American Reacts to History of Britain

🇺🇸🇬🇧 Embark on a captivating journey through time as we delve into the annals of British history, uncovering the stories, events, and cultural milestones that have shaped a nation and resonated across the world.
This video is an exploration of cultural heritage and global influence, demonstrating that history is a universal language that connects us all. Join us to gain a deeper appreciation for the rich tapestry of human experience, as we navigate the chronicles that continue to shape the world.
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#BritishHistory #CulturalLegacy #GlobalInfluence #AmericanReacts #HistoricalNarratives
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[@JK-wc5oq]

12:39 Britain did NOT have a "monopoly on the slave trade". More than half of all the slaves were taken by the Portuguese, not the British. Britain accounted for only a quarter of the slave trade.

[@JJLAReacts]

I see. Yeah, Britain was also the first to abolish slavery, correct?

[@rde4017]

William the Conqueror abolished slavery in England very soon after the Battle of Hastings in 1066, I think the Dutch had also abolished it in The Netherlands by the time we abolished the slave trade globally in the 1830's.

[@JK-wc5oq]

@@rde4017 Technically he abolished the sale of slaves in England, not actual slavery. In the Doomsday Book in 1086 about 10% of the English population were listed as slaves (a hold over from the Viking Danelaw). However a ban of sales effectively killed it off within a couple of generations.

[@cmlemmus494]

@@JJLAReacts It's complicated and depends on how you define things. In 1435, Pope Eugene IV condemned Christian slavery and forbade the enslavement of any people who were in the process of being converted to Christianity as well. However, mercenary armies would raid pagan areas in Eastern Europe, transport them through Christian territories, and sell them to the Muslim Caliphates. IIRC, France was actually the first country to completely abolish slavery within their borders. They even enforced it with foreign visitors to France: any slave that touched French soil was instantly freed. Unfortunately, they didn't extend this to their overseas colonies. Britain certain put a lot of time and energy into ending trans-Atlantic slavery, but whether they were first (or last) is a bit debatable.

[@howey935]

And it Britain who put an end to the Atlantic slave trade. William Wilberforce was the politician who started the anti slavery society which led onto Britain abolishing slavery and lost over 2500 in the Royal Navy whilst blockading the coast of Africa.

[@tnetroP]

It's a shame that Britain's actions in using it's navy to end the global slave trade wasn't mentioned.

[@karl-rconnon9974]

It only ended its own slave trade

[@tnetroP]

​@@karl-rconnon9974Not correct. Britain blockaded African ports in 1808 to stop the British Atlantic slave trade. But after Lincoln agreed in 1861, Britain also used it's navy to stop any American slave ships too.

[@neilprice513]

@@karl-rconnon9974 The British Navy blockaded both the Western and Eastern slave routes into Europe/The Americas and The Middle East (3/4 of all slaves from Africa were sold to the Middle East)

[@Dusty3030]

@@karl-rconnon9974 Always wiser when trying to make a factual comment to be correct.

[@tomben6180]

@@karl-rconnon9974It also stopped many black slaves being transported by Barbary Pirates and the Arabs. In fact it freed more slaves than it ever had in its own slave trade

[@ninamoores]

Some things are not remotely explained on this video and are quite misleading….The so called concentration camps in S Africa were designed to take women and children away from the hazards of battle.Resultant disease and lack of food was not a deliberate policy but rather a result of poor hygiene on the one hand and poor planning on the other. It is popular sport these days to blame Britain for all the worlds problems……

[@JJLAReacts]

You bring up great points! Yeah, Britain has become a popular target lately. I'm hoping you didn't get the impression that I am taking part in that. I have much admiration, respect, and love for the British people and culture. I find it all fascinating!

[@ninamoores]

@@JJLAReacts No . Fear not! That’s me just making an observation. I just felt that the vid you were watching was a little too apologetic about Britain’s past making sweeping comments without fully checking his facts. If you want to know more about the Scots and Panama ( see my second message) The Darian scheme makes an interesting read. I’m enjoying your videos and Thankyou for your interest in and appreciation of Britain. I have a soft spot for your beautiful country too having spent much of my youth travelling through it. As with the U.K. the U S of A also has its detractors and is often at the receiving end of a lot of negativity ….but in my opinion ❤️❤️❤️

[@wessexdruid7598]

The term 'concentration camps' for the British refugee camps was coined by _Hermann Goering_ - when he was trying to deflect criticism of what the Nazis were doing, by the British, before WW2. The first 'concentration' camps were used by the Spanish in the Cuban War of Independence, before the Boer War. Google a South African view, in 'The Observation Post' to see the myths debunked.

[@ntsikeleloemma5663]

Stop lying chief

[@ntsikeleloemma5663]

Don’t forget you colonized and divided almost half the world, you took culture away from aborigins

[@simov8chevy]

Guy Fawkes, the only person ever to enter parliament with honest intentions.

[@eddiewillers1]

LOL - I had a pin with those words and a Fawkes-like figure on it over 45 years ago!

[@laurajarvis3156]

We need a new one 😂

[@howey935]

@@laurajarvis3156 you might be right on that one with the bunch of corrupt multi millionaires in our government.

[@onbedoeldekut1515]

Oh, Jeremy Corbyn.

[@elainekent7026]

And boy do we need him now lol.

[@Cleow33]

The Magna Carta ‘seems pretty basic’ because it is the document upon which all modern democracies, including American, are based. It is the blueprint if you like for the way laws are made across the western world.

[@tonyh5484]

after 800 years the only thing relevent re Magna Carta is the right for every man or woman to have legal representation in a court of law, thats why the court will appoint a lawyer if you havent got one

[@tonytidbury6569]

The original Magna Carta (it was reneged on and revised many times) was by the barons for the barons. The people, 80% of whom were serfs (half a step above slaves), were beneath concern to them. A few merchants got some rights. It was not a democratic document in the sense we use today.

[@grahvis]

@@tonyh5484 . Two other provisions still in force are the rights of the Anglican Church and the rights of the City of London.

[@tonyh5484]

@@grahvis okay

[@johnnewton2949]

@@tonytidbury6569 True. Henry the second hated the Barons and the power of the Church. He created a kind of civil service in his court made from lay people to look after the Royal purse, which infuriated the Church and the Barons. John was loyal to his father and continued in his footsteps which lead to the Baron's Charter.

[@pricey1635]

It’s crazy to think that the modern world as we know it was created by Britain. Amazing history.

[@teepi280]

Unfortunately we were given the task by the League of Nations of setting up Palestine and Israel after the Ottoman Empire were defeated in WW1, that hasn't worked out so well.

[@bobtudbury8505]

all under threat from woke / wef etc . canada , uk, oz , kiwi etc

[@jerbil9353]

It seems ordinary to me. I mean English is the main language in the world, no? You know why that is, right?

[@SpookyBC09]

​@@jerbil9353 it's the most widespread but not the most spoken

[@tiobridge841]

@@SpookyBC09 It's everyone's second language!

[@GregNicolas-vb6vj]

It always amazes me that a relatively small island, with less than 2% of the world population, built the largest empire in history,

[@Panzer-Hobbies]

Tea really motivated us

[@martinwhitfield1362]

Helps if you had an insane naval force.

[@fredericksaxton3991]

@@Panzer-Hobbies Tea also saved many lives. You had to Boil water to make Tea. That alone is a life saver.

[@Simon-hb9rf]

technically the largest empire by landmass, Mongolia under Genghis khan beats us out for largest by population i believe.

[@GregNicolas-vb6vj]

@@Simon-hb9rf Nope, not even close, the Brit's Empire ruled over 13.7 million square miles of land and 26% of the world's population, as opposed to the Mongol Empire's 9.3 million square miles and 18% of the world population.

[@kurukblackflame]

The video being watched was very simplistic. Dangerously so (to the point of being erroneous or misleading via omission).

[@pd8066]

Fun fact, many of the roads the romans built are still used today.

[@KBJ58]

Some local Governments are even considering repairing them.

