Christopher Columbus (1451-1506) was an explorer, cartographer (map maker), and adventurer from the Republic of Genoa (today it is part of northern Italy). In 1492, he led an expedition from Spain and discovered the islands of the West Indies. He died believing he had found a westerly route to Asia, but in reality he had opened up the continents of North America and South America for European discovery and colonization. Fifty years ago, Americans viewed Columbus as a hero, and schoolchildren across the country had the day off from school. Today, Columbus is honored by students in only a few states, and in many parts of our country he is viewed with great dislike. Columbus Day is celebrated in some places of the United States on the second Monday of October, sometimes falling on the day he discovered America, October 12th, 1492.
In the 1400s, Western Europeans rapidly modernized, experienced a social mobility never before imaginable, developed high forms of art, and used technology in new ways. The Renaissance that had started in Italian city-states had spread north, and throughout Europe there was a sense that the world was waiting to be explored, discovered, conquered and civilized by those who were brave and eager enough. The Renaissance was a time where European artists and intellectuals rediscovered the beauty of the ancient Greek and Roman artists and intellectuals. City-states in Italy grew wealthy from trade with the East through the Mediterranean Sea, and countries in Western Europe wanted to be able to go directly to the East by the ocean, without having to go through the Mediterranean Sea and dealing with middle men. In 1492, the Spanish finally succeeded in liberating Spain from the African Muslims who had controlled them for over 700 years! After this 700 year war, Spain was filled with unbound confidence and believed it was a chosen country to explore, Christianize, and conquer the world. Ocean travel is challenging, but the European mindset, Spanish confidence, new technology, and vision of Christopher Columbus made such a huge journey possible. Christopher Columbus grew up in the Republic of Genoa. His dream as an adult was to sale west from Europe and go straight to Asia, where he could open up new trade routes with China. Nobody, of course, knew that in between Asia and Europe were the Americas. Nearly all sailors knew that the Earth was round, however, no sailor knew how far the journey from Europe to the next continent was, and there was fear of starving on ship if Asia was not reached. The Asian invention of the astrolabe, an instrument that made travelling at night and away from shore possible, helped sailors like Columbus have greater confidence to sail far away. King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain, fresh from their victory over the Muslims in 1492, agreed to allow Columbus to use Spanish ships and men to go on his quest. Columbus set out in three ships: the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria. His goals were to find a new trade route to Asia, to find gold and bring it back to Spain, to claim new land for Spain, and to spread Catholic Christianity throughout the world. After approximately 30 days, Columbus found the new land, however, as we know, it was not Asia, it was an island in the Bahamas. Columbus believed he had found India and called the natives “Indians.” Columbus made four different journeys to the Bahamas, established Spanish forts, was completely unsuccessful in finding any gold, and was arrested by the Spanish for being an incompetent and tyrannical governor of the new lands. Columbus’ men were so intent on finding gold that they mistreated many of the Indians they came into contact with. There are historical accounts of torture and murder by some of Columbus’ men. Columbus was either unable, or unwilling to stop them. The group of Indians Columbus first encountered, the Tainos, were extinct 50 years later. Most Indians who came into contact with the Spanish and other Europeans died from diseases, such as small pox. The natives did not have these diseases, and had no immunity built up against them. The Spanish King and Queen eventually arrested Columbus, had him brought him back in chains, tried him for incompetence and for the cruel treatment some of his men perpetrated against the Indians, and jailed him. In six weeks, the King released him. Columbus’ legacy in the new world is mixed. He discovered America and opened up new lands for the rest of the world. Before Columbus, Indians in the Americas worshipped many gods, many practiced torture and polygamy, and some practiced cannibalism as a way of life. Europeans who came and eventually settled the Americas brought monotheism, ended polygamy, and brought literacy to the Indians. Eventually, the United States of America was founded, as was all other modern nations of North and South America. Columbus’ discovery of America was the beginning of the founding of these modern nations. Columbus has also been the focus of those who argue that the European conquest of the Americas was an immoral act against the Indians. European disease, such as small pox, is believed to have killed up to 90% of the Indian population. And, the superior strength of Europeans meant that it was easier to destroy the Indian culture. Before the 1960s, American students and historians focused on the positive elements of Columbus’ discovery of America, and all America celebrated him. In 1971, Columbus Day became a federal holiday. After this, however, certain states began to take away the celebration of Columbus. In California, for example, students do not celebrate Columbus Day, and a public school teacher may hear his colleagues berate Christopher Columbus. In New York, however, Columbus is heralded as a hero, and New York City has a huge Columbus Day Parade that involves over 35,000 people every year. Unfortunately, over time, many American students do not even know anything about Christopher Columbus. Was Columbus a hero or not? That is a great question to ponder on Columbus Day, which is a federal holiday in the United States of America on October 14th, but is celebrated on the second Monday of October. In many states where Columbus Day is not celebrated, students have stopped learning about him altogether. Great Discussion Questions to Ask Your Kids 1. What did Columbus discover? 2. Who was he sailing for? 3. How did Californians celebrate Columbus in the 1970s? 4. Why do some Americans dislike Columbus today? 5. What is your opinion of Columbus? Was he a great man, a villain, neither? Explain your answer. By John De Gree of www.classicalhistorian.com Copyright 2016. All Rights Reserved. #theclassicalhistorian
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Labor Day, the first Monday in September
