Druids Essay -- essays research papers fc

DRUIDS Who were the Druids? The stereotypical image of a Druid is one of a thoughtful philosopher and magician, schooled in the lore of the traditions, and in charge of the education of the chieftains as well as those who sought to obtain knowledge considered obscure by the rest of society. They were knowers of truth, able to manipulate that truth as well as inform others of it. Druids not only influenced society religiously, they also influenced it socially i.e. they took on the parts of teachers, judges, magicians, craftsmen, advisors, priests, and masters of ceremonies, and in doing so, were greatly respected in society. The Role of Druids Teachers Caesar remarked that Druidism originated in Britain and that students would travel there for instruction, information and advice on astronomy, the ‘essential nature of things’, and the power and authority of the Gods- both local and pan-Celtic deities. Their religion forbade them to write down what was being taught, as stated by Athelia Nihtscada: Druids of the past sought to preserve knowledge through passing their traditions to their students. Unfortunately, they did not feel it prudent to write any of this knowledge down lest the knowledge fall into the wrong hands or lose power, leaving us having to piece together what little we do know from other writers through the ages. Because Nihtscada is a woman born with Celtic roots, and was initiated into the Druidic tradition herself, this modern source is quite reliable. She is also a public speaker with a deep interest in her Celtic heritage. Her aim therefore, was to provide readers with accurate information about the Celts, much of which corresponds with information provided by the Romans. Instead of writing, information was communicated and learnt through verse. In fact, there were so many verses that the druids spent about 20 years studying them, learning about oral literature of sacred songs, prayers, incantations, divination and magic. Despite this however, not one verse has survived, nor are there any pure Druidic legends as all of them have been subjected to Christian or Roman interpretation. Master of Ceremonies Druids, as masters of ceremonies, are renowned for administering animal, and sometimes even human sacrifices, as told by the Romans. Pliny the Elder describes one Druidic ceremony in his Naturalis Historia (XVI, 95): "Anything growing... ...ltic lifestyle. Bibliography - The Early History of Rome (Books I-V), Titus Livy, Penguin Library of History (Books XVI.66-XVII), Diodorus Siculus, Loeb Classical Library - The Gallic War, Julius Caesar, Loeb Classical Library - Natural History, Pliny the Elder, Oxford University Press - The Tain Translated from the Irish Epic Tain Bo Cuailnge, Oxford Paperbacks à ³ Tuathail, Seà ¡n. The Excellence of the Ancient Word. Available via internet at: ftp://bronze.coil.com/pub/nemeton/lore/eaw.cnl Geography, Strabo, Loeb Classical Library - http://www.themystica.com/mystica/articles/d/druidism.html - http://www.religioustolerance.org/druid.htm - http://witcombe.sbc.edu/earthmysteries/EMDruids.html - http://celt.net/Celtic/History/d_overview.html - http://www.britannia.com/wonder/michell2.html - "Story of Druids†, Microsoft ® Encarta ® Encyclopedia 2001.  © 1993-2000 Microsoft Corporation.

