1 00:00:00,560 --> 00:00:03,760 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class from how 2 00:00:03,800 --> 00:00:14,120 Speaker 1: Stuff Works dot com. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. 3 00:00:14,240 --> 00:00:17,279 Speaker 1: I'm Katie Lambert and I'm Sarah Dowdy, and I've been 4 00:00:17,360 --> 00:00:20,680 Speaker 1: sending Katie pictures of Egypt all week. I've sent her 5 00:00:20,720 --> 00:00:24,560 Speaker 1: a picture of an Ibis, an ancient temple, a mongoose, 6 00:00:24,680 --> 00:00:27,800 Speaker 1: and at one point I even got distracted and drew 7 00:00:28,040 --> 00:00:32,280 Speaker 1: a laser. Ibis in Microsoft Paint. Was a highlight of 8 00:00:32,360 --> 00:00:36,559 Speaker 1: my week and outlook. But usually distraction during podcast research 9 00:00:36,640 --> 00:00:39,159 Speaker 1: is not a good thing. In this case, I'm going 10 00:00:39,200 --> 00:00:43,200 Speaker 1: to cite the spirit of Napoleon savants, who themselves were 11 00:00:43,280 --> 00:00:46,800 Speaker 1: kings of embracing distraction. And we've already given you some 12 00:00:46,880 --> 00:00:50,920 Speaker 1: background on Napoleon's expedition to Egypt, the Battle of the Pyramids, 13 00:00:51,000 --> 00:00:54,680 Speaker 1: the devastating defeat at the Battle of abukir Bay. Things 14 00:00:54,720 --> 00:00:57,200 Speaker 1: get worse for France as the army has to face 15 00:00:57,280 --> 00:01:01,200 Speaker 1: a triple threat the Turks, the Brits and Lapeste or 16 00:01:01,320 --> 00:01:05,080 Speaker 1: the plague, and the result is a major military failure 17 00:01:05,120 --> 00:01:09,479 Speaker 1: and terrible violence and destruction in Egypt. Fortunately, this episode 18 00:01:09,520 --> 00:01:12,600 Speaker 1: is dedicated to the French expedition that did not fail. 19 00:01:13,000 --> 00:01:17,560 Speaker 1: It was an intellectual expedition that shaped the science of archaeology. 20 00:01:17,600 --> 00:01:22,319 Speaker 1: It launched Egyptomania, and it eventually unearthed the key to 21 00:01:22,400 --> 00:01:25,560 Speaker 1: the secret history of the Pharaohs, which will get to 22 00:01:25,880 --> 00:01:29,919 Speaker 1: pretty soon. So first you have to wonder why Napoleon 23 00:01:30,040 --> 00:01:33,080 Speaker 1: brought these savants with him, And there are a few 24 00:01:33,120 --> 00:01:36,640 Speaker 1: reasons why it pays to bring a cadre of intellectuals 25 00:01:36,680 --> 00:01:39,040 Speaker 1: along for the war. And to break it down simply, 26 00:01:39,560 --> 00:01:42,600 Speaker 1: we'll give you a four points here. One who knows 27 00:01:42,600 --> 00:01:45,039 Speaker 1: what Egypt will be like. The army will need men 28 00:01:45,080 --> 00:01:47,360 Speaker 1: who can survey, who can find water, and who can 29 00:01:47,400 --> 00:01:51,760 Speaker 1: make maps, men who can observe and invent and manufacture 30 00:01:51,760 --> 00:01:54,560 Speaker 1: on the fly exactly. And they'll also need men who 31 00:01:54,600 --> 00:01:59,080 Speaker 1: are diplomatic and the perfect ambassadors of French culture and 32 00:01:59,120 --> 00:02:02,920 Speaker 1: democracy to a conquered land. And and what a conquered 33 00:02:03,040 --> 00:02:06,400 Speaker 1: land it is. The savants will help record and make 34 00:02:06,520 --> 00:02:09,799 Speaker 1: sense of what they see in Egypt and as stuff 35 00:02:09,880 --> 00:02:13,520 Speaker 1: the louver and build very impressive natural history collections and 36 00:02:14,000 --> 00:02:18,440 Speaker 1: bring Egypt back to France. And finally, perhaps most importantly, 37 00:02:18,600 --> 00:02:21,520 Speaker 1: they'll make Napoleon look good. It sounds like something his 38 00:02:21,639 --> 00:02:25,720 Speaker 1: hero Alexander the Great would do, and plus Napoleon, We've 39 00:02:25,760 --> 00:02:28,360 Speaker 1: got to give him credit for this. He really likes science. 40 00:02:28,440 --> 00:02:31,560 Speaker 1: He's this sort of honorary member of the French Institute, 41 00:02:31,560 --> 00:02:34,959 Speaker 1: but he takes it really seriously. He signs, he signs 42 00:02:35,000 --> 00:02:37,840 Speaker 1: himself for his letters as a member of the French Institute. 43 00:02:38,000 --> 00:02:42,200 Speaker 1: He loves science. So as Napoleon plans his secret mission 44 00:02:42,240 --> 00:02:45,600 Speaker 1: to Egypt, he authorizes three men to create his Commission 45 00:02:45,600 --> 00:02:49,640 Speaker 1: of Sciences and Arts, and they are Gasparmane who's a 46 00:02:49,720 --> 00:02:53,160 Speaker 1: very good at math, Claude Luis Bertela who's a chemist, 47 00:02:53,280 --> 00:02:57,079 Speaker 1: and Joseph Fourier, another mathematician, and those that round up 48 00:02:57,160 --> 00:03:00,440 Speaker 1: his little crew of savants. The commission's total comes to 49 00:03:00,639 --> 00:03:04,200 Speaker 1: one and fifty one, and some are well established in 50 00:03:04,240 --> 00:03:07,200 Speaker 1: their fields, but many are fresh out of school. Thirty 51 00:03:07,240 --> 00:03:10,200 Speaker 1: six of them are students. Their median age is twenty 52 00:03:10,240 --> 00:03:13,959 Speaker 1: five and bum bum bum, thirty one will die. We're 53 00:03:14,000 --> 00:03:17,000 Speaker 1: just saying this because these guys do not know what 54 00:03:17,120 --> 00:03:20,440 Speaker 1: they're getting into. But because they're going with Napoleon, they 55 00:03:20,440 --> 00:03:23,079 Speaker 1: think it's going to be really great. It's not, well, 56 00:03:23,360 --> 00:03:25,720 Speaker 1: you know, subject opinion, maybe if you're not one of 57 00:03:25,760 --> 00:03:29,560 Speaker 1: the so they probably get a taste of just how 58 00:03:29,600 --> 00:03:33,120 Speaker 1: adventurous this expedition is going to be. On the boat 59 00:03:33,200 --> 00:03:37,600 Speaker 1: ride from France, the established scientists birthed with officers and 60 00:03:38,000 --> 00:03:42,520 Speaker 1: attended salons on Napoleon's own flagships, having these very heavy 61 00:03:42,560 --> 00:03:45,800 Speaker 1: discussions what did dreams mean? What is the ideal form 62 00:03:45,880 --> 00:03:49,640 Speaker 1: of government? But these students are with the lowest of 63 00:03:49,680 --> 00:03:53,360 Speaker 1: the soldiers and sailors. They're seasick for getting their blankets stolen. 