1200's AD
A Father Son story.
Marco Polo was the son of Niccollo Polo. At 15 years old he went with his father and uncle Maffeo in 1271 AD to the Mongolian ruled China. This was the second trip that his father and uncle had taken to China. They traveled to many lands and ended up in Beijing where the Great Khan (Kublai - grandson to Ghengis) was very hospitable.
Marco Polo kept an accurate history of their travels. This book of information was circulated throughout Europe which helped generate more trade with foreign lands through the "silk road".
The Printing Press was invented in China
BC and Early AD Inventions
The Chinese had many major inventions many centuries before the rest of the world. In some cases their inventions were over 500 years ahead the rest of the world. Some of these are the invention of paper, paper money, the magnetic compass, the balanced rudder (in the back of a ship), gunpowder, printing, decimal mathematics, umbrellas, wheelbarrows, multi-stage rockets, the game of chess, hot air balloons, the parachute, Acupressure, the mechanical clock, matches, math, the seismograph, cast iron, and many more.
Gutenberg improved the printing press technology | Before Gutenberg
Ancient Chinese Inventions (Paper, Printing Press, Compass, Gunpowder)
Chinese Links
A Father & Son Story
370 - 323 BC
Alexander was the son of King Phillip II of Macedon (North Greece) who began an expansion of Macedon with his very powerful army.
After Phillip II was assassinated Alexander became the new King at age 20. Alexander had been a general in his fathers armed forces for a number of years and was battle hardened even though he was young. His bold leadership and brilliant understanding of warfare brought him eventually the name "Alexander the Great".
The Mediterranean became the ownership of Alexander and his Greek influence in every way. He even named the biggest city in Egypt Alexandria which was world famous. It's library was the most complete in the world. Greek culture was developed through the Mediterranean due to Alexander's conquests.
When he was young his mentor was the famous philosopher and scientist Aristotle. They continued to correspond and Alexander would send plants and animals to Aristotle for cataloging for scientific knowledge and research.
Helped write the United States Declaration of Independence
Many of the ideas were from his association with the Constitutions written for "The Carolinas" by John Locke.
Helped the French write their Declaration of Independence
1789 AD
Thomas Jefferson was instrumental in the development of the United States of America. He helped write the "Declaration of Independence" which was ratified on July 4, 1776. He was an advocate for states rights and the rights and liberties of "The People" of the United States.
The signing of the Declaration of Independence was on August 2, 1776, not July 4th.
He wrote prolifically about his positions of states rights in the debate (in newspapers) with Hamilton called "The Federalists Papers.
Thomas Jefferson was an ambassador to France during the French Revolution. He was asked to help them write their Declaration of Man and the Citizen.
As the United States minister to France when revolutionary fervor was rising toward the storming of the Bastille in 1789, Jefferson became an ardent supporter of the French Revolution, even allowing his residence to be used as a meeting place for the rebels led by Lafayette.
Inflation in Germany
Early 1900s
Germany's economy was a shambles after World War I. Uncontrollable inflation reduced the value of the money in a worker's wallet to next to nothing. Before the start of World War I, just over four German Reich-marks were equivalent to one U.S. dollar. At the beginning of 1923, the exchange rate had risen to 18,000 marks per dollar by July it had reached 350,000 marks and by September, a staggering one hundred million marks per dollar.
Over 40 assignation attempts on Hitlers Life by Germans during the War
1937 - 1945 AD
Adolph Hitler wrote "Mien Kampf" while in Prison with Hess transcribing it with a typewriter provided by the sympathetic judges and jailers. He was put in jail because of his failed attempt to take Munich, Bavaria, and Germany in a "coup" (Coup d'état - a military takeover).
When he was released as early as possible due to sympathy to his ideas he began the plan to forcibly "take over Germany" as did Mussolini in Italy.
When he ran for office in the Government he gained more and more political strength and many followed his ideas. Others considered these ideas to be too radical and were against him.
Due to the terrible world depression Hitler was able to gain favor with his financial promises. His persuasion of national co-operate gave him a more positive reputation even though the SS was killing dissenters. He gave people jobs as the military was building a bigger and better war machine. The youth were sent to training camps as were the Spartans in the ancient Greek war civilization. The Spartan ideas of letting the perfect live and killing defective children and people was embraced by Hitler in his idealistic Third Reich.
As he took over German politics by brutal force he created hatred in many of the people as did Mussolini in Italy. This rule of brutal tactics created an environment of internal strife in both Germany and Italy.
The movie "Valkyrie" shows a history of a few of the 40 attempts on Hitler's life.
"The Arabic Numeral System"
BC
The Arabs were interested in making their record keeping accurate to the decimal amounts instead of rounding the currency off. The Arabs used a number system by the Indians in India. It was called the "Hindi Numeral System" even though we call it "The Arabic Numeral System". This was a misnomer (an interpretation that is known to be untrue).
This decimal system was devised so that the every day person could use their fingers and thumbs to add or subtract to 10. This system is also useful for exact amounts of money (i.e.. $3.15). Instead of rounding off the 15 cents the amount was calculated precisely. The decimal numeral system made it easier to make accurate records for financial transactions which were very important in trade and tax collection.
