The Copybook

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

1033

© David Dixon, Geograph. Licence: CC-BY-SA 2.0.

Spinning Jenny Clay Lane

James Hargreaves’s historic invention was not without its critics when it first appeared.

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1034

© Helmut Zozmann. Licence: CC BY-SA 2.0.

Asylum Christi Samuel Smiles

Samuel Smiles explains how Tudor England was transformed from sleepy backwater to hive of industry.

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1035

By Scipione Pulzone (1544–1598), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.

The Ridolfi Plot Clay Lane

The Pope and the King of Spain decide that the time has come to rid England of her troublesome Queen, Elizabeth I.

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1036

From the Chemical Heritage Foundation, via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.

Not for Sale Sir Humphry Davy

Sir Humphry Davy pleads with Britain’s scientists not to be bought by Napoleon’s gold.

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1037

Photo by Captain Tanner, from the Imperial War Museums via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.

‘Please Respect our Traditions’ Clay Lane

Archbishop Damaskinos of Athens took his wartime protest straight to the top.

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1038

© Hertzsprung, via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA 3.0.

The Absent Minded Conquerors Sir John Seeley

Sir John Seeley urged us to cherish our close ties to India and other nations beyond Europe.

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