19th century

News Stories

The Mier Expedition’s “Bloody” Black-Bean Lottery of 1843 and Journey of John C.C. Hill

In September of 1842 Texans and Mexicans engaged in a series of skirmishes near San Antonio resulting in the deaths of three dozen Texans. In response, that November the Texans organized a retaliatory expedition of several hundred soldiers and pushed through Laredo towards Ciudad Mier – located on the Mexican side of the Rio Grande.

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News Stories

Autumn Season: Classy Vintage Vibes of “Hello October” – Editor’s Commentary

This time of autumn season is the time to simply enjoy nature and all that peace and silence. With your favorite cup of coffee, chocolate or tea.

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News Stories

The Obits of William Walker, Filibustering President of Nicaragua

Born in 1824, Walker, who graduated summa cum laud at the age of fourteen from the University of Nashville, tried his hand at respectable professions such as medicine and law, but ended up as the embodiment of a mercenary movement to extend the realm of American empire south of the Mexican border.

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News Stories

Did Gothic Romanticism Criticize the Early 19th Century World?

Although escapism was in fashion, there was one interesting subgenre of Romanticism where the development was a source of inspiration for the story usually set in the past. That subgenre is Dark or Gothic romanticism.

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Conquer and Divide: The Spanish Resistance that Broke Napoleon’s Second Strategy

Although he was a brilliant military tactician, one of the ways Napoleon managed to hold on to conquered regions was by employing a strategy of carving up states based on historical precedent. The Rhodanic Republic (1802-1810), the Kingdom of Italy (1805-1814), and the Republic of Danzig (1807-1814) were among a few “sister republics” created by Napoleon. These client states, formed under the guise of revanchist history, aided the control of occupied lands in the First French Empire. When Napoleon invaded Spain in 1808, he set about to redraw its map in a similar fashion.  

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