Julius Caesar/Fall of Roman Republic

Interviewer: "Greetings Julius, how are you?"

Julius Caesar: "Well"

Interviewer: "Do you think you would mind telling me how you ended the Roman Republic?"

Julius: "No, I would not. Shall I start from the beginning?"

Interviewer: "Sure"

Julius:  "I was born in 100 B.C. in a patrician family, meaning we were of a land-owning upper class that was involved in the Senate.  I spent my childhood in Asia Minor and returned to Greece in 73 B.C.  I was a pontifex, or priest, and climbed from military tribune to quaestor.  When my wife and Aunt died, I broke the tradition of not having women public funerals. With that, people began to notice my political importance.  I later followed the agitation of northern Italian Latin colonies for Roman citizenship and supported Pompey the Great.  Pompey, Marcus Crassus, and I later formed the First Triumvirate.  I gained a lot of respect in that time period, including Cicero and Cato the Younger.  I was then a praetor and, although in some financial troubles, focused my attention on Spain and other tribes. A lot of cash was made after that project.  Eventually, I was elected consulship in 58 B.C."

Interviewer:  "Is that the election that you cheated and used physical force to persuade your followers?"

Julius: "Let me continue my story!  Where was I? Yes, I had just put the First Triumvirate into action and had all my allies-supporters put in their proper position in the government.  Now, by then people were starting to tell that I did not like their republic laws. Some even tried to persecute me! They failed, of course, but I moved onto a more violent stage in my career.  I ran a great Roman army, called legions, in which had the whole country fearful.  Then, in 55 B.C. my old buddies Pompey and Crassus joined me in the consul.  Unfortunately, Crassus died, Pompey was kept away from me, and my five year term was coming to an end.  In 49 B.C., I crossed the Rubicon River, showing that I meant war and no laws were going to stop me.  Many battles and thousand of Romans later, I had finally destroyed the republic.One ironic thing is that the leader of the Republicans was Pompey"

Interviewer: "Hmm, and that was last year, wasn't it?"

Julius:  "Yes, 45 B.C."

Interviewer:  "And here you stand, the current dictator of Rome until you die."

Julius: "Until I die-I guess you could say that."

Interviewer: "So Julius Caesar, why would you say you are important to Rome's history?"

Julius:  "Did you not hear me? I ended the Republic and I was a major political figure."

Interviewer: "Aha well thank you for the interview"

Julius: "You're welcome"

March 14th 44 B.C. Julius Caesar is assassinated by his senate members.

("Julius Caesar." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 30 Oct. 2010. )

Alexander the Great

Interviewer: "Good morning Alexander, I have heard many great things about you."
Alexander the Great: "I'm sure you have"
Interviewer: "Yes, well, could you please tell me your story?"
Alex: "Yes, of course.  I was born 356 B.C. in Macedonia, son of the well-known Phillip II.  I was a student to Aristotle, and when my father was assasinated in 336, I became king.  I greatly wanted to defeat Persia, for my father, but would have something else to worry about: Thebes. Fortunately, I easily put down their rebellion and went on to Persia.  In the Battle of the Granicus, my army beat the Persians by the river and my reputation climbed.  Next was the battle of Issus, which was another win for the Macedonians.  I had my army fighting with spears called sarissas, making them beg for mercy.  When they asked, I said nah and headed to Egypt.  The Egyptians loved me! Although I knew it all along, they concluded my destiny: I was a God.  They made me pharaoh.  Later, I defeated Persian Empire at Arbela in 331 B.C. and became king when Darius III was killed by his own court.  After that, victories were piling up as far as the Indus valley in 325 B.C and I began to spread my western culture- Greek culture." 
Interviewer: " And then.."
Alex: "And then what?"
Interviewer: "You went back to Babylonia"
Alex: "Yes, well, when I came to Babylonia in 324, the people were not very pleased. Although I was spreading wonderful Greek culture, I had also adapted many Persian."
Interviewer: "How upset are they?"
Alex: "Any other questions?"
Interviewer: "Yes, Alexander, why would you say you are so important?"
Alex: "Why, I'm inspirational!"
Interviewer: "Who do you think you are inspiring?"
Alex: "Other great rulers, I suppose. Also I concider my spreading of greek culture immensely important and my policies"
Interviewer: "Well, thank you for the interview"
Alex: "Yup"
Alexander the Great inspired Julius Caesar and many other people, even up to modern times. Alexander the Great dies at the age of 32.

