18th Century Timeline (1776-1800)

1776: Common Sense published
    Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire published
    Wealth of Nations published
    Virginia Declarations of Rights
    Declaration of Independence
    Battle of Long Island
    Battle of Harlem Heights
    Battle of Valcour Bay
    The American Crisis published
    The Battle of Trenton

1777: Battle of Saratoga
    Valley Forge

1778: Battle of Monmouth

1779: James Cook dies in Hawaii

1780: Gordon Riots
    Battle of Camden
    Arnold's treason
    Battle of King's Mountain
    The Great Hurricane kills 22,000

1781: Battle of Cowpens
    Articles of Confederation
    Battle of Yorktown

1783: Peace of Paris

1786: Shay's Rebellion

1787: Northwest Ordinance
    Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia
    Federalist Papers published

1789: Sieyes' publishes What is the Third Estate?
    Constitution goes into effect
    Washington Inauguated first President of the United States
    Tennis Court Oath (France)
    Bastille Stormed
    Declaration of the Righs of Man and of the Citizen

1792: Louis XVI arrested
    September massacres (France)
    Battle of Valmy
    Washington re-elected

1793: Louis XVI executed
    Washington's Proclamation of Neutrality
    Marat murdered
    Reign of Terror begins
    Marie Antoinette executed

1794: Cotton Gin
    Danton executed
    Whiskey Rebellion

1796: John Adams elected president
    Catherine the Great dies
    Battle of Lodi

1797: Battle of Campo Formio
    XYZ Affair
    Battle of the Pyramids
    Battle of the Nile

1798: Quasi War
    Alien and Sedition Acts

1799: Napoleon's coup
    Washington dies

1800: Quasi War ends
    Treaty of Mortefontaine
    Election of 1800 in U.S. goes to the House of Representatives
    Battle of Marengo
    Act of Union (Britain)

18th Century Timeline (1761-1775)

1762: Catherine becomes Czarina
1763: Treaty of Paris
1763: Proclamation of 1763
1764: Sugar Act
1765: Stamp Act
1765: Quartering Act
1766: The Declatory Act
1767: Townshend Duties
1768-74: Russo-Turkish War
1769-70: James Cook in New Zealand and Australia
1769-73: Bengal Famine
1770: Boston Massacre
1771: Arkwright Factory
1773: Tea Act
1773: Boston Tea Party
1773-75: Pugachev's Rebellion
1773: East Indian Company founded
1774: Intolerable Acts
1774: First Continental Congress
1775: Lexington and Concord
1775: Ticonderoga falls to Benedict Arnold
1775: Second Continental Congress
1775: Olive Branch Petition
1775-83: American Revolution

Sci Fi History: Frankenstein by Mary Shelley (1818)

Frankenstein is part gothic horror and part reaction to the Enlightenment and Napoleonic Wars. The Enlightenment was a philosophical movement preaching universal rights. It attacked the aristocracy, monarchy, religion, and inequality. The American and French Revolutions and Napoleon were all the result of Enlightenment thought. The bloodshed of the French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars led to a visceral reaction against modernism and intellectualism. Frankenstein reflects this conflict between nature and science. It is also an early example of Sci Fi warning against science and technology.

The Revolutionary Presidents: 1789-1825

Nowadays, every President obsesses over their legacy. Some of this is media driven and the desire for the press and the public to sum up a presidency as simply and as quickly as possible. Many presidents can claim multiple legacies which further confuses the public and the press. Here is the crib notes version of each president's main legacy beginning with the Revolutionary generation. These five presidents were shaped by their experiences in the Revolution.

1. George Washington (1789-1797): The first George W's legacy is as Father of the Country. His policies kept the country from fracturing. He upheld Federal Supremacy over localism by putting down the Whiskey Rebellion. He kept the country out of the European conflict between France and Britain. His foreign policy became the basis of American foreign policy for a century. As a result of his prudence, instead of falling into civil war or being torn apart by foreign invaders, the United States survived into the next century. Washington's other major legacy is the presidency itself. He was the model the framers had in mind. He set many precedents followed to this day and established the two term limit which only Franklin Roosevelt broke (although U.S. Grant, Theodore Roosevelt, and Woodrow Wilson wanted to break).

