All posts tagged: Historians

Historians sue DOJ over presidential records opinion : NPR

Historians sue DOJ over presidential records opinion : NPR

Published by Sam Flores

A flag featuring Donald Trump waves amid a small group of his supporters near Mar-a-Lago in May 2024 in Palm Beach, Fla. Alon Skuy/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Alon Skuy/Getty Images Over the past year, President Trump has bulldozed through multiple restraints on his power. He’s fired watchdogs, dismantled agencies, and declared emergencies to impose tariffs and mobilize troops. Now, he’s shrugging off a law Congress passed decades ago to preserve White House papers — and historians are taking him to court. At stake is the fate of millions of papers and electronic messages — not just for Trump’s second term in office, but for future presidents and people who want to understand them. Matthew Connelly, a history professor at Columbia University, says the move shows Trump is trying to ensure the presidency “is answerable to no one, not even the court of history.” “This latest case is just another example of the utter contempt with which they hold not just history but the rights of their fellow citizens to hold them to account,” …

Clarence Thomas blames progressivism for Hitler. Historians aren’t having it

Clarence Thomas blames progressivism for Hitler. Historians aren’t having it

Published by Sam Flores

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas is facing backlash after remarks linking progressive political ideas to the rise of Adolf Hitler, a comparison critics say misrepresents history while escalating partisan rhetoric. During a recent speech, Thomas criticized early 20th-century progressivism — including ideas associated with President Woodrow Wilson — arguing that such movements contributed to conditions that enabled authoritarian regimes in Europe. The comments, which circulated widely online, drew sharp responses from historians and legal scholars who rejected the comparison as inaccurate and misleading. Experts note that the rise of Nazi Germany is broadly understood to have stemmed from a complex set of factors, including economic collapse, political instability and the aftermath of World War I, not American progressive reforms. Critics argue that invoking Hitler in modern ideological debates risks distorting that history while inflaming political divisions. Supporters of Thomas defended the remarks as part of a broader critique of government overreach, suggesting he was drawing philosophical parallels rather than asserting a direct causal relationship. Start your day with essential news from Salon.Sign up for …

Why Trump’s AI Jesus image is unlikely to be satanic – according to art historians

Why Trump’s AI Jesus image is unlikely to be satanic – according to art historians

Published by Daniella Wilson

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Donald Trump’s “now-deleted “Jesus” photo, in which he is depicted as a Christ-like figure glowing with divine light as he lays a healing hand on a sick man’s head, has been widely condemned as blasphemous, terrifying (if he considers himself the one true saviour) – and utterly inappropriate. Trump posted the image to his Truth Social account on Monday after criticising Pope Leo XIV, who has been vocal in his condemnation of the US and Israeli military operation in Iran, for being “weak on crime”. Outrage quickly followed, with figures across the political spectrum – from far-right Christians to liberal lawmakers – expressing their offence to the comparison. Former Georgia GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene decried the post and said she was “praying against it” while Vermont Independent Bernie Sanders described it as “deranged” and ”ecomaniacal behaviour”. But as …

Historians dispute link between drought and rebellion in Roman Britain

Historians dispute link between drought and rebellion in Roman Britain

Published by skeptic

Hadrian’s Wall marked the northern border of Roman territory in ancient Britain HISTORIC ENGLAND/HERITAGE IMAGES/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY Researchers are at odds over a claim that droughts helped trigger conflicts in late Roman Britain. Climatologists identified evidence of drought coinciding with unrest and battles, but historians say they have misread key written sources. The dispute highlights the ongoing difficulties researchers face when trying to integrate data on past climates into the historical record. “You see this time and time again,” says Dagomar Degroot, a climate historian at Georgetown University in Washington DC. In a study published last year, a team led by Ulf Büntgen, a geographer at the University of Cambridge, analysed tree ring data from oak trees from southern Britain and northern France to reconstruct the climate between AD 288 and 2009. The researchers identified a series of severe summer droughts in southern Britain between the years 364 and 366. They linked this to the so-called “Barbarian Conspiracy” of 367, when warriors from Britain and Ireland inflicted a series of defeats on the Roman Empire, …

An ancient Jewish historian’s description of Jesus was so positive, critics called it fraudulent  – OpentheWord.org

An ancient Jewish historian’s description of Jesus was so positive, critics called it fraudulent  – OpentheWord.org

