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a-journey-to-the-cave · 1 year

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( THE CHRONOLOGY )

Te souviens-tu comment l’histoire du monde nous fascinait, lorsque nous étions de naïfs enfants ? Regarde autour de toi ce que nous en avons fait, comment nous avons trahis les promesses de nos aïeux.

Afin d’adapter la chronologie au contexte, une certaine liberté a été prise quant aux divers évènements prétendus historiques. Les dates son approximatives du fait de l’époque, entremêlés à d’autres éléments totalement fictionnels. Pour rappel, les Pictes désignent les peuples d’Ecosse, les Scots d’Irlande, et les Saxons d’origine germaniques ou nordiques.

Le règne de Vortigern (de 410 à 446) : Epoque de grands bouleversements, il s’agit aussi de celle ayant vu le plus de souverains se succéder sur le trône de Bretagne. Elle est essentiellement marquée par l’ascension et la tyrannie du mage noir ayant planté les graines de la haine envers les sorciers du royaume.

410 – Le retrait des troupes romaines de Bretagne face aux nombreux raids Saxons et Pictes sonne le retour de sa division. La gouvernance du royaume est laissée à Constantin II, qui peine à unifier le pays. Il épouse une noble d’origine romaine avec qui il donne naissance à trois fils : Constant, Ambrosius et Uther.

425 – Constantin II meurt dans des circonstances douteuses. Une querelle oppose les familles nobles sur le choix de son successeur, ses fils étant jugés trop jeunes pour monter sur le trône. Sous influence de l’Imperium, Constant revendique finalement la couronne et désigne le mage noir Vortigern pour assurer la régence avant de se retirer dans un monastère, où il sera assassiné quelques mois plus tard.

428 – Vortigern entreprend de soumettre les peuples moldus de Bretagne, à commencer par les Pictes et les Scots. Il engage des mercenaires Saxons pour enlever les enfants de sorciers afin de renforcer son armée et marcher sur l’Ecosse. Sa victoire lui permet d’asseoir sa domination, poussant Ambrosius et Uther à l’exil. C’est une période de prospérité pour tous les sorciers.

438 – La dictature de Vortigern dure depuis plus de 10 ans et son règne de terreur semble ne jamais pouvoir prendre fin. Les moldus sont asservis, privés de leurs droits, devenus captifs des sorciers. Les Saxons se voient offrir bien des richesses en récompense de leur fidélité.

442 – Un groupe de sorciers et moldus opposé à Vortigern détruit les barges d’accostage de la côte bretonne, empêchant l’arrivée d’une nouvelle vague d’envahisseurs Saxons. Ils sont défaits par les frères Hengist et Horsa, qui accèdent ainsi aux plus hautes sphères du pouvoir.

446 – De nombreuses révoltes secouent le pays face à des années de despotisme, d’injustice, de supériorité sorcière et saxonne, au détriment de la population bretonne. Contre toutes attentes, Hengist et Horsa se soulèvent contre leur maître et parviennent à mettre fin à son règne. Le sorcier est exécuté, l’invasion du royaume inévitable.

Le règne d’Uther Pendragon (de 447 à 485) : La Bretagne tente de se reconstruire après dix-huit ans de dictature sorcière. Ainsi, le monde moldu prospère dans le sang d’innombrables innocents sous l’œil satisfait de son roi, bien décidé à éradiquer la magie pour que jamais plus le royaume n’en subisse les maux. C’est globalement une période de terreur dont tout le monde se souvient encore aujourd’hui.

447 – Ambrosius parvient, non sans mal, à récupérer la couronne des mains d’Hengist et Horsa. Il galvanise et organise la défense des troupes bretonnes face aux Saxons, tout en poursuivant les sorciers ayant soutenu Vortigern dans son ascension. Cette période appelée “la Grande Purge”, bien que particulièrement violente, est encore considérée comme une libération pour tous les moldus.

455 – Uther retrouve son frère agonisant, empoisonné par une Boisson du Désespoir. Il accède au trône quelques mois après et, fou de tristesse, décide de bannir l’utilisation de la magie dans tout le royaume. Les sorciers sont contraints de se cacher, vivre dans l’anonymat ou fuir. Nombreux sont ceux à tenter de se réfugier en Ecosse.

462 – Le roi met à mort un Noir des Hébrides, dont il suspend la tête à l’entrée de Camelot en guise d’avertissement pour tous les sorciers. Ces derniers entament un long exode vers l’Ecosse et l’Irlande, dont l’immensité et la variété des paysages permet de garantir un soupçon de sécurité. Sa lignée toute entière prend alors le nom de Pendragon, en référence à ce triste événement.

469 – Uther rencontre Igerne, femme du duc de Cornouailles, dont il tombe amoureux. Ne pensant qu’à elle, il assiège le château de Tintagel, chef-lieu du duché, et parvient à tuer son rival qu’il accuse de pratiquer la magie. Il revendique la main d’Igerne et bannit au couvent Morgane, première fille de la nouvelle reine. Arthur naît l’année suivante.

473 – Le roi organise de grandes fêtes à l’occasion de l’anniversaire d’Arthur. Les festivités sont interrompues par une tentative d’attentat orchestrée par un sorcier. En réponse, Uther continue de durcir les lois anti-magie, et ordonne que de nouvelles battues aies lieu partout dans le royaume. Bien des innocents sont condamnés cette année-là.

480 – Complètement acculés, les sorciers n’ont d’autre choix que de s’allier aux Saxons pour survivre et tenter de mettre fin au règne d’austérité du roi. La bataille de Carohaise est un succès pour la couronne.

485 – Uther entreprend sa dernière bataille contre un groupuscule de résistants sorciers et Saxons alors qu’il est si malade que ses ennemis le surnomment “le Roi Mort-Vivant”. Il meurt en buvant l’eau d’une source empoisonnée. Igerne devient reine régente, et, dans le plus grand secret, tente de retrouver la trace de sa fille.

Le règne d’Arthur Pendragon (de 494 à 534) : Si la légende veut qu’Arthur ait un jour fait un rêve de son peuple vivant en harmonie avec les sorciers, bon nombre de sages persistent à penser que c’est l’enseignement de Merlin qui influença sa perception de la magie. Quoi qu’il en soit, il passera son règne entier à tenter de réconcilier les deux mondes, en vain.

494 – A seulement vingt-quatre ans, Arthur remporte une bataille décisive contre les Saxons au Mont Badon. On raconte dans tout le royaume que c’est Merlin qui aurait réussi à soigner le roi d’une blessure supposée incurable.

500 – Arthur est nommé roi de Bretagne. Il est couronné en présence des monarques Pictes et Scots avec qui il a la ferme intention de faire alliance pour lutter contre les Saxons. Il annonce une ère de paix et lève les mesures anti-magie mises en place par son père. De grandes fêtes viennent célébrer cette nouvelle, durant lesquelles Arthur se laisse séduire par Morgane, alors que tous deux ignorent leurs liens de parenté.

503 – Igerne apprend l’acte incestueux d’Arthur et de Morgane. Elle banni sa propre fille en l’envoyant donner naissance à leur fils Mordred dans un couvent. Elle lui transmet son sang magique… tout comme sa haine envers la famille Pendragon.

505 – Un village sorcier est incendié en pleine nuit par des moldus. Si les malfaiteurs sont publiquement condamnés, Arthur tient à maintenir l’ordre dans le royaume sans créer de nouvelle effusion de sang. Il fait construire un mémorial en l’honneur des victimes sur la grande place de Camelot, affirmant sa volonté d’harmonie entre tous les bretons.

511 – La table ronde s’ouvre pour inclure des chevaliers de tous horizons, au même titre que des sorciers. Si le roi espère apaiser les tensions divisant le royaume par une telle mesure, les plaies du passé demeurent difficiles à panser. La même année, Arthur épouse Guenièvre, fille du duc de Carmélide.

517 – Igerne est retrouvée morte. Arthur proclame une longue période de deuil. De son côté, Merlin part à la recherche de Morgane, qu’il suspecte être à l’origine du meurtre, en vain.

527 – La plus grande bibliothèque que Camelot ait jamais connu est inaugurée, une section toute entière réservée à l’étude de la magie, favorisant ainsi l’installation de nombreux sorciers à la capitale. Les premiers foyers mixtes voient le jour, sous l’œil bienheureux du roi qui commence à voir naître le royaume apaisé dont il a toujours rêvé.

530 – Mordred s’allie aux Saxons dans le plus grand des secrets. Il parvient à constituer la plus grande armée jamais vue, composée de mercenaires, sorciers, loups-garous, géants, et autres créatures malfaisantes.

531 – Lancelot est retrouvé dans la couche de Guenièvre : il est expulsé du royaume, condamné à l’exil. La reine meurt de chagrin quelques mois après seulement. Merlin fait ses premiers pas à Camelot à seulement quatorze ans, sa clairvoyance et sa sagesse lui valant très rapidement une place au sein de la cour.

534 – Déjà affaiblit, Arthur découvre l’identité de son fils Mordred. Les troupes du mage noir son telles que la bataille de Camlann est un désastre total. Les Pendragon finissent par s’entre-tuer, mettant fin au plus meurtrier des conflits. Sans aucune défense, le royaume est envahi par les barbares Saxons, la forteresse de Camelot détruite.

Le règne de Constantin III (de 540 à 589) : Désigné par Arthur pour lui succéder, Constantin met six ans à récupérer le trône de Bretagne aux mains des fils de Mordred, dont la corruption continue à s’étendre. Très rapidement, des rumeurs de débauche commencent à circuler à son sujet, alimentées par les crimes qu’il aurait commis pour étouffer les tentatives de prise de pouvoir des mages noirs ou Saxons.

544 – Constantin répudie sa femme. A la grande stupéfaction, il se remarie avec Morgane, qui le manipule secrètement. Sa propagande anti-magie dissimule sa quête de vengeance envers les chevaliers de la Table Ronde et leurs héritiers, qu’elle juge responsables de l’extinction de sa lignée. Bon nombre d’enfants, moldus ou sorciers, sont tués à tort ou à raison cette année-là.

