StMU Research Scholars

Featuring Scholarly Research, Writing, and Media at St. Mary’s University

Course Readings – SMC 1301 Foundations of Civilization – Dr. Whitener

The Classical AgeThe Middle AgesAge of DiscoveryAge of ReformationAge of Revolution




Render Unto Caesar: The Conquest of Gaul and the Battle of Alesia

Peter Coons
10/21/2018

In 58 BCE, Roman proconsul Julius Caesar, a member of the first Triumvirate and an important political figure in the Roman Government, was forced to flee the very city he helped rule. As debts from his political aspirations and a general souring of relations among




Marcus Brutus: The Honorable Senator

Tyler Sleeter
11/02/2017

Most people know the story of the assassination of Julius Caesar on the 15 March 44 B.C.E.  Shakespeare made the event famous in his play Julius Caesar, and has left many saying “Beware the ides of March.”1 However, the assassination of Caesar may never have happened




William: The Norman Bastard who Conquered England

Annissa Noblejas
12/15/2019

The path running from a bastard son of a Duke to the conquest of England was paved with strife, broken promises, betrayal, and bloodlust. William of Normandy fought an uphill battle his entire life, molding him of stone from an early age. His battles are




The Legend Behind Teotihuacán

Alexander Manibusan
12/02/2018

At the heart of the mighty Aztec empire laid the capital Tenochtitlan, the Venice of the new world. No other civilization at the time could hope to compare to the city’s impressive pyramids, glamorous temples, and advanced aqueducts. At one point in history, Tenochtitlan was




Classic Maya: The Mystery of the Great Collapse

Jocelyn Alvarez Bibian
11/15/2016

The decline of the Classic Maya civilization is one of the greatest mysteries in human history. As described by archaeologist Arthur Demarest, “probably only the fall of the Roman Empire has been cited as often in social theory on the decline of civilizations.”1 But, what




Ferdinand and Isabella: The Making of the First World Power

Christopher Hohman
12/01/2018

In April of 1451, at a secluded palace in Northern Spain, a young baby by the name of Princess Isabella of Castile was born. From the moment she was born the world was aligned against her. In truth, there were very few people who cared




La Malinche: Traitor or Survivor?

Mariana Sandoval
09/02/2016

Winner of the Fall 2016 StMU History Media Award for Best Article in the Category of “People” Best Article in the Category of “World History” Largely due to the importation of disease and use of superior weapons, the Spaniards were able to conquer the Aztec capital




Queen of all Trades: Nzinga Mbande, Queen of Ndongo and Matamba

Rosario Moreno
05/10/2019

Queen Njinga was the ruler of the Kingdom of Ndongo and the Kingdom of Matamba, a Queen of two nations, an enemy of the Portuguese, and a warrior to her people. Through a long-standing conflict between the Kingdom of Ndongo and the Portuguese, Queen Njinga




Wicked Witches of the West: Witch Hunts in Early Modern Europe

Victoria Sanchez
03/31/2017

In today’s world, when someone thinks of a witch, they normally picture one of a few things: the infamous Wicked Witch of the West that was out to get our beloved Dorothy; Bette Midler’s crazy looking character in Hocus Pocus; or a sparkly, purple and black ‘Party




Bloody Mary in the Mirror

Nicolas McKay
02/16/2017

Winner of the Fall 2016 StMU History Media Awards for Article with the Best Title o one can say who history will choose to remember, or for what they will be remembered. Sometimes a lifetime of achievement can be forgotten because of a single misdeed. Few historic




Heliocentrism: Galileo’s Battle With the Church

Jose Figueroa
02/15/2018

February 13, 1633 was the final day of the trial led by the Holy Office. Galileo once again walked into the same dim, candle-lit room in one of the beautiful churches of Rome. The eyes of the paintings, statues, and members of the Holy Office




The American Constitution and the Death of the “Great Experiment”

Greyson Addicott
10/29/2018

Winner of the Fall 2018 StMU History Media Award for Best Article in the Category of “United States History” What, exactly, makes the United States of America so unique? Is it our food, our inventions, our skyscrapers, or our fancy cars? Could the answer to




Power To The People: Abbè Sieyès And The Third Estate

Bailey Rider
04/29/2017

Emmanuel Joseph Sieyès, also known as the Abbè Sieyès, was a major player of the French Revolution. During this period he challenged the ancien régime system of unequal representation in the Estates-General and fought against the traditional privileges held by the aristocracy and clergy. He believed that




Painting the Town Red: Jacques Louis David and Revolutionary France

Teresa Valdez
04/16/2017

The French Revolution is perhaps the most famous revolution in all of history. In 1789, the French people, suffering from starvation, excessive taxation, and governmental bankruptcy, began a process that led to the overthrow of the French monarchy. The years that followed marked a violent, bloody period




The Execution Of Marie Antoinette: The Last Queen Of France

Amelia Hew
10/06/2019

t eleven in the morning on October 16, 1793, the prison gate of the Conciergerie opened and the Widow Capet strode out. The armed force had been mobilized, cannons lined the squares and intersections; patrols scoured the street. Thirty thousand men accompanied the Queen of




Joseph Jenkins Roberts: A Love for Liberia

Antonio Holverstott
02/17/2020

In 1846, the governor of the African colony of Liberia, Joseph Jenkins Roberts, called for a referendum to determine Liberia’s path towards independence. Eager colonists in the settlements of Monrovia, Bassa, Greenville, and Maryland affirmed their desire to have an independent Liberia.1 However, the legislature was