Hermann Goering, the man who would one day be one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany, second only to Adolf Hitler himself, was born into an aristocratic family in Rosenheim, Bavaria, Germany on January 12, 1893. His father Heinrich Goering had been an army officer and governor of the German colony of Southwest Africa (modern Namibia) and was known for using rather brutal methods to suppress native rebellions.
However, at the time of Hermann's birth, Heinrich Goering was serving as a diplomat in Haiti, and wasn't often at home. As a result, Goering spent most of his childhood being raised by his godfather Hermann Epenstein (who was ironically part Jewish.) Growing up at Epenstein's luxurious castle Veldenstein near Nuremberg, where he spent his days fantasizing about military adventure.
With a background like this, it was perhaps inevitable that the young Goering would pursue a military career, and he joined the German Army in 1912. A year later, the Goering family had a falling out with Epenstein and he was forced to move out of Veldenstein. (Perhaps the genesis of Goering's antisemitism?)
During World War One Goering would serve in the German Air Force, as a pilot in the "Red Baron" Manfred Von Richthofen's famous squadron, and after Richthofen's death Goering took command. When Germany signed the armistice in 1918, Goering was ordered to surrender the squadron to the Allies. Outraged, he refused, and instead he and his men intentionally crash landed their planes in German territory to avoid having to surrender them.
Embittered by Germany's defeat, Goering spent the nest few years in Sweden, where he married his first wife Carin Von Kantzow. After returning to Germany he met Adolf Hitler for the first time in 1922 and joined the Nazi Party. He was given command of the party militia, the Sturmabteilung, or "Storm Troopers", who were tasked with protecting party meetings and roughing up the opposition. In 1923, the Nazis attempted to overthrow the German government in the so-called "Beer Hall Putsch". They failed, and Goering was wounded in the process.
Goering and his wife fled to Austria, where he was given morphine to treat his injuries. He soon became addicted to it, and the once fit soldier now became the obese lethargic slob who would one day become infamous. Reportedly, the drug made him so violent that he had to be put in a straight jacket at least once.
Goering finally returned to Germany in 1927, and his wife Carin died in 1931. After this, Goering devoted his entire life to the Nazi cause. When Hitler finally came to power in 1933, Goering was given the task of creating the new secret police, the infamous Gestapo, and was also given command of Germany's new air force, the Luftwaffe. He was also allegedly responsible for the Reichstag Fire which the Nazis used as a pretext to seize absolute power on February 27, 1933. In 1935, Goering remarried, this time to Emmy Sonnemann, and had a daughter Edda in 1938.
In 1936, Goering was put in charge of the German economy, and instituted the Four Year Plan, a massive rearmament effort to prepare Germany for the coming war Hitler was already planning. He also helped engineer the occupations of Austria and Czechoslovakia. He reached the height of his career on September 1, 1939 (the same day the invasion of Poland began) when Hitler officially designated Goering as his successor.
At first, Goering's Luftwaffe proved a powerful force, crushing the Polish and French Air Forces, and bombing their cities to rubble. But against Britain's Royal Air Force, he finally met his match. Despite his relentless bombing of British cities, the RAF held firm and beat back the Luftwaffe assault. Things would only get worse for Goering from there. Despite promising Hitler that the Luftwaffe would be able to supply the German troops surrounded in Stalingrad, they were unable to do so enough, and the German 6th Army was forced to surrender to the Soviets in early 1942. To make matters worse, from 1943 onward, the Allies launched massive bombing campaigns against Germany, which the devastated Luftwaffe was virtually powerless to resist. Even as the war raged, Goering have orders to the SS to make plans for a "Final Solution to the Jewish Question", which as we all know, turned out to be the Holocaust, which the SS was ruthless in executing. He also signed orders for the torture and execution of partisans and POWs.
During this time, Goering enjoyed a luxurious lifestyle in his palace, decorated with stolen art from across conquered Europe.
By 1945, it was clear even to Goering that the war was lost. He sent a telegram to Hitler, requesting permission to take charge of the government and negotiate with the Allies. Hitler enraged, ordered Goering's arrest and execution. In a bid to avoid the Fuhrer's wrath, (though unknown to him, Hitler had already committed suicide on April 30) Goering surrendered to American troops on May 6, 1945. A few months later, he was taken to Nuremberg to stand trial for war crimes.
At first, it seemed that Goering might well escape justice. His high position within the Nazi Party made many of the other defendants see him as a leader, and when he was first questioned by chief American prosecutor Robert Jackson, many felt Goering got the better of him. But that didn't last long. A few days later, British prosecutor Sir David Maxwell Fyfe caught Goering with his own words, exposing his order to the SS to plan the "Final Solution to Jewish Question". After this, Goering was finished. The judges sentenced him to death by hanging.
But Goering had one last trick up his sleeve. Somehow he managed to sneak a cyanide pill into his cell, and committed suicide the day before the executions took place, thus cheating the hangman. To this day, no one is quite sure how he managed it.
And so ended the inglorious career of Hermann Goring.
