Andro Bailly is a junior at TERRA Environmental Research Institute in Miami. He is studying Environmental and Field Studies, and set to graduate in 2018. His love of nature and understanding of environmental sustainability led him to complete a Junior Naturalist internship at the Deering Estate in the summer of 2016. During this time, the large amount drift pollution on the coast of Miami troubled him. In particular, the amount of garbage on Chicken Key was of most concern. A small island off the shore of Miami, Chicken Key is utilized for nesting by sea turtles. Alarmingly, the amount of debris severely hindered the native habitat, preventing turtles from access the island.
In partnership with the Deering Estate, Andro arranged regular cleanings of Chicken Key and the surrounding area. He has coordinated days of up to 30 people, as well as individual efforts which are just what he does on a free day.
Bringing her expertise all the way down from New York City, Ofri Cnanni led FIU Honors College students and fellow guests from the general public in two interactive workshops intertwining art, modern technology, and the physical space of Vizcaya. For the first workshop of the night, Honors students and guests were positioned in a trail of plastic chairs and sitting/standing positions with drawing boards in hand, pencils and mushed clay erasers ready to take on the ten drawing prompts that were given to each of the participants. As everyone began their prompts, Ofri would ring a bell after a given amount of minutes in order to signal the start of the next prompt, and a command for the participants to shift their current states and viewpoints. With prompts like “Use Text as Art,” where words become the masterpiece instead of graphite lines and contours, and “Elements,” where you as the artist are forced to hone in on one item in front of you and stretch out the potential through your artistic interpretation, Ofri allowed artists, both developed and nuanced, to challenge themselves to draw outside the box of expectations and taught ideals.
During the second workshop of the evening, Ofri allowed for the use of cellphones, and to use them to their greatest capacity as students and guests explored Vizcaya’s Museum and Gardens without barriers. Placing everyone in a single WhatsApp chat, prompts were used once again to spark spur of the moment ideas and finds, as participants walked around in search of photos they could take and send into the chat in order to match the prompt of the moment. Phrases like “Look Up,” “Stay Tuned,” and “FaceTime,” challenged those in the chat to be clever and creative with their finds, and most certainly, the photographs submitted into the chat proved the efficacy of the workshop. By the end of the evening, students and guests alike got to know Vizcaya in a way that most don’t, an evening that allowed you to challenge well-founded concepts and view aspects of modern culture, such as cellphones and group chats, in a refreshing, imaginative light.
The gargoyle of Notre-Dame contemplates Paris. (Photo by JW Bailly CC BY 4.0)
Anxiety Abroad by Stephanie Villavicencio, FIU Honors College July 2016 I lived thousands of miles from home for a month and though my anxiety assumed otherwise, I survived! I’m in the middle of lunch, sitting across from my mother and I’m trying to hide the tears. I’m excited, I’m nervous, I’m afraid. I leave to Europe for a month in the morning and I can’t do it. I paid an exorbitant amount to participate in a study abroad program and I’m convinced that I just can’t. What if I forget my passport? Or lose my luggage? What if something terrible happens and I never get to see my family again and — Panic attack. This is what I’m most afraid of. My anxiety holding me back, keeping me from living the life I want to live but am too afraid to. So I packed up my fears, got on a plane, and flew to France.
Stephanie and her France 2016 class of FIU Honors in Versailles’ Hall of Mirrors (Photo by JW Bailly CC BY 4.0)
Museum days were some of the hardest because crowded places are the bane of my existence. A crowded room may as well be a giant panic button to my brain, but I made myself focus on the lectures and the history behind each work of art, instead, each brushstroke, every color. The hardest day had to be the one when I hiked in the French Alps. After a long uphill drive and a huge, beautiful lunch we started our trek. Not being in top physical shape, I was nervous I’d get lost, left behind, or just fall off the side of the mountain. So on the way up, when I start to lose my breath, I’m reminded of the fun fact that air is thinner and breathing is harder while one is on a mountain. Overthinking. The beginnings of anxiety. In my frenzied state, I try to calm myself down with a sip from my water bottle and end up spilling half. Cue panic attack. Now I’m going to die of lack of oxygen and dehydration. As certain as I am that this is my final resting place, that here, among the cows, is where I will die, somehow, I make it to the top. By some divine miracle I reach the top red in the face, short of breath, exhausted, sweaty. The top. Later in the month we took a day trip to the site of the World War II landings in Normandy, a region whose history was rife with violence and tragedy. We visited various battle sites and after a day filled with tellings of sacrifice, death and destruction, I was physically and emotionally spent, trapped with my thoughts in my own head, contemplating life, death, and who deserved which. We ended that day at Normandy Cemetery on Omaha beach, also referred to as Bloody Omaha for the sheer number of lives lost on its shores. Climbing down to the actual beach as a class was surreal, knowing that lovers and families were potentially sunbathing in the very spot a soldier breathed his last. It was surreal and simultaneously beautiful; knowing that people were free to do so thanks to the selfless sacrifice of another. So though I, personally, am not entirely confident in my appearance and never would have thought I’d be one to do so; though we had no swimsuits or towels or any previous intention of doing so, we all stripped down to our underwear and celebrated that freedom. And while that day saw me constantly tormented by my own thoughts, that moment my skin met the freezing ocean, all the weight was swept off and away with the current and I was joyful and alive and free. Now, a month since I’ve been stateside, I look back on the girl crying in Nordstrom Cafe, and while she’s the same person with the same fears and anxieties, she knows now that she has the strength to overcome them. Living with anxiety is never as simple as “getting over it” and deciding not to let it bother you, and this trip helped me realize that coping with anxiety is about acknowledging your fears and limitations, while refusing to let them define you. Check out John W Bailly’s study abroad programsFrance Study AbroadItaly Study Abroad Spain Study Abroad
Weekend street market in Lyon. (Photo by Rachel Young CC by 4.0)
Live to Work or Work to Live? by Rachel Young, FIU Honors College July 2016
Here are my thoughts on varying lifestyles and their effects after having lived abroad in France for a month.
It was a Friday evening and I was sitting in a mandatory study abroad meeting to go over all the technicalities of traveling and the university regulations that would still apply to all of us once we were on French soil. After hearing about what we should and should not do while abroad, we turned to something hardly any of us had thought about; adjusting when we returned. We were told there were stages of adjusting. We were told we would feel out of place returning. We were told it would be a process. Months later I’m struggling to recall how I once lived the way the majority does here in the States, namely Miami.
Spending a month in France challenged me, both physically and mentally, and truly changed who I am and how I see myself and humanity in every light. From hiking the French Alps to drinking wine with a holocaust survivor to sitting in a park eating falafels in the Jewish-Gay Quarter on Bastille Day, I realized that there is more to life than the mundane. My time in France allowed me to compare the typical lifestyle in Miami to the typical lifestyle in Paris. For one, I found that the majority of people have a firm grasp on what it means to enjoy life and most importantly enjoy your life. I emphasize the idea of the self because that is a very vital aspect of French culture. Though they have collective tendencies and are a very resilient people, they live their lives the way they wish to live them, without fear of judgement; something I admire and aspire to incorporate into my day-to-day life. The French have a deep understanding of the difference between working to live and living to work. What drives us is what we should be questioning.
Rachel Young and her France 2016 class of FIU Honors in the Jewish-Gay Quarter in Paris. (Photo by JW Bailly CC by 4.0)
The sense of growth that I feel is something I want to preserve and I’ve been finding it difficult to do so given the atmosphere I’m in. Though it is difficult to strip France of its beauty to try and figure out why the quality of life seems to be so much more enriching, I’ve tried with every ounce of fiber in my body and I’ve come to the conclusion that it simply has to do with the environment one is in. I’ve encountered maybe a handful of South Florida residents that maintain this European mentality and they usually grew up elsewhere. Don’t get me wrong, South Florida is rich with culture, but pales in comparison to the history and resume that France has. How can we even compare?
I guess what I want readers to take away from my experience and my words is, take a step back and evaluate how you’re living your life and don’t feel discouraged to question societal norms and more relevantly, regional norms. It may seem like a daunting task, but every journey begins with the first step.
Addis Gonzalez in front of the Jean-François Champollion’s tomb in Pere Lachaise Cemetery in Paris. (Photo by Rachel Young CC by 4.0) Scientia est Potentia by Addis Gonzalez, FIU Honors College Alumna July 2016
Plot: Division 18, #2 Death: Mar. 4, 1832 In the British Museum of London you will find the Rosetta Stone. If you look closely, you can see that it is composed of three different languages. At the top and middle are hieroglyphic and demotic writing, both of which were incomprehensible until the early 19th century. At the bottom you will see Ancient Greek inscription which scholars used to decipher the other two languages. This is partly attributed to Jean-François Champollion, who transliterated Egyptian scripts in Paris in 1822.