546 – De lointains voyageurs rapportent que Merlin a été aperçu en Irlande aux côtés de la Reine Maëva, avec qui il organise l’accueil de centaines de familles de sorciers Bretons, Saxons, Pictes ou Scots. Au milieu des réfugiés, il révèle l’existence d’un descendant légitime au trône de Bretagne qu’il a lui-même caché à la naissance : Lohot, déjà âgé de vingt ans.

547 – Prise de Bebbanburgh par Lohot en Ecosse, soutenu par la Reine Maëva. Le siège ne dure que deux jours grâce à l’intervention de dresseurs de dragons, dont la présence seule aurait effrayé les troupes de Morgane. En remerciement pour son aide, Merlin aide la Reine Scot à bâtir une forteresse dédiée à la formation de rescapés sorciers.

550 – Lohot est couronné roi légitime de Bretagne par Merlin dans les ruines de Camelot. En représailles, Morgane lui jette un Maléfice de Sommeil, qui le condamne à s’endormir sur la dépouille de ses victimes. Début de la Grande Bataille entre les descendants Pendragon.

556 – Les troupes de Lohot sont rejoints par les sorciers formés par la Reine Maëva au cours d’une bataille décisive contre l’armée royale. Leur victoire est célébrée dans tout le royaume. Bien des seigneurs lui vouent allégeance, le reconnaissant comme véritable souverain.

570 – Signature du Traité de Croc’Dur entre la couronne et les géants d’Irlande. Prise en tenaille, Maëva n’a d’autre choix que de sonner le retrait de ses troupes pour défendre ses terres. C’est finalement Merlin et Lohot qui parviennent à repousser l’envahisseur, en venant à bout de Morholt, seigneur de la Chaussée des Géants. Le combat coûte la vie au prince de Bretagne, qui meurt écrasé par la dépouille du géant alors qu’il s’était endormi.

573 – Bataille d'Arfderydd. Alors que tout semble perdu, Merlin parvient à battre la mage noir à l’issue d’un duel réputé pour avoir duré douze jours et douze nuits. Personne ne fut en mesure de dire si la sorcière fut tuée ou parvint à se cacher pour préparer sa revanche. Quelques mois plus tard, le Prince des Enchanteurs est frappé de visions délirantes, qui le poussent à fuir en Ecosse, où il se réfugie en espérant échapper à la folie.

Le règne d’Aurelius Conanus (de 590 à 593) : Aurelius succède à son père sur le trône de Bretagne au lendemain de son abdication. La légende raconte qu’il était promis à réaliser de grandes choses mais l’apparition soudaine de créatures nocturnes, que l’on dit envoyées d’outre-tombe par Morgane, plonge le pays dans une guerre civile durant son règne, qui dura trois ans.

591 – En raison des trop nombreux massacres perpétués par les créatures de la nuit, le roi décrète un couvre-feu dans tout le royaume et oblige ses sujets à ne jamais être seuls au tombé du jour. Bien que la mesure soit nécessaire, elle déchaîne les foules.

593 – Première mention des Détraqueurs dans l’histoire de la magie. On relie encore aujourd’hui leur apparition à la malédiction de Morgane, bien que personne n’en ait la preuve.

aes by @skylessnights

#chronology

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hoopskirtsociety · 2 years

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The Black Scots

King Kenneth III Of Scotland

A note from Hoopskirtsociety!

( Please Note: These Subjects are still being studied for more in depth historical accuracy, Etc. An interesting read however. For there was a very Large Black Presence in Ancient, Middle Ages, and Medevial, Europe, Especially in Scotland, and Ireland. Please do not leave long chats about how it is not historically correct or accurate, as it has been stated it is for mere interest and fun speculation. Perchance it will inspire some interesting historical Research, for those who are so inclined! As its def something to be further explored! Thank you guys! )

A curious aspect of this early history concerns various stories around Kenneth. King Kenneth was also known as ‘Kenneth the Niger’ or Kenneth Dubh, a surname which means ‘the black man’. It is a matter of history that many seafaring warriors were North African, travelled via Iberia into Europe, and joined in many cultures and held power and position. Niger Val Dubh lived and reigned over certain black divisions in Scotland, and some histories state that a race known as ‘the sons of the blacks’ succeeded him. (e.g. see JA Rogers, Sex and Race). Kenneth III was king of Scotland from 997 to 1005. He was the son of King Dubh (Dub mac Mail Choluim – 962-967), fourth cousin of the previous king Constantine III, and first cousin of his successor Malcolm II. Kenneth was the last king of Scotland to succeed to the throne through the tanistry system, whereby the succession was shared between two family lines and the dying king named his successor from the other family line. This system led to constant struggle between the ruling families and was abandoned. Kenneth and his son Giric were both killed at Monzievaird, Tayside in 1005. His first cousin Malcolm succeeded him and abolished the tanistry system by killing all of his male descendants. However Kenneth had a granddaughter, Gruoch, via his daughter Boite, whose first husband was Gillacomgain. They had a son called Lulach. She then married King Macbeth I of Scotland (becoming Lady Macbeth). On the death of Macbeth her son via her first marriage, Kenneth III’s great grandson, succeeded to the throne, to become King Lulach of Scotland. According to this history, the blood of Kenneth flows through the royal houses of Scotland. Whether Dubh meant black or dark, as in north-African / southern-European, we may never know for sure. But the story captures a curious fact about the Gaels from Gallicia – some were dark and have left many traces in Irish, Welsh and Scots clans

http://www.clans.org.uk/hist_5.html

#victorian era #historical fashion #fashion #fashion in art #black history #history #interesting

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greekroyalfamily · 3 years

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Happy 52nd birthday to HRH Prince Nikolaos of Greece and Denmark .

HRH was born at 01–10–1969

The prince was born "in perfect health" on Wednesday, 1 October 1969, at the Villa Claudia clinic in Rome as the third child and second son of King Constantine II and Queen Anne-Marie of the Hellenes. The twenty-nine year-old father Constantine declared that the family had been blessed with "a beautiful baby boy." Queen Anne-Marie, twenty-three at the time of her second son's birth, had suffered a miscarriage in December 1967 shortly after the royal family had fled Greece. Nikolaos joined older sister Princess Alexia (b.July 1965) and older brother Crown Prince Pavlos (b.May 1967). Although the Greek royal family had went into exile in December 1967 following an unsuccessful countercoup to the country's military junta, Greece was still officially a monarchy: thus, the new princeling was second in line to the throne after his elder brother.

In 1975 the family settled in London, where Prince Nikolaos was home-educated for six years. He then attended the Hellenic College of London.

In 1988 he began his studies in International Relations at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, focusing on Diplomacy and National Security. During his sophomore year, he took a sabbatical to join the British Army on a Short Service Limited Commission, serving as 2nd Lieutenant with the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards.

Upon his college graduation (1993), Prince Nikolaos moved into TV production for Fox News in New York. He returned to London in 1995 to work in the foreign exchange options department of NatWest Markets. From 1997 to 2003 he worked in King Constantine’s Family Office. Since then he has been active in business consulting.

On 25 August 2010, Prince Nikolaos of Greece and Denmark married Tatiana Ellinka Blatnik (b.28 August 1980) at the monastery of Ayios Nikolaos in the old harbour of Spetses in Greece. Tatiana is the daughter of Marie Blanche Bierlein (b.1954), daughter of Ernst Bierlein (1920-2009) and Countess Ellinka von Einsiedel (b.1922), and of the late Ladislav Vladimir Blatnik. Through her maternal grandmother, Princess Tatiana of Greece is a descendant of Elector Wilhelm II of Hesse (1777-1847)

Prince Nikolaos and Princess Tatiana make their home in Greece. The prince is a talented photographer, and the princess engages in numerous charitable activities. A down-to-earth and popular couple, they are often seen attending royal events around Europe.

Χρόνια Πολλα στην ΑΒΥ Πρίγκιπα Νικόλαο της Ελλάδας και Δανίας .

Η ΑΒΥ γεννήθηκε στις 01–10–1969

Ο πρίγκιπας γεννήθηκε "με τέλεια υγεία" την Τετάρτη, 1 Οκτωβρίου 1969, στην κλινική Villa Claudia στη Ρώμη ως το τρίτο παιδί και δεύτερος γιος του Βασιλιά Κωνσταντίνου Β and και της Βασίλισσας Άννας-Μαρί των Ελλήνων. Ο εικοσιεννιάχρονος πατέρας Κωνσταντίνος δήλωσε ότι η οικογένεια ήταν ευλογημένη με "ένα όμορφο αγοράκι". Η βασίλισσα Anne-Marie, είκοσι τριών κατά τη γέννηση του δεύτερου γιου της, είχε υποστεί αποβολή τον Δεκέμβριο του 1967, λίγο μετά τη φυγή της βασιλικής οικογένειας από την Ελλάδα. Ο Νικόλαος εντάχθηκε στη μεγαλύτερη αδερφή Πριγκίπισσα Αλεξία (γεν. Ιουλίου 1965) και στον μεγαλύτερο αδελφό, τον πρίγκιπα διάδοχο Παύλο (γεν. Μάιος 1967). Παρόλο που η ελληνική βασιλική οικογένεια είχε εξορία τον Δεκέμβριο του 1967 μετά από ένα ανεπιτυχές αντίπαλο στη στρατιωτική χούντα της χώρας, η Ελλάδα ήταν επίσημα μοναρχία: έτσι, ο νέος πρίγκιπας ήταν δεύτερος στη σειρά του θρόνου μετά τον μεγαλύτερο αδελφό του.

Το 1975 η οικογένεια εγκαταστάθηκε στο Λονδίνο, όπου ο πρίγκιπας Νικόλαος εκπαιδεύτηκε στο σπίτι για έξι χρόνια. Στη συνέχεια παρακολούθησε το Ελληνικό Κολλέγιο του Λονδίνου.

Το 1988 ξεκίνησε τις σπουδές του για Διεθνείς Σχέσεις στο Πανεπιστήμιο Brown στην Providence, στο Ρόουντ Άιλαντ, εστιάζοντας στη Διπλωματία και την Εθνική Ασφάλεια. Κατά τη διάρκεια του δευτέρου έτους του, πήρε το Σάββατο για να ενταχθεί στον Βρετανικό Στρατό σε μια Short Service Limited Commission, υπηρετώντας ως 2ος Υπολοχαγός με τους Royal Scots Dragoon Guards.

