The Wallabies are easy to explain. During the last ice age ocean levels went down resulting in a land bridge that linked both Ireland and Australia. That's how they got there .
You Wake Up and Find Yourself back In The 11th Century
- Thread starter BAYLOR
- Start date
The Wallabies are easy to explain. During the last ice age ocean levels went down resulting in a land bridge that linked both Ireland and Australia. That's how they got there .
Completely agree, heard a lot recently about Richard III's battle prowess especially. Perhaps I should have been more succinct and applied to the Anglo Saxon culture and what was expected of leaders, as they seem to have been more inclined to follow someone for their reputation rather than status of royal blood. Probably why Harold came to the throne after all - it's not like Edward the Confessor and Godwin got on well.
Have never found out why Aelfgar of Mercia (Leofric's son) went off the rails, as surely he would have been in line to succeed the childless Edward, with Leofric having always shown loyalty to the Confessor when Godwin had been close to starting civil wars on several occasions.
This could be a good discussion thread in its own right.
Especially when Henry V comes to mind.
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This could be a good discussion thread in its own right.
Especially when Henry V comes to mind.
And Richard III. For all of the other things that he may (or may not) have done, he was unquestionably a warrior king, leading his troops into battle. Even the Tudors who vilified him admitted that he was a courageous man.
Or a decent cup of tea either!And not decent burger joint to had anywhere.
It's interesting that, given the subject line, everyone has simply assumed England was meant. The conversation would be a little different--in details, at least--if we were speaking of 11thc Sicily or Hungary or Pomerania (aside: 1066 reverberates rather differently in Denmark, and differently yet again along the Elbe River; it was a busy year).
Also, it's not only interesting but rather surprising that no one has brought up A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, which humorously addresses much of this, even to the point of predicting an eclipse to demonstrate powers.
Also, it's not only interesting but rather surprising that no one has brought up A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, which humorously addresses much of this, even to the point of predicting an eclipse to demonstrate powers.
I asked the chat gpt where the best place to live in 1000AD
"It is difficult to say where the "best" place to live in 1000 AD was, as it would depend on an individual's personal preferences and needs. However, some of the most advanced and prosperous civilizations at the time were in China, the Islamic Golden Age (in the Middle East), and Medieval Europe, in cities like Cordoba, Venice and Kiev. They had more developed technology and culture compared to other regions and often had more opportunities for trade and education."
"It is difficult to say where the "best" place to live in 1000 AD was, as it would depend on an individual's personal preferences and needs. However, some of the most advanced and prosperous civilizations at the time were in China, the Islamic Golden Age (in the Middle East), and Medieval Europe, in cities like Cordoba, Venice and Kiev. They had more developed technology and culture compared to other regions and often had more opportunities for trade and education."
Alex The G and T
Thar! That Blows.
I was always suspicious about that Connecticut blowhard getting conked on the head and mysteriously carrying a half-a-thousand year astronomical almanac on the tip of his tongue.
Just discovered this thread ans skimmed through it. Apologies if I missed something.
Illness - Yes, we are descended from the survivors of plagues and have some genetic immunity. We are also innoculated against many diseases, but not everyone has all the innoculations they will require. Also, you can get very sick from a Cold virus. Septicemia and infected wounds would be a problem because you don't have antibiotics.
If you could survive the first few days without being robbed of your spaceman clothing (I'd sell it quickly and go incognito) then you may have a chance. I think that knowledge is key to making money. For example, you could grow Penicillin and make antibiotics. However, I'd be concerned about being thought of as practising witchcraft, and all very well if the patient improves, but what if he dies? Anyhow, someone with better medical knowledge than myself could probably make a living as a physician.
I think that trying to become a monk or nun is a good idea, but not sure at my age how possible that would be. I can't read Latin and I can't sing. This would be a better idea for a young boy or woman.
It is a pity we are in London. As the clerical Universiities of Oxford and Cambridge are a long way away. Also, I could use my own knowledge of Geology and Science to make money by mining, but that's harder in London. If I was in the North East there are still coal seams at the surface where you could dig it up with a spade, or pull it out of a steep river bank. I'd corner a land-owner and show him how much hotter coal burns in a fire than wood, and ask if I could dig it up and sell it and cut him in on a percentage. Later we could build a bell pit or drift mine, and railroads down to the Tyne to export it. If I had any children to carry on the business, they'd soon be running the whole country.
Elsewhere, I might know where to dig to find Iron, Copper, Tin and Gold. I do know where to find semi-pressious jewels like Blue-John. However, we are in London, and I can't afford even the food to get to any of those places. At least, I know some of the Springs around London, so fresh mineral water wouldn't be a problem. Maybe I could make a living from selling water from one of those.
