On this day (14th February) in 1483, the first Mughal emperor Babur was born. 14th February is also marked as an official cultural day in Uzbekistan celebrating the birth anniversary of Babur. This day is known as Babur Day.
During Babur Day, multiple events are conducted that are attended by celebrities, high ranking officials and students.
Musicians sing songs inspired by music pieces commissioned by Babur, poetry written by Babur is recited, painting competitions are held and theatre performances on Babur's life is acted.
To be admitted into the army of the Mongol empire under Genghis Khan, you had to be able to wage war on a horse without a saddle! This required great skill, balance and coordination.
When such great skill was combined with the grip of the Mongol horse saddle, the cavalry of the empire was almost undefeatable.
In 1453 AD, the Ottoman Empire under Mehmed II, also known as Mehmed the conqueror, invaded the Byzantine Empire or the Eastern Roman Empire, located in the areas surrounding the Mediterranean Sea.
After the invasion, most of the Byzantine empire citizens decided to stay put in the Ottoman Empire and convert to Islam which the Ottomans followed.
Being a follower of Islam in the Ottoman empire gave one many advantages in the society, including being able to dodge the Jizya tax which was imposed on non-muslims in the empire.
Paintings and depictions of Mughal emperor Babur made on the command of his grandson Akbar were based entirely on depictions from the memory of people who claimed to have seen him. This was because most people who had physically seen Babur died before Akbar.
Most of these depictions were made by the late daughter of Babur, Gulbadan Begum. Akbar's artists carefully made these portraits of Babur and then had Gulbadan Begum examine them.
Later in her life, Gulbadan Begum would become the first and most famous lady Mughal historian and chronicler. She also wrote the book Humayun-Nama on her half brother, the son of Babur and the father of Akbar, Humayun.
In 46 BC, an alliance between the Egyptian queen Cleopatra (originally from Greece, as her ancestor Ptolemy was the General of Alexander the Great) and Julias Caesar would spark an alliance between the Hellenistic Greek world and Rome.
This alliance enabled many trade relationships between Greece and Rome. As these relationships grew, the recipe of Filo Baklava invented in Greece reached Rome. In Rome, the crispy Baklava was made softer and gained a fluffy texture.
In Rome, the Baklava was soaked in lots of honey to give it a sponge-like texture and was served along with dry fruits. When Baklavas were traded back to Greece by the Romans, the Roman version gained the name of Placenta cake.
The Curious Case of the Mouldy Bread:
In Ancient Egyptian culture, people believed they had an afterlife after death. Hence, Egyptians buried everything needed for one to live in the afterlife alongside the dead body.
This included jewellery, clothes and food. But one of the most important things was the medicine chest, as Egyptians believed that the most important thing in the afterlife was good health. The most famous medicine in the chest was mouldy bread!
The Egyptians believed that using mouldy bread would help heal wounds quickly and stop infection in the wound. This worked most of the time though the Egyptians had no idea how it worked.
The Oxford Univerity, founded in 1096, is older than the Aztec empire which was founded in 1428. The University was built during the reign of William II, son of William the conqueror.
The Oxford University was founded 120 years before the Magna Carta was signed in 1215 CE.
The oldest parts of the university now are the University building, Balliol and Merton Colleges, which were established between 1249 and 1264.