To anyone who was exposed to its machinations — let alone directly affected by it, as most South African Blacks were — apartheid was truly evil: only the absence of extermination camps differentiated it from the Nazism of the 1940s. In actuality, Blacks couldn’t live or work in “White” areas except by permit, couldn’t own businesses in White areas, couldn’t be promoted past a certain point when they did work outside the “Black” areas, and were forcibly resettled into Black “homelands” without legal redress or the ability to resist. Social intercourse between Blacks and Whites were restricted, by law, to business interactions only — any kind of interracial sexual activity was legally classified as “immorality” and summarily banned, carrying appallingly-high penalties in the breach thereof. Crimes by Whites against Blacks carried penalties far more lenient — to the extent of semi-official toleration — than those by Blacks against Whites, which were severely punished. The education system favored White children over Black children and continued throughout life — to where “White” universities were ubiquitous but “Black” universities could be counted on one hand, with a couple fingers left over. (Lest anyone is offended by the comparison to Nazism, simply substitute “Jews” for “Blacks” and “Aryans” for “Whites”. That would have been Germany, from 1933 to 1945.)
So the disappearance of apartheid cannot be seen as anything other than a Good Thing.
Kim du Toit, “Tough Question, Simple Answer”, Splendid Isolation, 2019-12-05.
March 14, 2020
QotD: Apartheid
March 13, 2020
QotD: Rommel’s generalship
Yes, the reader might respond, but surely we are on firmer ground with regard to [Rommel’s] military skill! After all, no less a figure than British Prime Minister Winston Churchill called him “a great general” on the floor of the House of Commons. Even here, it is possible to make a counterargument. Rommel’s daring exploits at the head of the Afrika Korps (later enlarged and renamed Panzerarmee Afrika) were exciting, to be sure, but many officers in his own army reckoned them as an ultimately valueless sideshow. His disinterest in the dreary science of logistics, his “bias for action,” his tendency to fly off wherever the fighting was hottest are qualities that may make for an exciting movie, but they are problematic in an army commander under modern conditions, and they all contributed materially to the disaster that ultimately befell him and his army in the desert.
[…]
When Rommel arrived in Africa, he brought with him a fully realized art of war. He’d won a Pour le Mérite (the famed “Blue Max“) for a series of nail-biting mountain exploits in the 1917 Caporetto campaign; he had been a very popular tactical instructor at the Dresden Infantry School between the wars; he had commanded one of the army’s precious Panzer divisions (the 7th) during the 1940 campaign in the West. In France, Rommel had behaved more like an 18th century hussar cut loose on a raiding mission than a divisional commander. He led from the front, braved enemy fire on numerous occasions, and turned off his radio from time to time rather than risk receiving orders to rein himself in. He drove forward so rapidly that the 7th Panzer became known as the “ghost division” for its tendency to drop off the situation maps and reappear where least expected. There were many in the German high command, including the chief of the General Staff Franz Halder, who didn’t much appreciate Rommel running amok, but as one analyst put it, “it was impossible to court martial such a successful general, so Rommel instead got the Ritterkreuz” [the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross].
Robert Citino, “Drive to Nowhere: The Myth of the Afrika Korps, 1941-43″, The National WWII Museum, 2012. (Originally published in MHQ, Summer 2012).
March 11, 2020
Carton de Wiart – A Man For All Seasons – WW2 Biography Special
World War Two
Published 10 Mar 2020Carton de Wiart was a remarkable figure in World War One, but his story continues in World War Two, where he rolls from one adventure into the next.
