Legendary Lore

Friends,

I'm planning a road trip for this fall or next spring, traveling from the Czech Republic to Greece and Italy. Our mission is to give our three sons a solid understanding of the roots of Western culture - while capturing some great footage along the way.

Below is our current itinerary, subject to change, and I'd love to hear your thoughts! Are there any other must-see historical sites in the region that we absolutely MUST add to our journey?
(Please don't mention Constantinople, that's too far in the other direction 😄)

1. Split, Croatia: Diocletian’s Palace.
2. Thessaloniki, Greece: Roman and Byzantine history.
3. Stagira, Greece: Birthplace of Aristotle.
4. Delphi, Greece: Oracle of Apollo.
5. Athens, Greece: Acropolis, Parthenon, etc.
6. Knossos, Greece (maybe, 2–3 day detour): Minoan Palace.
7. Corinth, Greece: Temple of Apollo, Acrocorinth.
8. Epidaurus, Greece (maybe): Ancient theater, Sanctuary of Asclepius.
9. Olympia, Greece (maybe): Birthplace of the Olympic Games.
10. Mycenae, Greece: Bronze Age site, Lion Gate.
11. Sparta, Greece: Ancient Spartan ruins.
Ferry (Patras to Brindisi?)
12. Pompeii & Herculaneum, Italy: Roman cities preserved by Vesuvius.
13. Paestum, Italy: Ancient Greek temples.
14. Rome, Italy: Colosseum, Forum, Ostia Antica, Tivoli, etc.

7 months ago | [YT] | 96

Legendary Lore

Friends, yesterday I watched the full press conference/debate between Trump and Zelenskyy, and I wanted to share some thoughts. This is a contentious topic, and by no means am I downplaying the very real horror of war. This isn’t about taking sides—it’s about he historical reality of power.

In recent decades, Western foreign policy has been dressed up in the language of democracy and moral responsibility, but this meeting finally shattered that illusion. Trump made it clear that America’s support is a transaction. This is old-school power politics (AKA Political Realism) and basically a return to how the world has worked throughout history.

Trump didn’t talk to Zelenskyy like a partner; he talked to him like an emperor addressing a client king of Rome. The message is clear: be useful and grateful or be ignored. Throughout history, stronger powers very rarely handed out support for free—they expected loyalty and results. If a client ruler wasn’t sufficiently useful, he would be replaced. Trump’s attitude toward Ukraine isn’t that different.

Under previous administrations, supporting Ukraine was framed as a duty until Trump flipped that claim: America comes first. If backing Ukraine helps the U.S., great! If it risks dragging America into a bigger war or simply costs too much, then why keep doing it? This is the unfiltered political realism that defined empires.

And it’s not just about Ukraine—Europe is being forced into the same reality check. For years, we have relied on American security guarantees. Now, with the U.S. questioning its "commitments," Europe is waking up to the fact that we may have to take more responsibility for our own security. Just like Ukraine, European nations are realizing that power politics is far from dead—it was just on pause while big brother took care of the schoolyard bullies.

During recent decades, America treated allies like lifelong friends. Trump treats them like business partners. It feels like a major shift, but it’s really a return to historical diplomacy. Whether that’s good or bad depends on your perspective, but one thing’s clear: Trump just reminded the world that politics is, and always has been, about power, not morals.

Welcome back to hardball diplomacy...

BTW I've been thinking of making a video on how political realism has always shaped history—from ancient empires to today. If you’d watch that, let me know!

7 months ago | [YT] | 212

Legendary Lore

Were the Romans Really That Brutal Compared to Us?

Recently, I’ve been thinking a lot about how we see ancient Rome as this incredibly brutal society. People cheering at gladiators fighting to the death, public crucifixions, wars of conquest—it’s easy to look at that and think of the Romans as this barbaric, bloodthirsty culture.

But then I look at today.