64 00:03:53,600 --> 00:03:55,800 Speaker 1: I have to imagine them just getting punched in the 65 00:03:55,800 --> 00:04:00,920 Speaker 1: salt the shoulder, hey point dexter givving a pillow exactly. 66 00:04:01,200 --> 00:04:03,960 Speaker 1: So they're not having the best trip, but I guess 67 00:04:03,960 --> 00:04:07,720 Speaker 1: they're still excited. And the four hundred ship flotilla finally 68 00:04:07,800 --> 00:04:13,360 Speaker 1: arrives in Alexandria on July one, and we've in our 69 00:04:13,400 --> 00:04:16,240 Speaker 1: earlier episode we we already know what happens to most 70 00:04:16,240 --> 00:04:19,040 Speaker 1: of the army and the navy from here. Fortunately for 71 00:04:19,080 --> 00:04:22,479 Speaker 1: the savants, most of them are spared that grueling desert 72 00:04:22,600 --> 00:04:25,159 Speaker 1: march and the Battle of the Pyramids. They stay in 73 00:04:25,200 --> 00:04:29,520 Speaker 1: Alexandria and Rosetta, which is even nicer than Alexandria, until 74 00:04:29,600 --> 00:04:33,200 Speaker 1: Napoleon secures Cairo. They get to travel by boat instead 75 00:04:33,200 --> 00:04:35,760 Speaker 1: of foot across the desert. They do have that one 76 00:04:35,839 --> 00:04:39,400 Speaker 1: devastating event though, the ship that held nearly all of 77 00:04:39,440 --> 00:04:43,120 Speaker 1: their equipment sank, So that's kind of a big deal 78 00:04:43,160 --> 00:04:47,480 Speaker 1: and planning. Yeah, So after the Battle of the Pyramids 79 00:04:47,600 --> 00:04:51,400 Speaker 1: and the flight of the Mama Luke leader Murad Bay, 80 00:04:51,839 --> 00:04:55,400 Speaker 1: Napoleon secures Cairo. We've we've covered this part. But with 81 00:04:55,440 --> 00:04:58,920 Speaker 1: the city in his pocket, Napoleon decides that he wants 82 00:04:58,960 --> 00:05:03,280 Speaker 1: to form a something like the French National Institute, a 83 00:05:03,279 --> 00:05:06,200 Speaker 1: collection of all these learned men where they can meet, 84 00:05:06,560 --> 00:05:10,200 Speaker 1: they can pitch their furies and their ideas and discuss 85 00:05:10,240 --> 00:05:14,839 Speaker 1: have have intellectual conversations. It's an official club that will 86 00:05:14,880 --> 00:05:19,960 Speaker 1: also conveniently tackle some of his mispressing questions. So Mombert 87 00:05:20,040 --> 00:05:23,920 Speaker 1: Lay scout the city for suitable quarters, because this building 88 00:05:23,960 --> 00:05:26,279 Speaker 1: has got to be huge. It's going to hold labs, 89 00:05:26,320 --> 00:05:30,919 Speaker 1: a museum, a library and observatory, a printing press, a zoo, 90 00:05:31,000 --> 00:05:33,440 Speaker 1: everything the savants will need. Sarah really wants to go, 91 00:05:34,120 --> 00:05:37,960 Speaker 1: and they find a complex of recently vacated mam Luke 92 00:05:38,120 --> 00:05:40,760 Speaker 1: palaces that will do the trick. I'm picturing it like 93 00:05:40,800 --> 00:05:43,640 Speaker 1: apartment shopping, but for rent. Yeah, walking into a mam 94 00:05:44,440 --> 00:05:47,920 Speaker 1: let probably a little class instead of my midtown apartment. 95 00:05:48,400 --> 00:05:52,200 Speaker 1: So their first meeting is in late August, and it's 96 00:05:52,240 --> 00:05:55,120 Speaker 1: held in the Harem Room, which I imagine is not 97 00:05:55,240 --> 00:05:58,560 Speaker 1: like our conference room. Apparently it's sort of the quiet 98 00:05:58,760 --> 00:06:01,919 Speaker 1: nicest room in the in these old buildings, so I 99 00:06:01,920 --> 00:06:04,680 Speaker 1: guess it makes sense to to set up shop there. 100 00:06:04,760 --> 00:06:08,880 Speaker 1: But Napoleon starts them off with really practical projects like 101 00:06:09,160 --> 00:06:11,840 Speaker 1: how can we make better ovens, how can we treat 102 00:06:11,880 --> 00:06:15,160 Speaker 1: the Nile water? How can we make beer without hops? 103 00:06:15,760 --> 00:06:18,640 Speaker 1: And you know they are they are practical questions, and 104 00:06:18,680 --> 00:06:21,000 Speaker 1: the savants do get to work on them, but soon 105 00:06:21,040 --> 00:06:25,000 Speaker 1: they're they're more interested in all of the amazing new 106 00:06:25,080 --> 00:06:28,120 Speaker 1: things they're seeing in Egypt for the first time gets 107 00:06:28,120 --> 00:06:32,720 Speaker 1: into studying mirages. The naturalist Etienne Jafoi sant hlaire Um 108 00:06:32,839 --> 00:06:37,760 Speaker 1: gets into these proto Darwinian theories, and Bartel starts studying 109 00:06:37,760 --> 00:06:40,880 Speaker 1: the natron that's used to preserve money, so some really 110 00:06:40,880 --> 00:06:44,480 Speaker 1: cool stuff and major advances in their fields to chemistry 111 00:06:44,520 --> 00:06:47,760 Speaker 1: and and all that. So the Institute of Egypt, though, 112 00:06:47,920 --> 00:06:51,919 Speaker 1: can't ever quite function like it's supposed to, which is 113 00:06:51,960 --> 00:06:55,080 Speaker 1: of course communicating with the French Institute back home. They 114 00:06:55,080 --> 00:06:57,839 Speaker 1: would share knowledge and be able to feed off of 115 00:06:57,880 --> 00:07:01,839 Speaker 1: each other. This doesn't happen, obviously, because after the French 116 00:07:01,920 --> 00:07:06,320 Speaker 1: defeat at Abacure Bay, the British can intercept all their messages, 117 00:07:06,440 --> 00:07:10,000 Speaker 1: so you don't have supplies anymore, but you also don't 118 00:07:10,080 --> 00:07:14,040 Speaker 1: have communication with France unless it's bad news. They would 119 00:07:14,160 --> 00:07:17,560 Speaker 1: they would send the lonely, sad letters about how how 120 00:07:17,560 --> 00:07:20,920 Speaker 1: they missed there. That's so embarrassing for the savants. Yeah, 121 00:07:20,920 --> 00:07:24,080 Speaker 1: they're they're sending letters back home to the institute and 122 00:07:24,080 --> 00:07:26,720 Speaker 1: to their families like why haven't we