Champollion was born December 23, 1790 as the last of seven children to Jeanne-Françoise Gualieu and to Jacques Champollion. His mother was not too present in his life and his father was a notorious drunk. He was raised mostly by his older brother Jacques-Joseph, a successful archaeologist who wanted to join Napoleon’s Egyptian Expedition. This is said to have influenced Champollion’s early-on passion for Egypt. Having a great talent for philology since a young age, Champollion learned a dozen languages by the time he was 16. This caught the attention of Joseph Fourier, who was the first to expose him to the mysterious hieroglyphs. From that moment on, he declared that he would be the one to decode Egyptian hieroglyphs.
The Champollion brothers continued to express their passion for knowledge while under the new Royalist regime when they established Lancaster schools to provide the general population with an education. Since ultra-royalists did not believe in education for all classes, these schools were considered revolutionary endeavors. Taking it one step further, Champollion led an uprising in 1821 where he and a band of Grenobleans stormed the citadel and removed the bourbon royalist flag and replaced it with the tricolor flag. Although he was charged with treason and went into hiding, he was eventually pardoned and able to continue his work.
There is a constant stream of passion seen in this man’s life that is invigorating and truly inspiring. He comes at all aspects of life with full force. In his eyes, the mysterious and unattainable is captivating and close in sight. He ties himself to a foreign culture that was more than three millennia and 2,000 miles apart from his own. He did this while making his political presence known in a time of turmoil in his own country. The only aspect of Champollion that I do not agree with was his failure to mention the contribution Young made to decrypting the hieroglyphs. I believe that one should always give credit where credit is due.
Just like Champollion, I am in a constant pursuit for knowledge. From a young age, I too shared a love for language and the individuality it brought to different cultures. Those individualities also cultivate commonalities between shared interest groups, regardless of time or space. My dreams in life have always been to learn about as many cultures as possible and travel every inch of this planet. Essentially, it is an endless search for a sense of familiarity with the unknown in order to feel the unspoken bond between us all. To me, this is exactly what Champollion embodies.
Addis Gonzalez’s France 2016 class of FIU Honors in the Pere Lachaise Cemetery in Paris. (Photo by JW Bailly CC by 4.0)
Gaining a deeper sense of familiarity and understanding changes our perception of the unknown. There is no fear, no need for any possible future presidents to feed on phobias of the masses or offerings of regressive structures such as proposed massive walls that induce segregation. There is, on the other hand, opportunity for growth, acceptance, and unity.
I genuinely am a very curious person and live my life in an endless period of “Egyptomania” that expands beyond interest in the study of Ancient Egypt remains and culture to absolutely everything. More appropriately, I live my life in a period of “Enlightomania”. I’m sure there are others like me whose thirst for knowledge is never quenched. Luckily, I was born in a country who fought for the ability for me, a young Latina woman, to receive an education. Countries, such as those in the Middle East, aren’t as lucky. Women receive an education that is different from men, in segregated classrooms taught only by other women. Education is a growing experience and the thought of people receiving it in a limiting environment is like imagining a person walking through a free city with 50 lbs of chains strapped to them.
Champollion and those who sought to understand the world’s past, present, and future truly make humanity a magnificent thing to be apart of. Even so, I believe that we still have a ways to go in order to expand our horizon of understanding so that all are able contribute equally.
En route to Montparnasse (Photo by Rachel Young CC by 4.0) 31 Days By Rachel Young, FIU Honors College July 2016
Start – Montparnasse Bienvenüe End – Abbesses (Butte Montmartre)
31 days to scour every inch of this city 31 days to ride every metro line 31 days to delve into thousands of years worth of history 31 days is all 31 days, it’s fine
But will it be enough? Will it be enough for me to find myself or even begin to? Will it be enough for me to realize life is our greatest gift but still so rough?
31 days 31 days to feel feelings I’ve never felt before 31 days to sympathize and feel reborn 31 days to fall in love with timeless art 31 days and in Paris I’ve left my heart
Fluorescent lights and chipped blue tile It’s not until my 30th day I realize finding beauty in everything is so vital The rush of the damp underground air The mother combing her daughter’s unruly hair
31 days to climb every step 31 days, not one overslept 31 days, 29 stops 31 days, not even close to being enough
I find comfort in my metro seat I find comfort in the 18th For that I take two lines from home And find myself in Abbesses
With just a swipe of my Navigo I ascend from the steps of Montmartre to the steps of the Sacre Coeur Where did the time go?
From sex shops to Moulin Rouge To Piaf’s early stages Pigalle sets the bar high I feel the need to remember all faces I feel I need more time
Place de la Concorde, you’ve seen Paris grow up From the French Revolution to the various Tour de France revolutions, you’ve had the front seat Standing tall next to the Tuileries, in awe of your grandeur I’m trumped
31 days to relate to a tragedy, a lifetime to carry out a heavy responsibility 31 days to cross every ‘pont’ 31 days and Rue du Bac leads me to a shop full of taxidermy 31 days, hey there’s that metro font!
31 days, metro closes in 5 31 days we’ve reached Rennes 31 days, this stop is barely alive 31 days this city I’ll always defend
Montparnasse we meet again Bienvenüe would have loved the gem you’ve become Your seemingly endless tunnel brings me comfort The lavender rooted in the gardens of the Jean Moulin museum, I’m home
31 days, how long has it been? 31 days I feel at home 31 days so much accomplished since 31 days, worth all the miles flown
31 days I once had 31 days have gone 31 days and we’re already preparing to land 31 days, Paris I’ll always call you home
Gare Montparnasse’s never-ending walkway (Photo by Rachel Young CC by 4.0)
Reflection I owe my experience in Paris to the metro. Without my Navigo card and my pocket map, I don’t know what I would have seen or how I would have felt. The metro makes moving around the city so easy it’s almost a crime not to take advantage of it. What I’m going to miss the most of Paris is the metro and the emotional ties I have to it. Back in the spring semester, my group and I chose Line 12 and I can say it’s easily my favorite metro line. The connection I’ve developed with the various stops and even the metro cars themselves is something I cannot put into words. The moment I realized I was in Paris and the various existential crises I had throughout the trip took place on this metro line. My relationship and my connections with this city will stay with me throughout my lifetime and a lot of those connections I owe to this line. The facility that the metro gave me to explore the deep crevices of Paris and to delve further into the history and culture that France holds is something I will value forever. Merci beaucoup et à bientôt, ligne 12.
Marc Sandoz, Antoine-François Callet, 1741-1823, Ed. Éditart – Quatre Chemins, Tours, 1985.
Death
“The life of one for the lives of millions”
I did everything I could that’s what I kept repeating to myself as we were escorted out of the palace and into the carriage, I didn’t care to know where we were going it was all the same to me I knew what was going to happen,
My heart beat racing, a fire burning much like the pitchforks that await me,
I close my eyes only to hold back the tears, I have tried to fix the mistakes of others that came before me, only to be left with the blame,
The memories flood my mind much like the tears I am holding back, they bring me to a simpler time when I could easily navigate my way through life, the tutors would teach me about math, science, physics, nautical explorations,
They told me that all I needed in life was these subjects and if I knew them through and through I would be a successful king,
The one thing they failed to teach me is how to understand the needs of the people, human emotion a lesson that cannot be learned from a book,
There is simply nothing I can do now because the people have made up their mind or should I say their hearts, once emotion suppresses the logic and rationality that a man has then there is nothing to be done to stop him,
I know what is they want for they seek my death so that they may establish a new form of government one where I am not present,
I’ve been trapped in a palace since birth unable to see what the life of a commoner was like, how could anyone learn from simply being a meer listener to the gossip that runs rampid in the streets,
I have failed my people, I have failed my wife, I have failed my children, I have failed myself, and most importantly I have failed France
Now there is only one split second remaining for the transition to occur from king to commoner.
