The fighter plane circled overhead leaving a steady white stream of fuel behind it in the blue sky. A straight line of bullets cascaded down on the beach in our direction. My father and I desperately searched for cover. Down the beach a flock of seagulls were relaxing in the baking sun. My father grabbed his umbrella and sprinted after them cawing frantically while waving his umbrella about. The birds, obviously frightened, splashed out of the sea-foam that created the salty aroma surrounding us and took to the sky, all in sporadic directions. as the plane circled back again, the pilot was caught by the crossfire of the birds my father had offered up. His plane sputtered and spewed black smoke as it fell like a boulder into the cliff above, fantastically blowing up in a heap of fire and a final billow of smoke. I turned around dumbfounded at this recent series of events and met my father’s gaze. “I suddenly remembered by Charlemagne.” He said “Let my armies be the rocks and the trees and the birds in the sky.” …show more content…
Much of my childhood memories flip between fact and my adventures with Indiana Jones.
Did my beach vacation really take a turn for the worst when my father, recalling Charlemagne, brought down a fighter jet? or was that just a scene from The Last Crusade? Maybe it was.Maybe it wasn’t. Maybe it was both. Regardless, my personality, for better or worse, has been shaped by the whip-wielding-wise-cracker Indiana Jones. Through our adventures, I learned his clumsiness. I mimicked his messiness. I practiced his vulnerability. I embodied his nerdiness. What I learned above all else though, was to identify my passion, and strive toward my goal with the belief that with enough dedication, and perhaps a little smarts, I can achieve whatever it is I set my mind
to. Maybe it’s just a coincidence then that my passions are extremely similar to Dr. Jones himself. Between Biology, Film, and (my personal favorite) History, I’ve made it my goal to not only better myself, but whatever community I may find myself a part of. Beginning in 9th grade, when I started teaching the History of Israel to 6th graders to help out my synagogue’s Sunday School, or being elected a delegate at Boys State this past summer or, even becoming the student-producer and director of the school’s television show, I never thought that these activities, outside of class, would aid me in my maturation to the soon-to-be adult I am today. It’s just like Indy said though, If you want to be good a good archaeologist,” or anything for that matter “You got to get out of the library.”
At 3:32 P.M. the armada launched. They flew from the coastal airport into the city of Mogadishu. Above the city the men could see the destructions the city had experienced during civil war. Many buildings were demolished and the streets were crumbling. The Black Hawks were down low over the city, and the Little Birds were closing in on the target. Tires burning on the street near the target set alarm. It was a way Somalis signaled trouble and summoned militia.
The Crusades were a number of military expeditions by Europeans of the Christian faith attempting to recover the Holy Land, Jerusalem, which was then controlled by the powerful Muslim Empire. In his book People of The First Crusade, Michael Foss an independent historian tells the story of the first Crusade in vivid detail illustrating the motives behind this historic event, and what had really occurred towards the end of the eleventh century. The Christian lands of Western Europe were slowly deteriorating from invasions of the North, and the passing of corrupt laws from within the clergy and the high lords. However, these were not the only challenges those of European Christian faith had to face. Islam strengthened after the conversion of the
A World Lit Only By Fire by William Manchester is not only informative of the conflicts that occurred in Europe, but it is humorous and includes perspectives and anecdotes that are not viewed as impartial. It is structured into three separate sections: The Medieval Mind, The Shattering and One Man Alone.