heard from you? 123 00:07:27,200 --> 00:07:30,120 Speaker 1: I really miss you so much. Egypt is not quite 124 00:07:30,160 --> 00:07:32,600 Speaker 1: what I hoped it would be. And the British intercept 125 00:07:32,680 --> 00:07:35,600 Speaker 1: these and publicize them and just sort of use them 126 00:07:35,600 --> 00:07:39,239 Speaker 1: to mock the Savants. There are some other setbacks. There's 127 00:07:39,240 --> 00:07:42,520 Speaker 1: this Cairo uprising where several of the scholars are killed 128 00:07:42,960 --> 00:07:46,320 Speaker 1: because their lovely institute palace is a mile away from 129 00:07:46,360 --> 00:07:48,360 Speaker 1: all the soldiers who it takes them quite a long 130 00:07:48,440 --> 00:07:52,120 Speaker 1: time to get there, so their work is is already 131 00:07:52,200 --> 00:07:55,680 Speaker 1: dangerous and hard, and then when Napoleon starts sending his 132 00:07:55,760 --> 00:07:59,320 Speaker 1: scholars on missions, it gets even harder. Yeah, so we 133 00:07:59,400 --> 00:08:01,960 Speaker 1: mentioned that thirty six of the men are just students. 134 00:08:01,960 --> 00:08:04,600 Speaker 1: Some of them are really really young in their in 135 00:08:04,640 --> 00:08:08,160 Speaker 1: their teens. And in late October they take their final, 136 00:08:08,280 --> 00:08:12,880 Speaker 1: which interestingly is around the same time they're they're fellow 137 00:08:12,960 --> 00:08:18,240 Speaker 1: students back at home. Um, they all pass and they 138 00:08:18,240 --> 00:08:20,440 Speaker 1: sort of achieve a more equal footing than they have. 139 00:08:20,560 --> 00:08:23,640 Speaker 1: But that's thirty six more guys that Napoleon consent on 140 00:08:23,800 --> 00:08:28,640 Speaker 1: his craziest mission because he doesn't just want these people 141 00:08:28,640 --> 00:08:32,560 Speaker 1: as cultural ambassadors. He wants them as engineers to scout 142 00:08:32,600 --> 00:08:34,640 Speaker 1: the land, to find the water, all of that the 143 00:08:34,800 --> 00:08:38,120 Speaker 1: really important stuff. Now it's time to pick what they 144 00:08:38,160 --> 00:08:40,440 Speaker 1: want to do, and they have the choice of joining 145 00:08:40,440 --> 00:08:44,040 Speaker 1: the military engineers or the core of bridges and roads, 146 00:08:44,040 --> 00:08:47,040 Speaker 1: and again you can imagine that would be a little disappointing. 147 00:08:47,080 --> 00:08:50,480 Speaker 1: You'd rather be on the core of pyramids perhaps, or 148 00:08:50,520 --> 00:08:53,880 Speaker 1: of mummies. The engineers are put to work at mapping 149 00:08:53,920 --> 00:08:59,000 Speaker 1: and hydrology because the main existing Egyptian map had seriously 150 00:08:59,040 --> 00:09:01,720 Speaker 1: been done by a guy from his chair, so he's 151 00:09:01,760 --> 00:09:06,079 Speaker 1: just existing drawing at Egypt piece things together. But this 152 00:09:06,280 --> 00:09:09,600 Speaker 1: job is dangerous. To go out and do all this mapping, 153 00:09:09,640 --> 00:09:14,160 Speaker 1: they require escorts. It's very hot. The Bedouins are on 154 00:09:14,200 --> 00:09:16,600 Speaker 1: the attack. Well, part of the issue is by this 155 00:09:16,679 --> 00:09:22,360 Speaker 1: point the French military has started a policy of seizing camels. 156 00:09:22,480 --> 00:09:25,760 Speaker 1: The Savants are nicer, they'll buy your camel from you. 157 00:09:26,200 --> 00:09:29,600 Speaker 1: But the French are getting a pretty bad reputation in 158 00:09:29,640 --> 00:09:32,280 Speaker 1: Egypt by this point, and the Savants are suffering because 159 00:09:32,320 --> 00:09:35,480 Speaker 1: of it. Their other main project is trying to see 160 00:09:35,520 --> 00:09:38,520 Speaker 1: if they could possibly build a canal at Sue as 161 00:09:39,040 --> 00:09:42,560 Speaker 1: is Canada done at all. So the danger of checking 162 00:09:42,600 --> 00:09:46,880 Speaker 1: calculations twice leads to some errors because it's difficult to 163 00:09:47,000 --> 00:09:50,959 Speaker 1: keep going out on these dangerous forays into the desert. 164 00:09:51,000 --> 00:09:54,200 Speaker 1: Plus they've lost their their modern tools. They're relying on 165 00:09:54,280 --> 00:09:56,719 Speaker 1: whatever they can. They're doing what they can. And it's 166 00:09:56,840 --> 00:10:01,080 Speaker 1: determined incorrectly that the Red Sea is higher than the Mediterranean. 167 00:10:01,200 --> 00:10:03,679 Speaker 1: So that is what happens when you can't matter twice. Yeah, 168 00:10:03,720 --> 00:10:06,080 Speaker 1: they don't want to flood Egypt with salt water, but 169 00:10:06,480 --> 00:10:09,480 Speaker 1: not everything is so terrible. Before we make this sound 170 00:10:09,559 --> 00:10:13,720 Speaker 1: like it sounds like the worst possible vacation ever, the 171 00:10:13,840 --> 00:10:18,559 Speaker 1: court does find the Rosetta stone in July near an 172 00:10:18,600 --> 00:10:21,480 Speaker 1: old Crusader fort. We may have we may have even 173 00:10:21,480 --> 00:10:24,240 Speaker 1: mentioned the fort in one of our Crusader podcasts, you know, 174 00:10:24,800 --> 00:10:27,600 Speaker 1: So the Rosetta Stone, Candice and Jane have already done 175 00:10:27,600 --> 00:10:30,600 Speaker 1: an episode on it. But of course it's the eventual 176 00:10:30,760 --> 00:10:35,000 Speaker 1: key to unlocking the language of the gods. Before it's 177 00:10:35,000 --> 00:10:37,840 Speaker 1: found and decoded, people didn't even know how old the 178 00:10:37,840 --> 00:10:41,520 Speaker 1: Egyptian civilization was. They didn't know who the gods were, 179 00:10:42,120 --> 00:10:46,520 Speaker 1: what the Egyptians did. Just imagine, it's heads in the desert, 180 00:10:46,559 --> 00:10:49,400 Speaker 1: buried in sand. It has no meaning attached to it. 181 00:10:49,679 --> 00:10:52,680 Speaker 1: So this discovery is something the soldiers and the savants 182 00:10:52,760 --> 00:10:55,600 Speaker 1: can all be happy about and share with France. You know, 183 00:10:55,640 --> 00:10:59,240 Speaker 1: they're they're big fabulous saying that they did. And the 184 00:10:59,240 --> 00:11:02,440 Speaker 1: commission member Conte makes some prince of the stone to 185 00:11:02,520 --> 00:11:05,880 Speaker 1: send back to Paris, and amazingly they make it through. 