I actually envy you being a Historian. Unfortunately my interest in History came later in life - actually from doing Biblical Studies. And as well an interest in maps and demographics.
Then the interest in politics increased so did my interest in History and all the above. Even when I see a great movie like “A Beautful Mind” I just have to research and discover all abou the History of the person. And likewise anything to do with current conflicts....important to know where these places are and the History.
At any rate it always seems like I’m catching up Historically - but maps are so key to understanding world events.
Absolutely agree :-)
Maps - and geography in general - are absolutely crucial in order to understand the course of history.
Of course, not just physical geography, but economic, transportational and strategic geography as well.
Had Napoleon and Hitler known better, they would have realized that it is de facto impossible to conquer Russia by invasion.
Or why has Ukraine often been contested? Geography has the answer: it has the best soil in Europe, the “chernozem”, together with climatic conditions to assure abundant crops.
However, my own focus during my studies was on the Middle Ages in Central Europe (or the Christian Era, as some German historians have begun to call the Middle Ages - a more appropriate moniker).
Well, had I known better, I might have liked to become a hedge funds manager instead of a professor :-D
But it all came to grief when I had trouble finding a job after my PhD, and a medical examination turned out that I am a high-functioning autistic person (yes, I know it is sometimes over-diagnosed these days, but in many cases, it really exists).
P.S.: A Beautiful Mind was a film which I liked very much, too, though avowedly I’m not very knowledgeable about movies in general...it’s just so that, in dramas, I don’t “get” many of the interactions between the characters.
At least not those which are nonverbal - but that is the old problem with autism :-)