Your favourite "historic" nations
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Medieval Lithuania, cause that's the most I can justify fascism vis a vis history.
Cause at least it was my country's fascism and at least we managed to grab a decent amount of land before the Europeans and the Russians came to ruin it all.
But no, everyone else were mega fascists.
Cause at least it was my country's fascism and at least we managed to grab a decent amount of land before the Europeans and the Russians came to ruin it all.
But no, everyone else were mega fascists.
I'm going to be original and pick the Greco-Indian kingdom, also known as the Greco-Bactrian kingdom. One of the successor states to Alexanders empire, they broke free from their Seleucid overlords and began their own kingdom in modern Afghanistan. For a surprisingly long time the kingdom flourished and expanded into northern India. They practiced both Buddhism and worship of Zeus-Ahura Mazda(Zeus recognised as being the same as the Zoroastrian supreme deity). Even when the Parthians conquered back Persia from the Greeks and the Greco-Bactrians were completely cut off from what they considered the rest of civilization, their state continued. Alone. An isolated beacon of Greek civilization lasting perhaps as long as up to the first century AD. All that remains of them now is the Greek-styled coins they continued to produce.
The Seleucids too were very badass, especially under their founder, Seleucos I Nikator(the victor). Conquering back most of Alexander's empire is pretty impressive. Also I just love the guys name.
Staying in the classical era, what about the Galatians? The Celtic tribe that decided:"We should plunder Greece", succeeded and then settled in the middle of modern Turkey, where they would be renowned across the mediterranean as great mercenaries for a long time after. They even gave their name to the region: Galatia(Gallic Asia). Just the idea that a tribe of Celts, still fighting in the nude, managed to get so far away from their homeland, settle ánd be succesful.
I could go on, but let's leave it at this.
The Seleucids too were very badass, especially under their founder, Seleucos I Nikator(the victor). Conquering back most of Alexander's empire is pretty impressive. Also I just love the guys name.
Staying in the classical era, what about the Galatians? The Celtic tribe that decided:"We should plunder Greece", succeeded and then settled in the middle of modern Turkey, where they would be renowned across the mediterranean as great mercenaries for a long time after. They even gave their name to the region: Galatia(Gallic Asia). Just the idea that a tribe of Celts, still fighting in the nude, managed to get so far away from their homeland, settle ánd be succesful.
I could go on, but let's leave it at this.
The only cultures I can draw from are China and Japan. Their past history is just drilled into my head at this point.
Which is thanks to the Dynasty and Samurai Warrior series.
Apart from those two, the only thing that come to mind is Camelot, which is ... Well, rather an unfortunate myth.
Overall I could easily say Feudal Japan and Ancient China.
Yet if I go deeper, I found the Date Clan and Shu Kingdom to hold much interest for myself.
...
... Oh, and Lu Bu, always Lu Bu.
Which is thanks to the Dynasty and Samurai Warrior series.
Apart from those two, the only thing that come to mind is Camelot, which is ... Well, rather an unfortunate myth.
Overall I could easily say Feudal Japan and Ancient China.
Yet if I go deeper, I found the Date Clan and Shu Kingdom to hold much interest for myself.
...
... Oh, and Lu Bu, always Lu Bu.
George Bush never got a horse elected to senate because he was a brain damaged lunatic! How dare you sully Caligula's accomplishments.Queen Michael said:
OT: Yeah, Rome for me too. Specifically the Augustan and the Nerva Antonine (5 good emperors) Dynasties.
Any particular time period or just China post Qin Shi Huangdi in general?Scarim Coral said:
Gotta give a shout-out to my boys in the Chinese Tang Dynasty empire and the Abbasid Caliphate.
Why? Mostly because of the perspective they give us against Eurocentrism. Here in Western countries, historic practices for a long time (and often still do) portray the West as some kind of unique, superior area. But you know what? It never really was, globally we've only been 'on top' for around a century and a half. Specifically, the Tang and Abbasid show that those 'Dark Ages' as we call them were only dark for a really tiny bit of the planet. Most of the rest of the world wasn't just doing fine, they were thriving.
And I loathe the Eurocentrism I see everywhere in studies today. Hell, my own Philosophy course has one freakin' class worth 5 meager credits covering 'Non-Western philosophy.' You want to stuff centuries upon centuries of intricate global philosophical developments in one tiny class simply because they're not Western? Man, fuck you. In two years of study we've had one pathetic little mention of an Arabian philosopher, Ibn Rushd, and not a single Chinese one. And man, that makes me angry as hell.
Ethopia [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Adwa] on the other hand...
Why? Mostly because of the perspective they give us against Eurocentrism. Here in Western countries, historic practices for a long time (and often still do) portray the West as some kind of unique, superior area. But you know what? It never really was, globally we've only been 'on top' for around a century and a half. Specifically, the Tang and Abbasid show that those 'Dark Ages' as we call them were only dark for a really tiny bit of the planet. Most of the rest of the world wasn't just doing fine, they were thriving.
