Anschluss The Union of Germany and Austria

The Anschluss was the union of Germany and Austria to create a Greater Germany. This was explicitly banned by the Treaty of Versailles (the settlement at the end of World War I between Germany and its opponents), but Hitler drove it through despite this on March 13, 1938. The Anschluss was an old issue born of questions of national identity, rather than on the Nazi ideology it is now associated with. The Question of a German State The Anschluss issue predated the war and far predated Hitler. It made a lot of sense in the context of European history. For centuries, the German-speaking center of Europe had been dominated by the Austrian Empire  Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã‚  partly because what became Germany was over 300 small states forming the Holy Roman Empire and partly because the Habsburg rulers of this empire held Austria. However, Napoleon changed all this. His success caused the Holy Roman Empire to cease and left a far smaller number of states behind. Whether you credit the fight back against Napoleon for birthing a new German identity or consider this an anachronism, a movement began which wanted all the Germans of Europe united into a single Germany. As this was pushed forward, back, and forward again, a question remained: if there was a Germany, would the German-speaking parts of Austria be included? Germany and Austria, the Anschluss The Austrian (and later, Austro-Hungarian) Empire had a large number of different peoples and languages within it, only part of which was German. The fear that nationalism and national identity would tear this polyglot empire apart was real. To many in Germany, incorporating the Austrians and leaving the rest to their own states was a plausible idea. To many in Austria, it wasn’t. They had their own empire, after all. Bismarck was then able to drive through the creation of a German state (with more than a little help from Moltke). Germany took the lead in dominating central Europe but Austria remained distinct and outside. The Allied Paranoia World War 1 came along and blew the situation apart. The German Empire was replaced with a German democracy and the Austrian Empire was shattered into smaller states, including a single Austria. To many Germans, it made sense for these two defeated nations to ally. However, the victorious allies were terrified Germany would seek revenge and used the Treaty of Versailles to ban any union of Germany and Austria  Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã‚  to ban any Anschluss. This was before Hitler ever came along. Hitler Scars the Idea Hitler, of course, was able to masterfully use the Treaty of Versailles as a weapon to advance his power, performing acts of transgression to incrementally move forward a new vision for Europe. Much was made of how he used thuggery and threats to walk into Austria on March 13, 1939, and unite the two nations in his Third Reich. The Anschluss has thus become weighed down with negative connotations of a fascist empire. It was actually a question originating over a century before, when the issues of what national identity was, and would be, very much being explored and created.

The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn By Mark Twain - 1381 Words

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a fictitious novel written by Mark Twain, and is commonly referred to as one of the Great American novels. The story is told from the perspective of Huckleberry Finn. â€Å"Huck† is a teenage boy, who was raised by his abusive father and is portrayed as a social misfit. Jim, who is a liberated slave, becomes Huck’s good friend, and together they experience many exhilarant adventures. The story starts out in St. Petersburg, Missouri, which is positioned on the banks of the Mississippi River. Much of this novel could be interpreted in different ways and from more than one perspective. One factor in the novel that can be interpreted differently is the way that Huck handles certain situations and whether†¦show more content†¦He also believed it was a smart idea not to tell Jim about their deception, and even defended the two to prevent Jim from finding out once he began to question them. One could believe that this was an astute idea due to the fact that the two men were possibly treacherous, so their seemingly ignorance would keep them safe for the time being. Someone else could believe that calling the two men out on their lies, or at least telling Jim the truth, would have made their situation easier because they would not have had to give the two special treatment, or the two may have simply lost interest and left. Huck’s decision resulted in a difficult situation for himself and Jim. Huck and Jim attempted to get away from the two men a few times, but they all floundered until the two deceivers were held captive in an angry town in which the y had scammed many people. Another questionable decision that Huck made was when he was mistaken for Tom Sawyer by Tom’s aunt and uncle. Huck decided to lie to them so they would trust him. One may argue that Huck’s idea was not smart because he had to lie, and if he had not found Tom Sawyer in the town before he got to the house, he would have been in a lot of trouble. Someone else may believe that the decision was smart, so that he could quickly gain their trust and try to save Jim. One other applicable situation is when Huck decides to let Tom create the plans to help Jim escape and goes along with them

