Battle of Salsu
>In 612, Emperor Yang of Sui invaded Goguryeo (Northern Korean kingdom) with well over one million men, dispatching 300,000 to take Goguryeo's capital city of Pyongyang.
>Goguryeo General Eulji Mundeok defended against the Sui forces for months, inflicting damage while feigning retreat deep into Goguryeo territory, where an ambush at the Salsu River was prepared and waiting.
> Eulji Mundeok had cut off the flow of water with a dam in advance, and when the Sui troops reached the river, the water level was shallow. When the unsuspecting Sui troops were halfway across the river, Eulji Mundeok opened the dam, causing the onslaught of water to drown thousands of enemy soldiers.
>This led to an overall campaign loss of all but 2,700 Sui troops out of 300,000 men.
This was one of the most lethal classical formation battles in history, yet it is seldom discussed despite being a truly great underdog victory. Even in Korea this event is immensely overshadowed by the Battle of Myeongryang.
What are some other great examples of forces hopefully outmatched/outclassed prevailing against the odds?
>>2177874
Mainly because thats not exactly how it happened.
The water drowning didn't wipe out the 300K army but rather ambush/hunger/disease/exhaustion and being deep within the enemy territory did.
>>2177887
These conditions being made possible by the breaking of the dam.
>>2177900
Pretty sure being on Earth made those conditions possible.
I have an obscure book request for /his/.
Pictured to the left is the character of Sir Malcolm Murray, featured in the series Penny Dreadful.
Essentially he's the classic British adventurer/explorer/collector. Travels the world, brings back artifacts and manuscripts, etc.
I have become interested in this archetypal character, especially after visiting the Chester Beatty Library in Dublin and realizing that men like Murray did exist, did travel the world, and did build enormous collections/conduct research.
Is there a 'term' for this adventurer/explorer? Are there any good monographs on the subject? Google is tough to wade through because I'm casting such a vague net. Basically, I want a book or books on the role of the adventurer/explorer in the 18th/19th/20th century.
Thanks if /his/ can throw me a bone.
>>2177766
these, if you use ctrl f creatively you may find books to your liking:
ancient egypt
http://pastebin.com/VzezWf3m
>last section on egyptology
victorian travel writing
http://pastebin.com/twFv7tem
image of africa
http://pastebin.com/jqAmzBgy
china and orientalism
http://pastebin.com/MArkYzLz
also the cambridge history of christianity vol 8 has a lot of sections dedicated to missionary activity, so the bibliographies can be useful for you. many british missionaries were also naturalists, orientalists and explorers.
http://bookzz.org/book/732185/04f637
Maybe this could help you
Sir Richard Burton was the classic Victorian scholar-adventurer. I'm sure you can find a lot of his writing online.
was there ANY tank in ww2 that could defeat the Tiger II in a head to head confrontation?
>>2177765
Was there any tank more expensive than Tiger II?
Technically IS-3's production started during WW2, too bad the Reich folded before it saw action.
>>2177765
M8 Greyhound
Would the world be better if he'd had his way?
>>2177716
yes. petrodollar-funded Wahhabism is the worst thing to have happened to the middle east since the mongols and it would never have happened under the Hashemites
>>2177716
can you give us a little backround info?
>>2177716
Is Lawrence of Arabia a good and accurate movie?
I don't want to watch 4 hours of something that is bullshit.
When Hercules was drawing very fast toward that Point of his Age, at which young Men being left to their own Disposal, generally shew whether they will turn their Steps to the Path of Virtue, or to that of Vice, for the rest of their Lives; he is said to have gone into a very retir'd Place, fit for Conversation: there to consider with himself, which of those two Paths he should pursue.