Published by Sam Flores

Jesus teaching on the Mountain by Sealino, Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 159 | An ancient Jewish historian’s description of Jesus was so positive, critics called it fraudulent FOLLOW OUR PODCAST ON (search opentheword): PODCAST NOTES: ESPAÑOL: Was Josephus’ Description of Jesus, a Glowing Declaration or a Grudging Admission? One of the more compelling statements by ancient historians on the existence of Jesus was made by Josephus, a Jewish General and historian who died in 100 AD. In his book, Antiquities of the Jews, Josephus wrote: “And in this time, there was a certain Jesus, a wise man, if indeed one ought to call him a man, for he was a doer of incredible deeds, a teacher of men who receive truisms with pleasure. And he brought over many from among the Jews and many from among the Greeks. He was [thought to be] the Christ. And, when Pilate had condemned him to the cross at the accusation of the first men among us, those who at first were devoted to him did not cease to be …

King Harold’s 200-mile forced march to Battle of Hastings ‘implausible’, historians say

King Harold’s 200-mile forced march to Battle of Hastings ‘implausible’, historians say

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email New research suggests that the widely accepted narrative of King Harold’s army undertaking a near 200-mile forced march to the Battle of Hastings in 1066 is likely incorrect, with evidence pointing to troops largely travelling by ship instead. The traditional account posits that after his victory at the Battle of Stamford Bridge in Yorkshire, Harold’s forces were compelled to rush south on foot to face the Norman invasion. However, Professor Tom Licence, a medieval history and literature expert at the University of East Anglia, argues this narrative stems from a Victorian “misunderstanding”. He contends that the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, a key early record of English history, was misinterpreted. While the Chronicle appears to imply Harold dismissed his fleet, forcing a foot march, Professor Licence suggests a record stating ships “came home” was mistakenly taken by Victorian historians to mean Harold disbanded his navy. They actually returned …

Ancient Historians Confirm the Darkness and Earthquake Associated with Christ’s Crucifixion – OpentheWord.org

Ancient Historians Confirm the Darkness and Earthquake Associated with Christ’s Crucifixion – OpentheWord.org

Published by Sam Flores

The darkness associated with Christ’s crucifixion by Émile Bernard, Wikipedia, Public Domain Easter Sunday takes place on April 5, 2026. It marks the day that Jesus rose from the dead. So it is appropriate to deal with one of the earliest references of Christ’s crucifixion from a nonChristian source. It involves a man by the name of Thallus who around 52 AD wrote three books on the history of the Mediterranean world. This was about 30 years after Christ’s crucifixion. Though copies of his works have not survived, we know they exist as fragments have been found. His works were also referenced by several other writers. One of the most intriguing was made by a Christian writer, Sextus Julius Africanus, who died around 240 AD. He was a historian and philosopher. By all accounts he was careful in citing his sources. The Gospel writers Mark, Luke and Matthew speak of the unusual darkness that took place when Jesus was crucified. Matthew describes it this way: 45 Now from noon until three, darkness came over all the …

Historians resist Trump’s effort to police the past

Historians resist Trump’s effort to police the past

Published by Sam Flores

Donald Trump is an instinctive authoritarian. This is the defining feature of his personality and political life. Since his return to power, he has become much more extreme, ambitious and dangerous. Such leaders know that controlling the past is how you win the present — and lay the groundwork for commanding the future. These types of bad actors will never be satisfied in their quest to remake society in their ideological and personal image. To control society, you must first control how people think. But such attempts are almost always contested. This explains why authoritarians and other enemies of democracy systematically target schools, universities, science, the arts, libraries, the independent news media and Fourth Estate, museums — anywhere knowledge is produced and critical thinking is taught. To control society, you must first control how people think. But such attempts are almost always contested. A recent Washington Post story documents how a group of historians, scholars and volunteers are pushing back against the Trump administration’s attempts to remake the Smithsonian museum system in the name of …

Anne Boleyn Portrait ‘Rebuttal’ of Witchcraft Rumors, Say Historians

Anne Boleyn Portrait ‘Rebuttal’ of Witchcraft Rumors, Say Historians

Published by José Betancourt

A portrait of Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII’s ill-fated second wife, is now thought to be an attempt to rehabilitate her image after her death. Using infrared reflectography, historians and curators have uncovered evidence that the work was at least partially created to dispel rumors that Boleyn was a witch with six fingers. In the painting, which hangs in Hever Castle in England, both of Boleyn’s hands, each with the usual number of digits, are visible. But the new infrared scans reveal that the underdrawing for the portrait didn’t show her hands at all, suggesting that the work’s unknown maker deviated from the drawing to include them. Related Articles Sixteenth-century portraits, especially those of royalty, were often based on “patterns”—sketches made from life during brief sittings. Not only were these used by the artist who made the original sketch, copies of this “official” likeness were circulated to other studios and workshops to ensure a consistent image of the sitter.   The Hever portrait may have been made from one such copy, but at a later time. …