types of history buff generalisations*

ambereliza:

nicolauda:

black-brunswickers:

nancywake:

world war 2:
-thinks they’re a lot tougher than they actually are
-tend to be really niche about one very, very specific aspect
-really sarcastic sense of humour
-acts like the war’s still on
-very bitter about the 2001 pearl harbor movie
-wakes up in a cold sweat to boogie woogie bugle boy & the in the mood intro
-their fashion taste is either impeccable or an atrocity to god there is no in-between

world war 1:
-weird and quiet
-drinks cheap booze even if they can have/afford better
-hoarders
-would sell soul & firstborn for a pickelhaube
-knows lots of really obscure facts
-underlying & unexplainable 19th century german history fetish
-copes with problems by turning them into memes & shitty jokes
-bad puns galore

classics:
-come off really sensible & serious but h2g has the most perverted sense of humour out of everyone
-probably hiding some dark shit
-either really enthusiastic about homoeroticism or ignores it completely
-really defensive about their favourite society/period
-a lot of tension between the roman buffs & the greek ones???
-latin’s not dead, it just smells funny

cold war/vietnam war:
-probably either a communist or has a hard-on for JFK
-world war 2 buff’s edgy sibling
-usually really into guns or at least knows a fuckload about them. may also be really into guns but know jack shit about them, too
-gets into a lot of internet fights
-so many conspiracy theories
-their jokes make literally no sense to anyone else
-has a lot to say about the 2k16 presidential race
-really political in general tbh
-will wear military surplus uniforms as streetwear
-cool taste in sunglasses tho

medieval europe:
-goes ham on fantasy or drags it within an inch of its life
-gets asked about king henry viii way too much
-warped & morbid sense of humour
-cheerfully cynical about everything
-can slice you in half with their writing
-eternal academic 1v1 in the pit w/ each other
-holds personal grudges against someone who died like 900 years ago
-but also will die in the gutter for someone who died like 900 years ago
-complains about rain & cold weather but actually doesn’t mind it

*I do not mean any offence by these, and please feel free to add/specify/correct/etc! I’ve obviously only covered a small range of eras because these are the ones I have read & interacted the most with. Also, these are simply generalisations based on what I’ve personally seen & weren’t written to vague abt anybody. Please add if you think of anything else!

You forgot some!!

Napoleonic:
▪rude af but only because everyone keeps spouting the same 3 myths about him, also hilarious when they want to be
▪super creative ones that makes beautiful fan art or absolute meme trash
▪talk about Napoleon and his crew as if they all knew him personally
▪if you compare their interest to Hitler you will get dragged to Hell and back
▪usually older students/adults
▪many have a military fashion obsession too. Bring back pants de la gloire
▪often European, not always
▪loves to fight

AmRev/American history:
▪never European
▪either PhD students or meme kings and ship monarchs
▪everyone is gay
▪Hamilton obsession or completely ignores it, everyone in the fandom has an opinion on it whichever side they are on
▪touchy about the slave trade/Constitution and their effects in the modern day
▪the lame ones are patriots, the cool ones just love their history

French Rev:
▪either 12 year old communists or educated adults that know what they’re talking about
▪usually speak French
▪always take their hat off when the Terror is mentioned
▪no hon Enjolras lived in a different time
▪never right wing

Enlightenment and Romantic era:
▪#aesthetic
▪interested in literature usually
▪usually obsessed with their own historic faves and know everything on two or three people in the era
▪period drama is a hot topic
▪some are monarchists

*what she said!! This is just a bit of fun and only what I’ve observed!!

Russian Revs
-feels sorry for trotsky
-probably got into it bc of anastasia the film
-’have you seen young hot stalin?’
-loves trains
-not a monarchist but loves the romanov #aesthetic
-knows all the words to ra ra rasputin
-knows one word in cyrillic that word is ‘october’
-bolshevik mean girls memes
-”communism is a great idea on paper”

modern political british history:

– either a massive tory, a fight-to-the-death old labour supporter or just really loves satire
– would die for spitting image
– Very Big opinion on thatcher and blair
– SUPERMAC!
– knows more about john profumo’s private life than they would like to
– scared of peter mandleson

golden age of piracy

 – probably a communist/socialist of some flavor

 – likely got into it because of either PotC or Assassin’s Creed

 – way too fond of Marcus Rediker

 – has a favorite pirate they will defend to the death. this “pirate” is probably William Kidd. Poor bastard.

 – knows way too much about Blackbeard. no, seriously, way too much

 – either loves or hates the British Navy. or loves to hate the British Navy. there is no in-between

 – odd fondness for wigs