Eastern Europe Consolidates: Crash Course European History #16

While the focus has been on Western Europe so far, there has also been a lot going on in Eastern Europe, which we'll be looking at today. The Commonwealth of Poland-Lithuania, The Ottoman Empire, and Russia were all competing at the eastern end of the continent/landmass of Europe at during the 16th century. You'll learn about the various Ivans in Russia, and the Time of Trouble that followed them, and you'll learn about the Ottomans' expansion into Europe. You'll also learn how the great power you may not have heard of, Poland-Lithuania was right in the middle of all these events, from the rise of the False Dmitry to the Battle of Vienna.
Sources
-Hosking, Geoffrey A. Russia: People and Empire, 1552-1917. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1997.
-Hunt, Lynn et al. Making of the West: Peoples and Cultures. Boston: Bedford St. Martins, 2019.
-Kivelson, Valerie A. and Ronald Grigor Suny. Russia’s Empires. New York: Oxford University Press, 2017.
-Parker, Geoffrey. Global Crisis: War Climate Change, and Catastrophe in the Seventeenth Century. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2014.
-Peirce, Leslie. Empress of the East: How a European Slave Girl Became Queen of the Ottoman Empire. New York: Basic Books, 2017.
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[@jigurd]

"...Not the last time that Ukraine's abundant farmland would make it a center of expansionist attention." Well, that aged well.

[@Epic0Studios]

this ukraine stuff really aged well huh

[@matthewmcneany]

'In 1654 Russia joined the Russo-Polish war' That must have been a somewhat one sided war before 1654.

[@overtsaturn]

The war started as a rebellion against the Poles in the Ukraine

[@kamilkrupinski1793]

Exactly. Before 1654 it was a war between Poland and its subjects (Cossacks) - civil war.

[@coriejoelsutherland702]

hahahahaha!!!

[@user-xq5og9lt8p]

Facts you may find interesting about Ivan the IV: 1. During his childhood Ivan witnessed a murder of some family members during power struggle between noble clans. As a result he gradually developed psycologic conditions which worsened with age. 2. Ivan was the longest-ruling head of Russia: more than 62 years! 3. Ivan was deeply in love with his first wife. It was said she was the only one who could calm his anger. When she died, he became notably paranoid. 4. Ivan invented the first secret service in Russia: "oprichnina". It worked very much like KGB of its time. A word "oprichnik" is still used as a swear-word for state terror. 5. Ivan won several wars against foreign states but also burned down some Russian cities as he thought they were too independent. 6. In his old age he often prayed to God for forgiveness of his sins. He even established a pension for the families of his executed political rivals. Enough for now, I'll write the rest if someone cares =)

[@lucas446607]

Go on, please

[@appleslover]

He was terrible..

[@yamenarhim9336]

I am interested too, but still, he was terrible ...

[@Liquessen]

Could that word be one of the origins of "oppressive"?

[@varana]

@@Liquessen No, that comes from Latin, and had that meaning for a long time before.

[@tassosxenakis8599]

I'm pretty sure that you're referring to Mehmed the second, not the first - he was the one to conquer Constantinople.

[@ikhsanmnoor8589]

Yes me too, think so

[@captainbacon9668]

I also believe he meant sultan Selim II not the first

[@revieman1]

bilgoin yep that’s right

[@NoeHernandezPe767]

Yes, was about to write the same, Mehmed II Fatih

[@joryjones6808]

Tassos Xenakis correct, Mehmed the sequel was much better than the original.

[@istanbulite6382]

Just wanna amend two things : 1- As everybody mentioned, it was Mehmed II who conquered Constantinople ( hence the nickname "Mehmed the Conqueror" 2- The method of killing a dynasty member was strangling, not stabbing as showed in the thought bubble. You cannot spill the blood of a dynasty member. The rest of the Ottomans section was surprisingly objective and thank you for your dedication. DFTBA.

[@fattahrambe]

That's interesting. You can't spill the blood of your own brother so strangle him instead.