Athens of the north

â€Å" Auld Reekie † and â€Å" Athens of the North † : depict how the designers of Edinburgh from the mid 18th century to the mid 19th attempted to associate ( physically and visually ) the Old Town and the New Town. The monikers â€Å" Auld Reekie † and â€Å" Athens of the North † are symbols of two really different times during Edinburgh ‘s Past and of two every bit contrasting countries in its cityscape. Before the eighteenth century, Edinburgh consisted of the country now known as the old town. This comprised a dumbly populated colony straddling the tail of the antediluvian volcanic stopper that is castle stone. Conditionss in this country were crowded and frequently disgusting. This was the consequence of 100s of old ages of irrational determinations and complete deficiency of town planning and sanitation. â€Å" Auld † translates straight as â€Å" Old † and â€Å" Reekie † refers to the smoky environment caused by the high concentration of chimneys, but besides intimations at the malodor. In this manner, I feel that the moniker â€Å" Auld Reekie † connotes everything that the old town represented during this clip. In the same manner I feel that â€Å" Athens of the North † represents the hope and aspirations of the Scots enlightenment manifested in the New Town. In my essay I shall exemplify how and why Edinburgh developed from â€Å" Auld Reekie † to the â€Å" Athens of the North † and discourse how the designers during this period attempted to link both visually and physically the Old and New Town. The â€Å" Scots Enlightenment † refers to a extremely influential period of Scots History during the eighteenth century. It was a clip when Scotland excelled as a state specifically in the field of academe and scientific discipline. This included doctrine, economic sciences, technology, architecture, medical specialty, geology, archeology, jurisprudence, agribusiness, chemical science, and sociology. Possibly the greatest indicant of the enormousness of the success at the clip was the literacy degrees. By 1750, Scots were among the most literate citizens of Europe, with an estimated 75 % degree of literacy. Although the exact ground for this monolithic rational patterned advance is non wholly clear, it is really much linked with a closely knit group of Scots faculty members and union members. This included Francis Hutcheson, Alexander Campbell, David Hume, Adam Smith, Thomas Reid, Robert Burns, Adam Ferguson, Robert Adam, John Playfair, Joseph Black and James Hutton. Many of them were based in Edinburgh at the University and met and discussed their thoughts on a regular basis in a societal context. It is this coaction, unlike their European coevalss that is said to be the cardinal their success. As a symbol of this accomplishment Edinburgh was ab initio referred to as the â€Å" Athens of the North † in mention to the academic success instead than architectural features of Athens. During the first half of the eighteenth century, it is clear that Edinburgh had become no lucifer to its equivalents South of the boundary line. To many of its citizens, peculiarly to its blue bloods and concern people it had become an embarrassment to Scotland, particularly in position of the enlightenment. As Robert Chambers describes it, it had become: â€Å" a narrow, foul, provincial town † or in John Taylor ‘s words â€Å" makes this state so much despis ‘d by the English † There were many jobs with the town but possibly the most urgent issue was that of sewerage disposal. Due a deficiency sanitation, the dwellers of the old town had became accustomed to the mediaeval solution of flinging there waste out of the Windowss and into the troughs and side streets. Up until this point, it had been a comparatively satisfactory solution as tenement blocks were restricted in tallness and the wet clime of Scotland merely washed away the sewerage down the steep gradients. As the edifices became higher due to a higher population denseness, the issue became apartment as waste began hitting the walls of next edifices and most infamously worse, set downing on walkers. This was non a job in illustrations of English metropoliss at the clip so it is non hard to see why some Scots would hold been ashamed of their state ‘s capital. Despite this, harmonizing to Charles McKean, it is a common misconception that the dwellers of Edinburgh during this clip were despairing for the development of a new town. In his transition Twining metropoliss: modernization versus betterment in the town of Edinburgh he argues that the determination to construct the new town came from a more complex political docket instead than a common feeling of dissatisfaction towards the old town. It seems that there were two distinguishable sentiments, one was to better the old town, and the other was to construct a new one. McKean stresses that our cognition of the status of the old town comes from text written by those who were for the building of the new town and there for could be inaccurate. Despite this, the cardinal point is that Edinburgh was in demand for alteration. Part of Edinburgh ‘s death can be attributed to pretermit by the authorities in England dating back to the formation of the brotherhood in 1603. It seems that as the power shifted from Edinburgh to London, so did much of the wealth and as a consequence the economic system of Edinburgh suffered greatly during this clip. By the early eighteenth century the state of affairs was so bad that the council appealed to the King George to salvage