Alexander the Great:

("Alexander the Great." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 30 Oct. 2010. )

Axis Age/ Golden Age of Greece

Interviewer: "Hello sir, what is your name?"
kid: "umm... Demokritos"
Interviewer: "Yasou Demokritos, how are you today?"
Demokritos: "I'm doing great"
Interviewer: "Can you tell me what year it is?"
Demokritos: "yeah, it's 320 B.C."
Interviewer: "And can you tell me how Greece is doing currently?"
Demokritos: "Greece is doing woderful, especially here in Athens"
Interviewer: "People call this the 'Golden Age' of Greece, can you tell me why?"
Demokritos: "Well, it all started at about 500 B.C. This has been a great time of government, art, philosophy, drama and poetry accomplishments. Athens adapted the new government style called democracy and it is when the government is ruled by the people.  This was under the rule of Pericles (460-429 B.C.) who also had major architectural acheivments: The Parthenon and the Acropolis.  The making of a greek theatre inspired wonderful playwriters and philosophers. Some great people that were alive during this age were Plato, Socrates, Aristotle, and Pythagrius.  Pythagrius, Hippocrates, Hippias, and Democritusa were all great mathematicians.  Socrate created the Socratic method and Aristotle was a mathematic writer.  There were also improvements in science and medicine."  
Interviewer: "Now I've also heard this been called the Golden Stone age of Greece,why is that?"
Demokritos: "See here, there are wonderful statues and pottery creations right now." 
Interviewer: "Ah. Can you tell me why this time is important?"
Demokritos: "Important?! These ideas are huge! The impact on Greece is colossal, not to mention the rest of the world"
Interviewer: "The rest of the world?"
Demokritos: "Who wouldn't want a democracy?"
Interviewer: "True, and to know more mathmetical facts like a2+b2=c2.  Thank you for this interview."
Demokritos: "You're welcome"
The Golden Age of Greece/ Axis Age ended 300 B.C. and Greek ideas become the basis of Western poitics.


Picture of the Parthenon in present Athens, Greece.

("Golden Age of Greece." Maps of World.com (2009): n. pag. Web. 30 Oct 2010.

"Early Greek Mathematics (650 B.C.-400 B.C.)." Oracle ThinkQuest (2001): n. pag. Web. 30 Oct 2010.)

Zheng He

Dear Online Journal,
It is the year 1437, just two years after Zheng He's death.  China has decided to burn all of his fleet of war ships and not to worry about the outside world.   We decided to focus on China's interior and keep the Chinese in, even banning the building of seagoing ships.  Unfortunately, our old school ways have actually weakened us and we are relatively open to foreign invasion.  You can tell that the other countries, such as the British, want to take us over.   And although his fame is trying to be covered up, Zheng He did great work under the building and sailing of the ships.  He worked as the emperor's admiral and from 1405 to 1433, he completed seven voyages. Before his first voyage, Zheng He created 2,000 vessels for all different purposes, which included the great "treasure ships".  These ships were 400 feet long and 150 feet wide; some of the largest wooden ships ever created.  On this first voyage he ventured to India, but stopped to trade at places like Champa and Java.  They also defeated a major pirate at the time, called Chen Zuyi, and had him killed.  These started many political relationships.  Other voyages took him to the Arabian Peninsula, Africa, and many other far away places.  Zheng He was born in 1371, and served China well.
Chi Fu

"Zheng He Maritime Expeditions (Overview)." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras.

ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 20 Oct. 2010. <http://ancienthistory.abc-clio.com/>

Sung Dynasty

Dear Online Journal,
(Sigh) Today is a sad day in China History. It is 1279 and the Mongols just ended the Southern Sung Dynasty, China's Golden Age.  The greatness started in 960 AD, when the great General Zhao Kuangyin reunited China and started the Sung Dynasty.  We purchased a new kind of fast –growing rice which doubled our number of crop seasons!(2) With this surplus in food, China was free to express themselves. Therefore, there was much great advancement made over the past 300 years.  I am a writer and am happy to state that wood blocking for printing become much more popular and therefore made printing easier.  With more available books, more people learned to read and I sold a good number of my books!  Poetry also improved with great poets such as Du Fu and Li-Po. Other culture areas were also visited during this era, like literature and religion.  There were also economic, educational, artistic, and some governmental developments during the past dynasty.  With the invention of paper money, gun powder, and other things such as the mechanical clock, trading boomed!  We were trading with countries such as India, Pakistan, and Arabia.  Manufacturing and commerce also advanced throughout China. The Civil system added more Confucius texts, a great decision, and I hope that China will continue to develop and become a better place. 
~Chung Li     

"Song dynasty." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 18 Oct. 2010. <http://ancienthistory.abc-clio.com/>

Tang Dynasty

Dear Blog:

Boy am I living in a great century! I'm practically living in a golden age, in a golden country: China.  It is the Tang Dynasty in the year 900 A.D. and I am a poet by the name of Cho Chang.  The dynasty started way back in 618 A.D. (to 907) when China was reunited under the power of Lui Yuan.  With political and social stability, the Tang has become the golden age of China (So far) and has made many advances in literature, cultural, and artistic traditions.  Some very main things were poetry, which was how I got started rhyming, and painting.  One memorable man was Xuanzong who founded the Hanlin Academy for dance and music.  My personal IDOLS from this time include Du Fu and Li Bo who were possibly the greatest poets ever.  Du Fu writes about his misfortunes of his job after doing bad on the civil service exam, while Li Bo writes about happier times.  The government system is very similar to the Han Dynasty, with Confucianism and a bureaucracy.  Very sadly, I am beginning to feel the dynasty crumbling.  We are losing territory to Arabs, there is corruption, high taxes, drought, famine, and rebellion.  Times are getting rough; we haven't done what we should. Although it is tough, we must look at the good. 
Cho Chang

"Tang Dynasty: Imperial Unity and Cultural Achievement (Overview)." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras.
ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 20 Oct. 2010. <http://ancienthistory.abc-clio.com/>

Mongols Take China

Dear Blog-
Three words: I. Hate. Mongols.  They ended the Sung dynasty! China's Golden Age! Okay, let me calm down and tell the story.  The Mongols were a group of Nomads form the steppe region, but their military was a large group of very advanced horsemen. They invented the stirrup which allows for the rider to actually stand up on their horse and fire bow and arrow at their enemy.  In the early 1200s the Mongols stopped fighting with each other and were united under the leadership of Genghis Khan.  Genghis was an undeniably great ruler, but was ruthless and cruel in his quest for revenge over his childhood.  With their well-trained men and cannons, they invaded northern China.  They went with a policy of "Surrender now and you will be a slave, if you don't we will kill you". After they gained leadership, the Mongols were relatively just.  They listened to religious ideas, respected artisans, and wouldn't bother you if you paid your taxes.  Later, they conquered Russia under the leadership of Khan's nephew, Batu, in 1240.  And later the Mongols sacked Baghdad in 1258 during the Abbasid Empire.  Eventually, Genghis' grandson, Kublai Kahn took over and moved the army south. To the time currently of them ending the Sung Dynasty in 1279 and starting the Yuan dynasty.  You can feel the uneasy mix of different cultures and Kublai naming the Dynasty with a Chinese name.  He has told us of plans of wanting to expand the Grand Canal for trade and changing the architecture to something from the Steppe.  I hope that this dynasty ends quickly and China will turn back to Chinese rule once more!
Zheng Tzu

 

Jackson, Peter. "Mongols." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras.

ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 20 Oct. 2010. <http://ancienthistory.abc-clio.com/>

Han Dynasty

Journal-
The date is 220 A.D. and the Han Dynasty has officially fallen apart and ended.  The empire began in 206 B.C. and was a memorable time in China both economically and culturally.  The Han dynasty was founded by a man called Bang Lui or later Gao Zu. The government was a bureaucracy system and Confucianism became the official philosophy of the empire. The government also kept close watch on food prices and trade. Along with Confucius, Buddhism and Toaism were other religions that became popular during this time. Many things were also invented during the time era, such as paper, astronomical instruments, and the seismograph. Old books were discovered and new books were written.  It was a male dominated society and advancements were made in many artistic areas such as drama, painting, and dance.  There was also construction in bridges, dikes, canals, and roads.  Another memorable thing of the dynasty were the Yellow Turbans who were a group of people that rebelled against taxes in 184 A.D. Well, that about wraps up that wonderful dynasty, I'll keep blogging
Jang Su

"Han dynasty." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras.
ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 20 Oct. 2010. <http://ancienthistory.abc-clio.com/>

"Imperial China Comes of Age (Overview)." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras.
ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 20 Oct. 2010. <http://ancienthistory.abc-clio.com/>

Buddhism comes to China

 Dear Diary,

Today has been an interesting day. I have learned all about a man named Siddhartha Guatama, but he goes by a different name. He calls himself “The Buddha” which means the enlightened one. The way I heard about the Buddha was through traveling, as I am a trader.  While I was on the silk road, I met many monks and Buddhist.  They were coming to China to teach and some were even building different temples, statues, and things along the roads.  The Siddhartha man has a very interesting story to tell, and willingly teaches his unusual ideas to anyone who will listen.  He preaches of suffering on earth, desire, and how we must overcome all this to find a greater good.  This is an idea called nirvana.  Buddha said he cannot explain it, but it is a wonderful thing.  He teaches the four noble truths and also the eightfold path.  This means for people to do right actions, such as understanding, speech, mindfulness, and concentration.  It seems to remind me of Hinduism, except that Siddhartha talks against the reincarnation cycle; your goal is even to break out of it. Anyways, the man was alive way back around 600 B.C. and it is presently 210 B.C.  Under the rule of Ashoka, Buddhism was immensely encouraged and now it is the Han Dynasty. 

Love,

Bang Cho

 Today Buddhism is one of the three major religions in China.