2. John Adams (1797-1801): Many historians would claim the Alien and Sedition Acts as Adams' legacy. This is more a reaction to the imagined abuses of the Bush Administration. However, Adams' real legacy is the Peace with France that cost him the presidency. The Anglophobic Democratic Party thought he was a monarchical tyrant while his own party thought he was soft on France and clamoured for war. With the exception of the Civil War era, this was the most divisive political period in American history. Adams' fought his own party as well as the Democrats. He resisted war, achieved peace with the French, and lost his re-election bid.

3. Thomas Jefferson (1801-1809): Jefferson was personally miserable as president. He was very unhappy in the White House. His second term was a disaster. However, his first term was spectacular. The Louisiana Purchase and Lewis and Clark Expedition not only symbolized the young republic, but serve as Jefferson's Presidential Legacy. Interestingly, Jefferson's biggest legacy is the Declaration of Independence which he wrote a quarter of a century before becoming president.

4. James Madison (1809-1817): For better or worse, the War of 1812 is synonymous with James Madison's presidency. Today, some people consider the war a failure, America's first defeat in a war, and needlessly divisive. The War of 1812 might be the most divisive war in U.S. history as New England threatened to leave the Union and celebrated British victories. Some consider the war a draw and a national distraction. However, most Americans at the time considered it a victory for liberty and the war that secured American independence. In many respects, this last interpretation is the most accurate. Like Jefferson, Madison's greatest legacy occurred before his presidency. James Madison is considered the Father of the Constitution.

5. James Monroe (1817-1825): The Federalist Party died and the Democrats had the political world to themselves. Being Democrats, they fought amongst themselves. However, Monroe's legacy unites most Americans to this day and is often invoked by his successors. The Monroe Doctrine bars European colonization and interference in the Americas. It legitimized American involvement during the Cuban Missile Crisis, Invasion of Grenada, and many other activities. Some have been positive while others have been questionable. However, the anti-colonial principles within the doctrine influence American thinking to this day.

Turning Points in History: Athenian Democracy

In honor of the Iranian Uprising...(unless they decide to after the Mullahs and the Military switches sides, that revolt will probably fail)...

But, I digress, here's a brief look at Athenian Democracy...

Athenian Democracy did not appear over night. It evolved out of social unrest between social classes. As a result, Solon emerged to fix those tensions. He compromised between the demands of the people and the demands of the aristocrats. Solon created a governmental system based on wealth as opposed to birth. However, most leaders were those old aristocrats, but anyone could emerge to be a leader under this system if they had the money. In the old system, a person would have to be a Kennedy or Roosevelt to participate. In the new system, Bill Gates could participate as well.

From Solon, Athens evolved into a direct democracy. People represented themselves as opposed to voting on representatives. Everyone voted and participated. Those that refused to participate were punished. The system was open to all adult male citizens of Athens. The main flaw in the system was it’s susceptibility to the passions of the people. Great orators often swayed the electorate into following their policies even when those policies made little logical sense. Alcibiades provides the best example as he convinced Athens to resume a costly war with Sparta.

Athens’ democratic system remained intact until the Spartans temporarily replaced it. An oligarchy ruled for about a year before being overthrown. Democracy returned until the Macedonian Conquest in 322 BC. After the Roman conquest, a localized version of democracy existed in Athens for a time before being extinguished until the modern era. Athenian Democracy (and the Roman Republic) became an inspiration for America’s Founding Fathers, but they also learned from Athenian (and Roman) mistakes.