186 00:11:06,400 --> 00:11:10,200 Speaker 1: But it's their last contact for two years. So that's 187 00:11:10,200 --> 00:11:14,360 Speaker 1: some more doom for you. But time to backtrack a 188 00:11:14,440 --> 00:11:17,480 Speaker 1: little bit and and give you a little more information 189 00:11:17,520 --> 00:11:20,760 Speaker 1: about these cool antiquities and the ruins and the things 190 00:11:20,760 --> 00:11:24,720 Speaker 1: like that that people associate with this mission. So one 191 00:11:24,720 --> 00:11:27,600 Speaker 1: of our savants, who hasn't been to Cairo in the 192 00:11:27,640 --> 00:11:31,680 Speaker 1: past year, has instead been trailing the Mama Luke Murad 193 00:11:31,720 --> 00:11:34,960 Speaker 1: Bay all around Upper Egypt. So remember how after we 194 00:11:35,000 --> 00:11:38,240 Speaker 1: talked about the Battle of the Pyramids, Murad Bay head 195 00:11:38,280 --> 00:11:42,240 Speaker 1: south and trails this group of the French army behind 196 00:11:42,240 --> 00:11:44,839 Speaker 1: it for nine months, just leading them on a wild 197 00:11:45,080 --> 00:11:49,520 Speaker 1: goose chase essentially, Well, Dominique Vivon Denal decides to join 198 00:11:49,600 --> 00:11:53,600 Speaker 1: the general leading this mission in his pursuit of Murad Bay, 199 00:11:53,640 --> 00:11:56,319 Speaker 1: and he ends up getting the grand tour of Upper 200 00:11:56,360 --> 00:11:59,480 Speaker 1: Egypt before anyone else does. It sounds like a good 201 00:11:59,480 --> 00:12:02,840 Speaker 1: trip from the terrible danger, and well, yeah, because people 202 00:12:02,880 --> 00:12:05,440 Speaker 1: already knew what was in Alexandria. They knew about the 203 00:12:05,480 --> 00:12:08,120 Speaker 1: pyramids and the Sphinx, but they didn't really have a 204 00:12:08,160 --> 00:12:10,960 Speaker 1: good idea about all of the other things out there, 205 00:12:11,000 --> 00:12:14,000 Speaker 1: the temples, the Valley of the Kings. Donal gets to 206 00:12:14,320 --> 00:12:18,880 Speaker 1: fly through thebes Karnak and finally, because of course they're 207 00:12:18,960 --> 00:12:22,640 Speaker 1: chasing this, this rebel beg for fifteen minutes to draw 208 00:12:22,760 --> 00:12:25,600 Speaker 1: something and to say the general will say, okay, fifteen 209 00:12:25,600 --> 00:12:27,880 Speaker 1: minutes and then we gotta go. So he gets his 210 00:12:28,040 --> 00:12:31,120 Speaker 1: quick sketches, but that's about it, and his impressions of 211 00:12:31,160 --> 00:12:33,760 Speaker 1: ancient Egypt are the first thing that the people back 212 00:12:33,800 --> 00:12:37,160 Speaker 1: home see. So he starts off this craze for all 213 00:12:37,200 --> 00:12:40,320 Speaker 1: things Egypt. But when he runs into a group of 214 00:12:40,360 --> 00:12:44,080 Speaker 1: the young engineers who are out doing their hydrographic survey 215 00:12:44,200 --> 00:12:47,800 Speaker 1: in May, he shows them some of his sketches and 216 00:12:48,120 --> 00:12:51,839 Speaker 1: tells them about Dendara and it's zodiac and gives them 217 00:12:51,840 --> 00:12:55,880 Speaker 1: the idea, maybe if we could decode this zodiac, we 218 00:12:56,000 --> 00:13:00,280 Speaker 1: might figure out how old the ancient Egyptian civilization really is. 219 00:13:00,760 --> 00:13:04,760 Speaker 1: So these young engineers, they persuade their superiors to let 220 00:13:04,800 --> 00:13:06,959 Speaker 1: them spend more time surveying the temples. You know, we 221 00:13:07,080 --> 00:13:11,160 Speaker 1: finished our hydrology work, let us go draw these things. 222 00:13:11,240 --> 00:13:14,880 Speaker 1: And this is real drafting, not just sketching like Donald did. 223 00:13:15,360 --> 00:13:20,400 Speaker 1: And they spend the summer of doing it, and they 224 00:13:20,480 --> 00:13:23,840 Speaker 1: are systematic about it. They use a grid system, and 225 00:13:24,000 --> 00:13:28,360 Speaker 1: they risk falling into scary holes and running into bats. 226 00:13:28,400 --> 00:13:32,360 Speaker 1: And Dendara had actually been used as a storage bin, 227 00:13:32,640 --> 00:13:36,880 Speaker 1: essentially for freshly executed body. So it's a creepy place, 228 00:13:37,000 --> 00:13:40,360 Speaker 1: but it's still pretty cool, pretty cool. So meanwhile, Donal 229 00:13:40,520 --> 00:13:44,640 Speaker 1: has returned to Cairo and show Napoleon his sketches, and 230 00:13:44,760 --> 00:13:49,600 Speaker 1: Napoleon authorizes to Antiquities Commissions to venture into Upper Egypt. 231 00:13:50,080 --> 00:13:54,680 Speaker 1: When the commissions arrived in September sevent everyone gets to 232 00:13:54,720 --> 00:13:58,880 Speaker 1: work recording everything like real archaeologist would. This is kind 233 00:13:58,920 --> 00:14:02,320 Speaker 1: of where archaeology is started. They even form these human 234 00:14:02,480 --> 00:14:05,080 Speaker 1: chains to make sure they're they're going over every little 235 00:14:05,080 --> 00:14:07,480 Speaker 1: piece of ground, and of course they do have to 236 00:14:07,600 --> 00:14:09,760 Speaker 1: fend off that's while they're doing it. As we mentioned, 237 00:14:09,800 --> 00:14:13,960 Speaker 1: it's terrible. So this this project is the prize. It 238 00:14:14,080 --> 00:14:16,079 Speaker 1: is the best of the best for most of the 239 00:14:16,840 --> 00:14:22,320 Speaker 1: Golden Age for this mission, definitely, but um things. Things 240 00:14:22,480 --> 00:14:24,960 Speaker 1: don't really get that much better after this. In fact, 241 00:14:25,000 --> 00:14:29,520 Speaker 1: they get a lot worse because after authorizing the Antiquities Commission, 242 00:14:29,640 --> 00:14:33,160 Speaker 1: it's about the last thing Napoleon does in Egypt before 243 00:14:33,480 --> 00:14:37,880 Speaker 1: he leaves secretly, just like he came. And admittedly he 244 00:14:37,960 --> 00:14:41,640 Speaker 1: has had a very bad year since that naval disaster 245 00:14:41,720 --> 00:14:45,120 Speaker 1: at Abqure Bay. There was the Cairo Uprising, there was 246 00:14:45,160 --> 00:14:50,120 Speaker 1: a really bloody, very disturbing scene at Jaffa, and a 247 00:14:50,280 --> 00:14:53,760 Speaker 1: never ending failed siege at Occer against a guy named 248 00:14:53,760 --> 00:14:56,680 Speaker 1: the Butcher. So if that gives you a performidable enemy, 249 00:14:57,200 --> 00:15:00,240 Speaker 1: plus the plague, and the plague was so bad ad 250 00:15:00,240 --> 00:15:04,360 Speaker 1: on the battlefield that it's rumored Napoleon may have ordered 251 00:15:04,400 --> 00:15:09,040 Speaker 1: his own soldiers euthanized. He denies it, others say it happened. 