I could also dig chalk from the North Downs and improve some acid heathland soils for the land-owners. My biological knowledge means that I know about fertilisers. I think crop yields could increase sensationally in even just one year, but convincing people of that before they have to do the hard physical work on the land would be difficult. I could show small scale experiments, but my status is so low to begin with and it would take a whole season. How do I prove that I'm not just a crazy old man? Even crop rotation would improve yields, but that involves changing systems that have been around for a long time, and which keep peasants fed every year from their strips of land.
So, I think the main problem is surviving the first few days, and establishing myself in the first year. I need something like the coal or spring water to make enough money to seed a bigger endeavour. I think I could become a brewer or a baker, but I'm too poor to buy those businesses and if I do have any money saved then I can't protect myself from theft. If I get sick, then I won't eat and I'll die. I'd need more luck than skill and knowledge.
Illness - Yes, we are descended from the survivors of plagues and have some genetic immunity. We are also innoculated against many diseases, but not everyone has all the innoculations they will require. Also, you can get very sick from a Cold virus. Septicemia and infected wounds would be a problem because you don't have antibiotics.
If you could survive the first few days without being robbed of your spaceman clothing (I'd sell it quickly and go incognito) then you may have a chance. I think that knowledge is key to making money. For example, you could grow Penicillin and make antibiotics. However, I'd be concerned about being thought of as practising witchcraft, and all very well if the patient improves, but what if he dies? Anyhow, someone with better medical knowledge than myself could probably make a living as a physician.
I think that trying to become a monk or nun is a good idea, but not sure at my age how possible that would be. I can't read Latin and I can't sing. This would be a better idea for a young boy or woman.
It is a pity we are in London. As the clerical Universiities of Oxford and Cambridge are a long way away. Also, I could use my own knowledge of Geology and Science to make money by mining, but that's harder in London. If I was in the North East there are still coal seams at the surface where you could dig it up with a spade, or pull it out of a steep river bank. I'd corner a land-owner and show him how much hotter coal burns in a fire than wood, and ask if I could dig it up and sell it and cut him in on a percentage. Later we could build a bell pit or drift mine, and railroads down to the Tyne to export it. If I had any children to carry on the business, they'd soon be running the whole country.
Elsewhere, I might know where to dig to find Iron, Copper, Tin and Gold. I do know where to find semi-pressious jewels like Blue-John. However, we are in London, and I can't afford even the food to get to any of those places. At least, I know some of the Springs around London, so fresh mineral water wouldn't be a problem. Maybe I could make a living from selling water from one of those.
I could also dig chalk from the North Downs and improve some acid heathland soils for the land-owners. My biological knowledge means that I know about fertilisers. I think crop yields could increase sensationally in even just one year, but convincing people of that before they have to do the hard physical work on the land would be difficult. I could show small scale experiments, but my status is so low to begin with and it would take a whole season. How do I prove that I'm not just a crazy old man? Even crop rotation would improve yields, but that involves changing systems that have been around for a long time, and which keep peasants fed every year from their strips of land.
So, I think the main problem is surviving the first few days, and establishing myself in the first year. I need something like the coal or spring water to make enough money to seed a bigger endeavour. I think I could become a brewer or a baker, but I'm too poor to buy those businesses and if I do have any money saved then I can't protect myself from theft. If I get sick, then I won't eat and I'll die. I'd need more luck than skill and knowledge.
I’m too old to make a living through manual labour and lack any practical skills. Best I could is grab a monk and have him record my predictions for the ‘future’, given my general historical knowledge. Then probably sicken and die...
I'm not sure about the idea of selling predictions for the future. I know very little about that Century. I think I might fair okay nearer to the modern day. I know William won the Battle of Hastings in 1066, but if I arrive in 1015 say, how much use to me is that? If I could predict some political event correctly then would they think I had inside knowledge, a foreign spy, or again, witchcraft? The Crab Nebula supernova in 1054 was visble during th day for a year. If I could predict that before it happened someone might notice, but it's likely they'd forget what I had said within a few weeks. It would take at least that time for the word of mouth to spread elsewhere by travellers. I'm also not sure how to turn it into a financial gain. I could sell horoscopes, and my little knowledge of weather, tides and astronomy might help there, but that's mainly about reading people and telling them what it is they want to hear, and I don't have those skills.
Even if you did have the skills of a metal smith, carpenter or cordwainer, within towns these professions were protected. Guilds began in the 11th Century. You probably had to prove that you had worked an apprenticeship, which was recorded. You would certainly need to pay them something first to join. I think the idea of being shipwrecked from some distant shore might work, you could set up shop without the town walls, and if your work was good enough, people would come to you. You still need seed money to buy tools and equipment unless you could find some rich benefactor.