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Source list: http://bit.ly/WW2sourcesHosted by: Indy Neidell
Written by: Francis van Berkel
Produced and Directed by: Spartacus Olsson and Astrid Deinhard
Executive Producers: Bodo Rittenauer, Astrid Deinhard, Indy Neidell, Spartacus Olsson
Creative Producer: Joram Appel
Post-Production Director: Wieke Kapteijns
Research by: Keith Kevelson
Edited by: Mikołaj CackowskiColorizations by:
Julius Jääskeläinen – https://www.facebook.com/JJcolorization/Sources:
IWM Q 101768, Q 82958, Q 15472, Q 53680, Q 92257, Q 4511, Q 11429, Q 92207, Q 92214, N 228, N 110, N 68, H 7393, HU 128168, E(MOS) 1315, SE 3547, A 31225, A 20588, Q 92218
Skull by Mahmure Alp from the Noun Project
foot bone by Maxicons from the Noun Project
Ear by Vectors Market from the Noun Project
Hip Bones by ProSymbols from the Noun Project
Collection of Auckland Museum Tamaki Paenga Hira, 2001.25.480 Brent Mackrell Collection
Narodowe Archiwum Cyfrowe
Picture of Combe, Carton de Wiart, Todhunter and Gambier-Parry in Vincigliata Castle Prison, courtesy Michael TodhunterSoundtracks from the Epidemic Sound:
Hakan Eriksson – “Epic Adventure Theme 3”
Jo Wandrini – “Dawn of Civilization”
Rannar Sillard – “March of the Brave 4”
Johannes Bornlof – “Death And Glory 3”
Farrell Wooten – “Blunt Object”
Philip Ayers – “Trapped in a Maze”
Phoenix Tail – “At the Front”Archive by Screenocean/Reuters https://www.screenocean.com.
A TimeGhost chronological documentary produced by OnLion Entertainment GmbH.
From the comments:
World War Two
40 minutes ago (edited)
This episode was made thanks to our research volunteer Keith Kevelson. It is also the first of its kind, being the first proper Biography Special of our World War Two series. We will do one of these every other week, so be prepared to get to know the main protagonists of the Second World War up close and personal. Please support us on Patreon so we can continue making these. Sign up at www.patreon.com/timeghosthistory or https://timeghost.tv.Cheers,
Joram
March 2, 2020
QotD: The legend of Rommel and the Afrika Korps
There is no more evocative phrase to emerge from World War II than Afrika Korps. The name conjures up a unique theater of war, a hauntingly beautiful empty quarter where armies could roam free, liberated from towns and hills, choke points and blocking positions, and especially those pesky civilians. It calls forth a war of near-absolute mobility, where tanks could operate very much like ships at sea, “sailing” where they wished, setting out on bold voyages hundreds of miles into the deep desert, then looping around the enemy flank and emerging like pirates of old to deal devastating blows to an unsuspecting foe. Finally, it implies a bold hero, in this case Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, a noble commander who fought the good fight, who hated Hitler and everything he stood for, and who couldn’t have been farther away from our stereotyped image of the Nazi fanatic. Everything about him attracts us — the manly poses, the out-of-central-casting good looks, even the goggles perched just so. Placing Rommel and his elite Afrika Korps to the fore allows us to view the desert war as a clean fight against a morally worthy opponent. It was war, yes, but almost uniquely in World War II, it was a “war without hate.”
It’s an attractive image all around, and it is unfortunate that practically all of it is false. The desert was hardly a haven of beauty or romance. It was a pain, and fighting in it was a nightmare for both sides. Far from letting the respective tank fleets roam free, the desert chained them irresistibly to their supply lines, and a single failed supply convoy or a lost column of trucks could stop an entire offensive dead in its tracks. Contrary to the alleged mobility of desert warfare, both sides would spend far more time in static defensive positions, often quite elaborate, then they would launching tank charges.
That leaves us with Rommel. Here, too, we should challenge the mythology. He was hardly apolitical. His entire career had been based on Hitler’s favor, and we might reasonably describe his attitude toward the Führer as worshipful. He was Hitler’s fair-haired boy, a young officer repeatedly promoted over more senior candidates. He was a media creation. Nazi propaganda painted him not only as a garden-variety hero, but as a model National Socialist and Aryan, a man who could overcome stronger enemies through the sheer force of his will. He was not merely a passive bystander to the hype; he was an active accomplice. He loved nothing better than having a camera crew along with him on campaign, and he would regularly order scenes to be reshot if his posture was insufficiently heroic or the lighting had not shown him to best advantage. As is often the case, his relationship to the media was both self-serving and self-destructive. During the years of victory, the German propaganda machine used him as an example to the nation. When things went sour, he became a diversion from the increasingly bad news on other fronts. Finally, when he was no longer useful for any purpose at all, the regime dropped him altogether and eventually killed him.
