Passion Blog S2 – Grace Blaha Blogs

Rise and Fall of the Venetian Republic’s Empire

April 21, 2021April 28, 2021 Grace Blaha3 Comments

Known for its canals, art and architecture, Venice also has a unique history in which they were able to gain exceptional economic power despite their relatively small size. Due to highly salinized soil and flood prone land, Venice had little agricultural ability, leading them to pursue trading with the Byzantine and Islamic worlds. Although they were under Byzantine control for a couple centuries, they became independent in 1082. Thus, the Republic of Venice was formed, with merchants and the cities council gaining more power over noble families.

At this point, Venice wasn’t incredibly unique, other Italian city states were profiting greatly by using their geographic position to trade with Africa, the Middle East, Western Asia and Europe. But Venice began to win the competitive edge over other city states. They did this by lending the catholic church and other European nations money and transport for a crusade to the Holy Land, even making what was essentially a joint stock company. The leader of this was the Venetian doge (duke) Enrico Dandalo, who was 85 and blind at the time of his dogeship, although that didn’t stop him from traveling with the crusaders. The crusaders encountered a problem when the European monarchs ran out of money before they could get to the Holy Land, resulting in Venice being quite angry. The heir of a deposed Byzantine emperor promised to pay Venice if they used their crusading troops to put him on the throne. Venice was able to convince the Catholic church to do so since the heir was also willing to convert to Latin Christianity. The heir, however, refused to abide to the contract, resulting in a Venetian sack of Constantinople in 1204, largely done by the troops of other European nations who never were able to make it to the Holy Land.

Venetians celebrating their victory over Constantinople in front of St. Mark’s Basilica

Not only was Venice able to establish trading posts all over the Byzantine empire, but they were able to steal many of Constantinople’s prized artifacts, including the famed horses that are found in St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice. They also managed to anger the catholic church, albeit with much more success than was usual for medieval Europe. Because of Venice’s economic power, the Catholic church was essentially unable to sway the Venetian empire. In pursuit of even greater domination, Venice warred with Genoa, who was the only other Italian trade empire that rivaled Venice, although Venice was still more successful that Genoa. Other powers were also attacking Venice at the time of their war with Genoa, but they were able to emerge victorious. Thus, Venice reached the height of their power, even gaining trading posts on the Italian mainland. Oddly enough, they maintained their wealth and influence throughout the Black Death, although it took a rather large toll on their population.

The infamous statues of four horses that were stolen from Constantinople still reside outside of St. Mark’s Basilica

Like many other strong empires, Venice’s high point was quickly followed by its decline. Its decline began when Constantinople fell to Mehmet the conqueror, whose expansion campaigns likely caused an estimated 300,000 deaths. With the fall of Constantinople, the Turks were able to conquer Venetian outposts, thereby weaking Venetian influence. In addition to the loss of land, European nations were beginning to expand and explore trading options, traveling around Africa and, not long after, colonizing the New World. The last factor that led to their fall was the decline in egalitarian institutions and the increased control of Venetian elites, ending the Republic that once characterized the land.

Venice continued to decline, although its legacy lives on in its beauty and art that was brought about by its former glory and wealth. Perhaps the most interesting thing about Venice’s power is that it was held but an incredibly small, republic city state. They managed to exercise over the catholic church, while also having good enough relations to secure a somewhat friendly position. Much of the wealth and opulence still resides in Venice, acting as a testament to what the once were.

Sources

https://www.businessinsider.com/the-economic-history-of-venice-2012-8

https://www.thoughtco.com/history-of-venice-1221659

A short introduction to the complicated history of Venice

Images

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Canaletto

Landscape Visions: 8 Just as it is, Piazza San Marco, Venice

Interesting facts about St. Mark’s Basilica

Nellie Bly and Investigative Journalism

April 14, 2021April 28, 2021 Grace Blaha3 Comments

One of rights that considerably altered the course of American history is the freedom of the press. The media has had a vast array of impacts, some are more beneficial than others, but there have been many cases of positive change and awareness being brought about by journalism. One of the most noticeable examples of this is Nellie Bly, whose investigative reporting captured American readers and raised awareness about multiple social issues.

Bly was born in 1864 as Elizabeth Cochran in Cochran’s Mills, Pennsylvania. She had 14 siblings, but her father died when she was only six, leading her mother to remarry and soon divorce due to the abusive nature of the relationship.