[@pd8066]

@@KBJ58 they are good roads tbh, but i also doubt that as most roads are shit lmao

[@stuartspence3613]

​@@KBJ58 but we got the best potholes in the world 😊😊🤣🤣

[@chrisstucker1813]

Lol there's a left over Roman fort near where I live. It's called Segedunum.

[@WritewheelUK]

We in England can tell a Roman road from a newer one: Roman roads have lasted until today.

[@TheHuntress24]

Quick one: Edward III didn’t fight WIlliam Wallace, that was his grandfather Edward I 😊

[@JJLAReacts]

Ah, I see. Thanks for clarifying!

[@heraklesnothercules.]

Correct. And as well as having the epithet "Hammer of the Scots", he was also known as Longshanks due to his height.

[@Murdo2112]

@@JJLAReacts Neither did he fight Joan of Arc. She cropped up during the reign of Edward's great, great grandson, Henry VI.

[@Mark-Haddow]

The Hundred Years War also saw an alliance of France & Scotland defeat the English, Portuguese and French union. The act of Union was created not just because Scotland was suffering economic trouble, but also; England knew Scotland was about to align with France again and invade England. Scotland & France have the oldest alliance, but the English pretend theirs is older with Portugal. 😂 The War of 1812-15 was suspiciously left out, a war that saw the UK defeat the US on US soil, guaranteeing North America would consist both Canada and the USA. The number of inaccurate details in this video is concerning.

[@adrianbell6041]

Actually, I think you'll find that Longshanks is a reference to his long hair (shanks), but I suspect he was also quite tall for the times.

[@daveofyorkshire301]

How do you think GRRM got the idea for Game of Thrones? Even the red wedding was based upon a real historical event in Scotland...

[@JJLAReacts]

Yeah, Game of Thrones seems a lot less creative to me now LOL!

[@daveofyorkshire301]

@@JJLAReacts Now you know why GRRM couldn't finish the story, and why Hollywood created the ending...

[@Isleofskye]

@@JJLAReacts I really like your style and wish you every success. I, particularly, like that you pause the video and spend 30 seconds looking something up rather than waste 3 minutes "second-guessing" like many reactors and keep the 5-second rewind fir continuity. You might spend 15 seconds at the start introducing yourself though. Good Luck.

[@speleokeir]

Yep, Game of Thrones was largely inspired by the War of the Roses which was a fight for power between noble houses with loads of back stabbing, changing sides, etc. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wars_of_the_Roses

[@daveofyorkshire301]

@@speleokeir A good soundbite at the time and I'm sure they spin it for promotional purposes, but the seven kingdoms was long before the war of the roses, the red wedding was in Scotland, the barbarians to the north was Roman times, the threat across the sea was Vikings or Barbary Pirates... There is no way a singular period of time or event could be taken as a building point for GoT... It's just a convenient post filming narrative that they liked...

[@azzajames7661]

You should watch "The British Crusade against Slavery" 👏

[@karl-rconnon9974]

You’re right, after 300 years of treating people like cattle it copped itself on… 👏 👏 👏

[@andrewdocherty3998]

Scotland's main industry was not 'linen', it was shipbuilding and the Clyde shipbuilders at one stage in the 1900s had the largest gross weight tonnage in shipbuilding on the planet, building ships like HMS Hood and the QE2. Shipbuilding wouldn't be what it is today without the Scots

[@johndcorcoran6550]

Linen industry was based in Ulster.

[@bazahaza]

Then the workers wouldn't let the shipyards modernise and went on strikes. Ruined the industry for themselves.

[@nanunanu8745]

Agreed. While Scotland's textiles business was huge, Shipbuilding & coal were the biggies.

[@buidseach]

The British Empire wasn't built by fighting, It was built by Companies that had their own Armies to stop trouble that were later taken over by the crown.

[@hikareti9503]

That might be splitting hairs, the East India Company was given a royal warrant by Elisabeth the first. They were effectively a commercial and mercenary force for the crown.

[@justinchetham-strode5234]

What you write here only applies to India, which may have been the 'jewel in the crown' of the Empire, but it was still only one of Britain's many colonies.

[@buidseach]

@@justinchetham-strode5234 All of the British Empire was an economic one, not an invading one, except to attack dictators like Napoleon.

[@MxMoondoggie]

The British Empire has long been misunderstood as the crown invading lands to rule over them but that's generally not what happened. Traders would move in, gain a monopoly and enforce it with a private army that also recruited locally. Now and again they'd inform the monarch they just invaded some random kingdom and took it over and the King/Queen would be like "I guess that's a thing that happened?" India direct rule was an attempt to restore order because of uprisings against the ruling merchants which actually worked. Most of the initial uprising was due to greed and not a desire to free themselves from an oppressive dictatorship run by the crown.....Maybe later on but not initially.

[@justinchetham-strode5234]

@@MxMoondoggie Apart from India, where else do you think the British had private armies?

[@JayTemplar]

The UK has certainly played an unquestionably important role in global history, quite extraordinary for such a tiny landmass when considering the planet as a whole.

[@seanmcmanus3033]

they also oppressed and killed millions of people in the process. great nation

[@owenplourde3934]

The entire GoT universive is based off English history. HotD is based off The Anarchy (A War of Succession). And GoT is based off a war of roses. GoT is still spectacular and amazing, as it has a lot of uniqueness to it. But it stems from real events and history.

[@MyopicBookworm]

GoT is actually based quite a good deal on French history.

[@494Farrell]

@@MyopicBookworm Maybe aspects of it are, but the struggle between the Starks and the Lannister's is based of the struggle between the Yorks and Lancasters in the War of the Roses, many events are based on other bits of British history (such as the Red Weddings inspiration being the 'Black Dinner' in Scotland).

[@mattnar3865]

@@MyopicBookworm European history really, Dorne is Spain, Reach is France, Iron Islanders are pale imitations of VIkings. Aegon the Conquerer is William, the wall is Hadrian's wall, hell they both even come with the massive time difference between when it was built and 'current' times. There's European history scattered throughout ASOIAF.

[@waspsnorter1714]

George RR Martin is on record saying Westeros landmass is just Britain enlarged and the whole thing is inspired by the Wars of the Roses, hence Yorks were switched to Starks and Lancaster switched to Lannister. His obsession with Hadrians wall is shown as the Ice Wall in GoT also plus endless other references, such as the ‘North’ taking the accent of my city Sheffield in Yorkshire, so the French element is somewhat minuscule to all this.

[@anitaherbert1037]

I used to live in the tiny city of Ripon. Its cathedral was built between the 12 and 16 century on top of what was a Roman Basilica. We had a hornblower dressed in full regalia that came to the Market Square at 9 o'clock every night rain or shine would blow an ancient horn to the 4 cardinal points. This tradition has carried on for a thousand years. Uninterrupted through 2 world wars, even during covid lockdown when permission was not given the hornblower blew his horn to the 4 cardinal points in his garden so the people of Ripon could hear it. Ripon is in an area of outstanding beauty yet it's only when I see people like YOU react to our history do I understand how we take for granted living amongst our history, which for us is a tangible thing. Even my house came with RIPONIAN RIGHTS granted in the middle ages. The right to glean, and forage, to collect firewood from fallen branches in certain woods, to walk in the Royal deer park at Studley ( my husbands Saturday constitutional) etc.

[@ataraxisbuildsthings429]

I've just (beginning of Feb) moved to Boroughbridge and love Ripon! I've not been there in the late evening though so I'll make a special trip to see/hear the hornblower!

[@anitaherbert1037]

@@ataraxisbuildsthings429 do not forget Ripon has 3 rivers, a marina, and a small historic race course. Its Christmas tradition is what makes it really special. The Carol concert and the walk from the Cathedral to the town Square. Other things to see:- Newby Hall, Brimham Rocks, Mother Shipton Cave. We went to the Brymore ice cream shop, Pateley Bridge for the award winning pork pies. Tour the Dale's. By far our favourite when we had guests was to drive to Pickering and take the steam train to Whitby where we had the best fish and chips, we even saw dolphins once when our guests wanted to take the boat tour. If we did not have to look after our parents we would still be there. North Yorkshire is the best place in the whole country.