Robert Citino, “Drive to Nowhere: The Myth of the Afrika Korps, 1941-43″, The National WWII Museum, 2012. (Originally published in MHQ, Summer 2012).
March 1, 2020
The Nazis Building Bridges, Not Walls – WW2 – 079 – February 28, 1941
World War Two
Published 29 Feb 2020Parts of the British forces in North-Africa are being send to Greece to strengthen the Allied position there. While the remaining British plan for the near future, others make huge advances in East-Africa and Hitler plans his attack on Greece through Bulgaria.
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Source list: http://bit.ly/WW2sourcesWritten and Hosted by: Indy Neidell
Produced and Directed by: Spartacus Olsson and Astrid Deinhard
Executive Producers: Bodo Rittenauer, Astrid Deinhard, Indy Neidell, Spartacus Olsson
Creative Producer: Joram Appel
Post-Production Director: Wieke Kapteijns
Research by: Indy Neidell
Edited by: Mikołaj Cackowski
Map animations: Eastory (https://www.youtube.com/c/eastory)
Additional animation: Ryan WeatherbyColorizations by:
– Julius Jääskeläinen – https://www.facebook.com/JJcolorization/
– Norman Stewart – https://oldtimesincolor.blogspot.com/Sources:
IWM: E 2386, E 2372, E 2368, E 2388, E 450, E 1579, FL 10025
National Portrait Gallery
Letter by Mochammad Kafi from the Noun Project
Mil.ru
BASA (3K-15- 84-2, 3K-7-436-41)
Narodowe Archiwum Cyfrowe
Museum of Science and Technology BelgradeArchive by Screenocean/Reuters https://www.screenocean.com.
A TimeGhost chronological documentary produced by OnLion Entertainment GmbH.
February 27, 2020
Winston Churchill Biography: In the Darkest Hour
Biographics
Published 13 Feb 2018We imagine Winston Churchill with his signature cane, drinking scotch whiskey, and puffing on a Cuban cigar. His mouth is downturned, and his voice is gruff and his words pointed. This is the image Hollywood portrays but it is a mere caricature of the flesh and blood version. Who was Winston Churchill? In Britain’s “darkest hour,” Churchill led his country from the brink of Nazi conquest by forging an alliance with the U.S. and Russia. He had many critics, and made mistakes on a grand scale. Yet, above it all, possessed an unwavering belief in his own power. To his beloved country he offered his “blood, toil, tears and sweat.”
Visit our companion website for more: http://biographics.org
Credits:
Host – Simon Whistler
Author – Crystal Sullivan
Producer – Samuel Avila
Executive Producer – Shell HarrisBusiness inquiries to biographics.email@gmail.com
Biographies by the book, get Winston Churchill’s biography from Amazon: http://amzn.to/2EAfh7b
February 23, 2020
The British Will Walk 500 Miles, and They Will Walk 500 more – WW2 – 078 – February 22, 1941
World War Two
Published 22 Feb 2020As the British make spectacular advances in East-Africa, with even more spectacular advances on the horizon, South-Eastern Europe is getting increasingly tense.
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Source list: http://bit.ly/WW2sourcesWritten and Hosted by: Indy Neidell
Produced and Directed by: Spartacus Olsson and Astrid Deinhard
Executive Producers: Bodo Rittenauer, Astrid Deinhard, Indy Neidell, Spartacus Olsson
Creative Producer: Joram Appel
Post-Production Director: Wieke Kapteijns
Research by: Indy Neidell
Edited by: Iryna Dulka
Map animations: Eastory (https://www.youtube.com/c/eastory)Colorizations by:
– Daniel Weiss
– Julius Jääskeläinen – https://www.facebook.com/JJcolorization/
– Dememorabilia – https://www.instagram.com/dememorabilia/
– Norman Stewart – https://oldtimesincolor.blogspot.com/
– Olga Shirnina, a.k.a. Klimbim – https://klimbim2014.wordpress.com/Sources:
– Bundesarchiv
– Library of Congress
– IWM: E 6661
– National Library of Australia
– National Portrait Gallery
– Letter by Mochammad Kafi, post icon by Bonegolemfrom, from the Noun Project
– Photot of Goethe Medal by Mondfreund from Wikimedia Commons
– Eirik Sundvor, The Municipal Archives of TrondheimArchive by Screenocean/Reuters https://www.screenocean.com.
