Comments by "" (@craigkdillon) on "Knowledgia" channel.

  1. IMO, there were two main drivers to the Ottoman decline. 1. Portuguese and Dutch opened up sea trade with India and the East. The directed the flow of goods to Europe away from the normal silk road intermediaries. That cost the Ottoman Empire a steady decrease in its coffers. 2. The steady decline of the population of the Ottoman Empire compared to the population of Europe. In 1500, Ottoman Empire was over 30% the size of Europe's population. By 1900, it is under 10%. The demographic decline critical to its decline and fall.
    70
  2. The American Army performed so badly, that it was decided something must be done about that. So, West Point was founded to develop trained military commanders. It worked pretty well.
    43
  3. Fremont is pronounced Free-Mont, not Freh-mohn. He is American, not French.
    22
  4.  @himmelherscher9110  You do know that the Ottoman Empire started that war, and invaded Austria, right??? You do know the Sultan said he wanted to make Vienna a Muslim city, which would mean killing all those who did not convert, right?? You need to read your history more closely.
    12
  5.  @leescott1775  It was established in 1802 for the education of military engineers. AFTER War of 1812, it was expanded to actually team military sciences -- leadership, logistics, strategy, artillery, etc. That was done because of the poor showing of US Army commanders. The incompetence (cowardice?) in the "invasion" of Canada was particularly embarrassing. Also, the failure to defend our capitol was another reason.
    11
  6. I wish the changing trade patterns were analyzed as well. European trade with India & China was going by sea, diminishing Ottoman coffers. Is that why the Janissaries were restless?
    5
  7.  @leescott1775  Yes, West Point was a fort in the Revolutionary War. Benedict Arnold planned to turn the fort over to the British, but was found out. He had to flee.
    5
  8. Celts invent whiskey. Celts collapse. Simple enough.
    4
  9.  @abdulHaqqqq  Yes it is. It was the same threat given to the people of Malta during its siege in 1565.
    4
  10.  @chinguunerdenebadrakh7022  Very likely that it is both a cause and effect. You are right something caused the population decline Yet, the population decline was also a factor in the decline of the empire.
    3
  11. Although the escape from Dunkirk was wonderful, I do not think it appreciably altered the War. The air Battle of Britain would have been unchanged. America's involvement would have been unchanged. It may have diminished Britain's ability a little bit, for a short time, but, overall, I think little would have changed.
    3
  12.  @tommyhughes2264  I don't think UK would have sued for peace. But, US was not in the war yet, so UK might have. Still, I don't think Churchill would have done it. He hated Hitler & Germany. Plus, I don't think the British character is one that accepts surrender well. Also, you are giving your opinion, not fact. We are talking "what ifs" here, not facts. All we can have is our opinions. We may disagree, but there is no right or wrong, for we have no way to see an alternative history.
    3
  13. Related question is "Why was their no Reformation in the Orthodox branch of Christianity?" After the invention of the printing press, the Renaissance, Age of Discovery, and Age of Enlightenment occurred in Western Europe. WHY did those ages, or something like them, occur in Ottoman Empire, Persia, India, China, Chosun Empire, or Japan?? They ALL had access to the printing press. They all also had access to the new guns invented in Europe, too. But, why did they ALL lag behind Western Europe??
    2
  14. I wonder what Germany could have done, if Hitler had decided to postpone Barbarossa until AFTER he defeated England? With all the resources used in Barbarossa now available for use against Britain, could Germany have won? Could Germany have forced the England to the sue for peace?? I wonder.....
    2
  15. Left out the Battle of New Orleans. I know, it happened after the war was over. But, it is still important. It thrust Andrew Jackson into politics and towards the presidency.
    2
  16.  @razhok9725  He Europeans bypassed the silk road. Cutting off the main source of wealth of for the Middle East. The Ottoman Empire went into a decline it could do nothing about.
    2
  17. FYI: the word "viceroy:, is pronounce "vice-roy", long "i" not short "i". not, "viss-uh-roy".
    1
  18. The Thirty Years War resulted in the Separation of Church and State policies. In England, the policy was put into effect, without being put into law. I don't think religions are held in high regard in the region.
    1
  19.  @stanlibuda5786  Groups like the Quakers started during the time of the Thirty Years War. They brought the idea of separation of Church and State to the colonies. The Pilgrims, coming from England, believed in a Theocracy, and ruled the Massachusetts colony as that. When the colonies got their independence they adopted the idea of separation of Church and State. The idea was well established in Europe by the time of Bismarck.
    1
  20. I had no idea that disease was a critical factor, like in the colonization and occupation of the Americas. Depopulation makes areas up for grabs for the Europeans, who brought the diseases. In Africa and SE Asia, it was the other way around. African diseases like Malaria and the Sleeping Sickness, and others, kept the Europeans out. Except for South Africa, there was no settling of Africa by Europeans.
    1
  21. A small part, IMO. The Civil War was about slavery, and it would have happened with or without the Mexican War.
    1
  22. Huh? Confederacy lost a lot of battles in TN and KY. Steady stream of defeats all the way up to Vicksburg. Sure, Lee won some in VA, but they were when the Union was attacking. When Lee attacked --- he lost. The fact that the war was fought on Confederate land is a major loss on its own. Stop, just please, stop glorifying the Confederacy.
    1
  23. Tells what we already know --- what happened. Does NOT go into the reasons WHY. Disappointing..
    1
  24.  @عليياسر-ذ5ب  Not surprising. Poland went into decline, too.
    1
  25. The Black Death is given as the cause for the end of serfdom in Western Europe. So, why didn't that happen in Russia? Or Ottoman Empire? Or, China? etc etc. What was different, or special, about Western Europe?
    1
  26. I wish I had had a velvet divorce. Sounds wonderful. Even civilized.
    1