[@raymondporter2094]

Without doubt that is the most accurate comment... Yorkshire, its Moors, Dales and Coast as well as its historic cities, but North Yorkshire is God's most loved part of His favourite creation. @@anitaherbert1037

[@josephgittos3787]

Went in September what a beautiful cathedral and great place to visit , I would love to move from West Yorkshire to North Yorkshire

[@ataraxisbuildsthings429]

@@anitaherbert1037 North Yorkshire IS the best place ☺ We've just got tickets for the Christmas Fair at Ripon Cathedral so we can't wait for that - I think I'm going to visit as many of the areas Christmas markets and fairs as possible! We've already been to Newby Hall as its very close by and we also keep heading up to the north western coast corner. It's so gorgeous - I never want to leave!!

[@neuralwarp]

George III gets blamed for losing the 13 colonies. But he gained Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Gibraltar, and the Planet Uranus.

[@craigkennett6226]

Who were a massive help in WW1 and WW2. Well maybe not planet Uranus

[@johncorrall1739]

​@@craigkennett6226 Russia

[@RoyCousins]

When you try to compress thousands of years into a few minutes, a lot of it is bound to be questionable.

[@JJLAReacts]

For sure! Every country has achievements and unfortunate moments, and these videos sacrifice accuracy for time. It didn't hit me as a negative take on Britain, more like reporting the weather : D

[@mickc7388]

Yes, especially when it is researched & scripted by a stupid 15 year old kid.

[@robertewing3114]

​@@JJLAReactsThe Romans wanted British grain fields and England was warm and on the French flank, they had no interest otherwise and built forts and walls to protect their part of Britain. The French tribes were not allowed viza at Dover, they had to sail elsewhere for any mischief making. It was a good system, but you seem to think it was simply an invasion mentality. When you consider Munich in 1938, do not think of appeasement mentality, think of the clever British Prime Minister, the experienced machinery of government, and diplomacy. Strategic concerns and diplomatic games, not vulnerability to Hitlers lies. The US are abysmal on that subject, the one great foreign affairs subject of the last century, and the UK has never argued a case for Munich. The Prime Minister mentioned the Americans at Munich. It is shameful the US and UK fail to educate the public, and the education given by US and UK is on the side of the type of simple and ignorant narrative that you create. You might consider Arthur C Clarkes style of saying maybe it is or maybe it isn't, rather than attempt to identify history. When you show some gratitude to Neville Chamberlain you will be identifying history, and possibly as the first American to do so, if you are American. Make it your mission that every American school-leaver knows the reference to the USA at Munich, how could you possibly be ignorant of that famous day beginning with the drafting of the declaration and involving reference to the Americans? Declaration and USA, as famous as Declaration of Independence.

[@jackdubz4247]

You don't need to compress thousands of years. Only the three hundred plus in which Britain has existed.

[@wessexdruid7598]

@@jackdubz4247 Surely 'Britain' dates from the Romans.

[@eruantien9932]

I would like to point out something about the Boers wars for independence (someone else already pointed out the omission on the concentration camp front), namely the origin of their desire for independence. Essentially, South Africa was a Dutch colony, but after the Berlin Conference was signed over to the British, who promptly outlawed slavery. Incensed at this ban, a large number of colonists moved north-east, coopting the name Boer, a few years later. They almost immediately ran into conflict with the nascent Zulu empire, which lead to a war between the British and the Zulu, and after *that* debacle, conflict between the Boer republics and the British erupted. Now, if something in that sounded similar to an incident in the history of the US... Well, I'll let you decide what to think.

[@chrisaris8756]

You have to remember with the slave trade, the traders merely transported slaves that they had bought from African tribes, mostly along the Dahomey coast. The slave traders rarely went into the interior and rounded them up themselves. Also remember that the British navy was almost entirely responsible for stopping the slave trade once it had been outlawed in Britain. The Portuguese in particular were very heavily into it and we stopped it. By the way, why did you cheer when it was said that Robert the Bruce defeated the English. The 7:29 7:29 army was the Kings army made up mostly of lowland Scots who did not wish to be dominated by the Catholics it was not how it was depicted in that dreadful film but the Australian Mel Gibson ok that was Wallace but the same statements apply. Do not forget that the Scots were forever fighting amongst themselves and to many folk Wallace was considered a common criminal because of his actions within his own country.

[@karlmcconnell5719]

I actually stopped listening at that exact moment. Seemed unnecessary.

[@nodruj8681]

I have never seen such a seething comment like this by an English boy.. oh wait they are endless, always coping

[@nodruj8681]

You mean you're a triggered English boy? hahaha@@karlmcconnell5719

[@joshwenn989]

@@nodruj8681 The only person seething here is you 😂

[@angr3819]

"Who brought the slaves to America" jah truth.

[@anitaherbert1037]

Tens of thousands of executions is a gross simplification and as I did Tudor and Stuart History, there seems to be an incorporation of the period of religious persecutions and different political repressions but even then the number seems grossly inflated.

[@Lagrangeify]

Oh I don't know. I studied the period too and while initially shocking to contemplate, I don't think "tens of thousands" an entirely fanciful estimate given the length of his reign and the turbulence that existed for much of it, however multifarious the reasons might be.

[@nicholascarrington4202]

I don't know the period particularly, well, but estimates I've seen range from 50 , 000 to over 70,000 executions during the reign. That's rather a lot!

[@daveofyorkshire301]

It wasn't just financial aid from France they sent an army under Comte de Rochambeau and sea forces under the Comte de Grasse in direct support of the American Revolution. Plus the war started just after the British started freeing American slaves. Imagine an economy based on slavery, the French and Spanish pushing for war, the French seeking a diversion for their war in Europe. The American war of independence was a diversionary tactic by European forces, it's goal to split British forces before a more substantial war in Europe. Strange how there no record or statement if that EVER. Plus the war continued until 1783 so independence day should be in January 1784 when the newly created USA ratified the treaty of Paris. A treaty signed in Paris by the British, French, Spanish and Americans, strange for an American war of independence, isn't it?

[@JJLAReacts]

That is strange, great point! Our Independence should totally be 1783!

[@Loki1815]

To paraphrase Al Murray, they saw it as a victory, we saw it as a lucky 'kin' escape!

[@johnnewton2949]

We placed more importance on retaining the Sugar Islands and keeping hold of Gibraltar. The French and the Spanish had severely divided are forces. And don't forget that the Dutch too had supported the American cause - the Dutch always get off lightly 😊

[@andyleighton6969]

What? We had beaten France in the 7 Years War ending 1763, there was no European war. Their support for the Revolutionaries was a just proxy, to get a bit of their own back. Oddly enough, on top of their losses in the preceding war the cost of their American adventure contributed to the financial problems that caused THEIR revolution and ultimately the Napoleonic Wars...where we beat them again. We outlawed the Triangular Trade in 1807 and slavery itself in the empire some years later, that's some way from the revolution culminating in 1776. We weren't "freeing American slaves"

[@wessexdruid7598]

@@JJLAReacts France has always maintained they won the War of Independence against the British, not the Americans. There is some truth in that, given the assistance they provided. 'The Surrender of Cornwallis', at the battle of Yorktown, painted in 1820 by Trumbull, hangs in the rotunda of the US Capitol building. It depicts the British surrendering - at the last major battle of the war - to _French_ troops.

[@oliversherman2414]

While the empire doesn't exist anymore, the UK does still own some territories around the world (Gibraltar, Bermuda, the Falkland Islands, South Georgia island, St Helena, Diego Garcia and the British Virgin Islands)

[@craigkennett6226]

Islands so small it's hardly worth mentioning

[@oliversherman2414]

@@craigkennett6226 Gibraltar isn't an island

[@jeffington1224]

It doesn't matter if they are small since EEZ's are a thing (Exclusive Economic Zones) basically anything like resources living or non-living that is 200 nautical miles beyond a nations territorial waters is basically owned by the country that owns that island, so with the falklands before there was no oil discovered around the area and it was basically useless unless you wanted a base there but oil was discovered and its value shot way up due to that@@craigkennett6226

[@herstoryanimated]

​@@craigkennett6226say that to Argentina

[@acurisur]

@@craigkennett6226 Argentina would beg to differ, so would Spain.