A TimeGhost chronological documentary produced by OnLion Entertainment GmbH.
February 21, 2020
What if the Spanish Fascists Lost the Civil War? – WW2 feat. Hearts of Iron IV
World War Two
Published 20 Feb 2020This video is sponsored by Paradox Interactive. Indy shares his thoughts on what he thinks would have happened if the Spanish Revolution would have happened differently.
You can create your own alternate history in the grand strategy game Hearts of Iron IV! Discover it here: https://pdxint.at/37Po039
Watch our Between Two Wars episode on the Spanish Civil War here: https://youtu.be/ncUkPavahCU
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Source list: http://bit.ly/WW2sourcesWritten and Hosted by: Indy Neidell
Produced by: Spartacus Olsson and Astrid Deinhard
Directed by: Wieke Kapteijns
Executive Producers: Bodo Rittenauer, Astrid Deinhard, Indy Neidell, Spartacus Olsson
Creative Producer: Joram Appel
Post-Production Director: Wieke Kapteijns
Research by: Indy Neidell
Edited by: Guido Becker
Gameplay scenes by: Sietse Kenter
Sound mix: Marek KamińskiColorizations by:
Dememorabilia – https://www.instagram.com/dememorabilia/
Julius Jääskeläinen – https://www.facebook.com/JJcolorization/
Adrien Fillon – https://www.instagram.com/adrien.colo…
Daniel WeissArchive by Screenocean/Reuters https://www.screenocean.com.
A TimeGhost chronological documentary produced by OnLion Entertainment GmbH.
February 16, 2020
Diamonds vs. Self Determination – South West Africa and the League of Nations I THE GREAT WAR 1920
The Great War
Published 15 Feb 2020Sign up for Curiosity Stream and Nebula: https://curiositystream.com/thegreatwar
Woodrow Wilson’s 14 Points and their idea of self-determination didn’t go unnoticed in the former German colonies like German Southwest Africa. But especially South Africa had other ideas at the Paris Peace Conference and lobbied to take control over future Namibia and its lucrative diamond mines.
» SUPPORT THE CHANNEL
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Merchandise: https://shop.spreadshirt.de/thegreatwar/» SOURCES
Emmett, Tony. 1999. Popular Resistance and the Roots of Nationalism in Namibia, 1915-1966. Basel, Switzerland: P. Schlettwein Publishing.
Olusoga, David, and Casper W. Erichsen. 2011. The Kaiser’s Holocaust: Germany’s Forgotten Genocide and the Colonial Roots of Nazism. London, UK: Faber and Faber.
Onselen, Charles van. 1980. Chibaro: African mine labour in Southern Rhodesia 1900-1933. London, UK: Pluto Pr.
Pirio, Gregory. 1988. “The Role of Garveyism in the Making of Namibian Nationalism.” In Namibia 1884-1984: Readings on Namibia’s History and Society: Selected Papers and Proceedings of the International Conference on “Namibia 1884-1984: 100 Years of Foreign Occupation; 100 Years of Struggle”, London 10-13 September, 1984, Organised by the Namibia Support Committee in Co-Operation with the SWAPO Department of Information and Publicity, edited by International Conference on “Namibia 1884-1984: 100 Years of Foreign Occupation; 100 Years of Struggle,” Brian Wood, Namibia Support Committee, United Nations Institute for Namibia, SWAPO, and Department of Information and Publicity. London: The Committee in cooperation with United Nations Institute for Namibia.
“Report on the Natives of South-West Africa and Their Treatment by Germany.” 1918. 1918. https://ufdc.ufl.edu/UF00072665/00001/1j.
Silvester, Jeremy, and Jan-Bart Gewald, eds. 2003. Words Cannot Be Found: German Colonial Rule in Namibia: An Annotated Reprint of the 1918 Blue Book. Sources for African History, v. 1. Leiden, NL ; Boston, USA: Brill.
