Periods in history that interest you

ArtyM

For me it is WW2.
I find that period in history fascinating.
When you consider that it spanned a mere 6 years in the history of the World it really is incredible how much happened, and how the World was changed during that time.
No continent was untouched and almost every single country was affected in some way.
The sheer numbers involved are staggering - Over 72 million people were killed.
The best, and absolute worst, of humanity can be found within the events of WW2. The levels of both bravery and depravity shown by all sides would, respectively, melt your heart and turn your stomach.
Single events, or decisions, changed the course of the war and, indeed, history itself.

Yurt2

Meiji era Japan (1868-1912), and until the end of WW2 is fascinating.

A country that transformed itself from practically a medival hermit archipelago to a world power in a few short decades, then got drunk on militarism, nationalism and hubris leading to utter disaster for its people.

Manach

The Roman era during their expansionist phase from about 200 BC to 200 AD. In terms of how they achieved their empire and how in turn this colours modern perception of them ( from films like Gladiator to games such as Rome:TotalWar) make it an interesting area of study and causal reading. The book "In the name of Rome" by Adrian Goldsworthy is a good starting point.

Wibbs

Prehistory, especially human evolution, the civilisations of the fertile crescent, Egypt, Greece and Rome and later the Byzantines(who tend to be left out in Western European thought), the renaissance, China, Japan, that sorta thing. I tend to zone out of the West until the late 19th century with the coming of modernism which revs me up again.

corner of hells

The last years of the Peninsular Wars , i found out by chace I had a relative who was involved in the storming of San Sebastian.

Cienciano

ArtyM wrote: »

For me it is WW2.
I find that period in history fascinating.
When you consider that it spanned a mere 6 years in the history of the World it really is incredible how much happened, and how the World was changed, during that time.
No continent was untouched and almost every single country was affected in some way.
The sheer numbers involved are staggering - Over 72 million people were killed.
The best, and absolute worst, of humanity can be found within the events of WW2. The levels of both bravery and depravity shown by all sides would, respectively, melt your heart and turn your stomach.
Single events, or decisions, changed the course of the war and, indeed, history itself.

Go back to WW1. It went from Franz Ferdinand getting killed to war within a month! French still wore red and blue uniforms with brass buttons. Still infantry like this

And it of course led to WW2 and the cold war

Wibbs

and the breakup of the European empires.

silverharp

Polish history looks mad from the middle ages into the 16th/17th century, their borders changed so much.

odyssey06

The first people to arrive in North America or the Polynesian islands - the closest thing to arriving on a new planet.

The heroic age in Ancient Greece, the civilisation that built Mycenae etc

The lead up to World War 1, in the back of my mind how would that period have continued had WW1 been avoided.

I have no political affiliations or interest in politics but I have often pondered about Dermott mac Murrough and what our country would look like today if it wasn’t for his decision making. Such an interesting period of history, the what if’s would have completely changed the direction of our country I’d imagine!

irishguitarlad

Al Andalus and the renaissance.

phonypony

Carrie

Ish66

The Famine in the 1840s. It was a horrible cruel time for millions.

Deseras

The. Winner writes history

Piollaire

Utterly addicted to Stalingrad

topmanamillion

The Mongolian empire under Genghis Khan is fascinating. He united a country of tribes and headed out to take over the world, getting as far as Poland. The first postal service was developed under his rule, writing advanced, he encouraged religious tolerance and obviously beat 7 shades out of a lot of more established empires.
His last descendent was ousted by the Soviets in Kazakhstan in the mid 20th century, 800 years after Genghis Khan.

silliussoddius

SnowyMuckish wrote: »

I have no political affiliations or interest in politics but I have often pondered about Dermott mac Murrough and what our country would look like today if it wasn’t for his decision making. Such an interesting period of history, the what if’s would have completely changed the direction of our country I’d imagine!

There’s an Irish history pod cast and they had a series of episodes on the Norman invasion. There were something like 10 or 11 episodes and the Normans didn’t make an appearance until episode 5 or 6. It seemed like Ireland before this was really fragmented and full of nutter rulers.