Labor Day is celebrated on the first Monday of September. It is a holiday in honor of the workers of the United States of America. In the 1880s, various states and cities began to celebrate workers with parades. Labor Day is typically a celebration of the average city-worker, and was the culmination of a growing labor movement in American cities. It marked the end of a chiefly agrarian society in America and the beginning of a modern one. In 1894, President Grover Cleveland signed the Labor Day legislation into law. Contrary to Europe, celebration of the worker in America has primarily supported the free market and has not been a call for Socialism. This fact has its roots in Labor Day. It is challenging to remember life in the United States before the era of industrialization. 90% of Americans grew up and worked on farms before the second half of the 19th century, and up to World War II, most Americans were farmers. Life on a farm is often glamorized, with romantic visions of beautiful sunsets, sweet-smelling grass and corn, and quiet and peace. In reality, the workday for the typical farmhand in pre-industrial America was tough and often unpleasant. My Dad, my personal hero, grew up in 1930s and 40s Minnesota, a true Depression-baby farm boy. Starting at the age of 12 until he reached adulthood, he was hired out to a local family each summer to work on their farm. His experience was similar to most boys growing up in farm country, America. He lived in the family’s basement, Monday through Saturday. He awoke before dawn to feed the animals, clean the stalls, and continued to work throughout the day, as long as the sun was up. He did all the work a man would do, from driving tractors to repairing anything that would break. And, his workday was over 12 hours a day. When my Dad earned $1 a day, it was big money. He was able to use his summer earnings to pay for his school clothes, any books, and extra money throughout the school year. He was, in many ways, financially independent as a teenager. When American society changed from an agrarian society to an industrial one, families faced great challenges, both socially and economically. Whereas before, the family who owned a farm would work altogether, in a city, family members worked in different locations. Where most family farms were independently owned in the 1700s and 1800s, workers in cities didn’t own the businesses they worked in. And, because America was such a huge attraction to foreigners, city life offered a constantly changing society. In 1800s America, life for a factory worker was challenging. Workers had little or no rights, factories could be physically dangerous, and an evil business owner could get away with horrible acts. Workers could be killed by working in dangerous factories, or they could lose limbs and then be fired from their jobs. Still, the American worker most likely did better than other workers of the world. If this weren’t so, the U.S.A. wouldn’t have been the destination of so many millions of immigrants. The opportunity of America overrode the hardships of life when it came to where people wanted to live. Industrializing America lifted tens of millions out of poverty. Because of the harsh work conditions, labor leaders sought to gather workers into unions in order to bargain for worker rights. Initially in the United States and elsewhere, there was great opposition to worker rights both by the government and by business owners. Those in power feared that the workers would take away the power, rights, and property of the business owners. In Russia in 1917, a “Workers Party” called the Communists, did take away the property of individuals and went on to be responsible for the murder of tens of millions of Russians who opposed them. In the U.S.A., however, the labor movement focused on making the lives of workers better by pushing for an 8-hour workday, safer work conditions, and demanding fair treatment of all workers in every situation. In 1894, railway workers in the American Railway Union demanded better work conditions and went on strike against the Pullman Company. During the strike, the U.S. government attempted to crush the strike, as did other worker’s unions. There was violence, and workers died at the hands of government employees. This strike helped Americans realize that working conditions needed to drastically change for factory workers. President Cleveland and the U.S. Congress initially opposed the strike, but later realized that the workers’ demands were reasonable. The Pullman Company was forced to change in favor of the workers. In 1894, the U.S. government passed a law declaring the first Monday of September a national holiday to honor workers. Today, this holiday is also celebrated as a seasonal event, with families marking it as the end of summer and beginning of fall. The major labor movements in America remained true to the principles of liberty and respect for private property. Samuel Gompers founded the American Federation of Labor in the 1880s, one of the country’s largest and most important labor unions. As a labor leader, he strongly opposed Socialism and helped the American worker enjoy a quality standard of living without threatening the rights of property owners. Lesson Ideas for Grades k-5: 1. Ask children to think of all of the occupations, professions, and jobs they can think of. Make a list of them. 2. During dinner, have an adult in your family talk to the children about what he does every day at work and about other jobs he/she had. Lesson Idea for Grades 6-12: Direct your children to interview three people (one of them should own his own business) and ask five questions about the work he does. After the three interviews, have your children decide what sounds good about each of the three jobs and what sounds unpleasant. Have a short discussion about what type of work your child could imagine doing. Here are sample questions for the interview: a. Can you describe a typical day at work? b. What is the pay range of someone in your field? c. What are the highs and lows of your job? d. What type of education does someone need to have your job? e. If you could give me one piece of advice regarding my future work, what would it be? In May, 2018, President Trump fulfilled a campaign promise and moved the United States embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Since 1995, all U.S. Presidents had promised or spoken about moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem. Israelis praised this move and named an Israeli intersection near the embassy Trump Square. Hamas protested this move by staging attacks against the Israeli – Gaza Strip border. Israeli defense forces killed 58 repelling these attacks. Hamas is the radical Islamic terrorist organization that controls the Gaza Strip. Hamas does not recognize Israel’s right to exist as a country and believes Jerusalem needs to be the Islamic capital of Hamas-controlled Palestine. Israel is the only republic on the peninsula of Arabia.
