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Discover Latest #Assyria News, Articles and Videos with Contenting
Assyria Assyria is an ancient civilization situated in the northern part of what is now Iraq. It was once one of the most powerful and influential empires in the ancient world, and its legacy is still evident today. The Assyrians were a Semitic people who spoke the Akkadian language and practiced ancient Mesopotamian religion. They are known for their powerful military, advanced architecture, and sophisticated art. Assyria was one of the earliest civilizations in the world, with its first settlements dating back to the 25th century BC. Its capital, Nineveh, was the largest city in the world at its peak. The city was sacked by the Babylonians in 612 BC and eventually fell to the Persian Empire in 605 BC. The Assyrians were renowned for their use of iron weaponry and their highly organized military which allowed them to create a vast empire stretching from Egypt to modern-day Iran. The Assyrian Empire was eventually conquered by the Medes and later by the Achaemenid Persians in 539 BC.
Piecing Together the Past: How Renaissance Scholars Reconstructed Ancient Athenian Law - Not Even Past
When most of us think of the Renaissance, we usually imagine the rebirth of classical culture, bringing to images of spectacular paintings, life-like sculptures, and breathtaking architecture. We seldom reflect on the painstaking and often very dusty work required to bring ancient culture to life. In sixteenth-century Europe, gaining access to the cultural treasures of […]
Edition for Educators – The House by the Numbers in 2024 | US House of Representatives: History, Art & Archives
Eight years ago, the Office of the Historian published a blog which reviewed several historical statistics regarding the U.S. House of Representatives. Many lawmakers with many different careers have come and gone during that period. How, then, has the House changed since 2016? This Edition to Educators revisits that data, highlights new information on the History, Art & Archives website, and provides an update to important changes in the House’s membership. All numbers are current as of November 4, 2024.House Service & SenioritySince the U.S. Congress convened in 1789, 12,516 individuals have served as Representatives, Senators, or in both capacities—84 percent have served only in the House (10,513). A total of 1,321 Members have served only in the Senate and 682 have served in both chambers. In addition, there have been 146 people who have served exclusively as Territorial Delegates and another 33 as Resident Commissioners from the Philippines or Puerto Rico.Longest Service The Office of the Historian tracks several records of service in the House of Representatives in the following charts and pages:Members with 40 Years or More House Service provides a straightforward chart of Representatives with the longest tenures in the House. The late John Dingell Jr. of Michigan, who retired in 2019, holds the record for longest continuous House service, having served in the House for 59 years, 22 days.Women with 25 Years or More House Service highlights the longest-serving women in the House of Representatives. Although other lawmakers recently surpassed her, Edith Nourse Rogers of Massachusetts held the record of the longest tenure in the House by a woman for many years. She served for 35 years, 2 months, 12 days.Deans/Fathers of the House offers a list of Members who have held this honorary position and discusses how the post itself has evolved over time.First-term Members of the House Outside the First Congress (1789–1791), the largest class of first-term lawmakers to date took their seats in the 54th Congress (1895–1897), when 178 new Members of Congress—nearly half the House’s total—were sworn in between Opening Day and sine die adjournment. A full chart detailing the number of First-Term Members of the House of Representatives in each Congress also breaks down the difference between “pre-convening” and “post-convening” freshmen.Firsts & MilestonesThe youngest person to serve in the House was William Charles Cole Claiborne of Tennessee, who was elected to the 5th Congress (1797–1799) at no more than 22 years old, despite the Constitution requiring Representatives to be 25 years old. Our blog explains how Members younger than 25 were occasionally elected in the nineteenth century.Philip F. Thomas of Maryland holds the record for longest period of nonconsecutive service in the House, with a gap of 34 years between his first term in the 26th Congress (1839–1841) and his second term in the 44th Congress (1875–1877).Three Representatives (William Holman of Indiana, Harold Knutson of Minnesota, and Mary T. Norton of New Jersey) share a record for chairing four different standing committees over the course of their career.The Firsts & Milestones section of the website lists many more notable achievements and interesting outliers in congressional history. The most recent addition to this trivia goldmine is a section on Technological Milestones, a sister page to the exhibit on Electronic Technology in the U.S. House of Representatives.Vacancies & SuccessorsVacancies and Successors tracks mid-Congress vacancies and special elections. These charts now feature data back through the 99th Congress (1985–1987). Since 1985, 178 Representatives have been elected in special elections, and three Representatives have been sworn in under the provisions of state statutes.Congressional ApportionmentThe Constitution provides for proportional representation in the U.S. House of Representatives, meaning that seats in the House are allocated based on state population according to the Census the government conducts every 10 years.A PDF file displays Apportionment by State throughout history, current through the 24th census in 2020.The reapportionment following the 1840 Census is the only time the House has decreased its total membership through the apportionment