Με την αποφοίτησή του από το κολέγιο (1993), ο πρίγκιπας Νικόλαος πέρασε στην τηλεοπτική παραγωγή για το Fox News στη Νέα Υόρκη. Επέστρεψε στο Λονδίνο το 1995 για να εργαστεί στο τμήμα συναλλαγματικών επιλογών της NatWest Markets. Από το 1997 έως το 2003 εργάστηκε στο γραφείο της οικογένειας του Βασιλιά Κωνσταντίνου. Έκτοτε δραστηριοποιείται στη συμβουλευτική επιχειρήσεων.

Στις 25 Αυγούστου 2010, ο πρίγκιπας Νικόλαος της Ελλάδας και της Δανίας παντρεύτηκε την Τατιάνα Έλλινκα Μπλάτνικ (γεν.28 Αυγούστου 1980) στο μοναστήρι του Αγίου Νικολάου στο παλιό λιμάνι των Σπετσών στην Ελλάδα. Η Τατιάνα είναι κόρη της Marie Blanche Bierlein (γεν. 1954), κόρης του Ernst Bierlein (1920-2009) και της κοντέσας Ellinka von Einsiedel (γ. 1922), και του αείμνηστου Ladislav Vladimir Blatnik. Μέσω της γιαγιάς της μητέρας της, η πριγκίπισσα Τατιάνα της Ελλάδας είναι απόγονος του εκλέκτορα Βίλχελμ Β Hes της Έσσης (1777-1847)

Ο πρίγκιπας Νικόλαος και η πριγκίπισσα Τατιάνα κάνουν το σπίτι τους στην Ελλάδα. Ο πρίγκιπας είναι ταλαντούχος φωτογράφος και η πριγκίπισσα συμμετέχει σε πολλές φιλανθρωπικές δραστηριότητες. Ένα προσγειωμένο και δημοφιλές ζευγάρι, συχνά βλέπουν να παρακολουθούν βασιλικές εκδηλώσεις σε όλη την Ευρώπη.

#kingconstantine #danishroyalfamily #crownprincepavlos #queenannemarie #greek royal family #house of romanov #crownprincessmariechantal #princess theodora #princessmarieolympia #princeachileasandreas #princeconstantinealexios #princenikolaos #princessnina #princesseirini #princesstatiana #princearistidesstavros #princefilippos #princeodisesskimon

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dutch-and-flemish-painters · 3 years

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Jacob Jacobsz de Wet II - Malcolm I, King of Scotland (955-64) - 1684-6

Máel Coluim mac Domnaill (anglicised Malcolm I) (died 954) was king of Alba (before 943 – 954), becoming king when his cousin Constantine II abdicated to become a monk. He was the son of Donald II.

The monarch of Scotland is the head of state of the Kingdom of Scotland. According to tradition, the first King of Scots (Middle Scots: King of Scottis, Modern Scots: King o Scots, Scottish Gaelic: Rìgh na h-Albannaich) was Kenneth I MacAlpin (Cináed mac Ailpín), who founded the state in 843. The distinction between the Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of the Picts is rather the product of later medieval myth and confusion from a change in nomenclature i.e. Rex Pictorum (King of the Picts) becomes Rí Alban (King of Alba) under Donald II when annals switched from Latin to vernacular around the end of the 9th century, by which time the word Alba in Scottish Gaelic had come to refer to the Kingdom of the Picts rather than Britain (its older meaning).[1]

The Kingdom of the Picts just became known as Kingdom of Alba in Scottish Gaelic, which later became known in Scots and English as Scotland; the terms are retained in both languages to this day. By the late 11th century at the very latest, Scottish kings were using the term rex Scottorum, or King of Scots, to refer to themselves in Latin. The Kingdom of Scotland was merged with the Kingdom of England to form a single Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. Thus Queen Anne became the last monarch of the ancient kingdoms of Scotland and England and the first of Great Britain, although the kingdoms had shared a monarch since 1603 (see Union of the Crowns). Her uncle Charles II was the last monarch to be crowned in Scotland, at Scone in 1651. He had a second coronation in England ten years later.

Jacob Jacobsz de Wet II (1641, Haarlem – 1697, Amsterdam), also known as James de Witt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter known for a series of 110 portraits of Scottish monarchs, many of them mythical, produced for the Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh during the reign of Charles II.

The Palace of Holyroodhouse, commonly referred to as Holyrood Palace or Holyroodhouse, is the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland, Queen Elizabeth II. Located at the bottom of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, at the opposite end to Edinburgh Castle, Holyroodhouse has served as the principal royal residence in Scotland since the 16th century, and is now a setting for state occasions and official entertaining.

Queen Elizabeth II spends one week in residence at Holyroodhouse at the beginning of each summer, where she carries out a range of official engagements and ceremonies. The 16th-century historic apartments of Mary, Queen of Scots and the state apartments, used for official and state entertaining, are open to the public throughout the year, except when members of the Royal Family are in residence.

#Jacob de Wet II #golden age #uk #scotland #portrait #historical

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cynicalclassicist · 4 years

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Renaissance Plays how I imagine them in alternate history

King Arthur’s War: Lucius Hiberius (unsubtle) is Philip II, Leo is Pope per Pierre de Langtoft (there was a Pope Leo in 1605) who blesses the Spanish... Roman invasion of Britain. Arthur is Henry VIII, Guinevere is Elizabeth, Constantine is Scottish... somehow. Mordred lusts after Gwen and might be Essex or embodiment of incestuous marriages (Henry VIII’s first marriage was apparently deemed that). Gwen ends up handing Arthur’s sceptre to Constantine. Of course we just end it with Constantine speaking lines about how Britain, under one ruler, will not submit to Rome. And we won’t mention any of Constantine’s nephews... (I am quite surprised I cannot find something like this in Elizabethan/Jacobean lit., you’d think it would have been perfect.) I think there is a version where Caradoc, a name-twisted Cador, is Constantine’s father but I can’t find it, might be forced that Constantine’s father is Scottish. Or at least enough that we know who he is.

Philip IV: He’s Philip II! Clement is his lickspittle. Marlowe writes it however so Philip comes across as awesome with his over-the-top evil, disdaining all ideas of religion in a Machiavelli/Tamburlaine-like way and outright saying he just made up story of corruption so he could get rich. Play runs into trouble because it looks like attack on dissolution of Monasteries, hence why emphasises Pope advises Philip to do this. Templars anachronistically have Protestant ideas. Comparisons to The Massacre at Paris made. Also Mary burning Protestants. Could make Philip’s daughter Isabella somehow Mary Queen of Scots but show her son Edward III as noble and standing up for Britain... er, England.

The Rule of Heraklonas: Heraclius could be Henry VIII. Martina is Katharine/Mary I/Mary Queen of Scots (depending on when play comes out), down to the questioned legality of marriage. Heraklonas... general bad guy, probably portrayed as thug controlled by his mother because of sexism of plays. Constantine III... Edward VI? Constans II is Elizabeth/James I. Patriarch Pyrrhos is a Pope.

The Tragedy of Andronikos I Komnenos: Murders his way to power with aid from Papal envoy. Based on Tudor image of Richard III, down to lusting after Princess ahead of him in line of succession and murdering young kinsman to take power. We iron over any little complications in the succession, though might show Andronikos encouraging trouble between his cousins to weaken them. Isaac II Angelos is Henry VII.

Apologies to anyone who is Spanish or Catholic.

@blackcur-rants @cukibola @epic-summaries @ylvisruinedmylife

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gawcams-media · 4 years

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English Kings

SAXON KINGS

EGBERT 827 – 839

Egbert (Ecgherht) was the first monarch to establish a stable and extensive rule over all of Anglo-Saxon England. After returning from exile at the court of Charlemagne in 802, he regained his kingdom of Wessex. Following his conquest of Mercia in 827, he controlled all of England south of the Humber. After further victories in Northumberland and North Wales, he is recognised by the title Bretwalda (Anglo-Saxon, “ruler of the British”). A year before he died aged almost 70, he defeated a combined force of Danes and Cornish at Hingston Down in Cornwall. He is buried at Winchester in Hampshire.

AETHELWULF 839-858

King of Wessex, son of Egbert and father of Alfred the Great. In 851 Aethelwulf defeated a Danish army at the battle of Oakley while his eldest son Aethelstan fought and defeated a Viking fleet off the coast of Kent, in what is believed to be “the first naval battle in recorded English history”. A highly religious man, Athelwulf travelled to Rome with his son Alfred to see the Pope in 855

AETHELBALD 858 – 860

The second son of Aethelwulf, Æthelbald was born around 834. He was crowned at Kingston-upon-Thames in southwest London, after forcing his father to abdicate upon his return from pilgrimage to Rome. Following his father’s death in 858, he married his widowed stepmother Judith, but under pressure from the church the marriage was annulled after only a year. He is buried at Sherbourne Abbey in Dorset.

AETHELBERT 860 – 866

Became king following the death of his brother Æthelbald. Like his brother and his father, Aethelbert (pictured to the right) was crowned at Kingston-upon-Thames. Shortly after his succession a Danish army landed and sacked Winchester before being defeated by the Saxons. In 865 the Viking Great Heathen Army landed in East Anglia and swept across England. He is buried at Sherborne Abbey.

AETHELRED I 866 – 871

Aethelred succeeded his brother Aethelbert. His reign was one long struggle with the Danes who had occupied York in 866, establishing the Viking kingdom of Yorvik. When the Danish Army moved south Wessex itself was threatened, and so together with his brother Alfred, they fought several battles with the Vikings at Reading, Ashdown and Basing. Aethelred suffered serious injuries during the next major battle at Meretun in Hampshire; he died of his wounds shortly after at Witchampton in Dorset, where he was buried.

ALFRED THE GREAT 871 – 899 – son of AETHELWULF

Born at Wantage in Berkshire around 849, Alfred was well educated and is said to have visited Rome on two occasions. He had proven himself to be a strong leader in many battles, and as a wise ruler managed to secure five uneasy years of peace with the Danes, before they attacked Wessex again in 877. Alfred was forced to retreat to a small island in the Somerset Levels and it was from here that he masterminded his comeback, perhaps ‘burning the cakes‘ as a consequence. With major victories at Edington, Rochester and London, Alfred established Saxon Christian rule over first Wessex, and then on to most of England. To secure his hard won boundaries Alfred founded a permanent army and an embryonic Royal Navy. To secure his place in history, he began the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles.

