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This week, I want to talk a bit about the recent release of Gladiator II. Now I’ve written a review of the film for Foreign Policy, which you can find here (behind the paywall). I also discussed it with Jason Herbert and Sarah Bond over at Historians at the Movies, which is a blast of … Continue reading Collections: Nitpicking Gladiator II, Part I →
7 months ago

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More from A Collection of Unmitigated Pedantry

Collections: The American Civil-Military Relationship

As is traditional here, I am taking advantage of the Fourth of July this week to write something about the United States, this time a brief discussion of the nature of civil-military relations in the United States. Civil-military relations (typically shortened to ‘civ-mil’ or sometimes CMR) is, simply put, the relationship between the broader civil … Continue reading Collections: The American Civil-Military Relationship →

3 days ago 8 votes
Fireside Friday, June 27, 2025 (On the Limits of Realism)

Fireside this week! Originally, I was thinking I’d talk about the ‘future of classics’ question in this space, but I think that deserves a full post (in connection with this week’s book recommendation and the next fireside’s book recommendation), so instead this week I want to talk a little about foreign policy realism, what it … Continue reading Fireside Friday, June 27, 2025 (On the Limits of Realism) →

a week ago 11 votes
Collections: Nitpicking Gladiator’s Iconic Opening Battle, Part III

This week at long last we come to the clash of men and horses as we finish our three-part (I, II, III) look at the iconic opening battle scene from the film Gladiator (2000). Last time, we brought the sequence up through the infantry advance, observing that the tactics of the Roman arrow barrage and … Continue reading Collections: Nitpicking Gladiator’s Iconic Opening Battle, Part III →

2 weeks ago 12 votes
Collections: Nitpicking Gladiator’s Iconic Opening Battle, Part II

This week we’re continuing our three-part (I) look at one of film’s most famous Roman battle sequences, the iconic opening battle from Gladiator (2000). I had planned this to be in two parts, but even though this sequence is relatively short, it provides an awful lot to talk about. As noted last week, this iconic … Continue reading Collections: Nitpicking Gladiator’s Iconic Opening Battle, Part II →

3 weeks ago 18 votes
Collections: Nitpicking Gladiator’s Iconic Opening Battle, Part I

This week, we’re going to take a close look at arguably the most famous and recognizable Roman battle sequence in film: the iconic opening battle from Gladiator (2000). Despite being a relatively short sequence (about ten minutes), there’s actually enough to talk about here that we’re going to split it over two weeks, talking about … Continue reading Collections: Nitpicking Gladiator’s Iconic Opening Battle, Part I →

a month ago 15 votes

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Joseph Rous Paget-Fredericks’ Fabulous Dance Sketches

Joseph Rous Paget-Fredericks (1905-1963) inherited his parents love for collecting theatre memorabilia. His family had close ties to the leading ballet companies and he was appointed Artistic Director for Anna Pavlova’s world tours in the early 1930s. Paget-Fredericks went on to become the first lecturer in dance in the United States, at the University … Continue reading "Joseph Rous Paget-Fredericks’ Fabulous Dance Sketches" The post Joseph Rous Paget-Fredericks’ Fabulous Dance Sketches appeared first on Flashbak.

14 hours ago 2 votes
Ibn Battuta’s Epic 30-Year Journey Across the Medieval World

In the mid-14th century, Moroccan judge and scholar Ibn Battuta embarked on an epic 24-year-long journey worldwide. He was received by kings and queens, robbed and kidnapped by rebels, and even ended up marrying into the royal family of Omar I, Sultan of the Maldives.   Battuta’s Context: The Islamic World in the 14th […]

2 days ago 2 votes
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Medieval Japan vs Medieval Europe: How Different Were They?

In modern-day society, it is easy to see how Japan differs from Europe. Cultural ideals in Japan are just about as far away from European (or “Western”) culture as you can get—but how far back do these differences go? In this article, we will explore just how different these two cultures were, or whether […]

2 days ago 2 votes
Pensioners for war

Many years ago when I lived in Belgrade, just before the beginning of the “Yugoslav Wars of Succession”, I noticed an interesting phenomenon.

2 days ago 5 votes