Western History 61: What was the Significance of Scholasticism?

Scholasticism was both a philosophy as well as a method of learning that attempted to defend Christian Church dogma with reason and logic. It was dominant in the universities of the middle ages and has its origins going back to the late 8^th century. It can be divided into a variety of sub-groupings that even had revivals as late at the 19^th century.

The two key Scholastic movements that were dominant prior to the Renaissance were Early Scholasticism (8^th-12^th century) and High Scholasticism (13^th-14^th century).

The former is often known as the Carolingian Renaissance and is contemporary with the early modern middle ages. Knowledge was spread through the mechanism of the monastic order and there was a strong revival and indeed rediscovery of the Greek theological tradition. Key figures of the early movement include Johannes Scotus, Peter Abelard, Archbishop Anselm of Canterbury and Lafranc of Canterbury.

High Scholasticism placed a greater emphasis on Mathematics and Science. There were more rigorous interpretations of Platonic and Aristotelian philosophy and strong rationalism played a key role in the typical analysis. Francis of Assisi, Bonaventure, Duns Scotus, Peter Auriol, William of Ockham (of Ockham Razor fame) and Thomas Aquinas were key thinkers to emerge from this tradition.

Aquinas was a proponent of natural theology and wrote extensively on ethics, metaphysics, natural law and political theory. His concept of the Just War as defined below and remains to this day a central feature in the philosophy underpinning the defence of the democracies:

First, war must occur for a good and just purpose rather than the pursuit of wealth or power.

Second, just war must be waged by a properly instituted authority such as the state.

Third, peace must be a central motive even in the midst of violence.

In addition Aquinas’ five proofs of God outlined below are key attributes of Western theological thought and by virtue of their implications are essential metrics in debates about the existence of a higher power.

1.    Motion: Some things undoubtedly move, though cannot cause their own motion. Since, as Thomas believed, there can be no infinite chain of causes of motion, there must be a First Mover that is not moved by anything else, and this is what everyone understands by God.

2.    Causation: As in the case of motion, nothing can cause itself, and an infinite chain of causation is impossible, so there must be First cause, called God.

3.    Existence of necessary and the unnecessary: Our experience includes things certainly existing but apparently unnecessary. Not everything can be unnecessary, for then once there was nothing and there would still be nothing. Therefore, we are compelled to suppose something that exists necessarily, having this necessity only from itself; in fact itself the cause for other things to exist.

4.    Gradation: If we can notice a gradation in things in the sense that some things are more hot, good, etc., there must be a superlative that is the truest and noblest thing, and so most fully existing. This then, we call God

5.    Ordered tendencies of nature: A direction of actions to an end is noticed in all bodies following natural laws. Anything without awareness tends to a goal under the guidance of one who is aware. This we call God

Western History 60: How did Feudalism emerge?

Feudalism (word comes from the Latin feudum or fief) was the dominant political and social philosophy of Western Europe between the 9^th and 15^th centuries. Feudalistic societies were structured along the lines of land and labour. While some historians have debated whether it is a useful to understand the Middle Ages there is no doubt that Medieval societies developed around a framework that was intrinsically feudalistic and hierarchical.

Feudal societies emerged in Western Europe after the decentralization of the vast Carolingian Empire set up by Charlemagne. Classic Feudalistic societies revolved around three key elements – lords, vassals and fiefs.

The lord or noble held the land, the vassal was granted land on behalf of the lord in exchange for services provided to the lord and the fief was the land under consideration. Vassals swore an oath of fealty and homage to the lords and could be used by the lords for both military and non-military service (largely involving agricultural labour and produce). In exchange the lord offered to protect the vassal. The economic structure is often term Manorialism (after the manor – the home of the lord).

There was no single type of feudalism that served as the model for European society but almost all systems gave the lord tremendous power with respect to sentencing for criminal offences, the initiation of capital punishment and rigid control of agricultural policy.

By the year 1500 Feudalism had effectively disappeared in much of Western Europe although it maintained a strong grip in Eastern Europe and Russia. With the latter only abolishing serfdom – bonding of a peasant to the lord’s land – in the 1850s.

Free Market Trade and the movement away from an Agrarian based economy would serve to weaken the grip of feudalism in the West towards the end of the High Middle Ages

Western History 59: Why was the Silk Road important?

The Silk Road was a serious of road and transportation networks that linked China to Europe via the passageway of the Middle East. The road’s origin goes back to about 3000 BCE but its function as a conduit for both goods and knowledge exchange between the East and Europe has been pivotal to the development of the West. The Ancient Romans used the Silk Road to trade with the Han Chinese after the full road was opened to the West in 200 BCE. This allowed the Romans to gain access to the Red Sea and the important Spice Route.

Silk itself first appeared in Rome in 1 CE at about the same time that glass blowing techniques were first developed and exported from Roman Syria. The Roman’s used the route to sell goods to the East and for much of the 1^st and 2^nd century CE the stability of the road was maintained by the four Great Empires that used it – the Romans, Parthians, Kushan and Chinese.

After the 7^th century CE the road was used by the Arabs to both expand on their conquests and bring to Europe much needed technology from the East.

Gunpowder, developed by the Chinese, entered Europe via the Silk Road in the 13^th century, as did porcelain, the compass, playing cards, weaving technology and paper.

The explorer Marco Polo made contact with the court of Kublai Khan using the Silk Road in the 13^th century on the heels of the Roads renaissance that was characterized by the Pax Mongolica.

Unfortunately by 1400 CE China closed her borders to European foreigners curtailing the efficacy of the Silk Road as a trading artery although on a positive note this appears to have had the net effect of stimulating the great sea driven exploration drive that followed closely soon afterward.