EDWARD (The Elder) 899 – 924

Succeeded his father Alfred the Great. Edward retook southeast England and the Midlands from the Danes. Following the death of his sister Aethelflaed of Mercia, Edward unites the kingdoms of Wessex and Mercia. In 923, the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles record that the Scottish King Constantine II recognises Edward as “father and lord”. The following year, Edward is killed in a battle against the Welsh near Chester. His body is returned to Winchester for burial.

ATHELSTAN 924 – 939

Son of Edward the Elder, Athelstan extended the boundaries of his kingdom at the Battle of Brunanburh in 937. In what is said to be one of the bloodiest battles ever fought on British soil, Athelstan defeated a combined army of Scots, Celts, Danes and Vikings, claiming the title of King of all Britain. The battle saw for the first time individual Anglo-Saxon kingdoms being brought together to create a single and unified England. Athelstan is buried in Malmesbury, Wiltshire.

EDMUND 939 – 946

Succeeded his half-bother Athelastan as king at the tender age of 18, having already fought alongside him at the Batlle of Brunanburh two years earlier. He re-established Anglo-Saxon control over northern England, which had fallen back under Scandinavian rule following the death of Athelstan. Aged just 25, and whilst celebrating the feast of Augustine, Edmund was stabbed by a robber in his royal hall at Pucklechurch near Bath. His two sons, Eadwig and Edgar, were perhaps considered too young to become kings.

EADRED 946 – 955The son of Edward the Elder by his third marriage to Eadgifu, Eadred succeeded his brother Edmund following his premature death. He followed in the family tradition of defeating Norsemen, expelling the last Scandinavian King of York, Eric Bloodaxe, in 954. A deeply religious man, Eadred suffered a serious stomach ailment that would eventually prove fatal. Eadred died in his early 30s, unmarried and without an heir, at Frome in Somerset. He is buried in Winchester.

EADWIG 955 – 959The eldest son of Edmund I, Eadwig was about 16 when he was crowned king at Kingston-upon-Thames in southeast London. Legend has it that his coronation had to be delayed to allow Bishop Dunstan to prise Eadwig from his bed, and from between the arms of his “strumpet” and the strumpets’ mother. Perhaps unimpressed by the interruption, Eadwig had Dunstan exiled to France. Eadwig died in Gloucester when he was just 20, the circumstances of his death are not recorded.

EDGAR 959 – 975The youngest son of Edmund I, Edgar had been in dispute with his brother concerning succession to the throne for some years. Following Eadwig’s mysterious death, Edgar immediately recalled Dunstan from exile, making him Archbishop of Canterbury as well as his personal adviser. Following his carefully planned (by Dunstan) coronation in Bath in 973, Edgar marched his army to Chester, to be met by six kings of Britain. The kings, including the King of Scots, King of Strathclyde and various princes of Wales, are said to have signalled their allegiance to Edgar by rowing him in his state barge across the River Dee.

#GawcamsMedia

Gawcams.blogspot.com

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coloursofunison · 4 months

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My new book, Clash of Kings, has a number of main characters. Meet Hywel, the king of the Welsh.

My new book, Clash of Kings, has a number of main characters. Meet Hywel, the king of the Welsh. #histfic #newrelease #ClashOfKings #Brunanburh

My new book, Clash of Kings, is a multi-viewpoint novel telling the story of events in Britain from 937-942. I thought it would be good to share details of the historical people my main characters are based on. My portrayal of Hywel, better known as Hywel Dda (which autocorrect is determined should say Dad), and which means ‘good’ (a unique epithet in Wales), is of course, fictional, but who was…

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#Amazon #Athelstan #Boldwood Books #Clash of Kings #Constantin II of the Scots #historical fiction #history #Hywel Dda #King of Kings #Kings of War #M J Porter #Medieval Wales #New Release

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scotianostra · 6 months

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November 25th 1034 saw the death of Malcolm II at Glamis.

There's a lot to take in here, and a lot of supposition, it gets like that when you're delving into the history almost a thousand years ago.

Malcolm had been King since 1005, at this time Scotland was far from the nation we know it to be today, according to the Irish annals which recorded his death, Malcolm was ard rí Alban, High King of Scotland, this was a title given to what was probably the most powerful of the rulers, his fellow kings included the king of Strathclyde, who ruled much of the south-west, various Norse-Gael kings of the western coasts and the Hebrides and, nearest and most dangerous rivals, the Kings or Mormaers of Moray.

To the south, in the kingdom of England, the Earls of Bernicia and Northumbria, whose predecessors as kings of Northumbria had once ruled most of southern Scotland, still controlled large parts of the south-east.

Malcolm, or Máel Coluim mac Cináeda, to give him his ancient name, was ruthless, he sought to make sure to secure his family’s right of succession to throne, to do this he set about eliminating any possible claimants to the throne. There are scant details of the exact circumstances, but notable casualties included the grandson of Kenneth III, in 997, the killer of Constantine III is credited as being Cináed mac Maíl Coluim, “Kenneth son of Malcolm”. Now the historians debate whether this was “oor” Malcolm here, but don’t fully discount it.

John of Fordun a chronicler who we rely on a lot, writes that Malcolm defeated a Norwegian army in almost the first days after his coronation, but this is not reported elsewhere. Fordun says that the Bishopric of Mortlach (later moved to Aberdeen) was founded in thanks for this victory over the Norwegians, but this claim appears to have no foundation, so although Fordun is a very respected base for historians to delve into, I think we can probably put this down to a more modern phenomenon-Fake News!

The first reliable report of Malcolm’s reign is of an invasion of Bernicia, which is now south-eastern Scotland and North East England. It resulted in a heavy defeat, by the Northumbrians led by Uchtred the Bold, later Earl of Bernicia, which was reported by the Annals of Ulster. A second war in Bernicia, probably in 1018, was more successful. The Battle of Carham, by the River Tweed, was a victory for the Scots led by Malcolm and the men of Strathclyde led by their king, Eógan II, so the neighbouring Kings were not afraid of getting together for some English bashing, this was a time England was having to deal with heavy interference from the Norsemen.

Meanwhile during The Battle of Carham, in modern day Strathclyde down to the Tweed, King Eógan the Bald was killed, this is generally thought to have been when Malcolm, know by the southern tribes as Forranach’ meaning the destroyer took Strathclyde under his wing as part of the Kingdom of a growing “Scotland” but it was not fully part of the nation until Malcolm III, ( Canmore )

The good work he had done for his sons may have been for nothing, there is no evidence either survived after the year 1030, so the crown would pass to his grandchild. Truth be told the evidence he actually had sons is quite flimsy. He was a canny man though, and had married his daughters off wisely, to the Norse Earl Sigurd of Orkney., thus staking a claim for his forebears to the northern regions.

Strathclyde was to come back and haunt him though, Malcolm tried to place his grandson Duncan (later Duncan I of Alba) on the throne of Strathclyde. This displeased the Britons who had taken their eye off the ball while dealing with those pesky Vikings, but they it led to Malcolm’s assassination at Glamis on this day in 1034.

As per usual there are differing stories about how he died, on say fighting off bandits, another he was killed by the sons of Máel Brigte of Moray, a notable Pictish leader

He was buried in the graveyard at Saint Oran’s Chapel on the Isle of Iona.

Of his Dynasty, and his daughters he had placed in powerful families, the one wed to Earl Sigurd of Orkney, and their son Earl Thorfinn went on to bring much of Caithness and Sutherland into Scotland. One married Crínán, the Abbot of Dunkeld, and their son Duncan went on to succeed Malcolm II as Duncan I. And the third married Findlàech, the sub-king of Moray, and their son Macbeth went on to kill Duncan and become King Macbeth.

It’s all a bit complicated trying to piece things together through so many different sources but I hope the post makes some some sort of sense. A stone at Glamis is said to mark where he died, but another source tells me it is his gravestone contradicting the source that said he is buried on Iona! Such is the plight of trying to put a post like this together…….

#scotland #scottish #history #royalty

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starstruckcloudgalaxy · 4 years

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Welcome back to my Celtic history corner, dear friends; this time, I’ll tell you something about a great medieval leader and warrior, Kenneth MacAlpin (Cináed mac Ailpin), the man who united Scotland.

Let’s go back to the 9th century, when Scotland is divided into two kingdoms: Fortriu, land of the Picts (descendants of the old Brythonic-Celtic tribe named Caledonians), in the East, and Dál Riada, land of the Scots (Gaels of Irish origin who had settled in Scotland a few centuries before), in the West.

Torridon (later known as Burghead) was the stronghold of the Picts, while Dunadd was the seat of the kings of Dál Riada; and the two rival groups fought each other for centuries about the rule over all of Alba, or Caledonia as the Romans had called it.

Then, an additional threat came in from the east: Viking raiders started attacking the coast of Fortriu and then of Dál Riada as well! The whole country had started falling into anarchy when, around the year 810, a son Cináed was born to Alpin II, king of Dál Riada, and his wife, a beautiful Pictish princess. Things didn’t go well for Alpin, though – he was beheaded by his own people for fighting with instead of against his wife’s people, the Picts.

So, in 841, Kenneth becomes king of Dál Riada – and soon he starts extending his rule over Fortriu as well, which at the time is being hit very hard by Viking raids. And he goes about it in a rather unsubtle manner: he has the pretender to the throne of Pictland, Drust X, and all the other members of his bloodline killed at a meeting in Scone. Kenneth can now claim the crown of all of Scotland.

Once he starts his reign over Alba, he turns into a wise and just ruler, though: he manages to unify the Gaels and the Picts against external enemies – the Vikings, and the Saxons down in Northumbria, which he invaded numerous times.

Even though he travelled around the country most of the time as kings used to do in those days, Kenneth set up his capital in Scone; he had the old Stone of Destiny brought there, which had been the coronation stone of the kings of Dál Riada for centuries, and all the kings of Alba would be crowned on that stone until it was stolen by Edward I of England in 1296 and taken to London.