Showing posts with label Historical Highlights. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Historical Highlights. Show all posts
Friday, October 5, 2018
Monday, October 1, 2018
The Nuremberg Trials
October 1, 1946 marked the end of the Nuremberg Trial- AKA "The Biggest Murder Trial in History". The accused were 24 of the top Nazi leaders. The accusers were representatives of the United States, Britain, France, and the Soviet Union.... As well as the 6 Million victims of Nazi terror.
Hitler, Gobbels, and Himmler may have been dead, but the Allies were determined that the remaining Nazi leaders be brought to justice at all cost. And over the next few weeks I'll be profiling the most infamous of them. It won't be light reading to say the least, but I think that it's important that we not forget these men or what they did. As they say "Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it."
Hitler, Gobbels, and Himmler may have been dead, but the Allies were determined that the remaining Nazi leaders be brought to justice at all cost. And over the next few weeks I'll be profiling the most infamous of them. It won't be light reading to say the least, but I think that it's important that we not forget these men or what they did. As they say "Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it."
Saturday, October 7, 2017
Historical Highlights: Avraham Stern, Israel's would be Fuehrer
Jewish Nazis? For obvious reasons, most find the idea absurd, or even a contradiction in terms. But surprisingly, Israel did once have it's very own fascist movement, and it's very own would be dictator...
Avraham Stern was born on December 23, 1907 in the village of Suwalki in Poland, then part of the Russian Empire. When World War One broke out, he, his mother, and his brother David, fled to Russia to escape the carnage. Growing up in Russia during the First World War and the Russian Revolution was obviously not easy, so it's not surprising that Stern, like many other Jews of his generation, became attracted to the Zionist movement at an early age.
After his mother's death, he decided he had no more reason to stay in Russia, so at the age of 18, he moved to Israel, then a British colony. When the Arabs of Palestine started a pogrom against the Jews in 1929, Stern served with a Jewish socialist militia. A few years later, Stern was awarded a scholarship to study at a university in Florence, Italy. While in Italy, Stern became impressed with Benito Mussolini's fascist movement. He saw how Mussolini had seemingly brought order and pride to the once disorderly and divided Italian nation, and decided that the Jews needed their own strong leader to save them from the horrors of foreign domination. He decided that he would be Israel's secular messiah.
After completing college, Stern spent the rest of the 1930s organizing Jewish militias, and smuggling Jewish immigrants into Palestine against the will of the British colonial authorities. As a result, the British arrested him in 1939. In mid 1940 he managed to escape, and founded a new militia called the Lehi, a Hebrew acronym that stood for Fighters for the Freedom of Israel, promising to establish a Jewish state based on "Nationalist and totalitarian principles". In addition to adopting fascist ideology, the Lehi copied many of the outward trappings of Mussolini's movement as well. They wore black uniforms, and even used the fascist salute. As their symbol, they adopted the half clinched fist, in reference to Psalms 137:5. ("If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget it's skill!")
Stern's hatred for the British colonial authorities was so great, that he was willing to work with the Axis to achieve his goal of driving the British out of Israel. However, he attracted very little support from either the wider Jewish community, who opposed Nazism and supported the British, or Hitler, who obviously preferred to support the Arabs. As a result, the Lehi was forced to carry out it's guerilla campaign against the British on it's own.
Inevitably, Stern's terrorist campaign failed, and on February 12, 1942, he was shot by British troops in Tel Aviv. After Stern's death, the Lehi movement began to fade away. After World War II they tried to get support from Stalin's Soviet Union, again without success, and by the founding of Israel in 1948, the movement was dissolved.
Stern's story serves as a warning that people of all, ethnic groups, not just white "Aryans" can fall prey to dangerous ideologies...
Avraham Stern was born on December 23, 1907 in the village of Suwalki in Poland, then part of the Russian Empire. When World War One broke out, he, his mother, and his brother David, fled to Russia to escape the carnage. Growing up in Russia during the First World War and the Russian Revolution was obviously not easy, so it's not surprising that Stern, like many other Jews of his generation, became attracted to the Zionist movement at an early age.
After his mother's death, he decided he had no more reason to stay in Russia, so at the age of 18, he moved to Israel, then a British colony. When the Arabs of Palestine started a pogrom against the Jews in 1929, Stern served with a Jewish socialist militia. A few years later, Stern was awarded a scholarship to study at a university in Florence, Italy. While in Italy, Stern became impressed with Benito Mussolini's fascist movement. He saw how Mussolini had seemingly brought order and pride to the once disorderly and divided Italian nation, and decided that the Jews needed their own strong leader to save them from the horrors of foreign domination. He decided that he would be Israel's secular messiah.
After completing college, Stern spent the rest of the 1930s organizing Jewish militias, and smuggling Jewish immigrants into Palestine against the will of the British colonial authorities. As a result, the British arrested him in 1939. In mid 1940 he managed to escape, and founded a new militia called the Lehi, a Hebrew acronym that stood for Fighters for the Freedom of Israel, promising to establish a Jewish state based on "Nationalist and totalitarian principles". In addition to adopting fascist ideology, the Lehi copied many of the outward trappings of Mussolini's movement as well. They wore black uniforms, and even used the fascist salute. As their symbol, they adopted the half clinched fist, in reference to Psalms 137:5. ("If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget it's skill!")
