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You may remember Mago Bill as the name of some of my earlier blogs. Well, now in my dotage, I am beginning the resurrection of one or those Mago blogs. You may remember that I believed that the given name of my paternal great grandfather was Mago William. While that Mago may have been called Will, he may never been called Bill, but it makes me smile to do so.
My, somewhat imaginary, Mago Bill has inspired my interest in history and supported my political vision.
Thoughts of Bill, Mago Bill, lead me to the following. The Phoenicians had certainly heard of Atlantis, but that fabled land had been lost for thousands of years before these Phoenicians posted themselves near the Pillars of Hercules. Those pillars may have been called the Pillars of Atlas, or even the gates of Atlas. They certainly guarded the way to the great Atlantic Sea and to the isle beyond the Western Isle.
The paragraph above led me to thoughts of many stories, but I will stick to my notes on those who knew the name “Mago” well.
They were a knowledgeable people whom we might now begin to call Carthaginians. They knew much of trade and navigation. They also knew of mining, metallurgy, the writing of languages, and of defense and attack on land and sea. They were seamen. They that the islands not too far beyond the Pillars not only contained gold, silver, lead, and tin, but also contained men who knew about mining and metal working. They may have known about the little people who could follow the veins of metal deep into the earth. Those Carthaginians knew that men all around their smaller sea valued tin for making their bronze.
The name and perhaps title of Mago was well known among those Carthaginian Phoenicians. I have found the use of title among them as early as 750 BC. You may find that it was used much earlier. I do find strong evidence that they were carrying on trade with the Western Isles from 500 BC to 400 BC.
The Magonids were a political dynasty of Carthage room about 550 BC to 340 BC. The dynasty began with Mago I, under whom Cartage became prominent among the Phoenician colonies in the western Mediterranean. Under the Magonids the Carthaginian Empire expanded to include Spain, Sardinia, Libya, and Sicily. Diodorus and Herodotus often better tell us of the doings and happenings of the Magonids more honestly than do the Romans.
There was a Mago II and then a Mago III who led the Carthaginians. There also seems to have been A Mago who commanded, or navigated for the trading fleet which connected the Western Isles to the Mediterranean. You may know, or have guessed, that the isle beyond the western Isle is the island nation we call Ireland.
It might have been Mago, that knowledgeable ship-master, who so impressed a Sheehan as to name his, or her, son Mago. My great, great grandfather later called his son Mago William. That is a source of my inspiration to call a blog of mine “Mago Bill.”
I am inspired to post more on Mago and Mago Bill.
Thank you for reading this short which I hope you have found pithy. Would you enjoy a longer piece. What would you like to read more about?
RCS
For those interested in history timelines, now may be a good time to check out our timelines. Among those timelines there are many dealing with very early prehistoric times.
If you have never been interested in time lines, try checking out three or four of them here now. You may find yourself putting some interesting info together.
On the first page of any of our blogs you will find a list of "Associated Blogs" to click on and visit. On those lists you will find a few of the "History Timelines" available to you here.
Explore!
rcs
The people of Lebanon are Lebanese. The Lebanese deserve to be honored for who they have been and who they are. They merit our moral support for the rebuilding the nation they can be on the word stage. They can also be a profitable people with whom to do business.
This tiny, durable, country has a history of contributions to our world. Its people have been known for their cosmopolitan diversity of culture, including that of religions. They are a modern republic and the smallest sovereign state on the mainland of the Asian continent. And I thought it was in North Africa! I have some learning to do.
There is strong evidence of a rich, well developed culture there going back to 6,000 BC. More recently Lebanon was a seat of Phoenician culture. That maritime culture was active from about 3,200 BC to 539 BC and shared that culture from Lebanon to around the Mediterranean, and to beyond the Pillars of Hercules to as far as Ireland. In 64 BC the region of Lebanon came under the rule of the Roman Empire, where it became a leading center of Christianity.
Mount Lebanon was home to the early Maronite Christian Church and maintained its identity through the Arab conquest. Druze took over the Maronite homeland. The Druze are, to this day, a small, but important presence in Lebanon. Druze are considered to be an Abrahamic religion which is neither Muslim, Jew, nor Christian. Maronite Catholics and the Druze are considered to by many to be the founders of modern Lebanon. Druze are only about 6% of the population of today.Still, they may be more important to their country than there numbers suggest.
Lebanon was conquered by Ottoman Turks in the 16th century and remained under their dominion for 400 years. At the end of WWI they came under the French Mandates. Under that mandate, Lebanon grew a bit but did not grow more united.
From 1975 to 1990 there was bloody civil war In Lebanon, which led to the country being led by Syria and Israel.
Despite all the divisions and dominations, this 4000 sq mi republic lives. There has never been a republic like it. It has been accepted within international law as a "unitary, parliamentary, multi-confessionalist, republic." It seems that multi-confessionalist" refers to the country's acceptance of many religions. Just below is my attempt to expand on this sentence just above.
Others have called Lebanon a "parliamentary, democratic republic" but add, "within the overall framework of confessionalism. I learn that "Confessionalism" is a kind of "consociationalism" in which the highest offices are proportionally reserved for representatives of certain religious communities. "Confessionalism" I see, is a mix of politics and religion which usually entails distributing political and institutional powers proportionately among confessional communities. "Confession--" here refers to the profession of a certain religious belief. Goals of consociationalism are: stable government, survival of democracy, and the avoidance of violence. A "tough row to hoe." Lebanese have some work to do.