Smith, Iain R. 1999. “Jan Smuts and the South African War.” South African Historical Journal 41 (1): 172–95. https://doi.org/10.1080/0258247990867….
Vinson, Robert Trent. 2012. Americans Are Coming! Dreams of African American Liberation in Segregationist South Africa. Athens: Ohio University Press. http://public.eblib.com/choice/public….
Wallace, Marion, and John Kinahan. 2013. A History of Namibia from the Beginning to 1990. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
William Blakemore Lyon. 2015. “The South West Africa Company and Anglo-German Relations, 1892-1914.” Master’s thesis, Cambridge University.
Zimmerer, Jürgen, and Joachim Zeller. 2008. Genocide in German South-West Africa. Monmouth, UK: Merlin Press.
Michell, Lewis (1910). The Life and Times of the Right Honourable Cecil John Rhodes 1853-1902, Volume 2. New York and London: Mitchell Kennerly
Rhodes, Cecil, (1902) “The Last Will and Testament of Cecil John Rhodes: With Elucidatory Notes to Which Are Added Some Chapters Describing the Political and Religious Ideas of the Testator”, London: “Review of Reviews” Office
Cecil Rhodes, “Confession of Faith”, 1877 https://pages.uoregon.edu/kimball/Rho…» SOCIAL MEDIA
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Presented by: Jesse Alexander
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Enter Erwin Rommel – The British Advance in Africa – WW2 – 077 – February 15 1941
World War Two
Published 15 Feb 2020While the Germans send one of their best generals to North Africa to bail out the Italians, Great Britain switches focus from Libya to Greece, but make symbolically important gains in East Africa.
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Source list: http://bit.ly/WW2sourcesWritten and Hosted by: Indy Neidell
Produced and Directed by: Spartacus Olsson and Astrid Deinhard
Executive Producers: Bodo Rittenauer, Astrid Deinhard, Indy Neidell, Spartacus Olsson
Creative Producer: Joram Appel
Post-Production Director: Wieke Kapteijns
Research by: Indy Neidell
Edited by: Iryna Dulka
Map animations: Eastory (https://www.youtube.com/c/eastory)Colorizations by:
– Julius Jääskeläinen – https://www.facebook.com/JJcolorization/
– Norman Stewart – https://oldtimesincolor.blogspot.com/Sources:
– Bundesarchiv
– A German soldier poses atop a tank, photo credit: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of Perquimans County Library
– US National Archive
– IWM: A 4035, HU 39482Archive by Screenocean/Reuters https://www.screenocean.com.
A TimeGhost chronological documentary produced by OnLion Entertainment GmbH.
From the comments:
World War Two
2 days ago
When you know the story going forward it’s fascinating to see how the decisions unfold this week — the reshuffling of command both on the Axis and Allied side might seem like innocuous administrative decisions when you don’t know the future. But if you have a crystal ball, you’ll know that not just Rommel arriving in North Africa, but also the decisions on the British side this week will have momentous impact on the war in total. That’s one of the things we discovered early-on with a chronological narrative, it suddenly puts things in a new perspective. The relationship between events changes, and things that might seem too boring, or undramatic to include in a “great story” take on a whole new meaning, increasing our understanding of cause and effect of the “greater” events that will come. On a different note, we just finished shooting a new batch of videos today and we’ll be announcing some fascinating developments on our program in the coming weeks. Stay tuned, and stay awesome, you all are by far the best community on YouTube!
February 9, 2020
Rommel to fix the Bungle in Benghazi – WW2 – 076 – February 8, 1941
World War Two
Published 8 Feb 2020As the Italian campaigns in Africa collapse, Hitler considers his options and then chooses Erwin Rommel to rescue their Italian allies.