The US and Canada After a North America Wide Future Civil War.

I predicted that the US and Canada would divide along these lines following a Civil War in the 21^st century.

The Eastern Union (EU): A commercially centered economic union comprised of the former New England States (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont) and the regions, states and provinces of New York, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Delaware, Eastern Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland. Capital city: Washington DC.

The American Republic (AR): This nation’s economy depended largely on its industrial production and mining. It was comprised of the former states and provinces of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Ontario, Manitoba, West Virginia and Wisconsin, plus the territory of western Pennsylvania. Capital city: Cincinnati.

The Free States of Southern America (FSSA): A Union incorporating the states of Virginia, Tennessee, the Carolinas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia. Capital city: Atlanta.

The Florida Republic (FR): The FR was comprised only of the former state of Florida, whose vast Hispanic population voted overwhelmingly for the right to exist as an independent state. Capital City: Miami.

The Midwestern Federation (MF): Also called the “High-Tech” Federation, the MF inherited the states of Missouri, the Dakotas, Idaho, Kansas, Nebraska, Minnesota, Montana, Wyoming and the former Canadian province of Manitoba. Capital city: Omaha.

The Texas Expansion (TE): This industrial-agricultural nation was made up of the former states of Arizona, Colorado, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Utah, Nevada and New Mexico. Capital city: Amarillo.

The California Republic (CR): A service and industrial production based economy the CR was comprised only of the former state of California. A new capital was built for the republic at Reagan City Complex, Death Valley.

The Cascade Federation (CF): A resource-based republic formed from the states of Alaska, Arizona, Oregon and Washington as well as the former Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan and the Yukon Territory. Capital city: Vancouver.

Pacific Conglomerate (PC): A trading nation made up largely of the state of Hawaii and the islands of Midway and Guam. Capital city: Honolulu.

Western History 58: How did Islam and the Arab civilization expand?

From its origins in the Arabian Peninsula the Monotheistic religion Islam would sweep through the Middle East, North Africa, the Iberian Peninsula, Central Asia and Asia Minor to establish itself as the great rival to the power Christendom Europe and the Near East.  The religion was founded by Muhammad an Arab merchant in Mecca who is believed by his followers to be the final prophet and the recipient of the Holy revelation of Allah (God). The revelation was later documented in the Koran (Muslim Holy Book). Key events in the expansion of Islam as both a religion and a political ideology are listed below.

20 Milestones in the Islamic and Arab Expansion (in order of date)

1. 610 CE – Muhammad has his religious experience on Mount Hira that forever changes his life. He will start building a following from this time onward.
2. 615 CE – Muslims are persecuted by Quaraish in Mecca.
3. 622 CE – Year of the Hijra – Mohammad flees with followers to Yathrib (Medina). Start of the Muslim Calendar,
4. 624 CE – Muhammad returns to Mecca. Wins important Battle of Abdr.
5. 627 CE – Starts persecuting Jews of Banu Quaiza executing their men whom he suspects of aiding his allies. In the Same year he establishes an Alliance with other Medina Merchants.
6. 630 CE – Muhammad finally takes Mecca and makes it the spiritual focal point of Islam.
7. 632 CE – Death of Muhammad. His father-in-law Abu-Bakr and Umar, his successor, move to establish authority of the Caliph (Deputey of the Prophet). Caliph established throughout Arab controlled lands.
8. 633-634 CE – Muslim take Syria and Iraq. Victory over the Byzantines follow.
9. 634-644 CE – Umar expands Muslim control over Egypt, the Levant and  Persia. Great Muslim victory at the Battle of Yarmuk (636 CE) ensures domination of Syria.
10. 637 CE – Fall of Jerusalem to Muslim forces
11. 641 CE – Muslim forces move into the Caucaus regions – Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia. In the same year Alexandria falls to the Muslim invaders.
12. 644 CE – Death of Umar. Succession of Uthman. Sunni/Shi’ite split. Shi’ites rally behind Muhammad’s son-in-law Ali. Sunni follow the leadership of Uthman.
13. 649-655 CE – Attacks on Sicily and Cyprus. Muslim victory at the Battle of the Masts. Byzantines continue to lose territory in North Africa.
14. 661-680 CE – Umayyad Dynasty in the ascendancy although they will be opposed by the Abbasids. Muslims capture Rhodes but fail to take Constantinople in two sieges (668 CE and 672-679 CE). Arab conquest reaches the Indus river.
15. 711 CE – Muslims invade Spain. Overthrow the Visigoth kingdoms and establish control of the Iberian Peninsula in 718 CE.
16. 717-718 CE – Muslims fail again to take Constantinople after a brutal siege. Byzantine Emperor Leo III played a key role in this defence.
17. 732 CE – Charles Martel stops the Invasion of the Muslim forces at the Battle of Poitiers. By 739 CE much of the French territory under Muslim control will have been retaken by Christian forces.
18. 750 CE – Composition of the famous Arabian Nights tales.
19. 756 CE – Umayyad Regime under Abd-al Rahman dominates in Spain although power in the rest of the Sunni Muslim world now favours the Abbasids.
20. 800 CE – Caliph Harun al-Rashid (died 809 CE) gives keys to the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem to the Franks thus reinforcing somewhat of a Lain presence in the Holy City.

Western History 57: Who was Charlemagne?

Charlemagne (also known as Charles the Great) was the greatest of the Early Middle Ages sovereigns. He was the grandson of Charles Martel (whose forces defeated the Muslim Invaders in Tours in 732 CE) and the son of Pepin the Short. Charlemagne lived between 742 (?) and 814 reigning as Holy Roman Emperor from 800-814.