[@DeHerg]

"The rest of the Ottomans section was surprisingly objective" Brown-nosing might be a better term. Claiming that merely having a different religion was punished by burning to death in the rest of Europe while it only resulted in additional taxes in the ottoman empire. Reality: that punishment was reserved for apostasy or "harmful witchcraft", "crimes" the ottoman empire deemed to be punishable by death just as much as christian europe (no surprise given that both drew from the old testament). Then claiming that, women could in absence of their husband fulfill administrative roles, to be something unknown in the rest of the continent when again in reality that was commonplace on both sides. And on both sides of the aisle women(generally) couldn't outright overrule decisions made by their husband or father. So in effect his comparisons were disingenuous at best manipulative lies at worst.

[@Rudero3]

Yeah, traditionally the other siblings were strangled by special deaf mutes who served the sultan. I don't believe the assassins were eunuchs. Though I know a few were killed brutally but it was generally during that Ottoman Interregnum after Sultan Bayezid I was captured by Emir Timur. That was a situation that wasn't repeated though. Sultan Mehmed I had to fight his brothers and cousins in open war.

[@muhamedmahmutovic6639]

@@DeHerg There were literally masive ethnic cleansing toward other religions in Christian world in that time while in Ottoman Empire they just needed to pay taxes so that was a huge difference, not to mention that Jews from Spain and Austria migrated to the Ottoman Empire and that there were a lot of Jews and Christians in administration of Ottoman Empire.

[@DeHerg]

@@muhamedmahmutovic6639 If by ethnic cleansing you are referring to the reconquista, you might want to take a look at what the Almoravids were up to in that same time and area. And forced conversion did also happen in the Ottoman empire. Moreover you seem to forgetting(or ignoring) that a lot of the Jews from Spain and Austria migrated to Poland instead of the Ottoman empire. Ever asked yourself why would that happen if the latter was such a tolerant paradise compared to the christian european hellhole?

[@viliussmproductions]

Hey, Eastern Europe in a Crash Course video! Finally!

[@AbbeyRoadkill1]

To be fair, CrashCourse covered the Ottomans (and a good bit of Russian history, too) in their "World History," "World History 2," and "Big History" series.

[@viliussmproductions]

@@AbbeyRoadkill1 Yeah, I remembered their episodes on Russia, but how many times have you heard Poland, Bohemia or Hungary mentioned on CC?

[@ArawnOfAnnwn]

@@AbbeyRoadkill1 Eastern Europe in general tends to get a very short shrift in European history, apart from the Russians and Ottomans. Even here, they just condensed three entire long-lived empires into one episode, after spending entire episodes on just one in the western half.

[@chrissr318]

When ever I'm watching other crash courses most of the time all I hear is "Hi, I'm Not John Green and this is Crash Course."

[@ofthehunt4243]

"Iron Hand"?? So you're saying they weren't as tough as rules who use a Topaz Fist.

[@TheTariqibnziyad]

No they werent that powerful.

[@samrevlej9331]

Or, you know, possibly, that's where Colossus from the X-Men made his début as enforcer of order. That would give the expression a whole new sense.

[@TheMichchaal]

Okay, but bear in mind that in Poland queen is only the wife of a king, and Jadwiga, which you mentioned earlier had the title of the king of Poland. just fun fact

[@martynasareo4674]

I was waiting for somebody to point it out ;> REX HEDWIG

[@TheSmegPod]

"Fortunately, arguments over Ukrainian land had at last been resolved."

[@scopophobemusic7555]

As someone from south eastern Europe I think that it is important to understand that the ottoman devshirme or the blood tax wasn't just drafting or levying. The age that people were taken was often 8-10. A lot of the times you had people forcibly maim their children to avoid being ripped away from their family while other families did give away their sons typically because they were already poor and opportunities were limited. After being taken these kids often didn't get to see their families until they rose up high enough in the ranks to win some form of autonomy. This is a sore subject in the region and is not well known in many western European countries or in america and I think it is important that anyone that is trying to understand this from the outside know that the issue is pretty complex.