1947-1979 The Israeli-Palestinian conflict did not begin centuries ago, but instead, after World War II. In a series of three articles, The Classical Historian traces the Israeli-Palestinian conflict throughout history. Before World War II, there was not an extended history of conflict between Jews and Arabs. In 1947, two years after the end of World War II, the United Nations voted to establish two countries west of the Jordan River; a Jewish and a Palestinian Arab country. The Jews accepted this plan, but the Palestinians and surrounding Arab countries did not. In 1948, Jews in Palestine declared the birth of the modern country of Israel, consisting of the lands the United Nations had set aside. The surrounding Arab nations (Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon) militarily occupied the land that had been set aside for the Palestinian Arabs. These four countries attacked Israel. Over the next 29 years, Israelis fought the Arab nations in all-out war, in smaller, disconnected battles, or against Arab terrorist attacks. Major wars during this time were the initial Israeli-Arab War in 1948, the Suez War in 1956, the 1967 Six-Day War, the War of Attrition in 1969-1970, and the 1973 Yom Kippur War. During these wars, Israel defeated the Arabs and conquered land that the United Nations had set aside for an Arab Palestinian country. Israel holds some of this land, believing that it is necessary to repel invasions from the Arab countries. Many Arab countries and people continue to refuse to recognize Israel’s right to exist, and a constant state of war exists. Palestinians organized themselves into various terrorist organizations, aiming to destroy Israel. A terrorist organization attempts to harm its enemy by using horrific acts of barbarity, such as purposefully killing innocent civilians on a bus or in a pizza restaurant, or by assassinating athletes and journalists and women and children. Yasser Arafat founded the terrorist group Fatah in 1959, and in 1970, the PLO (Palestinian Liberation Organization) was established in Jordan and later moved to Lebanon. Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood, and Al Qaeda are more modern terrorist organizations aimed against Israel. 1979-1986, Egypt and Lebanon Recognize Israel Major peace developments occurred in 1979 and the 1980s. In 1979, with U.S. President Carter acting as the chief negotiator, Egypt and Israel signed a peace agreement, and Egypt became the first Arab country to recognize Israel’s right to exist. In 1982, Israel invaded Lebanon and destroyed much of the PLO. In 1983, Lebanon recognized Israel’s right to exist, the PLO was forced to leave Lebanon, and Israel agreed to not invade Lebanon. 1987-1993 The First Intifada In 1987, the First Palestinian Intifada began. Intifada means “shaking off” or “shaking up.” Arab Palestinians violently protested Israel’s occupation of lands that the United Nations originally had chosen for the Palestinian country. Israel had taken these lands in the wars against the Arab countries. Israel argued that occupation of these lands was necessary so it wouldn’t be attacked from those areas. Much changed from 1987 to 1993. In the Intifada, Palestinians threw rocks at Israelis, attacked civilians, and Israel used its military supremacy to defeat the protesters. Palestinians targeted both military targets and Israeli citizens. One technique used during the Intifada was the suicide bomber. A Palestinian would strap bombs to himself, go on a crowded bus or in a restaurant, and blow himself up, killing innocent Israelis. About 2,000 Palestinians and 300 Israelis were killed during this time. Palestinians claimed Israel was an occupying force that abused its power. Israel claimed the right to exist and protect itself. At the end of the Intifada, Israel withdrew from much of the two areas it had occupied, the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The PLO, led by Arafat, renounced violence, accepted the United Nations plan for two states in Palestine, and recognized Israel’s right to exist. Israel recognized the PLO as the representatives of the Palestinian people. It was to be known as the Palestinian Authority (PA) from now on. 1993-2000 The Oslo Accords The Oslo Accords were various agreements between Israel and the PA that was to eventually establish two countries, Israel and Palestine, and resolve the problems that had existed between the Israelis and the Palestinians since World War I. It began with much enthusiasm on both sides, but ended in armed conflict. Disagreements involved the capital city of Jerusalem, Palestinian refugees, and Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. 2000-2005 The Second Intifada Open conflict between Palestinians and Israelis continued. As in the First Intifada, Palestinians targeted both soldiers and civilians and used suicide bombers. In contrast with the First Intifada, Israel aggressively asserted control over civilian areas of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, killing terrorist leaders in their homes, destroying PA infrastructure, and maintained occupying forces. PA leader Yasser Arafat died in 2004. The new PA leader, Abbas, agreed with Israeli Prime Minister Sharon to stop all fighting. The cease fire began in 2005. 2005 to Present Hamas, Fatah, Hezbollah, and Israel In the last 9 or 10 years, Israel has fought against radical Islamic groups in the West Bank and Gaza, in Lebanon, and has militarily occupied parts of Palestine. Israel has also continued to expand Jewish settlements into areas that Palestinians claim as their own. Hamas, Fatah, and Hezbollah are three terrorist organizations whose stated goal is to destroy Israel. Hamas won elections in the Gaza Strip in 2007 and took over administration. Hamas also defeated the Palestinian Authority. Along with running the government, Hamas built tunnels between Egypt and the Gaza Strip to smuggle in weapons used to attack the Israelis. Over the years, Hamas has launched missiles at Israel. Fatah, another terrorist organization, controls the West Bank. On November 2012, Israel launched a military offensive aimed at destroying the military power of Hamas. Hamas has launched more than 1100 missiles into Israel, and Israel successfully degraded Hamas’ ability to fight. Hezbollah is in southern Lebanon, and periodically launches missiles into Israel or conducts military raids. 2018 Trump Moves U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem Since 1995, every U.S. President has spoken about moving the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem. However, Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip object to the embassy in Jerusalem because it legitimizes the country of Israel. It is the stated goal of Hamas and Fatah to create a Palestinian country and to destroy Israel. Other Arab nations, and some Asian nations, also desire to annihilate Israel. Hamas and Fatah want Jerusalem to be a capital of an Islamic country. Because manyj have a strong hatred against Israel, each U.S. President has been afraid to move the embassy. The opening of the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem is a sign of American-Israeli friendship and a challenge to terrorist groups and countries who want to destroy Israel. When President Trump campaigned, he declared his administration would move the American embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. This month, Trump followed through with his pledge. War, 1948-1979
In 1947, two years after the end of World War II, the United Nations voted to establish two countries west of the Jordan River; a Jewish and a Palestinian Arab country. The Jews accepted this plan, but the Palestinians and surrounding Arab countries did not. In 1948, Jews in Palestine declared the birth of the modern country of Israel, consisting of the lands the United Nations had set aside. The surrounding Arab nations (Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon) militarily occupied the land that had been set aside for the Palestinian Arabs and attacked Israel. Over the next 29 years, Israelis fought the Arab nations in all-out war, in smaller, disconnected battles, or against Arab terrorist attacks. Major wars during this time were the initial Israeli-Arab War in 1948, the Suez War in 1956, the 1967 Six-Day War, the War of Attrition in 1969-1970, and the 1973 Yom Kippur War. During these wars, Israel defeated the Arabs and conquered land that the United Nations had set aside for an Arab Palestinian country. The Arab countries and people refused to recognize Israel’s right to exist, and a constant state of war existed. Palestinians organized themselves into various terrorist organizations, aiming to destroy Israel. A terrorist organization attempts to harm its enemy by using horrific acts of barbarity, such as purposefully killing innocent civilians on a bus or in a pizza restaurant, or by assassinating athletes and journalists and women and children. Yasser Arafat founded the terrorist group Fatah in 1959, and in 1970, the PLO (Palestinian Liberation Organization) was established in Jordan and later moved to Lebanon. Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood, and Al Qaeda are more modern terrorist organizations aimed against Israel. 1979-1986, Egypt and Lebanon Recognize Israel Major peace developments occurred in 1979 and the 1980s. In 1979, with U.S. President Carter acting as the chief negotiator, Egypt and Israel signed a peace agreement, and Egypt became the first Arab country to recognize Israel’s right to exist. In 1982, Israel invaded Lebanon and destroyed much of the PLO. In 1983, Lebanon recognized Israel’s right to exist, the PLO was forced to leave Lebanon, and Israel agreed to not invade Lebanon. 1987-1993 The First Intifada In 1987, the First Palestinian Intifada began. Intifada means “shaking off” or “shaking up.” Arab Palestinians violently protested Israel’s occupation of lands that the United Nations originally had chosen for the Palestinian country. Israel had taken these lands in the wars against the Arab countries. Israel argued that occupation of these lands was necessary so it wouldn’t be attacked from those areas. Much changed from 1987 to 1993. In the Intifada, Palestinians threw rocks at Israelis, attacked civilians, and Israel used its military supremacy to defeat the protesters. Palestinians targeted both military targets and Israeli citizens. One technique used during the Intifada was the suicide bomber. A Palestinian would strap bombs to himself, go on a crowded bus or in a restaurant, and blow himself up, killing innocent Israelis. About 2,000 Palestinians and 300 Israelis were killed during this time. Palestinians claimed Israel was an occupying force that abused its power. Israel claimed the right to exist and protect itself. At the end of the Intifada, Israel withdrew from much of the two areas it had occupied, the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The PLO, led by Arafat, renounced violence, accepted the United Nations plan for two states in Palestine, and recognized Israel’s right to exist. Israel recognized the PLO as the representatives of the Palestinian people. It was to be known as the Palestinian Authority (PA) from now on. 1993-2000 The Oslo Accords The Oslo Accords were various agreements between Israel and the PA that was to eventually establish two countries, Israel and Palestine, and resolve the problems that had existed between the Israelis and the Palestinians since World War I. It began with much enthusiasm on both sides, but ended in armed conflict. Disagreements involved the capital city of Jerusalem, Palestinian refugees, and Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. 2000-2005 The Second Intifada Open conflict between Palestinians and Israelis continued. As in the First Intifada, Palestinians targeted both soldiers and civilians and used suicide bombers. In contrast with the First Intifada, Israel aggressively asserted control over civilian areas of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, killing terrorist leaders in their homes, destroying PA infrastructure, and maintained occupying forces. PA leader Yasser Arafat died in 2004. The new PA leader, Abbas, agreed with Israeli Prime Minister Sharon to stop all fighting. The cease fire began in 2005. 2005 to Present Hamas, Fatah, Hezbollah, and Israel In the last 9 or 10 years, Israel has fought against radical Islamic groups in the West Bank and Gaza, in Lebanon, and has militarily occupied parts of Palestine. Israel has also continued to expand Jewish settlements into areas that Palestinians claim as their own. Hamas, Fatah, and Hezbollah are three terrorist organizations who would like to see the destruction of Israel. Hamas won elections in the Gaza Strip in 2007 and took over administration. Along with running the government, Hamas built tunnels between Egypt and the Gaza Strip to smuggle in weapons used to attack the Israelis. Over the years, Hamas launched missiles at Israel. Fatah controls the West Bank. It began as a terrorist organization aimed at destroying Israel and establishing a Palestinian country. On November 2012, Israel launched a military offensive aimed at destroying the military power of Hamas. Hamas has launched more than 1100 missiles into Israel, and Israel successfully degraded Hamas’ ability to fight. Hezbollah is in southern Lebanon, and periodically launches missiles into Israel or conducts military raids. Recently, two Islamic radicals attacked Jewish worshippers at prayer in an Israeli synagogue, killing and maiming with guns and axes. In Israel, people mourned the act of barbarism, but in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Palestinians celebrated by handing out candy to children. Shimon Peres, President of Israel from 2007 to 2014, said, “If a problem has no solution, it may not be a problem, but a fact – not to be solved, but to coped with over time.” It appears that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict may be such a fact. Islamic organizations such as Hamas and Fatah have political control over the Palestinians in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, and, these groups espouse the destruction of Israel. To these groups, attacking Jews at prayer is equivalent to fighting the most evil conquerors of mankind. Israelis are compelled to live as a country constantly at war, defending itself against neighbors who want its destruction. Questions
When President Trump became United States President in January 2016, ISIS (also known as the Islamic State and DAESH) controlled roughly 1/3 of Iraq and 1/3 of Syria. By the end of November, 2017, the U.S. and its allies had defeated ISIS. ISIS no longer controls any territory. While ISIS still exists as an Islamic terrorist organization, it is now unable to collect any taxes or terrorize entire towns. The defeat of ISIS in Iraq and Syria is a monumental success in the war on terror and it has a stabilizing effect on peace throughout the world.
ISIS has its roots in the early 2000s, when many of its founding members were part of the al Qaeda organization, once led by Osama bin Laden. In 2013, Islamic terrorists reorganized into what they called “ISIS,” or, the Islamic State in Syria. The enemies of ISIS call them DAESH, which is an acronym for ISIS but also a derogatory term in Arabic. After President Obama pulled American troops out of Iraq, ISIS took over large areas of Iraq and Syria. Initially calling ISIS the “J.V.” of terrorist groups, President Obama was forced to send back American soldiers into Iraq to take back the land American soldiers had previously won. The Classical Historian had reported the devastation ISIS had caused, not only in the Middle East but in the world. In “Syrian Refugee Crisis,” we reported that of the over 1,000,000 refugees fleeing Syria, many were in fact Islamic terrorists pretending to be refugees. In November, 2015, ISIS killed 130 people and wounded 413 in Paris, France. It was the worst attack in France since World War II. In December of 2015, two members of ISIS, an American-born Syed Farook and his Pakistani wife murdered 14 and wounded 21 in the barbarous attack on Americans in San Bernardino, California at a holiday party. On New Year’s Eve, 2015, in Cologne, Germany, over 600 German women were assaulted by Muslim immigrants from Syria. It is unknown if any of the immigrants were ISIS. In March, 2016, ISIS killed over 30 and wounded up to 230 in coordinated attacks in Brussels Belgium. Of course, there have been countless other terrorist attacks and it is impossible to list them all. When President Trump campaigned for the Presidency, he promised that he would wage war against Muslim terrorists differently than President Obama had. Trump declared that his administration would clearly state that the terrorists were Islamic fundamentalists, and that naming clearly who the enemy was would help in the fight. President Obama’s administration refused to state that ISIS was an Islamic fundamentalist organization. Trump also stated that he would change the rules American soldiers fought under, so that they could more easily attack and defeat the terrorists. Rules of engaging the enemy has been changed, according to Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis, though because these rules are classified, it is impossible to know exactly how they were changed. Though ISIS remains a threat to the Middle East and to the world, their threat has been greatly diminished by the policies of the Trump administration. ISIS no longer holds any territory, is unable to terrorize large communities, and collect taxes. ISIS and other radical Muslim terrorist groups exist, but they appear to be a much lesser threat than just a few years ago. On May 13, 2018, Americans will honor their moms by bringing them flowers, taking them out to eat, and spending time visiting either by phone or in person. But when did this idea of celebrating mothers begin and how did it come to America?