The family relocated to Pittsburgh, where she went to school and was excelling in her studies until money ran out and she moved back home to support her mother. In 1885, Elizabeth read an incredibly sexist article in the Pittsburgh Dispatch, leading her to write an angry letter to the editor. The editor and the paper’s readers were enamored by her writing, leading the editor to offer her a job as a columnist. It was then that she took on the pen name Nellie Bly. She positioned herself as an investigative reporter, where she went undercover at a factory where she wrote about unsafe conditions, low wages and long hours. Elizabeth’s boss didn’t want to anger Pittsburgh’s elite, she was reassigned to be a society columnist.

Unsatisfied with her new position, Bly worked in Mexico for 6 months, but she was disappointed that she was still only a women’s society columnist upon her return. Bly quit her job in Pittsburgh and moved to New York, where she was turned down by many papers because she was a woman. She was finally hired by Joseph Pulitzer’s New York World newspaper. Bly started boldly: she pretended to be mentally ill, securing a spot at New York’s insane asylum called Blackwell’s Island, where she experienced any abuses that patients often have to suffer. The conditions were notoriously poor and cruel, but Bly took her job seriously in hopes of raising awareness. She was there for ten days, and published a book and articles recording her experience, eventually leading to New York to allocate funding to improve conditions at such institutions. Although her asylum articles were the most groundbreaking, her other investigations include uncovering abuse of women by male police officers, identifying an unemployment agency that was stealing from immigrants, exposing corrupt politicians and beat the record for the fastest trip around the world. She wanted to prove that a woman would be able to beat the record, leading her to travel around the world in 72 days and gaining even more fame for her work.

Poster from Bly's book "Around the Work in 72 Days" — Poster from Bly’s book “Around the Work in 72 Days”

Elizabeth retired from writing and married an older millionaire, who died nine years later and left Bly to run his companies. She was an effective administrator, but the companies collapsed due to accountants embezzling money. As a result, Elizabeth returned to journalism, where she reported numerous national news stories, including coverage on the suffrage movement, even covering the Women’s Suffrage Parade of 1913 in D.C. She even traveled to Europe to report on World War from the trenches and on the front line. She continued to be a celebrity level reporter until she died of pneumonia in 1922. Bly lives on as a trailblazer for investigative journalism, she brought a variety of injustices to light when few others were willing to.

Sources

https://wams.nyhistory.org/modernizing-america/modern-womanhood/nellie-bly/

https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/nellie-bly

Images

https://www.abc.net.au/classic/programs/music-in-time/music-in-time-nellie-bly/11503674

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/how-nellie-bly-went-undercover-to-expose-abuse-of-the-mentally-ill

Catherine the Great

April 7, 2021April 28, 2021 Grace Blaha2 Comments

One pattern that I’ve noticed throughout history is that, in general, the best leaders tend to be the ones that had to work for their power, not those who were born into it. One of the most interesting cases of this Catherine the Great of Russia. Catherine was born Sophie von Anhalt-Zerbst, the oldest daughter of an impoverished and broke Prussian prince. She had high hopes for marriage, as a result of her mother’s ancestry. She was invited to Russia by the childless Czarina who was in search of a wife for her heir/nephew, Peter. Sophie made an impact on both Peter and the Czarina, and was married a year later, taking the name Catherine. Catherine was not considered particularly beautiful, but her charm, intelligence and ambition brought her respect from nearly everyone she met.

Catherine and Peter, however, had a very unhappy marriage. It’s theorized that none of her four children were fathered by Peter, Catherine was known for her many promiscuous escapades, often with much younger men. Within months of Peter coming to power in 1762, the military was unhappy with his rule, turning to the popular, ambitious, decisive and powerful Catherine to lead a coup. With the help of the military (which was largely led by her lover who was highly ranked), Catherine succeeded, although Peter was soon killed, casting a dark shadow over her rule.

Catherine’s rule was a tricky one, the immense wealth gap put her in a tricky position, where she could do little to help the impoverished lower class without greatly angering the upper class and putting her rule in jeopardy. Catherine did, however, attempt to make reforms and published many books and pamphlets that sought to address and improve the education system in Russia.

To the rest of Europe, Russia was often viewed to be an uncivilized and semi barbaric land, but Catherine was considered by many in Europe to be one of the most enlightened and classy rulers in Europe. She had extensive correspondence with prominent philosophers like Voltaire, designed the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg, collected a vast array of art and even composed opera. She continued the efforts of another one of Russia’s “greats,” Peter the Great, by bringing in Western European fashion, technology, and military practices.