He expanded the Frankish State under the vanguard of the Carolingian Empire so that at its height it comprised the modern day territories of  France, Northern and Central Italy, the Low Countries, Most of Germany, Austria, Hungary  and Switzerland. His domain included the cities of Paris, Toulouse, Aachen and Rome and represented the largest contiguous region controlled by a single monarch since the Age of the Western Roman Empire.

Charlemagne was both an astute military commander and a tremendous champion of European culture – art, writing and biblical scholarship.

In 771 Charlemagne became sole ruler of the Frankish kingdom following the death of his brother Carloman. Three years later he answered a plea from the Pope to come to the latter’s aid against the Lombards and did so successfully. In 775 he attacked the Saxons and in 778 waged war in Spain (an episode immortalized in the famed Song of Roland literature).  By 783 Charlemagne had finally crushed the Saxons and followed on this success by defeating the Bavarians in 788 and the Avars (791-796) adding their territory in Hungary and Austria to his realm.

The papacy came under pressure in 799 resulting in a brutal attack on the pope Leo III. Charlemagne backed up the Pope against charges of mass conspiracy and for his support was crowned Holy Roman Emperor on Christmas Day in 800. This represented the only time in history when the Pope bowed before an earthly ruler.

Charlemagne died in 814 and was succeeded by his son Louis the Pious. Louis would rule until 840 eventually dividing the large kingdom among his three sons Lothair I, Louis II and Charles the Bald. What emerged from this division were the archetypes of the countries of Italy, France and Germany.

Western History 56: How did Christianity spread in Western Europe?

The Early Middle Ages (476-799 CE) were characterized by a rapid spread of Christianity. Conversions of other population groups in the North and East would follow (eg.  Scandinavia by 1000 CE) but by 800 CE Western Europe was largely a Christian entity with the Latin church based in Rome. The following outlines how Christianity spread beyond its Southern European core to the rest of the continent.

Table 12 The Spread of Christianity in Western Europe

Region/Population Group	Agent of Initial Conversion
Ireland	Christianity spread to Ireland from Roman Britain in the 5th century. St. Patrick a Romano-Britain missionary and future patron saint of Ireland is believed to have played a key role. The introduction of private penance is thought to have been an Irish innovation.
Scotland	Irish missionaries Columba and Columbans are credited with bringing Christianity to Scotland.
Anglo-Saxon England	Converted by the mission of St. Augustine and Gregory the Great.
Franks of Gaul	Adopted Christianity after the conversion of the Merovingian king Clovis I.
Frisians and Low Countries	Conversion driven by the Northumbrian Monk Willibrod who was commissioned by Pope Segius I.
German Franks	Conversion was driven by an Anglo-Saxon mission led by Saint Boniface.

Western History 55: Who were the Merovingians?

The Merovingians are the oldest French dynasty having emerged from Salian Frank origins in the Mid 5^th Century. The dynasty’s founder was Childeric I but its greatest king was Clovis I (481-511). Clovis defeated the Roman ruler Syagrius in 486 and the Alemanni in 496 uniting most of Northern Gaul above the Loire under his control. He would later go on to defeat the Visigoths but he is most remembered for spreading Christianity in his Kingdom after he adopted the Christian Nicene faith of his wife Clotilda.

Merovingian kings were known for their distinctive long hair (that contrasted with the short hair of the Franks) and there is much legend that surrounds their feats that is associated with both miracles and a type of hagiography. However by the 8^th century their power was largely ceremonial with real force residing with the Mayors of the Palace (household managers). In 751 CE one of these Mayors, Pepin the Short, deposed the last Merovingian king to establish the Carolingian dynasty.

Challenges to Western Civilization

1. Western Civilization has been opposed by various force-dynamics or barbarisms in the past. Some of these force-dynamics have been products of the outside world others were creations from within. All are problematic, some have been overcome but others remain as an epidemic that future generations will have to deal with.  These are:

·         Feudalism – Ended by the Renaissance, the Age of Exploration, early urbanization and the birth of the modern economy;

·         The Domination of the Totalitarian Church – Eventually Eclipsed by the Reformation, the Enlightenment and the Rise of  Reason and Science;

·         Powers of the Aristocracy – Ended by both the violent and non-violent bourgeoisie revolution, liberalism and nationalism;

·         Fascism – Defeated by the Western Democracies in World War II;

·         Communism – Defeated by the Economic Machine of the United States;

·         Islamism – A struggle that still continues;

·         Post Modernism – A challenge in progress – a consequence of intellectual nihilism and misguided cynicism;

·         Greed Capitalism – A dangerous but age old phenomenon that still survives

Western History 54: What was the Byzantine Empire?

The Byzantium Empire or the Eastern Roman Empire had its origin in the city of Constantinople founded in 330 CE by Constantine on the Ancient Greek City of Byzantium. It grew into an important center in and around 395 CE following the split of the Roman Empire into East and West portions and unlike the West which fell in 476 CE persisted and indeed flourished until the fall of Constantinople to Arab forces in 1453.

The greatest Byzantine Emperor was Justinian who took power in 526 CE and then advanced to re-conquer parts of the Fallen Western Roman Empire – in Italy, North Africa and Spain – from the various Germanic tribes. It was Justinian who codified Roman Law into one document and built the incredible Hagia Sofia Church in Constantinople (it is a Mosque today).

However his gains were short lived. The Lombards drove the Byzantines out of Italy in 568 and from 610 onwards considerable territory in Syria, Palestine and Egypt was lost to the expanding Muslim forces. The Empire would also change its language from Latin to Greek under the 7^th century Emperor Heraclius.