>>2177676
As he was sitting there, two Female Personages, (but of a larger Stature than the Human,) appear'd at a Distance, as drawing toward him. One of them had an easy, becoming Air. She seem'd to owe more to Nature, than to Art: every thing was neat, but nothing affected about her. Her Eyes were full of Modesty; her Behaviour, the most decent that can be imagin'd; and her Garments as white as Snow. The other, was of a softer Turn; and rather too plump. She seem'd to have given more Whiteness to her Skin, and a brighter Red to her Complexion, than Nature design'd for them. All her Carriage was affected; and she seem'd even to want to appear taller, than she really was. Her Eyes were open, and busy; and her Dress was adapted to shew all her Beauties, as much as possible. She was frequently regarding herself; then looking, to see whether she was regarded by others: and seem'd solicitous, even how her very Shadow should appear.
As they drew nearer, the former continu'd the same compos'd Pace: while the latter, striving to get before her, ran up to Hercules; and address'd herself to him, in the following Manner.
>>2177680
"I perceive, my Hercules, that you are deliberating which Path you shou'd take in Life. If you will choose me for your Friend, I will lead you to that which is the most easy, and the most agreeable. You shall taste all the Pleasure of Life in it; and be free from all its Cares and Troubles.
"In the first Place, you shall have nothing to do with Wars, or with Affairs of State. All your Study shall be, to consider what may be the most charming to your Taste, and your other Senses; what Amours you will choose to follow; how your Slumbers may be made the most easy; and by what means you may enjoy all these Blessings, without any Pains or Trouble.
>>2177685
"And if any Fears, or Suspicions, shou'd arise in your Mind, whence all these Things shall be supply'd to you; cast away those Suspicions and Fears! There are enough who labour; and fatigue both their Bodies and Minds. What they earn, you shall enjoy; and shall make free with every thing, where-ever you find it, that can afford you any Pleasure or Advantage; for this is a Privilege that I grant to all my Followers."
Hercules, on hearing such Offers, desired to know her Name. "The Name," says she, "by which I am known among my Friends, is Happiness; but my Enemies, out of their great good Humour, are pleas'd to call me — Vice."
How the hell did that happen!?
>>2177645
DC is like 85% Black, not sure about Massachusetts
>>2177645
I wonder too. Why couldn't people see Nixon is giant a meme?
Was it media blackout? Would he have won in the era of the Internet?
Nixon was already a fairly popular incumbent who was relatively centrist on domestic issues for a Republican and was negotiating detente with China.
McGovern got through the Democratic primaries with youth and activist support, but (thanks partially to smear campaigns by the Nixon campaign), was seen as a radical--the candidate of "amnesty, acid, and abortion", and many major labor unions (at the time the most important part of the Democratic coalition) withheld their support for him. In addition, it was leaked that his original running mate, Thomas Eagleton, was receiving electroshock therapy for depression, and he was forced off the ticket; this incident significantly harmed McGovern in the polls. Thus, he only won D.C. (blacks+white liberals) and Massachusetts (the most consistently Democratic state in the country since 1960)
Any good books about american-indian wars?
>>2177632
My native american tribal name would be Soaring Hawk. What would yours be
Bury my Heart at Wounded Knee for anything after the Civil War.
Tebbel and Jennison's The American Indian Wars for the earlier conflicts.
Son of the Morning Star for Custer antics.
The Dying Grass War and The Reverent for fiction.
>>2177647
Raping Dolphin.
>Frought with schisms over fucking succession and entire sects more dedicated to Persian Mysticism and pagan cults than the koran, and ultimately only innovative in the preservation of knowledge from older pagan cultures, dependent on slaves from pagan areas who in many cases kept their customs
>fairly petty caliphates that got taken over by their fucking SLAVES at one point, their caliphates can almost always be described as a tyranny powered by assassination
>Only about 600 years and not 2160
>Islamic
>Golden
>Age
This is worse than Holy Roman Empire in terms of being such a colossal fucking meme.
>>2177565
Do modern terrorist groups draw any inspiration from the Assassins?
Hard to imagine there was actually a death cult killing all the high profile individuals just for fun.
>>2177572
>Do modern terrorist groups draw any inspiration from the Assassins?
No they are mushrikin
>>2177565
I was gonna read a 600 page book on the subject, you just saved me a load of time, thanks
Try to convince me that what this guy did wasn't justified
Because vampire
Didn't this guy invited mentally ill people to a house to dine only to burn the place up?
