Lots of definitions make the trappings of 19th-c. mass politics into the essence of nationalism. But the sentiments behind Machiavelli & Julius II's calls to expel the barbarians, German feeling against Rome leading into the Reformation, were the same that drove later movements.

Men of the British 13th Anti-Tank Regiment struggling with their QF 17-pounder in Roncofreddo on October 18th 1944 show how towards the end of WWII the performance required to deal with armor rendered this class of towed artillery unwieldy to the point of becoming impractical

ὢ πόποι, οἷον δὴ νῦν θεοὺς βροτοὶ αἰτιόωνται· ἐξ ἡμέων γὰρ φασὶ κάκ᾽ ἔμμεναι· οἱ δὲ καὶ αὐτοὶ σφῇσιν ἀτασθαλίῃσιν ὑπὲρ μόρον ἄλγε᾽ἔχουσιν.

Here is Mars Ultor, the "avenger." One of the best preserved statues of the god of war, and one of the main pieces of the Capitoline Museums. Today we have a special 🧵 of 📸 and History! In October 42 BC, the assassination of Caesar was avenged...

If you're not building your palace in a place as cool as this, you should reconsider your life choices.

I've always been sceptical of the "Chinese can't innovate" discourse, given their early lead. Military/economic competition drove European states in their prime (one of the reasons I believe the EU is both cause and reflection of civilisational senescence); the Mediterranean

Russian soldiers in Grozny, during the Second Chechen War in 2000. Also the source of the "Hey friend listen, I know world is scary right now" meme.

I've banged on about this before, but most people imagine 'Rome' as ending in the 2nd century, like the movie. Yet Rome and many of the groups invading it were Christian, and the most Christianised part of the Empire survived likely *because* it was the most Christian.

I often see on X maps showing the “maximum extent” of the Muslim conquest in Iberia. Depending on the context, these can be misleading, overlooking an important reality: chronic regional tensions within al-Andalus that began soon after the conquest. Here’s a quick map I made.

The ciborium of St Mark’s, Venice is supported in4 ornately carved alabaster columns These are universally accepted as being transplanted to Venice from Constantinople in 1204, but the age of the columns themselves is subject to wide interpretation, anything from the 400s to the

Cincinnatus is one of my favorite historical figures. He was given absolute power by the Senate, crushed Rome’s enemies, and then gave it all up to return to his farm. Twice.

Presently reading about the English Civil War. I would, no doubt, have been a terrible Puritan and derived immense satisfaction from suppressing tiresome and ungodly "fun". Except for the iconoclasm. Cannot abide wanton destruction of the past. Let the dead have their monuments.

Book, btw, is this one. Not an academic text but an entertaining read. It's particularly rich in those bleak details of civil wars that often get obscured behind accounts of high politics and battles. May make a thread of extracts later.