Muslim attacks persisted from land and Sea but Constantinople held firm beating off the invaders in 693 and 717-718. Territory continued to be lost to the Arabs although Asia Minor was recovered in 721.

In 726 Leo III banned the use of Icons in the Empire as graven images of the divine–the use of Icons was restored in 843 following what would be later called the ‘Inconoclast Controversy’.

In the 10^th century the Byzantines struggled against a new enemy the Bulgars who overran Thrace but failed to take Constantinople. The Russians also attacked the Byzantines but suffered the loss of their fleet in 941.

However it wasn’t until the reign of Basil II that the Byzantines enjoyed a renaissance. This new Emperor would retake Syria from the Muslims in 995 and finally drive the Bulgars out of Greece in the following year earning himself the epithet in 1014 after his final destruction of the Bulgaroktonos (Bulgar slayer).

Nevertheless the Byzantines could not hang on to their gains after Basil’s death. In 1055 they lost Southern Italy to the Normans and then twenty years later surrendered Syria to the Muslims. The Turks secured a major victory against the Byzantines in 1071 at Manzikert. Thrace fell in 1087 and Asia Minor was lost in 1179.

Even Constantinople would eventually be occupied by Western knights who succeeded in conquering the city in 1204 and establishing a Latin Empire in the newly acquired territory.

Constantinople was restored to the Byzantine Empire in 1261 but its fall in 1453 at the hands of the Ottoman Turks signalled the end of an Empire that at one time represented the essence of what was Rome.

Western History 53: Which groups were involved in the Great Migration (or the Barbarian Invasion)?

From the Fourth century CE onwards both the Western and Eastern Roman Empires were subjected to vast hordes of migrants people of Eastern and Northern origin. Eventually these groups would bring down the Western Empire, drive back the Celtic and Latin populations and re-draw the political map of the west. Such groups included:

1. Visigoths – Western branch of the Gothic people. The Visigoths defeated the Romans at Adrianople (378 CE) and then under their leader Alaric sacked Rome in 410 CE. They moved into France but were driven out by the Franks in 507 CE eventually establishing a kingdom in Spain. Visigoth power in Spain was ended by the Arabs/Berbers in 711/712 CE.
2. Ostrogoths – Eastern branch of the Gothic people. The Ostrogoths traded heavily with the Romans migrating westwards under pressure from the Huns. They would eventually conquer the Italian kingdom of Odoacer establishing their own power base under Theodoric the Great. Ostrogoth power would deteriorate in the face of Byzantine advancement in Italy in the 6^th century CE with much of its population eventually being absorbed into the Lombard kingdom
3. Vandals – An Eastern Germanic people the Vandals swept westward from territory in Poland establishing kingdoms in Spain and later North Africa. They clashed with the Gothic groups but continued moving westward under Hunnic pressure.  In 429 CE they entered North Africa under the king Genseric and in 455 CE sacked Rome. However their power collapsed in 533-34 when they were defeated by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian in the Vandalic Wars. The great vandal legacy today resonates in the word ‘vandalism’ which has become synonymous with senseless destruction and the defacing of artwork (a linkage that evokes the 455 CE sacking).
4. Franks – A Germanic Group who would succeed the Romans as the eventual masters of much of France, Germany and the Lower Countries from the 5^th – 9^th century CE. The Franks would emerge as the possible successors of the Western Roman Empire through the legacy of the Merovingians and the Carolingians.
5. Saxons - Germanic tribe dominant in the low Countries, Jutland and Northern Germany. The Saxons and another tribe the Angles would eventually conquer most of England following the collapse of Roman Rule on the island in the 5^th century CE. Much of their gains would occur at the expense of the local Celtic groups.
6. Huns – A Nomadic group from the Caucus regions. It is often argued that the Huns started the great Migration by their Western drive. The greatest Hunnic warrior was Atilla who became co-ruler with his brother Bleda in 437 CE and sole ruler in 445. His forces dominated much of the interior of Eastern Europe and gained strength as they pressed into Gaul.  He plundered the Western Roman Empire and extorted the East  but was defeated in 451 by a coalition force led by the Roman General Aetius at the Battle of Catalaunian Planes. In 452 he invaded Northern Italy but a year later died of haemorrhage on his wedding Night. Hunnic dominance in Central and Eastern Europe would eventually be broken in 454 with the defeat of the Huns by a tribal grouping that included the Gepids, Heruli, Rugi, Scirii and Subebi.
7. Burgundians – A Vandal group that were one time allies of the Huns.  They are thought to have originated in Poland and eventually settled into the region of France that bears their name.
8. Lombards – Another Germanic people who would dominate the Italian peninsula from 558 to 774 CE. The Kingdom of Italy that they founded reached its peak under the rule of Liutprand in the 8^th century. 

Western History 52: What did Rome contribute to Western Civilization?

It would be a great oversight to assume that the Romans were nothing more than a military power as their contribution to Western Civilization is immense. In architecture they were known for their Domes, Frescoes and Mosaics. They were accomplished road builders and graced their domains with Aqueducts (to transport water) and viaduct bridges (that spanned valleys). Roman stadiums and Amphitheaters were the ancestors of today’s modern entertainment venues.

In addition the Romans distinguished themselves in wine making, central heating, public baths and cement/mortar pioneering.

Their language (Latin), alphabet and legal system impacted all civilizations that fell under their hegemony and they had a significant impact in such differing areas as the idea of the three-course meal, the Julian Calendar and several yearly festivals.

