I enjoyed reading general history for a few decades along with philosophy. The ancient world was certainly tough, so much so that many moderns can’t understand it. Life was short; no treatment for cancer, appendicitis etc. At Gettysburg examination of skulls showed that 90 percent of the soldiers had abscessed teeth. A Philistine site excavation showed that a huge percent of people had died of head wounds and it wasn’t a battlefield.
Mercy killings for disease and bad law enforcement was a way of life. One needs to be specific about particular historical events and issues if one wants to have good understanding. Modern history videos make learning easier. Charles Martel at Tours Zheng H, Shaka Zulu, Marius and Pizzaro are a few salient leaders to consider.
When I scored 99 percent ranks on CLEP college history exams I had prepped reading for years and travelling to Europe to look around. Many people don’t understand history more than superficially. Most of those warriors would have died of natural cause by the age of 40. As late as the First World War 16,000 soldiers died from infected blisters and blood poisoning. I had a red streak going up my leg from an infected blister at air assault school I got that fixed in Seattle with antibiotics before visiting Berlin in winter of 1987. The international monetary fund net there later before the fall of the wall. It was always about money, land and power.
Writing about history can require volumes. I wrote a few million words on contemporary events and often, in the first twenty books, wrote about ancient history to 1648. I wouldn’t agree with your ideas regarding European or American history, yet am aware that millions have died in cultural encounters- in the past usual amongst illiterate people. They were often fighting for land and political power rather than theological differences even though leaders had expressed allegiance to this faith or that.
The present war in Ukraine is a case in point; there are sectarian differences between the belligerents yet the war is over land and political power. Educated Western leaders should have known better yet acted dumb and dumber since the Clinton administration. Conflicts can be massive and out of scale to initial causes.
When Turks wanted to capture Constantinople they catapulted plague infested rats over the walls to kill the people inside the city. They probably hadn’t intended to kill 2/3rds of the population of Europe. When Spanish and Portuguese explorers first visited South America they might not have known that European viruses would erase a civilization up the Amazon within 20 years. Exploration of the new world was prompted by curiosity, as search for knowledge, new routes, land and power yet not primarily by religion. Spain sought gold and found it. 1492 was the year Spain expelled the last Muslim invaders from Iberia and sent Columbus over the ocean.
Humans have original sin and their political works often have reflected that in conflicts. Some would like to deny the existence of God in an effort; a futile one, to acquire themselves. Only through the blood of The Lord can a human be saved from that guilt
And lblame for the Inquisition...
The State executed or imprisoned captives for The Inquisition in accordance with local laws. The Catholic Church examined them to determine if they were Catholics or had foreign allegiance as some kind of heretic. US social median comprised predominantly of Democrats, atheists and wokistry purged conservatives and Christians from social media as best they could as heretics to Democrat Party political goals with less violent means since the Obama administration.The Inquisition was probably a motivation for the separation of church and state centuries later in the US Constitution by Protestant founders.
People need to learn from history and improve upon it. Protestants were also purged in the era. You might read Foxxe’s Book of Martyrs to learn of The St Bartholomew’s Day massacre and other events. The Habsburgs were trying to retain control of Europe and the Church was resisting reform from Protestants even as Mongol and Muslim invasions were being repulsed from attacks on Europe and Christiandom.
Illiterate peasants and opportunistic leaders often couldn’t discern the differences between theological points in Latin edition books they had never read and the sword points of foreign invaders; that is the peasants being killed by invaders with different religious beliefs were killed by swords rather than ideas. Spanish conquistadors had 500 years of war in their own country for practice getting rid of Muslim invaders as the inquisition commenced. Intolerance of foreign allegiance was realistic politics of that time.
People have original sin and only slowly discern the way of Jesus as far as numbers go... if they are blessed. Humanity is somewhat crude regarding environmental economics and Christian ethics including many of those affiliated with religion. Society in history is a work in progress.