Presidents and War Service

Revolutionary War

George Washington
James Monroe
Andrew Jackson

War of 1812

James Madison (as President)
James Monroe (as Secretaries of War and State)
Andrew Jackson
William Henry Harrison
John Tyler (Militia Service; saw no action)
James Buchanan

Mexican War

Zachary Taylor
Franklin Pierce
U.S. Grant

Civil War

Millard Fillmore (after his presidency; Major in Buffalo militia home guard; saw no action)
Andrew Johnson (military governor of Tennessee)
U.S. Grant
Rutherford B. Hayes
James Garfield
Chester Arthur
Benjamin Harrison
William McKinley

Spanish American War

Theodore Roosevelt

World War I

Harry Truman
Dwight Eisenhower (saw no action)

World War II

Dwight Eisenhower
John F. Kennedy
Lyndon Johnson
Richard Nixon
Gerald Ford
Ronald Reagan (saw no action)
George H.W. Bush

Korea

Jimmy Carter (US Navy)

Vietnam

George W. Bush (Reserves; no action)

Gulf War I, Gulf II, Afghanistan, War on Terror

None yet

Greatest American Bracketology Round 2

Round 2

Early America
1. George Washington- 8. Lewis and Clark (Washington wins)
2. Thomas Jefferson- 7. John Adams (TJ wins)
3. Alexander Hamilton - 6. Thomas Paine (Hamilton wins)
4. Ben Franklin - 5. James Madison (Madison wins)

Antebellum through Civil War
1. Abraham Lincoln- 9. William Lloyd Garrison (Lincoln wins)
2. John Marshall-10. Frederick Douglass (Marshall wins)
3. Andrew Jackson - 6. Henry Clay (Jackson wins)
13. JQ Adams - 12. Joseph Smith (Adams wins)

Recon through WW2
1. FDR- 9. Andrew Carnegie (FDR wins)
2. Thomas Edison - 7. TR (TR wins)
14. JP Morgan - 6. Henry Ford (Ford wins)
4. JD Rockefeller - 12. Albert Einstein (Einstein wins)

Modern
1. MLK - 9. LBJ (King wins)
2. Ronald Reagan- 10. Robert Oppenheimer (Reagan wins)
14. Richard Nixon - 6. Jonas Salk (Nixon wins)
4. Dwight Eisenhower - 12. George Marshall (Ike wins)

The Greatest American #1s vs. #16s

It's the time of year where brackets reign, so I thought we could do some bracketology history style. A few years back, Atlantic Monthly listed their 100 greatest Americans. I took the list, broke it into 4 brackets and ranked people according to the Atlantic Monthly rankings. So, the people and the rankings come from that mag.

I have 64 Americans, broken into 4 brackets, each bracket with Americans seeded 1-16.

Here are the 1s vs. 16s. I have placed this on some message boards and will tabulate the votes at the end of the week. Feel free to vote (or not)...

Early American Bracket
1. George Washington vs. 16. Nathaniel Greene

Well, there would be no USA without George. He won the Revolutionary War, was the first president, set many precedents, established American neutrality, the national bank, first census, etc etc etc.

Greene was a Revolutionary General. He fought Cornwallis and drove the British nuts. He played cat and mouse with Cornwallis all the way to Yorktown.

Antebellum and Civil War
1. Abraham Lincoln vs. 16. John C Calhoun

Lincoln won the Civil War, freed the slaves, kept the union together.

Calhoun threatened secession and was a staunch states' rights activist and slaveholder.

Reconstruction through WWII
1. FDR vs. 16. Eleanor Roosevelt (no I did not plan this)

FDR gave us the New Deal, saved capitalism, modernized government, and won WWII saving Western Civilization.

Eleanor Roosevelt was a well respected activist for the rights of the downtrodden, leader at the UN, and First Lady.

Modern Era
1. Martin Luther King Jr. vs. 16. Betty Friedan

MLK led the Civil Rights Movement and made white America look in the mirror.

Betty Friedan analyzed domestic America and argued that housewives did not like their lot in life.