The baby who provoked a revolution
The birth of a male heir to James II of England made possible a permanent Catholic dynasty. Several Protestants echoed...
24/06/2017
HISTORY
Red Indians and how to tame them
The Elizabethans’ colonial voyages brought them into contact with a people very different level of civilisation from their own—the ‘Indians’...
16/01/2017
Mormons in search of Promised Land, 1846-69
The Mormons have been described as the most systematic, organised, disciplined and successful pioneers in American history. For over 20...
11/12/2016
‘Alien’ citizens in the Medieval England
Thousands of foreigners poured into England in the Middle Ages. Similar like today, they have been attracted to England by...
25/08/2016
Napoleon Bonaparte’s relatives after he lost power in France
What happened to Napoleon Bonaparte‘s relatives after he lost power in France? They could not stay in France but, perhaps...
25/08/2016
When and where was the trebuchet invented?
Like many premodern technologies, it is not known when or where the first trebuchet appeared. Unlike ancient artillery, which relied...
19/07/2016
Mazzini’s ‘Young Italy’
The situation facing the forces of liberalism and nationalism in Italy in 1830 was apparently more hopeless than that facing...
30/06/2016
Belgian independence
The union of Holland and Belgium under the Dutch king, William I, in 1815 had been one of the less...
14/04/2016
The Mfecane 1816-28
The rise of the Zulu empire under its warlike king Shaka (r.1816 -28) sent shock waves throughout southern Africa, triggering...
05/04/2016
Place to visit: Blenheim Palace
Blenheim Palace: a magnificent rival to Versailles. Blenheim is only a few miles out of Oxford at the edge of...
22/02/2016