#Rhaetia

[argakyan]

The province of Rhaetia or Raetia in the Roman Empire, according to Gustav Droysen, superimposed onto modern day Google Maps

(source for map data: "Germanien" in "Gustav Droysens Allgemeiner historischer Handatlas - in 96 Karten mit erläuterndem Text", Gustav Droysen, Velhagen & Klasing, 1886)

[fritz-letsch]

Wer ließ Kurt Eisner ermorden?

War es der, der Jahre später bewusst auch den Mörder traute? „Weil doch einmal Blut fließen muss, bevor wieder Ordnung kommt“ Anton Arco war ein junger, in seiner adeligen militaristischen Ehre verletzter Student in der Burschenschaft Rhaetia, der an der Ecke am Promenadenplatz dem Ministerpräsidenten Kurt Eisner auflauerte, als er aus dem Außenministerium, in dem er meist arbeitete, zur Sitzung im damaligen Landtag in der Prannerstraße gehen wollte. Von hinten schoss er ihm zwei mal in den Kopf, bevor ihn dessen Begleitung niederschießen konnte, Professor Sauerbruch rettete ihm das Leben. In einem späteren Prozess wurden ihm „ehrenhafte Motive“ bescheinigt, nach der Verurteilung folgte ein baldige Begnadigung durch die reaktionäre Regierung nach der Niederschlagung der Räterepublik. "Am 21. Februar 1919 tötete Arco den damaligen Ministerpräsidenten Kurt Eisner (USPD) mit zwei Revolverschüssen in den Hinterkopf. Sein Opfer war nach der Novemberrevolution von 1918 in München von der Versammlung der Arbeiter- und Soldatenräte (8. November 1918) zum ersten Ministerpräsidenten des Freistaats Bayern gewählt worden. Eisner befand sich auf dem Weg in den Landtag, wo er nach der verlorenen Landtagswahl seinen Rücktritt anbieten wollte. Eisners Leibwächter schossen den Attentäter sofort nieder und verletzten ihn lebensgefährlich: An den Blutungen eines Halsschusses drohte Arco zu ersticken." wikipedia.org/wiki/Anton_Graf_von_Arco_auf_Valley „Weil doch einmal Blut fließen muss, bevor wieder Ordnung kommt“ Erzbischof Faulhabers Krisendeutung in seinem Tagebuch 1918/19 ist seit Jahren bekannt. doch hatten die früheren Veröffentlichungen noch zu viel Respekt vor dem Kirchenmann: Die Rolle der Burschenschaft wäre den Nahestehenden durchaus bekannt gewesen, und die Rhaetia hatte vor einigen Jahren noch stolz die Mordtat auf ihrer Website, und weil sie als bayrisch-katholische Burschenschaft dem Kardinal zugeordnet ist, hatte sie sicher seine Empfehlung ernst genommen. Dagegen wurde die sicher falsche Spur zur Thule-Gesellschaft gelegt, die in ihrem germanischen Rassismus den halbjüdischen Katholiken sicher nicht aufgenommen hätte, denn sie forderten schon damals von den Anwärtern die Arier-Nachweise über fünf Generationen, wie später die SS und die "Nürnberger Gesetze" für Staatsbeamte. Antonia Leugers:  „Weil doch einmal Blut fliessen muss, bevor wieder Ordnung kommt“ Erzbischof Faulhabers Krisendeutung in seinemTagebuch 1918/19 | Leugers | theologie.geschichte Beihefte (theologie-geschichte.de) DOI: https://doi.org/10.48603/t.g.v0i7.612 Der königliche Hofkaplan, dessen König samt Familie nach Österreich geflohen war, weil in Russland im August 1918 die Zarenfamilie ermordet worden war und die bürgerliche Propaganda den "Bolschewisten" die gleichen Absichten unterstellte, war plötzlich ohne Oberhaupt, das König Ludwig III. für die bayrischen Katholiken war, wie der Kaiser in Berlin für die deutschen Protestanten. „Weil doch einmal Blut fließen muss, bevor wieder Ordnung kommt“ Hatte der Kardinal das auch den Studierenden in der Rhaetia gesagt, und damit den „Grafen“ Anton Arco auf Valley zur Tat aufgefordert?  Die Propaganda-Lüge der Dolchstoß-Legende hatte, verbreitet über Kardinal Faulhaber und in der Burschenschaft Rhaetia, auch in der Thule-Gesellschaft und deren Vorträgen, ihrer "Sport-Zeitung"  und allen Münchner Zeitungen, sicher mitgewirkt, die Die Adelstitel waren mit der neuen Verfassung abgeschafft, aber der Militarismus mit seiner damals weitgehenden adeligen Führung hielt sich natürlich nicht daran, fühlte sich von dem „dahergelaufenen Juden und Bolschewisten“ in der Ehre gekränkt, dazu hetzte die bürgerliche Presse, er habe seine ostjüdische Verwandtschaft in Ämter gesetzt und etliche Lügen mehr, er heiße in Wirklichkeit Kosmanowski etc … http://raete-muenchen.de/kurt-eisner-in-muenchen-erschossen-21-2-1919 Den Menschen der Jahre 1919 sagte das weit mehr, als wir heute wissen: Der langjährige Redakteur des Vorwärts hatte ja zuerst auch noch der Propaganda geglaubt, dass Russland hinter dem Ausbruch des Krieges stand, weil sie mit Serbien verbündet waren, und die ganze komplizierte Geschichte der Bünde und Verträge und Nichtangriffs-Pakte verwirrte unsere pubertären Gehirne und machte die Geschichte des Adels und der Könige, dann auch der Politiker unheimlich kompliziert. Dabei wusste damals jeder halbwegs gebildete, und es stand ja auch in den Zeitungen: Der Kaiser ließ seit Jahren aufrüsten, eine Flotte bauen, dafür gab es extra eine Sektsteuer (die es bis heute gibt), um den Beitrag der national Denkenden reichen Deutschen einzusammeln. Es sollte um Kolonien gehen, kirchlich gesprochen, um „Mission“ der Heidenkinder, und es ging schon mit unvorstellbaren Verbrechen gegen „die Wilden“ und „unseren Helden“ wurden bis heute stehende kaiserliche Denkmäler errichtet. Kurt Eisner hatte aber durch die damaligen Pressedienste mehr erfahren, und die Ermunterungen zum Krieg durch die Diplomatie kennen gelernt: Ab da war er gegen die Zustimmung zu weiteren Kriegskredite und 1917 bei der Gründung der USPD, aus der sich später die Spartakisten abzweigten.