Explanation: Louis XVI like most kings has been protected for most of his life from the outside world, everything he knows has either been taught to him through a book which has an altered perspective with concepts only certain people understand. This makes it very hard for him to comprehend his people, historians claim that he was often aloof, distant and reserved. It should be noted that during his upbringing with tutors they often advised him that in order to be king he must have a stern approach towards his people because if not they will disobey him. However, there are two ways in which power can be acquired the first is that you make people fear you and the second is that people give you respect. At this point in his life before he faces his execution he begins to understand how he could have avoided this situation had he been more vocal about what he was trying to fix within France. His predecessors have left him with a crumbling economy, which has left people out of work, without adequate housing, and without food. The burden was too much and since he is the person that is representing the state of France as a whole it would only make sense for the revolutionaries to kill this symbolic figure of power. As for death it is certain, no one is ever truly ready for it, not even kings as seen with this poem, he now understands what the commoner has to go through when they are sentenced to the guillotine. Now realizing how the citizens think, he starts to sympathize with them, he becomes humanized at a point where it’s already too late. Also towards the end of the poem I made it so that the last thing that he says failed is France because after all its the state above everything else even before oneself.
Historical Analysis: At this point the year is 1789 King Louis XVI can feel the power of the citizens growing, him and his family are brought to the Tuileries Palace. The safest option for his survival is to him to leave, but as a royal instead of escaping on a normal looking carriage that doesn’t call so much attention he decides to leave on a large royal carriage to Austria. This gold looking carriage calls the attention of the people in Varen which is a French city close to the Austrian border, and from here is he is found and brought back to Paris. Once he got back to Paris documentation was found that shows he was speaking to Austria about launching an attack on the revolutionaries which is why he was trying to go escape. All the nobles had already made it there, with him being the last one to go. It is difficult to plan a strategic attack when your own military cant even suppress the revolutionaries. He did the smartest thing he could do which was get the backing of a foreign power. Then in 1791 he tries to leave the city of Paris, but his plan is quickly found out and he is militarily forced to return back to the prison. Then in 1793, the National Assembly finally makes a decision regarding King Louis XVI and his family, the punishment is death by guillotine. During the time while him and his family were kept as prisoners, the National Assembly began to adopt some of the principles of the Declaration of the Rights Man, but this was all overshadowed by the problems that were plaguing the war at the time.
Courtesy of memedroid
Courtesy of me.me
Human Rights
The pursuit of human rights have been at the forefront of French ideology for centuries from the ideals that started in the enlightenment that would eventually lead to the American revolution and later the French one. In 1778 Louis XVI signed the Treaty of Alliance that promised the American revolutionaries military and economic backing if Great Britain formally issued a declaration of war. The expansion of human rights abroad, the French strategically lost more by siding with the revolutionaries, but it was mainly through a hatred of Great Britain that they decided to help. The Americans had broke away from the British, risked it all, and due to help from the French the underdogs were able to succeed. Around the time that Americans were writing up their constitution the French were starting their revolution, and the Americans were torn at the decision of helping the French. Many of them felt as though they had to repay the French for their assistance while others though that the United States should focus on domestic issues instead of focusing on an international scale. Many claimed the United States should not try to make alliances so early on since they were just starting out as an independent country.
Louis XIV had a distant mentality from the former Louis XIV who is known more famously by his quote “L’Etat, c’est moi” or “the state that’s me”. He had tried to institute policies that had been oppressive towards people such as abolishing torture confessions, he tried to get the nobles to pay more in taxes to help those commoners that were struggling to make their harvest (and of course the nobles refused), and abolished the death penalty for those that left the army. Although he did have good intentions for the people in time he took reactive measures to situations that were either beyond his control such as the crop failures of the 1780s which caused grain scarcity, or things that he could not get approved such as lowering of taxes. With the debt surrounding the 1763 Seven Years War instead of continuing to take from French Banks Louis XVI should looked for financial assistance abroad in order to lessen the burden on taxpayers. Although he did all these things in the name of human rights those that chose to join the revolution would preach that the government of France was corrupt, and that they joined in the name of creating this notion of fundamental human rights. This would then be a contradiction when Napoleon Bonaparte would commit crimes against the citizens in the countries he conquered.
During the reign of Louis XVI he saw the drafting of the 1789 Universal Declaration of the rights of mans and citizens which would then in 1948 become the model for the United Nations Universal Declaration of human rights. It came to be in 1789 and then in 1948 in Paris, France the birthplace of this document, it was ratified by 48 different countries and is a document that had become the pillar of the United Nations. As a student that participates in Model United Nations I find interesting that the original birthplace of human rights is where I am going to be this summer. Louis XVI could have taken advantage of the opportunity to be the one to commemorate this notion of human rights into the French Government, but he truly didn’t understand what it is they were fighting for, and his inability to do so made him pass up the opportunity of a lifetime. The culture that France embraces so much today came from the people not the state, even though in today’s society the state is the one that makes the decision on a larger scale. For a leader the dessivive, firm action should have been without hesitation, but this King often hesitated to approve anything, which was his downfall. An avid lover of philosophy inspired by the ideals of the enlightenment, which said that a king exist independently of his subjects, missed the opportunity to be remembered for something truly extraordinary.
Courtesy of Esmemes
Courtesy of awwmemes
Democracy
“Universal Hope”
The time of the people has come, a long awaited moment that felt like it was only yesterday,
All faith has been lost in the king, for his power seems not to phase us,
We’ve stayed silent for far too long, felt the blows of the sticks as they beat whatever life we have left in us,
Before our bodies used to ache for food, now they ache for revenge a quenching thirst that can only be stratified by the fall of a head,
My crops have died by the cold frost, and our patience has been growing thin,
We seek to plant our voices into the government, to be heard, to have rights, to be treated as citizens instead of subjects,
My body has been undergoing intense stress for months, or is it years,
For I can’t seem to recall,
Meticulous planning, marches, shouts, cries, protest, tears, pride, justice, then came the revolution,
As our blood boils it changes into a different color, so when I die on the battlefield I can bleed blue, white, and red,
The colors of change.
Democratic Theory: There are several factors that helped the French population in rising up to overthrow the government. When the movement first started it was supposed to be a peaceful movement then later on it turned into a dictatorship under Napoleon Bonaparte. During this time they had been inspired by the Declaration of the Rights of Man which came as a direct result of the ideals proposed by the enlightenment. Fed up with the burden of taxes and an inability to find food many of them found it better to pick up arms rather than try and negotiate with King XVI who had shown that he had very little interest in them. The most successful democratic movements happen when there are more people involved in the movement than the military forces from the Authoritarian regime that try to suppress them. Also France’s climate is relatively good meaning that crops are able to flourish, according to Jones’s theory the reason why democratic transitions are more likely to occur in certain areas, is because they have an abundance of ……..Water. The reasoning being that the central authority cannot stop the rain from falling from the sky, as we know the more it rains the more crops grow meaning they are less likely to follow an authority when all they really need is given to them by nature. In some countries the main source of revenue might come about as a result of a resource that cannot be easily taken advantage of by everyone such as oil, diamonds, metals, etc.
Courtesy of Quick Meme
Philosopher King
Interestingly enough even though Louis XVI was a king, and I Tatiana Arevalo a mere student I found that him and I shared a love for academia. During his time at Versailles (Fun fact: he was the last king to live in this palace) he had tutors from all of the world to come to teach him about philosophy, religion, chemistry, wood making, and physics he spent much of his time at the palace in these study areas. I too enjoy learning very much sometimes taking on more than I can handle, but I absorb knowledge like a sponge, and am fascinated by new information. Sometimes for me it’s easier to try and figure out a math problem, read a poem, or write an essay, than it is for me to figure a person out. Louis XVI found it fun to sit in his chambers away from all his problems and get lost in the knowledge, and often I found that when I do that I find myself being hostile towards people. He was intrigued by large problems, but often lacked the social awareness or understanding to help those that lived in France. For me as terrible as it sounds I prioritize school over everything which leads me to have less time to spend with people. Luckily for me unlike Louis XVI once I’m done with my school work I know how to relax, and I have the ability to do so because I’m just a commoner. Louis XVI must have had a perpetual stress, and he probably never got the chance to relax or the chance to be spoken to like a normal person because he was always king. Often he listened to the nobles never really exerting power for himself, which is something I face too, instead of listening to the options of others, I should have confidence in my own abilities to make decisions. He should have listened to them, but ultimately made the decision he thought was best for his subjects, and felt strong in his ruling.
A foreigner in your own country
Louis XVI was referred to as a poor king even before the people hated him, an attitude that still persists in France today, however people do acknowledge his efforts noting that he was just placed in a situation of misfortune. His wife Marie Antoinette was Austrian, to the French this was seen as someone occupying the position that should have been given to a French royal. Marie never cared for the French people, I mean why would she when that needed at the palace, and she was very occupied with fashion (she was a good trendsetter). The attitudes of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were both aloof, reserved, and distant towards the people of France which made for a deadly combination that would eventually lead to their demise. They acted this way towards each other, seeing as it took them seven years to finally be intimate with each other. They looked as if they were not in constant communication which could be easily seen by other people.