Thousands of years ago, in ancient Greece and Rome, pagans held spring festivals honoring their mother goddesses. Rhea is the Greek mythological mother of the Olympian gods and goddesses and was worshipped as the goddess of fertility and the mountain wilds. In statutes, Rhea is depicted as a matronly woman, seated on a throne flanked by lions. An ancient Rome, Romans celebrated “Magna Mater” (Great Mother), however, these celebrations became so wild and notorious that the Roman government banned Magna Mater’s followers from Rome. What do mothers and wild parties have in common? Ask the ancient Romans. During the first centuries after the crucifixion of Christ, early Christians celebrated Mary as the mother of God, “Theotokos” in Greek and “Mater Dei” in Latin. By the 7th century, Christians around the world set aside January 1st as a special day to honor Mary. In America, Mother’s Day was the brainstorm of Anna Jarvis in 1868. Jarvis wanted to establish a day where Americans would unite for peace and friendship. In 1868, she created a committee to establish “Mother’s Friendship Day,” a day set aside for former Civil War combatants and their families to reunite and form friendships. When Jarvis died, her daughter, also Anne Jarvis, took up the call. Anne Jarvis wanted a day to honor all moms and was upset that America’s holidays were too male dominated. Jarvis sponsored the first U.S. celebration of Mother’s Day at St. Andrew’s Methodist Church in Grafton, West Virginia, in the early 1900s. Anne Jarvis was so successful in promoting the holiday that in 1914, the U.S. Congress passed a law designating the second Sunday in May as Mother’s Day. President Wilson issued a proclamation that on the first Mother’s Day, Americans should show the flag in honor of those mothers whose sons had died in war. Mother’s Day has become a major American and commercial holiday. It is the third largest holiday for sending cards. Americans take their mothers out for brunches or lunch on Mother’s Day, and it has become a source of great wealth for the card and restaurant industries. The founder of Mother’s Day, Anne Jarvis, decried the commercialization of the holiday she championed. In fact, in 1948, Jarvis was arrested for disturbing the peace during a protest against Mother’s Day. The Classical Historian family expresses great admiration and gratitude to all mothers. We see mothers as the teacher of culture, manners, standards, and morality. The author of this article is the 10th of 11 children. He’s glad his mom didn’t stop at number 9. Thanks Mom! The author’s wife is the mother of seven beautiful children. Thank you, Zdenka! The author’s mother-in-law bravely raised her children as a single mom. Thank you Maminka! And we wish all moms on May 13th, and on every day, a Happy Mother’s Day! In honor of the United States federal holiday of Mother’s Day, all purchases from The Classical Historian are discounted 20% through May 13th, when you use the coupon code Mothersday. There is a very close connection between a child and parent. Parents are the people who gave us life, who feed us, who provide us a bed to sleep in, and who teach us how to brush our teeth and say “thank you.” We also look like our parents, speak the same language, and we pray, or don’t pray, as our parents do. In many ways, who we are depends greatly on who our parents are. If someone wanted to determine what kind of a person you would become when you get older, or what type of work you might do, he could study your parents and make some good guesses.
In the same way, a country looks very similar to the culture that founded it. The best word to describe this is heritage. Heritage means something inherited from the past. The United States of America started as 13 English colonies, originally founded by Great Britain in the 1600s. Because of this, much of America can be traced to our British heritage. When we look at a person’s past for understanding, we do not stop with studying his or her parents. We also look at grandparents, great-grandparents, and ancestors as far back in time as possible. It is the same when we study America’s heritage. Even though Great Britain founded the 13 English colonies that would become the United States of America, we can trace America’s heritage to thousands of years ago, to cultures and countries much older than Great Britain. Historians divide history into different periods, or times, so that we can understand them better. Ancient history refers to the beginning of the history of man up to the end of the Western Roman Empire (A.D. 476). Medieval history begins with the end of the Roman Empire and continues until about 1500. And modern history refers to the time from about 1500 to today. Our first unit focuses on the ancient heritage of America. Although the United States of America is a modern nation, beginning with the founding of Jamestown in 1607, its heritage can be traced back to ancient times. The United States of America is strongly influenced by the great civilizations of the Ancient Near East and northern Africa. By great, we mean that the civilizations had a large influence on future civilizations. By civilizations, we mean that these peoples had complex agricultural, urban settlements that allowed for inventions and societal developments that made life better. Early, uncivilized peoples are hunters and gatherers who roam over an area (nomads), who do not read and write, and who do not have the technology to build permanent structures. Their lives are short and they do not give much to later nations. Great civilizations, however, are marked by people who develop writing, and who pass on to others inventions or technologies that prolong or improve life. Civilized nations in the ancient world used farming technology that allowed people to have permanent homes and a consistent food supply. The world’s great early civilizations began on the banks of rivers. Ancient people who lived near rivers could fish for food, drink water, travel on boats, and use the water to irrigate their lands. Irrigate means to water fields so crops can grow. Water from large rivers allowed these people to build strong societies. One of the beliefs of nearly all ancient people was that the world was created and ruled by many gods. There was a god for the wind, a god for the ocean, and a god for the rain. People who believe in many gods are called polytheists. Polytheists believe that if you want something, you can make a sacrifice to a god, and this god might then give it to you. If you want it to rain, you might kill an animal and burn it to make the rain god happy. Sadly, some polytheists sacrificed other humans, even children, to their gods. Polytheists did not believe that there was a clear right and wrong. Since there were many gods, and sometimes the gods competed with each other, what was right often depended on what the ruler said was right. In Egypt, in ancient Africa, the leader was called pharaoh, and all Egyptians had to consider pharaoh a god. For the pharaoh, right was whatever made him strong. This meant that if the pharaoh believed killing someone made him strong, then killing was right. One people of ancient times, the Hebrews, believed in one God. This idea is known as monotheism. The Hebrews believed that their God created a moral system built on what was right and what was wrong. Hebrews believed that God gave them their moral system as well as their system of laws. It is from the Hebrews that Western man received these foundations. America’s laws are founded on Mosaic Law, which includes the well-known Ten Commandments. Much of America’s culture, language, laws, government, philosophy, and performing arts comes from ancient Greece and Rome. Classical