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Three of the last four tsars of the Russian Empire were either complete idiots or so conservative that they sabotaged their own state rather than share any power with the people or both, and the end result of all that was three lost wars, three revolutions, a civil war that left millions dead and set the country back a decade economically, and then the Soviet Union which to be frank even leftists should have very little desire to emulate given what we as historians know about its failures and collateral damage.
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May 28, 2020 14:03
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Really, whenever someone posts "monarchy is a good thing" just quote the entirety of their post and write "lol".
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May 28, 2020 14:22
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Fighting Trousers posted:Tell them to read Common Sense. Thomas Paine does a pretty good job obliterating the idea of heredity monarchy. Thomas Paine: All Men Are Created Equal, therefore... 21st century chuds: whoa whoa whoa slow down
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May 28, 2020 16:32
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Yes, it's like a lava lamp.
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It's wasn't chuds or just one user which makes me suspect I might also want to brush up on that argument before I need it. 2020 folks!
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May 28, 2020 16:34
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Minenfeld! posted:Really, whenever someone posts "monarchy is a good thing" just quote the entirety of their post and write "lol". 2016 impressed on me that sometimes this is not sufficient. Besides, it's good to remember things we can celebrate as progress between 1200 and present day.
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May 28, 2020 17:10
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So, any suggestions on the French Revolution? Asking for a friend
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May 29, 2020 06:53
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The Glumslinger posted:So, any suggestions on the French Revolution? Asking for a friend Simon Schama's "Citizens".
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May 29, 2020 07:18
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The Glumslinger posted:So, any suggestions on the French Revolution? Asking for a friend I took this project on a while ago and thought that François Furet and Georges Lefebvre offered the most balanced views
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May 29, 2020 08:07
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Biography question: Has anyone read George Marshall: Defender of the Republic? I've read General of the Army: George C. Marshall, Soldier and Statesman (Cray), which Amazon says was published in 2000 but that may be the reprint publishing date. Just wondering if the newer Marshall bio has anything to add or meaningfully updates the scholarship on him or his era.
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May 29, 2020 15:18
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The Glumslinger posted:So, any suggestions on the French Revolution? Asking for a friend Good question. There’s a brand new book out called A New Word Begins: The History of the French Revolution by Jeremy Popkin. I think it’s the new definitive non academic account of the Revolution. https://www.amazon.com/New-World-Begins-History-Revolution/dp/0465096662
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May 29, 2020 16:13
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It was a solid read and he specifically incorporated the Haitian revolution and women's perspectives into the book.
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May 30, 2020 01:02
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Shimrra Jamaane posted:Good question. There’s a brand new book out called A New Word Begins: The History of the French Revolution by Jeremy Popkin. I think it’s the new definitive non academic account of the Revolution. Reading this now and it's quite good. Previously, I did greatly enjoy Schama's work because a) guy can write and b) he really gives a good "on the ground" flavor in his description of things, a feel for what life and society were like that most historians fail to provide or provide badly. But you have to go into it aware that Schama thought the Revolution was a mistake, a bad thing, that violence is never allowed as a means of effecting change... he's a pretty strong apologist for the nobility as well. It's a good book, possibly the best-written in English about the topic, but it really shouldn't be the only book one reads about it. A New World Begins is well-written, but not nearly as artful as Citizens, but if you're only going to read one book on the topic, choose that over Citizens. If you're open to more than one, read A New World Begins first for a solid grounding, then Citizens for a great read that comes at the topic from very specific ideological direction.
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May 30, 2020 18:25
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It's probably worth noting as deeper background on Schama that as a young historian he studied the interaction of the French republic with the Dutch republican tradition, from the Dutch perspective, and that's a large part of why he's carried an antipathy towards the French revolutionary tradition.
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May 30, 2020 19:36
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Can anyone recommend a book on the crusader states? I'm aiming to get a grasp on how they functioned as societies, what life was like, etc.
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May 30, 2020 23:08
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smr posted:Reading this now and it's quite good. Previously, I did greatly enjoy Schama's work because a) guy can write and b) he really gives a good "on the ground" flavor in his description of things, a feel for what life and society were like that most historians fail to provide or provide badly. But you have to go into it aware that Schama thought the Revolution was a mistake, a bad thing, that violence is never allowed as a means of effecting change... he's a pretty strong apologist for the nobility as well. I really like A New World Begins because while it doesn’t shy away from the excesses of the Terror and the atrocities in the Vendee it’s also very clear about the positives that occurred during the Revolution and the ideological underpinnings of the good motivations behind many of the actions of those in charge. It’s not dismissed as some cascading decent into an orgy of violence like Citizens does. I also really value how it covers the pre-Revolutionary years all the way to the establishment of the First Empire. It doesn’t just end at Thermidor like Citizens which I find stupid.