The following is a list of twelve Romans (other than the military figures described earlier) who helped enrich this great culture.

Table 11 Roman Cultural Figures of Note

Figure of Distinction	Significance
Agrippa Marcus Vispania (64 BCE –12 BCE)	Architect. General. Masterminded the Naval victory at Actium (31 BCE). Built many baths, porticoes and gardens. Helped transform Rome into a Marble city.
Cicero (106-43 BCE)	Orator, Lawyer, Political theorist of great distinction. Enemy of Mark Anthony. Famous for his Series of Speeches.
Horace (65-8 BCE)	Lyric poet. Lived at the time of Augustus. Known for his hexameter verses and Lambic Poetry.
Juvenal (1st century CE)	Poet and writer. Also known for his satire – Satires of Juvenal (Five Books).
Livy (c.64 BCE-17CE)	Historian. Lived at the time of the Early Julio-Claudian Emperors. Served as an advisor to Claudius. Most famous work is the History of Rome.
Ovid (43BCE –17/18 CE)	Great canonical poet. Wrote the classic Metamorphoses. Clashed with the Emperor Augustus.
Pliny the Elder (23 CE-79CE)	Author, scientist and philosopher. Wrote an encyclopaedic work (the forerunner of modern encyclopaedias) known as Naturalis Historia. Influenced his nephew Pliny the Younger.
Seneca the Younger (c. 4 BCE to 65 CE)	Stoic Philosopher. Dramatist and Statesman. Important Figure in the Silver Age of Latin Literature. Stoicism argued for the importance of virtue in the face of natures trials and tribulations.
Tacitus (c. 56 CE – 117 CE)	Historian and Senator. Detailed events from 14 to 70 CE.
Virgil (70 BCE- 19 BCE)	Poet of the Augustan Period. Most famous work is the epic poem the Aenid that was modeled after Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey.
Vitruvius (c. 80 BCE- c. 15 BCE)	Very influential architect. Wrote the multi-volume work De architecture.

No Free Lunch for Putin

I wrote this just after the November election last year. It is still relevant.

The problem with partisan politics – and we have seen on more than our fair share of it in this particular election cycle – is that we often herald the virtues of our supporters and downplay the concerns of our opponents.

Vladimir Putin has made no secret of his support for Donald Trump. He detested the Clinton-Obama Axis and openly championed the Trump campaign. Whether he went so far as to order an e-mail hack remains very much in doubt. Official evidence is lacking and ratcheting up the rhetoric on a bunch of hearsays and supposed ‘secret’ investigations by the CIA, as have the Washington Post, is irresponsible at best.

However our alarm bells should be ringing. Putin is no friend of the West and with the Trump victory two big questions emerge – What does he stand to gain? and How will this impact the US/Western World in the long term?

The first question is the easier of the two to answer. Putin needs the US to sit back while he continues spreading his footprint in the Ukraine and other parts of Eastern Europe (from all accounts the Baltics). As the latest in a line of Russian strongmen he understands the importance of power through territory but can’t afford the resistance that will likely occur in the face of such an approach. NATO has to be weakened and he is hoping that Trump’s appeal to this once buried isolationist tradition in American foreign politics will resurrect itself.

However as we have seen in Aleppo and elsewhere it is not just Eastern Europe that Putin sees as falling under his sphere of influence. Indeed he has offered feelers to the current Libyan hierarchy and is certainly giving the Iranian mullahs - in what can only be described as a deal with the devil - the muscle to make their presence felt in the face of the Sunni/Shi’ite pan-regional conflict.

While I would not rush ahead to see Putin as a modern day political Svengali. I wouldn’t for one moment underestimate his shrewdness. He is extremely calculating and although he appears to transcend ideological conformity he does see himself as the embodiment of a Russian nationalism. We should all be concerned.

It remains to be seen how the Trump administration will respond. Mike Pence appears to be a product of the Cold War Reaganite school and has on more than one occasion expressed his displeasure with the Russians.

James Mattis has made no secret that he favours a more forceful approach when dealing with the Iranians which could extend to their Russian backers. Rex Tillerson looks, at least from his oil industry pedigree as a player not eager to jeopardize the US-Saudi relationship. The three look set to dominate foreign affairs in the Trump White House.

If Trump’s election rhetoric is to believed then it appears that he wishes to distance himself from the neo-conservative nation building of George W. Bush and its variant under Barack Obama. He is correct on this issue. The US cannot afford more ill—conceived ground troop interventionism in regions of the world based on the export of some nebulous transfer of Wilsonian democracy. Pragmatism has to rule. However on the other hand it should not be subjected to the spirit of a nativist isolationism. The global economy of 2017 is a far cry from what it was in 1927.

The free world cannot afford to see the US sit back while Russia and indeed China, not to mention unsavouries in Iran and the various Jihadist alliances run amuck. This can only lead to more bloodshed, an exporting of anti-Enlightenment tropes and the likely jeopardizing of valuable resource flow lines. The world will worsen under strict isolationism and it will undoubtedly come back to haunt the US.

What is necessary then is a process of involvement through informed backing – a checking of oppositional ambitions by a support of local regional elements that stand in the face of this greater belligerency. The US ought to re-evaluate its NATO commitments, but to drop the Alliance at this point would be a catastrophe.

This should be Trump’s message and if it conflicts with the ambitions of Russia, Tehran, the Saudis or any other party so be it. The US is still the principal superpower. Putin may have cheered for Trump but this does not give him a free hand in anything. Its critical that the White House make this clear from the get go. Failure to do so will not only embolden Putin but other opportunists as well.

Western History 51: What were the key events on the Road to the Fall of the Empire?