The Discovery was not a coincidence
Late 1400s
Christopher Columbus was an inspired man. He knew that he was an instrument in God's hands.
His journals explained this over and over. His lack of understanding about the trade winds was filled in by inspiration of when to travel and what routes.
We now know that he traveled at the exact correct times of the seasons and headed as if he had a past knowledge of the science of the weather and wind patterns.
China's Famous Ocean Voyages of 317 Ships
The Chinese Government built a fleet of 317 ships with 28,000 passengers in 1405 AD to go on 7 discovery voyages. The last voyage was in 1430 AD.
The ships were extremely large and made European ships look small and inferior. The Caravelle style ship wasn't developed in Europe until the last 1400's. China was also using the compass with these expeditions. Their technology far outreached anything European.
This was a fact finding mission. The expedition was quite elaborate. It included ships carrying an army and infantry (with horses onboard). Some of the ships were over 5 times the size of Columbus's ship.
The Chinese were interested in impressing the nations they visited. The Chinese brought gifts to barter for items of interest.
They brought back animals, foods, and spices along with information about their neighboring nations. They were also interested in the music, literature, religions and death ceremonies.
Composed the "The Messiah" in 24 days!
While writing the "Hallelujah Chorus", his servant discovered him with tears in his eyes. He exclaimed, "I did think I did see all Heaven before me, and the great God Himself!!"
Handel's use of biblical words in a theater was revolutionary, and those who opposed Handel went to great extremes to keep his oratorios from being successful.
In contrast to the Irish, the English did not initially like the Messiah. This oratorio, after all, had no story. The soloists had too little to do, and the chorus too much. It was different, and the audience wasn’t ready for it. Twenty-five years later, Handel's Messiah was so popular with the English that they almost rioted.
Beethoven once said: "Handel was the greatest composer that ever lived. I would uncover my head, and kneel before his tomb." King George III called Handel "the Shakespeare of Music." George Bernard Shaw commented that "Handel is not a mere composer in England: he is an institution. What is more, he is a sacred institution."
As Newman Flower observes, "Considering the immensity of the work, and the short time involved in putting it to paper, it will remain, perhaps forever, the greatest feat in the whole history of musical composition." At a Messiah performance in 1759, honoring his seventy-fourth birthday, Handel responded to enthusiastic applause with these words: "Not from me - but from Heaven- comes all." In his last years he worshipped twice every day at St. George's Church, Hanover Square, near his home.
Aprox. 1380 BC
A Pharaoh that believed in only one God: "Aten"
Akhenaten (Amenhotep IV) ruled Egypt from aprox. 1352 - 1336 BC in the 18th Dynasty. He was very controversial because he threw out the priests and declared all of the Gods and Goddesses in the Religion of Egypt wrong, except for Aten, the true God of the universe.
He moved the center of the government of Egypt from Thebes to his new city of Tel-Amarna. He despised the old statues of the old God Amen and the old religious sites and had them desecrated.
After his death Egypt tried to forget his reign and went back to the old system.
General information: The Egyptians built their pyramids in Giza to match the configurations of the stars. The Egyptians made their maps with South at the top and North at the bottom. Honesty and truthfulness were the most important traits to attain to reach their eternal goal to get to heaven in the "afterlife".
The English Dominance over Ireland
Irish music and instrumental music is often associated with St. Patrick's Day and Irish culture in general. From ancient days of the Celt's, music has always been an important part of Irish life. The Celt's had an oral culture, where religion, legend, and history were passed from one generation to the next by way of stories and songs.
After being conquered by the English, and forbidden to speak their own language, the Irish, like other oppressed peoples, turned to music to help them remember important events and hold on to their heritage and history. As it often stirred emotion and helped to galvanize people, music was outlawed by the English. During her reign,Queen Elizabeth I even decreed that all artists and pipers were to be arrested and hanged on the spot.
Florence, Italy
1350s - 1800s
The Medici's were the wealthiest family in the world in the 1400s to the 1550s. Their influence was a major part of the development of the Renaissance.
The Medici were bankers in the late 1300s and later expanded to be "The Bank" of Europe in every major European city. They shared their wealth to build notoriety for themselves which elevated their family to become "true elite" among Lords and Kings. Cosimo and Lorenzo were two of the Medici that used their money to bankroll artists of every kind.
The Medici bank was also the bank of the church. They were influential in the development of daVinci, Michelangelo, Bunnelschi, etc. If there was anything regarding the Italian Renaissance the Medici were involved in some way.
They were primarily "patrons". The PBS video called Medici: Godfathers of the Renaissance explains it quite well.
Helped sponsor ocean navigation but never sailed.
1400's
Prince Henry the Navigator was very famous in Europe. He was of Portuguese royal blood.
He was chiefly responsible for Portugal's age of exploration. By financing many ocean going ventures he was a "patron" of sailing and navigation on the high seas.
His primary interest was to spread Christianity to Africa.