Gedenken an Kurt Eisner:

Di 21. Februar 2023 um 11 Uhr am Ort seiner Ermordung in der Kardinal-Faulhaber-Straße – am Ort seiner Ermordung – an Kurt Eisner, der u.a. sehr für die Beendigung des 1. Weltkrieges gekämpft hat. Michaela Dietl wird uns mit Friedensliedern begleiten. Zur Veranstaltung haben wir heute eine Presse-Erklärung veröffentlicht, die wir Euch hier schicken:  Die Waffen nieder! Feuilletonisten werden schreiben: « …schön, dass es sie gab, die Suttner, den Remarque, den Borchert ». Oder « Menschen wie den Kurt Eisner…. ». Aber heute, in die Wendezeit, da passt das nicht mehr so recht. Pazifismus geht nur noch bewaffnet. Pazifistische Waffen, die Frieden schaffen. Der wahre Pazifist sitzt heute im Leopard. Und überhaupt, die haben ja angefangen. Vorher war doch alles friedlich und schiedlich. Zumindest vor der Haustüre. Meistens wenigstens. Und die Pazifistin für Kriegsdiplomatie wusste schon, was auf sie zukommt. Sie trug Kriegsmode, bevor er überhaupt richtig los ging. Bravo! schreit die atlantische Brückenpresse, sowas stottert unbedarft sein Credo, gelernt in Engelland.   Der, die, das Pazifist weiß heute endlich, was gut und böse ist. Das goldene Kalb im Westen und der blutige Bär im Osten, hie Glückskind, da Oligarch und hinter den sieben Bergen die Chinesen. Das geht nicht gut, das musste ja krachen. Nicht zwischen oben und unten, sondern zwischen denen und uns. Nichts geht gut, auch links nicht und grün schon gleich gar nicht. Die Melnykisierung kennt keine Parteien mehr, nur noch Brandherde, die mit Treibstoff gelöscht werden wollen. Keine Angst, sowas überschreitet keine Grenzen und dem Merz ist vor Atomarem nicht bange. Eigentlich ein Manöver in Echt. Und jeder kann mitreden bis hinein in die letzte Schraube des abwehrerprobten Patrioten.  Die Waffen nieder? Das ist Kriegshetze, der Spruch der fünften Kolonne Putins. Erst wenn der vor ein Kriegstribunal gezerrt wird, das die friedfertigen Amis nie anerkennen wollten, wird verhandelt, wo gelöscht und wo aufs Neue gezündelt wird. Kurt Eisner, wir gestehen am Jahrestag Deiner Ermordung, es ist wieder einmal zum Kotzen. Aber es gibt sie schon noch, die sich an Dich erinnern und in die Zukunft mitnehmen, dann, wenn sie wieder abflaut, wenn es uns gelingt, sie einzudämmen, diese Welle der Panzerpazifisten. Übrigens schreibt Heribert Prantl in seiner Kolumne am 10. Februar 2023: „Das Wort Frieden und der Aufruf zu Verhandlungen ist aber keine Distanzierung von der Ukraine, sondern eine Distanzierung vom Krieg“. Herzliche Grüße, Das andere Bayern e.V. www.dasanderebayern.de   Read the full article

[whencyclopedia]

Augusta Raurica

Augusta Raurica is a former Roman colony and city located on the Rhine River some 11 km (7 miles) east of the modern Swiss city of Basel, in between the towns of Kaiseraugst and Augst. Founded by Lucius Munatius Plancus (90 BCE - 15 BCE) around 44-43 BCE, Augusta Raurica is the oldest Roman colony constructed along the Rhine. The colony grew quickly into a city and by c. 200 CE, Augusta Raurica had between 10,000-20,000 inhabitants in its short-lived heyday. Despite its rapid growth in just three centuries, constant attacks by the Alemanni, an earthquake around 250 CE, and continued political unrest in Roman Rhaetia caused the majority of Augusta Raurica's population to abandon their city.

Celtic Origins & Roman Foundation

The area in and around Augusta Raurica had been settled by a Celtic tribe commonly referred to as the "Raurici" by historians. Before the Romans entered the region, the Raurici built a Celtic oppidum and settled close to the Rhine River. This tribe along with the Helvetii and others attempted to settle lands in eastern France at the beginning of Julius Caesar's Gallic Wars (58-50 BCE). They were defeated by Julius Caesar at the Battle of Bibracte in what is present-day France in 58 BCE, and they relocated back east towards what is present-day Switzerland. Julius Caesar's success in the Gallic Wars ensured that areas on the southern and western bank of the Rhine would come under Roman supremacy.

Victory against the Raetians in 16-15 BCE helped Augustus Caesar secure control over all of what is present-day Switzerland.

Lucius Munatius Plancus founded Augusta Raurica c. 44-43 BCE, however, effective colonization was delayed due to the protracted conflict resulting from the civil wars and foreign conflicts following the assassination of Julius Caesar. The brief military campaigns of Aulus Terentius Varro Murena (d. 24 BCE) against the Raetians in 16-15 BCE helped Augustus Caesar secure control over all of what is present-day Switzerland. Roman colonization at Augusta Raurica thus dates from c. 15 BCE, during the reign of Augustus Caesar (r. 27 BCE - 14 CE). The colony was named in honor of the Roman emperor; the Romans built the city with wood from nearby forests on a plateau near the town of Augst and within close proximity of the Rhine River.

Continue reading...