Cadbury, D. (2003). The lost king of France: How DNA solved the mystery of the murdered son of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette. New York: St. Martins Griffen.
EyeWitness to History – history through the eyes of those who lived it. (n.d.). Retrieved March 29, 2019, from http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/
Haerpfer, C. W. (2009). Democratization (1st ed.). New York: Oxford University Press.
The Influence of Ancient Rome in The United States Judicial Structure
Mozelle Garcia
For the context of this website, “Ancient Rome” refers to Rome between the 8th century BCE, when Rome was founded, to its fall in the 5th century CE (1).
Legal Basis
The Twelve Tables were established around 439 BCE. They were the backbone of Roman Law throughout the height of the empire until they were replaced by the Justinian Code around 529 CE (2). The influences of the Justinian Code permeated continental Europe and most European colonies, all the way to the United States today (3).
Judicial Structure
Ancient Rome
Under
the Twelve Tables, from the 5th century BCE to the 2nd century CE, the first
step in “legis actiones” or “Roman legal procedure” was for the plaintiff to
approach the defendant in public and call him to court. The defendant could be
brought in forcefully if necessary (4). A trial was divided into a preliminary
hearing where a magistrate decided if there was a case worth hearing. A
magistrate is a civil officer or lay judge who administers the law, usually
only in minor areas. This was a very formal process in which precision of
language was a key factor in determining success or failure. If a case passed a
“judex” would then try it (4). A judex was not a lawyer or magistrate, but
rather a person with professional knowledge in the subject. The role of a
magistrate judge in the U.S. court system is similar to that of the original
magistrates in Ancient Rome. The judex would make a decision in the trial, but
had no power to enforce anything. Uncooperative defendants could be brought to
a magistrate who could get property seized or even make the defendant a slave
to the plaintiff to work off his debt (4).
As
time passed in the republic, cases became more complex and as such it was
required to write issues down to present them to the judex. This led to the formulary
system where the magistrate had greater power in deciding if the case should go
to the judex. Later in the republic power increased for the courts again as
summons could be issued by the court, trials were held exclusively before the
magistrate, and it became the court’s responsibility to see through the
sentence (2). These changes occurred under the “cognitio extraordinaria” period
of Roman Law. Herein an appeal system also developed, which is a core component
of the justice system in the United States today.
Modern United States
It is important to note that the United States Judicial Structure is built on a system of appeals. This system of appeals originated in Ancient Rome, as cases became more complicated and the legal system became more intertwined with bureaucracy (2). As this occurred, a distinction between civil and criminal disputes began to arise. This has further developed so that the difference is major in the United States. Civil disputes involve people, companies, entities, or other groups, who have allegedly harmed another. Criminal cases on the other hand are brought by the state. A criminal act is different from a civil wrong in that it is considered harmful to society as a whole, rather than a single person or group (5). Criminal cases end in a guilty / not guilty plea or verdict, and criminals will receive punishment from the state that can come in the form of a fine, imprisonment, or in some cases the death penalty. The structure of the appeal system is depicted by the chart below.
(6)
Personally,
I find the shift of the justice system in the United States to being more
specialized a positive thing. This gives lawyers more flexibility in what they
choose to study and practice. Being able to focus on what interests you allows
you to serve the public in the most effective way, as you have greater job satisfaction
and motivation (5). I am not particularly interested in working as a prosecutor
or defense attorney, but rather aspire to work in the corporate sector of the
law. Because of the formal institutions separating these areas in place today,
that is achievable. I have the late Roman empire to thank for starting this
evolution.
The
judicial system in the United States also demonstrates Roman influences in that
it begins with a grand judge and / or a preliminary hearing. In many States,
the accused have a right to have a jury decide if there is enough evidence to
go to trial (7). Furthermore, both the prosecution and defense had advocates
speak on their behalf as is the practice in the United States today (8).
In
Ancient Rome It was not uncommon for the trials of lower class citizens to be
held outside, with much jeering from the crowd of the market or square. While
all judicial proceedings take place indoors in the U.S., the less serious the
offense the more informal the proceedings. An example is the chaotic, quick
pace of traffic court where several cases are addressed in the span of hours.
This is another manifestation of court culture in the U.S. brought from Ancient
Rome where we see that there is leniency on formality depending on the case.
The Death Penalty and Discrimination
Executions
were rare for Romans of high status, but for slaves and common criminals it was
quite common. Imprisonment was not a legally sanctioned punishment in Ancient
Rome, the most that one would be locked up was when they were awaiting trial
(8). Criminals were killed publicly, for the public to rejoice in their
punishment (9). The trials of lower citizens on the whole tended to be very
open to the public.
In the U.S. the death penalty is highly controversial. 20 out of 50 states do not allow it (10). In those where it is allowed, it is typically very difficult to attain, and when they do there are several regulations that go along with it. To end the life of the criminal a lethal injection is usually administered (10). In Florida, for example, the jury must unanimously recommend the death penalty in order for the judge to be able to impose the sentence (10).
There
are prominent arguments in the U.S. which note how, similar to in Ancient Rome,
the distribution of the death penalty is not equally applied to all citizens.
For example, a 2014 study found that a death sentence was three times more
likely to be recommended for a black defendant than for a white one in a
similar case (11). Furthermore, black sentences account for 34.2% of executions
when they only make up 13.4% of the U.S. population (12). It is well known that
in the United States minorities are disproportionately affected by poverty and
poor education (13). On the other hand, those with greater resources can hire
better attorneys and achieve more lenient sentences in that way.
This
is a negative practice to have inherited from the Romans as it perpetuates an
inequality in the Justice system, but it is a manifestation of Rome in the US
that must be pointed out nonetheless. The systematic separation of classes is
something present in many societies, but that does not mean it has to stay this
way. While our judicial system has drawn inspiration from Ancient Rome in many
ways, we have also refined several practices, and the application of capital
punishment is an area where adjustments are still needed.
Legal Education
While
education in law is considered a “distinctively Roman development,” legal
education in Ancient Rome was much more informal during the earlier years of
the empire (14). However, formal legal education began to rise and become more
bureaucratic under the later empire. Law became increasingly centralized as the
power of the state grew (14).
In
the U.S. today, a legal education entails enrolling in a Law School, typically
for a period of three years with exceptions being made for part-time programs.
Prior to this, students must obtain a bachelor’s degree and pass the Law School
Admission Test. In Law School, students are not directly taught the law, but
rather are taught how to think like a lawyer. Emphasis is placed on analytical
reasoning and logical thinking. With this it is clear that the core
competencies of a good attorney remain the same as they were in Ancient Rome.
Particularly in litigation, the teachings of Cicero are still used to teach
young lawyers to be good orators.
Public Speaking
Public
speaking is an essential part of being a good litigator. The devices that
people use today to write their arguments and prepare for trial were also
emphasized in Ancient Rome. While Greece is considered the true birthplace of
rhetoric, the Romans adopted the Greek teachings and expanded upon them form
around 90BCE (15). Marcus Tulius Cicero 106-43BCE) lived during the decline of
the Roman Republic but was considered the greatest of Roman orators. He was a
lawyer, as well as a politician and philosopher. He wrote De Inventione
and De Oratore, which offered theories of oral discourse and emphasized
the five canons of rhetoric, Invention, Arrangement, Style, Memory, and
Delivery (15).
The study and practice of rhetoric has hardly evolved since the days of the Romans. For example, today as part of the Pre-Law Certificate Program at Florida International University, students are required to learn about rhetorical theories and practices. These courses place great emphasis on the teachings of cicero and other Roman influencers. The canons of rhetoric are easily identifiable in the speeches given by politicians and senators as they strive to achieve the same goal of persuasion that their Roman counterparts had. L
Legal Jargon
One
of the most prominent ways in which the influences of Ancient Rome manifest
themselves in the United States Judicial Structure is through the use of Latin
terminology and principles. Through classes under the Pre-Law certificate
program here at FIU, an undergraduate aspiring to go to law school such as
myself will become well-versed in terms such as “stare decisis, culpa en
contrahendo, and pacta sunt servanda.” (2). These translate roughly to “stand
by things decided” (a legal principle wherein things are decided according to
precedent), “fault in contracting” (which points out the importance negotiating
with care), and “agreements are to be kept” (16,17). The prevalence of
these terms as well as the principles they uphold is a clear indicator of the
extent to which Ancient Roman custom is alive within the U.S.’s legal system.