Catherine the Great's Winter Palace in St. Petersburg — Catherine the Great’s Winter Palace in St. Petersburg

Catherine attempted to be ahead of her time, even drafting a constitution that sought to bring more equality to Russia. This was unfortunately shot down by the powerful upper class, which she could do little about since they could quickly end her rule. Like many other Russian monarchs that were ahead of her time, she found herself incapable of doing much to help the oppressed lower classes.

Her ability to maintain her rule was quite impressive. She was disadvantaged by the fact that she was a woman without a husband, but she was surprisingly good at using her romantic partners to her advantage, placing them in positions of power. She also proved to be an excellent military leader, creating new alliances, ending foreign conflicts and expanding Russian territory. She even attempted to remove her son from being an heir, since she viewed him as too weak. Catherine died in 1793, ruling for 34 years, the longest rule of a Russian Czarina. Catherine’s legacy is one of a woman with incredible ambition that defied the circumstances she was born in. She replaced her husband, ruled a country that wasn’t her own, garnering respect and admiration from an extremely patriarchal society, didn’t conform to gender stereotypes and was one of the most intellectual monarchs of her time.

Sources

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Catherine-the-Great

https://www.history.com/news/8-things-you-didnt-know-about-catherine-the-great

Images

https://www.freepik.com/premium-photo/winter-palace-building-hermitage-museum-palace-square-frosty-snow-winter-day-st-petersburg-russia_6237170.htm

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Catherine-the-Great

The Enduring Legacy of the Hagia Sophia

April 1, 2021April 28, 2021 Grace Blaha3 Comments

The building of domes was a problematic and dangerous endeavor for centuries. Even into the 16^th century, it wasn’t uncommon for a large dome, usually in a church, to collapse inwards on itself. It was an architectural and mathematical challenge for even the best structural engineers. One building, however, stands out as being one of the few success stories. The Hagia Sophia was ahead of its time as one of the few buildings that had a large dome and was structurally sound. The circumstances that brought its creation and the ways in which it has played a large role in the history of Constantinople (now Istanbul) are fascinating.

The original Hagia Sophia (or “Holy Wisdom”) was the main church in the Byzantine capitol of Constantinople. In 532, however, a riot fueled by rival chariot racing factions led to a city-wide fire that burned and destroyed the original Hagia Sophia, as well as the emperor’s palace and other public buildings. The emperor, Justinian, was eventually able to end the riot and restore order. Confronted with a burnt, socially divided capitol of an empire, Justinian quickly started rebuilding the city. Justinian undertook many rebuilding efforts, including improved public buildings, orphanages, aqueducts, bridges and churches, most notably of all being the second Hagia Sophia.

Within mere weeks of the riot, Justinian had recruited two mathematicians and had already cleared much of the former church’s rubble. The Hagia Sophia took under 6 years to complete, an impressive feat even by today’s standards. It was completed just in time to see the pneumonic plague sweep through the Byzantine empire, starting the beginning of the end of the empire and setting the stage for the bubonic plague to wreak havoc on Eurasia. Over the next 40 years after its completion, it had suffered some minor damages to its main dome, which was made over 6 meters taller than it was before, making it the largest dome in the world at that point. The Hagia Sophia became the seat of the Orthodox church, and for the next 900 years, it remained an important site for the Orthodox faith. However, in 1453, Mehmed II and the Ottoman Turks sacked Constantinople and turned the Hagia Sophia into a mosque. It was re-fashioned with Muslim mosaics and was built to accommodate Muslim prayer traditions. It remained a mosque throughout the duration of the Ottoman empire, seeing the landscape of Eurasia change drastically over the centuries. In 1934, it was secularized and made into a museum, where its mosaics are considered to be the main source of knowledge about the state of mosaics shortly after the iconoclasms in the 8^th and 9^th centuries.

The Hagia Sophia still dominates Istanbul’s skyline, it has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage site, and is Turkey’s most popular tourist destination. Although known for its architectural and artistic beauty, perhaps the most impressive trait of the Hagia Sophia is its durability. It has survived centuries of conflict, seeing multiple religions, empires, wars, plagues, rulers and natural disasters, proving itself to be an important artifact in the history of one of the most important regions in the world.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hagia-Sophia

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Justinian-I/Internal-policy

https://www.hagiasophia.com/justinians-church/

Images

https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/a-symbol-of-civilizations-hagia-sophia-139570

https://zeykes.medium.com/hagia-sophia-the-holy-wisdom-a-basilica-mosque-or-museum-db70ac088ba8