[@paulusarnhelm704]

This video covers about 0.0001 per cent of British history.

[@heraklesnothercules.]

Francis Drake did not command the English fleet during the Spanish Armada. He was second-in-command to Lord Howard of Effingham.

[@bazahaza]

He lead from behind 😁

[@AutoAlligator]

No slave was ever owned by an Englishman on home soil. It was illegal. England never had African slaves. Which is why the Empire was faced with hypocrisy...no slave could be in England but the Empire at the time allowed it...forcing the end of of slavery was difficult. The US in particular was a problem since they were the only country to use slaves as fodder. No European nation had done so.

[@chickenfist1554]

"With each region retaining a presence of its history and culture" The fuck it has lol. We can't even hang England flags up outside our houses during the world cup because someone might get offended!

[@rikbryan9709]

Agreed. I was forced to take a flag down, as it was offensive to a family in the street.

[@peterwilliamson5953]

thats just crazy dude ,im Scottish and love you guys down south , you should be able to be proud of England , you gfot a lot to be proud of as have us Scots .

[@jeepsthetimebandit]

Exactly!

[@B1GB3RN]

This is absolute bollocks... This is completely untrue, and racist propoganda... I live in Tower Hamlets, which has a huge population of ethnic migrants... And I saw tons of flags...

[@kevinrayner5812]

@@rikbryan9709 Just out of interest, who told you to take it down. The Nazis at the local council?

[@ldewproductions7271]

Countries under British rule were lucky. They were left in a much better position than Spanish, Portugese or French colonies

[@ChristineRead-ck1uq]

Well said. I try to make this point when people start trying to say how bad the British were in 'conquering' so many countries. What they don't realise is that many, like India, actually invited the British into their land! And nearly all were left with an infrastructure, a form of government and so on.

[@albertjanik8532]

I guess they had no idea how the English would treat them. Horrific!

[@paulmarshall4793]

There are worse slave masters out there? If ya like me I'm still sore about the Romans destroying original culture

[@andyleighton6969]

I like the way they went direct from plantations in the West Indies to the plantation of Ulster without explaining they were "somewhat" different things!

Theft and murder either way.

[@stevetheduck1425]

That's how propaganda works: correlate when the intent and results were very different. - and decades at least apart.

[@aidencox790]

@@stevetheduck1425 I think you'll have to simplify this excellent post - sadly most people are unaware of the temporal details involved. Opinions are (again sadly) considered as facts by many people.

[@runswithcows]

"What a mess" says the American commenting the British Isles a thousand years before America spluttered into fruition. That really tickled me.

[@jomc6734]

Don't look to the Tudors for historical accuracy. Mary, Queen of Scots was not executed because Elizabeth I didn't want Scotland falling under Catholicism. Scotland was already a Protestant country and Mary, Queen of Scots had been forced to abdicate in favour of her son after her husband was murdered. She was suspected of being part of the murder plot. Mary was executed because she was implicated (possibly set up by Walsingham) in the Babington plot to assassinate Elizabeth. I'm not sure why the video said James VI of Scotland was 'elected' King after Elizabeth I's death. There was no election.

[@jonathangoll2918]

Some corrections. The Beaker People finished Stonehenge, but an earlier people started it. The detailed history of early England is very confusing. We're helped by a brilliant historian ( the Venerable Bede) (died 735) , but he had to bring in the method of dating from the Birth of Christ (A.D.) to make things clear. It's not usually realised that William the Conqueror saw himself as the heir to the Kingdom of England, and his son's mother-in-law was the last Princess of that line. That is why we've just had the same Coronation as for King Edgar the Peaceful in 973. You've mixed up King Edward I and King Edward III. From the 1500s this narrative is too biased towards the Roman Catholics. About 1529 Henry VIII' wife, a Spanish princess, was too old to bear children, and had had only a daughter. Because of the dynastic dispute of the Wars of the Roses, it was vital that Henry had a son, because peace had only been brought by the marriage of Henry's parents. In those days Popes always allowed Kings divorces, particularly since Henry had married his brother's widow irregularly. But the Holy Roman Emperor put pressure on the Pope to refuse the divorce, because he wanted to marry his son to Henry's daughter. The Holy Roman Emperor was also King of Spain, and you should look up the horrors of the Spanish Inquisition. When Henry's daughter ( Mary I) briefly came to the throne, she started burning Protestants as heretics. I'm sceptical of the supposed number of Henry's executions. It may be the standard number those days of the run-of-the-mill criminal executions. And I've no patience with Mary, Queen of Scots. The Scots had thrown her out for being an accessory to the murder of her husband, and she was constantly plotting to replace Elizabeth I. I'm similarly not so sympathetic with the Irish in the seventeenth century. They kept getting support from evil European tyrannies. However, I'm very sympathetic with the Irish in the potato famine of the 1840s. The then British Government was like many right-wingers today. The poor were idle, and shouldn't have handouts. That's why we starved the Irish. William the Conqueror abolished slavery about 1085, so, when Charles II started the slave trade again in 1662, he had no excuse. We knew it was wrong. Most English towns and villages are first recorded in Domesday Book about 1086.

[@neuralwarp]

We'd been begging the Irish for centuries (1) to give up catholicism and have fewer children (2) to stop depending on just potatoes. It was inevitable, and if they hadn't starved someone else would have.

[@suerowe53]

'the poor were idle and shouldn't have handouts ' sounds like the Americans today...🤔

[@WritewheelUK]

To be fair, and not belittling the Potato Famine, the rural poor in England (at least) starved at the same time. Cobbett's Rural Rides, published just a decade or so before the famine, is a shocking book, and shows the contempt for the poor the ruling elite had. And let's face it, the kings and queens of England and Wales were little better than Mafia heads, with a lower morality. As for slavery, most of the navy were impressed, and were guarded, even in hospital, to stop them escaping. I wonder if they thought slavery had been abolished. Or the indentured. They were the possession of their owners. Harry Secombe selling boys, for all sorts of horrific purposes, wasn't invented, and this well past the date when slavery was, supposedly, abolished. My paternal grandparents were Irish, and my father was one of 18 children. They were just about as poor as you could get. My grandmother was in a nun-run workhouse from the age of 6 or so, until she ran away at 14. It was a hard life in those days. My father joined the army in 1938, and said he was shocked to get three hot meals a day. He'd never eaten so well. Histories of England, Great Britain and the UK tend to focus on the ruling class, and ignore the masses of the poor, uneducated and cruelly treated. It's a shame that this continues with historians.

[@wessexdruid7598]

@@suerowe53 "If you can't afford it, you shouldn't get ill." -!!!!

[@somethingsomething7205]

@@neuralwarp Ireland produced an agricultural surplus, during the "famine", which was given to the English bc of trade agreements.

[@rde4017]

There is a very good reason why ancient British history sounds like GoT's - George RR Martin nicked it wholesale! As for Brexit, it is the worst self imposed disaster since George III lost the American colonies.

[@margaretflounders8510]

Funny that the EU is now following the Brexit pattern.

[@leohickey4953]

Yes, George R. R. Martin based his novel series on a series of French historical novels set before and during the Hundred Years War, expanded it to include elements from other historical events in more distant lands, and added dragons etc. For example, the houses of York and Lancaster became Stark and Lannister, the English Channel/La Manche became the Narrow Sea and so on. Some criticisms of the sex and violence in the TV show were misplaced as if anything they were toned down compared to the real history behind the stories.

[@richardbradley5217]

I don't see a problem with brexit except people still crying about it. This shows how pathetic people are now

[@karstenstormiversen4837]

@@margaretflounders8510 Do they now! How?

[@david.M2642]

totally agree re. brexit

[@nicksykes4575]

This piece strikes me as a smear campaign against anything remotely British. That part about Henry VIII executing 10s of thousands of people is laughable. Executions were carried out on Tower Hill, just outside the Tower of London. Built not long after the battle of Hastings as a Palace, it was first used as a prison in 1100. Since then 3,500 people have been imprisoned there, roughly 1 in 10 of those were executed in a total of 700years. No mention at all of his achievements, like building the beginnings of the Royal Navy.