Stare decisis is actually outlined by table XII, as it states, “whatever the
people had last ordained should be held as binding law”. This helped shape the
common law system of the United States today (2). Common law is a system which
builds on precedent; decisions are made by considering the outcomes of previous
similar cases (17). The Ancient Romans began building the common law system as
they kept records of proceedings in the later periods of the empire.
Why so Roman?
The
founding fathers of the United States drew inspiration from Ancient Rome in a
number of ways. Entire projects can be devoted to identifying the influences of
Rome in U.S. executive and legislative strict, as well as in federal
architecture and culture. Certainly, the influence of Roman judicial structure
was no exception as the structure of the courts was outlined, and the system
for keeping laws determined.
Implications
Taken
collectively, the influences of Ancient Rome are present in nearly every aspect
of the Judicial Structure in the United States today. The Romans were the first
to conduct the classic trials in the way we know today, and they paved the way
for the study and practice of law to become one of the most respected
positions. As I prepare to enter this profession as well, I will continue to be
exposed to many terms from the Latin language, rhetorical techniques, and the
same system of law used in ancient times. With new knowledge about the roots of
the Judicial System, I will understand more readily how everything goes
together while at the same time be able to look at the negative commonalities
and plan my role in changing them.
References:
All images are in the public domain. The chart depicting U.S. Court Structure is shared publicly via slide-share on LinkedIn.
Mozelle Garcia
For the context of this website, “Ancient Rome” refers to Rome between the 8th century BCE, when Rome was founded, to its fall in the 5th century CE (1).
Legal Basis
The Twelve Tables were established around 439 BCE. They were the backbone of Roman Law throughout the height of the empire until they were replaced by the Justinian Code around 529 CE (2). The influences of the Justinian Code permeated continental Europe and most European colonies, all the way to the United States today (3).
Judicial Structure
Ancient Rome
Under
the Twelve Tables, from the 5th century BCE to the 2nd century CE, the first
step in “legis actiones” or “Roman legal procedure” was for the plaintiff to
approach the defendant in public and call him to court. The defendant could be
brought in forcefully if necessary (4). A trial was divided into a preliminary
hearing where a magistrate decided if there was a case worth hearing. A
magistrate is a civil officer or lay judge who administers the law, usually
only in minor areas. This was a very formal process in which precision of
language was a key factor in determining success or failure. If a case passed a
“judex” would then try it (4). A judex was not a lawyer or magistrate, but
rather a person with professional knowledge in the subject. The role of a
magistrate judge in the U.S. court system is similar to that of the original
magistrates in Ancient Rome. The judex would make a decision in the trial, but
had no power to enforce anything. Uncooperative defendants could be brought to
a magistrate who could get property seized or even make the defendant a slave
to the plaintiff to work off his debt (4).
As
time passed in the republic, cases became more complex and as such it was
required to write issues down to present them to the judex. This led to the formulary
system where the magistrate had greater power in deciding if the case should go
to the judex. Later in the republic power increased for the courts again as
summons could be issued by the court, trials were held exclusively before the
magistrate, and it became the court’s responsibility to see through the
sentence (2). These changes occurred under the “cognitio extraordinaria” period
of Roman Law. Herein an appeal system also developed, which is a core component
of the justice system in the United States today.
Modern United States
It is important to note that the United States Judicial Structure is built on a system of appeals. This system of appeals originated in Ancient Rome, as cases became more complicated and the legal system became more intertwined with bureaucracy (2). As this occurred, a distinction between civil and criminal disputes began to arise. This has further developed so that the difference is major in the United States. Civil disputes involve people, companies, entities, or other groups, who have allegedly harmed another. Criminal cases on the other hand are brought by the state. A criminal act is different from a civil wrong in that it is considered harmful to society as a whole, rather than a single person or group (5). Criminal cases end in a guilty / not guilty plea or verdict, and criminals will receive punishment from the state that can come in the form of a fine, imprisonment, or in some cases the death penalty. The structure of the appeal system is depicted by the chart below.
(6)
Personally,
I find the shift of the justice system in the United States to being more
specialized a positive thing. This gives lawyers more flexibility in what they
choose to study and practice. Being able to focus on what interests you allows
you to serve the public in the most effective way, as you have greater job satisfaction
and motivation (5). I am not particularly interested in working as a prosecutor
or defense attorney, but rather aspire to work in the corporate sector of the
law. Because of the formal institutions separating these areas in place today,
that is achievable. I have the late Roman empire to thank for starting this
evolution.
The
judicial system in the United States also demonstrates Roman influences in that
it begins with a grand judge and / or a preliminary hearing. In many States,
the accused have a right to have a jury decide if there is enough evidence to
go to trial (7). Furthermore, both the prosecution and defense had advocates
speak on their behalf as is the practice in the United States today (8).
In
Ancient Rome It was not uncommon for the trials of lower class citizens to be
held outside, with much jeering from the crowd of the market or square. While
all judicial proceedings take place indoors in the U.S., the less serious the
offense the more informal the proceedings. An example is the chaotic, quick
pace of traffic court where several cases are addressed in the span of hours.
This is another manifestation of court culture in the U.S. brought from Ancient
Rome where we see that there is leniency on formality depending on the case.
The Death Penalty and Discrimination
Executions
were rare for Romans of high status, but for slaves and common criminals it was
quite common. Imprisonment was not a legally sanctioned punishment in Ancient
Rome, the most that one would be locked up was when they were awaiting trial
(8). Criminals were killed publicly, for the public to rejoice in their
punishment (9). The trials of lower citizens on the whole tended to be very
open to the public.
In the U.S. the death penalty is highly controversial. 20 out of 50 states do not allow it (10). In those where it is allowed, it is typically very difficult to attain, and when they do there are several regulations that go along with it. To end the life of the criminal a lethal injection is usually administered (10). In Florida, for example, the jury must unanimously recommend the death penalty in order for the judge to be able to impose the sentence (10).
There
are prominent arguments in the U.S. which note how, similar to in Ancient Rome,
the distribution of the death penalty is not equally applied to all citizens.
For example, a 2014 study found that a death sentence was three times more
likely to be recommended for a black defendant than for a white one in a
similar case (11). Furthermore, black sentences account for 34.2% of executions
when they only make up 13.4% of the U.S. population (12). It is well known that
in the United States minorities are disproportionately affected by poverty and
poor education (13). On the other hand, those with greater resources can hire
better attorneys and achieve more lenient sentences in that way.
This
is a negative practice to have inherited from the Romans as it perpetuates an
inequality in the Justice system, but it is a manifestation of Rome in the US
that must be pointed out nonetheless. The systematic separation of classes is
something present in many societies, but that does not mean it has to stay this
way. While our judicial system has drawn inspiration from Ancient Rome in many
ways, we have also refined several practices, and the application of capital
punishment is an area where adjustments are still needed.
Legal Education
While
education in law is considered a “distinctively Roman development,” legal
education in Ancient Rome was much more informal during the earlier years of
the empire (14). However, formal legal education began to rise and become more
bureaucratic under the later empire. Law became increasingly centralized as the
power of the state grew (14).
In
the U.S. today, a legal education entails enrolling in a Law School, typically
for a period of three years with exceptions being made for part-time programs.
Prior to this, students must obtain a bachelor’s degree and pass the Law School
Admission Test. In Law School, students are not directly taught the law, but
rather are taught how to think like a lawyer. Emphasis is placed on analytical
reasoning and logical thinking. With this it is clear that the core
competencies of a good attorney remain the same as they were in Ancient Rome.
Particularly in litigation, the teachings of Cicero are still used to teach
young lawyers to be good orators.
Public Speaking
Public
speaking is an essential part of being a good litigator. The devices that
people use today to write their arguments and prepare for trial were also
emphasized in Ancient Rome. While Greece is considered the true birthplace of
rhetoric, the Romans adopted the Greek teachings and expanded upon them form
around 90BCE (15). Marcus Tulius Cicero 106-43BCE) lived during the decline of
the Roman Republic but was considered the greatest of Roman orators. He was a
lawyer, as well as a politician and philosopher. He wrote De Inventione
and De Oratore, which offered theories of oral discourse and emphasized
the five canons of rhetoric, Invention, Arrangement, Style, Memory, and
Delivery (15).