Kenneth, whose nicknames included ‘the Hardy’ and ‘the Conqueror’, died in 858 from a tumour; his death was lamented not only all over Alba, but also in Ireland with which Alba had a good relationship. His sons Constantine and Áed succeeded him, and the House of Alpin continued ruling Scotland until 1034, fighting off all attempts at a takeover by foreigners, were they Vikings or Saxons.

Who knows – had it not been for Kenneth MacAlpin, perhaps Scotland would never have developed such a strong and unique national character and such an important part as a preserver of Gaelic culture within the United Kingdom…

Roberta’s Celtic Corner: Kenneth MacAlpin, King of all Scotland Welcome back to my Celtic history corner, dear friends; this time, I’ll tell you something about a great medieval leader and warrior, Kenneth MacAlpin (Cináed mac Ailpin), the man who united Scotland.

#Celtic #Celts #Gaelic #History #Learning #Medieval #Scotland

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brookstonalmanac · 2 years

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Events 9.9

337 – Constantine II, Constantius II, and Constans succeed their father Constantine I as co-emperors. The Roman Empire is divided between the three Augusti. 1000 – Battle of Svolder, Viking Age. 1141 – Yelü Dashi, the Liao dynasty general who founded the Qara Khitai, defeats the Seljuq and Kara-Khanid forces at the Battle of Qatwan. 1320 – In the Battle of Saint George, the Byzantines under Andronikos Asen ambush and defeat the forces of the Principality of Achaea, securing possession of Arcadia. 1488 – Anne becomes sovereign Duchess of Brittany, becoming a central figure in the struggle for influence that leads to the union of Brittany and France. 1493 – Battle of Krbava Field, a decisive defeat of Croats in Croatian struggle against the invasion by the Ottoman Empire. 1493 – Christopher Columbus, with 17 ships and 1,200 men, sails on second voyage from Cadiz. 1499 – The citizens of Lisbon celebrate the triumphal return of the explorer Vasco de Gama, completing his two-year journey around the Cape of Good Hope to India. 1513 – James IV of Scotland is defeated and dies in the Battle of Flodden, ending Scotland's involvement in the War of the League of Cambrai. 1543 – Mary Stuart, at nine months old, is crowned "Queen of Scots" in the central Scottish town of Stirling. 1561 – The ultimately unsuccessful Colloquy of Poissy opens in an effort to reconcile French Catholics and Protestants. 1588 – Thomas Cavendish in his ship Desire enters Plymouth and completes the first deliberately planned voyage of circumnavigation. 1739 – Stono Rebellion, the largest slave uprising in Britain's mainland North American colonies prior to the American Revolution, erupts near Charleston, South Carolina. 1776 – The Continental Congress officially names its union of states the United States. 1791 – Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States, is named after President George Washington. 1801 – Alexander I of Russia confirms the privileges of Baltic provinces. 1839 – John Herschel takes the first glass plate photograph. 1845 – Possible start of the Great Famine of Ireland. 1850 – California is admitted as the thirty-first U.S. state. 1850 – The Compromise of 1850 transfers a third of Texas's claimed territory (now parts of Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Wyoming) to federal control in return for the U.S. federal government assuming $10 million of Texas's pre-annexation debt. 1855 – Crimean War: The Siege of Sevastopol comes to an end when Russian forces abandon the city. 1863 – American Civil War: The Union Army enters Chattanooga, Tennessee. 1892 – Amalthea, third closest and fifth found moon of Jupiter is discovered by Edward Emerson Barnard. 1914 – World War I: The creation of the Canadian Automobile Machine Gun Brigade, the first fully mechanized unit in the British Army. 1922 – The Greco-Turkish War effectively ends with Turkish victory over the Greeks in Smyrna. 1923 – Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of the Republic of Turkey, founds the Republican People's Party. 1924 – Hanapepe massacre occurs on Kauai, Hawaii. 1936 – The crews of Portuguese Navy frigate NRP Afonso de Albuquerque and destroyer Dão mutinied against the Salazar dictatorship's support of General Franco's coup and declared their solidarity with the Spanish Republic. 1939 – World War II: The Battle of Hel begins, the longest-defended pocket of Polish Army resistance during the German invasion of Poland. 1939 – Burmese national hero U Ottama dies in prison after a hunger strike to protest Britain's colonial government. 1940 – George Stibitz pioneers the first remote operation of a computer. 1940 – Treznea Massacre in Transylvania. 1942 – World War II: A Japanese floatplane drops incendiary bombs on Oregon. 1943 – World War II: The Allies land at Salerno and Taranto, Italy. 1944 – World War II: The Fatherland Front takes power in Bulgaria through a military coup in the capital and armed rebellion in the country. A new pro-Soviet government is established. 1945 – Second Sino-Japanese War: The Empire of Japan formally surrenders to China. 1947 – First case of a computer bug being found: A moth lodges in a relay of a Harvard Mark II computer at Harvard University. 1948 – Kim Il-sung declares the establishment of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea). 1954 – The 6.7 Mw  Chlef earthquake shakes northern Algeria with a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (Extreme). At least 1,243 people were killed and 5,000 were injured. 1956 – Elvis Presley appears on The Ed Sullivan Show for the first time. 1965 – The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development is established. 1965 – Hurricane Betsy makes its second landfall near New Orleans, leaving 76 dead and $1.42 billion ($10–12 billion in 2005 dollars) in damages, becoming the first hurricane to cause over $1 billion in unadjusted damage. 1966 – The National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act is signed into law by U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson. 1969 – In Canada, the Official Languages Act comes into force, making French equal to English throughout the Federal government. 1969 – Allegheny Airlines Flight 863 collides in mid-air with a Piper PA-28 Cherokee over Moral Township, Shelby County, Indiana, killing all 83 people on board both aircraft. 1970 – A British airliner is hijacked by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and flown to Dawson's Field in Jordan. 1971 – The four-day Attica Prison riot begins, eventually resulting in 39 dead, most killed by state troopers retaking the prison. 1972 – In Kentucky's Mammoth Cave National Park, a Cave Research Foundation exploration and mapping team discovers a link between the Mammoth and Flint Ridge cave systems, making it the longest known cave passageway in the world. 1990 – Batticaloa massacre: Massacre of 184 Tamil civilians by the Sri Lankan Army in Batticaloa District. 1991 – Tajikistan declares independence from the Soviet Union. 1993 – Israeli–Palestinian peace process: The Palestine Liberation Organization officially recognizes Israel as a legitimate state. 1994 – Space Shuttle program: Space Shuttle Discovery is launched on STS-64. 2001 – Ahmad Shah Massoud, leader of the Northern Alliance, is assassinated in Afghanistan by two al-Qaeda assassins who claimed to be Arab journalists wanting an interview. 2009 – The Dubai Metro, the first urban train network in the Arabian Peninsula, is ceremonially inaugurated. 2012 – The Indian space agency puts into orbit its heaviest foreign satellite yet, in a streak of 21 consecutive successful PSLV launches. 2012 – A wave of attacks kills more than 100 people and injure 350 others across Iraq. 2015 – Elizabeth II became the longest reigning monarch of the United Kingdom. 2016 – The government of North Korea conducts its fifth and reportedly biggest nuclear test. World leaders condemn the act, with South Korea calling it "maniacal recklessness".

#Events

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onlinebookshoppak · 6 years

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The 100 A Ranking Of The Most Influential Persons In History By Michael H. Hart

Book Name The 100 A Ranking Of The Most Influential Persons In History By Michael H. Hart Author Michael Hart’s Book Publishers A Citadel Press Book Carol Publishing Group Publish Date 2000 Language. English Category English Novel History Book Code 238 Pages 591 Rs 1200 Book Quality Black Paper Whatsapp +92312-9775152 E-mail [email protected]

INTRODUCTION

In his book Letters on the English, Voltaire relates that during

his stay in England, in 1726, he overheard some learned men dis-

cussing the question: who was the greatest man-Caesar, Alex-

ander, Tamerlane, or Cromwell? One speaker maintained that

Sir Isaac Newton was beyond a doubt the greatest man. Voltaire

agreed with this judgment, for: "It is to him who masters our

minds by the force of truth, and not to those who enslave them

by violence, that we owe our reverence."

Whether Voltaire was truly convinced that Sir Isaac New-

ton was the greatest man who ever lived or was simply trying to

make a philosophical point, the anecdote raises an interesting

question: of the billions of human beings who have populated the

earth, which persons have most influenced the course of history?

This book presents my own answer to that question, my list

of the 100 persons in history whom I believe to have been the

most influential. I must emphasize that this is a list of the most

influential persons in history, not a list of the greatest. For exam-

ple, there is room in my list for an enormously influential, wick-

ed, and heartless man like Stalin, but no place at all for the saint-

ly Mother Cabrini.

This book is solely involved with the question of who were

the 100 persons \vho had the greatest effect on history and on the

course of the world. I have ranked these 100 persons in order of

importance: that is, according to the total amount of influence

that each of them had on human history and on the everyday

lives of other human beings. Such a group of exceptional people,

whether noble or reprehensible, famous or obscure, flamboyant

or modest, cannot fail to be interesting; they are the people who

have shaped our lives and formed our world.

About

A list of the one hundred most influential people in history features descriptions of the careers, contributions, and accomplishments of the political and religious leaders, inventors, writers, artists, and others who changed the course of history. Simultaneous.

In 1978, when Michael Hart’s controversial book The 100 was first published, critics objected that Hart had the nerve not only to select who he thought were the most influential people in history, but also to rank them according to their importance. Needless to say, the critics were wrong, and to date more than 60,000 copies of the book have been sold. Hart believed that in the intervening years the influence of some of his original selections had grown or lessened and that new names loomed large on the world stage. Thus, the publications of this revised and updated edition of The 100.

As before, Hart's yardstick is influence: not the greatest people, but the most influential, the people who swayed the destinies of millions of human beings, determined the rise and fall of civilizations, changed the course of history. With incisive biographies, Hart describes their careers and contributions. Explaining his ratings, he presents a new perspective on history, gathering together the vital facts about the world's greatest religious and political leaders, inventors, writers, philosophers, explorers, artists, and innovators—from Asoka to Zoroaster. Most of the biographies are accompanied by photographs or sketches. Hart's selections may be surprising to some. Neither Jesus nor Marx, but Muhammad, is designated as the most influential person in human history. The writer's arguments may challenge and perhaps convince readers, but whether or not they agree with him, his manner of ranking is both informative and entertaining. The 100, revised and updated, is truly a monumental work. It promises to be just as controversial, just as thought-provoking, and just as successful as its predecessor—a perfect addition to any history or philosophy reference section.