ArtyM

Piollaire wrote: »

Utterly addicted to Stalingrad

I think I read that had Hitler's choice to attack Stalingrad was a major factor in him losing the German offensive on Russia. The original objective was another, more strategically important, target.
Reports from Stalingrad read like something from a Horror film, an absolute nightmare for all those involved.

odyssey06

Deseras wrote: »

The. Winner writes history

Historians do

Church on Tuesday

As mentioned above WW2 but also Irish history from 1914 - 1960.

WW2 as a total war which ended, ultimately, with the dawn of the weaponized nuclear age and the heavy burden we must now all shoulder to respect that power since.

Irish history (well, all of it really) but specifically in the era I mentioned above because it is fascinating to witness the tortured birth of the modern state; the promises of the 1916 Proclamation and rising which were, essentially, reneged on by the few half prominent survivors, a vicious guerilla War of Independence, Civil War and the unpleasant memories that still linger, the steadying of the ship by the Cumann Na nGaedheal government and the mature economically progressive thinking of the Lemass era.

Recent history for me: The Soviet Union and it’s dissolution. I’m absolutely obsessed.

JeffKenna

Always fascinated about the rise of Hitler and how he came to power.

silliussoddius

English has some fascinating periods; Norman invasion, Plantagenets, Wars of the Roses

Same as the op... I find ww2 fascinating...
The periods leading up to ww1 and ww2 are also particularly interesting too

sydthebeat

London from Dec 1966 till October 1967

topmanamillion

topmanamillion wrote: »

The Mongolian empire under Genghis Khan is fascinating. He united a country of tribes and headed out to take over the world, getting as far as Poland. The first postal service was developed under his rule, writing advanced, he encouraged religious tolerance and obviously beat 7 shades out of a lot of more established empires.
His last descendent was ousted by the Soviets in Kazakhstan in the mid 20th century, 800 years after Genghis Khan.

Watched a documentary about Genghis Khan, scared the life out of me as I can’t stand watching anything violent but the history was completely fascinating!

Bass Reeves

The American Civil War. It was the birth of modern warfare. In five years it went for single battles to modern fixed and mobile warfare.

The brilliance of Robert E Lee and the South's generals on battlefields early in the war to the war of attrition that U S Grant, Sherman and Sheridan carried out in the end to force the submission of the South.

Another era is the time of the Mongols empires of Genghis Khan and Tamerlane. Both these leaders died just as there armies were going to invade Europe. They would have changed European history and dominance of history of either had survived another 5-10years.

The other era is the time of clash of the Greek and Persian empires. To have been a spectator at the pass of Thermopylae or the Battle of Marathon or Plateae or the Naval battle of Salamis

storker

Manach wrote: »

The Roman era during their expansionist phase from about 200 BC to 200 AD. In terms of how they achieved their empire and how in turn this colours modern perception of them ( from films like Gladiator to games such as Rome:TotalWar) make it an interesting area of study and causal reading. The book "In the name of Rome" by Adrian Goldsworthy is a good starting point.

I'd also highly recommend "Dynasty" and "Rubicon" by Tom Holland. Audible also has a very good series of lectures by an Irish professor based in the U.S.

Stihl waters

WW1. Imagine being conscripted to an army to fight with bad weapons bad clothing having to dig trenches and facing mustard gas and the terrible deaths because of it, men had to endure horrific conditions in rat infested trenches with the carcasses of their comrades beside them. Thanks to men like them we have the comfortable easy lives we have today

JeffKenna

Stihl waters wrote: »

WW1. Imagine being conscripted to an army to fight with bad weapons bad clothing having to dig trenches and facing mustard gas and the terrible deaths because of it, men had to endure horrific conditions in rat infested trenches with the carcasses of their comrades beside them. Thanks to men like them we have the comfortable easy lives we have today

The best show I ever saw on WW1 was the last few episodes of Blackadder. Really summed it up the futility of it all.

storker

In order of most interesting to me...

French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars 1792 to 1815 (including the Peninsular War). From Valmy to Waterloo, essentially.

World War 2

Classical history - mainly Rome but intending to expand to include Greece, Egypt, Persia etc. The most fascinating aspect of Rome so far seems to be the slow death of the Republic, and the great con trick pulled by Augustus in pretending he wasn't really a dictator.