[@mehmettalhakurt4776]

I have read a little about this topic in quora and like you mentioned some say (let say anti-ottomans) that it was a forcefull act and others (let say pro-ottomans) said that families were willing to give away their sons, in order to give them more opportunities in life. Also the pro-ottoman ones claim that the vezirs where building social structures in their respective hometowns like schools etc. But the comments were usually from turkey or western europe. If you have further information or detailed articles about this topic I'd like you to share them. Also great novel would be awesome to read since I think they give more perspective about the people who lived at that times. Side note: in highschool (Turkey obviously) we were thought that this system was established to prevent the ruling families to fight over the throne (in 13th century after the Selçuks collapsed there where many kingdoms/princeships all around Anatolia and the Ottomans conquered them eventually). If you compare the ottoman and european history unlike europe the ottomans were ruled the whole time by a single family. Fast forward to 19th and 20th century after Ottomans lost their land in the Balkan peninsula there were no more christian boys to devşir and schools were established to raise governors and generals

[@beth8775]

Judging by how people are today - and people have always been people - it would have been a bit of both. Some parents would have been more willing than others to give up their sons.

[@mehmettalhakurt4776]

@@scopophobemusic7555 thanks for your answer and I agree with you. It is a complex topic and you can not sum it up in a youtube comment but it gives hope to see people without bias and trying to be fair. The topics are being heavily studied in our country but I am not aware if they are translated to english. Nevertheless you can search for İlber Ortaylı, he is much respected historian in Turkey and I guess he should have some english publications. You can also look up for Halil İnalcık which was İ.Ortaylı's teacher. Stay curious and DFTBA :)

[@scopophobemusic7555]

@@mehmettalhakurt4776 thanks for the recommendations I look forward to reading them and hope you have a wonderful day as well.

[@sodinc]

@@mehmettalhakurt4776 i would say that it was rather clever politic and it had accelerated an assimilation of conquered peoples. Not great, not terrible if you know what i mean. And it was way better then russian experience with crimean tatars, who has kidnapped and enslaved more then 10 million people during ~2 centuries of contact.

[@roryokane5907]

I was waiting for the “AGH! PUTIN!” moment. I was not disappointed.

[@nicholasstampar454]

Great as always; will there be a chapter on Southeastern Europe/The Balkans?

[@georgeaksich9017]

Let's not.

[@thejessejoint]

Johns comments on ukraine take on a different light today.

[@DB-thats-me]

“No life is lived in the long run, including yours.” This should be taught to all. Both those in power and those who simply want to live their lives. Most inspirational sentence I have heard in a long time.

[@johnnywoodson4231]

No joke, John straight up looks and sounds happier when he's not talking about West Europe.

[@matthias8122]

Ahhh, I always wondered why there used to be so many Jewish people in Poland.

[@erraticonteuse]

Any time a country has a lot of Jews, it's because of long traditions of religious freedom and pluralism. That's also why over a quarter of the world's Jews lived in the US at the beginning of WWII.

[@TapOnX]

About 2/3rds of the World's total Jewish population. Given how the Jewish community in Poland probably had more rights than most Europeans at the time, it's easy to see why.

[@TheQueerTailor]

You might be interested in the folktale of Po-Lin which describes Jews coming to Poland, it’s very interesting

[@Artur_M.]

And keep in mind that Commonwealth was (as mentioned in the video) a large multiethnic state that also covered modern Lithuania, Belarus and most of Ukraine. That also explains why there were seemingly so many Jewish people in Russia. They didn't come to Russia, the Russian Empire conquered the formerly Polish-Lithuanian territories they were living in. BTW Poland's unusual for a Christian realm tolerance towards Jews dates back to the Statute of Kalisz issued in 1264 by Bolesław the Pious, one of the regional Polish dukes during a period of fragmentation. Later ratified for the whole reunited kingdom in 1334 by Casimir III the Great.