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Mecca, the holy city of Islam; the black building at

center is the Kaaba, the sanctuary that houses

the black stone.

M uhmnmad and the Arab conquests (map).

Moslem crusaders under Muhammad conquer in

Allah's name.

Isaac Newton.

N e\vton analyzes a ray of light.

Jesus Christ.

ReIn brandt' s "Hundred Guilder Print" of Christ

preaching.

Buddha.

The belfry of a Japanese Buddhist temple.

"Buddha's Return from Heaven," by N anda Lal Bose.

Confucius.

The legendary meeting of Confucius with Lao Tzu.

St. Paul.

Detail of Michelangelo's fresco, "The Conversion of

Saint Paul," in the Vatican.

Christian pilgrims march in a Good Friday procession

on the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem.

Ts'ai Lun.

Process of papernlaking.

Johann Gutenberg.

Gutenberg and friends examine the first printed page.

A page from an original Gutenberg Bible. 45

Christopher Columbus. 47

"Columbus before Isabella," by Vacslav Brozik. 48

The Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria sail to the

New World. 50

"The Landing of Columbus," by John Vanderlyn. 51

Albert Einstein. 52

The atomic bomb explodes at Hiroshima, August 6,

1945. 56

Einstein discusses his theories. 59

Louis Pasteur. 60

Pasteur in his laboratory. 62

Galileo Galilei. 64

Illustration of Galilean law of leverage from Galileo's

physics textbook Mathematical Discourses and

Demonstrations. 65

Galileo's telescope. 66

The Leaning Tower of Pisa from which Galileo

supposedly demonstrated the laws of falling

bodies. 68

Aristotle. 70

Portrait of Aristotle by Raphael, detail from "The

School of Athens." 72

Aristotle and his pupil, Alexander. 74

Euclid. 75

Diagram from a Euclidian geometric theorem. 78

Statue of Moses, by Michelangelo. 79

"Moses with the Ten Commandments," by Guido

Reni. 81 List of Illustrations xiii

Charles Darwin. 82

Beagle Channel was named after Darwin's ship "The

Beagle." 86

Great Wall of China. 87

Augustus Caesar. 92

The Roman Empire at the death of Augustus (map). 94

Statue of Augustus Caesar at the Vatican. 98

Nicolaus Copernicus. 99

The Copernican system of the universe. 101

Antoine Laurent Lavoisier. 103

Lavoisier in his laboratory at the Royal Arsenal. 106

Constantine the Great. 107

"Constantine Fighting the Lion," from Constantine

tapestry designed by Pietro Da Cortona. 110

James Watt. III

Watt's double-acting steam engine, 1769. 113

Watt, as a boy, notices the condensation of steam. 114

Michael Faraday. 115

Faraday lectures at the Royal Institution on December

27, 1855. 118

James Clerk Maxwell. 119

Maxwell's equations are the basic laws of electricity

and magnetism. 121

Martin Luther. 123

Luther nails the Ninety-five Theses to the door of the

church at Wittenberg. 125

"Luther before the Diet of Worms," by E. Delperee. 127

George Washington. 129 xiv List of Illustrations

Karl Marx.

133

Chinese citizens at a cadre school in Beijing receive

instructions in Marxism. 136

Orville and Wilbur Wright. 138

The Wright brothers' original byplane. 140

The historic first flight of the Wright brothers' airplane

at Kitty Hawk. 142

Genghis Khan. 144

The Mongol conquests (map). 147

Adam Smith. 148

Smith is commemorated on the Scots penny. 151

Portrait of Edward de Vere (attributed to Marcus

Gheeraedts). 152

Hedingham Castle, the birthplace and childhood home

of Edward de Vere. 157

Letter written (in French) by Edward de Vere when

he was 13 years old. 161

John Dalton. 170

Dalton's table of atomic weights. 172

Alexander the Great. 174

The Empire of Alexander the Great (map). 177

Alexander on horseback, detail from "The Battle of

Alexander," mosaic at Pompei from the 2nd

century, B. C. 179

Napoleon Bonaparte. 181

Napoleon before the Sphinx CL'Oedipe") by J. L.

Gerome. 183

Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo. 187

Thomas Edison. 188 List of Illustrations xv

Edison in his laboratory at Menlo Park. 191

Antony van Leeuwenhoek. 192

William T. G. Morton 195

Morton anesthetizes a patient. 198

With this glass container, Morton first administered

sulphuric ether to a patient in 1846. 200

Guglielmo Nlarconi. 201

Marconi at his telegraph machine. 202

Marconi in his floating laboratory, the yacht "Elettra." 203

Adolf Hitler. 205

Scene at Buchenwald. 209

Nazi soldiers, 1933. 211

Plato. 213

Oliver Cromwell. 217

Cromwell refuses the crown of England. 221

Alexander Graham Bell. 222

Bell opens the telephone line between New York and

Chicago in 1892. 224

Alexander Fleming. 225

John Locke. 228

Ludwig van Beethoven. 232

An original manuscript by Ludwig van Beethoven. 234

Werner Heisenberg. 236

Louis Daguerre. 240

The official Daguerre camera produced by Daguerre's

brother-in-law, Alphonse Giroux, carried a label

that says: "No apparatus guaranteed if it does not

bear the signature of M. Daguerre and the seal of

M. Giroux." 243 xvi

SiInon Bolivar.

Rene Descartes.

List of Illustrations

Title page from the first edition of Discourse on

244

248

Method, 1637. 253

Michelangelo. 254

The "David," in the Accademia in Florence. 255

The "Piehl," in the Vatican in Rome. 256

"God Dividing the Waters from the Earth," section of

the Sistine Chapel ceiling. 257

Pope Urban II incites Crusaders to recapture the Holy

Land. 258

Mosque in Cairo named after 'u mar ibn al-Khattab. 261

Arab expansion under 'Umar ibn al-Khattab (map). 262

Asoka issued edicts on stone pillars, such as this

Asokan pillar at Lauriya-N andangarh. 266

Augustine disputes with Manichaeans. 268

Augustine dictates to a scribe. 271

William Harvey. 273

Harvey explains his ideas to Charles 1. 275

Illustrations from William Harvey's book On the

Movement of the Heart and Blood in Animals. 276

Ernest Rutherford. 277

John Calvin. 281

Monument in Geneva commemorating the

Reformation. 284

Gregor Mendel. 286

The genetic patterns of the flower mirabilis jalapa. 289

Max Planck. 291

Joseph Lister. 294 List of Illustrations xvii

Nikolaus August Otto. 297

Otto's engine was employed by automobile pioneers

Gottlieb Daimler and Karl Benz. 301

The original "Benzine Buggy." 301

Francisco Pizarro. 303

Pizarro's audience with Charles V before em barking

for Peru. 306

Hernando Cortes. 309

Cortes and Montezuma meet. 313

Thomas Jefferson. 315

Jefferson's home in Charlottesville, Virginia-the

historic Monticello-was built from his own

designs. 319

Queen Isabella I. 322

Joseph Stalin. 328

Scene from one of the spectacular Russian treason

trials of the thirties, which established Stalin's

reputation as a tyrant. 331

Stalin meets with M.l. Kalinin, president of the

Soviet Union, 1923-1946. 335

Julius Caesar. 336

The Ides of March: the assassination of Julius Caesar. 339

William the Conqueror. 341

William the Conqueror at the Battle of Hastings. 345

The first known painting of the Battle of Hastings. 347

Sigmund Freud. 348

Edward Jenner. 351

Jenner administers the first vaccination. 353

Wilhelm Conrad Rontgen. 355 xviii List of Illustrations

X-rays have facilitated great advances in dentistry. 357

Johann Sebastian Bach. 359

A page from the score of the "Prelude and Fugue in

B-Minor," written by J. S. Bach. 362

Lao Tzu. 363

Taoist family sacrifices to the harvest moon. 365

Voltaire. 367

Voltaire's funeral. 372

Johannes Kepler. 373

Enrico Fermi. 377

Leonhard Euler. 381

J ean-Jacques Rousseau. 385

An etching of Rousseau by N audet. 388

N iccolo Machiavelli. 390

Bust of Niccolo Machiavelli by an unknown Florentine

sculptor. 393

Thomas Malthus. 395

John F. Kennedy. 399

On July 20, 1969, the Apollo II astronauts left this

footstep on the moon, fulfilling Kennedy's pledge

of May 1961 to land a manned spacecraft on the

moon «before this decade is out." 401

Gregory Pincus. 403

Persian mosaic depicting the Manichaean elect. 408

A miniature, probably of the 8th or 9th century,

depicting two rows of Manichaean priests in

ritual costume. 412

Lenin. 414

Woodcut of Lenin and Red Guards with the motto:

"We stand on guard for freedom." 418 List of Illustrations xix

Sui Wen Ti. 420

Vasco da Gama. 424

Vasco da Gama's ship rounds the Cape of Good Hope. 427

The voyages of Vasco da Gama and Columbus (1nap). 428

Cyrus the Great. 432

Cyrus the Great and the Persian Empire (map). 436

The tomb of Cyrus the Great at Pasargadae. 438

Peter the Great. 439

At the Battle of Poltava, the Russian forces under

Peter the Great decisively defeated the Swedish. 442

Mao Zedong. 445

Chinese citizens celebrate the 18th anniversary of

Mao's takeover of the mainland. 448

Chairman Mao participates in Chinese scholastic

celebrations. 449

Francis Bacon. 450

.. those that want friends to open themselves unto

are cannibals of their own hearts; ... " FRANCIS

BACON, in OF FRIENDSHIP. 455

Henry Ford. 456

Ford's famous "Model T." 458

Assembly line at Ford's Highland Park plant. 459

Mencius. 461

Zoroaster. 464

A Parsee fire-temple in Bombay. 466

Queen Elizabeth I. 468

The defeat of the Spanish Armada (1588) marked the

beginning of English naval supremacy under

Elizabeth I. 473

Preface to the Second Edition

persons who had been included in that group in the first edition.