[@MJacquelineJ]

It also mentions slave trade but not that the British ended slavery and were definitely not the ones who started trading slaves as this was being done many years before

[@Brookspirit]

You can demonize any country if you condense thousands of years of history into a few minutes and highlight the worst points.

[@JJLAReacts]

Thanks for pointing that out! While this piece may have focused on certain aspects that appear critical, it certainly didn't hit my American sensibilities that way. Much love a respect for the UK!

[@JJLAReacts]

You're absolutely right! Slavery and the slave trade existed for centuries before British involvement and they had a pivotal role in abolishing it.

[@JJLAReacts]

You bring up a valid point. It's important to recognize that every country has a diverse history filled with both remarkable achievements and unfortunate moments. The video didn't really hit me as totally negative but I understand your point. Thanks for watching!!

[@doomhippie6673]

Fun fact: the name England derives from the Germanic tribe of the Angles who lived in the area between the river Elbe and the Danish border. It literally means "the land of the Angles". In fact there is still in area in Northern Germany (between Kiel and Schleswig) that is called "Anglia" today. "Old English" is very closely related to "old German", hence the many words that both modern languages share (mostly words about farm life - we Germans weren't that sophisticated at that time. Most of the terms relating to governance and high society were brought in by the (french-speaking) Normans (ex-Vikings) in 1066. With the loss of the French territories the "Old-English" and "Old-French" language finally merged and became more or less what is today modern English. I admit this is a rather simplified version of how English became English but you get the idea.

[@alynwillams4297]

Fun fact, England in Welsh is “Lloegr” which means “Lost Land”

[@ninamoores]

Many years ago my parents, who lived in Wales,were friends with an old Welsh lady who spoke very little English as she had conversed most of her life in her native tongue .After WW2 there was a time when French onion sellers would travel around the U.K. selling strings of onions.One of these men became a regular visitor/ friend , he spoke Breton .The two of them always spoke to each in their own language and understood each other perfectly well.

[@debbywillan5165]

The Doomsday book is amazing, a detailed examination for tax purposes of land, livestock and assets.

[@DrMikeOckhertz]

Domesday Book

[@stevetheduck1425]

The number of fudges, incorrect borders and alterations visible are astounding, too. I expect the map became more important than the land, eventually.

[@BobHUK]

@@DrMikeOckhertz And don't forget that there were two of them, 20 years apart. Apparently you can see from the second book where exactly William's army rampaged through the countryside and took whatever they wanted/needed for food, etc. by looking at the differences between the first and second books.

[@BradJames83]

I have a copy. The Anglo Saxon Chronicle, too.

[@sandallr]

It’s impossible to condense into such a short video over two thousand years of history without major omissions and howlers! But it was a bit of fun and our host is very amusing. 👏👏

[@MKR5210]

Howlers are always avoidable. Condensing the history does require dropping a fair amount of uneventful history.....

[@watchreadplayretro]

A nice refresher for me (plus many bits n bobs that I didn't know) and I am such a fan of you pausing to look things up JJ, so refreshing over most Reactors simply chirping "let me know in the comments section" (esp when edited down so it only pauses the main video for a few seconds anyway) Great stuff, and nice to start thinking about this sort of history that I hadn't thought about in a long time! Cheers JJ!

[@HeatherMyfanwyTylerGreey]

Remember we were not that terrible we were the ones who first fought for and ended the Slave trade out of Africa to the America's. The first Slaves in America were taken by the Portuguese and Spanish not the British. We bought the freedom of many slaves and had to compensate owners for 'giving up' their Slaves. Britain gained the freedom of many this way. This debt was only fully paid by 2015.

[@revgurley]

They glossed over how Rome took over the isles (around 60CE). For a good example of the tribes trying to fend off the Romans, read up on Boudica, Queen of the Iceni. New sub!

[@leohickey4953]

16:16 The Seven Years War is what US history books call the French and Indian War (which just concentrates on the North American theatre of a larger conflict, which some have claimed was the real "First World War").

[@nicholasashley2172]

What have the romans ever done for us. … well the roads, commerce, sanitation, decent housing

[@seanmc1351]

it amazing, this small island, the history we have, the bulidings some 1200 years old, 500 year old pubs, stone henge 5000k years old, the jurassic coat line, line, blows my mind and i live here lol on a second note, my mother in her 80's now retired, she used to teach family history, helping people trace there families back through the years, she got our family tree back to the 1400's, but cant get any further, as it relates to ireland and the irish troubles, alot of the records were destroyed during the conflict and bombings, i know yoou love your history

[@JJLAReacts]

I'm totally envious of that! I don't know much about my family's history. I have a vague idea of when they came to America (when Florida changed hands from Spanish to English) but before then, no idea.

[@lyndarichardson4744]

​@@JJLAReactsyou should do some ancestry research 🙂

[@ninamoores]

@@JJLAReacts Go to a reliable place and have your DNA checked……I had mine done and discovered that my ancestry is mostly Irish/Scandinavian/Baltic. ….definitely a Viking or two in the mix I think!

[@arkroyalrifemoonbasealpha6101]

St Martins church was built around 600AD its the oldest continually used church in the English speaking world

[@jerbil9353]

It is quite cool to have, I guess I take all of the castles and other history for granted. But yeah, there are pubs in my town older than the USA. @@JJLAReacts

[@cmlemmus494]

The original video mentions mass migration to the cities during the Industrial Revolution, but most people don't realise the scale of this. In the census of 1800, the total population of the UK was about 10 million with 90% of that being rural farmers. In 1900, the population was 40 million, with about 85% being urban. Some was rising birth rates and survival, but a lot was also immigration. As heart-breaking as the conditions and treatment of the poor working class was, we couldn't handle that level of population explosion today.

[@entropybear5847]

And yet our government is trying to do just that with the border policies...

[@nicholasashley2172]

If you visit England you can visit a lot of the places mentioned like the battlefield in Hastings. So many Americans miss out on so much of the best places and cultures on this island of ours.

[@wessexdruid7598]

Not much of it to _see_ , though - I can't see that going down well with American tourists.

[@craigkennett6226]

Just a pity so many Brits don't like the diversity of today's cultures on their little Island

[@ninamoores]

@@craigkennett6226 Why single out the British? Lots of countries feel the same!

[@epicman943]

@@craigkennett6226only the older generation don’t like diversity that much most of us don’t mind diversity we’re just a majority white country because it’s been like that for basically our entire history

[@NathansWargames]

Battle of Hastings is in Battle which is about 5 miles from the hastings sea front you can get there with the number 304 bus

[@zbigniewczaykowski514]

This does not do justice to Britain's part in ending the slave trade

[@jeepsthetimebandit]

😂😂 'Look at that tiny, little crown' it is as well! I hadn't thought about it before. I will always think that now whenever i see a picture of her 😂

[@hugor1338]

Empress of India. Maybe she didn't need to brag.

[@jeepsthetimebandit]

@hugor1338 Maybe all the crown jewels are about bragging..

[@alexpembury4307]

One other fact that was missed was that in England's Southeast, near Dover, is a County that once had a noble who loved to gamble. One day, while playing cards, he asked his servants to bring him his meal 'between two slices of bread', so he could eat and still play. He was the Earl of Sandwich, and this choice created a food recognised practically the world over.

[@stevetheduck1425]

Sandwiches were on the menu in Pompeii, but re-discovery is not dishonourable.

[@georgeprout42]

YT seems to think I'd like your video, you've made it as far as the algorithm is concerned. Most US reaction videos are pretty aweful, but you pause, google and come back. I like that. You're also pretty quiet and well spoken for a septic so, I'll stick around for a bit. That's a complement btw.

[@noelwallace5257]

1706/7 was the birth of the political union, ( British Establishment) the unification of the crown forming U.K. was around a century earlier….