[@TheQueerTailor]

Artur M. Yep! There’s some very interesting Jewish folklore regarding King Kazimir. Other folklore shows an interesting dichotomy of Jewish isolation and integration in Poland, for example you have “The Rooster Prince of Breslov” which includes a Jewish doctor to the prince, but you also have the Chelm stories which show linguistic and cultural singularity from other Poles

[@LlamaCourt]

More Eastern European Crash Courses please! This was so interesting

[@cardenasr.2898]

Obvious as it should be, I didn't see the connection between Cossacks and Kazaks

[@TimoteiUA]

Transcription is pretty random thing, but it's actually Kozaks. I guess it may be due to fact that they both fought against and allied with almost all neighboring states (mostly because they weren't accepted as equal part of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth).

[@doppelkammertoaster]

Thanks for covering the Commonwealth! We usually learn about France being the first republic but usually not about the Commonwealth having the first constitution.

[@robertjarman3703]

Doppelkammertoaster France being the first republic?

[@doppelkammertoaster]

@@robertjarman3703 Usually yes, they focus on France more, I know it is not correct.

[@Livlikeliv]

The Ukraine jokes have aged interestingly...

[@RobinWootton]

Good job, John and team. I'm finding this Crash Course European History really well made.

[@zOgOs48]

Thank you, Mr. Green and CC. Couldnt afford college this semester and this helped me stay going.

[@ahtisimolaido1670]

You are welcome to continue your education in Europe

[@abhinavtiku4501]

Sorry to be the nitpicky historian here, but Mehmet II took Constantinople, NOT Mehmet I.

[@moondoggarvey4282]

Don't apologize for that, facts count in history.

[@jofelux7359]

Finally, I'm polish and I was a bit surprised that there was nothing about central Europe in your course. It was either the French or the brits that were discussed or the middle or far east with a glimpse on Russia..

[@IvyJau]

Hey! Lithuanian here. 🙋🏼‍♀️🇱🇹 I’ve been waiting for an episode that includes Central/Eastern Europe for YEARS! “European history” is usually just Western Europe, but there’s so much more to tell than that. 🤷🏼‍♀️ the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was introduced way in a nutshell, but hey! it’s something. Hope to see more videos on CEE! 🙊🙏🏼

[@kristanilajain1863]

Me too! I’m not from Eastern Europe- I’m from the US- but I’m very interested in Lithuanian culture and history(as a pagan nation/during the Commonwealth time/during the Cold War/etc)! It’s a fairly recent interest, but I’d love to know more! (😅😅🤞You mentioned that you’re Lithuanian yourself. Would you happen to know any good sources(books, videos, articles) you could recommend? Sorry to bother you!; I really appreciate it 😊!!)

[@md.musathidhasanrafi8803]

Man, can't wait for you to dive in to the 18th Century European History. It's so eventful especially with French Revolutions, The reign of Catherine The Great, The Modernization and reforms of Russia. It's going to be awesome.

[@andreimoga7813]

3:45 Mehmet II Oh my God, is everyone amending that? History is awesome

[@EarthChampion_TophBeifong]

This episode was Great! I wish you guys covered the Swedish Empire a little bit more but I'm glad you did mention the Ottomans

[@rparl]

Extra Credit has a sub series called Extra History which has covered Sweden, the Ottomans, and others.

[@franciscomm7675]

@@rparl both are nice series. Besides, i think that sweden is considered part of northern europe

[@JuliahistoryLover]

I love this one, my mind can grasp it because of how clear you spoke. Thanks!

[@Salsmachev]

Good to see that someone in history communication has read Leslie Pierce's work on the imperial harem.

[@wargriffin5]

An interesting note: - The King of France was seated on the "Holy throne of God" of the CATHOLIC world - The Tsar of Russia was seated on the "Holy throne of God" of the EASTERN ORTHODOX world.