Those three men are: Niels Bohr, Pablo Picasso, and Antoine Henri

Becquerel. This, of course, does not in any way imply that I con-

sider them to be unimportant figures. On the contrary, those

three-like most of those listed as honorable mentions, and like

many other men and women whom I have not had the space to

mention-were talented and influential persons who have helped

create this faScinating world we live in.

Michael H. Hart

January 1992

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Târgoviște - Ora 14.45

Îmi amintesc bine Crăciunul din decembrie 1989. Cu o seară înainte, găsisem sub brad o frumoasă mașinuță chinezească cu telecomandă și eram foarte fericit. Mi-am petrecut toată ziua pe covorul din sufragerie, plimbând mașina dintr-un colț în altul al camerei. Spre seara, mama s-a apucat să așeze masa și m-a alungat pe canapea. Dădusem deja drumul la instalația de pom și luminile jucăușe aruncau pete colorate pe pereții camerei. Mama aducea din bucătărie boluri mici cu salată boeuf și măsline verzi. Nu eram decât noi doi în cameră, tatăl meu fusese chemat de urgență la muncă iar fratele meu probabil că dormea.

Am dat drumul la micul televizor alb negru pe care îl mutasem de la locul lui, ca să putem instala bradul. Era transmisă o înregistrare cu procesul Ceaușeștilor. Chiar dacă aveam numai opt ani, știam foarte bine cine sunt. Le văzusem de atâtea ori chipurile în manualele de la școală, în ziare, la televizor sau la manifestații. Cu toate astea, în familie nu vorbeam niciodată despre ei.

În ziua aceea însă, erau de nerecunoscut. Doi bătrâni obosiți și încolțiți, așezați la o masă mică, cu paltoanele pe ei, care răspundeau la întrebările unor oameni îmbrăcați în uniforme militare. Totul era monoton și nu înțelegeam prea bine ce se întâmpla. Mama nu zicea nici ea nimic, doar se mai oprea uneori cu câte o farfurie în mâna și asculta ce se vorbea la televizor.

Apoi a venit momentul în care câțiva soldați, cu niște sfori în mână, i-au ridicat de pe scaune și au vrut să le lege mâinile la spate. Cei doi au început să se zbată și să se tânguiască, însă soldații și-au văzut de treaba lor. Toată scena aceea grotească a durat câteva minute. Cu intuiția copilului de opt ani, am înțeles ce se întâmpla. Mama s-a așezat lângă mine pe canapea, cu mâna la gură și ochii la televizor. În cameră se lăsase o liniște sobră, spartă doar de bârâitul obsedant al televizorului. Apoi a urmat scena trunchiată a execuției. Am auzit zgomotul focurilor de armă și apoi camera i-a arătat pe cei doi căzuți lângă zid, în niște poziții incomode. Operatorul insista obsesiv pe chipurile lor desfigurate. De acolo nu am mai putut să mă uit și mi-am întors privirea către brad. Un înger de lemn, cu aripile din fetru alb, stătea agățat undeva în vârf, cu o privire serenă, impasibil la lumea din jurul său.

Am luat o Săgeata albastră ca să merg la Târgoviște într-o duminică mohorâtă și rece în care niciun om cu capul pe umeri nu ar fi ieșit din casă. Sunt câteva grade sub zero și o ceață deasă plutește leneșă peste lume.

În tren e frig și miroase a urină. Puținii călători de la ora aceea stau răsfirați pe scaunele albastre, cu micile lor sacoșe de rafie la picioare, într-o liniște de liturghie. Doar burduful de cauciuc al garniturii scârțîie la fiecare legănătură, adâncind impresia de tristețe. Pe partea mea, ferestrele sunt complet acoperite de grafitti și nu văd nimic afară. Îmi scot cartea și termosul și încep să citesc, sperând că cele două ore de drum vor trece cât mai repede.

Am la mine Fantomele Balcanilor a lui Robert Kaplan, un jurnalist american care la începutul anilor 80 a început să călătorească în zona Balcanilor, fiind în particular interesat de România. Întâmplarea face să dau peste un pasaj în care acesta povestește primele sale călătorii cu trenul în țara noastră. Era iarnă, tot ca acum. Oamenii aveau un aer deznădăjduit, cu chipuri posomorâte și haine uzate. Trenul e mizer, nu are încălzire, geamurile nu se închid bine și culoarele sunt ticsite de bagaje. Iar peste tot în jur, plutește același miros înțepător de urină, fum și transpirație. Sunt cuprins de un vag sentiment de tristețe. Mă uit în jurul meu și, cu excepția câtorva mici detalii, am impresia că sunt tot în anii 80.

Facem o oprire mai lungă la Titu. Câțiva pasageri ies la țigară. Găsesc un ochi de geam care nu a fost acoperit de vopsea și mă uit afară. Pe o linie moartă sunt trase câteva vagoane mâncate de rugină, acoperite aproape complet de o vegetație uscată, maronie. Dincolo de ele, pe jumătate ascunsă în ceață, se ridică fantoma cenușie a unui combinat.

Înainte să ne punem din nou la drum, conductorul face o tură de la un capăt la altul al garniturii și ne strigă să tragem apa atunci când folosim toaleta. Nu îi răspunde nimeni.

După o jumătate de oră, trenul ajunge la Târgoviște. Oameni care coboară se împrăștie rapid și rămân singur pe peron. Sunt complet înghețat și aș da orice pentru o ceașcă de cafea fierbinte.

Deși, aparent, nu ai avea niciun motiv să faci vizite turistice aici, Târgoviște își are locul său în istoria țării. Înainte de a fi mutată la București de Constantin Brâncoveanu, aici a fost prima reședința domnească a Tării Românești. Turiștii pasionați de istorie pot vizita ansambul Curții Domnești, ridicat undeva la jumătatea secolului al XV-lea de Mircea cel Bătrân. Aceasta a adăpostit timp de câteva secole dinastia Basarabilor și a avut câțiva rezidenți celebrii, precum Vlad Țepeș sau Neagoe Basarab. Însă nu pentru aceasta eram acolo, ci pentru o anumită unitate militară unde, la sfârșitul lui decembrie 1989, a avut loc execuția soților Ceaușescu.

Întreb la casa de bilete unde e cazarma. E chiar peste drum de gară, îmi spune doamna de la ghișeu, printr-un geam murdar, în timp ce mușcă dintr-un covrig cu sare. Înainte aș vrea să beau o cafea, însă nu văd pe nicăieri un automat sau o cafenea. Când ies în piațeta din fața gării, aceasta e pustie. Nici urmă de taxi sau de vânzoleală, așa cum vezi de obicei în preajma gărilor. Mă resemnez și iau câteva guri de ceai din termos.

Găsesc repede unitatea militară, care e la doi pași de gară. La intrare, pe un soclu înalt, mă întâmpină statuia de piatră a lui Dan al II-lea Cel Viteaz, un domnitor obscur de care nu mai auzisem până atunci. Am o vagă impresie de inadecvare, nefiind capabil în niciun fel să fac legătura între figura severă a domnitorului, cu coroana de piatră pe cap și sabia la piept, și scopul pentru care a servit locul acela în urmă cu 27 de ani.

La ușă mă ia în primire un paznic în uniformă neagră. Are o privire atât de năucă, încât mă face să mă gândesc că poate nu am nimerit bine. Mă conduce înăuntru și bate la o ușă. De acolo iese grăbită o doamnă care strânge o vestă pe ea, în timp ce scormonește prin niște sertare după chitanțierul cu bilete.

În interior e mai frig ca afară. În așteptarea biletului, am vreme să mă uit la tablourile care acoperă pereții holului. Pe unele sunt desenați, în acuarele pastlate, ofițeri călare. Pe altele se explică, într-o manieră școlărească, istoria cazărmii care a fost ridicată pe la începutul secolului XX, sub domnia regelui Carol I. La începuturi sale a găzduit Școala de Ofițeri de Cavalerie, iar pe frontispiciul de la intrare încă mai există plăcuța cu deviza școlii: ofițerul de cavalerie trebuie să fie și călăreț și cavaler. În treacăt sunt enumerate și personalitățile care au absolvit cursurile școlii. Una dintre ele a fost mareșalul Ion Antonescu, despre care se spune, într-o manieră vag împăciuitoare că a fost o personalitate condamnată public pentru persecuția, deportarea și moartea unui număr însemnat de minoritari evrei și țigani în timpul celui de-al Doilea Război Mondial, dar extrem de apreciată pentru calitățile sale ostășești.

Doamna îmi taie biletul, deschide ușile la câteva încăperi și apoi iese cu portarul afară la o țigară. Intru în prima încăpere. La intrare, de pe o coala A4, aflu că aici era biroul comandantului unității militare 01417, Colonelul Andrei Kemenici, fiind folosită în dimineața de 25 decembrie ca spațiu pentru vizita medicală obligatorie.

Înăuntru e umezeală și miroase a stătut. Draperiile sunt trase și singura lumină vine de la un bec anemic agățat de tavan. Parchetul de culoarea mahonului scârțâie sub greutatea pașilor. Locul pare încremenit în timp.

Cămăruța e mobilată sumar. În mijloc sunt două șiruri de mese, în formă de T. Pe una dintre ele sunt așezate 4 telefoane vechi, cu disc. Unul singur are carcasa roșie și te îndeamnă să faci tot felul de speculații pe seama lui. Într-un colț e o masă scundă, pe care este așezat un vechi televizor Elektra deaspura căruia stă, aproape ostentativ, celebrul bibelou de sticlă în formă de pește. Lângă ușa de la intrare, jumătate de perete este ocupat de o bibliotecă de lemn cu geamuri de sticlă unde sunt rânduite tomuri vișinii cu congresele Partidului Comunist Român. Pe polița din mijloc stă deshis unul dintre volume, chiar la prima pagină, cea cu chipul lui Nicolae Ceaușescu, reprezentat într-o manieră stilizată, în tonuri sepia, cu un surâs ușor nostalgic.

Când o întreb pe femeia care are grijă de muzeu dacă biblioteca aceea a fost acolo și înainte de proces, nu știe să îmi răspundă. Nu lucrează de mult timp la muzeu. Paznicul dă și el din umeri, dar îmi spune că tot mobilierul este cel original și probabil că și biblioteca la fel.