The First Crusade is often cited as one of the most damnable consequences of religious fanaticism. A careful inspection of the circumstances and outcomes, however, will reveal a resultant political restructuring of Europe under the banner of Christendom. The purpose of this investigation is to investigate Pope Urban II’s motives in initiating the First Crusade, with a particular focus on the consolidation of the Western Church’s influence in Europe. Among the primary sources that will be consulted are the letter sent by Patriach Alexios of Constantinople to Urban, and an account of Urban’s speech at Clermont. Relevant excerpts from both of these primary sources, as well as contextual evidence and a wide array of historiography, will be taken
... captured Palestro's flag was cut into small pieces after the battle and those pieces were given to several persons. One of the pieces was in the Pula Navy Museum until 1918, when Italians looted it. It is said that the relatives of Nikola Karkovic still have a piece of that flag. The tradition of the battle of lissa existed for a long time on Croatian coast in the stories of sailors and in many folk-songs. Lissa [aka Vis] was known as the head-quarters of British Adriatic cruisers in the old French War. Lissa is an island, or rather a mass of hill and mountain, eleven miles long from east to west, and six broad from north to south, rising in some of its peaks to a height of nearly 2,000 feet. Its principal productions, according to the gazetteer, were wine, oil, almonds, and figs; bees, sheep, and goats were reared in great numbers by its inhabitants; -
‘Instantly, in the emptiness of the landscape, a cry arose whose shrillness pierced the still air like a sharp arrow flying strait to the very heart of the land; and, as if by enchantment, streams of human beings-of naked human beings – with spears in their hands, with bows, with shields, with wild glances and savage movements, were poured into the c...
Martin, Scott. Annotations to The Crow by James O’Barr . Last updated 9 July 1998. Accessed 23 April 2003. <http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Balcony/2570/crownote.htm>.
"So,” begins poem. “The Spear-Danes in days gone by/ and the kings who ruled them had courage and greatness./ We have heard of those princes’ heroic campaigns” (1-3). What follows is a brief history lesson, the story of “Shield Sheafson, scourge of many tribes,/ a ...
In the poem The Song of Roland, the author relates the spectacular fight between King Charlemagne’s army, the Franks, and the Muslim Saracens. The poem tells a story of blood, death, loyalty and honor. Around 1095, the year in which the First Crusade was initiated, we find the first extant version of this great French epic. While there is truth deeply rooted in the poem, much was emphasized and embellished to attract followers in the crusades. Despite appearing as propaganda, the author succeeded in assembling thousands of volunteers for the launch of the crusades. In The Song of Roland, the author created the poem to gather troops through Roland’s character, the Good vs. Evil theme, and the theme of loyalty.
Many things effected society in Medieval Europe, some having a more profound effect than others. Europe in the Middles ages was a time of learning and of cultural growth, but it was also a time of more serious things such as the Black Death. The way Europe coped with these unforeseen challenges, helped shape their society and culture, and we still learn about them today.
In 1095, the conflict between the Christians and the Muslims started a crusade (a military campaign in defense of Christianity) for the battle of Jerusalem. This crusade involved people of other religions besides Christianity such as the Jews but they did not play a major role during this time. The Crusades lasted almost two decades and consisted of eight different crusades. With all of the events and actions that took during the Crusades, it led too many effects throughout years. There were short term effects and long term effects from the crusades that effected people of all different cultures. Two places which have had many effects from the Crusades are Europe and Islam. The Crusades has had short term and long term effects on power, economic and classical knowledge throughout Europe and Islam.
The Medieval Era was a long time ago but it was an interesting Era. The theater back then was
Were the Crusades Motivated Primarily by Religious Factors? The Crusades were a series of military campaigns and wars between the Christians and the Muslims that lasted almost 200 years. The main motivations of these Crusades was to control the Holy Land in Jerusalem, also by the belief that all of their sins would be forgiven, and others to help the struggling Church in the East. Although there were other driving factors of the Crusades such as political and economic interests, the most important factor was their religious interests and the defense of their Holy Land.
Klas Eriksson was the name I gave to the preacher that met me after our successful landing. He thanked me most graciously for coming to the aide of protestants facing the boot of Ferdinand II of the house Hapsburg. He asked about my origins and the impact god had made on my life. I began to recite my rugged religious and military past in response. Speaking of my past, I told him about my Lutheran beginnings growing up. Although my father was a deeply religious man, I enlisted myself as a mercenary at the passing of my sixteenth birthday. I felt destined to make my own way and while god had a place within my life; this conflict felt much the same as the wars in Poland in years past in this regard. I hadn’t been back at my estate for some time
The Yeatsian vision of Western history is of a world of "alternating civilizations, each giving way to one another through its inability to contain all human impulses within the enclosed scheme of value and being replaced by all that is overlooked and undervalued"(Wright 80). A fundamental principle of Yeats' vision is that things must "collapse from within before they are overwhelmed from without" (Wright 79). The falcon must lose the connection with the falconer before the center begins to l...