How Men of Quality Resolve Differences

How Men of Quality Resolve Differences
Pudel and Peper attacks - an ugly but inevitable part of any 17th C. British Civil War, "Oh! The Shame of it All!"

Monday, October 14, 2019

Happy Columbus Day, 2019!?

...for those of us who are of European descent - yes!

Let's get the heck off this continent - there's over 700 wars coming!    [image is from CLICK as "whatever happened to those ships, anyway?"]

Altho one intellectual writer wants us to consider Columbus Day a good reminder of the triumph of Western philosophical Reason and Individualism [CLICK],

...and of course loads of self-loathing liberal ideologues want to emphasize the bad net results of the European age of discovery, especially in the Americas, for Indians [no CLICK...it's just too easy to find everywhere today],

...here, at a wargaming blog, I think it is most obvious to consider today as:

 "Get the Heck out of Europe Day".

As a place with many notorious plagues that devastate up to 60% of the population [CLICK] and wars, upon wars, upon wars, Europe is well worth escaping:


Pre-500 Before Christ [BC]
·         c. 5000 BC Talheim Death Pit
·         c. 1104–900 BC Dorian invasion
·         c. 753–351 BC Roman–Etruscan Wars
·         c. 753–494 BC Roman–Sabine wars
·         743–724 BC First Messenian War
·         710–650 BC Lelantine War
·         circa 700–601 BC Alban war with Rome
·         685–668 BC Second Messenian War
·         669–668 BC Sparta–Argos War
·         600–265 BC Greek–Punic Wars
·         595–585 BC First Sacred War
·         560 BC Second Arcadian War
·         540 BC Battle of Alalia
·         538–522 BC Polycrates wars

500–200 Before Christ
·         509–396 BC Early Italian campaigns
·         500–499 BC Persian invasion of Naxos
·         492–490 BC First Persian invasion of Greece
·         482–479 BC Second Persian invasion of Greece
·         480–307 BC Sicilian Wars
·         460–445 BC First Peloponnesian War
·         449–448 BC Second Sacred War
·         440–439 BC Samian War
·         431–404 BC Second Peloponnesian War
·         395–387 BC Corinthian War
·         390–387 BC Celtic invasion of Italia
·         335 BC Alexander's Balkan campaign
·         323–322 BC Lamian War
·         280–275 BC Pyrrhic War
·         267–261 BC Chremonidean War
·         264–241 BC First Punic War
·         229–228 BC First Illyrian War
·         220–219 BC Second Illyrian War
·         218–201 BC Second Punic War
·         214–205 BC First Macedonian War

200 Before Christ and on
·         200–197 BC Second Macedonian War
·         191–189 BC Aetolian War
·         171–168 BC Third Macedonian War
·         135–132 BC First Servile War
·         113–101 BC Cimbrian War
·         113 BC – CE 439 Germanic Wars
·         104–100 BC Second Servile War
·         91–88 BC Social War
·         88–87 BC Sulla's first civil war
·         85 BC Colchis uprising against Pontus
·         83–72 BC Sertorian War
·         82–81 BC Sulla's second civil war
·         78 BC Marcus Aemilius Lepidus
·         73–71 BC Third Servile War
·         73–63 BC Roman Expansion in Syria & Judea
·         65–63 BC Pompey's campaign in Iberia and Albania
·         63–62 BC Second Catilinarian conspiracy
·         55–54 BC Caesar's invasions of Britain
·         58–51 BC Gallic Wars
·         49–45 BC Caesar's Civil War
·         44–36 BC Sicilian revolt
·         43 BC Battle of Mutina
·         43–42 BC Liberators' civil war
·         41–40 BC Perusine War
·         32–30 BC Final War of the Roman Republic

Anno Domine, Latin for "Year of Our Lord"