252 00:15:09,960 --> 00:15:13,400 Speaker 1: Been having a moral debate about. Plus the news from 253 00:15:13,440 --> 00:15:15,760 Speaker 1: home isn't very good either, and like we said, the 254 00:15:15,760 --> 00:15:18,600 Speaker 1: British are letting the bad news get to Napoleon, just 255 00:15:18,760 --> 00:15:22,800 Speaker 1: not letting any normal exchange of letters get through. So 256 00:15:22,880 --> 00:15:25,720 Speaker 1: he finds out Frances at war with Austria again, and 257 00:15:25,760 --> 00:15:28,760 Speaker 1: the French forces have been kicked out of Germany and Italy, 258 00:15:29,040 --> 00:15:32,000 Speaker 1: and the directory clearly is not going to last much longer. 259 00:15:32,040 --> 00:15:36,000 Speaker 1: And Napoleon, a very ambitious man, obviously wants to be 260 00:15:36,080 --> 00:15:39,520 Speaker 1: in France for whatever happens next, and he takes three 261 00:15:39,560 --> 00:15:42,720 Speaker 1: of his savants with him, bertel Monge and Denands, and 262 00:15:43,320 --> 00:15:46,640 Speaker 1: Donald's early arrival at home allows him to publish his 263 00:15:46,720 --> 00:15:50,840 Speaker 1: Sketches of Upper Egypt, which becomes a best seller. And 264 00:15:50,840 --> 00:15:54,440 Speaker 1: while the French are happy that Napoleon's back, the Savants 265 00:15:54,480 --> 00:15:58,400 Speaker 1: are devastated that he's left. And he's left a general 266 00:15:58,400 --> 00:16:01,960 Speaker 1: in charge, General Jean bapt East Claiber, and he wants 267 00:16:02,000 --> 00:16:04,960 Speaker 1: to conclude the war, but he's gotten permission to keep 268 00:16:05,000 --> 00:16:08,000 Speaker 1: the savants as long as they're useful and he wants 269 00:16:08,000 --> 00:16:11,120 Speaker 1: to protect his legacy, so they're not going home anytime soon, 270 00:16:11,160 --> 00:16:14,520 Speaker 1: or at least not until they've finished their project as 271 00:16:14,520 --> 00:16:18,520 Speaker 1: best they canasically, not until everyone goes home. But Cleverer 272 00:16:18,600 --> 00:16:23,000 Speaker 1: makes very fast pros progress on getting the French out 273 00:16:23,040 --> 00:16:25,800 Speaker 1: of Egypt. Napoleon is saying, if things don't get better 274 00:16:25,800 --> 00:16:29,480 Speaker 1: within a year, you can start negotiating. Cleverer starts negotiating 275 00:16:29,520 --> 00:16:33,400 Speaker 1: within four months and he's ready to to work out 276 00:16:33,440 --> 00:16:36,400 Speaker 1: a surrender, and he ends up forming the Convention of 277 00:16:36,440 --> 00:16:39,880 Speaker 1: all a Reache with the Ottomans. It basically it means 278 00:16:40,080 --> 00:16:44,440 Speaker 1: the Turks will pay France's way home. France will get 279 00:16:44,480 --> 00:16:47,800 Speaker 1: to keep all their arms, but they'll get out of Egypt. 280 00:16:47,800 --> 00:16:52,240 Speaker 1: They'll get out of Cairo. Unfortunately, the British won't honor 281 00:16:52,320 --> 00:16:54,960 Speaker 1: this agreement that the French have made with the Turks, 282 00:16:55,400 --> 00:16:58,760 Speaker 1: but too bad for the French. The Turks still plan 283 00:16:58,880 --> 00:17:02,240 Speaker 1: on claiming Cairo in ten days, so they're getting their 284 00:17:02,280 --> 00:17:04,320 Speaker 1: side of the bargain, but they don't think I mean 285 00:17:04,320 --> 00:17:06,600 Speaker 1: the French are getting there. The French are are between 286 00:17:06,600 --> 00:17:09,280 Speaker 1: a rock and a hard place, and they have to 287 00:17:09,359 --> 00:17:12,200 Speaker 1: keep fighting the Turks instead of working out this agreement 288 00:17:12,240 --> 00:17:14,520 Speaker 1: where the Turks pay for them to go home. They 289 00:17:14,560 --> 00:17:16,960 Speaker 1: just keep on fighting. It seems like it will never end. 290 00:17:17,680 --> 00:17:20,719 Speaker 1: It does end for Cleber. He is stabbed by a 291 00:17:20,760 --> 00:17:25,240 Speaker 1: fanatic and that's a major loss for the Savants because 292 00:17:25,880 --> 00:17:28,960 Speaker 1: most of the military hasn't ever been to gung ho 293 00:17:29,320 --> 00:17:32,399 Speaker 1: about the scientists and about why they're there in the 294 00:17:32,440 --> 00:17:36,000 Speaker 1: first place. This is very avatar Sarah, Well, I mean, 295 00:17:36,080 --> 00:17:40,640 Speaker 1: imagine they're going out on these dangerous missions to collect 296 00:17:40,800 --> 00:17:44,280 Speaker 1: bugs and to collect birds and stuff like that. The 297 00:17:44,359 --> 00:17:48,520 Speaker 1: soldiers think the scientists might be hoarding treasure if it's 298 00:17:48,560 --> 00:17:52,760 Speaker 1: not just stuffed animals in their packages. But the new 299 00:17:52,800 --> 00:17:57,600 Speaker 1: guy in charge really really hates the Savants, and it shows. 300 00:17:58,160 --> 00:18:02,840 Speaker 1: He is General Jacques Francois Ladmanu, who has converted to Islam, 301 00:18:03,000 --> 00:18:07,360 Speaker 1: changed his name, and married an Egyptian wife. But most importantly, 302 00:18:07,640 --> 00:18:11,520 Speaker 1: he's a colonialist who thinks France can hold Egypt, and 303 00:18:11,520 --> 00:18:14,720 Speaker 1: of course we know this is impossible. In the fall 304 00:18:14,760 --> 00:18:17,280 Speaker 1: of eighteen hundred, the French army hasn't gotten pay, the 305 00:18:17,320 --> 00:18:21,440 Speaker 1: Arabs are revolting, there are Turkish French skirmishes all the time, 306 00:18:21,480 --> 00:18:25,000 Speaker 1: and the British are secretly preparing a land assault, which 307 00:18:25,720 --> 00:18:27,760 Speaker 1: I mean, come on, that'll that'll be the ins not 308 00:18:27,840 --> 00:18:30,720 Speaker 1: going to happen. So by the time the Turks advanced 309 00:18:30,720 --> 00:18:33,800 Speaker 1: on Cairo, the French are forced to surrender because they're 310 00:18:33,840 --> 00:18:37,320 Speaker 1: being hit by plague again. Our guys are stuck in Cairo. 