Age of Enlightenment

Hello ,

I recently finished reading David Graeber and David Wengrow's Dawn of Everything. In the book, they make an interesting claim: that the European Enlightenment was, in many ways, started by Native American philosophers criticizing European customs. They bring up the example of Kondiaronk, a Native Chief, who conducted a series of interviews in which he laid out his view on white customs and society. This apparently was widely read in Europe and inspired people like Rousseau. He also brings up several passages written by European missionaries, in which Natives bring up points that seem eerily reminiscent of later Enlightenment thinkers. This is an interesting take on the Enlightenment. How much weight does it hold? Also, could you recommend any further reading on this subject?

I'm reading books on famous generals in c17th-c18th, where duelling among the gentlemen elite was a common way to settle scores and insults.

I'm currently reading about one such fellow who is known fir having a ferocious temper and was often duelling, either with swords or pistols.

It was in one such incident, where he was challenged by some young pup over a welched bet. On the day, they both matched pistols.

The youngster fired and scored a hit but only wounded said general. When the general returned in kind, his pistols hammer misfired and was stuck. But the general was allowed by both his and the other side's second to fire again, saying it was in the rules.

The young challenger had no choice but to stand there and take the shot, which promptly killed him.

I'm just wondering what specific rulebook does everyone draw to in dusputes such as this? Is the a set of certified rules-system similar to the Queensbury rules for boxing?

This question may seem a bit odd but it’s something I wonder. Tacky button-ups and Hawaiian shirts seem to be the casual vacation/dad wear of today. What would the equivalence be back in an age of fancy coats and powdered wigs?

In their book The Dawn of Everything, David Graeber and David Wengrow write the following about the European Enlightenment:

Suddenly, a few of the more powerful European kingdoms found themselves in control of vast stretches of the globe, and European intellectuals found themselves exposed, not only to the civilizations of China and India but to a whole plethora of previously unimagined social, scientific and political ideas. The ultimate result of this flood of new ideas came to be known as the ‘Enlightenment’.

Not having much knowledge of this period I can’t evaluate how accurate this is. Can anyone here weigh in? Is this how the Enlightenment came to be or is it an over-simplistic assessment?

I'm curious.

Here's a link to the tweet:

Additionally, I've never even considered the topic, but if anybody has any recommendations for books about the history of any of the self/ethnic/national identities in the British Isles, I'd love to have them.

Today, we have special forces who receive incredibly in-depth and specialized training in a myriad of ways to conduct war. I understand France and Prussia didn't have "special forces" as we think of them today, but what made a unit elite during the mid 18th century? For example, the Battle of Fontenoy saw the British First Regiment of Footguards faced off against the Gardes Françaises. According to the podcast I'm listening to, these two were the most elite units in each nation's army, respectively. Sure discipline and marksmanship could turn a battle in your favor, but it seems that much of war at that point was simply lining up in fields across from your opponent. What did these units do differently than others in their armies?

Hello! I was wondering about names before the enlightenment when literature and writing became accessible to the middle class.

My thought was that all the names we know from sources before the enlightenment are only the names of clerics and nobility. I am not familiar with onomastics so I was wondering if we actually know what names the majority of the population in the European middle age carried? The same names as nobility? Biblical names? Unknown names? Was it an honor to name your child Otto after the king or was it a name reserved for nobility?

With the enlightenment writing and therefore primary sources were provided by a socially broader authorship and with that (my thought) names from the middle class seeped into writing.

Even today we have names which we consider „low class“ or „fancy“.

I know this is a very big question. To narrow it down I am very interested in the 10/11th century Germany but if you know anything at all, I would love to hear about it.

How did commoners see it? Christians? Were they generally only from the elite?

It seemed to be an exaggeration in context, but he did support his claim, as the deaths of many Christians in churches on a Sunday made people reject spiritual explanations for the event and start seeking naturalistic ones.

As in where there any "resistance groups" who found this scientific train of thought to be dangerous, and if so, did they take direct action?