[@nickgrazier3373]

It was actually the Portuguese who had the first and largest monopoly on slave transportation over 11million as opposed to I think 4million by independent British slave traders. Britain had already abolished slavery by William the Bastard later Conquerer. And the slave trading of Black African slave was perpetrated by African peoples who traded slaves with Europeans who wouldn’t go into the African interior because they weren’t immune to the insect borne diseases like malaria etc. The African King of Benin did a hell of a lot of slaving.

[@Jim90117]

When we're taught history here in Britain we do go back to the Roman times but the main focus is usually 1066, Henry VIII, The British Empire and WW2.

[@jcurtis04]

Yep this is an old issue with the Anglo-British one size fits all approach, that ignores the Scots, Welsh & Irish. Which is why here in Scotland in 2007 we changed our education system to a more modern system. We now know more about our history than our parents, which is why England is struggling to maintain their rule here and they keep kicking our referendum vote into the long grass; despite their promises to the contrary.

[@JoshuaMSP1995]

@@jcurtis04 The education system didn't serve you too well if you think England rules over Scotland.

[@deja-view1017]

That really depends when you were taught history! My grandchildren have been doing about the moon landings whilst we only went up to WWI. Just as WWII wasn't really history yet (my parents lived through it), the moon landings are in my lifetime. It's hard to teach kids a history which living relatives remember (recollections may vary).

[@jcurtis04]

@@JoshuaMSP1995 I'd argue, that you skipped over large parts of history related to Ireland, Scotland & Wales, because it made you uncomfortable. Maybe give it another go, its never to late to try, maybe you'll shrug of some of this ignorance.. :)

[@ewanmatheson4235]

"and Scotland was known for linen" - that's a wild conclusion to make about Scotlands part in the industrial revolution. Glasgow was known as the second city of the empire for good reason. Most of the technical innovation for the industrial revolution came from Scottish academia and engineering and this video calls out Newcastle for shipbuilding? Newcastle was considered a relatively minor (no pun intended) shipbuilding centre and largely built ships to service it's proximity to coal mining (which is what the NE of England was actually known for) Glasgow however built more ships than any other city in the world at one point and some of the largest ships in service due to it being one of very few deep sea ports in the UK.

[@CIMAmotor]

Dublin was the second city of the British Empire.

[@jerbil9353]

For the small population of Scotland, the amount of things that our modern world is founded on which were created by Scots is staggering.

[@contactlight8079]

In addition to other comments...1st, that photo of a 'shell-shocked' man is not what it appears to be, The full image shows that they are a group of wounded soldiers having a moment of fun while being patched up. Secondly, Britain NEVER recovered from the 2008 financial disaster...it haunts the poorest still.

[@mustash1388]

2% British taxes:🤬 36% American taxes:🙂

[@tomcurry3725]

2%? It's 20%

[@mustash1388]

wooosh

[@shelleyphilcox4743]

William AND Mary. Mary was Queen and the link the the throne was through her, not him, he was just married to her. They ruled JOINTLY till her death, then William carried on till he died and the throne passed to MARYs sister Queen Anne.

[@heraklesnothercules.]

Agreed.

[@seanmc1351]

every school child of my age at least up until the 90's knows the battle of hasting, not what it was, but the date, 1066, it was etched in our brains, we had no idea of the battlle, juts its name 'The battle of hastings 1066'

[@JJLAReacts]

Haha, better than most American students I'm sure!

[@paulelmes]

Living in Hastings, I can inform you that Danish i.e."Viking "ships, invaded by sea. Their Commandos pillaged then fought the Saxons uphill to a place now called "Battle",where a painting suggested Harold got shot in the eye. Realistically, that was just artistic licence, I mean just one? Really?? Danish propaganda? British Royalty has links to Denmark today. Try the Prince of Denmarks march....you'll recognise it!

[@yippee8570]

@@paulelmes It was the Normans, not the Vikings. Harold and his army fought the Vikings in the North, successfully, then marched south to Hastings where they fought the Normans, unsuccessfully.

[@cally77777]

@@yippee8570 The Normans WERE of Viking heritage. They invaded and settled in France, and adopted a feudal way of life, but they retained the Viking's brutality, lust for conquest, and their skills of boat-building and seamanship. The main difference with the Vikings, (apart from feudalism) was the development of excellent cavalry, and the ability to build fortifications, notably castles. Oh, and they were Christians not 'Pagans'. Ironically the Anglo-Saxons fighting against them also had some Viking ancestry, since if you follow the history, you will see the Danes (and some other Scandinavians) had previously invaded parts of Britain, especially the North and areas of the 'Danelaw'. It is through this and our Norman heritage, that many modern day English have parts of their genetics originating from Scandinavia.

[@yippee8570]

@@cally77777 indeed

[@pokehunter1222]

My Grandpa was in the blitz and he told me that he had to turn the lights of and pretend no one was there to not get bombed 😅

[@VanceBoot]

hmmm vaguely true..

[@alansmith2426]

Neither the British, Portugese or Dutch discovered Australia... that is why there were already people there when Europeans arrived!

[@robhinds8150]

You should do a video looking at the various "native" languages of the British Isles, many of which are still spoken today although some, like Cumbric, are extinct and only detectable in place names.

[@enemde3025]

Please don't use the terrible film Braveheart as your history lesson.

[@JJLAReacts]

LOL It's so hard not to.

[@xanx1234]

I think it a good, entertaining story .... bull shit but nevertheless entertaining.

[@nanunanu8745]

As a Scot, I concur

[@jimmyhughes5392]

people like to moan about the taxations put on the colonies and are quick to forget how these colonies came to be able to pay taxes, the expansion of the british empire benefitted all territories under it's rule, everyone worked, fought and paid for it. It's not like we sailed up, took everything and left nothing, every colony grew exponentially under british rule and a lot have struggled and fell since leaving.

[@shelleyphilcox4743]

The East India Company was granted a limited charter by Elizabeth I in 1600, allowing it to trade overseas and have exclusive rights to do so. It was Charles II, from the Scots House of Stewart who granted a new charter that gave the company so much power it became a virtual state more powerful militarily than England, Scotland and Wales put together! The charter allowed them to go wherever they wished for trade and to independently make treaties, also war and peace, not just trade treaties. They could mint their own money and they were able to administer not just civil but criminal law, wherever they established themselves.

[@stevecooke2893]

As a beginners guide, its not a bad video, but has some major errors. Firstly, George III didn't level taxes on the colonies, that was an act of Parliament. There are actually letters bearing his royal seal when he emplores his governors to treat local population with respect and compassion. Secondly, the video implies Britain maintained slavery longer than it actually did. The empire actually tried to eliminate slavery before the American revolution and was a contributing factor to the revolution, albeit a minor one

[@swoqix2892]

Fun fact. if you turn a map of the UK upside-down, and then flip it horizontally; it is extremely similar to the map of Westeros from Game of Thrones, this is because GoT is extremely based off of Ancient Pre-English history and Myth

[@rachelhenderson2688]

"Based ON", not Based OFF!!

[@acurisur]

@@rachelhenderson2688 They wrote "based off of", not based off. So used that way is fine, based on is just another way of saying the same thing without having to use "of".

[@ffotograffydd]

Not “ancient pre-history”, more like medieval history, mainly The Anarchy and the Wars of the Roses.

[@dorothysimpson2804]

You got a bit mixed up at one point, Edward l fought William Wallace, Edward lll fought Joan of Arc. We are doing fine after Brexit. Have you watched "Britain's Crusade Against Slavery"?

[@cally77777]

Yeah we're doing fine after a pandemic, inflation and a critical lack of key workers. I wonder what could have caused the latter?

[@nanunanu8745]

​@@cally77777 Calm... put your copy of The Guardian down and take deep slow breaths...

[@TheGlaSGOWSTEVE]

I'm not an expert on Roman history but they did make it further into Scotland than is commonly shown. Perhaps the best known is the Antonine Wall which is about 90 miles north of Hadrian's wall. It was built about 20 years after Hadrian's Wall. The Antonine Wall runs from the Firth of Clyde to the Firth of Fourth.

[@delskioffskinov]

I wear headphones to listen to your content and that 'FREEDOM' almost deafened me lol!