The Roman Empire enjoyed a resurgence in power under Constantine. However after his death in 337 CE the Empire was once again beset by internal conflict as well as attack from enemies at its peripheries. The following table highlights some of the key events that preceded the collapse of the Western Empire in 476 CE.

Table 10 Key Events leading to the Fall of the Western Roman Empire

Event	Significance
Death of Constantine (337 CE)	Division of the Empire amongst his three sons – Constantine II, Constantius II and Constans. Conflict between sons.
Reign of Julian Apostate (361-364 CE)	Julian tries to restore Paganism as the central religion of Rome. Attempt will fail.
Defeat at the Battle of Adrianople (378 CE)	Roman loss and the death of the Emperor Valens at the hands of the Goths symbolizes reflects the ascendancy of  the Germanic Tribes. Soon afterwards (402 CE) the capital city is moved to Ravenna. Will remain there until 476 CE.
Edict of Thessalonica (380 CE)	Emperor Theodosius I declares Christianity to be the State Church of the Empire. In 394 CE Theodosius will briefly re-unite the East and West Empires.
Rome is sacked by Alaric (410 CE)	Visigoth king Alaric I sacks Rome – an important event in the decline
Atilla the Hun attacks Eastern Rome (447 CE)	Atilla will ravage both the Eastern and western Empire  before being defeated at the Battle of Chalons in 451 CE by an alliance of the Romans with the Visigoths.
The Ricimer Period (457-472 CE)	The manipulative general Ricimer has de facto control over a Western Roman Empire teetering on the brink of collapse
War against the Vandals (468 CE)	Vandals join the Gothic, tribes and Huns as another group plundering a moribund Western Roman Empire.
Official Year of the Fall of the Western Roman Empire (476 CE)	Odoacer a Germanic general ousts the politician Orestes from power and then forces the last Emperor Romulus Augustus to abdicate. The Western Empire is no more.

Western History 50: How did the early church emerge in Rome?

Christianity would arise from humble foundations to become a dominant force in the Roman Empire. The religion itself had Jewish origins that were centred in Jerusalem and early community leaders included Peter, James and John.

Paul of Tarsus, probably more than any man, helped spread the gospels to the Gentiles and thereby established Christianity as a religion outside the Jewish context.

Christianity incorporated the Jewish Bible in its canon – via the Septuagint (Greek translation) and the Targum (Aramaic translation) – but added the Letters of Paul and the Gospels to its liturgy. Christ based theology replaced Mosaic Law although there was a strong focus on the Ten Commandments and the Golden Rule.

Baptism was added as a practice, the Divinity of  Jesus Christ was stressed and a Church hierarchy was organized. Human relations were emphasized and a complex eschatology would feature prominently.

The spread of the Church in the first four centuries of its existence largely centred around the Mediterranean area although by 600 CE it had come to dominate North Africa, Spain, Central Europe, the British Isles, Turkey going eastwards into Syria.

Edward Gibbons in his classic The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire provides an interesting overview as to the success of the Church. His key points are:

(1)  The inflexible, and, if we may use the expression, the intolerant zeal of the Christians, derived, it is true, from the Jewish religion, but purified from the narrow and unsocial spirit which, instead of inviting, had deterred the Gentiles from embracing the law of Moses;

(2)  The doctrine of a future life, improved by every additional circumstance which could give weight and efficacy to that important truth;

(3)   The miraculous powers ascribed to the primitive church;

(4)   The pure and austere morals of the Christians;

(5)   The union and discipline of the Christian republic, which gradually formed an independent and increasing state in the heart of the Roman Empire.

Western History 49: Who was Constantine and what was the Edict of Milan?

Constantine I was declared Caesar in the West in 306 CE. His father had been a co-emperor and the young Constantine had earned his spurs campaigning with his father in Britain. In 312 CE Constantine’s forces overcame those of his rival Maxentius at the Battle of Milvian Bridge. According to the historian Lactanius, Constantine had a dream the night before the battle in which God advised him to place the slanted X with the Christ figure (Chi Rho) on the shields of his soldiers.

His soon to be victorious forces did so and took the sign as a positive message from God. In 313 CE Constantine pushed through the Edict of Milan legalizing Christianity in the Empire and he himself converted soon afterward to the faith. Constantine was both an able general and a strong administrator. He not only defeated the forces of Maxentius but put down another rebellion by Maximian in 310 CE and after a series of battles consolidated all of the Roman Empire under his authority when he defeated his last rival Licinius in 324 CE.

Constantine’s reign represented a significant turning point that would ensure the growing domination of Christianity within the Empire. In 324 CE he founded the city of Constantinople (modern day Istanbul) that was dedicated in his honour six years later. Although he patronized Christianity, Constantine was astute in realizing that he could not transform the Empire overnight and still incorporated many of the pagan traditions within his realm of power. The Arch of Constantine, built in 315 CE, is replete with pagan imagery.

Western History 48: - Who were the Severan and Military Emperors?

The early decline of the Roman Empire was hinted at during the turbulent reigns of Caligula, Nero and Domitian. However the era of the Good Emperors provided a much necessary respite that would unfortunately not continue. Commodus, the son of Marcus Arurelius was a poor and malicious ruler. Septimus Severus, founder of the Severan dynasty took power in 193 CE (the Year of the Five Emperors). 

He defeated the Gauls at Lugdunum and fought successfully against the Old Enemy in the East (the Parthians) but his reign was characterized by the persecution of the Jews and Christians. An invasion of Scotland was cut short by his death in 211 CE. Soon afterwards fortunes began to decline in the Empire. Plague, Economic Depression, invasion and Civil war threatened and none of Severus’ successors – Caracalla, Geta, Macrinus, Elgabalus and Alexander Severus – proved capable of stopping the slide. 