A doua încăpere, le fel de întuecată și friguroasă, a servit ca dormitor pe perioada cât cei doi au fost reținuți aici. Și aici sunt draperiile trase și am citit undeva că în cele câteva zile cât au stat aici, de la momentul în care au fost aduși cu escortă militară până în ziua execuției, aripa aceasta a fost complet izolată, geamurile fiind complet acoperite și foarte puține persoane având acces în acest perimetru.

Pe peretele dinspre geam sunt aliniate trei paturi mici, cazone. Între ele e așezat, într-o poziție marțială, un manechin fără cap, îmbrăcat într-o uniformă militară kaki. În locul capului are așezat un chipiu de soldat. Cât timp au stat stat în camera aceasta, soții Ceaușescu au fost mereu sub escortă militară, motiv pentru care se explică și prezența celui de-al treilea pat. Pe o masă mică de pal sunt așezate două castroane de aluminiu, două căni emailate și câteva tacâmuri coclite, făcând parte din recuzita sărăcăcioasă pe care au folosit-o cei doi în ultimele lor zile de viață.

E foarte frig iar acest lucru sporește impresia apăsătoare pe care acest loc îl are asupra mea. Mai am de vizitat încăperea unde a avut loc procesul și zidul unde a avut loc execuția. Înainte de asta, schimb câteva vorbe cu portarul, care pare mai vorbăreț decât doamna cu biletele. Iarna vine puțină lume la muzeu. Uneori sunt zile când nu intră nimeni aici. Vara, în schimb, au mulți turiști, mulți dintre ei străini care au văzut la televizor execuția dictatorilor și vor să vadă cu ochii lor locul acesta. Mai târziu, uitându-mă peste caietul de impresii, îmi dau seama că paznicul îmi spusese adevărul. Foarte multi germani, olandezi și francezi trecuseră pe aici ca să se convingă că execuția televizată nu fusese doar un simulacru.

Deși cea mai sărăcăcioasă, camera procesului este de departe cea mai impresionantă. O știu de la televizor, însă faptul de a fi aici este cu adevărat copleșitor. Intrarea e păzită de două manechine, îmbrăcate în aceeași uniformă kaki. Un alt manechin, cu același aer sinistru, stă într-un colț, lângă sobă. În rest, toată încăperea e ocupată de mese, așezate sub forma unui pătrat. Pe fiecare masă, pe aceleași foi A4 îndoite sub forma unui cort, este explicată dispunerea persoanelor care au luat parte la proces. În colțul opus sobei, e măsuța la care au stat soții Ceaușescu. La celelelte au stat cei care făceau parte din completul de judecată al tribunalului militar. Deși pare mult mai mică, aceasa era încăperea pe care o văzusem la televizor, într-o tăcere adâncă, în urmă cu 27 de ani.

Pe una dintre mese e așezat un caiet de impresii cu paginile îndoite. Mă așez și încep să citesc. Cele mai înduioșătoare sunt cele ale copiilor care au vizitat muzeul. Probabil că au înțeles și ei cam cât am înțeles si eu în fața ecranului alb negru al televizorului: că acolo au fost pedepsiți cu moartea doi oameni care au făcut mult rău unui popor întreg. Din câte îmi amintesc, mie mi-a părut rău de ei. Nu aveam cunoștință de răul pe care îl făcuseră. Tot ceea ce vedeam la televizor erau doi oameni bătrâni, obosiți, care se rugau de niște soldați să nu îi lege de mîini.

În rest, părerile străinilor sunt cele standard. Un loc impresionant, o bucată vie de istorie, mesaje de încurajare pentru democrația încă tînără din România. Cele ale românilor sunt mai scindate și mai patetice. Unii dintre cei care au scris în caiet sunt nostalgici, îl regretă pe Ceaușescu și îl numesc pe Iliescu criminal. Alții sunt mult mai temperați și consideră că trebuie să învățăm din greșelile trecutului, să le cunoștem pentru ca acestea să nu se mai repete. Iar alții sunt pur și simplu cinici. Cu litere de-o șchioapă, pe o pagină întreagă, e trecut următorul mesaj: Gata, m-am întors! Naiba v-a luat, popor român! Și e semnat: N.Ceaușescu.

Înainte să ies, văd că în spatele sălii e o ușă deschisă care dă într-o altă încăpere. E aproape goală și doar în mijloc are o masă mare, din pal crem. Într-un colț, e așezată o farurioară cu otravă pentru șoareci. Nu înțeleg la ce a folosit cămăruța aceea. Îl întreb pe paznic, dar acesta ridică din umeri. La fel și femeia.

Când ies din nou pe coridor, în dreapta mea, fixată pe perete, e vechea stemă a României, care îmi este atât de familiară din manualele școlare. Fără un motiv anume, întotdeauna mi s-a părut ca are o frumusețe aparte, prin simplitatea și naivitatea ei. O jalbă de spice aurii, peste care stă petrecut tricolorul, înconjoară un râu azuriu, brazi falnici și verzi, sonde și munți stânoși, toate pe fundalul unui soare radios. Îi fac o poză și merg mai departe.

Mi-a mai rămas un singur loc de vizitat: curtea interioară unde a avut loc execuția. Un soi de informație neașteptată, depozitată într-un loc ascuns pentru multă vreme, iese acum la suprafața conștientă a gândurilor mele: din sala de judecată până la zid sunt exact 62 de metri. Încerc să îmi dau seama de unde am informația aceasta, însă degeaba. Firul gândurilor e întrerupt de portarul care a ieșit după mine afară. Îmi spune să merg pe lângă zidul clădirii, fiindcă aleea este înghețată. Apoi își apride o țigară și rămâne tăcut în spatele meu.

Zidul încă mai păstrează urmele cartușelor, sub forma unor mici cavității cărămizii. La un moment dat, unele dintre ele au fost acoperite cu tencuială, însă când locul a fost transformat în muzeu, tencuiala a fost îndepărtată și ele și-au reluat rolul de martori tăcuți ai istoriei. Zidul e marcat cu o plăcuță de marmură pe care stă scris, cu litere șterse: Locul execuție soților Nicolae și Elena Ceaușescu. 25 decembrie 1989. Ora 14.45. Primele două propoziții nu îmi spun nimic. Sunt seci și redundante. Marchează un eveniment istoric și data la care acesta avut loc. În schimb, faptul că ora este și ea trecută acolo este ceea ce conferă evenimentului materialitate și dramatism. Ea este garantul că acest eveniment a fost real, că s-a întâmplat cu adevărat și îl izolează bine în timp și în memorie.

Mă uit la ceas dintr-un impuls inconștient: 12.35. Apoi mă uit în jurul meu. O mierlă grăbită trece pe deasupra curții. Din apropiere se aude șuieratul trenului. Paznicul stinge țigara cu talpa pantofului. Câțiva țurșuri colțuroși și amenințători atârnă de streașina acoperișului. Viața care îți vede de treaba ei.

La baza zidului, trasate cu o vopsea albă care s-a șters pe alocuri, sunt siluetele celor doi soți, desenate exact în pozițiile în care aceștia au căzut după ce au fost secerați de gloanțe. Locul are aerul unei scene criminaliste. În stânga, e silueta lui Nicolae Ceaușescu, căzut pe-o parte cu picioarele îndoite sub el. În dreapta, cea a Elenei Ceaușescu, căzută cu fața în jos, la o distanță mică de el. Am foarte bine întipărite în memorie pozițiile în care cei doi s-au prăbușit la pămînt după execuție, le-aș fi știut și dacă ele nu ar fi fost desenate cu vopsea albă. Am văzut de atâtea ori fotografii cu trupurile celor doi culcate la pământ, încât s-au imprimat adânc în memorie, ca o pată de vin într-o țesătură. Nu am timp să mă gândesc prea mult. Paznicul vine iar lângă mine și începem să vorbim despre vreme, de ca și cum siluetele de vopsea, găurile din zid și plăcuța de marmură nu ar exista acolo sau importanța lor ar fi fost diminuată de trecerea anilor.

A nins mult și la Târgoviște iarna aceasta. Nu ca la București, ce-i drept, dar mai mult ca în alți ani. Și e foarte frig. De aproape o lună e ger. Ger și ceață. O să aibă mult de plătit la căldură lunile acestea.

După ce plec de acolo, mă mai uit încă o dată la statuia lui Radu cel Viteaz și îmi pun o întrebare simplă: care este rolul acestui loc, a acestui muzeu improvizat și sinistru? Încerc să îmi răspun în timp ce traversez în grabă, cu picioarele și mâinile complet înghețate, un bulevard larg, cu case elegante, o rămășiță probabil a unui Târgoviște interbelic.

Este acest loc o mărturie vie a felului în care victimele știu să se răzbune, atunci când sorții le sunt prielnici, pe agresorii lor, pe cei care i-au oprimat și le-au îngrădit libertatea? Este o lecție de istorie despre răzbunare și despre cum sfârșesc de obicei dictatorii, cei care își doresc puterea doar pentru ei? Sau este manifestarea unui act de cruzime, făcut în pripă, de un grup de oameni ale căror interese au rămas necunoscute până în ziua de astazi? Încercând să îmi răspund la această întrebare, îmi vin în minte cuvintele lui Kaplan: istoria poporului român este ca o lecție lungă despre pasivitate și acceptare, ea fiind marcată însă, la anumite intervale, de izbucniri neașteptate de furie oarbă și violență.

Revoluția din decembrie 1989, simulacrul de proces și execuția televizată vin să întărească această afirmație. Dintre toate țările din Blocul Estic, în România înlăturarea comunismului s-a făcut cu sânge, conspirații, morți, teroare și un extraordinar act de răzbunare transmis în direct la televiziunea de stat.

În cele din urmă, găsesc o mică simigerie care este deschisă și îmi cumpăr o ciocolată caldă și un baton cu șuncă. Deși e bine trecut de miezul zilei, de abia acum orașul începe să se trezească din amorțeala de duminică. Mai am vreo două ore până la trenul de întoarcere și, dacă tot sunt acolo, mă decid să vizitez și Curtea Domnească.

#targoviste #nicolae ceausescu #elena ceausescu #revolutia romana #decembrie 89

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