Pirate or Privateer

From the 16th to early 19th centuries "Privateers" were the mother countries legal pirates given "Letters of Marque" that allowed them to prey on the merchant shipping of "enemy" nations. Such commerce raiding was lucrative for both the privateers who provided their own ships and crews and for the navy that added to their commerce raiders at no expense to the naval budget.  

The object of a privateer was to capture their victims, man them with a "prize crew," and sell the ship and cargo at a friendly port. The government that granted the "Letters of Marque" most often received a percentage of this "prize money." Be they the "Seadogs" of England's Elizabeth I or American adventures of the Revolutionary War and War of 1812, privateers were more often seen as legal pirates by the merchants they pounced upon on the high seas.

One City Three National Rulers-New Orleans

The standards of the Kingdom of Spain, Kingdom of France and the 15 stared flag of the United States, three rulers of New Orleans in its first century of existence.

In 1718 (tradition says on May 7th), the French Mississippi Company founded La Nouvelle-Orleans as a French colony to control the mouth of the Mississippi River as well as an entry point to the greater Louisiana Territory. French adventurer Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville is credited for choosing the site that eventually became the shipping hub of the Gulf Coast. Its strategic importance was was not lost on the powers of the day and as a result of the disastrous Seven Years War, France was forced to cede New Orleans to the Kingdom of Spain in the 1763 Treaty of Paris.

By 1803, Spain and Napoleonic France were allies and the Spanish returned New Orleans to their former owner. But Napoleon was at war and in need of money, he found a ready buyer in the up-and-coming new power in North America-the United States. President Jefferson was quick to accept the price of fifteen million dollars for not only New Orleans but also the entire of the New France-Louisiana Territory (an area in the range of 828,000 square miles). For the price of around eighteen dollars a square mile, the Louisiana Purchase of 1803, would go down as one of the greatest land purchases of all time.

Circus Maximus

The Circus Maximus, was the largest "stadium" in history and at its height held between 250,000 and 300,000 spectators. 

To the people of the Roman world, a circus (Latin for circle) was a large open-air structure that was often used for chariot racetracks and doubled as a general entertainment venue.  With a track dimension of 540 by 80 meters, the Circus Maximus (meaning greatest/largest) was one of the center pieces of the Roman love of entertainment for the masses.  From circa 599 BCE to 549 CE this huge structure treated the people of Rome to massive events that thrilled the spectators. Chariot races involved teams of four, six, eight or twelve horses with the charioteers risking lif and limb for the fleeting fame that victory provided.  While four horse chariot races between the Blue, Green, Red and White teams were the most famous and popular events, a huge variety of venues occurred in Roman circuses.  Races of exotic animals, from camels to elephants were fascinating ways to keep the masses entertained. A variety of animal acts and even gladiator events often occurred at a circus while at the Circus Maximus these would be more massive and expensive. As with many Roman entertainments, attending the Circus Maximus was free of charge as an entertained and happy populous was a cornerstone of the Roman governments way to control the masses. 

1066-the year of the "Conqueror"

In 1066 C.E., after the death of King Edward the Confessor, the throne of England was claimed by three powerful men, Earl Harold Godwinson of Wessex, King Harald Hardrada of Norway and Duke William II of Normandy.  While each of these men felt justified in claiming the rightful kingship of England, it was Harold Godwinson who was first to succeed in being crowned king in January 1066.  In response, both King Harald and Duke William II made plans to invade England and take the crown by force of arms. In September, at the Battle of Samford Bridge near the city of York, the English Army under King Harold killed Harald and destroyed most of his Viking army.

With one claimant to the throne dead, it now William's time to make his try for the crown of England. After successfully crossing the English Channel with an army in excess of 8,000 men (some estimates range up to over 12,000 warriors) of which around half were mounted, armored "shock troops," William was ready to throw the die of battle with the stakes being the rulership of England. In face of this crisis, King Harold had rushed with his troops from Northern England to face the second invasion of his realm in less than two months and prepared for battle with an enemy army that probably heavily outnumbered his own (the numbers of his troops are unknown but are most often estimated to be well below 10,000 and contained very few cavalry).  So, it occurred that on 14 October 1066, the bloody Battle of Hastings decided the fate of the rulership of England.  The English had formed a traditional shield wall defensive formation atop a sloping hillock where they were able to resist multiple Norman charges for most of the day.  Late in the day, in the confusion of battle the Normans wavered when it was thought William had been killed, nothing could be further from the truth, William was alive and rallied his troops.  Rather it was Harold who was killed, and the English Army eventually overrun.

With the battle won England was to receive her third crowned king in less than a year, William I "the Conqueror." The new king now added England to his dukedom in France to become one of the most powerful leaders in late 12 century Western Europe. William I "the Conqueror" was a French nobleman, descendent of "Viking" Norsemen. He was born circa 1028 CE, was Duke of Normandy from 1035 to 1087 and King of England from 1066 to 1087. Queen Elizabeth II and the House of Windsor are direct descendants of William I. 

Middle Ages Arms Race

From simple tube bombards like the stubby piece at the top to the adjacent primitive banded breach loader, wars since the Middle Ages have often led to advances in weapons.  When such advances are pushed at a speedy pace in an effort to gain a tactical advantage on the battlefield an "Arms Race" can ensue. In the case European artillery it only took a few wars to develop the above pieces into a new commonly accepted standard as illustrated below with the gun and wheeled carriage design. 

A well-trained knight was a skilled killing machine adept at the strengths and proper usage of the most common weapons of the time.  In the Middle Ages these could include weapons for bashing and smashing such as the mace, flail, morning-star; for cutting, and slicing the hand axe, battle-axe and halberd were preferred; when cutting and stabbing were called for the dagger, one handed sword, hand and a half bastard sword and the massive two-handed sword were the most commonly used.  All knights were trained in the use of the lance for mounted combat, and most could shoot the crossbow or bow.  All these weapons took years of practice to master and most knights practiced as if their lives depended upon it, as it would in real combat.

When it came to armor, a knight could always be counted on to purchase the best they could afford.  The poorest knights might be forced to use quilted, Brigantine or at worst hardened leather.  Those with more means would wear scalemail, chainmail or chain and plate while the wealthiest would have the best protection by using full plate.

You Can't tell a Nippon Clan with out a Mon

In Medieval Nippon, Mon were specific
designs, or family crests, that
were used to identify Lord Clans.
They would be used on clothing
as well as flags.

This hand fan design represented the Satake Clan