[anastpaul]

Saint of the Day – 19 April – Saint Gerold of Saxony (c900-c978) Hermit

Saint of the Day – 19 April – Saint Gerold of Saxony (c900-c978) Hermit. … Born in in Rhaetia, in the lower part of the Alps (part of modern Austria/Switzerland) and died on 16 April 978 of natural causes in Frisun, today the Town of St Gerold. Also known as – Gerold Graziato, Gerold of Einsiedeln, Gerold of Großwalsertal, Gerold of Grosswalsertal, Gerold of Vorarlberg, Adam… Geroldus… On 1…

[rhaetiadan]

Wolvesreign Deities of Separti: Ruah Ziva

Lore

Ruah Ziva rose to divinity approximately 750 years ago during the Anterhaetian Period during a tumultuous time when Separti was under Old Huescan rule. Modern scholars contest the exact identity of Ruah Ziva before their ascension to Sainthood, with at least a dozen regional origin myths. Three, however, remain the most widely circulated--

Asnat of Ruach Ommiad academic historians state they were born Asnat of Ruach, an orphaned child of indeterminate gender “molded from clay” by the Order of Getik to become an Ashmedai-- a powerful sorcerer-priest trained to hunt loziva, creatures from outer realms that bare no common ancestry with humanity or the Godhead. While acting as an ashmedai, Asnet began having visions that drove her to lead a cherem (holy war) against Huesca. Considering Huesca’s pantheon a form of loziva worship, she cut down Huescans without remorse and expelled them from Separti’s shores. After the slaughter Asnet was proclaimed Ruah Ziva (meaning Breath of God) by the Order of Getik as a living avatar of the Godhead, and unified the island of Separti from a fractured faith into a grand army of religious zealots. With the Separti faith’s blessing, Asnat extended her cherem south to conquer Old Huesca in what is now the Ommiad Empire. Old Huesca, brought to its knees, ceded their empire to the Separti and crowned Asnat Empress Rhaetia the First as head of their pantheon.

Dveira IX Old Huescan religious texts maintained in modern Huesca tell a very different story. If they are to be believed Ruah Ziva was born Dveira IX of Polmaria descendant from Saint Polmaria, the Consort. House Polmaria were known collaborators with the Old Huescan occupiers, believing in a prophecy that a child of Polmaria and the “world spine” would bring about a great Apotheosis where all the realm’s small gods would bow to the Breath of God. House Polmaria sought to speed this process along by intermarrying and propagating with peoples from across modern Rhaetiadan, creating large academies of Polmarian children who would be monitored for signs of divinity. It was from one of these academies in far away Xirimira that Dveira was identified as an ideal vessel for Ruah Ziva. As Polmaria was an established member of the Huescan pantheon, Dveira IX represented a personal union between both faiths ordained by the gods. Dveira was brought from Xirimira to Huesca where she was raised to rule, before being sent to her ancestral home of Separti at the behest of the Old Huescan faith to unite her people in a bloody civil war. In her victory, she was crowned Empress Rhaetia the First.

Dobka of Vazos Some Ebering folk traditions, perhaps less credibly, claim Ruah Ziva was born Dobka of Vazos and shares blood with Erik of Vazos, who would become Saint Lyeb the Lion. Though born to the island of Separti, Dobka was nonetheless of Old Ebering blood and a powerful shield-maiden in her own right. From the port fortress of Ruach, Dobka raided and plundered the world under the banner of the Separti faith. What she could not conquer through battle she conquered through marriage, alleging to have dozens if not hundreds of spouses to secure alliances under the Old Huescan tenant of Supplantation; the belief that divorce is illegitimate but previous marriages may be annulled by a new marriage, with the new spouses retroactively considered to have always been spiritually wed in the eyes of the Gods. The fact that Dobka was not of the Huescan faith was of no concern to her, so long as it provided sufficient grounds to conquer Huescan hearts and lands alike. Through conquest, battle, and romance she achieved gnosis-- knowledge of the true nature of the Godhead-- and became remembered as Ruah Ziva and Empress Rhaetia to Separti and Huesca alike.

With so many different competing cultures hoping to claim the origins of Empress Rhaetia it is ostensibly impossible to know for sure which account of Ruah Ziva’s life is true, even within her own order. Separti mysticism is rooted in obtuse gnostic symbolism and never straightforward, with competing accounts of Ruah Ziva’s life circulating wherever you look. To a true worshiper of Ruah Ziva though, it is a distinction without a difference. Saint Ruah Ziva is worshiped not for the person they were, but the covenant they represented where the Godhead chose a saint as its vessel to forge the Oversoul of Rhaetiadan. In truth, Separti religious tradition views the Godhead as a communal spiritual essence as it move towards collective Apotheosis where all of humanity might join the Oversoul as one divine being like so many cells in a single body. It is just as likely that Ruah Ziva might, in part, be all of these purported women and more creating a gestalt identity responsible for the modern mythology of Empress Rhaetia and Rhaetiadan. Regardless, there remains one commonality between them-- Before she was Empress Rhaetia, she was the Separti warrior-saint Ruah Ziva.

Symbolism

Today, much of the material wealth of Separti has been long-since mined out and shipped away across the far reaches of Rhaetiadan. During the Anterhaetian Age though, the island of Separti had such rich veins of gold it would marble the very cliffs. With gold so abundant in such an insular principality, precious species (gold, sliver, gemstones) were of little material value. Thus another rare commodity was needed to conduct trade, namely pearls, abalone, and seaglass. As trade began to open with the rest of the Realm, and several scandals involving the farming of pearls and forgery of seaglass resulted in a brief religious schism, Separti rapidly adopted a gold-backed system where the church would maintain sole ownership of minted species for international trade while a quasi-fiat currency was issued to the citizenry. By the time of Empress Rhaetia's ascension to the Huescan throne Separti had cemented itself as the only reliable and effective central banking system in Rhaetiadan, a title it has held for 750 years.

Despite this seaglass remains a strong motif in Separti art. Ruah Ziva, in particular, is often represented in golden armor adorned in mosaics of seaglass as mosaic was a unifying hobby shared by men, women, priests, poets, warriors, and nobility alike.

Bees are often considered a secondary symbol for Ruah Ziva, albeit one only shared cryptically among the Order of Ruah Ziva. It is said, often smugly in hushed tones among her most devout, that it holds a specially hidden significance about the true nature of Ruah Ziva’s connection to the Godhead that can only be understood through years of meditation and monastic study.

Order of Ruah Ziva, and the Worship of Ruah Ziva

Worship of St. Ruah Ziva in Separti is complicated. The pluralist, gestalt identity nature of Ruah Ziva in Separti mysticism differs greatly from Huesca’s interpretation of the goddess Rhaetia. Ruah Ziva is worshiped not as a living god, but as the Last Saint & Prophet who acted as a vessel for the Godhead to forge the Oversoul of Rhaetiadan. For the Separti, the world is in its final stage where gradually all magic and faith will gravitate to the Oversoul until all of humanity is united under the One True God. For 700 years, the Order of Ruah Ziva was dedicated to this interpretation acting as willing vessels for the Breath of God to help shepherd the rest of Rhaetiadan to its collective salvation.