[@bearholdensharkslux4791]

Gotta love religion

[@ferg5x5]

I think the point is that the people on such "Holy Thrones" said they were the *only* "Holy Throne of God". The Catholics and Orthodox Christians didn't see one another as compatible religions. They considered each other heretical.

[@boyanpenev9822]

Hey, claiming that you have a divine mandate helps the authority of a state. Plus, it gives +5 to public order and look good on a plaque /jk . However, for most Orthodox people then the most prestigious patriarchal seat was that in Constantinople as it was far older and most Orthodox Christian people had taken the faith from Eastern Roman missionaries. This is also why the Russian Tsars so long tried to conquer it one way or another. They also had a thing about being "the third Rome" and taking over Byzantium's mantle as defender of the faith.

[@Frahamen]

They claim the throne of the same alleged god, though

[@kreol1q1q]

And all the while, Holy Roman Emperors kept trying to figure out exactly when other monarchical titles got holier than theirs.

[@SupremeLeaderKimJong-un]

I love Eastern Europe, especially during the Cold War

[@OMundodeGeloeFogo]

The Mehmet who conquered Constantinople was Mehmet II, not the first

[@tytube3001]

Also why is the Sultan shaking his head like he's Indian

[@oza801]

Yes shocking !! Someone talking about history makes a major mistake 🤨🧐concerning a lot. Also why that head-shaking😬 the guy who prepared this is limited very much with mostly on perspective where he is coming from. He probably has no idea who Fatih Mehmet (mehmet ii was). He was true intellectual of his time few people in the whole world could compete with him. Spoke and wrote in italian, greek , persian and arabic in addition to turkish. Can you image what it could mean? He saw himself new romans also he had byzantine blood too from mother side. Really tired of seeing wrong stuff told in these videos as lessons 😬😬😬

[@TheTariqibnziyad]

@@oza801 please shut up, John Green is not a eurocentric, it's the opposite.

[@nikolettsarosi5355]

great video, thank you! could you make one of Habsburg Empire too?:)

[@salsagator]

Great work. Loved the They Might be Giants remark.

[@cfv7461]

Incredible how diverse and relevant were this 3 entities. Great work!!

[@moondoggarvey4282]

"Istanbul (not Constantinople)" was written in 1953, with words by Jimmy Kennedy and music by Nat Simon. Recorded by Canadian group The Four Lads in the same year, it was their first gold record.

[@hauntedmasc]

I'm so glad this exists. I can't imagine what a boon this would have been when I was in APEH.

[@sprinter768]

Another great episode. Good job and thanks.

[@jean-francoisdelacroix8268]

Extraordinary!

[@JorgeGomez-um9qb]

One of the weird twists of History: Hurrem is kinda popular in Hispanic America, this because she features prominently in some turkish soap operas which are really popular in the Southern Cone and Peru. Like, my mom knew who she was, and she discovered what the ottomans were, in a region where there are almost, no muslims.

[@franciscomm7675]

Bamidele, why? Because he doesn't represent islam as pure evil as you want him to do? His videos about islam thought me many things, and althought it is obvious that islam is, like all religions, a complex topic that can't be completly covered in a few videos

[@takod323]

@@franciscomm7675 islam good christianity bad

[@Audifaram]

@@takod323 in that timespan, this was actually quite true...

[@CliffCardi]

13:45 Then the Winged Hussars arrived!

[@Omnigreen]

Great episode, hope to hear some more about Eastern Europe next time.

[@gibranhenriquedesouza2843]

This gave me lots of ideas for new Age of Empires campaign...

[@msgnomi9727]

Great episode, nobody ever talks about eastern Europe.

[@skyeprater6532]

I have been a constant viewer of crash course history classes for years. I can honestly say they have all enlightened my view of history, however this episode stands out as enlightening and challenging to my view, and I thank you for it!

[@alexandrub8786]

How more exactly is this episode "challenging"?

[@ZoeAlleyne]

John Green is a coward: still won't tell me what the two BEST They Might Be Giants songs are.

