The Copybook

Short passages for reading, drawn from history, legend, poetry and fiction.

1135

© Portable Antiquities Scheme, via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC-BY-SA 2.0.

The Golden Age of Carausius

A Roman commander facing court martial took refuge in politics, and for ten years London was an imperial capital.

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1136

Walters Museum, via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.

Heracles and the Girdle of Hippolyte Clay Lane

A princess covets the belt of a warrior-queen, so Heracles is despatched to get it for her.

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1137

© Darren Rosson, Geograph. Licence: CC-BY-SA 2.0.

Bede and the Paschal Controversy Clay Lane

The earliest Christians longed to celebrate the resurrection together at Passover, but that was not as easy as it sounds.

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1138

© Rob Farrow, Geograph. Licence: CC-BY-SA 3.0.

Sense and Sensitivity Richard Whately

Jane Austen wrote as a Christian, but all the better for doing so unobtrusively.

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1139

From Kimbell Art Museum (Fort Worth, TX), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.

Education of the Heart Jane Austen

For Jane Austen, the best education a father can give to his child is to befriend her.

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1140

© Jonathan Cardy, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC-BY-SA 3.0.

The Blessing of Disguise Sir Walter Scott

A mysterious knight and an equally mysterious outlaw agree to preserve one another’s incognito.

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