Even if you did have the skills of a metal smith, carpenter or cordwainer, within towns these professions were protected. Guilds began in the 11th Century. You probably had to prove that you had worked an apprenticeship, which was recorded. You would certainly need to pay them something first to join. I think the idea of being shipwrecked from some distant shore might work, you could set up shop without the town walls, and if your work was good enough, people would come to you. You still need seed money to buy tools and equipment unless you could find some rich benefactor.
Cthulhu.Science
Well-Known Member
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And everything assumes I wouldn't die of random diseases right away.
I haven't read all the posts, but 11th Century London would very much depends on the year. If you get there in the middle of the century you might be able to help Harold Godwinson win the Battle of Hastings. Perhaps defeat the Normans before they arrive as you can tell Harold of the plans of William and the other Harold.
Black Powder isn't that hard to make - There is some potential shock and awe - and stampeding enemy cavalry. The steel to make muskets is pretty far out. But bronze canon and basic iron canon are possible as are all the fun things being produced in China at the time.
In imagining this sort of thing I'd always thought I'd simply hold the palms of my hands out for all to see. Nobody - I mean nobody older than 4 years old in medieval Europe had hands as soft on smooth as mine are. Clearly I'm nobility of some sort. I'd hope to get sent to the local priest or official and then get passed up the line as each hopes to earn favor with their betters.
Consider that after listening to some Latin spoken, since Latin writing is phonetic one can read from a Latin text even without knowing the meaning. This would demonstrate an education level that supports the nobility presumption. What's more, an ability to read a book even though I don't know the language would be something fairly miraculous I suppose.
And a little knowledge of Romance languages would go somewhere to understanding Latin. Focus on learning local languages.
Perhaps make up a good story for my presence. I am from a kingdom across the Western Sea (Atlantic) where I'm a minor lord of some sort with a tiny retinue of servants, enough that I don't need to lift a hand to do anything, obviously. Maybe I was in a ship that was blown way off course in a storm and damaged and when we hit landfall I was kidnapped. After much misery and uncounted days, and after infighting and calamity among my captors I found myself escaping and running aimlessly through the night only to come to in an alley in London. Boy am I weak after my ordeal.
I am here happy to learn your ways and perhaps share a few things that we do differently, though in our land the nobility learns about work generally so I won't claim to know how to work a forge. But lets calculate stuff - math is my friend. Understanding of modern chemistry. They don't have even basic knowledge of distilling. So many good things to share.
If I didn't die of a random disease or dysentery I might make it.
I haven't read all the posts, but 11th Century London would very much depends on the year. If you get there in the middle of the century you might be able to help Harold Godwinson win the Battle of Hastings. Perhaps defeat the Normans before they arrive as you can tell Harold of the plans of William and the other Harold.
Black Powder isn't that hard to make - There is some potential shock and awe - and stampeding enemy cavalry. The steel to make muskets is pretty far out. But bronze canon and basic iron canon are possible as are all the fun things being produced in China at the time.
In imagining this sort of thing I'd always thought I'd simply hold the palms of my hands out for all to see. Nobody - I mean nobody older than 4 years old in medieval Europe had hands as soft on smooth as mine are. Clearly I'm nobility of some sort. I'd hope to get sent to the local priest or official and then get passed up the line as each hopes to earn favor with their betters.
Consider that after listening to some Latin spoken, since Latin writing is phonetic one can read from a Latin text even without knowing the meaning. This would demonstrate an education level that supports the nobility presumption. What's more, an ability to read a book even though I don't know the language would be something fairly miraculous I suppose.
And a little knowledge of Romance languages would go somewhere to understanding Latin. Focus on learning local languages.
Perhaps make up a good story for my presence. I am from a kingdom across the Western Sea (Atlantic) where I'm a minor lord of some sort with a tiny retinue of servants, enough that I don't need to lift a hand to do anything, obviously. Maybe I was in a ship that was blown way off course in a storm and damaged and when we hit landfall I was kidnapped. After much misery and uncounted days, and after infighting and calamity among my captors I found myself escaping and running aimlessly through the night only to come to in an alley in London. Boy am I weak after my ordeal.
I am here happy to learn your ways and perhaps share a few things that we do differently, though in our land the nobility learns about work generally so I won't claim to know how to work a forge. But lets calculate stuff - math is my friend. Understanding of modern chemistry. They don't have even basic knowledge of distilling. So many good things to share.
If I didn't die of a random disease or dysentery I might make it.
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