Greece and Rome established democracy and representative democracy, cultural norms, and artistic practices that are exhibited in the United States of America today. The American Founding Fathers thought so highly of ancient Greece and Rome that they used the architectural styles of the Classical world, known as Neoclassicism, for the most important buildings in Washington, D.C. To appreciate American history, it is necessary to understand ancient Greece and Rome. Within the Roman Empire, a Hebrew carpenter and his wife had a boy named Jesus who founded the first universal belief, the first religion open to all people in the world, and brought the idea of equality before God to all. This belief would have a direct role in the establishment of the United States of America. Jesus Christ taught that God loved all people in an equal manner and that salvation was open to all, regardless of one’s tribe or nation. About one thousand, seven hundred and seventy-six years after the birth of Christ, Thomas Jefferson wrote in America’s founding document, the Declaration of Independence, “…all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Jefferson linked the ancient religious beliefs of Christianity to the founding of the world’s first modern republic. This heritage from ancient times shaped the United States of America that we know today. Liberty means at least two things: having freedom to and having freedom not to. A goal of liberty is to provide maximum development of an individual’s capacity to be human, to love, to think, to choose to be charitable, to believe in God and follow a religion or not to, to start and run a business, to have a family or to choose not to. It is the freedom an individual has to live his life to its full potential. The story of liberty is as old as the human race, and for much of our world’s history, including today, the great majority of people have not lived in liberty. Only recently, within the last few hundred years, have some people enjoyed a great deal of this freedom.
In modern times, the United States of America has been the leader of liberty. This is why France gave the Statue of Liberty to the United States in the 1800s. It is why immigrants have come first to the United States of America, over other countries, since its inception in 1776. It is the reason that, even though the United States trails China and India in population by about 1.3 billion to 325 million, the U.S. has the greatest economy on Earth. Liberty is a universal idea that continues to fill the hearts and minds of people around the world. The American Founding Fathers defined liberty in the American founding documents, the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Like John Locke before him, Thomas Jefferson believed liberty rested on the principles that “all men are created equal,” and “that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.” The founders believed that the rights of Americans rested on the idea that the Creator formed man with rights that no government had the authority to remove. God existed as the authority above government, above man, and the government was always subject to uphold and defend the rights given to man by the Creator. Jefferson and the other Founders fought Great Britain to establish a limited government so that individuals would have maximum freedom. In the Constitution, liberty is defined in the Bill of Rights, the first ten amendments. The First Amendment guarantees the right to free speech, freedom of the press, religious freedom, and the right to assemble. The founders were very concerned about freedom of political speech, meaning the right to campaign or financially support the candidate of one’s choice without limitation. They wanted to make sure that government would never become so strong that it would limit Americans’ ability to participate in politics. Regarding freedom of religion, the founders wanted to make sure the government would not enforce a state religion, however, at the same time, they wanted Americans to never be limited in their practice of religious worship. There are other important rights in the first ten amendments, such as the right to bear arms, and the right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures. However, the main point of the Bill of Rights was to make sure that government would never take away the liberty of Americans. The story of liberty is the story of Western Civilization. It begins with early man, develops over the centuries, and in many ways, it comes to fruition with the birth of America. In ancient times, most humans on Earth believed in many gods; leaders imposed unfair laws on their subjects; and life was short and miserable for those without power. Unfortunately, this remains the case in some places today. However, about 4,000 years ago, the Hebrews believed in one God, in justice, and in morality, regardless of the circumstance of one’s birth. Then, around 2,500 years ago, the ancient Athenians created democracy, the idea that citizens had the right to vote for their leaders and laws and not be subject to a king. At about the same time, the Romans established a republic. Citizens had rights the government had to respect. As the Roman Republic spread, liberty decreased. In 27 B.C., the Roman Empire arose and the liberties people had under the Roman Republic greatly diminished. However, within the Roman Empire, Jesus Christ established a new religious belief where God loved everyone in an equal manner. For the first time in history, a religion offered salvation to all people, not just people of a certain nationality or tribe. This religious understanding of equality under God was transformed over time into the idea that all people should be treated the same by the law. And thus, Thomas Jefferson wrote, “all men are created equal.” The story of liberty in America has not been a perfect one. From 1776 to 1865, slavery was legal in half of the country. How could a person have liberty if he were owned by another person? In addition, women were not allowed to vote and did not have the same property rights as men. From 1861 to 1865, Americans fought their greatest war, the Civil War, which resolved this paradox of liberty and slavery. Though it took 89 years, the rights Jefferson spoke about in the Declaration of Independence finally did spread to all men, black and white. In addition, throughout the 1800s and early 1900s, the political rights of women expanded to be equal with men. However, liberty in America is still not perfect. It remains today an ideal that Americans strive for. This volume of history is the story of liberty, specifically as it relates to American history. It traces the influence of ancient and medieval civilizations on the establishment and development of the United States of America through the Civil War. It is written with the hope that young Americans will appreciate the uniqueness of America as a leader of liberty. It is these young people who are called to further the cause of liberty within our country and throughout the world. p  Abraham Lincoln was the most hated and despised president of all time, yet he is one of America’s greatest presidents. During the years before the presidential election of 1860, Lincoln clearly stated that slavery was a morally evil and corrupt institution, and that one day, the country would be either all free or all slave. His clarity on this issue led the South to believe that Lincoln would try to abolish slavery, even though he never stated he would. His election to the presidency in 1860 pushed the first Southern states to secede and form the Confederate States of America. Over the next four years, 1861-1865, Lincoln led the effort to crush the rebellion in the South.