Edinburgh from its diminution. After having no response the council attempted to take action towards the dissolution of the Union, nevertheless they were unsuccessful as they lacked fiscal support. Despite this, Edinburgh finally gained from the Union. During Georgian times many programs went in front to better the old town. These included the cleaning up of the old town and the redevelopment of many of its edifices. Due to Edinburgh ‘s alone topography, development of the old town was really restricted, particularly to the North. As a con sequence, new developments ab initio went in front in the countries South of the old town. This consisted chiefly of the neo-classical development of Bearfords Park consisting what is now George square and the Design of the New College by Robert Adam. The concluding motive for the development of the new town to the North came when Edinburgh was pressured into forestalling its elite from flying to London. As Charles McKean puts it â€Å" Since Edinburgh needed to retain ‘people of rank and of a certain luck ‘ , it required an blue suburb entirely for them † The First and most obvious physical nexus between the Old Town and New Town came with the building of the north span between 1769 and 1772. This was constructed after the determination had been made to construct the new town to the North. Constructing a span over the Nor Loch vale had been on the cards for over a century but it was non until the council received authorities support for the development of the new town that plans went in front. The span spanned the vale of the Nor Loch and for the first clip, allowed entree to the old town from the North. Equally good as easing the building of the new town by supplying a critical nexus, it besides created a more direct path to the port of Leith which improved trading in the old town. The original span was constructed from rock and included three primary arches. Merely after its completion the span collapsed due to structural lacks killing 5 people. The job was caused by old ages of dirt build up from old town diggings which created big hills of â€Å" traveled Earth † along the embankment of the old town crag. The applied scientists had underestimated the deepness of this loose dirt which finally led to the catastrophe. By 1772 it was reconstructed with more significant foundations. In alliance with the north span is the south span. This was completed subsequently in 1788 and spanned the every bit debatable depression of the Cowgate to the South. Built from rock and consisting of 22 arches, the span was constructed chiefly in order to associate the high street with the university but besides to let for entree to the spread outing developments to the South. Coupled with the north span, this extremely undervalued viaduct linked the new town suitably to the educational bosom of the old town. Although there were many others involved, the design for the new town is credited to the immature designer James Craig. Like many of the people involved in the construct for a new town and in true spirit of the enlightenment, Craig was a strong truster in the brotherhood. This unionist docket was reflected really literally in his initial proposal which in program formed a brotherhood doodly-squat. This vision was subsequently dropped due to a combination of it non being possible to build ( because of the angles which it created ) and a general feeling of public disfavor towards its symbolism. Subsequent alterations were made to the program and in 1767 the program that we know today was finalised. From above, Craig made assorted ocular links with the old town. The first and most noteworthy of these is the alliance of the new town. The program comprises three chief streets ; Queens St, George St and Princess St. These were aligned parallel to the royal stat mi and in making so created an obvious apposition between the old and new town. The streets are besides about a stat mi long and integrate a square at either at either terminal ( Charlotte Sq and St Andrew Sq ) . This rather literally reflects the composing of the old town where the Castle and Holyrood Palace take their topographic point at either terminal of the east-west aligned high street that is about a stat mi long. Further ocular connexions to the old town were made by Craig in the agreement of the streets which run perpendicular to these primary streets. These consist of Charlotte St, Castle St, Frederick St, Hanover St and St David ‘s St. These streets were intended to aline with the cardinal characteristics in the old town in order to do a ocular connexion. The best illustration of this is Castle st, which as its name suggests, is in line with the palace. What we now know as Princess Street was besides ab initio to be named St Giles St in mention to the cathedral in the old town. Additional physical connexions between the towns were made in 1759 with the draining of the Nor Loch and subsequent creative activity of the hill. The completion of this draining allowed for subsequently prosaic entree between the towns over what is now the Princess St gardens ( an country that had been antecedently unaccessible ) . The hill, coupled with the north span, formed a secondary vehicular entree path to the old town. The steep embankment was formed utilizing dirt exctevated when run outing the Loch together with landfill from the old town. The individual responsible for the subsequent architectural success of the hill and besides credited as the primary designer to which