Stern's hatred for the British colonial authorities was so great, that he was willing to work with the Axis to achieve his goal of driving the British out of Israel. However, he attracted very little support from either the wider Jewish community, who opposed Nazism and supported the British, or Hitler, who obviously preferred to support the Arabs. As a result, the Lehi was forced to carry out it's guerilla campaign against the British on it's own.
Inevitably, Stern's terrorist campaign failed, and on February 12, 1942, he was shot by British troops in Tel Aviv. After Stern's death, the Lehi movement began to fade away. After World War II they tried to get support from Stalin's Soviet Union, again without success, and by the founding of Israel in 1948, the movement was dissolved.
Stern's story serves as a warning that people of all, ethnic groups, not just white "Aryans" can fall prey to dangerous ideologies...
Tuesday, December 20, 2016
Historical Highlights: Faisal al-Hashimi
Today I want to talk about someone who almost changed the history of the Middle East for the better, but unfortunately all too many Arabs did not heed his advice.
Faisal al-Hashimi was born on May 20, 1885 in Mecca, the holy city of Islam. His father, Hussein bin Ali, was the governor of the holy city. In theory he worked for his Ottoman Turkish overlords in Istanbul, but he, like many other Arabs, dreamed of an independent Arab nation, free from Turkish rule. In 1913 Faisal was elected to the recently created Ottoman Parliament, and World War One broke out a year later. But by 1916 he had a meeting that changed the course of his life.
While on a trip to Damascus, Faisal met a British Army officer named T.E. Lawrence, who persuaded him to raise an Arab revolt against the Turks. Faisal, fatefully, agreed.
With Lawrence's help, Faisal and his Arab rebels captured Mecca, Medina, and Damascus, kicking the Turks out of the Arab lands forever. Part of the reason for his victory was that rather than enforcing Sharia law as many other Arab leaders did, Faisal emphasized Arab rather than Muslim identity, and as a result Arab Christians and Jews rallied to his cause. As a reward for his victory Faisal was made King of Syria at the Versailles peace conference. While there, he signed a treaty with Zionist leader Chaim Weizmann, agreeing to support the creation of a Jewish state in the Holy Land, something that many other Arabs refused to even consider.
Looking at the Middle East in 1920, with the fall of the Ottoman Empire, the rise of independent, democratic, and religiously tolerant Arab, Turkish, and Armenian states, and the Jews finally returning to their ancient homeland, it would have been tempting to see this as the dawn of a new golden age for the region. Unfortunately though, it was not to be.
In the spring of 1920 the French laid claim to Syria, and after a few months of combat, they deposed Faisal's government and he was exiled to Britain. Luckily for him though, the British had plans for him. They were looking for someone to rule over their protectorate in Iraq, and he was just the man. So in March of 1921, he was declared King of Iraq. Despite being relatively unknown among Iraqi Arabs, Faisal toured his new kingdom and won over his subjects. During his reign he improved the education system (which until then had been virtually non-existent), prevented his civil servants from trying to fire Jewish officials because of their ethnicity, built roads to connect Baghdad with Damascus, Amman, and other major Arab cities, promoted religious tolerance, and built up the Iraqi Army.
Faisal, who by now was seen as more or less the natural leader of the Arabs, dreamed of uniting Iraq and Syria into a single constitutional monarchy under his rule, but the Turks, Egyptians, and Saudis all opposed this, fearing that such a nation would dominate the region. By 1933, Faisal had fallen severely ill and was largely unable to govern the country himself, with tragic results. After a clash between Iraqi troops and an Assyrian Christian militia, several Assyrians were massacred at the village of Simele. Faisal was horrified by this, but was unable to punish the killers because many radical Muslims viewed the killers as heroes. This incident likely caused his health to deteriorate even further, and he died on September 8, 1933, some say due to poisoning.
Who knows what may have happened had he lived longer. I can't help but think that if Faisal had been in power when Israel declared it's independence in 1948 he would likely have refused to go to war with them, unlike the other Arab nations. Would this have lead to a more peaceful and tolerant Middle East? Only God knows for sure, but I'd like to think so.
Faisal al-Hashimi was born on May 20, 1885 in Mecca, the holy city of Islam. His father, Hussein bin Ali, was the governor of the holy city. In theory he worked for his Ottoman Turkish overlords in Istanbul, but he, like many other Arabs, dreamed of an independent Arab nation, free from Turkish rule. In 1913 Faisal was elected to the recently created Ottoman Parliament, and World War One broke out a year later. But by 1916 he had a meeting that changed the course of his life.
While on a trip to Damascus, Faisal met a British Army officer named T.E. Lawrence, who persuaded him to raise an Arab revolt against the Turks. Faisal, fatefully, agreed.