The Wobble of the Earth takes 26,000 year for each cycle
The length of the year has increased slightly over the millennia for a variety of reasons. These include: the gradual slowing of the Earth's rotation, slow changes in the Earth's orbit due to other planets and the moon, as well as regular effects due to precession of the Earth's axis of rotation every 26,000 years.
The Moon and the Sun both influence the tides.
If the moon was the only cause of the tides there would only be one high tide and one low tide every day due to the gravity/attraction of the moon on the oceans of the world.
If you ask lifeguard station personnel why there are two high tides and two low tides every day they would say it's because of the moon's gravitational pull on the oceans of the world.
The complete answer is that the sun also has a gravitational pull on the earth as well. Even though the sun is much further away, it's size makes it's gravitational pull on the earth significant. Significant enough to cause a 2nd high tide every day.
Occasionally the moon and the sun are aligned with each other and the tides are much higher. If there is a storm action going on when this convergence occurs major flooding can occur, sometimes without storm action. Upon convergence the tides are much higher and much lower than usual.
What was the Star of Bethlehem?
In 2 BC Venus and Jupiter appeared so close together in the evening sky, at a tiny 6 arc seconds apart, that they would have appeared to be one very bright star.
The year 2011 is the year 5771 for the Hebrews (Jews)
The Hebrew Calendar was created many years ago and does not use the Gregorian Calendar orientation of BC or AD.
The Jewish calendar uses a 12-month lunar calendar with an extra month occasionally added. The month of Nissan occurs 11 days earlier each year for two or three years, and then jumps forward 30 days, balancing out the drift.
When is New Year’s day?
That depends. Jews have several different days to choose from. The most important are:
1 Tishri: Rosh HaShanah. This day is a celebration of the creation of the world and marks the start of a new calendar year. This will be the day we shall base our calculations on in the following sections.
1 Nisan: New Year for Kings. This is also the start of the religious year. Nisan is considered the first month, although it occurs 6 or 7 months after the start of the calendar year.
The Long Count of the Mayan Calendar (5,125 solar years)
The Mayan Calendar is very unique. It is based from the position of the sun, the Milky Way, and the plane of the ecliptic on December 21, 2012. The Mayans used December 21, 2012 as their base date and count backwards 5125 years to get year 0 (3113 BC).
The Mayans state that on December 21st the cosmic cross formed by the intersecting Milky Way and the plane of the ecliptic was called the Sacred Tree. The trunk of the tree, the Axis Mundi, is the Milky Way, and the main branch intersecting the tree is the plane of the ecliptic.
Mythically, at sunrise on December 21, 2012, the Sun - our Father - rises to conjoin the center of the Sacred Tree, the World Tree, the Tree of Life. The sun has not conjoined the Milky Way and the plane of the ecliptic since some 25,800 years ago. Link
The Long Count b'ak'tun date of this starting point (13.0.0.0.0) is repeated, for the first time in a span of approximately 5,125 solar years. There is an incomplete inscription at the Tortuguero Monument 6 that records this date. It is also carved on the wall of the Temple in Palenque.
There are many references to 2012. Some are: The Mayan Prophecy, The Solar System, Apocalypse Theory, etc.
December 21, 2012 is the Winter Solstice for the Northern Hemisphere and the Summer Solstice for the Southern Hemisphere.
At this time the sun will change its own magnetic poles. This is called the solar cycle (sunspot cycles), tracked since 1755 AD. This particular cycle will end in 2012.
The Jewish date is in October of 2240 AD for the end-time date.
The Islamic date falls in the "year of the Haj" in 2076 AD.
The earthquake was the result of the sliding of the portion of the Earth's crust known as the India plate under the section called the Burma plate. The process has been going on for millennia, one plate pushing against the other until something has to give.
Reported by National Geographic.com
An Iridium Company satellite and derelict Russian satellite collided at high speed while in orbit above the earth on February 13, 2009.
The Hubbell Telescope, International Space Station (ISS), and other satellites orbiting the world are at risk from the debris.
This was the first high speed crash in space craft or satellite history. Hopefully this will be the last.
Reported by National Geographic.com
Hebrew scholars are in disagreement on the name of Noah's wife. Many say that her name is Naamah.
There does not seem to be any passages in the Bible referring to her other than the account beginning in Genesis 7:7 which mentions Noah's wife.
According to Jewish tradition her name is Naamah. Why Tubal-cain's sister (a daughter of Lamech by his wife Zillah, and sister of Tubal-cain, a descendant of Cain) should be specifically mentioned is unknown. Jewish tradition made her Noah's wife. Her name, meaning "the beautiful" or "the pleasant one," reflects the worldly mind of the Cainites, who looked for beauty rather than for character as the chief attraction in women.
Avatar Naamah, a woman identified in the Midrash Genesis Rabbah as the wife of Noah, who is not named in the Tanakh. However, the 17th century theologian John Gill identified Naamah as the name of the wife of Ham, son of Noah, whom he believed may have become confused with Noah's wife.
The wife of Noah is identified in the Book of Jubilees as Emzara.