The study and practice of rhetoric has hardly evolved since the days of the Romans. For example, today as part of the Pre-Law Certificate Program at Florida International University, students are required to learn about rhetorical theories and practices. These courses place great emphasis on the teachings of cicero and other Roman influencers. The canons of rhetoric are easily identifiable in the speeches given by politicians and senators as they strive to achieve the same goal of persuasion that their Roman counterparts had. L
Legal Jargon
One
of the most prominent ways in which the influences of Ancient Rome manifest
themselves in the United States Judicial Structure is through the use of Latin
terminology and principles. Through classes under the Pre-Law certificate
program here at FIU, an undergraduate aspiring to go to law school such as
myself will become well-versed in terms such as “stare decisis, culpa en
contrahendo, and pacta sunt servanda.” (2). These translate roughly to “stand
by things decided” (a legal principle wherein things are decided according to
precedent), “fault in contracting” (which points out the importance negotiating
with care), and “agreements are to be kept” (16,17). The prevalence of
these terms as well as the principles they uphold is a clear indicator of the
extent to which Ancient Roman custom is alive within the U.S.’s legal system.
Stare decisis is actually outlined by table XII, as it states, “whatever the
people had last ordained should be held as binding law”. This helped shape the
common law system of the United States today (2). Common law is a system which
builds on precedent; decisions are made by considering the outcomes of previous
similar cases (17). The Ancient Romans began building the common law system as
they kept records of proceedings in the later periods of the empire.
Why so Roman?
The
founding fathers of the United States drew inspiration from Ancient Rome in a
number of ways. Entire projects can be devoted to identifying the influences of
Rome in U.S. executive and legislative strict, as well as in federal
architecture and culture. Certainly, the influence of Roman judicial structure
was no exception as the structure of the courts was outlined, and the system
for keeping laws determined.
Implications
Taken
collectively, the influences of Ancient Rome are present in nearly every aspect
of the Judicial Structure in the United States today. The Romans were the first
to conduct the classic trials in the way we know today, and they paved the way
for the study and practice of law to become one of the most respected
positions. As I prepare to enter this profession as well, I will continue to be
exposed to many terms from the Latin language, rhetorical techniques, and the
same system of law used in ancient times. With new knowledge about the roots of
the Judicial System, I will understand more readily how everything goes
together while at the same time be able to look at the negative commonalities
and plan my role in changing them.
References:
All images are in the public domain. The chart depicting U.S. Court Structure is shared publicly via slide-share on LinkedIn.
3. Syam, Piyali. “What is the Difference Between Common Law and Civil Law?” Law Degrees Available Online | @WashULaw, 28 Jan. 2014, onlinelaw.wustl.edu/blog/common-law-vs-civil-law/.
7. “The Criminal Justice System.” Welcome to the National Center for Victims of Crime, victimsofcrime.org/help-for-crime-victims/get-help-bulletins-for-crime-victims/the-criminal-justice-system.
8. “Crime and Punishment.” Life in the Roman Empire, carolashby.com/crime-and-punishment-in-the-roman-empire/.
9. CMHypno. “How and Why the Romans Executed People.” Owlcation, 27 Oct. 2011, owlcation.com/humanities/roman-executions-why-the-romans-executed-people.
10. “30 States with the Death Penalty and 20 States with Death Penalty Bans.” Death Penalty ProCon.org, 13 Mar. 2019, deathpenalty.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=001172.
11. “Facts about the Death Penalty.” DPIC | Death Penalty Information Center, Apr. 2019, deathpenaltyinfo.org/documents/FactSheet.pdf.
14. Riggsby, Andrew M. “Roman Legal Education – A Companion to Ancient Education.” Wiley Online Library |Scientific Research Articles, Journals, Books, and Reference Works, 2015, onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/9781119023913.ch30.
15. “Origins of Public Speaking: The Roman Republic’s Adoption of Rhetoric | Public Speaking.” Lumen Learning – Simple Book Production, courses.lumenlearning.com/publicspeaking/chapter/the-roman-republics-adoption-of-rhetoric/.
16. US Legal, Inc. “Culpa-In-Contrahendo Doctrine Law and Legal Definition.” Legal Definitions Legal Terms Dictionary | USLegal, Inc, definitions.uslegal.com/c/culpa-in-contrahendo-doctrine/.
17. —. “Pacta Sunt Servanda Law and Legal Definition.” Legal Definitions Legal Terms Dictionary | USLegal, Inc, definitions.uslegal.com/p/pacta-sunt-servanda/.
American Political Identity as Influenced by Spain
By Juan Ortega
Studying abroad in Spain with Professor John William Bailly
Propaganda promoting American imperialism
What
is the United States of America? One may think of words such as “capitalist”,
“democratic”, “equal”, etc. to define the idea
of the United States. Documents such as the Declaration of Independence,
the Bill of Rights, and the Constitution would likely pop into the thinker’s
mind. However, all of these ideologies that frame the concept of America stem
from Europe. While many may think these are adaptations of British ideas, they
would be incorrect. These came from Spain.
Politically
speaking, the United States adopted multiple ideas from Spanish influence. Politics
is a wide umbrella of topics that can be broken down into the main three
factors that keep a country prospering, functioning, and secure: economics,
legislation, and military. Of these topics, the United States of America has
grown to become the superpower it is today in part due to Spanish creations. From
capitalism to human rights to guerrilla warfare, the United States has adopted
multiple Spanish-born ideas to help grow and spread its interests.
Christopher Columbus founding the Americas, starting Spanish colonialism
Economics: CAPITALISM
The
founding of the New World by Christopher Columbus in 1492 started the race for
colonies amongst multiple European states. Funded by King Ferdinand and Queen
Isabella of Spain, Columbus’s claim of the Americas for Spain provided an
immediate increase in raw materials for production and manufacturing of
finished goods to be sold around the world. This was the birth of colonialism.
Colonialism
was a direct result of the economic ideology of the time: mercantilism. This
concept described global wealth as finite. Currency was backed by precious
metals, meaning that all the wealth in the world was limited to the amount of
precious metal that existed. Therefore, the economy was a zero sum game. It was
the goal of all European countries to accumulate as much of the wealth as
possible.
In
order to accumulate such wealth, countries had to produce finished goods that
would be desirable for buyers both inside and outside the country. However,
this was a constant balancing act because it was believed that if imports
outweighed exports that would mean wealth was leaving the country. It was the
constant goal to have exports far surpass imports, meaning a country would need
more colonies for even more raw materials.
New York Stock Exchange
It
was a race to basically conquer the world, and Spain had the lead. Inspired by
the Spanish, the Portuguese began its search for colonies as well. Portugal
began to fight for pieces of South America, setting up colonies in what is
today Brazil. It also began setting up colonies in Africa along the
southwestern and southeastern coasts since merchants would have to traverse
around the entire continent to reach Asia, and these ports were prime real
estate for resupplying. Fighting between the two countries, both ruled by
Catholic monarchs, broke out, forcing the intervention of the Church. Born in
Spain himself, Pope Alexander VI produced the Treaty of Tordesillas, which
divided the globe in two halves. Spain was given ownership of all land
discovered and undiscovered 370 leagues west of the Cape Verde Islands, and
Portugal was given claim to the land east of the line. This would not be the
first time religion interfered in political matters, but that will be
elaborated on later.
Capitalism
was inspired by this European search to concentrate wealth. English thinkers
Adam Smith, James Steuart, and David Ricardo were the ones that primarily
formed the concept of capitalism by arguing against many practices of
mercantilism. For example, the governments that did follow mercantilism would
practice many protectionist policies in order to avoid over importation, as
mentioned earlier. In order to ensure that wealth was not escaping the country
heavy tariffs would be placed on foreign products; therefore, people would be
forced to buy from sellers within their own countries. The products that were
not sold would then be stored away or destroyed. These thinkers argued towards
a global economy in which multiple national economies would buy and sell from
one another and rely on credit instead of precious metals. Mercantilism would
go on to evolve into capitalism, and while the concept was formalized by
English thinkers, it came as a result of Spanish expansionism.
Capitalism
has since become a centralized theme in American culture. A lack of regulations
on big businesses comes from the concept of laissez faire, translating to “hands
off”, that limits government intervention in the free market. Even the concept
of the free market itself stems from the goal of trying to accumulate as much
wealth as possible. However, now wealth is seen is unlimited.
Bartolome de las Casas and Native Americans
Legislation: HUMAN RIGHTS
Part
of the discussion revolving around human rights actually stems from the
aforementioned involvement of the Catholic Church in Spanish politics. While
colonialism helped to boom the Spanish economy, the discovery of Native
Americans introduced a very peculiar situation. Since the Natives lived on what
was claimed to be Spanish territory would they be subjects to the crown? Were
they human? Were they equals?