With Lawrence's help, Faisal and his Arab rebels captured Mecca, Medina, and Damascus, kicking the Turks out of the Arab lands forever. Part of the reason for his victory was that rather than enforcing Sharia law as many other Arab leaders did, Faisal emphasized Arab rather than Muslim identity, and as a result Arab Christians and Jews rallied to his cause. As a reward for his victory Faisal was made King of Syria at the Versailles peace conference. While there, he signed a treaty with Zionist leader Chaim Weizmann, agreeing to support the creation of a Jewish state in the Holy Land, something that many other Arabs refused to even consider.
Looking at the Middle East in 1920, with the fall of the Ottoman Empire, the rise of independent, democratic, and religiously tolerant Arab, Turkish, and Armenian states, and the Jews finally returning to their ancient homeland, it would have been tempting to see this as the dawn of a new golden age for the region. Unfortunately though, it was not to be.
In the spring of 1920 the French laid claim to Syria, and after a few months of combat, they deposed Faisal's government and he was exiled to Britain. Luckily for him though, the British had plans for him. They were looking for someone to rule over their protectorate in Iraq, and he was just the man. So in March of 1921, he was declared King of Iraq. Despite being relatively unknown among Iraqi Arabs, Faisal toured his new kingdom and won over his subjects. During his reign he improved the education system (which until then had been virtually non-existent), prevented his civil servants from trying to fire Jewish officials because of their ethnicity, built roads to connect Baghdad with Damascus, Amman, and other major Arab cities, promoted religious tolerance, and built up the Iraqi Army.
Faisal, who by now was seen as more or less the natural leader of the Arabs, dreamed of uniting Iraq and Syria into a single constitutional monarchy under his rule, but the Turks, Egyptians, and Saudis all opposed this, fearing that such a nation would dominate the region. By 1933, Faisal had fallen severely ill and was largely unable to govern the country himself, with tragic results. After a clash between Iraqi troops and an Assyrian Christian militia, several Assyrians were massacred at the village of Simele. Faisal was horrified by this, but was unable to punish the killers because many radical Muslims viewed the killers as heroes. This incident likely caused his health to deteriorate even further, and he died on September 8, 1933, some say due to poisoning.
Who knows what may have happened had he lived longer. I can't help but think that if Faisal had been in power when Israel declared it's independence in 1948 he would likely have refused to go to war with them, unlike the other Arab nations. Would this have lead to a more peaceful and tolerant Middle East? Only God knows for sure, but I'd like to think so.
Wednesday, August 24, 2016
Historical Highlights: John Henry Patterson
Today I'm going to tell the story of John Henry Patterson, the Israeli Army's unlikely Gentile father.
John Patterson was born in Forgney, Ireland, on November 10, 1867. He was raised by a Protestant father and a Catholic mother, and became a devout Protestant, which would later fuel his pro-Jewish sympathies. He joined the British army in 1884, and was sent to India, where he became an experienced tiger hunter, a skill which would come in handy later.
In 1898 he was sent to Africa to supervise the construction of a railway along the Tsavo River in modern day Kenya. While in Africa, Patterson's workers were regularly attacked by lions, so Patterson set out to hunt the lions (known as the "Tsavo Man-Eaters") down. After several attempts, he finally killed them, and was hailed as a hero by the native population. A few years later, the British colonial governor of Kenya made him a game warden.
In 1909, he went on safari with the nobleman Audley Blyth and his wife Ethel. During the safari, Audley committed suicide, and although Patterson was not involved, he was accused of killing Blyth to have an affair with Ethel. These untrue rumors would haunt him and his military career for several years afterward.
He served bravely during the Boer War, but won his real spurs in the Middle Eastern Campaign of World War One, where he found himself commanding a Legion of Jewish Volunteers, despite being a Gentile himself. During this time, he grew to respect his Jewish soldiers and their Zionist cause, and was angered by the prejudice they faced from his superiors, so much so that he threatened to resign in order to force the high command to treat them fairly. He succeeded, but the generals held a grudge against Patterson, and he was never promoted. All the same, his Jewish Legion later became the foundation for the Israeli Army.
After World War One, Patterson continued his support for Zionism, and supported the creation of a new Jewish Brigade to fight the Nazis, although he was too old by then to command it himself. His final request before his death on June 18, 1947, was to be buried in Israel, and the Israeli government granted his request decades later in 2014.
If any man can be said to have lived the British Empire, it was John Henry Patterson.
John Patterson was born in Forgney, Ireland, on November 10, 1867. He was raised by a Protestant father and a Catholic mother, and became a devout Protestant, which would later fuel his pro-Jewish sympathies. He joined the British army in 1884, and was sent to India, where he became an experienced tiger hunter, a skill which would come in handy later.
In 1898 he was sent to Africa to supervise the construction of a railway along the Tsavo River in modern day Kenya. While in Africa, Patterson's workers were regularly attacked by lions, so Patterson set out to hunt the lions (known as the "Tsavo Man-Eaters") down. After several attempts, he finally killed them, and was hailed as a hero by the native population. A few years later, the British colonial governor of Kenya made him a game warden.
In 1909, he went on safari with the nobleman Audley Blyth and his wife Ethel. During the safari, Audley committed suicide, and although Patterson was not involved, he was accused of killing Blyth to have an affair with Ethel. These untrue rumors would haunt him and his military career for several years afterward.
