Tag: Obelisk

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“Cleopatra in Paris and Full-Frontal Baboons”

One of my favorite sites in Paris (and I have many) is the Place de la Concorde. This giant roundabout has seen its share of historical events from the time of its inception in 1755 to the French Revolution in the late 18th-century and finally, the liberation of Paris from the Nazis in August 1944. Originally known as the Place Louis XV, it is easily recognizable by the two Fontaines de la Concorde based on a theme of rivers and seas, the sculptures representing eight French cities, and of course, the view up the Avenue des Champs-Élysées toward the Arc de Triomphe. However, once in sight of the Place, your eyes are immediately drawn to the tall obelisk standing in the center of the Place. The obelisk is more than three thousand years old and called the Luxor Obelisk. There is another famous obelisk standing in London and it is called “Cleopatra’s Needle.” For those of you who know your Egyptian history, you’ll immediately recognize that naming a 3,000-year-old obelisk after Cleopatra is misleading. I am sure that some people confuse the obelisks and might associate the Paris Luxor Obelisk with Cleopatra.

Luxor Obelisk in Place de la Concorde. Photo by Gerd Eichmann (2017). PD-CCA-Share Alike 4.0 International. Wikimedia Commons.
Luxor Obelisk in Place de la Concorde. Photo by Gerd Eichmann (2017). PD-CCA-Share Alike 4.0 International. Wikimedia Commons.
Cleopatra’s Needle, London, England. Photo by Adrian Pingstone (2004). PD-Author Release. Wikimedia Commons.
Cleopatra’s Needle, London, England. Photo by Adrian Pingstone (2004). PD-Author Release. Wikimedia Commons.

Did You Know?

Did you know that historical “transitions” don’t happen instantaneously? What I mean is that historical events aren’t simply turned on and off by a switch. A great example would be the rise and decline of the Roman Empire. When you ask, “When did the Roman Empire end?” the common response is 500 A.D. Well, it’s not like the Romans were out and the Huns were in at the stroke of midnight on 1 January 500 A.D. There were several hundred years over which the transition took place. The same could be said of the twentieth century’s Cold War, although it took much less time than the demise of the Roman Empire. We tend to think that once World War II was over, we immediately entered into the Cold War with the Soviet Union. While it didn’t take long before Truman and Churchill saw the conflict coming, it took the public quite a while to come to grips with the Soviet threat. Churchill’s famous “Iron Curtain” speech in March 1946 was criticized as being too hawkish and Truman was forced to distance himself from Churchill. The Soviet Union coup of Czechoslovakia in February 1948 established Communist control in that country for the next four decades. It also woke up the American public to Soviet global intentions and as a result, the Cold War was off and running. Today, could it be that a similar pattern with respect to China is beginning to emerge? Travelling through Southeast Asia recently, we saw first-hand the influence of China in that region of the world. It is spread far, and it is deep. With the exception of Singapore and Vietnam, the economies of the other countries we visited appeared to be heavily dependent on China and its vast investments. The Chinese have always taken a long-term approach to their goals. During the 1970s, Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai was once asked what he thought was the significance of the 1789 French Revolution ⏤ almost two hundred years earlier. He responded, “It’s too soon to tell.”

Egyptian Dynasties

A total of thirty-one Egyptian dynasties existed between 3100 B.C. and 332 B.C. (e.g., “1st Dynasty,” “2nd Dynasty,” and so forth). Preceding these between 3200 B.C. and 3100 B.C. was the “Predynastic Period” or “Dynasty 00.” After the 31st Dynasty ended in 332 B.C., the Hellenistic dynasty of Alexander the Great (332 to 309 B.C.) ruled Egypt followed by the Ptolemaic Dynasty (309 to 30 B.C.). The Cleopatra we all know and love was one of the last rulers before Egypt was absorbed into the Roman Empire. Read More “Cleopatra in Paris and Full-Frontal Baboons”

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“Nazi Werwolves”

Soon after the Normandy invasion on 6 June 1944, the Allies became concerned the Nazis had created an elite Schutzstaffel (SS) underground organization to continue fighting after the Germans were defeated. This secret organization was named “Werwolf.”

Werwolf organization pennant. Photo by Xufanc (2010). PD-Author release. Wikimedia Commons.
Werwolf organization pennant. Photo by Xufanc (2010). PD-Author release. Wikimedia Commons.

No one knows how and why Werwolf was used as the name for Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler’s guerilla resistance force. However, there are perhaps some dots we can connect.

Nazi Germany Werwolf member badge. Photo by Wolfmann (May 2019). PD-CCA Share-Alike 4.0 International. Wikimedia Commons.
Nazi Germany Werwolf member badge. Photo by Wolfmann (May 2019). PD-CCA Share-Alike 4.0 International. Wikimedia Commons.

Hitler named his Ukraine field headquarters, Werwolf and on occasion, Hitler would refer to himself as “Wolf.” His Eastern Front military headquarters was known as Wolfsschanze or, Wolf’s Lair. A novel written in 1910 by Hermann Löns was Der Wehrwolf. It was a story of revenge whereby a group of men called Wehrwölfe became mercenaries and eventually began to enjoy killing people. The book became popular with the German right-wing so naturally, the Nazis embraced it.

Did You Know?

Did you know that the Place de la Concorde in Paris was once a giant sundial? Most of us are aware of the three-thousand-year-old Luxor Obelisk that stands in the center of this giant roundabout. It was given to France in 1833 by the ruler of the Ottoman Empire, Muhammad Ali. All the Pasha wanted in return was a big mechanical clock for the Citadel in Cairo ⏤ it’s there but reportedly, doesn’t work. While you walk around the Place de la Concorde, look down at the pavement and you might see Roman numerals. The founder of the Société de France, Camille Flammarion, decided to create the largest sundial in the world and in 1913, plans were drawn up to use the Obelisk as a gnomon (the pin of a sundial). Unfortunately, it wasn’t until 1999 when the plans were finally approved by the mayor of Paris and the sundial was created. Time was not kind to the Paris sundial and by 2001, most of the pavement imprints had faded or worn away. However, there still are some numerals left and if you look closely at certain times of the day, the Obelisk can tell you the time. I think I’ll rely on my trusty Seiko watch. If you’d like to explore more about the history of the Obelisk, please be sure to read our next blog (7 December 2019), Cleopatra in Paris and Full Frontal Baboons (click here to read). We’ll also talk a little bit about our recent trip to Egypt where we saw the Paris Obelisk’s twin.

Roman numeral on the pavement at the Place de la Concorde. Photo by Claudine Hemingway (date unknown). Bonjour Paris.
Roman numeral on the pavement at the Place de la Concorde. Photo by Claudine Hemingway (date unknown). Bonjour Paris.

Unternehmen Werwolf

Heinrich Himmler, head of the Gestapo and the SS, decided to form the Unternehmen Werwolf or, Operation Werwolf in late 1944. The purpose of this secret volunteer force was to operate behind enemy lines. Himmler envisioned them to be similar to the Allied Special Forces known as “Commandos.” SS Obergruppenführer Hans-Adolf Prützmann (1901-1945) was assigned the responsibility of organizing and training Operation Werwolf volunteers. Prützmann was a veteran of fighting Soviet guerilla soldiers and partisans in the Ukraine and he intended to use their guerilla tactics in training his Werwolf men and women. Prior to the Werwolf campaign, Prützmann, a fanatic Nazi, led the mobile extermination group, Einsatzgruppe A, which murdered thousands of Latvian Jews and Ukrainian civilians. Watch the movie clip SS Werwolves – The True Story here. Read More “Nazi Werwolves”