The Battle of San Romano

The Battle of San Romano, by Paolo Uccello

This painting comes from a set of three paintings, by florentine artist Paolo Ucello, all three paintings show events from the Battle of San Romano. The Battle of San Romano was fought in June 1432, and it was a Battle between Florence and Sienna, it lasted for about 6/7 hours of heavy cavalry fighting, and even though the results favor the Florentines, the Sienese considered it a victory. This painting shows some linear perspective which was a big deal for that time period, it was painted using Egg tempera. In this time period, popular artworks had to meet a certain criteria, it had to be religious, painted realistically, go back to the Roman or Greek times, or be painted using perspective, and this painting was not only realistically painted, but it used perspective, which then meant that it met the criteria for art work.



"The Battle of San Romano." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 21 Sept. 2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Battle_of_San_Romano>.

Vandal.

I woke up this morning to the sound of rushing feet, i could smell the energy in the air, everyone was excited, i jumped out of bed, and i went outside to see what was up.

I soon discovered it was Pablo, our tribe leader, he had found our next country of invasion. We, the Franks, would take over France, and take their shelter, and fertile soil. Many of us are settled in different areas, but we will gather together, and join in France, for now.

Were taking everything, all our shields, all our swords, it's crazy, we're all so excited, even the farmers are coming, with their pitchforks and shovels, i can't wait, this is going to be a marvelous journey.

The 9/11

Ten years ago, on this very day, terrorist attacks caused a plane to crash through, and destroy the twin towers in New York; but have all the after effects subsided?

September 11^th, 2001 was an overall negative experience, and a devastating day as a whole for everyone, for the whole world. Terrorists took control of aircrafts, and caused them to crash into the World Trade Centers (The Twin Towers). People lost lives, friends, relatives…the whole world was affected by the tragic events of that day.

The months that followed the attacks were difficult for many. People were mourning the deaths of their relatives, friends, and loved ones; but for some it went deeper than that. An event this large, that caused that many deaths, and that much damage, affected some people deeply. Depression, sleeping disorders, and many other mental health issues arose around this time, with people struggling to grasp the reality of what had just happened to their nation. But are people still suffering now? They are, all over the world, the impact of the 9/11 is still greatly felt, whether it’s through the mourning of loved ones, or through the heartache and depression, on this day, every year, they are reminded of the tragic events, and the brave firefighters who risked their lives to try and save others.

The 9/11 didn’t just affect Americans, it affected the whole world, and left everyone speechless, how can someone purposely take innocent lives? This is a question still un answered, but one commonly asked. Terrorism as a whole has decreased since September 11^th, as bigger security measures have been taken, and more awareness has been raised, but it hasn’t stopped as a whole.

I don’t understand how a person could take innocent lives, and how people are still doing it all over the world, the after effects of the 9/11 attacks will never subside, and the month of September will be a constant reminder of everything that happened that day.

The 'Dark' ages? agree or disagree.

I agree.
In my opinion, the term dark ages is well-fitting to the middle ages. When the term 'Dark' is used, we think of sad, bad, depressing times. Which is true in this case, as there was nothing good about the middle ages. Many things contributed to the darkness of these times, most of which caused sadness or death, these being Diseases, new methods of torture, and the constant war.

Disease was very widespread during these time, as people came in contact with many viruses, and by spreading across towns and cities, spread the germs and infected large populations. A major one being the black plague. The black plague spread easily, and quickly, as did Leprosy, and without todays technology, no cures were found, and so many people died. Skin disease was also very common among peasants, as the wool they wore often caused skin problems which were very widespread.

The people of the middle ages strongly believed in torture, to prove innocence or guilt, and to get confessions. Many different torture methods were used, each equally painful, and terrible as the next. such as the torture of dislocation, where they dislocated your joints, 'The Rack' where you were stretched out, and being burned alive.

War also played a big role in the middle ages, there was constant fighting, over one thing or another, as soon as one war ended, another one started. Cities were pillaged and ruined, people were killed, the economy was destroyed.

Some good things may have arisen from these dark ages, but so did many deaths, and lots of torture, so in my opinion, the term 'Dark ages' describes this time period very effectively.