Tea at Trianon: The Royal Library of Ashurbanipal

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Wednesday, May 8, 2019

The Royal Library of Ashurbanipal

From Ancient Origins:

The Royal Library of Ashurbanipal has sometimes been described as the ‘first library’ in the world, or the ‘oldest surviving royal library in the world’. The library was discovered by archaeologists who were excavating at the site of Nineveh, today known as Kuyunjik. As this was the imperial capital of the Neo-Assyrian Empire during the reign of Ashurbanipal, the library has been attributed to this ruler. The Royal Library of Ashurbanipal contains over 30,000 clay tablets and fragments with texts written in the cuneiform script . The subjects of these texts range from governments records to works of literature and technical instructions.

Ashurbanipal (meaning ‘the god Ashur is creator of an heir’) is often regarded as the last great ruler of the Neo-Assyrian Empire , and reigned from around 668 BC to 627 BC. During this period, the Neo-Assyrian Empire underwent its greatest territorial expansion, and the areas under Ashurbanipal’s rule included Babylon, Persia, Syria and Egypt. As Ashurbanipal ruled over his subjects with justice and fairness, he was a popular king. Nevertheless, he is also known for his ruthlessness and cruelty when dealing with his enemies. Ashurbanipal’s greatest accomplishment, however, was the creation of his royal library. (Read more.)