But with the fall of the Rhaetian Era, the Order of Ruah Ziva was face with a crisis of faith. Old Huesca, once bound with Separti in the worship of Ruah Ziva through Rhaetia, gradually declined before being deposed by the Ommiads in all but the hinterlands. The dual revolutions of Gevaur and Tworoika ripped both once proud kingdoms from God's light. No, it seemed, this world’s salvation was not yet assured. The flock needed to be led, by hook or by crook, back toward salvation. Thus the order of Ruah Ziva once again took up the role of The Conqueror, marshaling their forces in the ancient fortress monastery port of Ruach to build an army capable of one last grand cherem to safeguard mankind's apotheosis.

The Order of Ruah Ziva is the most jingoistic and zealous of the Separti sects now, waiting for the right moment for a grand confrontation that they hope will restore the world to the glory of when the Breath of God swept over the land. But the scale of such a confrontation would be near apocalyptic indeed, and it remains to be seen if they would emerge the better for it.

[jlmaano117]

Five out of 26 Lucena City councilor aspirants are women, first in 12 years

For the first time in twelve years and four elections, more than two women are vying for a Lucena City, Quezon councilor post.

Five out of 26 aspirants to Lucena City’s council are women, a 150 percent increase from the 2022 elections, when there were two out of 30 who ran for council.

These five are Rhaetia Marie “Sunshine” Abcede-Llaga from Katipunan ng Nagkakaisang Pilipino (KNP), a former three-term city councilor; Ma. Veronica Garcia, an independent aspirant;  Sonia Paraiso, an independent aspirant; Elizabeth “Beth” Sio from STAN Q, a reelectionist and a businesswoman; and Kneigoutina “Tinton” Suarez, from Lakas Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-CMD), of the Quezon Suarez clan.

Of the five women running for councilor this upcoming election, Abcede, who was city councilor from 2013 to 2022, is notable for being the only woman to sit on the council for the entire nine years of her three-term tenure.  She was also the sole female candidate in the 2016 and 2019 elections. In the 2022 Lucena City mayoral elections, she was the sole female candidate, although she did not win the post.

At a 2022 seminar for Angat Bayi, a University of the Philippines (UP) Women’s Center for Women’s and Gender Studies-led political fellowship, Abcede said that during campaign sorties, she would often crack the joke that she was the “pinakamagandang konsehal”, the most beautiful councilor, in reference to her position as the sole woman on the council.

“Pero bakit kailangan gan’on ang joke? Hindi ba puwedeng sabihin ako ang pinakamasipag? Ang pinakamatalino?” she asked.

(“But why does that have to be the joke? Can’t I say I’m the most hardworking? The smartest?”)

Sio, a wealthy businesswoman with multiple grocery stores and gas stations to her name, was one of two female councilor candidates during the 2022 elections. She was also the sole woman to sit on the council for the 2022-2025 term, inheriting Abcede’s position as the only woman on the council.

In fact, over the past twelve years and four elections, there has only ever been one woman on the Lucena City council at any given point. For the years 2013-2022, that was Abcede; for 2022-2025, it was Sio.

But the demographic of Lucena’s, and all of Quezon’s, political leadership is changing. After all, in 2022, Quezon elected its first female governor, Angelina “Helen” Tan, after 29 male governors and 123 years after its establishment as a province.

Tan is currently seeking reelection for a second term as the province’s governor. She was previously a three-term congresswoman for Quezon’s fourth district.#

[ananiujitha]

What do you mean there are no active volcanoes in Dacia?

Well, there goes my idea that Eriador might be Italia, Hithaeglir the Alpes, Lorien in Rhaetia, the Anduin the Danuvius, Rohan in Pannonia, etc, with some directions and distances mis-translated.

[transgender-er]

I had already gone through and given them (very vague) ideas for how their faces would look

And I gave them outfit designs

I've gone through Galeia (minus Lawson), Rhaetia, Patara, Veleia, and Thelir, and I have all of Falerii except for the daughter (because I have school tomorrow and I need sleep)

Okay, I know I keep saying that I'm working on the Royal Families, but this time, I'm actually working on giving them full (bust) designs for both my reference and yours.

[ancient-rome-au]

Over on r/AskHistorians, I came across this top-notch answer to a question about an incredibly obscure event in the history of the Ostrogothic Kingdom. I am sharing it here because it really brings this period to life, and I strongly recommend you the whole thing.

[schmalspurbahnlexikon]

Schweiz: Die erste Dampflokomotive der RhB wird wieder flott gemacht aus bluewin.ch

Schweiz: Die erste Dampflokomotive der RhB wird wieder flott gemacht aus bluewin.ch

https://www.bluewin.ch/de/newsregional/ost/die-erste-dampflokomotive-der-rhb-wird-wieder-flott-gemacht-627456.html Die allererste #Dampflokomotive der #Rhätischen Bahn (#RhB), die dereinst den #Gründerzug der RhB schleppte, wird für viel Geld wieder auf die Schienen gebracht. Die #1889 gebaute Lok mit dem Namen #Rhaetia soll bald wieder historische Touristenzüge über das Bündner #Schmalspurnetz…

[ask--bayern-blog]

Introducing Rhaetia!

Rhaetia was an ancient roman province and the biological mother to Bavaria, and as born around 800 BCE. 

Rheatia was regarded as one of the most warlike and aggressive of the Alpine tribes. And the origins of the Rhaetians is unknown, but it is speculated that the people were driven out from the Gauls in the south and named after their leader, Raetus. A more realistic name for the area however, is derived from rait, “mountain land.” in celtic, and since the Rheatians were mostly celtic in nature and culture it’s one of the more believed theories. 

Rhaetia actually remained independent until 15 Bc, when she was taken over that same year by the Romans. Rhae was more of a buffer state than an actual rich and fertile one. The mountains in the region protected the empire from the most convenient  invasion routes. During her time as a province, Rhaetia became heavily romanized. The old Celtic gods were forgotten and Roman deities were worshiped, and the economy flourished.  Because she was a frontier state, her borders changed constantly in response to Germanic pressure in the north. The border was moved north of the Danube to the Neckar River in the 1st century (AD), but in the 3rd century invasions by German tribes forced the western and northern boundaries to be pulled back. By 450 Rome controlled only the Alpine regions of Rhaetia. 

