Voltaire

Voltaire, whose real name was François-Marie Arouet was born November 21, 1694; He was a great writer of the enlightenment period who not only criticized government, but also his fellow philosophies. After the earthquake of Lisbon in 1775 many thinkers of the era begun to contemplate on the event, and why it had occurred. In Poème sur le désastre de Lisbonne ("Poem on the Lisbon disaster") Voltaire attacked the idea that god had created the earthquake to rid the city of sinners. He gave such a negative view on the earthquake that even his fellow Philosophies begun to write letters to him, because they were appalled by his view.

Clearly Voltaire was a singular character in his era. He followed his own views and many of them were right. He was of great influence to modern society, and even influenced the creation of the United States. We should all try to learn more about the enlightenment thinkers which laid the basis for modern society.

Nuremberg Trials

On November 20th 1945 the Nuremberg trials began in Nuremberg Germany. Up until this day high ranking German officials had not answered for their actions during wartime. During The Trial of the Major War Criminals from November 21, 1945 to October 1, 1946 the 22 highest ranking officials which were captured were tried. Heads of concentration camps, of the German air force, and of Hitler’s own government were tried. Many were sentenced to death by hanging, but almost all committed suicide before their sentence was carried out.

This trial showed the restoration of peace, and the unification of law. The United States, Britain, Russia, and France all sent judges to sentence the war criminals. It showed a new world order with Russia and the United States as world powers in the post-World War II era.

The Enlightenment

The enlightenment which took place during the eighteenth century was a period of new scientific discoveries and advancements. The great minds like those of Sir Isaac Newton, and Voltaire contributed and were shaped by this period. These great minds tried to change the way people viewed the world, so the Catholic Church objected, since the view of the people was based on Christian teachings and beliefs.

This era shaped the modern world, and how the universe works. We learned that the Sun and not the Earth was the center of the universe. Great thinkers developed the scientific method and new ways of viewing the world. Philosophers analyzed the systems of government and criticized them. Clearly this era was of great importance for human kind, and it formed the basis for modern society.

Suleiman the Magnificent

Harems, beautiful women, and luxury items filled the great Ottoman Empire since it had become the great power in Asia and Europe. The ancestors of the rulers of Turkey were great warriors, and Suleiman was the last of the “warrior kings.” Suleiman expanded his empire, and added new peoples of different cultures and beliefs to the Ottoman holdings. Sadly, the rulers who came after him were complete failures.

The later rulers of the Ottoman Empire lived with such a great amount of luxury that leaving their palaces and harems to tend to matters of the state was a grotesque task. Later rulers allowed the empire to decay, and they were distracted by the luxuries of their lives. Once the rulers of the Empire had been brave warriors, but now they had become weak, careless rulers. The Ottoman Empire began to lose land, until all that was left of it was Turkey. The luxuries and riches which the empire, had ultimately brought its downfall.

Charles VII

The great dynamic king of Sweden Charles VII came from being a young sweet boy to be called the “madman of Europe”. He would attack superior armies with a tiny force and he would win! Charles took the throne of Sweden when he was only fifteen years old; he had a formidable army and great territory. Right after he took the throne Charles was attacked by the combined forces of Russia, Poland, and Denmark who were trying to take the crown from him. Using the element of surprise Charles attacked those countries taking key positions. The Russians, Polish, and Danish armies had to retreat to defend their countries.

Charles was winning the war, which later became known as the Great Northern War with an iota of men under his command. Charles began invading Russia, stating that he would not stop until he got to Moscow. He did not get to Moscow… Right after he began invading the Russians used their scorched earth tactic to weaken Charles’ army. In the end Charles had to retreat to Turkey were he convinced the Ottomans to invade Russia. Peter the Great of Russia fought back, and they signed a peace treaty. Charles had to flee back to Sweden, because the Ottomans had grown tired of him and were about to arrest him.

In Sweden Charles grew tired of not being at war, so he invaded Norway. He did this in order to recover land lost in the Northern War. In one of the battles a bullet from one of his own men went right through Charles’ head and killed him instantly. He lived only until the age of thirty six without an heir. In the end Sweden lost much of its land and its economy suffered under the “madman of Europe”.

Prussia’s Giant Army

King William the first of Prussia was a great powerful monarch which was close to becoming an absolutist monarch. In the era of absolutism kings could do as they pleased, and that is exactly what king William did. Louis the fourteenth had his great palace, Versailles, and Philip the Second had his religion, but King William had something else. He had an army of giant men.

This small army of giants was a select part of the army. William recruited the men which had to be taller than six feet, and then he dressed them with costly clothing and advanced weaponry. Sometimes when the King felt sick he had his giants march through his bedroom with their pet mascot, a bear…

The funny part of this story is that king William never used his army in battle. He just made his men march through the palace sometimes directing the marches by himself. This army of giants was of such great significance for King William that to be Prussia’s ally one had to befriend the king by sending him tall men for his select army.