[@davidrich27]

I'm convinced he said just to irk people like you and me. "Don't Let's Start" is a better song though.

[@woolsweater6489]

1. Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Theme 2. Birdhouse In Your Soul 3. Istanbul (Not Constantinople)

[@JemLeavitt]

Good video. 👍

[@Biotechen]

Is there a petition to bring you from the past back? I’ll sign that 100 times!

[@skykid]

Good video, wish you'd mentioned the Battle of Varna tho

[@amadexi]

Just a side note, the song Constantinople by "they might be giants" is a cover of the eponymous song by The Four Lads.

[@osoman86]

I'm not knocking it or calling outrage but I'm pretty sure that is probably the most graphic Thought Buble I've seen on @CrashCourse. Hugh pool of blood isn't what I expected. Series (and channel) are awesome BTW!

[@culwin]

Pretty sure people have been depicted as beheaded and impaled here before. I would consider that more graphic than just showing some vaguely red blood. But everybody's different I guess.

[@angelacaravella9339]

Thank you for every They Might Be Giants reference! Also CC is fantastic!

[@brandonkozak9696]

FYI, They Might Be Giants were not the first to record "Istamble, not Constantinople". That song was originally recorded by early to mid-50s vocal group The Four Lads.

[@YadraVoat]

For a moment, I was afraid I might be the first person to notice this today! :-)

[@MKPiatkowski]

The choir school boys!

[@Cythil]

Well Terrible used to mean Fearsome (And sometimes still do depending on context, if a but archaic when used like that) and that is how I have interpret his name for a long time. I do not think the Translation is really that wrong. Just that the meaning of Terrible, like Awesome, has changed with time.

[@sleepynidzyy]

Finally some talk about Eastern Europe not only Western Europe, we are really underrated

[@benas_st]

Well, for most of history Eastern Europe wasn't too influential on the rest of the world (only the Ottomans/Turks and the Russians) so it does make sense that we'd be look over quite a bit.

[@Fankas2000]

@@benas_st The same can be said about western Europe. You think England in the 11 century was influential? Western Europe only got important with the industrial revolution.

[@pmc609]

@@Fankas2000 I disagree....Western Europe was important from the early 16th century when colonization began

[@Fankas2000]

@@pmc609 So you think 16 century England could take on China? The new world was easy pickings, they had no steel and diseases absolutely wrecked them. Any European or Asian country could have taken all of the Americas, it wasn't a great accomplishment. But once the steam engine was invented Western Europe truly entered a class of its own.

[@pmc609]

@@Fankas2000 Not at all. I'm just saying that Europe first had an important historical impact on the rest of the world starting with colonization. Europe won the economic game early when it began colonizing the Americas, only the end result was apparent after several generations. Although they wouldn't have been able to defeat the Chinese in the 16th century, they did have a huge impact on the world then and began a process that resulted in them being able to beat China in battle several times during the 1800s.

[@ofi1238]

@CrashCourse The episode "English Civil War: Crash Course European History" is not in the playlist and possibly missing the #14 in the title?

[@Mr.Beauregarde]

Build a little birdhouse in your heart

[@DuranmanX]

So what are the top two They Might be Giants songs?

[@EnderMcCloud]

OK, John Green. You've said the They Might Be Giants song is their third best twice now. What is their second and first best according to you?

[@shawnhanf7273]

I'm curious what TMBG's top two best songs are, according to John.

[@laportaho1793]

I cannot really digest this episode. There are too many seemingly disconnected facts. I just remember he talks about the Ottoman Empire and the Russian Empire, but don't really understand how the central theme(the extent of state power?) relates to the two empires. Perhaps it is due to my unfamiliarity of the eastern european history. I wonder if anyone shares my confusion.

[@Manas_Kunder_]

Thanks A lot for this video 💓💓💓💓

[@jewishjedi]

I’d really like to know what TMBG’s best and second best songs are.