The economy of Rhaetia was good for its mountainous terrain. In the few foothills their were, agriculture flourished and vine yards were of high demand, these vine yards in Rhaetia produced such great wine, it was considered equal to anything Italy would produce, and emperor Augustus actually stated her preferred Rhaetian wine to any other.

Vindelecia to the west was her lover, and Marie’s biological father. They actually married and merged together in around the 1st century.

Rhaetia herself was a somewhat loud and obnoxious women. She had an air of Aplomb around her at all times, and was eager to fight anyone when provoked. She had many kids, just like lovers, but always gave it her all. Hell, anything she did Rhae gave her all in. Despite her warlike tendencies she had a knack for hiking and tending to the grape fields in the few scattered foothills. 

Sadly she died around the 5th century, and left her Daughter Marie all by herself :(

[heroesofgaleia]

Heroes Of Galeia

Part V: Lawson Takes Up Dressmaking

Aldora picks up the amulet from beside him and then looks up at Lawson, who’s leaning slightly on one of the posts of the bridge.

“Are you alright?”

“I’ll be fine.” He kneels and checks Auden for any injuries.

“He’s lucky we ended up so close to a town. Neither of you are in any shape to go very far.”

“Yeah.”

“We need to find a tavern, or a temple, or something. Can you walk?”

“Not far. How about a farm?” He points to a house several yards away that’s surrounded by wheat fields.

She holds her hand out to him to help him up.

“Give me a second.” He leans down and kisses Auden on the forehead. “We’ll be right back, I promise.”

He takes her hand, and she pulls him to his feet. He leans on her gently as they walk toward the house.

They nearly make it to the door before he slumps into her shoulder. She steadies him for the last few steps and knocks.

A middle-aged Yuezhi woman eases open the door and looks the two of them up and down.

“It’s a couple of kids, dear.” She says to someone else in the house.

Another woman steps around the door. A pair of dark brown eyes peer from around her shoulder.

“Sorry to bother you all, but please, can you help us?” Aldora gestures behind them, “Our friend collapsed over by the river, and…”

“Is he alright?” The first woman asks.

“I don’t know. We were ambushed in the forests by Michstán, and he used magic to get us here.”

“Show me where he is.” She says before turning to the girl behind the other woman. “Viona, take this young man inside and sit him down at the table.”

“Yes māma.” She takes Lawson from Aldora and leads him into the house.

“I’m going to get my medicine bag from our bedroom and bring it into the living room.” The second woman turns and shuts the door behind her.

Aldora leads her back to where Auden had fallen.

She examines him, and when she doesn’t find any immediate injuries, she picks up his legs.

Sean hops off the wagon and tilts his head at her.

“I want you to pick him up by the arms.” She says.

“Got it.”

“Good. Now, I’ll go in the front.”

Together they carry him into the house and lay him on their couch, where he soon falls asleep.

“Thank you so much for helping us.” Lawson says from a doorway, looking a little better now that he’s had a glass of water.

“Of course. I hope your friend is alright.”

“I hope so too.” He comes in and sits next to him. “As soon as he is, I promise we’ll be out of your hair.”

“Nonsense!” The other woman says, as she sits her bag down on a nearby table. “You can stay as long as you need to.”

“That’s very kind of you,” Aldora smiles, “but we wouldn’t want to intrude.”

“It wouldn’t be an intrusion.” The first woman says. “Khadija and I would be delighted to have you.”

“Absolutely!” Khadija agrees.

“Thank you.”

“Wonderful. If you wouldn’t mind giving us a few minutes, we can come up with something to do so you don’t have to just sit around waiting. As long as you don’t mind some housework.”

“Sounds alright.”

The two women turn away and start listing things at each other, trying to sort out what needs to be done now and what can wait until later.

“This is going to be interesting.” Aldora smiles at Lawson.

“Yeah.” He laughs. “You ever spend any time farming back in Rhaetia?”

“Nope, just tended to Grandmother’s temple. How about you?”

“Yes, actually. Da said that it would be good for us to help around the city, and make sure that everyone was doing alright. I spent a couple of years as a farmhand.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

*******************

An hour later, Aldora and Lawson are knee deep in a pile of fabric looking for a length of spice-colored wool.

As she tosses aside some white linen, she hears him let out a sigh.

“You okay?” She asks.

“No. Why did we agree to do this one? We have no idea how to make clothes.”

“Khadija is going to help us.”

“Yeah, I guess.”

“We’ll learn.”

After a few more minutes searching, he breaks the silence again.

“Hey.” He pauses for a second, “Why did you decide to go on this quest?”

“What do you mean?” She keeps digging to avoid meeting his eyes.

“Well, I was just thinking. Your grandmother is an oracle, she could have sent anyone. But you’re here. Why?”

“I made a promise.”

“A promise?”

She looks up at him. “I promised Grandmother. If the Cult of Blood ever came back during my lifetime, I had to be the one to stop them.”

“That’s a lot of pressure to heap on a kid.”

“I suppose. But that isn’t important.”

“I think it is.”

“The only thing I think is important right now is finding that fabric.”

“Al?”

“Hm?”

“I’m sorry that you had to promise that.”

“...Thank you.”

After a minute, he holds up what they’re looking for. “Is this it?”

“Yes!”

“It was at the bottom of the pile.”

“Come on then, let’s go take it to her.”

When they walk into their bedroom, she notices a dress on a mannequin in the corner and mentions it to Khadija as she hands her the fabric.

“Yashiro’s grandmother made it for her,” She explains as she spreads the fabric out on the floor, “back when they lived in the Yuezhi Theocracy. It’s called a hanfu.” 

“Her grandmother must have been very skilled.” Lawson says.

“She was! She even worked for the empress at one point.” She measures out something a couple of times before she cuts it out.

“Really?”

“Really!” She looks up with them with a proud smile. “Now, could… Oh dear.”

“What’s the matter?” Aldora asks.

“I’ve just realized that we never asked you your names. My apologies.”

“Oh!” Aldora laughs, trying her best to make it sound convincing, “My name is Levina.”

Lawson seems to catch on quickly, and he reaches out his hand to shake hers. “I’m Ailéan. My companion Heike is the one resting on your couch.”

Khadija’s smile falls and she pauses for a moment. It’s barely long enough for Aldora to register that it happened, before she takes the hand and smiles at them. “It’s very nice to meet you both.”