>>2177551
I asked my Romanian workmate about him and she insisted I call him Vlad Tepes, not "Vlad the Impaler". She also didn't know about the Dracula legend, so I had to explain about our interpretation of that.
Apparently they see him as a national hero, a leader who managed to defend Wallachia from the Ottomans time and time again. They know that he did some pretty brutal things but that they were necessary.
By the sounds of it, I think his actions were justified in order to protect Orthodox Europe from Islamic invasion. But again I'm not really knowledgeable about the subject, just interested. The difference is I know an actual Romanian to talk about it with.
I'm an agnostic, this image sums up my opinion.
What's your take on this?
You wouldn't be able to convince anyone with a modern worldview of God's existence if it wasn't already a widely held belief. The concept has no credibility.
I don't believe in atheism or agnosticism.
No atheist or agnostic has ever in the history of science presented any empirical evidence whatsoever that they actually disbelieve in God. All they have is subjective personal testimony, which is frankly worthless.
Give me an atheism I can hold in my hand, or an agnosticism I can weight and measure and subject to the scientific method, or I'm afraid I'm just going to have to reject your claims with the same amount of evidence you have presented for them: none.
>>2177515
>You wouldn't be able to convince anyone with a modern worldview of God's existence if it wasn't already a widely held belief. The concept has no credibility.
Depends on your definition of God, really.
Consider that science is the knowledge of what things are.
In the same vein, consider that religion is the knowledge of what you should do.
Thus, God isn't a physical entity, existing in the real of physics, but rather a metaphysical entity, existing in the realm of ideas.
This "God", the collective knowledge of a group of people (that religions community) of what you should do, what is to be pursued, what is to be avoided, doesn't physically exist, but you can clearly tell its presence or absence.
Similarly beauty, or courage, or love, don't physically exist, but you can tell their presence or absence. Nobody would say courage is a fake thing, that doesn't exist, and people can instinctively measure it, saying that there is more or less of it in this or that person or situation.
Basically drop the ideas of what things are, science handles these, and keep the ideas of what we should do, and you are set.
Since secular ethics are a joke, and science doesn't tell us what to do, only how to do it, there is still room and need for it.
hey /his/.
Lets have a quality meme thread.
High resolution preferred.
>>2177327
>Have the opportunity to make quality historical discussions
>only floods the board with shitty memes and other shit flinging material
I think you need to go back to /int/
>>2177331
>ITT: People history forgot despite doing most of the work
The true son of the empire
>stopped the repeal of the corn laws which would help millions in order to help out his crony friends
No thanks!
>>2177210
Based Disraeli
How the hell did the tories go from him to the spineless Cameron and May
>>2177210
>history forgot
Not really.
Why were Muslims so cruel and ruthless in the Indian Subcontinent in comparison to Egypt and Syria?
Technically it was the Mughals, other Indians. So an entirely different group of folk. As for why, I dont know, emulation of Genghis?
>>2177105
Cruelty isn't something you do for fun and recreation, it is a punishment for insubordination.
Some places rebelled more, and were thus punished more.
>>2177147
Yeah, basically this The mughal army consisted of Pashtuns(martial race) and descendants of Genghis Khan. Did you really expect it to be anything less?
What does /his/ think of my country's greatest hero?
>>2177082
>christian fascism
Your hero is an oxymoron, and a regular moron.
Selective reading of christian texts to make it an antisemite and xenophobic doctrine about fighting thine neighbor and stealing from him, and chasing out the poor, combined with joining whoever looked like they were winning to get some spare land and thus fake economic progress.
His only saving grace is that most people saw through his shit, so not many joined the corrupted crusade against Russia and thus Romania didn't lose a million men to the cold and the soviet guns.
>>2177213
Not OP but the New Testament is as anti-Jewish as it gets.
And the term "anti semitic" is fucking nonsense, it implies an anti semite hates all semites (Arabs, Assyrians etc) instead of specifically Jews.
>>2177082
Based af.