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Revolutions of 1848

Italian Heroes In New York: What Purpose Did Statues Serve?

December 14, 2022 by Jaap Harskamp 1 Comment

Bust of Italian Patriot Giuseppe MazziniNationalism of the nineteenth century represents very different values to those of our era. With the present rise of frenzied flag-waving and militant xenophobia, it is hard to understand the cult status achieved by foreign revolutionary figures such as Lafayette, who was honored as the “French Hero of the American Revolution.”

In 1878 a bust of Giuseppe Mazzini was unveiled in New York City‘s Central Park. A decade later, on the sixth anniversary of his death, Giuseppe Garibaldi was memorialized with a bronze statue in Washington Square Park. Why were these relatively unknown Italian insurgents given such a prestigious presence in New York? [Read more…] about Italian Heroes In New York: What Purpose Did Statues Serve?

Filed Under: History, New York City Tagged With: Art History, Central Park, French History, Greenwich Village, Immigration, Italian History, Manhattan, Monuments, New York City, Revolutions of 1848, sculpture, Staten Island

Gymnastics History: The Legacy of Friedrich Ludwig Jahn’s Turnerism

December 27, 2021 by Jaap Harskamp 6 Comments

3,000 Turners performed at the Federal Gymnastics Festival in Milwaukee, 1893By the mid-nineteenth century European gymnastics was an established system that had evolved through a century of innovation and adaptation. Originating in the Enlightenment with the
experiments of educational reformers intent on reviving a Greek ideal which the Roman poet Juvenal had summarized as mens sana in corpore sano (a healthy mind in a healthy body), gymnastics achieved widespread recognition after Friedrich Ludwig Jahn initiated the Turnverein (gymnastics club) movement.

The inventor of apparatus such as the balance beam, parallel bars, and vaulting horse, he used the discipline of organized exercise to inspire young gymnasts with a sense of national (Prussian) duty and solidarity. Jahn turned gymnastics into an agency of German patriotism.

The ambiguity of his message: enjoyment of competition and companionship versus militant nationalism, brought about Jahn’s contrasting legacies in Europe and the United States. [Read more…] about Gymnastics History: The Legacy of Friedrich Ludwig Jahn’s Turnerism

Filed Under: History, New York City, Recreation Tagged With: Civil War, Education, German-American History, Immigration, Jewish History, Manhattan, New York City, Political History, Revolutions of 1848, Socialism, Sports History

Friedensfest: Syracuse’s 1871 German-American Peace Festival

October 27, 2021 by Daniel Koch Leave a Comment

The front page of the Syracuse Union German-language newspaper on May 3, 1871, reporting on ‘Das deutsche Friedensfest’ in Syracuse.One of nineteenth century Syracuse’s largest celebrations took place on the 1st of May, 1871. It was called the Friedensfest, the Peace Festival.

The reason for celebration was the unification of Germany following Prussia’s crushing defeat of France in the Franco-Prussian War. The emphasis on Peace was less about the end of hostilities between Prussia and France than it was about a new and lasting peace among the previously independent states of Germany, some of whom were caught in a rivalry between Austria and Prussia that had already erupted in war, in 1866. [Read more…] about Friedensfest: Syracuse’s 1871 German-American Peace Festival

Filed Under: History, Western NY Tagged With: German-American History, Immigration, Revolutions of 1848, Syracuse, World War One

Niblo’s Garden, Yiddish Broadway and the American Musical

August 31, 2021 by Jaap Harskamp 3 Comments

Vauxhall Gardens at Broome StreetIn cities with growing populations and increased prosperity during the eighteen and nineteenth centuries, the demand for amusement venues rose dramatically. Leisure became an economic factor and show biz took off with a bang.

Urban pleasure gardens were recreational spaces that featured landscaped grounds, lights, fountains, grottos, music, and theater. Offering a variety of entertainments, they were open day and night. [Read more…] about Niblo’s Garden, Yiddish Broadway and the American Musical

Filed Under: Arts, History, New York City Tagged With: art, Art History, Cultural History, Immigration, Irish Immigrants, Jewish History, Music, Musical History, Performing Arts, Revolutions of 1848, Taverns, The Bowery, Theatre, womens history

German Immigrants & Instruments: 48ers, Slomans and Steinways

July 7, 2020 by Jaap Harskamp 1 Comment

German StampIn 1850, after a long journey, a large German family sailed from Hamburg into New York Harbour. There was no Statue of Liberty to welcome them. Newcomers faced no questions or restrictions. There was no Castle Garden (opened in 1855), no Ellis Island (opened in 1892) – they simply made their way and settled in the city.

The family brought music to New York. [Read more…] about German Immigrants & Instruments: 48ers, Slomans and Steinways

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Arts, Capital-Saratoga, History, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, New York City, Western NY Tagged With: Cultural History, German-American History, Immigration, New York City, Performing Arts, Revolutions of 1848

1763-1848: The Age of Revolutions

December 27, 2017 by Liz Covart Leave a Comment

ben_franklins_worldBetween 1763 and 1848, an age of revolutions took place in North America, South America, the Caribbean, Africa, and Europe. But why is it that we only seem to remember the American Revolution, the French Revolution, and the Haitian Revolution?

Given that the American Revolution took place before all of these other revolutions, what was its role in influencing this larger “Age of Revolutions?” Did it influence this larger period?

Ben Franklin’s World: A Podcast About Early American History’s exploration of what the American Revolution looked like within the larger period known as the “Age of Revolutions” continues as Janet Polasky, a professor of history at the University of New Hampshire and the author of Revolutions Without Borders: The Call of Liberty in the Atlantic World (Yale University Press, 2015), guides us through the period to explore answers to these questions. [Read more…] about 1763-1848: The Age of Revolutions

Filed Under: Books, History Tagged With: American Revolution, Anti-Rent War, French And Indian War, French Revolution, Haitian Revolution, Podcasts, Revolutions of 1848, Seven Years War

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