“It’s nice to meet you too.” Lawson says.

“Alright then, Ailéan. Could you please go over to that corner,” She points to a spot behind them, “and turn on my sewing apparatus?”

“... Sewing apparatus?” He asks.

“Mhm. Just came in from Eblani the other day.”

“How do I turn it on?”

“You just have to flip the switch by the side.”

The machine comes to life with a hum as a white light flows through a wire down from the ceiling.

“Cool.” He says.

“Would you like to try it?”

“Yes!”

Khadija moves beside Lawson and places two cut squares of scrap fabric in front of him.

“I want you to pin these together, just around the edges, while your friend and I cut the rest of the pieces for Viona’s dress out of what you brought me.”

Aldora grabs one of the pairs of fabric shears and they get to work. It’s tedious, and she finds herself struggling to pay attention to what she’s doing until she hears a small cry from Lawson. She looks over to see him stick his finger in his mouth to get rid of a drop of blood from a pinprick.

“You okay?”

He nods.

“Okay, be careful.”

He nods again and goes back to his work.

When they’re done, She shows him how to stitch the fabric together using the contraption, before she and Aldora start pinning their pieces together.

“Just remember to mind your fingers,” She cautions, “you don’t want to get them too close to the needle.”

“Yes, miss.”

After several minutes of a punching noise, he holds the fabric up.

“Nicely done, Ailéan. Uxsyn would be proud.”

“Thank you, miss.”

“How about you help me make this dress? I think it could do both of us good. You could learn a new skill, and I could have a chance to share my craft with someone.”

“Oh? What about your daughter?” Aldora asks.

“Viona has no interest in dressmaking. She takes more after her māma.”

Aldora clears her throat, “What would you like us to do after we’re done with this?”

“If you wouldn’t mind, I should like it if you would help Yashiro prepare lunch. Ailéan, you could help Viona continue harvesting the wheat.”

[thatswhywelovegermany]

World heritage sites in Germany

Aachen Cathedral

Speyer Cathedral

Würzburg Residence

Pilgrimage Cgurch of Wies

Castles Augustusburg and Falkenlust in Brühl

Cathedral St. Mary Assumption ans St. Michael in Hildesheim

Roman remains, Cathedral St. Peter and Church of Our Lady in Trier

Roman border fortifications: Limes of Upper Germania and Rhaetia

Hanse City of Lübeck

Royal Prussian castles and gardens of Potsam and Berlin

Abbey of Lorsch

Rammelsberg Mine, old town of Goslar and waterworks of the Upper Harz

Old town of Bamberg

Maulbronn Abbey

Collegiate Church, castle and old town of Quedlinburg

Völklingen Ironworks

Messel Pit Fossil Site

Bauhaus academies in Weimar, Dessau and Bernau

Cologne Cathedral

Luther memorial sites in Eisleben and Wittenberg

Classical Weimar

Museum Island, Berlin

Wartburg Castle in Eisenach

Royal gardens of Dessau-Wörlitz

Monastery island of Reichenau in Lake Constance

Industrial complex of Zollverein Colliery, Essen

Old hanseatic towns of Stralsund and Wismar

Cultural landscape of the Rhine Gorge between Bingen/Rüdesheim and Koblenz

Park of Muskau, Bad Muskau

Town Hall and Roland of Bremen

Old town of Regensburg

Old beech forests of Germany

Residential complexes of Berlin Modernism

German tidal flats

Fagus works, Alfeld

Prehistorical lake dwellings at the foot of the Alps

Margravial opera house, Bayreuth

Mountain park Wilhelmshöhe in Kassel

Carolingian westwork and Civitas Corvey, Höxter

Warehouse district of the port of Hamburg

Two houses designed by Le Corbusier, Weißenhof estate, Stuttgart

Caves with artworks from the glacial age in the Swabian Jura

Archeological borders of Haithabu and Danewerk

Naumburg Cathedral

Mining district in the Ore Mountains

Historical waterworks of Augsburg

[mary-tudor]

“Celts and Slavs in Poland.

Below, a map showing the approximate extent of the Przeworsk culture in Poland. Named after a modern town where discoveries were first made by archaeologists, ‘Przeworsk’ is the name given by them to trends in the material culture of southern and central Poland from 250 B.C. to c. AD 450

.The Przeworsk culture evolved from the previous Lusatian culture of Poland, which probably represents early Slavic or proto-Slavic peoples. The Lusatian culture had evolved locally starting around 1,300 B.C. and was heavily influenced by the Celtic Urnfield culture (1,300 to c. 750 B.C.) of Central Europe. Starting from around 350 B.C., intrusions by bands of Celts into southern Poland kickstarted a process by which the local Lusatian culture evolved into what we now know as the Przeworsk culture.

Celts first arrived in Poland around 350 B.C., arriving from the area of Bohemia, in what is now the Czech Republic (Gediga, pp. 86-91). These groups probably came as refugees from upheavals occurring in Central Europe among the Celts themselves. At around that time, a group from Switzerland appears to have invaded Bohemia, resulting in the destruction of the Celtic hill-fort of Zavist (Cunliffe, p. 79).

These first Celts settled to the south of Wroclaw and around Mount Šlęza, while another group settled in the Glubczyce highlands. These two groups remained settled there until about 120 B.C., when for unknown reasons, the Wroclaw settlement dispersed and the Glubczyce group migrated southward (Gediga, pp. 86-91).

Two more groups of Celts arrived in Poland at around 270 B.C. settling in the San river basin and around Krakow. This last group mingled with the locals of Lusatian culture derivation and began the development of what we call the Przeworsk culture. At around 60 B.C. more Celts arrived in the Krakow area from Slovakia, probably after having been displaced from their homeland by the Dacians, who, led by their king, Burebista, defeated the Celtic Boii and Taurisci kingdoms of Central Europe in a particularly violent war (Poleski, p. 13). Thus, in southeastern Poland a new polity began to form, which consisted of mixed populations of Celtic migrants and local Slavs. 

The Przeworsk culture spread quickly westward, absorbing other Slavic and Germanic communities and eventually reaching Kujawy, farther to the north. By the 1st century AD, Przeworsk was the dominant culture of Poland and greatly influenced other neighboring peoples, such as the Oksywie culture of northern Poland (Godlowski, 1970 & Makiewicz, pp. 94-7), and the Zarubintsy culture in the Galicia region of Poland and west Ukraine.