311 00:18:37,440 --> 00:18:40,200 Speaker 1: They've they've been rounded up from all over Egypt. When 312 00:18:40,359 --> 00:18:43,119 Speaker 1: it seems like Kleiber was actually going to get them home, 313 00:18:43,720 --> 00:18:46,480 Speaker 1: they've been stuck in Cairo. They don't have their nice 314 00:18:46,640 --> 00:18:51,480 Speaker 1: mam Luke harem room digs anymore, and they're just in limbo. 315 00:18:51,760 --> 00:18:55,720 Speaker 1: So it's amazing that amid this chaos they keep on 316 00:18:55,880 --> 00:18:59,280 Speaker 1: holding institute meetings. And the final institute meeting is on 317 00:18:59,359 --> 00:19:03,000 Speaker 1: March twenties, second eighteen o one and Si Lair talks 318 00:19:03,040 --> 00:19:07,640 Speaker 1: about crocodiles and this is an unfortunate episode um in 319 00:19:07,640 --> 00:19:11,439 Speaker 1: this history. He's just giving a lecture about crocodiles. But 320 00:19:11,720 --> 00:19:14,680 Speaker 1: the British get their hands on the report and they 321 00:19:14,720 --> 00:19:17,560 Speaker 1: start doing cartoons and stuff like he was trying to 322 00:19:17,640 --> 00:19:20,760 Speaker 1: train the crocodiles, and you can actually see one of 323 00:19:20,800 --> 00:19:24,320 Speaker 1: the cartoons he's getting bitten by it. So embarrassing for 324 00:19:24,320 --> 00:19:28,960 Speaker 1: the French. Finally, the scholars are ordered to Alexandria, and 325 00:19:29,640 --> 00:19:33,080 Speaker 1: they risk sickness, death, and war to go and rescue 326 00:19:33,119 --> 00:19:35,880 Speaker 1: their papers before a vacuum amount of Cairo, which made 327 00:19:35,880 --> 00:19:38,919 Speaker 1: me think of the bombardment of Baltimore. And by this 328 00:19:39,040 --> 00:19:42,119 Speaker 1: point the French soldiers are more dangerous to the savants 329 00:19:42,280 --> 00:19:45,760 Speaker 1: than the English. Yeah, they're they're trying to steal their stuff. 330 00:19:45,920 --> 00:19:49,199 Speaker 1: I mean, they're really blaming them by this point, for 331 00:19:50,040 --> 00:19:52,800 Speaker 1: they think they're the reason why they are in Egypt 332 00:19:52,960 --> 00:19:56,040 Speaker 1: and why everything is so terrible, and they're trying to 333 00:19:56,040 --> 00:19:59,680 Speaker 1: steal the treasure they think the Savants have. And finally 334 00:20:00,000 --> 00:20:05,400 Speaker 1: the scholars get into Alexandria, it's under siege, there's no food. Amazingly, 335 00:20:05,720 --> 00:20:09,159 Speaker 1: some are still working under these conditions. Um Sant Hilaire 336 00:20:09,200 --> 00:20:13,120 Speaker 1: actually is coming up with his proto Darwinian ideas at 337 00:20:13,119 --> 00:20:16,800 Speaker 1: this point because he's I guess thinking so broadly by 338 00:20:16,840 --> 00:20:20,680 Speaker 1: this point that he's able to come up with these ideas. 339 00:20:20,880 --> 00:20:24,919 Speaker 1: And at this point, as Sarah said, Menu becomes our Savonarola. 340 00:20:25,119 --> 00:20:28,200 Speaker 1: During their last month in Egypt, he toys with the scholars. 341 00:20:28,240 --> 00:20:31,199 Speaker 1: He tells them they can't leave, and then okay, they 342 00:20:31,240 --> 00:20:33,879 Speaker 1: can leave if they leave everything with him, all of 343 00:20:33,920 --> 00:20:38,160 Speaker 1: their research um their maps and maybe if they promise 344 00:20:38,240 --> 00:20:41,080 Speaker 1: they won't speak a single word of that mission when 345 00:20:41,080 --> 00:20:44,119 Speaker 1: they go back to France. All he really wants is 346 00:20:44,160 --> 00:20:46,680 Speaker 1: the Rosetta Stone, and he's taken it already, so these 347 00:20:46,680 --> 00:20:50,600 Speaker 1: are just psychological game. Keeps it in his tent or something. 348 00:20:50,720 --> 00:20:55,320 Speaker 1: So in July eight one, the Savants finally board a ship. 349 00:20:55,960 --> 00:20:58,920 Speaker 1: You're you're thinking, at last, we're going back to France. No, 350 00:20:59,240 --> 00:21:01,920 Speaker 1: we have our college enough. They wait on the ship 351 00:21:02,040 --> 00:21:06,680 Speaker 1: for one month until finally sant Hilaire and others rode 352 00:21:06,680 --> 00:21:10,760 Speaker 1: ashore to beg Menu, please let us go home. Four 353 00:21:10,840 --> 00:21:15,000 Speaker 1: days after that meeting, the French ship lifts anchor Star 354 00:21:15,280 --> 00:21:18,640 Speaker 1: starts to sail off, and then they get two cannon 355 00:21:18,720 --> 00:21:22,240 Speaker 1: shots from a nearby English vessel, and two cannon shots 356 00:21:22,280 --> 00:21:26,240 Speaker 1: are a warning, stop, don't go any further or we'll 357 00:21:26,240 --> 00:21:30,520 Speaker 1: sink you. Then, to make things even worse, they get 358 00:21:30,520 --> 00:21:34,880 Speaker 1: word from Menu that he will sink their ship. Think 359 00:21:34,960 --> 00:21:38,040 Speaker 1: the French boat. If they don't go, damned if you do, 360 00:21:38,200 --> 00:21:42,760 Speaker 1: damned exactly. So, Fourier actually rose to the British to 361 00:21:43,320 --> 00:21:47,240 Speaker 1: plead to let them leave, and eventually the British persuade 362 00:21:47,280 --> 00:21:51,399 Speaker 1: Menu to let his own countrymen doc in Alexandria. Again, 363 00:21:51,480 --> 00:21:56,080 Speaker 1: that's that's so magnanimous, thank you ridiculous. But August thirty one, 364 00:21:56,240 --> 00:21:59,280 Speaker 1: Menu capitulates the Brits, of course, want all of the 365 00:21:59,520 --> 00:22:02,800 Speaker 1: good boo d from the collection, but Manu offers them 366 00:22:02,880 --> 00:22:07,520 Speaker 1: the whole thing. Yeah, he says, take every note, every 367 00:22:07,520 --> 00:22:11,520 Speaker 1: stuffed bird, whatever, every artifact. Yeah, half it all. And 368 00:22:12,040 --> 00:22:15,600 Speaker 1: the English are surprised by how good this work actually 369 00:22:15,600 --> 00:22:19,000 Speaker 1: looks when they examine it, and they're thinking, well, this 370 00:22:19,080 --> 00:22:23,680 Speaker 1: is a nice win for us, and decide maybe, since 371 00:22:23,960 --> 00:22:27,800 Speaker 1: some of these frenchmen spent so much time assembling these collections, 372 00:22:28,440 --> 00:22:30,480 Speaker 1: we could bring some of them back to England and 373 00:22:30,520 --> 00:22:33,600 Speaker 1: they could help us interpret them and manage the collections. 