewMexico, severing #Mexico's Pacific flank. A Gulf-coast landing then opened the road to the Mexican heartland, where a sustained campaign captured the capital and compelled peace. The Treaty of #GuadalupeHidalgo (2 February 1848) ended hostilities: Mexico ceded vast northern territories, including California and New Mexico, and accepted the Río Grande as the Texas boundary. 🗺️ Map created by Simeon Netchev. #USHistory #MexicanHistory
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London Underground's "Fluffers," all-women crews from 1949, cleaned tunnels nightly. This vital, tough work removed debris after power-down. Amazingly, 20 were still employed in 2017, continuing their unique, essential legacy.
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Archaeologists at Magna Roman fort, near Hadrian’s Wall, found a massive 32 cm leather shoe—possibly the largest in the Vindolanda Trust’s 5,000+ pair collection. Likely worn by a soldier, it was uncovered in a trench and offers new insights into Roman military life.
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This map illustrates the RussianRevolution of 1905, a wave of political and social unrest across the #RussianEmpire following defeat in the Russo-Japanese War (1904-5). The revolution was sparked by #BloodySunday on 22 January 1905, when peaceful protesters marching to present a petition to #Tsar #NicholasII (reign 1894-1917) were fired upon in #StPetersburg. What followed were mass strikes, peasant uprisings, military mutinies, and the formation of workers' soviets, culminating in the October Manifesto, which promised limited reforms.
Although the revolution did not overthrow the monarchy, it significantly weakened the foundations of autocratic rule. Revolts erupted in cities such as #Moscow, Odessa, and Warsaw, while rural areas saw widespread peasant unrest. The OctoberManifesto led to the creation of the State Duma in 1906, Russia's first national legislature, though its authority was soon restricted.
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Emperor #Napoleon I of #France (r. 1804-1814; 1815) meets with #Tsar Alexander I of #Russia (1801-1825) on a specially built raft in the middle of the #Niemen River to discuss peace. It is one of the most iconic episodes of the #Napoleonic Era. 🖼️ Painting by Adolphe Roehn, Palace of #Versailles. #History
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The TWA Flight Center at JFK, designed by Eero Saarinen, captured the Jet Age's elegance. Nick DeWolf’s 1960s photos show it as more than architecture; it was a symbol of glamorous travel and bold design. Colored photos by de3nil3 (Reddit).
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The cat was no doubt imported to #Scandinavia through trade with either the #Phoenicians or #Romans and the first cats to make the trip were probably smuggled out of #Egypt. They were the favourite animal of the fertility goddess Freyja, who was also the goddess of love and luck. Her chariot was pulled by cats, specifically the #skogkatt (#Norwegian Forest Cat), which is larger and more powerful than most domesticated housecats. Cats were important in Norse daily life, with archaeological evidence indicating that they were taken on ships to #Greenland and possibly those of #LeifErikson
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#Cats are often associated with #AncientEgypt, but did you know that they were also important to the #Norse of the #VikingAge (c. 790-1100CE)? The #Vikings kept cats as pets and they were featured prominently in religious iconography and literature, alongside other pet animals. Although it may be hard to imagine a #Viking chief bringing his favorite or cat along on a raid, recent genetic studies point to precisely such a scenario as it is now thought that Vikings transported cats and dogs on their raids on foreign shores, and that these were kept as both working animals and pets in Norse households.
📷Photo of the #Oseberg Ship Carving by A. Davey.
#Caturday #MedievalHistory #History
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We need to educate the ignorant.
Official U.S. intelligence confirmed that Iran was not building a nuclear weapon before the war began.
For over 30 years, Netanyahu has claimed that Israeli intelligence confirmed Iran was “weeks away” or “years away” from possessing nuclear bombs—he said this in 1992, 2002, 2005, 2009, and 2015.
The truth is, this war isn’t about Iran having nuclear weapons. If your mind is too small to grasp what’s really happening, you should probably stay off social media.
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🎨 Impressionism was an art movement which began in Paris in the last quarter of the 19th century.
The impressionists tried to capture the momentary effects of light on colours and forms, often painting outdoors. They frequently used bright colours with a thick application to capture landscapes and contemporary everyday life in cafés, the theatre, and the boulevards of Paris.
The term 'impressionism' is a useful but ambiguous label, which can be applied to a group of artists from the 1860s who were painting in France, particularly in Paris. It was coined by the critic Louis Leroy after seeing a work by Claude Monet (1840-1926) at the First Impressionist Exhibition in Paris in April 1874.
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