Przeworsk culture settlements consisted of small, unfortified farming villages with square or rectangular wooden houses. The people of the Przeworsk culture practiced both agriculture and animal husbandry. Wheat, barley, millet, rye and oats were all grown and fields were alternated between cultivation and grazing. Cattle, pigs, sheep, horses and goats were also an integral part of the agrarian economy. Wells, a concept introduced into the region by the Celts, were also dug so that settlements no longer had to be built near rivers (Naglik, 2005). The people of the Przeworsk culture also mastered iron smelting and extraction from bog ores, working with techniques introduced by the Celts (Andrzejowski, 2010 & Gediga, pp. 86-91). Additionally, the Przeworsk culture people mined salt and benefited economically from the Baltic amber trade (Adamczyk, 2005 & Gediga, pp. 86-91).

Early burial practices followed the old Lusatian/Urnfield custom of cremation and burial in clay urns. This is in contrast to the Celts who had first migrated into Poland, who‘d been more inclined to inhumation burial (Gediga, pp. 86-91). Grave goods often included horse gear and Celtic-style (La Tène) weapons such as spears, swords and characteristic oblong shields.

Turning to the historical sources, the identity and historical role of the Przeworsk culture people can perhaps be further defined. Roman sources such as Tacitus, Strabo and Claudius Ptolemy, all wrote of a powerful tribal federation existing between the Oder and Vistula rivers, the area occupied by what we now call the Przeworsk culture. This tribal federation was referred to in the sources as “Lugii” or ‘Lugians’. 

According to Tacitus’ treatise “Germania”, the Lugii consisted of five tribes: Helveconae, Nahanarvali, Manimi, Helisii and Harii (Tacitus, “Germania” XLIII). Of these tribal names, “Lugii” and “Helveconae” are unquestionably Celtic. “Lugii” derives almost certainly from the Celtic god of commerce and money, Lugus (identified by the Romans with Mercury), while “Helveconae” would appear to mean “prosperous hounds/wolves” (from Gaulish “elu” meaning “gain”, “prosperity” and “con”, meaning “dog/wolf”). 

One need only to compare Helveconae to other known Celtic tribal names, such as that of the “Helvetii” of Switzerland, or of the “Helvii” of southern France, and the connection is clear. In like manner, “Helisii” has a Celtic ring to it, being similar to that of the Ligurian “Elysices” tribe of southern France, though a connection to Celtic languages is far less certain in this case. 

Speculation abounds as to whether the modern place-name Kalisz, in central Poland, might be derived from the ancient Helisii tribal name. Other tribal names mentioned by Tacitus, such as “Harii” and “Nahanarvali” are clearly not Celtic. The former is Germanic, being connected to the word “here”, meaning army. As the Harii were described as a fierce group of warriors who fought at night with black shields and black painted skin, it is possible that this wasn’t so much a tribe as it was the military aristocracy of the Lugian tribal federation. Other than this terrifying bit of information about the “Harii”, the only other insight Tacitus gives us into the culture of the Lugii is his description of a cult to the Indo-European horse-twin gods, known locally as “Alcis”. 

The sanctuary was located in a sacred grove of the Nahanarvali tribe. No images of the gods were kept there, and the worship was presided over by priests “appareled like women”. Worship of the horse-twin gods is more familiar as a Germanic tradition, reflected in later Anglo-Saxon lore about the brothers Hengist and Horsa. On the other hand, that the gods were attended by priests appareled like women is reflective of Scythian practice (Silk Road Foundation, 2000). 

The mysterious Nahanarvali were almost certainly not of Celtic extraction.Tacitus’ tribal names are not repeated in other sources. Ptolemy for example, has the Lugii made up of three tribes: the Diduni in Silesia, the Buri to the east of them, and the Omani at an unspecified location (Ptolemy, II, X). In the area of Silesia, Ptolemy locates the settlement of “Lugidunum”, another clearly Celtic name, meaning “hill-fort of the Lugii”. “-Dunum” is a uniquely Celtic word to describe a fortified settlement and so here, once again, we find clear evidence that at least some of the Lugii were speakers of a Celtic language. The Buri on the other hand, were known to be Germanic, while the Omani have been speculated to be the same people as the Atmoni, a branch of the probably Slavic Bastarnae tribal federation. 

The Bastarnae would appear to correspond to the neighboring Zarubintsy archaeological culture (250 B.C. to c. AD 50). Like the Lugii, they were probably of Celto-Slavic origin, with heavy influences from the neighboring Sarmatians as well.That the Lugii were a force to be reckoned with is evident from the historical record itself. According to Tacitus’ “Annals”, in the year 50 AD, Vannius, king of the Germanic Quadi and Marcomanni tribes (who inhabited what is now Czech Republic and Slovakia), was overthrown by his nephews, Vangio and Sido, with help from Vibilius, king if the neighboring Hermunduri tribe (Tacitus, “Annals”, XII, XXIX). Vannius had been appointed through Roman patronage and the Marcomanni-Quadi alliance he ruled over was the dominant political, military and economic force of Germany at that time. 

During the coup, Vannius gathered a large force of Germanic foot-soldiers and allied Sarmatian horsemen. Being outnumbered, he retreated and shut himself up in a fortified settlement. A large force of Lugians had invaded the kingdom to take advantage of the chaos and plunder Vannius’ riches. Seeking to reverse his fortunes, Vannius sallied out with his army to deal with the Lugians and Hermundurians. The ensuing clash resulted in the destruction of the German-Sarmatian army, with Vannius himself escaping badly wounded to a Roman fleet, which lie waiting for him on the river Danube. Later, Cassius Dio’s “Roman History” records other events involving the Lugii in the years 91-92 AD. That year, the tribal federation was embroiled in a war with the Germanic Suebi and sought an alliance with the Roman empire (Dio, “Roman History”, LXVII). Emperor Domitian dispatched a small detachment of 100 horsemen to participate in the war on the side of the Lugians. Thus, it appears that like many other Celtic peoples in Central Europe, the Lugii opted for alliance with Rome, in order to counterbalance the formidable power of both the Germanic peoples and the Dacians. However, the alliance does not appear to have lasted long, for by 279 we find the Lugians (called “Longiones” by Zosimus’ “Nova Historia”) raiding deep into Roman territory and plundering the province of Rhaetia (part of modern Austria and Switzerland). 

