Question Of The Day, Wednesday, June 14, 2017

[Mamanyt1953]

Let's think back a bit...WAY back!

Do you have a favorite period of history? Why do you like it so?

I'm kinda fond of English history circa the beginning of the 13th century. Think "Evil King John" of the Robin Hood legends. He's kinda a fascinating guy. He was actually a better king in many ways than Richard (the Lionhearted). Richard grew up in France and could have cared less about England. His only interest in it was how much money could be wrung from it to finance his great Crusades. He was utterly contemptuous of the English lords. If not for his mother, Alinor of Aquitaine, I think the English might have risen against him. But for all of that, Richard was an honorable and chivalrous man. Thus, he is seen as a hero in the light of the times. John, now, John had none of Richard's charm. He had no ethics, fewer morals, and thought honor was for fools. It is also very possible that he was bipolar, and fairly severely so. Writers of the time describe how he would be wildly busy for a period of time, riding all over the country, hearing court cases, giving justice, rewriting laws (and doing a pretty good job of it)...but then, he would change. He would stay in, apparently seeing an incredible number of mistresses, but finally not doing much but sitting and staring at his wife's face (she was one of the great beauties of the day). Later, he was so sunk in depravity that the Lords of the land were driven to drafting the Magna Carta and forcing John to sign it. THIS is a real high point in history. Until that time, with the exception of the Roman Republic (about 500 BC to about 30 BC) and the Athenian Democracy (even shorter, around 500 BC to about 320 BC), the Divine Right of Kings, or the Right of Conquest was pretty much a given world-wide. Kings did not even need to make laws, only to issue decrees. For the first time since the year 1AD, a King was held accountable, and both King and Lords were bound by certain obligations. No longer was it a one-way street. In a very real way, this was what made the concept of America even possible.

So yeah. That's mine. Wish I knew a lot more about it. I need to study.

 

[micknsnicks2mom]

my current favorite is WW1 and WW2 time periods. i especially like the WW2 time period, i think because even though the war and related was quite horrific, people in general weren't as horrific (as many seem to be these days -- just my opinion).

 

[blueyedgirl5946]

I enjoy reading about the days of plantations in America and the days of the Civil War. Some of the stories are heartbreaking. Reading about it makes me appreciate the fact that this country got past that and moved on.

 

[jcat]

The Wars of the Roses in England and the reign of Richard III have always fascinated me. The discovery of his skeleton in 2012 was of huge interest, of course.

 

[MoochNNoodles]

Roman history. Mostly for the architecture and some of the art. Really any old architecture; but I enjoyed learning about the architecture and daily life of Roman citizens when I took Latin in high school. I liked that part more than actually learning Latin.

 

[Willowy]

Was there any time in history I would have liked to live? Absolutely not. The cruelty was horrific. The small wars, the disregard for the lives or feelings of women, children, and slaves, the lack of hygiene in many cultures, eww, no. There were some points in the past that were fairly civilized, but they tended not to last long; only until the next epidemic and then things would fall apart all over again.

But reading about it is cool. I used to enjoy historical fiction but found out that the majority of historical fiction isn't well-researched so it's basically just fantasy :/. And of course textbooks don't teach you anything. But when you can actually read the letters and historical documents from a given time period so you can see what life was really like, yeah, that's interesting. It doesn't matter when, to me. I just like reading about what someone's life was like before now.

Haha, I apparently don't read historical books properly or something . I have always identified with the "wrong" people, even when I was little I'd be like "but what about the maidservant, does she have kids, where does she live?", etc. I know I wouldn't be the princess---I'd be a scullery maid, raped and beaten by all the "noble"men of the house whenever they felt like it, and finally worked to death. I know I wouldn't be Anne of Green Gables, who eventually got a loving home---I'd be Anne before the books, or some other random orphan, abused by everybody and no legal protection to get out of it. I'd be one of the shirtwaist girls who were locked in a burning factory, or one of the radium girls. Stories are only fun when they're written about privileged and/or lucky people. It's depressing to read about the slaves' and commoners' lives.

 

[muffy]

My favorite time in history was the civil war. So many battles took place in or around Maryland. I've been to many battle fields: Fredericksburg, Antieam, Boonsboro, Richmond, Petersburg, Manassas Harpers Ferry, Winchester and Richmond. I also like to read about the Lincoln assassination. I've been to Fords theater and the two houses John Wilkes Booth stop in on his way to Southern Maryland (Mary Surratts and Dr. Samuel Mudds house).

Muffy

 

[Mamanyt1953]

The Wars of the Roses in England and the reign of Richard III have always fascinated me. The discovery of his skeleton in 2012 was of huge interest, of course.

Did you get to see the two Starz mini-series based on Philipa Gregory's books? "The White Queen" and "The White Princess"? They were very well done and stayed pretty much true to history.

>SNIP<
But reading about it is cool. I used to enjoy historical fiction but found out that the majority of historical fiction isn't well-researched so it's basically just fantasy :/. And of course textbooks don't teach you anything. But when you can actually read the letters and historical documents from a given time period so you can see what life was really like, yeah, that's interesting. It doesn't matter when, to me. I just like reading about what someone's life was like before now.
>SNIP<

If you'd like to read some wonderfully well-researched historical fiction, I recommend the Roberta Gellis "Roslynd" series. A very few liberties have been taken for the sake of the stories, but the general history is accurate, and Ms. Gellis did extensive research into how people of the time actually lived. LOL...Um...King Richard and King John. That's what my fascination with the period actually grew out of!

 

[amysuen]

I'm a total history nut and haven't met a period of history I didn't like. I prefer historical fiction that doesn't stray too far from the facts. (Or details where it did stray for the sake of the story.)

 

[denice]

I am a history buff so it is hard to choose. I would say ancient Israel and follow a certain itinerant peasant Jewish preacher around. He was one of many such preachers especially during the time of the Roman occupation, what was different about him and why did his message stick? Then follow a Pharisee convert named Paul around, he was the one that moved Christianity from a Jewish sect to it's own religion. That religion then became the largest religion in the world. I would like to see how it began and why it stuck, why it became what it is today. At the beginning it was really just one of many such movements.

 

[jcat]

Did you get to see the two Starz mini-series based on Philipa Gregory's books? "The White Queen" and "The White Princess"? They were very well done and stayed pretty much true to history.

Yes, I did, and also read the books they were based on.

 

[DreamerRose]

What an interesting question. I love to read history, too, but not historical fiction. There are too many inaccuracies. Really good nonfiction history reads like fiction, especially biography. Phillipa Gregory's The Other Boleyn Girl was unreadable to me. Even Wikipedia says the history in it is distorted.

I like the Tudor period the best. Of course, it's the upper crust that lives the romantic and dramatic lives. I love reading about the clothes, jewelry, food, etc. Did you know Elizabeth I had a woman to follow her around to pick up jewels that fell off her dresses? Carolly Erickson is an author who writes about this period and includes all those fascinating details of everyday living. She went through the account books of the kings and queens to get her information.

For the same reason, I find 18th Century France fascinating too. Lafayette by Harlow Giles Unger is an exceptional book about the marquis and the late 18th Century and the American Revolution.

Also, ancient Rome is another period that is interesting. Really, there's no part of history I don't like.

 

[kashmir64]

I've always been interested in ancient Egyptian mythology. The time where everyone thought Ra raised the sun and Apophis raised the moon. That one.
Don't know why, just find it very interesting.

my current favorite is WW1 and WW2 time periods.

My grandfather was in both World Wars. He never talked about it though.