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Jun 1, 2020 01:28
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Shimrra Jamaane posted:I really like A New World Begins because while it doesn’t shy away from the excesses of the Terror and the atrocities in the Vendee it’s also very clear about the positives that occurred during the Revolution and the ideological underpinnings of the good motivations behind many of the actions of those in charge. It’s not dismissed as some cascading decent into an orgy of violence like Citizens does. Agreed, I was quite jolted at how early Citizens cut off, it felt arbitrary. I don't think there's one good volume that covers Revolutionary France AND The Empire even though it's all really one epoch that can be discussed under one cover. I've got The Napoleonic Wars: A Global History in the Up Next pile but I'm still looking for something that covers The Empire well not just from a military perspective, but from a societal and organizational aspect as well, in a holistic fashion. Open to any recommendations anyone might have.
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Jun 1, 2020 04:44
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Are there any good books like Band of Brothers focusing on a particular British infantry unit in WW2, and, hopefully, with much less sloppiness and reliance on oral accounts than was the case for Stephen Ambrose?
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Jun 1, 2020 08:23
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smr posted:Agreed, I was quite jolted at how early Citizens cut off, it felt arbitrary. I don't think there's one good volume that covers Revolutionary France AND The Empire even though it's all really one epoch that can be discussed under one cover. I’m actually reading The Napoleonic Wars: A Global History right now and it’s quite good! It’s light on the military details though which is fine for me since I’m just coming off reading Chandler’s Campaigns of Napoleon so I have plenty of context to work with but might be an issue for others. Unfortunately it appears that the best historical accounts of the Empire in a holistic sense and not just its military accomplishments are in French and remain untranslated.
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Jun 1, 2020 14:38
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Neurosis posted:Are there any good books like Band of Brothers focusing on a particular British infantry unit in WW2, and, hopefully, with much less sloppiness and reliance on oral accounts than was the case for Stephen Ambrose? Neurosis posted:Are there any good books like Band of Brothers focusing on a particular British infantry unit in WW2, and, hopefully, with much less sloppiness and reliance on oral accounts than was the case for Stephen Ambrose? Unfortunately it’s a bit hard to find books like what Ambrose did. He’s really pretty unique in doing a deep dive on an individual unit where he focuses on the soldiers as personalities rather then the unit. I have a ton of issues with his work but if you want something like BoB there’s really just BoB. In a lot of ways it’s also the most notable of his books and, I would argue, the only one that really made a dent in the literature behind pop history book sales. (Edit: and even that is methodological and not in his argument) If you want to get a infantryman’s view of British service you’re really going to have to look at memoirs. I can’t think of any for WW2, though, although I’m sure they’re out there. Now if you just want British accounts in general Siegfried Sassoon’s memoir is really good for WW1. might not be what you’re looking for though. If you don’t mind dry and without the human touch that you see in BoB plenty of British units have regimental histories. They are going to be very, very variable in terms of quality though.
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Jun 1, 2020 15:31
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what are some good books to read on historiography?
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Jun 1, 2020 18:40
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That’s . . . Kind of huge. That’s like asking “what are good books to read on history.” Is there any particular area you’re interested in? Most individual subjects have a good summary text, although they can get pricey due to the small printings.
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Jun 1, 2020 20:11
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Googling syllabi I turned up “Historiography: an introduction” by Spalding. https://www.history.org.uk/secondary/resource/835/historiography-an-introduction-roger-spalding-an It’s on amazon and it looks like you can get it used for $6. I don’t have any personal experience with it so I’m not going to recommend it but from what I’m reading in a few places you could do worse than start there.
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Jun 1, 2020 20:16
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Cyrano4747 posted:That’s . . . Kind of huge. That’s like asking “what are good books to read on history.” yeah, sorry, i realized it was a stupidly broad question right after i posted.  the annales school keeps showing up in the books i'm reading, so let's go with that.
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Jun 1, 2020 21:32
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Is there a particular aspect of it you want to dig in to? I can probably effortpost out the broad brush strokes for you but if you have a more detailed question there are some quite deep discipline specific historiographical concerns depending on your field. I can speak intelligently about intellectual history concerns in particular if you have more specific questions about that. In terms of a reading recommendation that delves deeply into the issues, the most famous book about it in the 20th century was probably E.H Carr's 'What is History' from 1961. The best short read I've read that's more up to date is David Cannadine's 'What is History Now' which has a series of chapters by specialists in different fields. It is quite dense for such a short book though. Richard Evans also has a typically dull short read floating around too somewhere.
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Jun 1, 2020 21:39
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Lynn Hunt's Writing History in the Global Era is a relatively recent attempt to paint the broad strokes of historiography over time written by one of the most famous historians of the French Revolution, so maybe try that?
