On the passport thing, I was curious about how true it was. Turns out there has been fluctuating amounts of freedom of movement over the course of human history

On the passport thing, I was curious about how true it was. Turns out there has been fluctuating amounts of freedom of movement over the course of human history. Equivalents to passports have existed for a long time, so Zweigs nostalgic comments here only really generalise to a short period of European history. In fact, there are plenty of stories about the exploits of Scientific adventurers trying to get visas for international travel during the French revolution and Napoleonic wars period. English naturalist Joseph Banks was well known for his granting of passports to scientists in continental europe so they could travel through international waters and advance science. r/Askhistorians is a great place to look for more information. Here is a pretty good threat related to the topic: https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/dq9940/why_do_passports_come_with_a_message_asking_the/ https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/dq9940/why_d...