Dean Swift

The Finnish-Russian War: David & Goliath?

/ english.ruvr.ru

Not really, because this war was not won by ‘David’. Otherwise, the similarities are notable. In November, 1939, only a couple of months after the beginning of World War II, Soviet Russia decided that her frontiers should be moved back on the Karelian Isthmus, in order to make Leningrad more secure. The Soviets also wanted a long-term lease on the important port of Hanko, commanding an entrance to the Gulf of Finland, as well as territory in the north (near Petsamo) to protect the sea-route to Murmansk. (more…)

By Dean Swift| 2012-07-27T17:06:36+00:00 July 27th, 2012|German History, History of Finland, Russian history, Spanish History, World History|2 Comments

Hiroshima and later

Hiroshima after the atmoic bomb / taringa.net

Hiroshima after the atomic bomb / taringa.net

Hiroshima had a population of roughly 300,000 in 1945. It was a military base, port, and popular seaside resort in the western part of Honshu Island, Japan. The Potsdam Declaration on 26 July was the last of the conferences attended by the leaders of Russia, The United States, and Great Britain – those countries whose empires were considered to have been the victors at the end of the Second World War. Previous conferences, at Yalta and Casablanca had been attended by Winston Churchill (Britain) and Roosevelt (USA), but the latter was dead, and Churchill had been defeated in a General Election. (more…)

By Dean Swift| 2012-07-24T10:46:11+00:00 July 24th, 2012|French History, German History, Philosophy, Russian history, Today, US History, World History|0 Comments

The Continental System (Blockade)

Constant blockade of the ports: the Continental System / xtimeline.com

When I was a schoolboy (the Punic Wars q.v.), Bonaparte’s genial idea was called ‘The Continental System’, a good name but implying a kind of applied plan to Continental economics, rather than a sustained attempt by him to ruin the British nation economically, and force it to sue for peace. In this sense the word ‘blockade’ is more appropriate. It is surprising however, that such a violent word, in these days of euphemism and political correctness, should emerge in the most modern history books – when the word ‘system’ appears infinitely more euphemistic and more politically correct. (more…)

By Dean Swift| 2012-07-22T09:29:05+00:00 July 22nd, 2012|Austrian history, Dutch History, English History, French History, Italian History, Russian history, Spanish History, World History|0 Comments

What is Isolationism?

Well, very soon we will know what it is. And I might add it is a great pity there is not more of it around. Loss of it caused the Korean and Vietnam wars; too much of the opposite caused Britain, France and Israel the opportunity to deal practically with the Middle Eastern Question. Far too much of the lack of it allowed the United States to enter, and encourage others to enter, an unwinnable war in Afghanistan. But these are merely examples. (more…)

By Dean Swift| 2012-07-21T11:09:47+00:00 July 21st, 2012|English History, French History, German History, History of Korea, Italian History, Jewish History, Philosophy, South American History, Spanish History, Today, US History, World History|0 Comments

The Blogger Kite

I have been forced to reach the conclusion that this planet is full of persons whose self-appointed task it is to find errors, large or small, in the writing of history or science blogsites. These individuals crouch before their screen all day, and possibly all night, watching for some unintentioned mistake to appear, like a titmouse for the circling kite’s breakfast. (more…)

By Dean Swift| 2012-07-19T17:23:49+00:00 July 19th, 2012|English Language, Humour, Philosophy, Today|0 Comments

Ernst Rohm & the Night of the Long Knives: the end of the SA

Rohm, once a great friend of Hitler’s / lasegundaguerra.com

Rohm was born in 1887. By twenty-six he was an Army captain, thrice wounded in the First World War. His views on the old bougeoisie of the Weimar Republic were well known. He detested them. But he disliked Communism too, and fought in the Free Corps to squash the communist government of Bavaria in 1919 when he was thirty-two. It was at that time that he formed a special political intelligence unit which would later become known as the SA (Sturm Abteilung, formed 1921). (more…)

By Dean Swift| 2012-07-18T10:23:19+00:00 July 18th, 2012|German History, World History|0 Comments

Alexander I, Tsar of Russia

Alexander I, Tsar or Czar of Russia / theesotericcuriosa.blogspot.com

The future Tsar was born in 1777, a son of the supposedly mad Tsar Paul. Contemporary chroniclers have it that young Alexander was implicated in the murder of his father. This may well be so as the boy had been vigorously educated by a Swiss tutor, a great believer in the French idea of Enlightenment – enlightenment often leads to an excessive wish to reform anything and everything. If you have a mad father you may see killing him as a suitable reform in your life. (more…)

By Dean Swift| 2012-07-17T16:44:16+00:00 July 17th, 2012|A History of Poland, Austrian history, English History, French History, Russian history, Spanish History, World History|0 Comments

Evelyn Waugh’s ear-trumpet

Evelyn Waugh with ear trumpet and rare moustache / oxfordtime.co.uk

I am sure there are Waugh-fans, or, better, Waugh-wolves who can answer a simple question: In their respective biographies of Evelyn Waugh, Christopher Sykes (Evelyn Waugh: a biography) and Selina Hastings (same title) tell the story of the ageing master of English prose appearing at an Ann Fleming dinner party with a huge, old-fashioned ear-trumpet. He claimed to be deaf, but was actually using the trumpet as a weapon in conversations. Sykes and Hastings have Ann Fleming giving the instrument a sound thwack with a table implement when Waugh turned it toward her. We are also told that Lady Diana Cooper poured champagne down it. (more…)

By Dean Swift| 2012-07-17T07:00:36+00:00 July 17th, 2012|English History, English Language, Humour, Today, US History, World History|0 Comments

The Gestapo: a brief history

A family group photograph / elnacionalista.mforos.org

With movies made about the Second World War as popular as ever, the name ‘Gestapo’ is familiar to almost everyone. Exactly what it was and its functions are not necessarily made clear in every movie however.

The official name of the Nazis’ secret police was the Geheime Staatspolizei. Its origin was the Prussian plain-clothed political police, much feared in Prussia, but not as feared as it became when re-organised by, of all people, the pompous, loud-mouthed Hermann Goering. Cinema- goers have become too accustomed to associating evil, mean-looking personalities like Himmler with the foundation of the Gestapo, but in reality it was started as a purely Prussian arm of the secret service, probably by Bismarck. (more…)

By Dean Swift| 2012-07-16T09:57:33+00:00 July 16th, 2012|English History, German History, History of Czechoslovakia, World History|0 Comments

Gone are the PSOE’s ladies at the cauldron

In Spain, Mr Rajoy and his team are slowly and laboriously edging their country back to sanity and a more stable economy, though the process will be long and tedious. Hercules cleaning up those Augean stables was child’s play compared with Spain’s newly elected government’s tasks. (more…)

By Dean Swift| 2012-07-13T11:31:07+00:00 July 13th, 2012|Humour, Philosophy, Spanish History, Today|0 Comments

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