Lincoln’s circumstances of youth were common to many Americans. He was born on February 12, 1809, in Kentucky, in a log cabin. His family was part of the Separate Baptist Church, which forbade alcohol, dancing, and slavery. Abraham’s dad, Thomas, saw Indians kill his own father. When Abraham was 9, his family moved north to Indiana. Then, Abraham’s mom died. About a year later, Thomas remarried to Sarah, called “Sally.” Abraham came to love Sally and called her “mother.” As a young person, Abraham learned to read and write at an “ABC School” a few weeks per year. In ABC Schools, children in a larger community met at a log cabin and were taught by a private tutor. Lincoln read the Bible, Robinson Crusoe, Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Franklin’s Autobiography, and law books, whenever he had extra time. At the age of 21, Lincoln moved west to Illinois. As a boy and young man, Lincoln was known as physically strong and a person of wit. He was 6 feet, 4 inches tall, lanky and wiry. For fun, he would tell stories and wrestle. Lincoln is enshrined in the Wrestling Hall of Fame, and had a 300-1 record. Once, after beating his opponent, Lincoln looked at the crowd and declared, “I’m the big buck of this lick. If any of you want to try it, come on and whet your horns.” Nobody took him up on the offer. Lincoln was a reader, a hard worker, and a person of character whom others respected. He read the few books he had many times, and when possible, he borrowed books from other frontier settlers. While living with his parents, he worked on the family farm all day. Lincoln traveled by flatboat down the Mississippi River in 1828 and 1831, and he later received a patent pertaining to flatboats. In the Black Hawk War, Lincoln was voted militia corporal. When he lived on his own, Lincoln opened a store with his partner, who then embezzled all the money. Lincoln worked to pay off the resulting debt of $1,000 (equal to about $26,000 in 2017). Later he decided to be a lawyer. Lincoln’s understanding of religion changed over time. As a young man, he was skeptical that God and Jesus Christ existed. Later, he believed in Christ, but he still rejected joining a religious denomination. Toward the end of his life, Lincoln was convinced of the truth of the New Testament and was led by his faith. In the election of 1846, he campaigned, “I am not a member of any Christian Church…but I have never denied the truth of the Scriptures.” During the Civil War, Lincoln professed a conversion experience to Christianity. Immediately after the Battle of Gettysburg, Lincoln visited the battle scene. He wrote this of what happened: "When I left Springfield I asked the people to pray for me. I was not a Christian. When I buried my son, the severest trial of my life, I was not a Christian. But when I went to Gettysburg and saw the graves of thousands of our soldiers, I then and there consecrated myself to Christ. Yes, I love Jesus." After this, Lincoln prayed every day and read the Bible. To a friend he wrote, “Take all of this book [the Bible] upon reason you can, and the balance on faith, and you will live and die a happier and better man.” Abraham Lincoln married Mary Todd in 1842 and had four boys. Though Lincoln left Mary Todd at the altar during their first wedding attempt, Lincoln called marriage a “profound wonder.” His son Edward died at the age of four of thyroid cancer. William died at the age of 12 of typhoid fever. Tad died of pneumonia at the age of 18. Only Robert lived into adulthood, dying in 1926. The boys’ deaths were a source of great sadness for the Lincolns. Neither Mr. nor Mrs. Lincoln was known for physical beauty, but they were known for their character, ideas, and determination. Mary once said of her husband, “Mr. Lincoln is to be president of the United States some day. If I had not thought so, I would not have married him, for you can see he is not pretty.” In 1858, Americans learned a great deal about the thoughts of Abraham Lincoln through the Lincoln-Douglas Debates. Republican Abraham Lincoln was running for an Illinois U.S. Senate seat against the incumbent Democratic Senator Stephen Douglas. Lincoln was relatively unknown in the country, and many believed Douglas would one day be president. Lincoln and Douglas debated seven times, with each debate lasting around three hours. The debates were big events, with bands, food, and whiskey. At the end of each debate, the candidates shook hands, and maintained a cordial, friendly attitude toward each other. There was no questioner or moderator, only the two men on stage, speaking at great length. At the Lincoln-Douglas Debates, the two candidates expressed greatly different views, especially on slavery. Lincoln spoke strongly against slavery, calling it a moral evil. Lincoln’s clear and unequivocal talk on slavery angered Southern Democrats who wanted slavery to expand. Douglas stated that he was personally against slavery, but he favored popular sovereignty, that the decision should be left to the people in the individual states. At the last debate, Lincoln stated, "The real issue is the sentiment on the part of one class that looks upon the institution of slavery as a wrong…The Republican Party look(s) upon it as being a moral, social and political wrong…and one of the methods of treating it as a wrong is to make provision that it shall grow no larger…That is the real issue.” [The black man is] “entitled to all the natural rights enumerated in the Declaration of Independence, the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness…In the right to eat the bread, without leave of anybody else, which his own hand earns, he is my equal and the equal of Judge Douglas, and the equal of every living man.” In the Lincoln-Douglas Debates, Lincoln argued that the new Republican Party believed the Southern states opposed the ideals found in the Declaration of Independence. Lincoln saw slavery as a sin, as evil, and as a threat to liberty and equality for all. How Lincoln foresaw ending slavery, however, was through legal means, either by voting or appointing Northern judges who would chip away at slavery in the courts. He wanted to peacefully abolish slavery through law, over time. Stephen Douglas won the 1858 Senate election against Abraham Lincoln, but Lincoln became a national political figure. All Americans understood that Lincoln and the Republicans saw slavery as morally corrupt, and that over time, they would work to end it. When Lincoln was elected president in 1860, the Southern states believed they had to secede from the Union in order to preserve the Southern culture, which included slavery. The Civil War Nearly the entire Presidency of Abraham Lincoln consisted of the Civil War. Over 600,000 Americans gave their lives, and over that number suffered injuries. The North defeated the South and the United States remained as one country. Immediately after the war, the northern states passed the 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery. The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln Five days after Lee’s surrender and just over one month after Lincoln’s second inauguration, a Southern actor conspired with others and then shot Abraham Lincoln on Good Friday, April 14, 1865. Lincoln was attending a play at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C., when his bodyguard John Parker left his post to get a drink at a nearby tavern. John Wilkes Booth snuck behind the president, aimed his .44–caliber gun inches from the back of Lincoln’s head, and fired. President Lincoln was carried