İspanyol Fatihler, patatesleri ve onları yetiştiren And Kızılderililerini hor görüyordu. Patates ekmekten çok daha değersizdi ve yoksul insanların yiyeceğiydi. Dolayısıyla
Avrupa’ya gelen az miktarda patatese güçlü toplumsal önyargılar eşlik etmişti. Kariyerine 1573’te Sevilla’daki bir yoksullar hastanesinde hastaları doyurarak başlayan patates, çok geçmeden botanik dünyasının ilgisini çekti ve züğürt yemeği olmaktan çıkıp lüks bir gıda haline geldi.
Denizcilik riski neden alınıyor?
Basit tekniklerle inşa edilen ve müsait olan en uzak koyda bile kolayca tamir edilebilen dogger tekneler, morina balıkçılığını Kuzey Denizi’nin dar sınırlarının çok
ötesine taşıdı. Denizde kaza oranları çok yüksekti; ancak beklenen yaşam süresinin kısa olduğu ve tarımda acımasız koşulların hüküm sürdüğü bir çağda, insanlar bu riski almaktan çekinmiyordu.
Hayvan Ölümü, Kıtlık ve Gübre
1320’lerin başlarına dek süren “kitlesel hayvan ölümleri”, yalnız besi hayvanlarının değil tarlalar için gereken gübrelerin de yokluğu demekti; ki etkisi çok çabuk hissedildi.
Niye Portekiz keşif yaptı İngiltere yapamadı
Portuguese had discovered that there were good following winds from Iberia on the journey out to the Atlantic islands and south down the African coast. Returning home was just as straightforward if the sailor headed into the ocean and picked up a following westerly at 35° north off the (then undiscovered) North American coast.
England was not blessed by geography to join this push out into the tropics. Iberian sailors benefited from the Atlantic wind system that carried ships in a clockwise pattern to the Canaries, across to the West Indies with the trade winds behind them and home again, with the added propulsion of the Gulf Stream, via North America. Sailors from the British Isles could not benefit inthis way. The prevailing winds in the Channel and Bay of Biscay were against them and they had nofriendly islands en route to resupply them.
İngilizlerin ortaçağda denizde zayıflığı
English successes at sea, spectacular as they may have been, were few. Moments of dominance were followed by years of weakness. And the latter were calamitous. The southern and East Anglian coasts and ports were repeatedly ravaged by French forces. England’s weakness as a maritime nation stemmed from its retarded economy. She simply could not afford to defend herself. As so often in history, the sea brought danger.
Venedik ve Genoa zihniyet farkı
Venice’s rival Genoa, did not share its centralised efficiency in naval organisation. As it had been for the Vikings, and would be for the English in the sixteenth century, the driving force behind exploration and commercial and military might was individualistic rather than state-directed. Genoa’s military prowess in the later Middle Ages was owing to the zeal of its aristocracy and commercial class, who armed their ships and fought for Genoa’s interests.
İngiliz donanma gücünün kısa vadeli zayıflatılması
Throughout the thirteenth century English kings undermined the foundations of English naval strength. They sought short-term solutions, such as bartering away trading rights or seizing wool. The result was a downward spiral. Foreign traders got more business, English shippers suffered, which meant that the Crown had to rely on foreigners even more. The cost of war increased as the Crown had to hire non-English ships for maritime ventures such as the wars against Wales and Scotland.
Aethelred the Unready anlamı
Æthelred is known as the “the Unready”. This is a mistranslation. It comes from his contemporary nickname Unræd. It was a pun on his name. Æthel meant ‘noble’ and ræd meant ‘council’, but seeing how his reign turned out, Unræd -‘ill advised council’- seemed more appropriate. Unræd became ‘unready’, a completely different but seemingly apt meaning. Throughout his reign hew as certainly ill-advised and ill-served.
İngilizce incillerin artması
İngilizce incillerin artması ve ulaşılabilir olması, dilin standartlaşmasına katkıda bulunarak okuma alışkanlıklarını değiştirdi ve azizlerin yaşamı ve şefaati yerine kişisel dindarlığa daha fazla vurgu yapılmasının önünü açtı.
Scutage sistemi
Geoffrey would not lead his own war-band, but instead would pay a fixed fee into the royal coffers, which could then be used to hire troops. In the future, this increasingly popular system of payment would have profound consequences, both for England and the institution of knighthood.