By 235 CE the military was in effective control of the Imperial office but it administered an Empire that was fragmenting. As of 268 CE the Empire was now a composite of three parts – The Gallic Empire (Provinces of Spain, Britannia and Hispania), the Palmyrene Empire (Syria, Palestina and Egypt) and the Italian portion.

Strong leaders like Aurelian (270 –274 CE), the famed soldier Emperor temporarily reunited the portions but it was only under Diocletian that a solution for resolving the power dynamics was implemented.

Known as the Tetrachy – rule of four, the model of power sharing divided the Empire into two parts – East and West. Each part would have their own emperor and a junior emperor (the official successor) for a total of four rulers overall. The major emperors were also known as the Augusti and the methodology behind the re-design was to ensure that Emperors would succeed on merit.

Roman territory was also further sub-divided  for administration purposes into more manageable units but these changes seemed more to cover up a system in decline than actually reverse the trend. Infighting would rear its head and the Empire struggled with economic inflation that was poorly handled by wage and price fixing. At the same time Diocletian upped his persecution of the Christians and demanded that soldiers of the Christian faith take up a Roman God. This act further impacted a system in deterioration.

Western History 47: Who were the Good Emperors?

There were five good Emperors who followed the Flavians – Nerva (96-98CE), Trajan (98-117 CE), Hadrian (117-138 CE), Antonius Pius (138-161 CE) and Marcus Aurelius (161-180 CE).

 Nerva was more of a placeholder after the torrid period of Domitian’s reign. However it was under Trajan that Empire reached its furthest extent. A Spaniard by birth, Trajan was both a general and a statesman. He restored much of the power of the Senate, allowed for a greater freedom of speech and took over the key role of Chief Magistrate. Like his predecessor Nerva he worked to improve the lot of the poor especially that of the children. Education reform was a key priority.

Trajan’s adopted son Hadrian was a patron of the art but did believe in extending the Empire like Trajan did through Military conquest. He was more tolerant of Christians than the earlier Emperors but was not all hesitant in putting down the Jewish rebellion (Bar Kochba revolt) with brutality. Roman forces withdrew from Assyria, Mesopotamia and Armenia as the Empire became less focused on expansion in the East.

Hadrian focused on fortifying Roman territory in Germany and Britain (where he built the well known Hadrian’s Wall to safeguard the Province against the Picts). He also took it upon himself to visit all the provinces and extended the road system of the Empire to consolidate communication.

           

The next Emperor Antonius Pius continued the reforms especially in the areas of Jurisprudence, Government and Administration. The bureaucratic engine of the Empire was realized with Pius seeing himself as a ‘paternal autocrat’ who exercised his single ruler drive on behalf of the people.

Marcus Aurelius, the last of the Five Good Emperors was both a philosopher and a general. His work Mediations is considered a primer in Stoicism (together with the works of Cato, Cicero and Seneca) although his persecution of Christians (whom he suspected as agents of unrest) runs counter to the thoughts outlined in his writing. As a thinker Aurelius believed in a purity of life and championed the nobility of man. On the military front he fought the successful Danubian Wars, stared down a challenge to the throne (from one Lucius Verus) and seemed for all intent to have revived the expansionist drives of the Emperors prior to Hadrian.

Ranking I - Greatest British Monarchs

These would be my Top Ten. Key Criteria - contribution and impact on the success of the Nation and its defining culture.

1. Elizabeth I
2. Alfred the Great
3. Henry VIII
4. Henry VII
5. Henry V
6. William the Conqueror
7. Victoria
8. Edward I
9. William and Mary of Orange
10. Edward III

Of course this is up to debate. This does not imply that said figures were great human beings - Edward I and Henry VIII were certainly not.

Personal Reflection XII - Evolution vs Interventionism

Question - asked on facebook. How do traits based on instinct develop through random processes?

My Answer.

It occurs in stages and cannot be looked at simply through the lens of irreducible complexity. Certain protein structures (driving behavior) in the brain are selected for as they provide adaptive advantage.Later changes that provide for even more selective advantage are selected for on top of these so that the gene pool moves in a specific direction. Add to this Epigentic drivers that influence phenotype expression and you have the basis of the non-interventionist model. Having said this there are still a number of questions that remain unanswered - Foremost amongst these is the role of mutation. If they are indeed random and impact sequence reading (mostly negatively) how are they maintained in a system? For example...adding random letters to a book such as Moby Dick should the book worse not better. Yet this is an analogous process to the role of Random Mutation in ensuring variation. I suspect so-called "Junk DNA' may offer some protection in this regard.

Personal Reflection XI - How has the world changed since 1990?

Question asked on Quora

In a number of ways. Here are a few off the top of my head (not in any order).