[@mihaylo_kovin]

Thanks)

[@tp7783]

I'd like to look at this video through the lens of what Johns two favorite TMBG songs are

[@simonkemfors]

Are you going to cover the Swedish Empire closer?

[@TheXander008]

Wow... An episode about the topic that IS NOT western Europe... 15 eipsodes on western Europe and 1 on eastern. But hey, IT"S SOMETHING! :D

[@Carnifici]

That's why I find these series kinda annoying. Talking about great western empires is fun and all, but eastern europe is really interesting. Nothing about hanseatic league and trade in baltic sea, nothing about Polish-Hungary-Lithuania one dynasty rule, nothing about how fall of Constantinople led in part to the renaissance in Europe. This show is hella western europe centric, and we all heard about it so many times since CrashCourse started it's boring and repetetive now.

[@DrunkenDriverStudios]

john is covering the US Advanced Placement European History curriculum, it's less his fault and more of the fault that English speakers want to focus on the part of history that affected english speakers the most

[@ppaaccoojrf]

@@Carnifici Western Europe overshadows Eastern Europe in these kinds of overall history series because it's just not that relevant. It can be interesting, sure, but the real players in the "continent" (and eventually the world stage) during this time period are the Western European nations, plus Russia and the Ottomans. Note that I'm not disparaging Eastern Europe, but explaining why _every_ overview of the history of Europe will undoubtedly focus on Western Europe. You need to seek specifically for Polish or Hungarian (maybe Panonian) or Balkan history if you want to hear those stories.

[@TimoteiUA]

@@ppaaccoojrf It's pretty stupid that you think the most populous european country weren't "real player", that's exactly what western centrism is -_-

[@ppaaccoojrf]

@@TimoteiUA It's not stupid when you look at the outcome. Poland got engulfed by Prussia, Russia and Austria, and those three empires went on to shape the history of the region for the next century. What happened in Poland or Bohemia or Romania affected their own territory and their immediate neighbors. What happened in the UK or France or Prussia shaped world history up until the present. It's ridiculous for you to assume that they're equivalent. Even richer and more developed nations like Denmark or Sweden or even Italy get glossed over because their influence just wasn't on par with the "real players".

[@wellimeantosaywhat]

Still can’t get over The Jaden Smith Studio

[@NemesisMKIII]

4:00 Onion hat!

[@flamedragon07]

I like the way they threw in the Putin joke. So funny.

[@shlokbhagwat]

We need a crash course related to stock markets

[@danielmasny1587]

Fantastic video, as a Ukrainian American I am heartened by your inclusion of one of the largest ethnic groups in Europe.

[@akashapowell9930]

Hi! love your videos

[@TheMadisonHang]

@10:50 i can very faintly hear an echoing of communism and that buddist reconciliation of hierarchical social power that everyone has a tier, and every tier has to answer to someone, kinda makes it all even. i get it that's cool! never had it explained like that, thanks

[@evanherb5900]

Can't help but wonder what TMBG's first two greatest songs are

[@jamesbohannon5506]

I love CC, but Suleyman the Magnificent (3:59) expanded the Ottoman's holding in southeastern Europe, not southwestern Europe. Still much better job than what I can do.

[@paulmoskal3438]

Some real pretty paintings in this video! Anyone know the name of the one at 10:00?

[@user-xq5og9lt8p]

We are mentioned in European history, uraaaaa!

[@arinadaze5160]

* mentioned

[@user-xq5og9lt8p]

@@arinadaze5160 htank yuo! =)

[@markoboredguy6911]

after 16 episodes!!! hahahaha

[@ArawnOfAnnwn]

Eastern Europe in general tends to get a very short shrift in European history, apart from the Russians and Ottomans. Even here, they just condensed three entire long-lived empires into one episode, after spending entire episodes on just one in the western half.

[@paulheitzenroder4499]

I’m curious what is the #1 and #2 song by “They Might Be Giants”. Older? Particle Man?