Note that such is human nature that the coming of Christ has not lessened our use of organized, large-scale violence to express disagreement amongst ourselves.
·         5–41 Iberian-Parthian war
·         49–96 Roman conquest of Britain
·         51 Armenian–Iberian war
·         69 Year of the Four Emperors
·         69–70 Revolt of the Batavi
·         193 Year of the Five Emperors
·         208–210 Roman invasion of Caledoni
·         238 Year of the Six Emperors
·         271–278 ColchisRoman War
·         284–285 Roman civil war
·         306–324 Civil wars of the Tetrarchy
·         350–351 Roman civil war
·         360–361 Roman civil war
·         367–368 Great Conspiracy
·         376–382 Gothic War
·         387–388 Roman civil war
·         394 Roman civil war of 394 AD
·         482–484 Iberian-Persian War
·         526–532 Iberian War
·         535–554 Gothic War
·         541–562 Lazic War
·         582–602 Maurice's Balkan campaigns
·         c. 600–793 Frisian–Frankish wars
·         650–799 Arab–Khazar wars
·         680–1355 Byzantine–Bulgarian wars
·         711–718 Umayyad conquest of Hispania
·         715–718 Frankish Civil War (715–718)
·         722–1492 Reconquista
·         735–737 Georgian-Umayyad Caliphate War
·         772–804 Saxon Wars
·         c. 800/862–973 Hungarian invasions of Europe
·         830s Paphlagonian expedition of the Rus'
·         839–1330 Bulgarian–Serbian Wars
·         854–1000 Croatian–Bulgarian wars
·         860 Rus'–Byzantine War
·         865–878 Invasion of the Great Heathen Army
·         907 Rus'–Byzantine War
·         914 Arab-Georgian War
·         939 Battle of Andernach
·         941 Rus'–Byzantine War
·         955 Battle of Recknitz
·         970–971 Sviatoslav's invasion of Bulgaria
·         982 Battle of Stilo
·         983 Great Slav Rising
·         1002–1018 German–Polish War
·         1014–1208 Byzantine–Georgian wars
·         1015–1016 Pisan–Genoese expeditions to Sardinia
·         1015–1016 Cnut's invasion of England
·         1018 Battle of Vlaardingen
·         1024 Battle of Listven
·         1024 Rus'–Byzantine War
·         1043 Rus'–Byzantine War
·         1044 Battle of Ménfő
·         1048–1064 Invasion of Denmark
·         1050–1185 Byzantine–Norman wars
·         1057 Battle of Petroe
·         1060 Battle of the Theben Pass
·         1065–1067 War of the Three Sanchos
·         1066 Norwegian invasion of England
·         1066–1088 Norman conquest of England
·         1067–1194 Norman invasion of Wales
·         1067 Battle on the Nemiga River
·         1068 Battle of the Alta River
·         1073–1075 Saxon Rebellion
·         1075 Revolt of the Earls
·         1077–1088 Great Saxon Revolt
·         1078 Battle of Kalavrye
·         1088 Rebellion of 1088
·         1093 Battle of Schmilau
·         1093 Battle of the Stugna River
·         1097 Battle of Gvozd Mountain
·         1099–1204 Georgian–Seljuk wars
·         1109 Battle of Głogów
·         1115 Battle of Welfesholz
·         1121 Battle of Didgori
·         1126 Battle of Chlumec
·         1130–1240 Civil war era in Norway
·         1135–54 The Anarchy
·         1142–1445 Swedish–Novgorodian Wars
·         1144–1162 Baussenque Wars
·         1159–1345 Wars of the Guelphs and Ghibellines
·         1164 Battle of Verchen
·         1169–1175 Norman invasion of Ireland
·         1173–1174 Revolt of 1173–74
·         1185–1204 Uprising of Asen and Peter
·         1198 Battle of Gisors
·         1198–1290 Livonian Crusade

·         1201 Battle of Stellau
·         1202 Siege of Zadar
·         1202–1214 Anglo–French War
·         1205 Battle of Zawichost
·         1208–1227 Conquest of Estonia
·         1209–1229 Albigensian Crusade
·         1211 Welsh uprising of 1211
·         1215–1217 First Barons' War
·         1216–1222 War of Succession of Champagne
·         1220–1264 Age of the Sturlungs
·         1223–1241 Mongol invasion of Europe
·         1223–1480 Tatar raids in Russia
·         1224 Siege of La Rochelle
·         1227 Battle of Bornhöved
·         1231–1233 Friso-Drentic War
·         1234–1238 Georgian-Mongol War
·         1239–1245 Teltow War
·         1242 Saintonge War
·         1256–1258 War of the Euboeote Succession
·         1256–1381 Venetian–Genoese Wars
·         1256–1422 Friso-Hollandic Wars
·         1260 Battle of Kressenbrunn
·         1262–1266 Scottish–Norwegian War
·         1264–1267 Second Barons' War
·         1265 Battle of Isaszeg
·         1275–1276 The war against Valdemar Birgersson
·         1276–1278 6000-mark war
·         1276 War of Navarra
·         1277–1280 Uprising of Ivaylo
·         1278 Battle on the Marchfeld
·         1282–1302 War of the Sicilian Vespers
·         1283–1289 War of the Limburg Succession
·         1284–1285 Aragonese Crusade
·         1288–1295 War of the Outlaws
·         1296–1357 Wars of Scottish Independence
·         1297–1305 Franco-Flemish War
·         1298 Battle of Göllheim

And for those who were lucky enough to escape Europe right away, they missed out on all these wars [altho, granted, they had a tough time with the ferocious and disinclined to share  Indians of the Americas…]

·         1493 Battle of Krbava Field
·         1493–1593 Hundred Years' Croatian–Ottoman War
·         1494–1498 Italian War of 1494–98
·         1495–1497 Russo-Swedish War
·         1497 Cornish Rebellion of 1497
·         1497 Battle of Rotebro
·         1499 Swabian War
·         1499–1504 Italian War of 1499–1504 – 20,000 killed in action[1]
 [have to give wikipedia credit for the list, altho they can't figure out how to date things properly, so oh well, no click for you wiki!]

Note that there are over 700 conflicts. The big winners for "man's inhumanity towards man" in terms of numbers would have to be WWI thru WWII, with an estimated 100 million people killed [give or take several million]. A breakdown by nations is given HERE, but unsurprisingly, The Soviet Union and China are in the lead with around 20 million each.

Today, Europe has been tamed by its horrific past and seems a pretty benevolent realm of Socialist sloths who have great museums and ruins. Still, it is worth remembering that many of the ruins were not merely ravaged by Emit Flesti and Satan's obvious handymen - and handywomen - but due to the evil that lurks in us all. 

As a wargame blog, this site doesn't promote war as an ideal or even a GOOD solution to human problems. It is unfortunately a necessary solution that should be used as a last resort, and not just because it is perceived as faster and easier than other more peaceful solutions [which is usually incorrect, anyway].

As for the Indians, well, it is trendy to focus on the losers of history these days; BUT it is worth considering that if they had had any chance to conquer Eruope and Asia, we would all be living on reservations, oppressed by Iroquois [etc], and worshiping the Great Spirit who put this world on the back of a Turtle. 

And may the Lord have mercy on us all.