across the street to a nearby inn and died nine hours later. After the assassination, Booth jumped to the stage below, shouted, “Sic semper tyrannis” (“Thus be it ever to tyrants”), and escaped on his waiting horse. Soon after, Federal soldiers trapped him in a barn, set it on fire, and a cavalryman shot Booth as he tried to escape. Lincoln’s conspirators had planned to murder a number of Republicans, but failed in their attempts. Four of Booth’s conspirators, three men and one woman, were hanged. Three others received life sentences, and one went to jail for six years. Lincoln’s assassination immortalized the 16th President, alongside Washington and Jefferson, as one of America’s greatest heroes, and it led Congress to punish the South for its rebellion. The morning after Lincoln’s murder, Walt Whitman wrote the poem “O Captain, My Captain.” This poem expressed the grief many people in the North felt after Lincoln’s death. In Lincoln’s second inaugural address, given a little over a month before his assassination, he stated: With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the nation’s wounds; to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan—to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves, and with all nations. Lincoln had planned generous peace terms for Southerners who had joined the Confederate States of America, but his assassination gave control of the government to the Radical Republicans, who wanted to completely change the South. For a more detailed version of Abraham Lincoln, slavery in America, and the Civil War, read The Story of Liberty, America's Heritage Through the Civil War, by John De Gree. For a Video Lesson on Lincoln, Go Here and scroll down. Labor Day, the first Monday in September
Labor Day is celebrated on the first Monday of September. It is a holiday in honor of the workers of the United States of America. In the 1880s, various states and cities began to celebrate workers with parades. Labor Day is typically a celebration of the average city-worker, and was the culmination of a growing labor movement in American cities. It marked the end of a chiefly agrarian society in America and the beginning of a modern one. In 1894, President Grover Cleveland signed the Labor Day legislation into law. It is challenging to remember life in the United States before the era of industrialization. 90% of Americans grew up and worked on farms before the second half of the 19th century, and up to World War II, most Americans were farmers. Life on a farm is often glamorized, with romantic visions of beautiful sunsets, sweet-smelling grass and corn, and quiet and peace. In reality, the workday for the typical farmhand in pre-industrial America was tough. My Dad grew up in 1930s and 40s Minnesota, a true Depression-baby farm boy. Starting at the age of 12 until he reached adulthood, he was hired out to a local family each summer to work on their farm. His experience was similar to most boys growing up in farm country, America. He lived in the family’s basement, Monday through Saturday. He awoke before dawn to feed the animals, clean the stalls, and continued to work throughout the day, as long as the sun was up. He did all the work a man would do, from driving tractors to repairing anything that would break. And, his workday was over 12 hours a day. When my Dad earned $1 a day, it was big money. He was able to use his summer earnings to pay for his school clothes, any books, and extra money throughout the school year. When American society changed from an agrarian society to an industrial one, families faced great challenges, both socially and economically. Whereas before, the family who owned a farm would work altogether, in a city, family members worked in different locations. Where most family farms were independently owned in the 1700s and 1800s, workers in cities didn’t own the businesses they worked in. And, because America was such a huge attraction to foreigners, city life offered a constantly changing society. In 1800s America, life for a factory worker was challenging. Workers had little or no rights, factories could be physically dangerous, and an evil business owner could get away with horrible acts. Workers could be killed by working in dangerous factories, or they could lose limbs and then be fired from their jobs. Still, the American worker most likely did better than other workers of the world. If this weren’t so, the U.S.A. wouldn’t have been the destination of so many millions of immigrants. The opportunity of America overrode the hardships of life when it came to where people wanted to live. Because of the harsh work conditions, labor leaders sought to gather workers into unions in order to bargain for worker rights. Initially in the United States and elsewhere, there was great opposition to worker rights both by the government and by business owners. Those in power feared that the workers would take away the power, rights, and property of the business owners. In Russia in 1917, a “Workers Party” called the Communists, did take away the property of individuals and went on to be responsible for the murder of tens of millions of Russians who opposed them. In the U.S.A., however, the labor movement focused on making the lives of workers better by pushing for an 8 hour workday, safer work conditions, and demanding fair treatment of all workers in every situation. In 1894, railway workers in the American Railway Union demanded better work conditions and went on strike against the Pullman Company. During the strike, the U.S. government attempted to crush the strike, as did other worker’s unions. There was violence, and workers died. It appears this strike helped Americans realize that working conditions needed to drastically change for city workers. President Cleveland and the U.S. Congress initially opposed the strike, but later realized that the workers’ demands were reasonable. The Pullman Company was forced to change in favor of the workers. In 1894, the U.S. government passed a law declaring the first Monday of September a national holiday to honor workers. Today, this holiday is also celebrated as a seasonal event, with families marking it as the end of summer and beginning of fall. Lesson Ideas for Grades K-5: 1. Ask children to think of all of the occupations, professions, and jobs they can think of. Make a list of them. 2. During dinner, have an adult in your family talk to the children about what he does every day at work. Lesson Idea for Grades 6-12: Direct your children to interview three people (one of them should own his own business) and ask five questions about the work he does. After the three interviews, have your children decide what sounds good about each of the three jobs and what sounds unpleasant. Have a short discussion about what type of work your child could imagine doing. Here are sample questions for the interview: a. Can you describe a typical day at work? b. What is the pay range of someone in your field? c. What are the highs and lows of your job? d. What type of education does someone need to have your job? e. If you could give me one piece of advice regarding my future work, what would it be? |
John De GreeJohn De Gree writes the current events with a look at the history of each topic. Articles are written for the young person, aged 10-18, and Mr. De Gree carefully writes so that all readers can understand the event. The perspective the current events are written in is Judeo-Christian. Receive Articles and Coupons in Your EmailArchives
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