Edinburgh owes its rubric ; the â€Å" Athens of the North † is William Henry Playfair. Playfair was a Scots designer and is considered to be one of the cardinal figures of the Grecian resurgence in Scotland. His influence on the architecture of new town was monolithic, peculiarly in illustrations o f some of the more iconic edifices. A cardinal illustration of this was his engagement with the Calton hill development get downing in 1818-1820 and his committee for the Royal Institution and Observatory edifices. Subsequently, Playfair besides took over the undertaking that was to be the greatest attempted testimonial to Athens in northern Europe. This was the proposal in 1924 to construct an exact reproduction of the Parthenon. Despite the fact that the undertaking was ne'er completed as a consequence of a deficiency of finance, I feel that it creates one of the most dramatic ocular statements in Edinburgh. In my sentiment the national memorial on Calton hill reflects the Castle on Castle stone and in making creates a cardinal ocular nexus between â€Å" Auld Reekie † and the â€Å" Athens of the North † . Both are situated in an elevated place on top of volcanic stones are both symbolic of the old and new town. In 1822 Playfair received the committee to plan the Ro yal Institution Building on the hill. As the primary edifice site which sits straight between the old and new town the hill posed a challenge. Playfair ‘s solution to this exposed location was to plan it in the signifier of a Doric temple. On the site straight behind the establishment, Playfair was subsequently commissioned to plan the national gallery in 1853. This likewise took the signifier of a Grecian Temple merely this clip in an Ionic manner and included far more improvisation. Together, the edifices form an obvious ocular nexus to the old town. In decision I feel that many connexions were made between the old and new town. These facilitated the integrating of the New and old town at a physical and experiential degree. However, despite these ocular and physical links, in my sentiment there is no existent connexion between the nucleus kernel of the old and new town. To me this is illustrated most clearly in position of the brotherhood. As a defensive colony built to fend off the English, the old town is symbolic of a reluctant ( still existent ) Scots mentality where alteration and development are non on the skyline. Contrastingly, the new town is a symbol of the brotherhood and of the forward thought attack which prevailed during the Scots Enlightenment.In this manner, together with its neoclassical architecture I think the New Town is meriting of its comparing to ancient Greece in its name â€Å" Athens of the North † . The disjuncture between the political orientations of the two towns is reflected in their architec tural features where there are virtually no similarities. Although there are many illustrations of neo-classical architecture in the old town, to me these are merely portion of the new town political orientation and do n't stand for an architectural connexion. The ground there is no architectural mention to the old town is because at the clip, the manner to show these new ideals was by utilizing the Grecian Classical linguistic communication. This is the instance in all illustrations of the Grecian resurgence in Europe, but was possibly most apparent in Edinburgh. Today, the architectural linguistic communication for optimism and alteration tends to stem from the international manner and accordingly allows for mentions to the history and civilization of its context. Some of the best illustrations of this can now be found on the royal stat mi where the mediaeval linguistic communication of the old town has been used. In a modern context, given the chance to heighten the architectural connexion between the old and new town, I would follow this attack.BibliographyCampbell, I, /Stewart, M, /McKean, C, ( 2005 ) Edinburgh: The Making of a Capital City, Edinburgh, Edinburgh University PressGlendinning, M, /MacKechnie, A, ( 2004 ) Scots Architecture, London, Thames and HudsonCoghill, H, ( 2005 ) Lost Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Antony Rowe LtdCruft, K, ( 1995 ) James Craig: The Ingenious Architect of the New Town of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Mercat PressLindsay, M, ( 1981 ) The Buildings of Edinburgh, London, Batsford LtdNimmo, I, ( 1991 ) Edinburgh: The New Town, Edinburgh, John Donald PublishersCrossland, J, ( 1966 ) Victorian Edinburgh, London, Wayfair PublishersGow, I, ( 1984 ) Scots Pioneers of the Greek Revival, Edinburgh, Nic AllenRock, J, ( 1984 ) Thomas Hamilton Architect, Edinburgh, Featherhall PressFraser, A, ( 1989 ) The Building of the Old College, Edinburgh, Edinburgh University PressClarke, M, ( 2004 ) The Playfair Project, Edinburgh, TNGSInternet Beginningshyper text transfer protocol: //www.bbc.co.uk/history/scottishhistory/enlightenmenthypertext transfer protocol: //www.edinburghacademy.org.uk/curriculum/history/enlightenmenthypertext transfer protocol: //en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Town, _Edinburghhypertext transfer protocol: //en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nor_Lochhypertext transfer protocol: //en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Bridge, _Edinburghhypertext transfer protocol: //whc.unesco.org/en/list/728hypertext transfer protocol: //en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Town, _Edinburghhypertext transfer protocol: //en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Gileshypertext transfer protocol: //en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mound

