Birthdays are often a big deal in the modern world, marking milestones such as being old enough to drive or vote, or acknowledging the start of a new decade of life. But for most of human history, a birthday was just another day, and many people didn’t even know when theirs was. Ancient societies sometimes recorded births within noble or wealthy families for lineage or inheritance purposes, but systematic recordkeeping was rare. It wasn’t until the 1530s in England that churches were ma...| History Facts
Most adults need about seven hours of sleep per night, but there’s nothing in the rule book about getting all seven hours at once. For the thousand or so years that encompassed the Middle Ages, in fact, people in Western Europe sometimes slept in two shifts: once for a few hours usually beginning between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m. and again from roughly 1 a.m. until dawn. The hours in between were a surprisingly productive time known as “the watch.” People would complete tasks and chores, relie...| History Facts
When the San José first set sail in 1698, it probably wasn’t expecting to be making headlines three centuries later. The 64-gun galleon belonging to the Spanish navy sank in 1708’s Battle of Barú, but that wasn’t the end of its story. Long known as the “holy grail” of shipwrecks, the San José met its watery end off the coast of Cartagena, Colombia, with 200 tons of gold and emeralds aboard. It’s presumed to be worth as much as $18 billion, which explains why several different e...| History Facts
Drive Thru History advertises “adventure learning” through its courses. Whether on YouTube, Amazon, or through his own site, Dave Stotts explores major historical periods. He does so in episodic segments, which also include an extensive print study guide. The courses and TV show have snowballed in popularity due to the quality of the material as […] The post Drive Thru History: A Brief Guide to the Online Courses appeared first on Historyplex.| Historyplex
Tom Holland is a historian who has done the rounds in England in translation, adaptation, and in writing amazing works of his own. He remains a seminal figure in the fields of dynasty history, the Roman Empire, the Greek myths, and Christianity. If you’re looking for the evolution of religions in world history as seen […] The post Tom Holland Historian: Major Works of the BBC Presenter appeared first on Historyplex.| Historyplex
The history of advertising ranges throughout the centuries, following the available communication methods. However, whether through newspapers or virtual reality devices, advertisers follow the same basic principles to achieve the same goals. Advertisers may want to persuade public opinion towards a product, a course of action, a candidate, or any other cause. Read on to […] The post History of Advertising: How the Sector Progressed to the Modern Day appeared first on Historyplex.| Historyplex
History of accounting may not sound as noble or interesting as the history of other professions, however, accounting may surprise you. It has been an essential career for centuries, with the basic need for accounting in daily life stretching back even to Mesopotamia. In the remotest period of human civilization, our earliest struggle, did we […] The post History of Accounting: From the Ancients to the Modern Day appeared first on Historyplex.| Historyplex
Diamond history stretches back into unknown primordial time. We don’t know when diamonds, the stone, first came into being. However, the diamond’s history with humanity remains more well-documented. This has not kept it immune to a history of lore, however, owing to how important diamonds became to people vying for status and extravagance. Read on […] The post Diamond History: How a Luxury Became a Common Fashion Accessory appeared first on Historyplex.| Historyplex
Falling between the heyday of the Western Roman Empire and the onset of the Renaissance, the Middle Ages have an unflattering reputation as something of a backward epoch of human civilization. Wars raged across Europe, serfs toiled in backbreaking service to feudal lords, and diseases wiped out villages with little hope of preventing the next outbreak. While the negative connotations may not be entirely fair, few would dispute that medieval citizens lived in more primitive conditions than the...| History Facts
War is full of logistical challenges, one of the major concerns — in conflicts both ancient and modern — being how to feed the armies doing the fighting. Whether it’s Roman legionaries, British Redcoats, or modern infantry, soldiers have always needed a reliable supply of food to maintain both their energy levels and morale. As the old saying goes, “An army marches on its stomach.” Military rations have existed since at least the time of ancient Rome, when soldiers received 2 poun...| History Facts
The Middle Ages weren’t just shaped by monarchs and wars — they were lived by everyday people whose names appear in the records they left behind. Parish registers, royal charters, tax rolls, and literature give us a glimpse into the history of common names in medieval England and other parts of Europe and what they meant to the people who carried them. Some of the most valuable insights about what people were called, and why, come from medieval books created specifically to record names. ...| History Facts
If you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time, you’ll know that maps and history are two of my favorite things. I love history because I love learning about the vast panoply of the human …| Goldwag's Journal on Civilization
The flag version of the Ukrainian Special Operations Forces cap badge (Wikimedia) In 2019 Ukraine’s Special Operations Command officially adopted a new unit patch featuring the head of a wolf with …| The BS Historian
I’ve just come across this cool piece of art on Facebook (I like the use of the memento mori as used on period headstones) with the following Revolutionary War quote above it; “…the shi…| The BS Historian