I've just completed James Holland's "Normandy '44" and also Volumes 1 and 2 of his "The War in the West". I might not have started them if I'd known the the lazy fecker hasn't even written Volume 3 yet...

silliussoddius

silliussoddius wrote: »

There’s an Irish history pod cast and they had a series of episodes on the Norman invasion. There were something like 10 or 11 episodes and the Normans didn’t make an appearance until episode 5 or 6. It seemed like Ireland before this was really fragmented and full of nutter rulers.

That sounds interesting! Any more details on it? I think I’d love to hear that podcast. My father was always very interested in our family tree, we were a ‘ruling’ family at the time, I’d love be to hear a wider view of what the ruling classes were like, there’s always a few nuts in every family tree, ‘drum roll’ ba dum thss :pac:

Joe_ Public

WW2 junkie like a lot of folk, been to Normandy a couple of times and just the whole sense of history being there is overpowering.

Also, the 60s in the US, from the great white hope of jfk to the dismal calculating fraud of Nixon. The non stop convulsions, civil rights, student demonstrations, ohio, vietnam, MLK, malcolm x, ali...still feels like an entire century was lived in that one decade alone. Rick Perlsteins Nixonland is a good textual overview.

By contrast, ireland of the late 50s and 60s was a dull, provincial monochrome place but it interests me too. My father used to tell stories about his younger days in the Dublin of kavanagh, behan et al and it always stirred my imagimation. Like kavanagh once said, gods make their own importance.

odyssey06

Bass Reeves wrote: »

The American Civil War. It was the birth of modern warfare. In five years it went for single battles to modern fixed and mobile warfare.

I have heard it described as the last romantic and first modern war.

silliussoddius

SnowyMuckish wrote: »

That sounds interesting! Any more details on it? I think I’d love to hear that podcast. My father was always very interested in our family tree, we were a ‘ruling’ family at the time, I’d love be to hear a wider view of what the ruling classes were like, there’s always a few nuts in every family tree, ‘drum roll’ ba dum thss :pac:

Here you go
https://irishhistorypodcast.ie/category/podcast/the-norman-invasion/page/2/

kennypowers

Would love to go have seen Ireland around the time of our first settlers. Fully forested with wild animals ,bears, wolves, rivers teeming with salmon and where and how these people settled.
Am obsessed with ww1 and ww2 but the more I read about the Japanese and Nazi camps the less I want to go down that rabbit hole.

Bass Reeves

Stihl waters wrote: »

WW1. Imagine being conscripted to an army to fight with bad weapons bad clothing having to dig trenches and facing mustard gas and the terrible deaths because of it, men had to endure horrific conditions in rat infested trenches with the carcasses of their comrades beside them. Thanks to men like them we have the comfortable easy lives we have today

WWI was a war with bad generals. It was the first real pan European war since Napoleon. The generals involved were too used to fighting colonial wars against poorly equipped armies and failed to adapt and learn as the war progressed. You had virtually no brilliant generalship on either side. The Germans were marginally better but we're fighting a war on two sides. In the end the Yanks decided the affair.

storker

Bass Reeves wrote: »

The American Civil War. It was the birth of modern warfare. In five years it went for single battles to modern fixed and mobile warfare.

The brilliance of Robert E Lee and the South's generals on battlefields early in the war to the war of attrition that U S Grant, Sherman and Sheridan carried out in the end to force the submission of the South.

I've had the odd dalliance with the ACW. "Gettysburg: The Last Invasion" by Allen Guelzo is excellent - if you like lots of detail - and I enjoyed Shara's "The Killer Angels" despite its pro-Confederacy bias. Ken Burns' documentary on the subject is also worth a watch.

Say my name

The Bronze Age for me.

The first farmers moving from the middle east and Turkey and bringing their way of life and knowledge of metallurgy to the Mediterranean and western Europe.
Building giant stone circles on the landscape to show their dominance and maybe help with their farming. Bringing the domesticated cow and goat and sheep and wheat and barley with them.

I'd love to see how they sailed on the seas and how they discovered and mined the rock and their society was ordered. Whether slaves were a thing then and how they first thought of to bury their dead in a foetal position with a clay pot.

Hamsterchops

Wars of the Roses 1455 - 1487

The battle of Bosworth in particular, where Richard III was killed, fascinating period in history. Always interested in this period even before they found King Richards remains in 2012 buried under a carpark in Leicester.

