Tag: France
Massive Roman Cremation Cemetery Reveals Burial Rituals in Southern France
Archaeologists excavating in southern France have uncovered more than 160 cremation burials that illuminate Roman funerary practices between the first and third centuries A.D. The graves, discovered at the ancient city of…
The Crusades: Four Hundred Years of War (Part One)
The Crusades are perhaps the defining idea of medieval Europe. Over more than four centuries they redefined its history, set it on a new course with a common, foreign enemy against whom…
Right Man, Right Place, Right Time: The Rise of Napoleon
In 1799 France changed forever. After a decade of rumbling discontent regarding the concentration of wealth towards the powerful and the exploitation of the masses who were facing widespread starvation, the French…
The Statue of Liberty, and a Moment in History
There are few symbols of the US as well-known as the Statue of Liberty. The enormous neoclassical sculpture, 46 meters tall and clad in copper, may be the single most recognizable emblem…
Oklo: the Impossibly Ancient Nuclear Reactors of Gabon
Nuclear power is among the most complex and advanced technologies we have developed as a species. Our fission reactors are some of the most complicated machines and systems ever built, which is…
Fire from the Sky: The Terror of the Paris Gun
On the 23rd March 1918 at 7.18 in the morning the city of Paris was rocked by a sudden, unexpected explosion on the Quai de la Seine. The blast came without warning,…