1. The global economy is several times larger with nations such as China and India playing a more important role.
2. Large Western Cities such as London and Paris are much more multicultural than they used to be.
3. There is a strong consensus among the center-left and center-right that Free Trade works. This wasn’t the case necessarily in 1990.
4. Islamism is far more of a global threat than it used to be.
5. Unions don’t enjoy the level of power in the West today that they had in and around 1990 (although their decline in power in the US was becoming evident).
6. Identity politics play a more important role domestically. LGBTQI issues are much more prominent.
7. Technology…The Internet was a sideshow in 1990…Hell the World Wide web was not even around. Now it dominates almost every facet of our lives including our social interactions.
8. Growth of the Blogging culture and the fall of traditional media.
9. The GOP have moved more to the Right on political issues while the Dems have gravitated further to the left.
10. The Gramscian walk through the universities has turned many a university department into an ideological camp rather than an institute for free an open inquiry.
11. Women have greater representation in the professions.
12. Information is much more easily available…The challenge now is to distinguish the quality from the drek.
13. People are much more easily offended. Culture of victimhood is strong.
14. A greater percent of graduates are more likely to have to find jobs outside their field of study.
15. Birth rates in Europe have continued to plummet with the continent looking more Post-Christian than ever.
16. The Arab Gulf States have significantly expanded their international business outreach.
17. Russia has replaced the Communist Oligarch with a new Cult of Personality.
18. The Hispanic Population of the US has grown to become a very important player in California and several other South-Western US States.
19. Over 2 billion people have been added to the World population.
20. The EU has grown into a giant bureaucracy.
21. Viral Memes are everywhere.
22. Modern music is more likely to be contrived and derivative.
23. Cultural and moral relativism has a much greater footprint in the modern discourse.
24. While a global full out nuclear war between superpowers is considerably less of a threat the odds of a rogue nation (such as Iraq) acquiring nuclear weapons technology is much higher.
25. The US Debt total debt was only 55.5% of the GNP in 1990. Today it is 106% and widening.

Western History 46: Who were some of the Early Emperors?

The Emperors that immediately followed Augustus offered a mixed bag of colourful characters, tyrannical rulers, incompetents, intermixed with the occasional strong leader.

Tiberius (14-37 CE) and Caligula (37-41 CE) ruled over courts known for their decadence and suppression of dissent. Both are believed to have been murdered by the Praetorian Guard (Bodyguard of the Roman Empire) when their ostentatious behaviour threatened the integrity of the Imperial office. Claudius an uncle of Caligula, was declared Emperor by the Praetorians in 41 CE and although he wasn’t a brilliant ruler did initiate the Invasion of Britain. His forces captured the British warlord Caractacus, established a colony on the Island and dedicated a Temple in his honour.

Claudius’ successor Nero, the last of the Julio-Claudian Dynasty succeeded Claudius (who also died under suspicious circumstances) and ruled from 54-68 CE. Once again court intrigue dominated with Nero’s reign continuing the low points reached during the Age of Caligula. Anger at a loss of power drove the Pisonian conspiracy (65 CE) which followed on from the Great Fire of 64 CE. Nevertheless he the Emperor did claim victory following a successful peace treaty with the Parthians (62 CE) and the suppression of the Boudica rebellion in Britain a year earlier. The rebellion itself cost upwards of 70,000 British and Roman lives.

In 69 CE Rome had four Emperors – Galba, Otho, Vitellius and Vespasian – in a brief period of unprecedented instability. Vespasian, a general favoured by the Eastern Legions would eventually dominate establishing the Flavian dynasty. In his ten year long reign he captured Jerusalem (c. 70 CE) bringing an end to the Jewish revolt (with much brutality), ventured northwards to defeat the Gallo-Germans and increased training for civil servants, doctors and teachers. Unlike the Julio-Claudians he was not an extravagant man  and would be succeeded by his son Titus as Emperor.

Titus’ two year reign was noted for the competition of the Colosseum  and the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE (an event that destroyed the settlements of Pompeii and Herculaneum). A very competent military commander he died early as a result of a fever and was followed as Emperor by his younger brother Domitian.

Initially an outsider Domitian was intend on rivaling the Military escapades of his brother. He waged war in the Rhine land and introduced policies in Rome that were designed to reduce corruption. However he appears to have been a petty individual who cut short the advances of the General Agricola in Britain (who was fighting in the Picts in Caledonia – Modern Day Scotland).Domitian taxed the population heavily and was subsumed by a type of religious zealotry. An uneasy peace was signed with the Dacians but his unpopularity grew and in 96 CE Domitian was assassinated by an ex-slave, ending the Flavian Dynasty.

Western History 45: What was the Second Triumvirate? Who was Augustus?

The forces of Brutus and Cassius were defeated at Philippi by those of Marc Antony (a friend and ally of Caesar) and Octavian (Caesar’s adopted heir). A Second Triumvirate was born that dominated power politics in Rome. The Triumvirate consisted of Antony, Octavian and Marcus Lepidus (who would later drop off the political landscape). A point to note is that the First Triumvirate was the earlier post-Sulla alliance that consisted of Caesar, Pompey and Crassus (all of whom were now dead).

Antony, would then join forces with the Egyptian Queen Cleopatra but his forces would be smashed at the sea battle of Actium by a fleet led by Octavian’s loyal general Agrippa. Both Antony and Cleopatra would commit suicide shortly afterward leaving Octavian as the sole source of power in Rome

Octavian rule as the first Emperor of Rome taking the title of Augustus. The Roman Republic was officially dead with the Empire emerging in its place. Augustus would be venerated as a deity.

Augustus was a very competent ruler who reigned as Emperor from 27 BCE to 14 CE. He made peace with the Parthian enemy in the East, reformed the taxation system, improved road building, established a standing army and created the elite Praetorian Guard (a future player in Roman politics). Police and fire-fighting services were established and Rome expanded its territory into Hispania, Africa and Germania.

However the Romans did suffer some setbacks including a horrendous defeat at the Battle of Teutoburg Forest in 9 AD The three legions of Varus were ambushed and annihilated by the Cherusci, a Gothic tribe and former Roman ally. Rome would eventually vanquish Arminius (the leader of Cherusci) but the defeat at Teutoburg put a halt on Roman expansion into what is now modern day Germany