1444-1821: People, quotes, anecdotes. Share

[Kubuini]

What little known, but interesting people, quotes, anecdotes, movements, "whatevers", from EU4 timespan do you know? Share.

A little something from bottomless Polish history:

Quote:
who: Jan Karol Chodkiewicz
when: before battle of Kircholm, informed about "countless" enemy troops.
what:"Then we will kill them first, and count them later".

Quote:
who: Stanisław Żółkiewski
when: before battle of Klushino
what:"Necessitas in loco, spes in virtute, salus in victoria" ~~"Need in the place, hope in bravery, rescue in victory"

Unlike Sejm, Polish hetmans preffered action over talking.

Person:
who: Nicefor Czernichowski
what: imprisoned by Russians, exiled to Siberia, killed russian governor who raped/kidnapped his wife/sister(versions vary), gathered a group of cossacks and fled, giving no damns found his own country, Jaxa, in the borderlands between Russia and China, ruled it for almost 20 years

 

[Thaif]

Anders "Antti" Chydenius, 26 February 1729 – 1 February 1803. Finnish clergyman and enlightenment philosopher. An early pioneer—also by international standards—and proponent of economic liberalism, freedom of religion, freedom of speech and migration(writing a pamphlet on the invisible hand a decade before the publication of The Wealth of Nations) he was one of the first comprehensive philosophers of liberalism.
Championed Sweden's first Freedom of the Press Act(which is still in the Swedish constitution), the most liberal in the world along with those of Great Britain and the Seven United Provinces.
Vehemently opposed to the extreme interventionist policies of mercantilism preached by the previously predominant Hat party since decades, he was ultimately coerced into retirement for his criticism of the Cap administration's radical deregulation policies and their social and political consequences.

Cydenius is in the game as an advisor, a trader(because his ideas "were about freetrade") even though he'd be better as a statesman, philosopher or a diplomat. With a an ability of 1...because apparently his ideas were too radical for the time. An event for the guy would be nice, considering the impact his deeds had.

Here's some quotes:

• Our wants are various, and nobody has been found able to acquire even the necessaries without the aid of other people, and there is scarcely any Nation that has not stood in need of others. The Almighty himself has made our race(humanity) such that we should help one another. Should this mutual aid be checked within or without the Nation, it is contrary to Nature.
  • The National Gain, §2, 1765.

• ...that every individual spontaneously tries to find the place and the trade in which he can best increase National gain, if laws do not prevent him from doing so.
  • The National Gain, §5, 1765. Here Chydenius could be said to describe the invisible hand eleven years before Adam Smith wrote The Wealth of Nations.

• The more opportunities there are in a Society for some persons to live upon the toil of others, and the less those others may enjoy the fruits of their work themselves, the more is diligence killed, the former become insolent, the latter despairing, and both negligent.
  • The National Gain, §20, 1765.

• ...Fatherland without freedom and merit is a large word with little meaning.
  • For What Reason do so Many Swedes Emigrate Every Year?, 1765.

• The exercise of one coercion always makes another inevitable.
  • Thoughts on the Natural Rights of Servants and Peasants, 1778.

 

[HaniNachmias]

Who:
Moses Mendelssohn (1729-1786). Named "German Socrates" and "Jewish Luther" at the time, his character was set an example for the Jewish community. Born in an old, secluded ghetto in Dessau, Anhalt, his education was religious, and he only knew Hebrew and Judendeutsch as a child. At age 14, he entered Berlin through Rosenthal gate which was intended for cattle and Jews, and in less than two decades he perfectly learned German, Latin, Greek, English and French, and made name for himself across Europe as a philosopher, philologist, literary critic and polymath. He is also grandfather to composer Felix Mendelssohn.
When:
Answering the question of the Reverend Johann Friedrich Zollner, "What is enlightenment?", he wrote an essay "On Enlightening the Mind".
Quote:
"The more excellent any thing may be when perfect, [...] the more prejudicial is it when corrupted and depraved."

 

[Restless Native]

Always loved this one, not sure if it was a dig at German

Who: Holy Roman Emperor Charles V
When: Unknown and also arguable he ever said it but.....
What: “I speak Spanish to God, Italian to women, French to men, and German to my horse."

 

[iquabakaner]

Always loved this one, not sure if it was a dig at German

Who: Holy Roman Emperor Charles V
When: Unknown and also arguable he ever said it but.....
What: “I speak Spanish to God, Italian to women, French to men, and German to my horse."

Speaking of Charles V, his wife Isabella of Portugal was quite an impressive woman. Charles entrusted Spain for her to rule while he was away at war, and she did a pretty good job. Unfortunately she died very young at childbirth. Charles loved her so dearly that he never remarried, and carried her pictures everywhere he went until he died 20-30 years later.

She reminds me of Tywin Lannister's marriage with Joanna Lannister in Game of Thrones. I think Charles V's marriage was most likely an inspiration.