Here, the Roman Emperor Probus repelled their attack and captured their king, named as ‘Semno’ (Zosimus, “Nova Historia”, I:LXVII); Semno was released upon accepting terms from the Romans. This is the last known historical mention of the Lugian people. By the 5th century AD, the Przeworsk culture disappeared from Poland, probably as a result of the invasions of the Asiatic Huns.

As archaeology is unveiling more about Poland’s ancient past, lost bits of history come into the light. Not only does it appear that ancient Poles formed a formidable and highly successful polity in Central Europe, but also that Celt and Slav both coalesced to form a hybrid culture with a high degree of vitality.

Sources:

Adamczyk, Kazimierz. “The Archaeology of the Transit Gas Pipeline”, Living Archaeology, English edition. 2005

Andrzejowski, Jacek. “The Przeworsk Culture, A Brief History (for the Foreigners)”. Worlds Apart? Contacts Across the Baltic Sea in the Iron Age: Network Denmark-Poland 2005-2008. Copenhagen-Warsaw. 2010

Barry Cunliffe, “The Ancient Celts”. Oxford University Press, 1997

Cassius Dio, “Roman History”.

Claudius Ptolemy, “Geography”.

Cornelius Tacitus, “Annals”.Cornelius Tacitus, “Germania”.

Gediga, Boguslaw and Makiewicz, Tadeusz. “Foundations of Poland (until year 1,038)”. Wydawnictwo Dolnoślaskie. 2002

Godlowski, K. “The Chronology of Late Roman and Early Migration Periods in Central Europe”. Crakow. 1970

Naglik, Riszard. “Archaeological Motorway”, Living Archaeology, English Edition. 2005.

Poleski, Jacek. “Chronology of Polish History”. Wydawnictwo Dolnoślaskie. 1999

Silk Road Foundation. “The Scythians”, 2000. Link: http://silkroadfoundation.org/artl/scythian.shtml.oldZosimus, 

“Nova Historia”.

Link from facebook page “Celtic Europe”: https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=2766737023343676&id=2158176407533077&__tn__=K-R

[anastpaul]

Saint of the Day – 7January – St Valentine of Passau (Died 475) Bishop

Saint of the Day – 7January – St Valentine of Passau (Died 475) Bishop

Saint of the Day – 7January – St Valentine of Passau (Died 475) Bishop in Passau in the Rhaetia region, Switzerland, an area in the border region of modern Italy, Austria and Switzerland, Monk, Abbot, Missionary, Hermit, Miracle-worker. Died on 7 January 475 at Mais, Tyrol, Austria of natural causes. Patronages – against convulsions, against cramps/stomach pain, against epilepsy, against gout,…

[rhaetiadan]

Mangadan: History at a Glance

Though distant, the Commonwealth of Mangadan has remained an ever present force in Rhaetiadan since the Anterhaetian Era. Immensely wealthy and staggeringly sophisticated, Mangadan has acted as a bastion limiting Rhaetiadan's ambitions for southern expansion for centuries. It was here where St. Lyeb fell in battle attempting to spread the light of the Separti faith 150 years before the crowning of Empress Rhaetia. Just as it keeps Rhaetiadan from reaching further south however, it also keeps the continent's southern flank secured from the warring tribes of Iikarak-- A fact that was not lost on Empress Rhaetia during her pacification of the steppe. Knowing she could not garrison and occupy an expansive, arid frontier while the continent remained disjointed she elected to take a diplomatic approach to the Commonwealth while she worked to consolidate the northern realms. In 31RE Empress Rhaetia signed the Treaty of Cape Feitoria guaranteeing Mangadan a small foothold on the continent in exchange for guaranteed access to trade routes, currency exchanges, and joint cooperation on patrolling the Iikarak steppe. Though Rhaetiadan has fractured since the Empress's ascension Mangadan still honors this strategic alliance with the Ommiad Empire, who they see as the legitimate claimant to the legacy of the Rhaetian Empire.

The Commonwealth of Mangadan is a federal elective monarchy comprised of five major peoples; the Fang, Dozo, Ashaman, Ogal, and Griot. Nobles from each peoples are guaranteed equal legal status regardless of rank, economic status, or ethnic background. The legislative body of nobles, the Gold Court, collectively elect a Manga to act as head of state. Part emperor, part spiritual advisor and defender of the faith, the Manga serves a lifetime appointment unless deposed by a two-thirds majority vote of the Gold Court. Though the Manga is typically elected from among the nobles of the Gold Court, nobility is not considered a requirement for the position. In fact, in the nine centuries that the Commonwealth has waxed and waned the Gold Court has elected three lowborn men of exceptional virtue to hold the title of Manga. Masane Bah, current Manga of the Commonwealth, is one such man.

Born to a family of tradesmen on the border with Huesca, Masane Bah was captured as a young man by Iikarak raiders where he was held for ransom. Rather than paying to have him released, his family forsake him entirely leaving him for dead. Thankfully for Masane, the Iikarak tribesmen were amenable to their hostage training him in the ways of the saddle until he had earned their trust and respect as a part of their warband. That was until the tribe attempted to intercept a Huescan trade caravan bound for the Anvil guarded heavily by Rhaetian janissaries. Once again taken prisoner, Masane had no choice but to take the oath and join the Janissary Corps under an Ommiad name in the service of the Rhaetian Empire. It was only after the Janissary Corps revolted in 644RE that Masane was able to free himself once more and finally return home to his ancestral lands of Mangadan. His experience sharpened him and granted him firsthand knowledge of the technological and societal advancements the lands of Rhaetiadan were rapidly developing. Knowing a storm of revolution and enlightenment was soon on its way to the northern realms, Masane Bah made it his life's work to ensure the Commonwealth would be prepared when that happened. Fighting for dominion over his family's extensive wealth, he poured untold financial and political capital into developing new patronage networks to influence the Gold Court despite his lowborn heritage until being crowned Manga in 691RE. Today Masane Bah is a wizened, but ancient man clinging to life despite poisoning from the musket shot that's riddled his body since the Ommiad Revolt. While he's done all he can to prepare Mangadan for the future, only time will tell if it will be enough to sustain the Commonwealth in an age of revolutions-- or if the Gold Court will slip back into bickering aristocratic rule that will only accelerate the Commonwealth's undoing.