All articles in History
26th July, 2019 in History, Natural World, Society & Culture
Pliny the Younger’s lawn
Although it is often assumed that lawns came into being in medieval times, their origins are actually far earlier, although whether the ‘flowery medes’ apparently favoured by the Persians and Mughals really constituted a grass lawn is most doubtful. What is certain is that the fi…
5th July, 2019 in History, Local & Family History, Society & Culture
History matters in Ireland
At present Ireland is in the middle of what has been called the decade of centenaries. This relates to the period 1913-23 and includes anniversaries of the First World War, the 1916 Dublin Rising, the Anglo-Irish War, the founding of Northern Ireland and the Irish Free State, and…
17th May, 2019 in Aviation, History, Trivia & Gift
Ten things you might not know about the Apollo Missions
It has been over 50 years since the space race and NASA’s sprint for the moon with the Apollo Missions. Here author Norman Ferguson reveals ten facts you may not know about this giant leap for mankind… 1. The first astronauts to fly in a Saturn V went to the Moon Apollo 8 was i…
18th April, 2019 in Biography & Memoir, History
Henry VII in seven facts
Overshadowed by his son and granddaughter, Henry VIII and Elizabeth I, Henry VII is often an afterthought of Tudor history, and yet without him one of the most famous dynasties in British history would never have existed. Here are seven things you might not know about the first T…
25th March, 2019 in History, Women in History
When Victoria met Sarah
In April 1897, Queen Victoria met renowned actress Sarah Bernhardt while she was holidaying in France. But just what did the queen think of her? After six weeks of such fairly limited excitement, members of the Royal Household were excited to hear that the legendary Bernhardt had…
27th February, 2019 in History, Society & Culture
Five abolitionists you should know
The slave trade has existed since almost the dawn of mankind but its only in the last millennia that documentation has come to light showing that other voices in different time periods spoke out against the enslaving and trading of human beings. William Wilberforce is an obvious…
13th February, 2019 in History, Society & Culture
From martyrdom to capitalism: A timeline of Valentine’s Day
As soon as Christmas is over (or sometimes even before!) our shops begin bursting with heart-shaped chocolates, red roses and Valentine’s Day cards with poems sweet enough to cause a cavity. But why is February 14 associated with romantic love, and how did Valentine’s Day as we k…
25th January, 2019 in Biography & Memoir, History
Lieutenant-General John Nicholson: Hero or villain?
“You may rely upon this – that if ever there is a desperate deed to be done in India, John Nicholson is the man to do it.” – Herbert Edwardes to Viceroy Lord Canning, 1857 “Let us never forget the intrepid Nicholson.” – Benjamin Disraeli, 1857 “Nicholson was an army in himse…
21st January, 2019 in History, Society & Culture
Five facts about London’s Victorian slums
The Victorian period was a miserable time to be poor. Assistance was only awarded to people who could earn a living, however meagre that living might be. Those who would not or could not work were treated as an ‘underclass’ whose impoverished state was akin to a criminal offence….
10th January, 2019 in History, Society & Culture
Welfare and the workhouse
Most people think of publicly-funded ‘welfare’ as a relatively modern invention – often linked to the social reforms in Britain after the Second World War. These included the new National Health Service, financial benefits for those unable to work, and a massive programme of coun…
7th January, 2019 in History, Women in History
Ask the author: Conor Byrne on Katherine Howard
Henry VIII’s fifth and youngest queen, Katherine Howard, has long been the victim of assumption. While the guilt of her predecessor and cousin, Anne Boleyn, continues to be debated, Katherine has been labelled as a silly girl who should have known better. Unsatisfied with this su…
12th December, 2018 in History, Society & Culture, Women in History
The 1918 General Election
The 1918 United Kingdom general election was called immediately after the Armistice with Germany which ended the First World War, and was held on Saturday 14 December 1918. Not only was it the first general election to include all eligible voters of the U…