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IN THIS ISSUE
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* Special Announcement

* Pensacola, Florida

* An Ancient Murder Mystery

* What's in a Name, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk

* Historical Quote

* What's Happening at eHistory.com

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SPECIAL CHAT ANNOUNCEMENT
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Mark your calendars! On November 29 author Eric Wittenberg will host a chat on Civil War Cavalry. Chat with the author of Gettysburg's Forgotten Cavalry Actions and other books.

This special Chat session will be held from 8:00 PM to 9:00 PM CST on Thursday November 29.

http://www.ehistory.com/chat/index.cfm

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PENSACOLA, FLORIDA
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Pensacola, Florida, is one of the oldest established cities in North America, and since its establishment, five different nations or countries have flown their flags over the city. Pensacola was permanently established in 1698 by the Spanish - the first flag - because of Pensacola's great harbor and to prevent the French, who had explored much of the Gulf Coast west of Pensacola, from claiming the territory. In 1719, the French captured Pensacola - the second flag - but only held the town for three years before returning it to Spain by treaty.

Spain maintained the strategic port (ships stationed at Pensacola could easily control much of the Gulf Coast) until 1763 when Great Britain - the third flag - assumed control of Florida. Florida and Pensacola remained in British hands throughout the American Revolution, and is often referred to as "The 14th Colony." Most of the population of British Florida lived in Pensacola, but revolutionaries in the original thirteen colonies were unable to persuade them to join the Revolution. Weakened by the Revolution and other wars, Great Britain was forced to return Pensacola, and the rest of Florida, to the Spanish in 1781.

The Second Spanish period lasted until 1821, when the United States took Florida - the fourth flag - the last remaining territory east of the Mississippi River. General Andrew Jackson became Florida's first governor and established Pensacola as its capital.

Florida remained a territory until 1845 when it became a state, but sixteen short years later, it left the Union and joined the Confederacy - the fifth flag. The war could have easily started at Pensacola, but tempers remained calm and the war began at Charleston, South Carolina, instead. In 1862, the Confederates abandoned Pensacola to the Union, and it remained in Federal hands for the rest of the war and until the present time.

Five flags - Spanish, French, British, American, and Confederate - have flown their colors over Pensacola, and the influence of all can still be seen in the city today.

http://www.ehistory.com/local/gulfcoast/index.cfm

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AN ANCIENT MURDER MYSTERY
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The victim was a male between 17 and 19 years of age. There was a dark colored lesion on his left cheek suggesting trauma. A subsequent X-ray analysis revealed a deadly blow to the back of the skull had dislodged a bone fragment. Further tests suggested that he might have been poisoned. But this wasn't a routine murder. It was an assasination, for the victim was the most powerful ruler in the world. Surely the guilty party or parties would be discovered quickly and brought to justice.

But three thousand years later the mystery continues.

After discovering King Tutankhamun's tomb in 1922 Howard Carter remarked that "We are getting to know the last detail of what he had, but of what he was and what he did we are still sadly to seek." More than three quarters of a century later we are still seeking the answers. The apparent wound on King Tut's left cheek was discovered when the mummy was first unwrapped in 1925. The X-rays of the skull were discovered decades later by the University of Liverpool. More recent X-rays and analysis suggest that the injury was in a "protected location" on the back of the skull making accidental injury much less likely.

Even though there are no final answers to this mystery there are plenty of suspects. King Tut's wife Ankhespaton married his successor and former vizier, Aye. The wounds suggest that the king may have been murdered in his sleep. Only someone extremely close to the king would have that kind of access. But the queen had written a desperate letter to the king of Syria after Tut's death. She asked if she could marry one of his sons and make him king of Egypt. She wrote that it would be "revolting" to marry one of her own subjects.

Aye himself would have had enormous power as the primary advisor to the young king. Perhaps King Tut in his late teens was beginning to take more control over the kingdom threatening Aye's power base.

Another popular suspect is Horernhab one of King Tutankhamun's top Generals. Horernhab succeeded Aye after Aye's short four-year rule. When he became Pharaoh he attempted to wipe out Tutankhamun's name from history. He had Tutankhamun's name removed or even had his own name reinscribed over monuments belong to Tut. He also had King Tutankhamun's name removed from the lists of kings. These acts suggest an extreme hatred for Tutankhamun. Was it a hatred that had led to King Tut's death or possibly one borne out of the guilt for that death? The jury is still out.

http://www.ehistory.com/ancient/egypt/rulers/tutankhamun.cfm

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WHAT'S IN A NAME - MUSTAFA KEMAL ATATÜRK
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The founder of modern Turkey, Atatürk, was born in Salonika (now the Greek city of Thessaloniki) in the Ottoman Empire in 1881 with the given name Mustafa. During his time at a military secondary school he adopted the name Kemal which means "The Perfect One". Some say it was because of his exceptional mathematically abilities or because it was a nickname given to him by his mathematics teacher. Other say he adopted the name after the radical nineteenth century poet Namik Kemal.

During World War I he led three Ottoman divisions in the defense of the Dardanelles and he was instrumental in the Ottoman defeat and expulsion of the Allied Forces. After the war, from the years 1919 and 1923, Mustafa Kemal led a national uprising (the Turkish War of Independence) against the last Ottoman sultan and the Greeks which laid the foundation of the new Turkish State. In 1923 he became the first president of the Republic of Turkey.

He spent the next decade pushing reforms to modernize the country. One of the last reforms centered on family names. In 1934 it was decreed by the General National Assembly (of which he was president) that every citizen must choose surnames. For centuries many people in Turkey were recognized by their given names because the unit of community was based on small villages and clans; the uniqueness of given names minimized the need for last names. Only one name was not allowed to be chosen and that was Atatürk. Mustafa Kemal selected the name Atatürk for his surname; Atatürk means, "Father of the Turks" or "Father of the Turkish Nation".

Atatürk died in 1938 and his presence is still felt across Turkey today.

If you're interested in more information on Turkey, the editor recommends the recently published book Crescent & Star: Turkey Between Two Worlds by Stephen Kinzer (New York, 2001).

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HISTORICAL QUOTE
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"Every successful revolt is termed a revolution, and every unsuccesful one a rebellion."
Joseph Priestly 1791

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WHAT'S HAPPENING AT EHISTORY.COM
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Thanks to this weeks contributor(s):
Thomas Long
Preston Chesser

Larry Gormley, Editor
historyexplorer@ehistory.com

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