Viva la Revolucion

This morning my mind feels like swiss cheese (a side effect of migraine medication). I have been having significantly more migraines than normal and my guess is my body is plotting some sort of uprising. I promised you more blog structure than yesterday so here goes... This morning’s blog will focus on rebellions and revolutions in honor of my impending demise!Those of us that went to public school are probably not as familiar with uprisings and revolutions mainly because in our day history was often taught by a football coach with no real knowledge of the subject (hey you get what you pay for). But as a lover of knowledge and someone that received an A+ in her college history classes, I was interested in some of history’s great revolutions. I’m going to breakdown some of my favorites:

American Revolution (1763 – 1776 and beyond) – after the Seven Years War ended, Britain decided to get greedy and increase taxes on North American Colonies, flexing their authoritative muscle with new laws. We all know Americans hate taxes so some guys got together and decided to elect official representatives and fight for their right to make their own illegitimate laws and self-imposed rights.  So 13 colonies banded together, mobilized militias, and went to war!   Ah can you smell the American enlightenment? Well it stretched across decades eventually giving birth to the United States and some classic historical moments. Think about it people republicanism was born during this time!  Common Sense was written, the phrase “No taxation without Representation” was uttered from the mouths of babes. You have the Boston Tea Party, which had to smell some kind of way (tea + dirty water = stink), the American Revolutionary War and the Declaration of Independence (which really only applied to white males)!  Such an important time in history and all I can think is I’m glad I wasn’t there, let’s be real the average life expectancy was like 35 years old, throw in the fact I’m a black female and you can cut that down to like 22. I probably would already be dead from child birth or smallpox. But a fascinating era just the same!

Greek Revolution against the Ottoman Empire (1821-1829) – the Greeks history has always fascinated me because of their rich ideologies. So the Greek War of Independence is definitely on my list. We know the Byzantine Empire fell to the Ottomans in 1453 but after centuries of Ottoman rule the Greeks declared no more, out damn Turks…get out! There were many failed attempts but eventually the underdog did it with the help of the British, French, and Russians.  A civilization so rich with intellectuals and humanists was being stifled and wanted the right to be influenced by other super powers. I lived in Turkey for a short while so this intrigues me on multiple levels.  I have also traveled to Greece and seen the aftermath from ancient Greek worship to reconstructionism to modern day freedoms. Does anybody know how to get to Constantinople (I do)!

French Revolution (1789 – 1799) – As a Catholic and a thrice removed French national this is kind of my history.  It’s only right that I include such an impactful era of political and social upheaval on my list. We can all appreciate resistance against monarchy, aristocracy, and religious authority! King Louis XVI or Marie Antoinette were infamous poor decision makers, their love for power and sense of entitlement ultimately created discontent in the impoverished and underserved! We want equality and we want it now!  And the French got it by marching on Versailles, storming Bastille and instituting the Reign of Terror! The French did revolution the bloody way with extreme violence and guillotines! So kudos to you Maximilien Robespierre your death was not in vain!  You forged the way so little people like Napoleon could start wars and Hugh Jackman could have work in Les Misérables. Without this Revolution I wouldn’t have learned that stealing bread gets you 20 to life or that the French were so musically talented!

Glorious Revolution (1688) - I love it when Kings are overthrown; so King James II (of England) welcome to my list of revolutions. This not so “Bloodless Revolution” permanently ended any chance of Catholicism becoming re-established in England. Sorry British Catholics, welcome to being social and political pariah. Ushering in change, the Glorious Revolution led to the beginning of modern English parliamentary democracy! Shaping a country that has brought us many great things including everything Royal Family, Dr. Who (syfy nerd for life), the English Bill of Rights, the original William and Mary (dynamic duo of Protestant rule), and the Tudors (one of my favorite tv shows not at all directly related to the Glorious Revolution).

Bacon's Rebellion (aka Virginia Rebellion of 1676) –this is obviously on the list because Bacon is in the title.  Noted as the first rebellion in the American colonies, this was an uprising in Virginia, led by a planter by the name of Nathaniel Bacon! Back when Virginia was the place to be they had a Native American problem. This was likely caused by the fact that they stole land from these original inhabitants but that is neither here nor there! 1000 Virginians rose up in arms against the rule of Governor William Berkeley because he refused to retaliate for a series of Indian attacks on frontier settlements. Enter Bacon, not just a tasty breakfast treat and you have conflict and a historical uprising. What resulted was the return of the governor to England! Virginians were unable to drive out all the Native Americans living on the land they were stealing but they did set precedent for political change! Thus begins my appreciation for bacon and solidified love of irony; VA is not for Lovers it’s for hate mongers and radicals.

I purposely didn’t include the Civil Rights movements or the Women’s rights movements because those histories are still being written; uprisings are still occurring in those revolutions so I will save that for history teachers in the next century to discuss.   I hope you have enjoyed this random history lesson!  You can thank Political Science, AP US History, AM History to 1865, and American Government for this trip down memory lane.  Happy Thursday!