[@fredleckie5880]

I quite like "Birhouse in Your Soul"

[@rayceeya8659]

I just gotta know John, What are the two better TMBG songs? I'm awful fond of "Particle Man", and "Birdhouse in Your Soul".

[@erraticonteuse]

"Independent Film" fan here.

[@natoman123]

The one they use for malcome in the middle opening theme is pretry good

[@TROLLSPAM666]

Religious tax was not only tax, but we dont expect much from American.

[@LashknifeTalon]

Dude, can we start calling Ivan IV "Ivan the Awesome"? That's just an excellent appellation!

[@edwood7hv]

As a Lithuanian I'm thankful and I respect that you gave attention to our region as It usually falls short in Europen history books. But why did'nt you pronounce any names? It would have been real treat to hear how you mispronounce our native language. Keep up the good work team, your content is one the best youtube has to offer!

[@sanildefanso]

They Might Be Giants songs 1 and 2: 1. Ana Ng 2. Doctor Worm

[@GilgameshEthics]

Doctor worm yes, ana NG as number one. Ng...

[@-Lindol-]

I dunno, I’d put Birdhouse in your soul up there.

[@luxubukid]

3:46 It is actually Mehmed II, not the first.

[@arinadaze5160]

And then suddenly Putin appears lol

[@mattbenz99]

Not suddenly. His reign is a very logical continuation of where Russia was heading. The Soviet Union covered up a massive amount of Russian issues which were laid bare when it collapsed. The Russian federation was forced to confront everything from poor agricultural policy, a deeply religious and conservative culture, a 400 year old history of state sponsored alcoholism (the Tsar actually ran the alcohol industry and Stalin reopened it), to general Russian pessimism. Putin was the likable strong man who came along to try and fix some of these issues, and in many ways, his reforms succeeded. The male life expectancy in Russia bottomed out in the mid 2000s at 58. Putin managed to bring that up to almost 70 in just under a decade.

[@AverytheCubanAmerican]

Eastern Europe evolved from that to gopniks, glorious

[@MrDanishninja]

oi blin

[@Newbmann]

Adidas track suit squad

[@userWCFL]

Hi

[@tombkings6279]

Hey

[@Trippster100]

Are you like the new Justin Y?

[@aienatu]

thank you for your consideration.

[@Politicallyhomeless957]

You look like a Dad in this vid when usually you look my son. Lol great content 👏👍

[@Rico-Suave_]

Great video, thank you very much , note to self(nts) watched all of it 15:13

[@jackdalton2538]

You kinda missed the biggest thing about the ottoman stability. As the sultan came to the end of his life he would order the death of his other sons, ensuring that his chosen heir had no competition. That's why in the entire ottoman history there were only 3 civil wars, which was a whole lot less than other states in Europe at the time.

[@Oxtocoatl13]

You're not wrong but I feel like pointing out that they did compensate in the number of palace coups and murder sprees, particularly later, when the janissaries became an influential political group.

[@Fankas2000]

I don't think it is worth preserving a culture/country were it is expected for a father to murder his sons.

[@JohnVance]

John Green gives me life

[@vigilantsycamore8750]

I would have liked a more in-depth perspective over multiple episodes, but it's still great to see us getting mentioned Learning about the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth actually solidified/shaped a lot of my political views: that religious tolerance is good and a society where various faiths are able to openly and peacefully exist side-by-side is to be desired, that scientific study should be encouraged by the government, and that multiculturalism is a good thing - and other views that I developed from learning about the Commonwealth's decline, like "why would you ever have something like liberum veto?" or "all people should have the same rights regardless of class" or "ethnic minorities within a country should have a right to self-determination". It even defined how I understand what being Polish MEANS... which it looks like most of my country disagrees with right now, but I'm still hopeful

[@MurderousEagle]

For those of you wondering, #2 is "I'm impressed" and #1 is "Raincoat"

[@enesozel]

3:42 "Mehmed I" should be "Mehmed II".

[@stimulantdaimamld2099]

great

[@mr.bluesky8554]

He has returned