He served bravely during the Boer War, but won his real spurs in the Middle Eastern Campaign of World War One, where he found himself commanding a Legion of Jewish Volunteers, despite being a Gentile himself. During this time, he grew to respect his Jewish soldiers and their Zionist cause, and was angered by the prejudice they faced from his superiors, so much so that he threatened to resign in order to force the high command to treat them fairly. He succeeded, but the generals held a grudge against Patterson, and he was never promoted. All the same, his Jewish Legion later became the foundation for the Israeli Army.
After World War One, Patterson continued his support for Zionism, and supported the creation of a new Jewish Brigade to fight the Nazis, although he was too old by then to command it himself. His final request before his death on June 18, 1947, was to be buried in Israel, and the Israeli government granted his request decades later in 2014.
If any man can be said to have lived the British Empire, it was John Henry Patterson.
Tuesday, July 12, 2016
Historical Highlights: Battle of the Boyne
Every year, on July 12, proud people parade triumphantly through the streets of Belfast, Northern Ireland. But who are these people and what are they celebrating? To answer that question, we have to go back over 400 years ago, to the late 1600s.
In 1685, James II, a Catholic, became King of England, and began trying to impose Catholicism and absolute monarchy on the traditionally Protestant and constitutional English nation. This naturally provoked a great deal of hostility towards the King among both Parliament and the common people, and it wasn't long before they began to plot against him. This plot finally came to fruition in 1688 when William III, Prince of Orange, King of the Netherlands, and next in line to the English throne, landed in the English port of Brixham, provoking a revolution that forced James to flee to Ireland. William was crowned as England's new King, and he set about restoring England's Protestant, constitutional order. All seemed to be well now.
But it wasn't, not yet. Back in Ireland, James was rousing the Catholics of southern Ireland to his cause in an attempt to retake Britain. However, the Protestants of Northern Ireland (also known as Ulster) refused to accept his rule. So, in 1689, James set out to conquer Ulster, as a stepping stone to reconquering Britain. But the Ulster Protestants proved to be better fighters than James had expected. From April 18 to July 28 his forces besieged the town of Derry, but the people of Derry refused to give up, and as a result "No Surrender" became a battle cry still used in Ulster today. For over three months the Catholic cannons banged away at Derry, and disease spread, but still the Protestants stood firm. Finally, on April 28, the Royal Navy blasted through the Catholic lines, and the battle was won.
After William arrived in Ulster, the Protestants went on the offensive and marched south. When the Protestant forces tried to cross the Boyne River near Dublin on 11 July, 1690, the Catholics tried to oppose them. They nearly drove the Protestants back across the river, but the Protestant cavalry managed to regroup and counterattack, forcing the Catholics to retreat. This was a major victory for William. Although the Catholics weren't completely defeated until 1691, the Battle of the Boyne was the end of their chances of victory.
Although the battle actually happened on July 11, it came to be celebrated by Irish protestants on July 12 thanks to calendar confusions, and is still celebrated that way today. For Protestants, the Boyne is a symbol of their determination to keep the true Christian faith in defiance of Papal authority. For Catholics, it is a symbol of humiliating defeat that still fuels resentment today. The Irish Catholics would continue to try to subvert the Protestants (notably in the Easter rebellion of 1916, the Irish Republican Army's support for Hitler, a nominal Catholic by the way, during World War II, and the Troubles of 1969 to 1998) but thankfully for true Christians like myself they have always failed.
Honestly the fact that the Catholic Church likes to posture about being the one true Christian church despite having mostly abandoned true Christian doctrine, and that the Pope is hailed by many as Christianity's leader despite the Papacy's frequent abuse of power over several centuries enrages me, and I suspect that it enrages God as well. I look forward to the day when the true church will replace the false one once and for all. Happy Orange Day!
In 1685, James II, a Catholic, became King of England, and began trying to impose Catholicism and absolute monarchy on the traditionally Protestant and constitutional English nation. This naturally provoked a great deal of hostility towards the King among both Parliament and the common people, and it wasn't long before they began to plot against him. This plot finally came to fruition in 1688 when William III, Prince of Orange, King of the Netherlands, and next in line to the English throne, landed in the English port of Brixham, provoking a revolution that forced James to flee to Ireland. William was crowned as England's new King, and he set about restoring England's Protestant, constitutional order. All seemed to be well now.
But it wasn't, not yet. Back in Ireland, James was rousing the Catholics of southern Ireland to his cause in an attempt to retake Britain. However, the Protestants of Northern Ireland (also known as Ulster) refused to accept his rule. So, in 1689, James set out to conquer Ulster, as a stepping stone to reconquering Britain. But the Ulster Protestants proved to be better fighters than James had expected. From April 18 to July 28 his forces besieged the town of Derry, but the people of Derry refused to give up, and as a result "No Surrender" became a battle cry still used in Ulster today. For over three months the Catholic cannons banged away at Derry, and disease spread, but still the Protestants stood firm. Finally, on April 28, the Royal Navy blasted through the Catholic lines, and the battle was won.