Role of Urbanization in the Aegean Free Essays

The Aegean civilizations, the Assyrians, and the Israelites, though in the same hemisphere, were three distinct kingdoms. Each developed into its own kingdom with its own set of rules, beliefs, religion, and political concepts. Ultimately, each had its own culture. We will write a custom essay sample on Role of Urbanization in the Aegean or any similar topic only for you Order Now Yet, there was something that underlied these three cultures that connected them in a subtle manner. All three of these civilizations underwent urbanization. Though the specific cultures of each civilization developed differently, the role of urbanization affected each in roughly the same way. During this period of the Late Bronze Age, commerce and communication boomed exponentially. No longer would kingdoms maintain their isolationist beliefs. They had to trade and interact with other cultures in order to maximize opportunity cost and obtain as many foreign goods as possible. This inevitably resulted in shared cultures and assimilated beliefs. Along the Aegean Sea, the Minoans had widespread connections to Egypt, Syria, and Mesopotamia. Similarly, Mycenaean Greece traded with many civilizations, including its neighbor the Minoans. The early Greeks were most likely influenced by Minoan architecture and pottery. Its sudden wealth also came from trade with Minoan. In the Assyrian kingdom, they also developed trade centers. They imported goods like metals, fine textiles, dyes, gems, ivory, and silver. Because of trade centers, specialization arose, creating jobs like artisans and merchants. In the Israel kingdom, King Solomon created alliances with the Phoenicians and thus developed a trading partner. Together, the Phoenicians and the Israelites explored the Red Sea to find any hidden treasures. The creation of urban centers helped facilitate this trade, and thus, expanded the perspectives of these cultures. Through interaction with other civilizations, cultures were shared and ideas, along with goods, were traded. Because of an influx of commerce and communication, a powerful military must also be kept. Urban centers helped control the military in order to facilitate trade. The Minoans and Mycenaeans developed strong seafaring skills and created wooden vessels to help them trade around the Mediterranean. They exported wine, olive oil, and textiles, and in return imported amber, ivory, and most importantly, metals. In the Assyrian kingdom, there was a superior military organization with professional soldiers. The Assyrians developed iron weapons, dug tunnels, and built mobile towers for archers. Not only did they develop military tactics for conquest, but they also used terror tactics to discourage resistance and rebellion and ultimately maintain control. As for the Israelites, David became the first king and he united the tribes into a monarchy. These urban centers established stronger royal authority and led to an army in order to expand borders in search of natural resources. Stronger militaries meant stronger civilizations, so urbanization helped strengthen the power of nobility and expand borders. Last but not least, urbanization helped develop societal structures, religious ideals, and art and technology. Unlike other civilizations, Minoans did not have strong, aristocratic leaders. In Mycenaean Greece, an elite class did develop. Shaft graves, burial sites for the elite, were filled with gold, weapons, and utensils, revealing that the ancient Greeks believed in some form of afterlife. The cities also had fortification walls and palaces filled with paintings from war and daily life. In contrast, the Assyrians used terror to maintain order in society. The king was the center of the Assyrian universe. Everything he did was mandated by the god Ashur. Through government propaganda, royal inscriptions, and ruthless punishments, the king maintained power in the kingdom. The Library of Ashurbanipal gives insight into official documents and literary texts to help portray the daily life of the elite members of Assyrian society. As for the Israelites, monotheism became the crux of Israelite society. They built temples as sanctuaries in order to link religious and political power. Priests became a wealthy class, thus creating a gap between the urban and the rural, the rich and the poor. In families, there were also gender gaps. Male heirs were critical. While women were respected, they could not own property. As society urbanized, their roles became more and more limited and specialized. While these little bits and pieces of everyday life in these ancient civilizations may seem insignificant, they are like pieces of an infinitely large puzzle. If we can uncover as many pieces as we can and put them together, we can approximate a picture of what life was like in these ancient civilizations. We can figure out how urbanization was important to the development of these kingdoms, and use these cultural artifacts to uncover what daily life was like. After all, artifacts are the key to our past. Without them, our past would be an elusive enigma. How to cite Role of Urbanization in the Aegean, Essay examples

Beowulf And Epic Questions Essay Example For Students

Beowulf And Epic Questions Essay Did Beowulf truly obtain the qualities of an epic hero? In the epic poem Beowulf, Beowulfs character traits prove to be the depiction of an epic hero. Beowulfs traits of boastfulness, bravery and amazing strength are the proof of his heroism. Beowulfs boastfulness may not be the most convincing heroic trait, but it certainly was important to the people of his time. Beowulf boasted to Unferth to clarify Unferths misunderstanding of a swimming event between Beowulf and Breca, in which they swam out to sea and remained there for five nights. Beowulf informed Breca of how they were seperated after five nights in a storm. He boasted of the nine sea monsters he slayed while he floated about. Beowulf boasted to Hygelac of his victories over Grendel and his mother while he was in Danes land. He also boasted to Wiglaf in his dying words. ie line 1889 I have ruled the Geats for fifty winters ; no king of any neighbouring tribe has dared attack me with swords, or sought to cow and subdue me. In Anglo Saxon time, any hero or persons of great accomplishments were expected to boast to express their greatness. Bravery was a greater aspect of Beowulfs heroic traits. Beowulf was very brave to fight Grendel. Grendel was a tremendously feared monster by the Danes. Beowulf fought him with no armor or protection of any kind, for reasons stated in line 588, I count myself no less active in battle, no less brave than Grendel himself; thus, I will not send him to sleep with my sword. Beowulf proved himself even braver by coming to fight a monster he knew nothing about. He only heard of a hellish monsters crimes, thus sailed over the sea to assist the famous leader, the warrior king. Beowulfs bravery appeared again when he set out to kill Grendels mother. She lived in a lair at the bottom of a horrible lake which no man would think of entering. Beowulf entered the blood boiling waters with no hesitation. He swam for twenty four hours before he reached the monsters lair. There he met Grendels mother who brutally attacked him. As shown in line 1239, The woven corslet that covered his shoulders saved Beowulfs life. Even after being almost killed by Grendels mother the brave Beowulf stayed to finish the fight. Beowulf was a very brave character and would never give up or scare away from any challenge. Beowulfs most heroic trait was his amazing strength. He displayed his amazing strength when he fought Grendel and his mother. An outstanding display of strength was shown in his battle with Grendle in line722, Hygelacs brave kinsman held his hand in a vise like grip; each was a mortal enemy to the other . The horrible monster suffered grievous pain; a gaping wound opened on his shoulder; the sinews sprang apart, By tearing off Grendels arm, Beowulf showed his emense strength. By swimming straight down for twenty four hours to  reach the monsters lair without a breath for air, Beowulf proved that he was a man off amazing strength and endurance. Beowulf maintained the status of an amazing man in the water when he spent five nights at sea and, with a sword in his hand killed nine sea monsters. Weather he was ripping off a monsters arm or swimming for twenty four hours without a breath, Beowulf proved himself the most powerful man in all the lands. In the epic poem Beowulf, Beowulfs amazing power, bravery and boastfulness made him an epic hero to everyone who knew of him. By ruling the Geats for fifty years and maintaining peace and happiness, Beowulf made himself an extrordinary hero to all.