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Jun 1, 2020 21:51
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Disinterested posted:Is there a particular aspect of it you want to dig in to? I can probably effortpost out the broad brush strokes for you but if you have a more detailed question there are some quite deep discipline specific historiographical concerns depending on your field. I can speak intelligently about intellectual history concerns in particular if you have more specific questions about that. i'd like to delve more into diplomatic history, political history, and intellectual history. i studied IR in undergrad and have a strong interest in french and russian history, if that helps. quote:In terms of a reading recommendation that delves deeply into the issues, the most famous book about it in the 20th century was probably E.H Carr's 'What is History' from 1961. The best short read I've read that's more up to date is David Cannadine's 'What is History Now' which has a series of chapters by specialists in different fields. It is quite dense for such a short book though. Richard Evans also has a typically dull short read floating around too somewhere. vyelkin posted:Lynn Hunt's Writing History in the Global Era is a relatively recent attempt to paint the broad strokes of historiography over time written by one of the most famous historians of the French Revolution, so maybe try that? sounds good, thank you! i'll look into this stuff
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Jun 1, 2020 22:00
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I have an effortish post brewing.
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Jun 1, 2020 23:38
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John Arnold wrote "History: A Very Short Introduction" which is....a very short book outlining the discipline in broad terms if that helps. Read it for history 101 years and years ago. Carr is a good read too. I've seen Evan's "In Defense of History" described as a modern update of Carr, but I've not read it myself so I cannot comment.
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Jun 2, 2020 01:11
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Cyrano4747 posted:If you want to get a infantryman’s view of British service you’re really going to have to look at memoirs. I can’t think of any for WW2, though, although I’m sure they’re out there.
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Jun 2, 2020 11:09
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Any good books on the Tulsa massacre?
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Jun 2, 2020 17:12
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Look Sir Droids posted:Any good books on the Tulsa massacre? Death in a Promised Land: The Tulsa Race Riot of 1921 by Scott Ellsworth
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Jun 2, 2020 17:23
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Any recommendations for Pre-Soviet Russian history? Also, any good history books that deal with non-Roman peoples and societes during the expansion of Rome? Especially dealing with Celts/Iberians and Etruscans is highly welcomed. While im at it even though question is off-topic, is there an equivalent thread for natural science books? Falukorv fucked around with this message at 16:08 on Jun 4, 2020 |
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Jun 4, 2020 16:05
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Falukorv posted:Any recommendations for Pre-Soviet Russian history? Simon Sebag Montefiore's "The Romanovs 1613-1918" is primarily about the dynasty, but I found it a fun read.
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Jun 4, 2020 16:19
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Falukorv posted:Any recommendations for Pre-Soviet Russian history? I liked the Robert K. Massie books.
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Jun 4, 2020 16:31
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Falukorv posted:Any recommendations for Pre-Soviet Russian history? Enormous question, can you be any more specific?
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Jun 4, 2020 16:43
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I am not the OP but I will repeat my oft asked and perhaps unanswerable request for English language histories on what's going down in the lands of the former Kievan Rus', from around when the Mongols show up, up to say Ivan the Great. Which is not exclusively Russian history of course but still.
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Jun 4, 2020 18:15
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PittTheElder posted:I am not the OP but I will repeat my oft asked and perhaps unanswerable request for English language histories on what's going down in the lands of the former Kievan Rus', from around when the Mongols show up, up to say Ivan the Great. Which is not exclusively Russian history of course but still. I can only repeat my suggestions from last time: https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?noseen=0&threadid=3458502&pagenumber=78&perpage=40#post497193580 Unfortunately that's significantly earlier than the time period I study so I'm not as up-to-date on other potential books.
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Jun 4, 2020 18:27
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Thanks, ill take a look at your suggestions!vyelkin posted:Enormous question, can you be any more specific? Well my historical curiosity is pretty broad but from the early modern tsardom through becoming a major european power up until the social upheavels that ended the Russian Empire. A period of 500 years but for now im looking for a pretty general history grounded on good scholarship. Kind of like what Clarks "Iron Kingdom" did for Prussia. Some specific topics also interest me, for example Russias expansion into Siberia and Central Asia and how those areas came under the influence of Russia and how they interacted with the people there.
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Jun 4, 2020 18:38
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Epicurius posted:Simon Sebag Montefiore's "The Romanovs 1613-1918" is primarily about the dynasty, but I found it a fun read. I thought I read somewhere that his scholarship wasn't very good, especially with his work on Stalin? Can someone confirm/deny?
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Jun 4, 2020 18:43
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I would actually recommend starting with this general history of Russia: https://www.amazon.com/Russia-History-Gregory-L-Freeze/dp/0199560412/ I am recommending this because it contains a good section on suggested further reading and each chapter is written by a different author. You can pull from there. It is a little older however.
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Jun 4, 2020 18:45
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