Otto the Great – Founder of the Holy Roman Empire
Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor’s victory over Berengar, winning Italy, drawing in the Chronicle of Otto von Freising (Manuscriptum Mediolanense), Schäftlarn, before 1177 On November 23, 912 AD, Otto I,...
View ArticleMan is Man’s Wolf – Thomas Hobbes and his Leviathan
Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679), Portrait by John Michael Wright On December 4, 1679, Thomas Hobbes passed away. The philosopher of the Age of Enlightenment and the political theorist of the Absolutism is...
View ArticleSophie Scholl and the White Rose
Sophie Scholl (1921-1943) On February 18, 1943, Sophie Scholl and her brother Hans brought a suitcase full of leaflets to the University of Munich, calling for passive resistance against the Nazis, and...
View ArticleCatherine de Medici and St. Bartholomew’s Day
Fresco representing the wedding of Henri II and Catherine de Medicis On April 13, 1519, Italian noblewoman and Queen of France Catherine de’ Medici was born. Catherine played a key role in the reign of...
View ArticleEncore un Moment – The Life of Madame Du Barry
Madame Du Barry (1743 – 1793) On April 22, 1769, Jeanne Bécu, comtesse du Barry, better known as Madame du Barry, was introduced at the French court. Originally being only a seamstress, Madame du Barry...
View ArticleClaude Joseph Rouget de Lisle and the Marseillaise
Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle singing La Marseillaise On April 25, 1792, French army officier Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle during the French Revolution composes the ‘Chant de guerre pour l’armée du...
View ArticleFrida Kahlo’s struggling Life and Extraordinary Art
Frida Kahlo (1907 – 1954) On July 6, 1907, Mexican painter Magdalena Carmen Frida Kahlo y Calderón was born. She is probably best known for her impressive self-portrait and is still admired as a...
View ArticleAlexis de Tocqueville and the Democracy in America
Alexis de Tocqueville (1805 – 1859) On July 29, 1805, French political thinker and historian Alexis de Tocqueville was born. He is best known for his Democracy in America, where he analyzed the rising...
View ArticleThe Affair of the Diamond Necklace – Harbinger of the French Revolution
“The Queen’s necklace”, reconstruction, Château de Breteuil, France On August 15, 1785, the Cardinal de Rohan was arrested and the ‘Affair of the Diamond Necklace‘, an extraordinary expensive piece of...
View ArticleThe Congress of Vienna in 1814 – Redrawing the Map of Europe
Emperor Franz I received Tsar Alexander I of Russia and King Frederick William III of Prussia, who had gathered to take part in the Congress of Vienna, at the Tabor Bridge on 25 September 1814. On...
View ArticleQuo usque tandem, Catilina – Cicero and the Catilinarian Conspiracy
Cicero Denounces Catiline, fresco by Cesare Maccari, 1882–88 On October 21, 63 BC, Roman philosopher, politician, and orator Marcus Tullius Cicero presented evidence to the members of the Roman senate...
View ArticleGeorg Forster – Naturalist and Revolutionary
Georg Forster (1754-1794) On November 27, 1754, German naturalist, ethnologist, travel writer, journalist, and revolutionary Georg Forster was born. At an early age, he accompanied his father on...
View ArticleMarcus Tullius Cicero – Truly a Homo Novus
Marcus Tullius Cicero (106 – 43 BC) On January 3, 106 BC, Roman philosopher, politician, lawyer, orator, political theorist, consul and constitutionalist Marcus Tullius Cicero was born. Besides his...
View ArticleThe Sugar Act and the American Revolution
John Trumbull’s Declaration of Independence, showing the Committee of Five presenting its work to Congress On April 5, 1764, the Sugar Act passed by the Parliament of Great Britain. The Sugar Act, also...
View ArticleLawrence of Arabia – The Man and the Myth
Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Edward Lawrence (1888-1935) On May 19, 1935, archaeologist and British Army officer Thomas Edward Lawrence died fatally injured in a motorcycle accident in Dorset. Renowned...
View ArticleNiemand hat die Absicht eine Mauer zu bauen!
Waving over the Berlin Wall, photo: wikipedia You might wonder, why we have a German headline today. But, this is an original quote, and also a very famous one about the Berlin Wall… On June 15, 1961,...
View ArticlePablo Picasso’s Guernica
Pablo Picasso‘s Guernica, 1937, Museo Reina Sofia, Madrid, Spain On July 12, 1937, Pablo Picasso presents his famous painting Guernica for the very first time at the Spanish Pavilion at the Paris...
View ArticleScientist and Politician François Arago
Francois Arago On February 26, 1786, French mathematician, physicist, and astronomer François Arago was born. Arago discovered the principle of the production of magnetism by rotation of a nonmagnetic...
View ArticleJoan of Arc, the Maid of Orleans
Entrance of Joan of Arc into Reims in 1429, painting by Jan Matejko On May 30, 1431, Joan of Arc aka the Maid of Orleans was burned at the stake. Joan of Arc is considered a heroine of France for her...
View ArticleHarry Johnston and the “Scramble for Africa”
Sir Harry Johnston (1858-1927) On June 12, 1858, British explorer, botanist, linguist and colonial administrator Sir Harry Johnston was born. His interest in zoological specimens gave him a lucrative...
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