374 00:22:33,960 --> 00:22:36,320 Speaker 1: The French want no part of this. After all, they've 375 00:22:36,320 --> 00:22:39,760 Speaker 1: been away from home for years. They're ready to go 376 00:22:39,840 --> 00:22:44,440 Speaker 1: back to France. So the scholars approached Menu and they're 377 00:22:44,480 --> 00:22:47,360 Speaker 1: pleading for their collections. Like, please try to work out 378 00:22:47,520 --> 00:22:50,240 Speaker 1: some sort of agreement with the British, he writes, the 379 00:22:50,280 --> 00:22:56,040 Speaker 1: British the most snarky letter imaginable. So so pretend I'm 380 00:22:56,040 --> 00:22:59,119 Speaker 1: a new here. I have just been informed that several 381 00:22:59,119 --> 00:23:03,800 Speaker 1: among our collection makers wish to follow their seeds, minerals, birds, butterflies, 382 00:23:03,960 --> 00:23:07,679 Speaker 1: or reptiles wherever you choose to ship their crates. I 383 00:23:07,720 --> 00:23:10,080 Speaker 1: do not know if they wish to have themselves stuffed 384 00:23:10,080 --> 00:23:11,840 Speaker 1: for the purpose, but I can assure you that if 385 00:23:11,840 --> 00:23:14,600 Speaker 1: the idea should appeal to them, I shall not prevent it. 386 00:23:15,119 --> 00:23:18,800 Speaker 1: Out That's pretty harsh coming from your own general. So 387 00:23:19,320 --> 00:23:22,880 Speaker 1: the scholars think that the British want not just not 388 00:23:22,920 --> 00:23:25,240 Speaker 1: just that they want their collections, they want to steal 389 00:23:25,240 --> 00:23:29,560 Speaker 1: their knowledge, their ideas. Three of the naturalists go and 390 00:23:29,760 --> 00:23:33,679 Speaker 1: lay down an ultimatum, and that's that. Look, this is 391 00:23:34,400 --> 00:23:37,520 Speaker 1: this is basic work. These are notes, and only we 392 00:23:37,680 --> 00:23:42,080 Speaker 1: can interpret our own work. It's unfinished without our translations, 393 00:23:42,160 --> 00:23:45,760 Speaker 1: without our interpretations, it's not going to mean anything to you. 394 00:23:46,040 --> 00:23:49,439 Speaker 1: With a follow up that we would rather destroy it 395 00:23:49,560 --> 00:23:52,359 Speaker 1: than see you have it. And the official book that 396 00:23:52,480 --> 00:23:57,000 Speaker 1: is eventually published recounts Saint Hilaire's speech rather than allow 397 00:23:57,119 --> 00:24:01,920 Speaker 1: this iniquitous despolation and vandalist him, we will destroy our property. 398 00:24:02,160 --> 00:24:05,000 Speaker 1: We will disperse it in the Libyan sands, or we 399 00:24:05,040 --> 00:24:08,000 Speaker 1: will throw it into the sea. Then we will protest 400 00:24:08,119 --> 00:24:11,040 Speaker 1: in Europe and tell by what violence we were reduced 401 00:24:11,080 --> 00:24:14,520 Speaker 1: to destroy so many treasures, and the British back down, 402 00:24:14,560 --> 00:24:17,000 Speaker 1: as would I if I had received such a miss 403 00:24:17,040 --> 00:24:20,120 Speaker 1: of So by the end of September they start boarding 404 00:24:20,160 --> 00:24:23,439 Speaker 1: ships again, only this time it works out there. Finally 405 00:24:23,480 --> 00:24:26,679 Speaker 1: home by the end of eighteen oh one. So what 406 00:24:26,880 --> 00:24:30,919 Speaker 1: awaits them in France? Obviously a lot of these a 407 00:24:30,960 --> 00:24:33,040 Speaker 1: lot of these guys who went over as boys have 408 00:24:33,200 --> 00:24:37,399 Speaker 1: grown up. You're coming back to a different scientific scene. 409 00:24:37,480 --> 00:24:41,480 Speaker 1: And Napoleon has actually done quite well for himself. He's 410 00:24:41,520 --> 00:24:44,520 Speaker 1: a consul now, and in February eighteen o two he 411 00:24:44,600 --> 00:24:49,040 Speaker 1: authorizes the publication of a book which will collect all 412 00:24:49,080 --> 00:24:52,760 Speaker 1: the knowledge from the expedition. It takes them a while, though, 413 00:24:52,840 --> 00:24:55,679 Speaker 1: to actually get the whole book out, so it's not 414 00:24:55,760 --> 00:24:59,199 Speaker 1: completed until eighteen eight So a lot of them are 415 00:24:59,240 --> 00:25:01,480 Speaker 1: dead by the time time it's finished. And if you'd 416 00:25:01,520 --> 00:25:03,920 Speaker 1: like to imagine you're one of the first to get 417 00:25:04,000 --> 00:25:07,600 Speaker 1: that book. Um, what would These lucky one thousand first 418 00:25:07,760 --> 00:25:13,479 Speaker 1: edition subscribers have received twenty three enormous serial books bound 419 00:25:13,600 --> 00:25:17,320 Speaker 1: in brown paper. They had linen pages forty three inches 420 00:25:17,400 --> 00:25:21,040 Speaker 1: tall and eight hundred and thirty seven engravings, for which 421 00:25:21,400 --> 00:25:25,240 Speaker 1: Conte invented a special press. Yeah, you could um. It 422 00:25:25,320 --> 00:25:29,800 Speaker 1: took so much work to engrave the the cloudless Egyptian 423 00:25:29,880 --> 00:25:32,800 Speaker 1: skies that he invented a press where you could just 424 00:25:32,840 --> 00:25:35,520 Speaker 1: sub it in behind each picture well, and the bonus 425 00:25:35,640 --> 00:25:38,800 Speaker 1: was an Egyptian themed case to keep them in. That's 426 00:25:38,800 --> 00:25:42,000 Speaker 1: some marketing. I would definitely spring for the case. So 427 00:25:42,160 --> 00:25:44,399 Speaker 1: the maths were supposed to