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Source list: http://bit.ly/WW2sourcesWritten and Hosted by: Indy Neidell
Produced and Directed by: Spartacus Olsson and Astrid Deinhard
Executive Producers: Bodo Rittenauer, Astrid Deinhard, Indy Neidell, Spartacus Olsson
Creative Producer: Joram Appel
Post-Production Director: Wieke Kapteijns
Research by: Indy Neidell
Edited by: Mikołaj Cackowski
Map animations: Eastory (https://www.youtube.com/c/eastory)
Additional animations: Ryan WeatherbyColorizations by:
Adrien Fillon – https://www.instagram.com/adrien.colo…
Julius Jääskeläinen – https://www.facebook.com/JJcolorization/
Dememorabilia – https://www.instagram.com/dememorabilia/Sources:
Narodowe Archiwum Cyfrowe
Artillery by Creative Mania from the Noun ProjectSoundtracks from the Epidemic Sound:
Johannes Bornlof – “Last Man Standing 3”
Hakan Eriksson – “Epic Adventure Theme 3”
Phoenix Tail – “At the Front”
Gunnar Johnsen – “Not Safe Yet”
Johan Hynynen – “Dark Beginning”
Yi Nantiro – “Watchmen”
Rannar Sillard – “March Of The Brave 10”Archive by Screenocean/Reuters https://www.screenocean.com.
A TimeGhost chronological documentary produced by OnLion Entertainment GmbH.
February 7, 2020
QotD: The negative economic and human value of foreign aid
I’d like nothing better than to be proven wrong, but I’m gloomily confident that my prediction of failure will be verified. History and sound economics both warn that foreign aid is far more likely to harm than to help economies.
During the past four decades, Western governments have lavished on Africa nearly a half-trillion dollars in aid. But to no good effect. Everyone agrees that Africans remain desperately poor.
Academic studies confirm aid’s ineffectiveness. In his celebrated 2001 book, The Elusive Quest for Growth, former World Bank economist William Easterly carefully reviews aid’s history and concludes that it is one of abject failure.
Indeed, many studies find that aid harms economies. For example, University of Regina economist Tomi Ovaska, writing in the Cato Journal, finds that “a 1 percent increase in aid as a percent of GDP (gross domestic product) decreased annual real GDP per capita growth by 3.65 percent.”
The reasons for this dismal record should be plain to anyone with a rudimentary understanding of economics. Failure of economies to develop is not because of lack of resources. Instead, it’s because of overbearing and corrupt governments, as well as to the dysfunctional social and cultural institutions that keep such governments in power and that are themselves fostered by such governments.
As long as a country is cursed by a malignant government and dysfunctional institutions, no amount of foreign aid will help it.
Don Boudreaux, “Faulty Band-Aid”, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, 2005-06-18.
February 6, 2020
The rise of the Saadi Empire of Morocco
In the latest Age of Invention newsletter, Anton Howes outlines the rise of a Morocco-based Islamic empire that beat the Portuguese and established a thriving smuggling network with England:
In 1500 you would have thought that Morocco’s golden ages were firmly in the past. The Portuguese in 1415 had conquered Ceuta, on the southern side of the Straits of Gibraltar, with minimal resistance. Over the next century they had then spread their influence across the Moroccan coastline, building forts, establishing small trading colonies, and interfering in local politics. Faced with constant raids, coastal towns like Safi, Massa, and Azammur submitted themselves to Portuguese vassalage in exchange for protection. And when local rulers failed to please them, the Portuguese installed new ones or even took direct control. A disunited Morocco was at the mercy of Portuguese colonial ambition — a source of grain destined for Portugal’s population, and of horses and patterned cloths for it to exchange in sub-Saharan Africa for gold and slaves.
In the 1510s, however, a new dynasty arose in Sus, in the south-west of the country, claiming direct descent from the Prophet Muhammad. These sharifs, the Saadi dynasty, began to fill the vacuum left by ineffective leadership from the sultans in Fez and Marrakech. And to address the massive power imbalance between themselves and the Portuguese, they began to cultivate sugar, selling it to other Europeans — Spanish, French, Genoese, Dutch, and English — in exchange for gunpowder weapons.
The English were especially expert smugglers, frequently able to sneak past the Portuguese fleets to where they could trade directly with the Saadis. Merchants from the Hanseatic league even approached the English government about using English mariners to get iron shot to Morocco. Their request was denied — Elizabeth I and her ministers were always careful never to explicitly allow the munitions trade, even in private letters, and often publicly disavowed it — but it was common knowledge among London’s merchants that the government supported the smuggling. This was partly about having a supply of sugar independent of Portuguese and Spanish control, but it was also a matter of national security. Because hidden among the sugar, marmalade, candied fruits, and almonds that the English transported from Morocco, were also copper and saltpetre — crucial materials for England’s own gunpowder weapons (I still haven’t quite worked out why England needed to import copper, given it had its own deposits in Cornwall, but it seems to have been important and a secure supply of saltpetre was definitely essential).