[@JJLAReacts]

Haha! As William Wallace intended!!!!! (for real though sorry, still tweaking my audio setup 😂)

[@richardkent]

Five seconds in and the map of England includes the Isle of Man. I'm dubious regarding the accuracy of what's to come.

[@ianhigh4354]

I take your point but the Isle of Man would just be too confusing for the average American. It is too confusing for most Brits too, and don't get me started on the Channel Islands.

[@odunadhaigh]

@@ianhigh4354 Once illustrative outline maps of the UK were issued, in leaflet form, by 10 Downing Street. It carelessly showed the Isle of Man coloured as though it were part of the UK. Within hours the First Minister's office in the Isle of Man was on the phone to Downing Street lodging its objection. The leaflet stock was pulped and then reprinted with the Isle of Man in a neutral colour.

[@MR-X-.]

@@odunadhaigh Isle of man is a crown dependency. It is part of The British Isles. The pound is the currency. I hope my little bit of information will shed a light on your misinformation 👍

[@odunadhaigh]

@@MR-X-. I am not misinformed. The Isle of Man is not in the United Kingdom, and thus is not in any parliamentary constituency of the United Kingdom, meaning that nobody in the Isle of Man votes in a British general election, and no UK MP represents the Isle of Man. It has its own government, consisting of two houses, the lower house being called the Tynwald. The only significant connection it has with the United Kingdom is that it pays the UK a sizeable amount of money to provide military protection and foreign representation; for that reason it is said to be a Crown Dependency.

[@MR-X-.]

@@odunadhaigh Read my post again 🙄and respond. You didn't address my points.Your reply was AWFUL 🚮

[@jamesguitar7384]

I suppose it's true that the British were traditionally a fighting people but so were the vikings and they calmed down a lot too .

[@Hamburger-Gaming86]

Amazing how we are such a small country yet helped shape the world with what every country has today. Not to mention the biggest empire in world history. Love my country!

[@kopynd1]

india gained there independence so they all decided to move into britain

[@ninamoores]

Because they didn’t like independence once they got it!

[@PolarBear4]

This video kind of illustrates why some Brits laugh when some Americans go on about their independence day like it's the most important thing in the World and the ultimate blow to the British and assume it's a major thing in our history. No. Just no. lol. You can see how much we have to cover in school with our own history. I know my school pretty much started just before the Romans invaded and worked forwards through basically every war and period of history. "Losing" the US is such a tiny footnote in our history most of us aren't even taught about it in school. I know I spent a fair amount of time learning about India and the colonies in Africa but I don't think I covered the US at all aside from the period between the World Wars. Anyway, who doesn't have independence from us? lol I don't know how much you watch the news but Hong Kong is complicated. They were supposed to have 50 years of basically autonomy and certain freedoms as a condition of being handed back to China but well, China are going back on that which is why there's been problems and rebellions. As a result, there's a fair number of people from Hong Kong who have/are trying to move to the UK. The UK even introduced new visas to allow people to come and apply for permanent residency here. Even people who complain about immigrants are fine with people from Hong Kong moving here - largely because of our past ties.

[@cally77777]

Your arrogance and ignorance are unbelievable! Are you saying it wasn't an incredible blow to the UK to lose control of the American colonies? Imagine the wealth and power that could have been Britain's if it had held onto the North American continent (as it did with India up to well into the twentieth century!) It was far from a footnote in our history. Sure Britain didn't go into decline immediately, that took a century or so. But it was the USA that became the rising power of the twentieth century, fueled by its vast natural resources. Eventually replacing the UK as the dominant world power. Any well-educated British person ought to know at least the bare facts about America being our lost colony.

[@DexFlett]

I highly recommend Kenneth Brannagh's version of 'Henry V' by Shakespeare, which ends with the Battle of Agincourt. A few versions of this play have been made, including one with Lawrence Olivier in 1944, but Ken Brannagh's version absolutely kicks arse. Helen Mirren's 'Elizabeth I' TV series is well worth your time too.

[@Pablosplace]

i live on the welsh border, i walk were i want when i want. My local pub is a 20minute walk by road or a 10 minute walk via the fields. I got via the fields everytime.

[@chrisellis3797]

My village in N.East England appears in the Domesday Book but we have a church that was built before that in the year 945AD

[@chrisellis3797]

@RobertKendo Marske. Foundations are all that's left of original. Been rebuilt and consecrated later in history

[@lukegaffney2176]

@@chrisellis3797 I used to live on the Ings estate and had a paper round in Marske!

[@chrisellis3797]

@@lukegaffney2176 wow. I feel like you stalked me lol. Schooled in Redcar and was there for 23yrs and lived in Marske since

[@lukegaffney2176]

@@chrisellis3797 I went to Sacred Heart!

[@KBJ58]

The two main reasons for the military success which backed up the spread of the empire, were total indifference to weather, and indeed to food. British food, historically, was bloody awful, so as a consequence, the army would eat just about anything. Because the weather at home was also so terrible, extreme cold or heat were not really paid very much attention, and the standard understatement when it came to such conditions was, 'it's a bit warm/cold' accordingly. The centuries of being invaded by most of Europe's most violent and warlike peoples also left it's impact, and anyone who has spent any time in pubs in the East End of London, in Liverpool, Newcastle, and particularly Glasgow, will be able to offer some perspective on the willingness of the average inhabitant to fight about nearly anything. This is particularly true of supporters of rival football (soccer) teams, a game which has acquired considerable popularity among people who could be outwitted by family pets who tend to have very short haircuts and a low tolerance for anyone seen as foreign, or 'posh'. The warlike tendencies of the educated middle and upper classes, tend to be channelled into the game of Rugby, the object of which is to enhance the position of an odd-shaped ball up the pitch by using a combination of speed, and acts of unspeakable violence. In football, it is quite normal for the protagonists to roll on the ground clutching their head and/or leg, when they get split-ends or dandruff, or when someone breathes on them too hard. In Rugby, if you suffer the loss of a major organ or limb, the affected player is deployed 'on the wing' (a position for the soft boys) for ten minutes to recover. Both sports have spread across most of the civilised world, along with the rather more genteel British games of Cricket, Tennis, and Golf, none of which we are actually any good at. Despite its small size, Britain continues to exert influence internationally, because, despite unfortunate and intemperate episodes like burning down the White-House, massacring millions of unfortunate natives, inventing the concentration camp, and Margaret Thatcher, we did invent some rather useful things like gravity and television, and had the best language on the planet for drafting contracts and laws, and for writing Beatles songs. It is an odd place to live, though strangely, because of our somewhat chequered colonial past, we have a very multicultural society, and generally don't tend to pay a lot of attention to people's ethnic origin. This has led to some surprising encounters with our erstwhile allies in the US, a good example of which was 'the battle of Bamber Bridge', which nearly led to an outbreak of armed hostilities between UK and US forces during WW2. Please excuse my protracted rambling. I do tend to go on a bit...

[@wessexdruid7598]

Historically bloody awful food? Sure.

[@jasoncornthwaite8387]

pub,,kebab, and a punchup good old british night out,, thats the way we was made, genes of invaders from hundreds of years of war and the like,, it made a empire you know,, made the modern age,, just a flook in life some one had to do it ,and we brits had the right ingredients , modern world folk question the past but i say build a time machine and change it,, some win some dont ,but my bit of viking blood says rape and pillage ,,lol

[@user-vg4zf5je4g]

Thank you. Unsure how just how historically accurate it was in places and so much left out, but an interesting summary and a lot I did not know there, and I am a greatgrandmother - soon to be a great, great gran -from UK London. I've watched a few of your reactions and have now subscribed so keep up the good work :-}

[@MrBulky992]

"Motte" is pronounced "mott", not "moat". "Motte" means steep hillock on which a wooden palisade would be erected. "Moat" is a defensive ditch filled with water.

[@ninamoores]

Mottes as a rule didn’t have moats.

[@teeteringonthebrink.305]

It's all a long time ago I know but, according to one history book I read, not only were the Celtic tribes not the original inhabitants of these isles, they were not the first invaders either. Before them was the appropriately named 'Boat People' who sailed across from mainland Europe to mix with the natives.