After William arrived in Ulster, the Protestants went on the offensive and marched south. When the Protestant forces tried to cross the Boyne River near Dublin on 11 July, 1690, the Catholics tried to oppose them. They nearly drove the Protestants back across the river, but the Protestant cavalry managed to regroup and counterattack, forcing the Catholics to retreat. This was a major victory for William. Although the Catholics weren't completely defeated until 1691, the Battle of the Boyne was the end of their chances of victory.
Although the battle actually happened on July 11, it came to be celebrated by Irish protestants on July 12 thanks to calendar confusions, and is still celebrated that way today. For Protestants, the Boyne is a symbol of their determination to keep the true Christian faith in defiance of Papal authority. For Catholics, it is a symbol of humiliating defeat that still fuels resentment today. The Irish Catholics would continue to try to subvert the Protestants (notably in the Easter rebellion of 1916, the Irish Republican Army's support for Hitler, a nominal Catholic by the way, during World War II, and the Troubles of 1969 to 1998) but thankfully for true Christians like myself they have always failed.
Honestly the fact that the Catholic Church likes to posture about being the one true Christian church despite having mostly abandoned true Christian doctrine, and that the Pope is hailed by many as Christianity's leader despite the Papacy's frequent abuse of power over several centuries enrages me, and I suspect that it enrages God as well. I look forward to the day when the true church will replace the false one once and for all. Happy Orange Day!
Thursday, June 30, 2016
Historical Highlights: The Czech Legion
Today, instead of highlighting an individual person as usual, we're going to be talking about what I think is one of the greatest untold stories of World War One: the adventures of the Czech Legion!
Ever since 1526, the land that is now the Czech Republic had been under the rule of the Austrian Empire, but by the time World War One broke out in 1914, many Czechs wanted freedom and independence from Austrian rule. As such, many Czechs joined the armies of the Entente Powers fighting against Austria, including France, Italy, and, most importantly, Russia.
The Czech Legion serving under Russian command served bravely throughout the war, most notably in 1917 at the Battle of Zborov in Ukraine, where they inflicted a severe defeat on the Austrians and Germans. However, despite the valiant efforts of the Russian and Czech armies, the Bolshevik Revolution broke out in October of 1917, dividing the Russians between communist and anti-communist factions, and crippling their war effort against the Germans. The Czechs on the other hand, were determined to continue the fight, and decided to try and fight their way across Russia (a pretty tall order, what with Russia being the largest country on Earth and all) and then sail to France to fight on the Western Front. And so, in May, 1918, the Czechs fought off several German assaults in the Ukraine and started their epic quest across Russia.
Although the Russian Communists promised not to interfere with the Czechs' journey, tensions were on the rise between them and the Czechs as they headed towards Russia's Pacific port at Vladivostok, until, on May 14, the Russians attempted to arrest the Czechs at Chelyabinsk. The Czechs refused to surrender, leading to outright war between them and the Russian Communists. They continued to fight along the Siberian railway throughout the rest of May 1918, with the Czechs winning most of the battles despite being severely outnumbered (including one battle in which they allegedly managed to make off with most of the communists' gold), and by the end of the month, the Czechs had reached Vladivostok and overthrew the local communist government. The Soviets were so terrified of the Czechs that they executed the Tsar and his family so the Czechs couldn't rescue them. It's a shame that the Czechs didn't arrive in time to save them too, since if the Tsar's family had lived the movie Anastasia wouldn't have been made, which would be a net gain for humanity.
Throughout their journey through Russia the Czechs escorted a number of Russian refugees from the communists (mostly women and children) to safety in the Western countries.
Although the war had ended by the time the Czechs made it home in 1920, the Entente powers of Britain, France, America, and Italy were so impressed by the Czechs' bravery that they agreed to create an independent Czech nation, whose army was mostly made up of veterans of the Legion.
In conclusion, I think it's a shame that this, one of the coolest epics of World War One, has been largely forgotten, (except among Czechs and Slovaks of course) and all I have to say to the people who forgot about it is... Czech your privilege!...
...I'm sorry...
Thursday, June 9, 2016
Historical Highlights: Golda Meir
I've been wanting to do a woman for Historical Highlights for a while now, and I've finally found someone who's perfect for it: Golda Meir.
She was born Golda Mabovitch in Kiev, Ukraine (then part of the Russian Empire) on May 3, 1898 to a Jewish family. She would later write that her earliest memories were of her father barricading the door in case of a pogrom.
Her family moved to America in 1906. While there, Golda was exposed to ideas like women's suffrage, trade unionism, and (most importantly for her) Zionism, which was a movement that supported a Jewish return to the Holy Land, then under the rule of the Turkish Ottoman Empire. In 1917 she married Morris Meyerson, and in 1921 they moved to the Holy Land, which was now under the control of the British, who supported Zionism.
In the Holy Land the Meyersons joined a kibbutz, or Jewish collective farm. During the 1930s she served as a representative of the Zionist movement in America, where she lobbied largely unsuccessfully for Jews fleeing Nazi Germany to be allowed into the country. By 1948 she was buying weapons in the US to prepare for the war she believed would soon break out between the Jews and the Arabs in the Holy Land. Just before the war broke out she met with King Abdullah of Jordan, who urged the Jews not to hurry in establishing an independent state. She replied by saying "We've been waiting for 2,000 years. Is that hurrying?"
