William Wilberforce has been called an agitator for his commitment to ending the slave trade. One of his well known speeches on the subject was given on May 12, 1789.
Thomas Aquinas is credited as one of the greatest proponents of natural law. During his time in Cologne he was taught by Albertus Magnus. Magnus used the teachings of Aristotle in his mentorship of Thomas Aquinas.
Samuel Adams believed in American Independence from Great Britain. He is one of the most well know Son's of Liberty. On August 1, 1776 he gave a speech to the Continental Congress in Philadelphia.
Cardinal Richelieu has been hailed as a great statesman and as a subversive authoritarian. Depending on who you talk to he was a man needed to strengthen the monarchy in France, or he was a tyrant seeking personal power. Next week I will have a book review that may shed more light on Cardinal Richelieu.
“Lest the land become desolate and the Christian name be destroyed there, we exhort and command the faithful to take up the sign of the cross and bring aid to the Christians established in Livonia.”
Pope Gregory IX
During the time of Alexander Nevsky why were western Catholic powers seen as a greater spiritual threat than the Mongols?
The Golden Horde ruled the principalities of Russia. Noble Russians were still allowed to serve as the princes of the great cities, but they owed their power to the Horde. A tribute system was established and in practice in 1262.
Those who collected the tax were known as the Besermeny. The were usually Muslim merchants or tax farmers working for the Golden Horde. They were foreigners and they were collecting the wealth of the native Russians. This made them hated. Prior to 1262 the Horde conducted a census in Russia to determine exactly what tributes needed to be paid. This had been met with great hostility.
In 1262 the besermeny had great power. The Russian chronicle notes that they “created great violence among the people.” It seems clear that they were willing to abuse their power to accomplish their jobs. In addition to monetary contributions by 1262 the Russian population also had to contribute their men to fight in the wars of the Golden Horde. This further angered the local ...