The
treatment of Native Americans was from then on one of brutality, rape, murder,
and slavery. Natives were overwhelmed by well-armed and well-organized
conquistadors using weapons never before seen by the Natives and completely
incomparable to the spears and bows and arrows the Natives used. Furthermore,
aside from soldiers being sent to the New World, priests were also sent to
begin evangelization.
First,
to justify colonialism in the New World to Spaniards that questioned its
morality, King Ferdinand, Queen Isabella, and the legal jurists argued that the
Spanish had the right to exploration since the world was created by God for
man’s use. Furthermore, the Spanish had the right to evangelize, and finding an
entire population that had yet to hear of Catholicism meant more followers for
Christ. The Spanish also had the right to protect themselves against the
Natives; if the Natives should attack them or reject the faith, the Spanish
rationalized that armed conflict would then be justified. Therefore, it would
be a righteous war. These rights were granted to the Spanish simply on the
basis of their humanity as children of God.
To
justify the treatment of Native Americans back in Spain, the government argued
that the Natives were lacking the truth of God’s Will, and it was the Spanish’s
responsibility to God as a Catholic nation to spread the Good News.
Missionaries were set up all throughout the Americas, with forced conversions
becoming common. Torture and cruelty were the norm to force Native Americans to
give up their own gods, rituals, and beliefs for acceptance of monotheism and
the Catholic dogma. However, the introduction of Catholicism to the Natives
would actually help in their eventual legal protection.
Civil Rights March in 1963
Some
members of the Church, such as Dominican friar Bartolome de las Casas, began
writing to the king regarding the conditions the Native Americans were being
subjected to. His writings became some of Spanish society’s first encounters
with the harsh realities of what was happening in the Americas. Another member
of the Church, theologian and philosopher Francisco de Vitoria, began to write
on the concept of natural law as a reaction to de las Casas’s leters. Natural
law states that each human being is born with an innate moral compass, with an
understanding of what is right and what is wrong. During the 1500s, when de las
Casas and de Vitoria were writing, it was understood that this moral
understanding was ordained by God. De Vitoria states that since Native
Americans were taught Catholicism, there is an acceptance that they, too, are
human beings. Furthermore, by their very nature as humans and their ability to
perceive morality and immorality, they are also children of God. Therefore,
they are equals to the Spanish. His writings helped to push King Charles II to
create the New Laws of the Indies of 1542.
This
legislation went on to grant Native Americans Spanish citizenship as well as
protections from unequal treatment. The Natives were to be taxed and paid
fairly. Most importantly, the law abolished slavery of Native Americans. If a
Spaniard in the New World did want to hold a Native as a slave they would have
to present their case in Spain, which was far too expense and too long a travel
for many to justify holding enslaved Natives. The encomienda system was also
abolished. This system stated that when conquistadors conquered an area, the
land was to be split amongst them. The Natives that resided on the portion of
land given to a conquistador were then under his jurisdiction. While this was
introduced partly to help with evangelization, it became a type of
quasi-slavery.
This legislation was extremely unpopular in the New World and was not fully enforced due to the fact that colonies had a certain sense of autonomy allowed to them by geographical distance. However, this is widely considered to be the first piece of human rights legislation. The discussions meant to justify Spanish colonialism and those meant to protect Native Americans became some of the first discussions ever regarding the rights guaranteed to a human being simply on the basis of their existence. This is no way crediting Spain or the Catholic Church with progressive ideals. Following the passing of this legislation, Spain began to import African slaves. Therefore, one cannot seriously say that Spain or the Catholic Church were leaders in this field. However, this legislation helped to implement the idea into the social psyche, which would eventually grow with abolitionists calling for an end to slavery. This legislation was extremely unpopular in the New World and was not fully enforced due to the fact that colonies had a certain sense of autonomy allowed to them by geographical distance. However, this is widely considered to be the first piece of human rights legislation. The discussions meant to justify Spanish colonialism and those meant to protect Native Americans became some of the first discussions ever regarding the rights guaranteed to a human being simply on the basis of their existence.
These
concepts find themselves ingrained in the American Declaration of Independence,
the Bill of Rights, and the Constitution, which list a people’s right to
recreate a functioning government should their government fail, freedom of
speech, freedom of religion, etc. The ideal of innate human rights has become
integral to the American identity, as oppressed groups have used these
documents to argue against segregation, inequality, etc. throughout
generations. The belief in human rights led to documents like the Emancipation
Proclamation, which freed slaves in the U.S., and later the passing of the
Civil Rights Act of 1964 to secure legal protection for people of color. While
America does have a history of racism, sexism, homophobia, and other forms of
discrimination, the centrality of human rights in the founding documents has
pushed the country constantly forward, always progressing.
Guerrilla warfare being used in the Peninsular War
Warfare: GUERRILLA WARFARE
While
the techniques behind guerrilla warfare have been used for centuries, the
formalization of the informal warfare was done by Spain. Following Napoleon
Bonaparte’s rise to power in France at the end of the French Revolution, the
Napoleonic Wars broke out across Europe. These conflicts came from Napoleon’s
quest to conquer all of Europe. The French army under his guidance was
seemingly unstoppable, defeating large, organized army after large, organized
army on the battlefield. However, the French’s biggest rivals came from small,
disorganized armed militias. The Peninsular War began in 1807, when Napoleon’s
Grand Armée invaded the Iberian
Peninsula. As the French marched across the peninsula, small Spanish militias
would hide in the brush, over hills, and behind buildings along their path.
Then, when the time was right, they would rain down bullets on the French and
quickly retreat.
These
surprise attacks were not the norm of for European warfare at the time that saw
two organized armies meeting at a location, lining up, and firing at one
another until one army retreated or surrendered. The militiamen that fought
using this tactic became known as “guerrilleros”, which roughly translates to
irregular fighters. Guerrilla warfare was so effective that it eventually
pushed the French out of Spain, and Napoleon referred to the constant losses in
Spain as the “Spanish ulcer”.
Guerrilla warfare is largely associated with rebellions and resistance groups that are under armed or underfunded. American interventionist policies following World War II have actually led to a rise in American support of guerrilla warfare. Throughout the Cold War and even today, with conflicts such as the Syrian Civil War, the United States has provided weapons, ammunition, and basic training to rebels. This training largely focuses on guerrilla style tactics since most rebel fighters are not trained professionals. The optics of guerrilla warfare has actually helped to spread American interests in a region and justify direct intervention: a poorly organized group of everyday citizens trying to fight off the big bad enemy. This type of imagery has, on more than one occasion, been used to help garner sympathy from American citizens to boost war morale.
Alexander,
Don W. “French Replacement Methods during the Peninsular War, 1808-1814.” Military Affairs, vol. 44, no. 4, 1980,
pp. 192–197. JSTOR,
http://www.jstor.org/stable/1987288.
Alexander,
Don W. “French Military Problems in Counterinsurgent Warfare in Northeastern
Spain, 1808-1813.” Military Affairs,
vol. 40, no. 3, 1976, pp. 117–122. JSTOR,
http://www.jstor.org/stable/1986525.
“All
the World’s a Stage for Spain.” Colonial
Rosary: The Spanish and Indian Missions of California, by Alison Lake, 1st
ed., Ohio University Press, Athens, 2006, pp. 19–31. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt1rfsq51.10.
Blade,
Melinda K. “Spanish Colonization of New Spain: Benevolent? Malevolent?
Indifferent?” OAH Magazine of History,
vol. 14, no. 4, 2000, pp. 54–58. JSTOR,
http://www.jstor.org/stable/25163385.
“Colonialism.” Plato.stanford.edu, 9 May 2006,
plato.stanford.edu/entries/colonialism/.
Laqueur,
Walter. “The Origins of Guerrilla Doctrine.” Journal of Contemporary History, vol. 10, no. 3, 1975, pp. 341–382.
JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/260153.
“SPANISH COLONIZATION AND SOCIAL
EXPERIMENTS.” New Viewpoints on the
Spanish Colonization of America, by Silvio Zavala, University of
Pennsylvania Press, Philadelphia, 1943, pp. 104–114. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv4s7ngh.14.
“THE EMANCIPATION OF THE INDIAN SLAVES.”
New Viewpoints on the Spanish
Colonization of America, by Silvio Zavala, University of Pennsylvania
Press, Philadelphia, 1943, pp. 59–68. JSTOR,
http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv4s7ngh.10.
Vickery,
Paul S. “Bartolomé De Las Casas: Prophet of the New World.” Mediterranean Studies, vol. 9, 2000, pp.