When a people agrees to a certain republic, the great majority of citizens must be taught it and retaught it. That teaching includes how it works and how to work it. I have said "taught," but "taught to one another" could be better.
Lebanese are Respected in Europe, the Arab world, and where ever they are known. They are respected for their culture and for their continued existence as a nation. Lebanon has also been known for their large and influential diaspora. When it has less need to struggle against foreign intervention, it has promptly become a stable financial power. It has profited from tourism and has busy agricultural production. Its people would appreciate the opportunity to do more. Left to guide itself it cam to rank high on the U.N. Human Development index. It is a founding member of the United Nations.
Lebanon has been around for a long time. It is mentioned in written history from about 5,600 BP. It is mentioned in Sumerian tablets and in the Epic of Gilgamesh. It was a center of the Canaanite City States. Byblos kept records of dealing with Lebanon. This tiny country can be called a source of early cultural influence on Greek, Jew, and Phoenicians, and to much of western culture as well. And, as I am beginning to understand, a home for Christian, Muslim Druze, and more.
I have mentioned that the capital cit of Lebanon is Beirut, Haven't I? When France was was a diplomatic center of the world and the people of Paris were called the most cosmopolitan, people of Paris called the citizens of Beirut cosmopolitan.
I know we can let Lebanon be, if we will.
Talk to us. there is a "comment" section below. When You are first to comment, it may read "no comment." Click on it. You're a boss here.
RCS
You may remember Mago Bill as the name of some of my earlier blogs. You may remember that I believed that the given name of my paternal great grandfather was Mago William. While that Mago may have been called Will, he may never been called Bill, but it makes me smile to do so.
My, somewhat imaginary, Mago Bill has inspired my interest in history and supported my political vision.
Thoughts of Bill, Mago Bill, lead me to the following. An earlier Mago and the Carthaginians had certainly heard of Atlantis, but that fabled land had been lost for thousands of years before these Phoenicians posted themselves near the Pillars of Hercules. Those pillars may have been called the Pillars of Atlas, or even the gates of Atlas. They certainly guarded the way to the great Atlantic Sea and to the isle beyond the Western Isle.
The paragraph above leads me to thoughts of many stories, but I will stick to my notes on those who knew the name “Mago” well.
They were a knowledgeable people whom we might now begin to call Carthaginians. They knew much of trade and navigation. They also knew of mining, metallurgy, the writing of languages, and of defense and attack on land and sea. They were seamen. They that the islands not too far beyond the Pillars not only contained gold, silver, lead, and tin, but also contained men who knew about mining and metal working. They may have known about the little people who could follow the veins of metal deep into the earth. Those Carthaginians knew that men all around their smaller sea valued tin for making their bronze.
The name and perhaps title of Mago was well known among those Carthaginian Phoenicians. I have found the use of title among them as early as 750 BC. You may find that it was used much earlier. I do find strong evidence that they were carrying on trade with the Western Isles from 500 BC to 400 BC.
The Magonids were a political dynasty of Carthage room about 550 BC to 340 BC. The dynasty began with Mago I, under whom Carthage became prominent among the Phoenician colonies in the western Mediterranean. Under the Magonids the Carthaginian Empire expanded to include Spain, Sardinia, Libya, and Sicily. Diodorus and Herodotus often better tell us of the doings and happenings of the Magonids more honestly than do the Romans.
There was a Mago II and then a Mago III who led the Carthaginians. There also seems to have been A Mago who commanded, or navigated for the trading fleet which connected the Western Isles to the Mediterranean. You may know, or have guessed, that the isle beyond the western Isle is the island nation we call Ireland.
It might have been Mago, that knowledgeable ship-master, who so impressed a Sheehan as to name his or her son Mago. My great, great grandfather called his son Mago William. That is a source of my inspiration to call a blog of mine “Mago Bill.”
In more recent history the name Mago appears from time to time. Here are a few examples. A historian writing in Ireland in 1691 AD writes of a count Mago. Another historian writes of a Mago county in the Ireland of 1829! A barony of Mago in Kerry has been written of. The name Mago has been found in county Clair and all over Ireland for hundreds of years. It is a respectable name if not common.
I may be inspired to post more on Mago or Mago Bill.
RCS
France welcomed him as Emperor. There may be a lesson to be learned from this bit of history.
Napoleon did bring reforms to France and the world in the fields of science, education, and a variety of cultural areas. These works could be called republican.
The legal system called the Napoleonic Code, influenced much of the West and part of the East. Napoleonic Law is important in the U.S. state of Louisiana.
Napoleon was a warrior, a leader of armies. Some say he won a war against Russia. To attack Russia, he left home with a half million men. He returned home with twenty thousand men and the "shirt on his back."
He met his "Waterloo" against Prussia and Great Britain, in which Prussia "saved Britain's bacon."
After the battle of Waterloo, Britain, Spain, Prussia, Austrian, Russia, and others joined one another in suppression of liberal movements throughout Europe.
This is a test:
~ Why do the histories of many revolutions seem revolting?
~ Why might a republican be willing to become an emperor?
~ Why ought the citizens of a republic be responsible?
~ Where is your revolution headed?
~ What is a "loo?"
RCS