On May 14, 1948 she was one of the people who signed the Israeli Declaration of Independence, which led to Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Iraq, and Lebanon invading the new country. Despite being thoroughly outnumbered the Israelis managed to defend themselves and even capture some territory from the enemy, largely thanks to the weapons Golda had obtained in America.
After briefly serving as the Israeli ambassador to the Soviet Union from late 1948- 1949, the Israeli Government appointed her as it's labor minister, a position she served in until 1956, during which time she began a number of housing and road building projects. After this she served as foreign minister, during which time she changed her last name to the more Hebrew sounding "Meir". In 1969 she was elected Prime Minister of Israel. After the 1972 Olympic Games attacks in Munich, Germany, in which Arab terrorists killed several Israeli athletes, she ordered the Mossad to hunt down the killers, which they succeeded in doing.
In October of 1973, Meir received reports that Syria and Egypt were preparing for another invasion of Israel. Some Israeli generals suggested they she mobilize the entire military and launch a preemptive attack against the Arab states, but she decided that doing so would lead to Israel being perceived as the aggressor abroad, making it harder to get foreign aid, so she decided on a compromise solution: Israel would not attack the Arabs first, but would put the military on high alert just in case. When the Yom Kippur War broke out a few days later, Israel was prepared largely thanks to her. After the war she resigned in 1974, and died on December 8, 1978.
I really admire Mrs. Meir, and I definitely think she earned the nickname "Israel's Iron Lady".
She was born Golda Mabovitch in Kiev, Ukraine (then part of the Russian Empire) on May 3, 1898 to a Jewish family. She would later write that her earliest memories were of her father barricading the door in case of a pogrom.
Her family moved to America in 1906. While there, Golda was exposed to ideas like women's suffrage, trade unionism, and (most importantly for her) Zionism, which was a movement that supported a Jewish return to the Holy Land, then under the rule of the Turkish Ottoman Empire. In 1917 she married Morris Meyerson, and in 1921 they moved to the Holy Land, which was now under the control of the British, who supported Zionism.
In the Holy Land the Meyersons joined a kibbutz, or Jewish collective farm. During the 1930s she served as a representative of the Zionist movement in America, where she lobbied largely unsuccessfully for Jews fleeing Nazi Germany to be allowed into the country. By 1948 she was buying weapons in the US to prepare for the war she believed would soon break out between the Jews and the Arabs in the Holy Land. Just before the war broke out she met with King Abdullah of Jordan, who urged the Jews not to hurry in establishing an independent state. She replied by saying "We've been waiting for 2,000 years. Is that hurrying?"
On May 14, 1948 she was one of the people who signed the Israeli Declaration of Independence, which led to Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Iraq, and Lebanon invading the new country. Despite being thoroughly outnumbered the Israelis managed to defend themselves and even capture some territory from the enemy, largely thanks to the weapons Golda had obtained in America.
After briefly serving as the Israeli ambassador to the Soviet Union from late 1948- 1949, the Israeli Government appointed her as it's labor minister, a position she served in until 1956, during which time she began a number of housing and road building projects. After this she served as foreign minister, during which time she changed her last name to the more Hebrew sounding "Meir". In 1969 she was elected Prime Minister of Israel. After the 1972 Olympic Games attacks in Munich, Germany, in which Arab terrorists killed several Israeli athletes, she ordered the Mossad to hunt down the killers, which they succeeded in doing.
In October of 1973, Meir received reports that Syria and Egypt were preparing for another invasion of Israel. Some Israeli generals suggested they she mobilize the entire military and launch a preemptive attack against the Arab states, but she decided that doing so would lead to Israel being perceived as the aggressor abroad, making it harder to get foreign aid, so she decided on a compromise solution: Israel would not attack the Arabs first, but would put the military on high alert just in case. When the Yom Kippur War broke out a few days later, Israel was prepared largely thanks to her. After the war she resigned in 1974, and died on December 8, 1978.
I really admire Mrs. Meir, and I definitely think she earned the nickname "Israel's Iron Lady".
Tuesday, May 31, 2016
Historical Highlights: Lajos Kossuth
Today we've got a pretty interesting character on our hands today, and I'm not just talking about his name.
Lajos Kossuth was born on September 19, 1802 in Monok, Hungary to a devout Lutheran noble family. He was popular within the community, and in 1825 he was appointed to the Hungarian National Diet. At the time Hungary was little more than a province of the Austrian Hapsburg Empire, but Kossuth was a Hungarian nationalist who believed that Hungary should become an independent nation. He soon became a journalist, writing numerous editorials condemning Austrian tyranny, which resulted in him becoming famous throughout Hungary. The Austrians, worried that he might cause a revolt, arrested him in 1837, causing an uproar throughout the country, ultimately forcing the Austrians to release him in 1840. Over the next few years Kossuth developed an ideology based around democracy and patriotism, ideas which were spreading throughout Europe at the time.