Both sides benefited from the arrangement. By the mid-1540s, the Saadis had bought the firearms and artillery necessary to take Marrakech and Fez, effectively unifying the country, and had earned sufficient wealth to buy the allegiance of the Moroccan population, providing grain during periods of intense famine. With that allegiance, they began isolating the Portuguese forts along the coastline, denying them access to food, workers, and trade. From the perspective of the Portuguese crown, the forts thus lost their economic value, while becoming increasingly expensive to maintain. Rather than providing Portugal with Moroccan grain, the forts increasingly needed grain from Portugal. With the added pressure of Saadi sieges, now aided by massive artillery, Portugal began to lose their footholds, abandoning many of the rest. Thus, in the space of a few decades, the export of sugar (and saltpetre) by the Saadis had put the mighty Portuguese empire on the back foot.
Rifles of Emperor Menelik II: Ethiopian Gewehr 88 and Karabiner 88
Forgotten Weapons
Published 5 Feb 2020http://www.patreon.com/ForgottenWeapons
https://www.floatplane.com/channel/Fo…
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In 1889, Emperor Menelik II ascended to power in Ethiopia, and would rule for 20 years, moving Ethiopia (aka Abyssinia) forward into the modern age. He brought railways, sewer systems, telegraph lines, and other modern amenities to the country, particularly the capital of Addis Ababa. In addition, Menelik II was a very capable logistician and military strategist, and decisively defeated an Italian colonial invasion at the Battle of Adwa in 1896. This victory was made possible by Ethiopian acquisition of modern arms of many types. Early support came from Orthodox Russia in the form of Berdan rifles, but other arms would flow into the country as well, including Gewehr 88 and Karabiner 88 rifles and carbines. These two are marked in Amharic as Menelik’s property, and are a part of what allowed Ethiopia to be the only major African nation not colonized by Europe.
Thanks to InterOrdnance for giving me access to these rifles to bring to you!
Contact:
Forgotten Weapons
6281 N. Oracle #36270
Tucson, AZ 85740
February 2, 2020
Africa, the Axis’ Achilles Heel – The Allied African Campaigns – WW2 – 075 – February 1, 1941
World War Two
Published 1 Feb 2020Greek Prime Minister Ioannis Metaxas dies this week as Italy is still uncomfortably wrapped up in the Albanian Mountains. Italy also finds itself in a pickle on other fronts, as Allied troops in Africa move into Italian territory with three offensives this week.
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Source list: http://bit.ly/WW2sourcesWritten and Hosted by: Indy Neidell
Produced and Directed by: Spartacus Olsson and Astrid Deinhard
Executive Producers: Bodo Rittenauer, Astrid Deinhard, Indy Neidell, Spartacus Olsson
Creative Producer: Joram Appel
Post-Production Director: Wieke Kapteijns
Research by: Indy Neidell
Edited by: Mikołaj Cackowski
Map animations: Eastory (https://www.youtube.com/c/eastory)Colorizations by:
Dememorabilia – https://www.instagram.com/dememorabilia/
Adrien Fillon – https://www.instagram.com/adrien.colo…
Julius Jääskeläinen – https://www.facebook.com/JJcolorization/Sources:
IWM (IND 883); (IND 2405); (E 3661); (E6661)
Vatican by Made by Made from the Noun Project
king crown by ProSymbols from the Noun Project
tick by akash k from the Noun Project
Artillery by Creative Mania from the Noun ProjectSoundtrack from the Epidemic Sound:
Christian Andersen – “Disciples of Sun Tzu”
Reynard Seidel – “Deflection”
Fabien Tell – “Last Point of Safe Return”
Johan Hynynen – “Dark Beginning”
Bonnie Grace – “Imperious”
Johannes Bornlof – “Last Man Standing 3”Archive by Screenocean/Reuters https://www.screenocean.com.
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