And I loathe the Eurocentrism I see everywhere in studies today. Hell, my own Philosophy course has one freakin' class worth 5 meager credits covering 'Non-Western philosophy.' You want to stuff centuries upon centuries of intricate global philosophical developments in one tiny class simply because they're not Western? Man, fuck you. In two years of study we've had one pathetic little mention of an Arabian philosopher, Ibn Rushd, and not a single Chinese one. And man, that makes me angry as hell.
Beating? Impressive as they were, because Africa is vastly overlooked in Western history classes, they were just as much overrun in the 19th/20th Scramble For Africa as most of the rest of Africa.Akjosch said:
Ethopia [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Adwa] on the other hand...
Yes, literally beating. The first two Anglo-Ashanti Wars (1823-1831 and 1863) were lost by the British; the other three wars (1873-1874, 1895-1896 and 1900) the British won however, which led to the ultimate destruction of the Ashanti Empire in 1902. That's eighty years of resisting the most powerful empire of the Earth. The colonial time didn't last long however: The (now "just" Kingdom) of Ashanti regained partial autonomy in 1935 already, and full autonomy in 1957, as part of the Republic of Ghana.Cowabungaa said:
Hmmm, the wiki misses the wider context. It was part of the Russian attempt to be portray itself as protector of all eastern Christians, including the Copts of Ethiopia. The Ethiopians received Russian support in the form Russian manned artillery batteries, for which they paid for the guns. When put in context with Russian support of the Serbs and the Italians alliance with Germany and Austria, it become just another move in the much bigger game. The Germans in the same period were trying to portray themselves as protectors of all Muslims.Cowabungaa said:
cyrus was primarily a conqueror though, i would go with darius. he created banks and insurance system. his time were when achaemenid really started to shine.Recusant said:
while rome and greece was good i would go with parthians. their military might was so that the romans couldnt do shit against them yes they had defeats (name one country that was never defeated in a series of long wars) but it was mostly a stalemate. they had a congress and a senate. it was one of the first constitutional monarchies
True, they received military support from Russia, Russia's exploits in the 19th century in general being fascinating and overlooked as well. But I'd say that that doesn't take away from the fact that Ethiopia's successfully staving off colonial rule and staying independent in a gobbled up Africa. It together with Japan kicking Russia's butt in 1905 really gave the Europeans a bit of much needed perspective (though sadly there wasn't enough of it) in that day.albino boo said:
Resist they did indeed, and very well so, even earning respect from the British. But I wouldn't call resisting beating, I'm a long-term kind of guy when such things are considered. If I read it correctly, the Ashanti won the first, the second was a stalemate and the other two were lost. Impressive, but sadly not enough.Akjosch said:
All that of course aside, the Ashanti Empire is vastly overlooked and vastly underrated. We really, really need more Africa and Asia in our history classes outside of "lol we had colonies and vassals there."
As an archaeologist specialized in Ancient Rome... Well... Ancient Rome.
Other than that, pretty much the entirety of antiquity and everything before that (from the old world at least). Greeks deserve to be mentioned. I also adore the Etruscans and the Minoans. Can't go wrong with Egypt and pretty much the entirety of Mesopotamia. Across the pond, the Mayans were rad.
Basically, I love all ancient civilizations and prehistoric cultures.
Other than that, pretty much the entirety of antiquity and everything before that (from the old world at least). Greeks deserve to be mentioned. I also adore the Etruscans and the Minoans. Can't go wrong with Egypt and pretty much the entirety of Mesopotamia. Across the pond, the Mayans were rad.
Basically, I love all ancient civilizations and prehistoric cultures.
Can't agree more with this. As someone actually involved with studying ancient cultures, I can tell that these two regions were extremely ignored throughout my education, which is a pretty damn shame. I know we won't invest much into heavily studying areas that had no influence in my country, but sometimes I feel bad for being someone academically educated about history and not knowing even the basic histories of more than half the world.Cowabungaa said:
Everyone always goes on about Rome, but I personally prefer Italy, immediately after Rome. The conflict between the first king, Odoacer (whose name I still am not totally sure how to pronounce) and the second king, Theoderic (a guy so awesome he was made into legend as Dietrich von Bern) is truly an amazing tale. Bloody too, but amazing.
I've also always taken a shine to Nordic history. Not just Scandinavia, but the British Isles as well.
I've also always taken a shine to Nordic history. Not just Scandinavia, but the British Isles as well.
The city state of Venice. They managed to get an entire crusade excommunicated before it had even sailed past Greece.
Oh there are so many nations I could mention here, from the Sumerians to the Assyrians. Carthage has always fascinated me, and then there's Rome and the Byzantines (yes I do play Civ and Crusader Kings), but I've been listening to Dan Carlin's podcasts on the Mongols.mantistoboggan said:
He really puts into perspective how brutally efficient these guys were at killing people and the existential threat they posed to so many.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6shDsLRHoQ
A simple scouting party laying waste to the largest force the Georgians could ever muster (along with a coalition of crusader forces) in a single battle, 60,000 Beijing virgins throwing themselves from the city walls to escape the pillage, literal mountains of bodies whose stench actually drove European emissaries to deadly sickness, the list goes on.