The War Of World War II - 1586 Words

Most people have had a problem with someone, some might refer to it like a war. War by definition is generally characterized by extreme aggression, destruction, and mortality. However, for forty-four years a war that would scare millions around the world occurred. This war was not all brutality, it was arguments that would change the world forever. This war was known as the Cold War. The end of World War II was just the beginning of this unique war . The former allied forces of the United States and the USSR, led by Truman and the Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, had many different views about how the world should be run. The Soviet Union was controlled under Communism. However, America was governed under a democratic republic. America’s†¦show more content†¦The American government agreed to help people trapped inside Berlin. In April 1949, The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, or NATO, was established. The United States, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, and Britain were all members. August 29th, 1949 would only mean bad news for the new allies. The Soviet Union had successfully tested their first atomic bomb. The western allies were shocked and surprised by USSR’s speedy development of a nuclear bomb. Now both the U.S. and the Soviet Union had atomic bombs. Nerves were unsettled. On June 25th, 1950 the Korean War had begun. North Korea was the Soviet Union’s ally. The Soviet Union helped support North Korea in the fight against South Korea. South Korea was the United States s ally. The War would later end in a truce on June 27th, 1953. After America had tested the hydrogen bomb, the Arms Race was official. The Soviet Union and United States felt as though they must out do one another. In May 1955 the Warsaw Pact was formed. This pact put the Soviet Union in charge of the militaries of the seven European countries the USSR influenced. Tensions continued to run high. In 1957 the Sputnik was sent to space starting the Space Race. Sputnik was a Soviet Union satellite. Both sides would race to have the upper hand in space because if you can send a rocket into space, you can also send a nuclear rocket. The USSR would send a dog in sputnik 2Show MoreRelatedThe War Of The World War II1387 Words   |  6 Pagesevents that could bring so many people together while simultaneously tearing them apart-- World War II is one of those events. While the beginning is not set in stone, many will argue that the war all started with the unwarranted German attack on Poland in September of 1939. As tensions rose between countries, conflict began to swell. Over 20 countries were involved, and alliances were established. The war was fought between two major alliances; the Allied powers and the Axis powers. The Allied powersRead MoreThe War Of The World War II1408 Words   |  6 Pagesdifferent levels of the educational system most everyone has talked about the Second World War in great detail. The European and Pacific Theaters were the main focus of many historians and their writing, because war pertained to the audience of the time. WWII revolved around the idea of freedom and liberating the fascist governments of Europe, the homefront back in the states was the war machine that kept the war churning. Millions of pages have been written about the experiences and battles duringRead MoreThe War Of World War II1638 Words   |  7 PagesWorld War II was the most widespread war in history and it directly involved more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. This war lasted from 1939 to 1945. 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America wasRead MoreThe War Of World War II Essay1323 Words   |  6 PagesSince its end, World War II has been talked about extensively by historians. The lead up to the war, the war itself, and the events after the war have contributed to why the war has been so popular among historians. The unique way the war was fought and the way the war altered the course of history has intrigued historians. Up until World War II, civil ians had generally been off limits in war. While you could cause as much carnage as you wished on the battlefield against soldiers, killing civiliansRead MoreThe War Of The World War II1463 Words   |  6 PagesIn the early parts of the twentieth century the world was turned upside down in the wakes of the deadliest war it had ever seen in 1914. For the first time, science was playing a large part in the makings of the war, with the invention poison gasses being thrown into the war field. And then, to make matters worse, in 1939, Germany invaded Poland to spark the second of the World Wars. Germany was on a seemingly unstoppable track to take over Europe, and countries such as France and England were alwaysRead MoreThe War Of World War II1640 Words   |  7 Pages After becoming Reich Chancellor in 1933, Hitler swiftly consolidated power, anointing himself Fà ¼hrer (supreme leader) in 1934. Obsessed with the idea of the superiority of the â€Å"pure† German race, which he called â€Å"Aryan,† Hitler believed that war was the only way to gain the necessary â€Å"Lebensraum,† or living space, for that race to expand. In the mid-1930s, he began the rearmament of Germany, secretly and in violation of the Versailles Treaty. After signing alliances with Italy and Japan against