[@wessexdruid7598]

Remember also, there was a land bridge across the North Sea - that is now the Dogger Bank.

[@teeteringonthebrink.305]

@@wessexdruid7598 Yes, you're absolutely correct. A fact I overlooked.

[@stevetheduck1425]

As yet, the oldest record of humans in Britain is a mass of flint chippings found in a forest up a hill. Someone came to the place, found and worked flints into the basic tradeable shapes, unfinished, but useable by anyone, then walked off, leaving the shape of him in the spread chippings, sitting with one leg braced against the other to make a lap, probably with a leather apron on it, and worked several days, then moved on. Worked flints from Britain have been found as far away as the Baltic States, it was quite a trading network. When the British Isles were later separated from Europe by the sea, they still came from far away. A skeleton found buried at Stonehenge had a gold hair ornament and the oxygen in his teeth showed he spent his early life in what is now Central Germany.

[@stephenbuck1280]

You should do a video of all the wars England/UK have fought since 1066. It will surprise you and it will be very, very long!

[@jackdubz4247]

England is not the UK.

[@stephenbuck1280]

@@jackdubz4247 you are correct today, but in 1066 England was not in the UK as it did not exist.

[@welshpete12]

Queen Victoria's small crown. She found the normal crown to heavy , so had this small one made . At the time there was a great outcry about it . There was a penny which showed her wearing it, it became known as bun penny .

[@jonlight670]

Still have copies of the Domesday Book. It’s basically a book of accounts/Assets. Each village mentioned has fields, ploughs listed etc listed.

[@neuralwarp]

But that's the thing. Britain didn't acquire colonies by conquest. We just set up trading outposts, and the local people kept asking for our money, defence, and culture. Postcolonial history is written by the victorious autocrats. But atrocities? No. Famines, okay. Slavery, never.

[@chrisbovington9607]

You're kinda right but also kinda wrong. Big Billy didn't always take your lunch money. Not as much as Freddy Fist. But he still did it. A lot.

[@Simon-hb9rf]

most people do miss that a large part of what we ended up with was originally taken by the French or Spanish which we then took from them as part of the many many wars over European supremacy between the three. (and largely religious/economic control, given that most of those wars Spain and France were backed by the pope to force England to accept Catholicism and all the power, laws and taxes paid directly to the Vatican that came with it) that said we also traded, connived, tricked, embellished, bullied and outright invaded for other bits, but statecraft throughout history was much the same no matter what side you were on. judging the past through the lens of the modern world will always lead to oversimplifications and demonization of other groups. context matters.

[@johnnybeer3770]

If you get the opportunity to try Haggis you should , you will be pleasantly surprised .🇬🇧

[@TheCornishCockney]

Like trying to chew on a gravy flavoured ball of elastic bands,vile stuff. Me ma was a Glaswegian and she hated it too.

[@stuartspence3613]

Did you mean 'un'pleasantly surprised. ..

[@McCRBen]

I play music at a lot of Scottish events and like to have a second serving of haggis when others don’t want theirs. It’s great with mashed potato and turnip.

[@yippee8570]

It's illegal in the US, oddly enough

[@terranaxiomuk]

I love haggis mate.

[@TyphoonBeam]

"This is sounding a lot like game of thrones." As a Brit, I can confirm we have dragons here. Courtesy of the Vikings.

[@PaulWilliams-xz3mz]

They all live in Wales now. 😂

[@mikemines2931]

The English Bill of Rights 1668 said that there will be no taxation without representation. That was what the Anglo/ Americans used to split away, they had none in Westminster.

[@darkbydesign1031]

Most things we use today were invented in Newcastle Upon Tyne England during the industrial revolution that is worth a video in itself, including railways, tanks, hydraulics, water purification, the light bulb, windscreen wipers, steam turbines, matchstick, joystick among many many others, they built some of the greatest ships including the Carpathia which rescued the survivors of the Titanic

[@aidencox790]

And the first US president's ancestral home was in my hometown of Washington. The school badge was basically the stars and stripes but with room for only 3 of each. It's worth the time and effort of every American to go and see the ancestral home. The National Trust keeps it and its contents in immaculate shape.

[@anochmor]

I'm sure the Scots invented one or two thing's.

[@wessexdruid7598]

Tanks were invented and developed in Lincoln.

[@wessexdruid7598]

@@aidencox790I don't believe I said it wasn't - merely that Newcastle can't claim to have invented the tank...

[@aidencox790]

@@wessexdruid7598 WOW. Thanks for sharing your knowledge in such a friendly manner. So much appreciated and really made this old man's day. Are you happy new?

[@_SIRENITY_]

That inserted ‘USA’ chant had me in institches 😂

[@janemcdonald5372]

One of the few and best remaining example off a Motte and Bailey castle is Windsor Castle. The castle is centred on the motte or artificial hill on which William the Conqueror built the first wooden castle between 1070 and 1086 AD.

[@bluefire_gaming545]

Not much is getting affected by brexit as far as a English speaking person born and raised in wales

[@alisonrodger3360]

Industrial Revolution - aye, Scotland just banged out a bit of Linen. 🙄😂

[@krisoko]

yeah.. only 90% of all ships being built in the world came from Glasgow shipyards at a certain point..hehehhe!

[@olliebearslife2796]

We held of Germany for a year without anyone but our empire 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧

[@helmetmcbarin]

Should have joined Germany

[@ffotograffydd]

And Poland, Czechoslovakia, Belgium, and France.

[@kevinrayner5812]

I am ashamed to admit that given the bashing Britain gets now days that in 1940 we didn't put our interests first and sign an armistice with Germany.

[@ffotograffydd]

@@kevinrayner5812 “ashamed” is definitely appropriate given the rest of your comment.

[@kevinrayner5812]

@@ffotograffydd Why is that exactly. Plenty of criticism of Britain's efforts to stop Nazi tyranny. Bombing all those poor Germans wouldn't have happened if we had made peace with Germany. I am sure had Germany not declared war on the US then the US would have only stuck with fighting in the Pacific. And why are the US camps for American Japanese not called concentration camps?

[@user-hv1ss8lk7k]

I'm in secondary school and the main things we cover in history are 1066, power of medieval kings, renaissance, reformation, industrial revolution and ww1 and 2. but we also do some side topics like the power of medieval queens like Matilda, Eleanor of Aquitaine and Isabella of France which can be really interesting to see how there gender effected the power and the way they influence people

[@MrsMonkhouse]

As a Brit I found this very interesting too

[@MJacquelineJ]

A lot of these historical buildings and landmarks still stand. You can see them

[@JJLAReacts]

That's amazing! We don't have buildings that old, unless you count Native American ruins.

[@neuralwarp]

My university (Durham) owns 3 castles, built at intervals of about 900 years.

[@PoppyFlux]

I liked your comments at the end about British people evolving into fighting peoples through natural selection, and how strong that must have made us. That made me proud, but as a descendant, hopefully it makes you proud too, as they were also your ancestors :)

[@cally77777]

I think being a proud warrior race has obvious disadvantages too. Like a tendency to get involved in conflicts in which we have no business. Recently Afghanistan, Iraq and (by proxy) Ukraine. We're also at least partly to blame for the situation in Gaza. Let's hope we (I'm including the US here) don't extend our aggressive instincts to picking a fight with Russia or China, which we seem to be itching to do. Despite the latter country offering zero military provocation. We feel entitled to lead the world, of course, and other countries proving to be as strong and ingenious doesn't sit well with us.

[@gordonburns8731]

Slave trading in Britain was outlawed in 1807, and in Britain, slave ownership was outlawed in 1833, although slave trading and ownership continued for much longer in America.

[@wolfen210959]

Incorrect, slave trading in Britain was outlawed in about 1068, and it was only allowed in the colonies with the express permission of the Governor of the colony. There were several trials in the 1700s where owners of slaves, who had brought their slaves to England, were ordered to release them as free men, as slavery was not permitted in the British Isles itself.

[@gethsemanegamespublishing8274]

There is a good reason why parts of our history sounds like Game of Thrones. Martin drew heavily on BNritish medieval history for his Song of Ice and Fire series.