Then finally, the moment came. In 1848 revolution broke out in France and quickly spread to the German states, the Italian states, Austria, Denmark and Hungary. Kossuth, with his passionate and charismatic speeches, quickly became the leader of the democratic movement, not just in Hungary but throughout Europe, and he was quickly made President of Hungary, at which point he set about improving the country's infrastructure and liberating the Hungarian Jews. When Croatian forces invaded Hungary to restore Hapsburg rule, Kossuth raised a volunteer army called the Honved, that defeated the Hapsburg troops at the Battle of Pakozd. For a while it looked like Kossuth might indeed win independence for Hungary.
But it was not to be. The revolutionary forces in Germany, Italy, and Austria failed in 1849, and the Austrian forces regrouped and began handing defeat after defeat to the Hungarian forces. When the Russians invaded Hungary to help the Austrians, the Hungarian Revolution's fate was sealed.
After the war Kossuth went into exile in Britain and later America, where his speeches won him many admirers and he remained a hero amongst Hungarian nationalists. He died in 1894, several years before Hungary finally became independent in 1918, but the modern Hungarian nation is still largely based on his ideas of nationalist democracy.
Lajos Kossuth was born on September 19, 1802 in Monok, Hungary to a devout Lutheran noble family. He was popular within the community, and in 1825 he was appointed to the Hungarian National Diet. At the time Hungary was little more than a province of the Austrian Hapsburg Empire, but Kossuth was a Hungarian nationalist who believed that Hungary should become an independent nation. He soon became a journalist, writing numerous editorials condemning Austrian tyranny, which resulted in him becoming famous throughout Hungary. The Austrians, worried that he might cause a revolt, arrested him in 1837, causing an uproar throughout the country, ultimately forcing the Austrians to release him in 1840. Over the next few years Kossuth developed an ideology based around democracy and patriotism, ideas which were spreading throughout Europe at the time.
Then finally, the moment came. In 1848 revolution broke out in France and quickly spread to the German states, the Italian states, Austria, Denmark and Hungary. Kossuth, with his passionate and charismatic speeches, quickly became the leader of the democratic movement, not just in Hungary but throughout Europe, and he was quickly made President of Hungary, at which point he set about improving the country's infrastructure and liberating the Hungarian Jews. When Croatian forces invaded Hungary to restore Hapsburg rule, Kossuth raised a volunteer army called the Honved, that defeated the Hapsburg troops at the Battle of Pakozd. For a while it looked like Kossuth might indeed win independence for Hungary.
But it was not to be. The revolutionary forces in Germany, Italy, and Austria failed in 1849, and the Austrian forces regrouped and began handing defeat after defeat to the Hungarian forces. When the Russians invaded Hungary to help the Austrians, the Hungarian Revolution's fate was sealed.
After the war Kossuth went into exile in Britain and later America, where his speeches won him many admirers and he remained a hero amongst Hungarian nationalists. He died in 1894, several years before Hungary finally became independent in 1918, but the modern Hungarian nation is still largely based on his ideas of nationalist democracy.
Friday, May 27, 2016
Historical Highlights: Albert I of Belgium
Ok, today I'd like to introduce a new segment on this blog that I like to call "Historical Highlights." basically this is where I'll take a person or an event from history that I feel is often overlooked and put them in the spotlight. And to start off I'd like to introduce quite possibly the coolest king ever, Albert I of Belgium!
So, what made this guy so awesome? Well, besides the fact that he liked to disguise himself as an ordinary person so he could talk to his subjects and find out what their problems were so he could fix them, and besides the fact that he took the Belgian Colony of the Congo, which had been run as a slave state under his uncle Leopold II, and turned it into an infinitely more humane place, the main reason I think he's the most underrated leader of the 20th century is that this dude actually took personal command of his army during the darkest days of World War I, when over 90 percent of his country had been invaded by the Germans. And not only that, but he liked to stay in the trenches with his men, and endured the same hardships of shelling, shooting, and mud slogging that they did. He was like a 20th century version of the medieval kings who would fight right alongside their men!
Also, he had a really awesome mustache.
Seriously, this guy deserves to have a movie about him, stat. He could be played by Christopher Walken and everything! And if not a movie, I think he at least deserves a spot in the next Civilization game.
So, what made this guy so awesome? Well, besides the fact that he liked to disguise himself as an ordinary person so he could talk to his subjects and find out what their problems were so he could fix them, and besides the fact that he took the Belgian Colony of the Congo, which had been run as a slave state under his uncle Leopold II, and turned it into an infinitely more humane place, the main reason I think he's the most underrated leader of the 20th century is that this dude actually took personal command of his army during the darkest days of World War I, when over 90 percent of his country had been invaded by the Germans. And not only that, but he liked to stay in the trenches with his men, and endured the same hardships of shelling, shooting, and mud slogging that they did. He was like a 20th century version of the medieval kings who would fight right alongside their men!
Also, he had a really awesome mustache.
Seriously, this guy deserves to have a movie about him, stat. He could be played by Christopher Walken and everything! And if not a movie, I think he at least deserves a spot in the next Civilization game.
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