be printed first, just to 428 00:25:44,400 --> 00:25:47,600 Speaker 1: give people a bit of an orientation about Egypt, but 429 00:25:48,240 --> 00:25:51,399 Speaker 1: because they were considered state secrets, they came out last, 430 00:25:51,440 --> 00:25:54,399 Speaker 1: by which point they were pretty outdated. Pictures of the 431 00:25:54,400 --> 00:25:58,080 Speaker 1: flora and fauna are said to rival Audubon, and of 432 00:25:58,119 --> 00:26:03,440 Speaker 1: course the archaeological site, the drawings of of all these temples, 433 00:26:03,480 --> 00:26:08,480 Speaker 1: and to start this craze for Egyptian dress, Egyptian architecture 434 00:26:08,880 --> 00:26:12,840 Speaker 1: and artifact collecting. This is the very beginning of the 435 00:26:12,920 --> 00:26:16,320 Speaker 1: Rape of Egypt. But it's difficult, of course to keep 436 00:26:16,320 --> 00:26:19,679 Speaker 1: publishing after the restoration of the monarchy. They have to 437 00:26:19,800 --> 00:26:22,960 Speaker 1: scrub out Napoleon completely from these records, which you can't 438 00:26:23,000 --> 00:26:26,439 Speaker 1: do completely exactly because it was Napoleon's thing. So we 439 00:26:26,520 --> 00:26:29,679 Speaker 1: have a good quote from him. If I had not 440 00:26:29,800 --> 00:26:32,080 Speaker 1: become Commander in chief of the Army, I would have 441 00:26:32,160 --> 00:26:35,719 Speaker 1: launched myself into the study of the exact sciences, and 442 00:26:35,760 --> 00:26:39,280 Speaker 1: since I have always had success in my great undertakings, 443 00:26:39,320 --> 00:26:43,200 Speaker 1: I would have become a highly distinguished scientist. So those 444 00:26:43,200 --> 00:26:46,720 Speaker 1: are pretty tall claims. Good opinion of himself. But still 445 00:26:46,840 --> 00:26:50,200 Speaker 1: there's no denying that his decision to bring a troop 446 00:26:50,240 --> 00:26:54,719 Speaker 1: of savants to Egypt dramatically affected nineteenth century science as 447 00:26:54,760 --> 00:26:58,840 Speaker 1: well as nineteenth century art and culture. And I mentioned 448 00:26:58,840 --> 00:27:01,280 Speaker 1: this book in the last episode, but I relied pretty 449 00:27:01,280 --> 00:27:05,560 Speaker 1: heavily on Nina Burley's mirage for information about just the 450 00:27:05,600 --> 00:27:09,400 Speaker 1: savant's daily lives and the crocodile, you know, stuff like that. 451 00:27:09,880 --> 00:27:12,440 Speaker 1: And one of her points she made that I really 452 00:27:12,440 --> 00:27:15,439 Speaker 1: liked a lot was that the scientists came of age 453 00:27:15,560 --> 00:27:18,359 Speaker 1: during the Age of Reason, but they mature during the 454 00:27:18,480 --> 00:27:22,320 Speaker 1: Romantic era, and the book that they ultimately produced really 455 00:27:22,320 --> 00:27:25,960 Speaker 1: shows signs of both. It's got that those cold hard 456 00:27:26,040 --> 00:27:31,840 Speaker 1: observations and measurements and calculations combined with adventure and danger 457 00:27:32,000 --> 00:27:34,440 Speaker 1: and art and a little bit of the Gothic too. 458 00:27:35,200 --> 00:27:37,919 Speaker 1: So that's the final word from Nina Burley. But of 459 00:27:37,960 --> 00:27:41,160 Speaker 1: course we can't give you every tiny little detail we'd 460 00:27:41,200 --> 00:27:44,600 Speaker 1: like from the podcast so if you'd like to search 461 00:27:44,680 --> 00:27:47,600 Speaker 1: for how the Rosetta Stone works on our home page 462 00:27:47,600 --> 00:27:50,400 Speaker 1: at ww dot house stuff works dot com, you can 463 00:27:51,000 --> 00:27:54,240 Speaker 1: learn a little bit more about that. And that brings 464 00:27:54,359 --> 00:28:00,280 Speaker 1: us to listen to mail. So, since the t went 465 00:28:00,359 --> 00:28:03,880 Speaker 1: to Egypt because they wanted to mess up the British 466 00:28:03,960 --> 00:28:06,199 Speaker 1: route to India, we thought that we would do a 467 00:28:06,240 --> 00:28:10,640 Speaker 1: little Indian related listener mail. And this is from Stephen 468 00:28:10,720 --> 00:28:14,000 Speaker 1: and it's in regards to the taj Mahal episode. He said, 469 00:28:14,240 --> 00:28:16,480 Speaker 1: this morning, I was listening to your podcast about the 470 00:28:16,480 --> 00:28:19,520 Speaker 1: taj Mahal and you mentioned the legend of an intended 471 00:28:19,680 --> 00:28:23,280 Speaker 1: black taj Mall. According to the documentary, and according to 472 00:28:23,320 --> 00:28:26,760 Speaker 1: an article, scholars now believe that the black taj actually 473 00:28:26,800 --> 00:28:30,760 Speaker 1: refers to an octagonal pool that once existed in ruins 474 00:28:30,760 --> 00:28:34,399 Speaker 1: of black marble structures known as the matab Ba or 475 00:28:34,600 --> 00:28:38,200 Speaker 1: moonlight garden. This pool, when filled with water, would have 476 00:28:38,240 --> 00:28:41,280 Speaker 1: reflected the taj Mall, and that is what is believed 477 00:28:41,320 --> 00:28:44,800 Speaker 1: to be the Black taj Mamal. So pretty cool And 478 00:28:44,840 --> 00:28:48,920 Speaker 1: if you have any additions you'd like to tell the 479 00:28:49,040 --> 00:28:52,640 Speaker 1: listeners about our podcasts, you can email us at History 480 00:28:52,680 --> 00:28:56,280 Speaker 1: Podcast at how stuff works dot com. We're also on 481 00:28:56,280 --> 00:28:58,840 Speaker 1: Twitter if you'd like to follow us at Miston History, 482 00:28:58,920 --> 00:29:02,080 Speaker 1: and we have a face book fan page and the 483 00:29:02,160 --> 00:29:05,200 Speaker 1: article I'd mentioned before, how the Rosetta Stone Works, can 484 00:29:05,240 --> 00:29:09,000 Speaker 1: be found on our homepage at www dot how stuff 485 00:29:09,000 --> 00:29:12,960 Speaker 1: works dot com. For more on this and thousands of 486 00:29:13,000 --> 00:29:15,760 Speaker 1: other topics, visit how stuff works dot com and be 487 00:29:15,840 --> 00:29:17,720 Speaker 1: sure to check out the stuff you missed in History 488 00:29:17,720 --> 00:29:20,040 Speaker 1: Class blog on the how stuff works dot com home 489 00:29:20,080 --> 00:29:34,080 Speaker 1: page