Charlotte

  • The Romanovs

    Romanov. That’s the name nearly all of us come up with when faced with the question of naming royalty in Russia. But why? The Romanovs only ruled Russia for a very brief period, and it is the female branch of the family that ruled the longest. This means that in countries, such as France or England, the name would have changed completely once the male line died out. Of course there is the Habsburg-Lorraine dynasty, but that’s a whole different story. In Russia though, the name went from Romanov to Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov. Why the difference? It’s starts with Michael I, the first Romanov tsar of all Russia. He ruled from 1613…

  • September 11 Memorial and Museum

    In memory of those who lost their lives on September 11th 2001. May your stars shine forever as a beacon of hope for the future. Construction workers arrived at the site of ground zero on March 16, 2006 to begin building what would become the memorial site for the events that took place on September 11, 2001. An unfinished site was opened to the public on September 12, 2011 but on May 25, 2014, the entire construction site was complete. Located in the footprints of the twin towers are two reflecting pools, roughly 1 acre in size each and made of solid granite. An engineering feat within the pools themselves…

  • Historical Inaccuracies in Gladiator

    I can understand why creative license is taken in film and television. We just do not know every tiny detail that happened throughout history. Sometimes creative license is taken to condense the events to fit into the relatively short time frame of movies and television. However, sometimes there seems to be no rhyme or reason as to why major changes were made. Things have been unchanged needlessly and the real story is not given its due. Gladiator was a box office hit with all-star cast as well as being loaded with fighting, action and blood galore; a mixture for pure success. But what happens when that particularly popular movie tells…

  • Arthur Miller

    Arthur Asher Miller, the American playwright, was born October 17, 1915 in New York City to Jewish immigrant parents. Their family was effected by the depression when the family’s garment business failed and Arthur found a number of odd jobs around the city in order to pay for his tuition to college. In 1934 Miller left New York to attend The University of Michigan where he wrote his first two plays that he received high accolades and awards for. Upon graduation, Miller returned to New York and became a freelance writer for a number of years. It wasn’t until 1944 that Miller released his first play, “The Man Who Had…

  • John Dee

    Queen Elizabeth I ascended to the throne and with her came a personal adviser, Dr. John Dee. Dee was considered one of the most learned men in England, being educated in a vast array of areas. He was born in Tower Ward, London on July 13, 1527 to a minor courtier. At 15, Dee was sent to St. John’s College in Cambridge where he studied everything he could. The most important subjects Dee studied were mathematics, astronomy, astrology, navigation, geography, optics, and medicine, all of which he would later use to some extent to make his mark in history. He stayed at St. John’s until 1548 where he earned a…