89–102. JSTOR,
http://www.jstor.org/stable/41166913.
De Gaulle (1890-1970) was in every sense a contradictory character — Jean Lacouture, an earlier biographer, called his colossal personality “a battlefield” — with tensions between “restraint and hubris, reason and sentiment, classicism and romanticism, calculation and provocation”. He was “a soldier who spent most of his career fighting the army; a conservative who often talked like a revolutionary”. And Gaullism “succeeded in becoming the synthesis of French political traditions reconciling the left to the state and the right to the nation, the left to authority and the right to democracy”. He was able to achieve this unifying transcendence because of the “legitimacy” — his favourite word — he had acquired during the Second World War as leader of the French government in exile.
Lewis Jones (2018)
Charles De Gaulle during World War II
Early Years
Charles Andre Joseph Marie de Gaulle was born on November 22, 1890 in the region of Lille in the Nord Department. His family, specially his uncle and his grandfather inspired him to learn about history and inserted him into the lecture word. He learned compositions and was passionate about poetry. At the age of fifteen, he anticipated the future when wrote an essay with the title “General de Gaulle”, in which he imagined he was the leader of the French army on its victory over Germany in 1930. Years later, he joined the French army placing his father and his own intellectual interests about history and his country. During his first years of serving the army, he demonstrated strong abilities besides his physical qualities (height: 6’5”), and five years later he was promoted to sergeant. During his studies at the academy he started being an average student, and then he increased his skills, intelligence, knowledge, and personality being on the top of his class. The time of being proved arrived to his live when the World War I stayed.
World War I
After two months he rejoined the army as commander of the 7thCompanyand two months later he was assigned regimental adjutant. He performed a good job on his position, earning the Croix de Guerreand ascending to Captain. Once again, he received a bullet on his left hand and was out of battle during four months. Once his abilities led him coming back, he rejoined the forces, leading the 10thcompany again. For last time, he received bayonet wound on the left thigh after being stunned by a shell. He survived the effect of this incidents and the consequences of poison gas, but was captured by the Germans.
During the first days of the war he was wounded while performed as platoon commander in the Battle of Dinant.He received a bullet on his knee and was hospitalized enough time to criticize the methods of the French Militia. There were three aspect that De Gaulle found erroneous about the military tactics: the over-rapid offensive, the inadequacy of French generals, and the slowness of English troops.
PRISON
De Gaulle spent almost three years on prison under the German regimen. He got depressed because he was absent on the War. This situation was for him a fatality. His passion for the battle were so strong than got him frustrated about being incarcerated. He never complained about the food, the situation, the lonely, the exile; his only concern was not being part of the French army. He used this time to read, to learn German, to discuss with other prisoners about military strategies and possibilities of victory. He also wrote his first book “ Discorde chez l’ennemi” which was published on 1924 and explained the division and issues within the German troops. When the war was terminating, he was liberated, and came back to his father’s home with his three brothers who survived the war.
Preparation
Charles went to Poland to as staff of the French Military Mission to Polandand earn the decoration of Virturi Militari. Once back in France he studied at the Ecole de Guerreduring two years, in which his grades were good, but never excellent. His professor Moyrand referred to him as an intelligent man, with unique attitudes as leader and as soldier, and as extremely arrogant with excessive amount of self-confidence. One year later after finishing his studies, Charles published an essay on tactics depending of the circumstances, which constituted for many a response to his professor Moyrand. The same decade, he published other articles and lectures such as “Historical Role of French Fortresses”, “Leadership in Wartime”, and “Prestige”, ending on the formation of his book The Edge of the Sword. He came back to Ecole de Guerre as a commandant, but this time with the position of commander as he had sworn years earlier. Gaulle continued writing, even proposing his tactics to the senator, arguing for his concepts and ideas and earning prestige amount the militaries.
Tanks and rapid maneuvers rather than trench warfare.
On his book published on 1934, named Toward a Professional Army, he explained his position against the old trench warfare and the benefits of the use of tanks and rapid maneuvers. He believed so much on himself and was strong about his ideals, he defended his war strategies and his book was a success. Gaulle sold more than 700 copies on France and the thousands of copies on Germany (good numbers for that time and topic). After his book, he earned more respect and prestige across the country, and his tactics were criticized in France and followed in Germany. He was a well-known figure when he published his new book France and her Armyin 1938.
Word War II
During War II he was the command of the 4thArmoured Division, he wrote books, criticized strategies and was in front of tanks battles. During the German invasion, he was directing the attack at Montcornet and was defeated several times by the enemies. He rejected order of withdrawal and advance into the field, enjoying one of the few victories of French. During this period, he was so secure about his tactics, rejecting superiors advises and confronting the Germans face to face. Then, he was given a mission to go to London, many of his collagenous had rejected and he accepted. On his biography he specified the depression and frustration he felt forming part of this mission. This meant his recognition of the government and a decided break from the French Army. During this time, he had several ideological problems with Churchill, demanding the rights of the French Committee (Jones, 2018).
Churchill and De Gaulle (1944)
Free French
He was recognized as the leader of the Free French and confronted as usually problems with his superiors. Gaulle’ wife and daughter had to move constantly while in London, and they were living separated for the general. He was a public figure and counted with admires in France, while the Vichy sentenced him to four years’ imprisonment and the court martial in absentia condemned him to death. After agreements and conversations, he formed the Free French National Council and then the Free French Air Force which cost him almost being killed in a plane sabotage on April 21st, 1943. To the other hand, president Roosevelt refused to accept him and even when their relationships started to improve, De Gaulle was not a trusted person to the American government. He stayed with his ideals and was clear on every meeting, he asked for being recognized as a leader figure of Free French. On June 14 of 1944 Charles went back to France in the wake of invading army. France welcomed him as deserved, and he headed the first allied troops to enter the capital: “Leclerc’s Free French second armored division. Sometime later, he was also the head of the provisional French government. In the elections of 1945, he failed to win enough votes and retired from the public life (Rudolph, 2016). The major cataclysm of France has passes, but Charles De Gaulle was not satisfied with the results, writing the following phrase:
It is not tolerable, it is not possible, that from so much sacrifice and ruin, so much heroism, a greater and better humanity shall not emerge.”
Charles De Gaulle.
The President of the Fifth Republic
The official felt that France did not need him, or at least that his ideals were so pure for a country still on recovery. He wrote his book Memories of the War. When the Fourth Republic stayed, he planted his disposal for the country. Algeria returned the power to him after winning the war, and he was assigned as president of the Fifth Republic. Instead of following Argelia’s interests, the president stayed by the France’s benefits, creating discomfort and resulting in the white revolution in Algiers. He suffered attempts against his life at this time.
His labor most important during this period were:
Trying to convert France in an atomic power rose
Healing the relationships with German
Making the first attempts of inserting Britain to the European community
Tour for 10 Latin American countries.
On the elections, he was reelected on the second ballot for seven years. Between his achievements during this period are:
Tour of 6000 miles around the Soviet Union.
He signed the declaration for the closeness between Eastern and Western Europe.
Called to EEUU to withdraw from Vietnam during a speech on Cambodia.
For his peaceful position he made of Paris a neutral point for meetings between EEUU and Vietnam.
He launched the first nuclear powered submarine in 1967.
One of the most controversial elements during these years was his visit on 1967 to Canada, where he used the slogan “Vive le Quebec libre” encouraging the French-Canadian separatism.
He continued with his foreign policy by visiting the Soviet Union, Poland and Romania in order to increase their relationship.
“The cemeteries are full of indispensable men.”
Charles De Gaulle
Rival French Leaders shaking hands only for the show
De Gaulle government was categorized as a “dictatorship”, and years later he admitted on his letters to his son that for ten years he was really a monarch (Jones, 2018). Young students started to fight for their rights and the necessity of taking part on the decisions of the country. This point in the French history is considered the major crisis of Gaulle. He left the country without notification and returned when military security was assured. He stayed with his arrogance and self-confidence, and at this time this characteristic is shown on the phrase he uses to refers to the revolutionary students: “When a child gets angry and oversteps the mark, the best way of calming him is to give him a smack.” (Jones, 2018). He negotiated with the students and workers, but a little later he dissolved the parliament. He won one more time the elections but was unpopular and considered too old for the government. He resigned the presidency on April 28thof 1969. He published his book The Renewal, the first of three book Memoirs of Hope, this was considered the fastest seller in France. When he was almost 80 years old, he died suddenly at his home with the company of his wife on November 9thof 1970. France and the whole world felt his death.
“How can you govern a country which has 246 varieties of cheese?”
Miami in Miami 