People watch drone war footage online. Some out of morbid curiosity, some out of horror, some because they viscerally hate one side, and yeah… some just find it entertaining. A lot of us think it’s in bad taste—but plenty of Romans probably thought gladiator fights were in bad taste too. Seneca, for example, respected the skill and bravery of gladiators but still thought the games were barbaric.

And let’s not forget that gladiator fights weren’t always to the death. A lot of them were trained professionals, expensive to replace, and fought many battles. Compare that to modern combat sports like MMA or boxing. Sure, they’re not using weapons, but it’s still two people beating the sh*t out of each other in front of a crowd. The line between “entertainment” and “violence” is still a bit blurry.

Then there’s war. Rome didn’t just say, “We’re stronger, so we take what we want,” even if that’s exactly what they were doing. Generals and consuls had to justify their wars, because the Roman people wouldn’t have accepted conquest without a moral excuse. For example, Julius Caesar put a lot of effort into framing his war in Gaul as necessary—to help their suffering allies or whatever. Not very different from today, where wars are framed as spreading democracy, securing peace, protecting freedoms etc. In fact, their justifications aren’t very different from those of Caesar.

Then there are the gruesome Roman executions. Crucifixions were absolutely brutal, but they weren’t that common, and people found them shocking even back then. Cicero called crucifixion “the most cruel and disgusting penalty.” I think we focus on the most brutal parts of Rome because that’s what’s been written down extensively—but we wouldn’t look at the worst horrors of the 20th century and claim they represent daily life in the modern world, so why would we do that with Rome?

I’m not saying Rome wasn’t more violent than today’s world—at least in the modern West. But I suspect the gap isn’t as wide as we like to think, and I think people were a lot more peace-minded than we give them credit for.

But I’d love to hear what you think…

8 months ago (edited) | [YT] | 112

Legendary Lore

Finally putting the finishing touches on a ~1-hour letter by Seneca. Can you guess which one?

8 months ago | [YT] | 72

Legendary Lore

🎄 Merry Christmas, Happy Yule, and Joyous Saturnalia! 🎄

I hope you’re having a great time with the people you love. And remember, once a year it's OK to indulge in a cookie or five.

Things have been a bit hectic here—we’ve been busy renovating our new house (well… ruin) over the last month. There’s still tons of work ahead, but not to worry, I’ve got some exciting new videos in the works, too.

Enjoy your holidays, take it easy, and maybe spend some time planning for the next year. Thank you for being part of this channel—I’m grateful for all of you 🍻

10 months ago | [YT] | 56

Legendary Lore

I'm not really a big celebrator, but tonight I’m cooking some good food for the family and sharing a bottle of Bohemia Sekt with Mrs. Lore.

About 1½ years ago, I started this channel mostly for fun, with no particular expectations. What I certainly didn’t expect was how many of you would turn up for history's odd corners, forgotten ideas, and old truths. It’s not always thrilling work to sift through dusty old texts or piece together details for accuracy, but I love sharing the end results with you, reading your comments (the positive and the angry ones 😄) and figuring out what sparks your interest.

Thank you to all of you who have subscribed, watched, liked, and shared your thoughts and ideas 🙏 And a special thank you to everyone who’s supported the channel through YouTube or Patreon - your support really does make a difference 👊

Looking forward to sharing many more historical treasures with you all - the publication plan is still very, very long!

11 months ago | [YT] | 161

Legendary Lore

Plato was a proto-communist.

11 months ago | [YT] | 87

Legendary Lore

Which country would you say is closer to Aristotle's 'Polity' system of government?

11 months ago | [YT] | 136

Legendary Lore

I found this slanderous, yet funny, little innuendo-poem in "Priapeia" 😄

"Caesar conquered the Gauls, but Nicomedes conquered Caesar;
Now Caesar gets his triumph for conquering the Gaul,
But Nicomedes, who conquered Caesar, gets no celebration at all."

1 year ago (edited) | [YT] | 78

Legendary Lore

Garden gnomes are...

1 year ago | [YT] | 69