I'm currently engrossed in 16th century Britain - Elizabeth I vs. Mary, Queen of Scots.

I never had any mass on the history of royals but stumbled into this a while back.

I had YouTube on while pottering around the house listening to a video about the House of Medici. A video about Elizabeth I came on and I was in the middle of washing the floor so I just left it on. Glad I did.

Two captivating women and a compelling rivalry.

Fascinating time in British (and overall European) history.

Neames

The problem with historians .....they're always dwelling on the past.

Samsonsmasher

The lifetime of Jesus Christ is fascinating.
Was he simply a poor carpenter or was he a tektōn (τέκτων) which implies craftsman, mason or builder? His geneaology suggests he was of noble blood. Could he have been a wealthy member of the social elite educated involved in Herod's vast building projects hence his confidence confronting the Sadduces and Pharisees and meeting Pilate? Was he leading a peaceful religious movement supported by leading clerics such as Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus against Caiaphus The High Priest? Did he actually believe he was the Son of God? Was the Roman soldier Tiberius Julius Abdes Pantera his real father?
Did Jesus dress in the Roman way with short hair and a tunic and toga or did he dress in a white robe with long hair and a full beard?
Was Jesus brother James the real leader of the Jerusalem Church?
Was Jesus closer to the Essenes than other sects of Judaism?
What was the doctrine of this Jewish sect before it vanished with the destruction of Israel before Paul and Pauline Christianity emerged as dominant in the West?
Was Jesus a fictional figure - a representation of the messianic figures who were executed one after another before the Jewish Wars destroyed Israel for good?

kennypowers

kennypowers wrote: »

Would love to go have seen Ireland around the time of our first settlers. Fully forested with wild animals ,bears, wolves, rivers teeming with salmon and where and how these people settled..

Would love to have seen this! My daily commute takes me past vast landscapes of mountainous uninhabited bog, scarred by the outline of ancient rivers . I often imagine if I stepped back in time what would this area look like...? Did people ever walk across these paths?

Imagine a hyperlapse camera here. It would be so interesting!

gifted

India when all the huge estates were in full bloom.....massive houses built by the British.

The end of the Cold War. The 1980s. Possibly the most important time in world history.

(I was alive but unaware).

Bass Reeves

storker wrote: »

I've had the odd dalliance with the ACW. "Gettysburg: The Last Invasion" by Allen Guelzo is excellent - if you like lots of detail - and I enjoyed Shara's "The Killer Angels" despite its pro-Confederacy bias. Ken Burns' documentary on the subject is also worth a watch.

Ya read a few books on it. There was a series I saw on TV a we while back I think it was about 8 hours long.

But an insite into where the war turned and when it was decided the North would win was after the second battle of the Wilderness. Lee had stopped the Northern army in its tracks. As the Northern army withdrew back along a road at a junction Grant sat on his Horse pointing his soldiers back Southeast rather than retreat as previous US generals. He engaged Lee again at Spotslyvania, onto North Anna and Cold Harbour before he beseiged Petersburg.

That moment as he directed his soldiers and Army back.into battle is when I think modern walfare began when war became more depended on your resources and how you used them rather than letting a battle device the outcome

Jinglejangle69

The famine and how we had a population of 8-9 million just before it.

Where did they all live and what did they do every day?

To think we have barely enough shelter for 5 million in this day and age.

How did they manage nearly 200 years ago with nearly twice the population.

Doublebusy

Not a very specific answer or even a well educated answer but after watching braveheart and the 1991 film robinhood prince of thieves - when i was younger i thought id like to live in those times so around 1200 to 1400 ad

The what if’s of history are so fascinating! If someone picked one decision over another how would the world have turned out?

Something that has fascinated me was the plantation of Laois and Offaly. I think (correct me if I’m wrong) they were seen as the first ever successful plantations, imagine if they didn’t succeed...? Imagine all the colonizations that wouldn’t have happened... (maybe that’s a very simplistic view from what I was taught in school) but I’ve often pondered about it!

Jinglejangle69

Jinglejangle69 wrote: »

The famine and how we had a population of 8-9 million just before it.

Where did they all live and what did they do every day?

To think we have barely enough shelter for 5 million in this day and age.

How did they manage nearly 200 years ago with nearly twice the population.

They lived in mud huts, 50% of them. 80% in the west. None survive.