process.The average population of a congressional district in 1790 was 30,000 people; today, Representatives serve an average of a little more than 761,000 constituents according to the U.S. Census Bureau.The Congressional Apportionment page also features additional sources of data and information.LeadershipSince 1789, 56 individuals have served as Speaker of the House. There have been 16 instances of Speaker elections requiring multiple ballots. The longest vacancy in the office of the Speaker during a session of Congress is 22 days. Sam Rayburn of Texas remains the Speaker of the House with the longest tenure; he held the gavel for 17 years, two months, and two days of nonconsecutive service.Women & Minorities in CongressSince Representative Jeannette Rankin of Montana was first elected in 1916, 427 women have served in Congress. Thirty-six percent of women in Congress are current Members and 90 percent have served exclusively in the House.Since Hiram Revels of Mississippi was first appointed to the U.S. Senate in February 1870 (followed closely by Representative Joseph Rainey’s election to the House from South Carolina in December 1870), 190 African Americans have served in Congress; thirty-four percent of African-American Members are currently serving. All but 12 (94 percent) have served exclusively in the House. One Black Senator has served in both chambers (Tim Scott of South Carolina).Since Delegate Joseph Marion Hernández of Florida was elected to the House in 1822, 160 Hispanic Americans have served in Congress; more than one-third of Hispanic Members are currently serving. All but 12 (93 percent) have served exclusively in the House. A total of 37 Hispanic Members have been statutory representatives, serving U.S. territories in Congress—20 Resident Commissioners from Puerto Rico and 17 Delegates from other territories.Since 1900, when Delegate Robert M. Wilcox of Hawaii became the first Asian Pacific American (APA) to serve in Congress, a total of 71 APAs have served as U.S. Representatives, Delegates, Resident Commissioners, or Senators; thirty-one percent of APA Members are currently serving. All but 8 (89 percent) have served exclusively in the House. A total of 26 APA Members have been statutory representatives, serving U.S. territories in Congress—13 Resident Commissioners from the Philippines and 14 Delegates from other territories.For further data on women and minorities in Congress—including committee assignments, leadership positions, caucus information, and more—please see the Historical Data section for each exhibit: Women in Congress, Black Americans in Congress, Hispanic Americans in Congress, and Asians and Pacific Islanders in Congress.Additional Institutional InformationSessions of Congress As of November 4, 2024, the U.S. House of Representatives has spent more than 31,000 days in session. There have been 465 Joint Meetings and Sessions in the history of the United States Congress. Of those, 100 have been in-person annual addresses on the State of the Union. The 101st Congress (1989–1991) holds the record for the most Joint Meetings and Sessions with 14.Political Parties Since the start of the modern party system in 1856, the House has changed majorities a total of 19 times. According to the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, Members of the U.S. House of Representatives have represented 47 different political parties or coalitions since 1789; this number does not include the political affiliations of Delegates and Resident Commissioners who have served in the House.Remembrance and Memorialization Since the death of Henry Clay of Kentucky in 1852, 34 individuals have lain in state and eight have lain in honor in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda. Additionally, three individuals have lain in state in Statuary Hall. Between 1820 and 1940, 32 funerals of Members of Congress were held in the House Chamber.One-hundred and ninety measures have been passed by the U.S. Congress or the Continental Congress issuing Congressional Gold Medals. These medals honor individuals across all walks of life who have made notable sacrifices or contributed to national progress.Presidential Vetoes Since 1789, U.S. Presidents have issued 2,591 vetoes of congressional legislation. Congress has overridden 112 of these vetoes, only four percent of the total.Additional data on the proceedings of Congress can be found in charts, fact sheets, and essays throughout the Institution section of the website. Looking for statistics for a single Congress? Congressional profiles include party divisions, session dates, leadership, committee information, and anecdotes about that Congress, all linked from one page.This is part of a series of blog posts for educators highlighting the resources available on History, Art & Archives of the U.S. House of Representatives. For lesson plans, fact sheets, glossaries, and other materials for the classroom, see the website's Education section.
Book Review: The Birdcage Library by Freya Berry
The Birdcage Library is a novel by bestselling author Freya Berry, whose debut novel The Dictator's Wife was featured on BBC's Between The Covers. It tells the story of It tells the story of Emily Blackwood, a plant-hunter in 1932, who’s tasked with finding hidden treasure in a remote Scottish castle. But her discovery of an old diary, filled with dark secrets and warnings, leads her on a different kind of hunt—one that may endanger her own life.
Around the Field - November 13, 2024 | National Council on Public History
From Around the Field this week: Cambridge University Press launches the open-access Public Humanities; the National Humanities Conference Making Waves, Navigating Currents of Change is happening in Providence, Rhode Island; The National Trust hosts equity-based preservation planning webinar. ANNOUNCEMENTS Registration has now opened for the National Archives Foundation’s space-themed “History, Heroes, & Treasures: Sleepover at the […]