"Buddhism." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras.
ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 19 Oct. 2010. <http://ancienthistory.abc-clio.com/>

Great Wall

Blog 1499-

Ugh today has been a long day, as I have been planning the design and having meetings about the construction of a very large project. We call it the Great Wall of China. As an emperor of the Ming Dynasty, we are repairing and increasing the size of this monument.  It was originally built in 220 B.C during the Qin Dynasty.  The wall was started under the emperor of Shi Huangdi.  He created it for defensive purposes and put a general called Meng Tian under control.  He extended it about 3,000 miles and it was worked on by prisoners, northern frontier laborers, and guarded by soldiers.  Huangdi heavily taxed his people to pay for his wall and this caused much anger throughout the people.  This is a problem I hope to avoid, but am finding it very difficult, as it is a large job and people always seem to work harder when they are physically pushed.  Anyways, in the Han Dynasty Emperor Wudi restored the Qin wall and extended it all the way to the Gobi Desert.  The wall was later worked on by many others such as Guang Wu Di and Ming Yuan.  Improvements and repairs were done in the Sui dynasty, and the Tang had a better military and defensive system so the Great Wall was of less use.  Currently I am redesigning the watchtowers and cannon system.  It keeps unwanted attention out and helps keep the Chinese in.

                                                                                                                                                                    

 Zhū Yòutáng

Today the Wall is over 4,000 miles long and one of the largest structures in the world.

"Great Wall of China." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 19 Oct. 2010. <http://ancienthistory.abc-clio.com/>

Lao Zi and Taoism

Greetings Bai!

I have converted! I am officially Taoist, like you and your family.  In the middle of the Era of Warring States (475 to 221 B.C.), I feel closer to finding peace with nature.  I met the man, Lao tzu, who is said to be the actual founder of this religion.  He has created a book called the Tao-Te Ching, which includes all of his teaching.  I have been switching off reading from Li Tang’s copy and asking others about what Lao’s philosophies mean to them.  Nonaction is a confusing idea that Taoism promotes.  It doesn’t quite mean to be lazy and do nothing, but rather to go with both the ying and yang of life.  Taoism is the path and the path I now plan to follow.  I now try to get closer to nature, and not cause conflict if I can possibly avoid it.   Go with the flow is the way I like to look at it, along with balance and harmony, is good for everyone. 

Love,

Biyu

Confucianism is now one of the three major religions in China.

"Taoism." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 18 Oct. 2010. <http://ancienthistory.abc-clio.com/> 

Confucius

206 B.C.
Le Chung

Online Journal,
There is starting to be some major changes in our country’s religious structure.  In the Han Dynasty started 206 B.C., the emperor has promoted this idea of “Confucianism”.  The government is now also based upon Confucius principles in bureaucracy form.  Although I have not heard of these ideas, I am testing them out.  Confucius encourages family and I have spent more time with my over these past few months.  We have had many great times and I ponder onto what I have been missing. So I then began reading the Five Classics and learned that the ruler of a nation should set a good example for his subjects.  If he does so, then it is more likely that his people will follow him and respect their country.  Education is another idea that Confucius promotes, and I deeply agree with this.  I always found it good to fill your head with as much knowledge as possible, but Confucius looks at it a little differently.  He says one much be knowledgeable to comprehend the ideas of mortality. Either way I am encouraging my sons to study and also to get them a good job under this new “Civil Service” test.
Later the Yi dynasty and Japan adopted Confucius’ governmental ideas. Is now one of three major religions in China.

"Confucianism." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 18 Oct. 2010. <http://ancienthistory.abc-clio.com/>

Unification of China

Dear Diary,
Today China is at peace. It is 221 B.C and finally all of China is unified under the Qin Dynasty.  King Zheng has changed his name to Shi Huangdi, becoming the “first emperor” our country.  My family is very pleased that the Warring States Period is over. There has been too much fighting of all the people that should work together.  Zheng and the Qin dynasty finally conquered the Chu and the Zhou Dynasty in the 3^rd century B.C.  He has decided to change the government to bureaucracy, and so far it has worked well. There have been increases in trade, agriculture, and military service.  We were also shown different currency, measuring standards and arrangement of writing.  The emperor is also starting a very large project; he calls it “The Great Wall”.  I’m not sure how great it is going to be, but he sure is gathering a lot of workers to help build.  Finally the nation is together and you can feel the things that are going to be accomplished we no longer have to worry about fighting with each other. 
Biyu Lang

Dear Diary,
I’m sorry I have not written in a while; it is 210 and Shi Huangdi has died and has created a giant grave for himself. They have filled the tomb with thousands of clay soldiers and put plenty of traps so there will not be any thieves. It is a very grand project and I predict that it will not be discovered for a long, long time. 
Biyu Lang
 
"China." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 18 Oct. 2010. <http://ancienthistory.abc-clio.com/>