The Copybook

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

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1579

© Michael Garlick, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC-BY-SA 4.0.

The Ladder with Twenty-Four Rungs by Clay Lane

The Duke of Argyll was pleasantly surprised to find one of his gardeners reading a learned book of mathematics - in Latin.

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1580

© Klearchos Kapoutsis, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC-BY-SA 2.0.

St Wilfrid and the Sheriff’s Wife by Clay Lane

St Wilfrid brings healing to the wife of his own gaoler.

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1581

© Derek Harper, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC-BY-SA 4.0.

The Science of Salix by Clay Lane

Edward Stone wondered if the willow tree might have more in common with the Peruvian cinchona tree than just its damp habitat.

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1582

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

St Wilfrid and the Angel of Light by Clay Lane

St Wilfrid finds comfort during his tussle with the King of Northumbria

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1583

© Tony Hisgett, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC-BY-SA 2.0.

Cuthbert and the Otters by Clay Lane

An inquisitive monk spied on a guest’s night-time walks.

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1584

Mattana, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.

How Benedict Biscop brought Byzantium to Britain by St Bede of Jarrow

The chapel of Bede’s monastery in Sunderland was full of the colours and sounds of the far-off Mediterranean world.

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Clay Lane The Copybook
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© Nicholas Armitage / Clay Lane, 2025

May 29 NS

May 16 OS

The Last Commandment : Anglo-Saxon poet Cynewulf imagines the farewell between Jesus and his Apostles, forty days after his resurrection.
The Fall of Constantinople : Hospitality and sympathy, but no help - the Byzantine Emperor learns a bitter lesson about western diplomacy.
The Royal Oak : In 1680, Samuel Pepys sat down with Charles II to record how, many years before, a bold double-bluff saved the King from Cromwell’s men.
Lost and Found : What would you in these difficult situations?
They Might Not Need Me : Read these lines of verse out aloud.
The Turn : Ben Jonson tells us how we should measure a life well lived.
Music Video : Julius Benedict, Piano Concerto in E flat: II. Andante,
The Character of George Washington : Thomas Jefferson recalls the virtues (and a few faults) of the first US President.
Amen to That : John Bright declared it was time stop fighting wars around the world for ‘British interests’.
Arena : Use these nouns in sentences of at least ten words in length.
Q & A :
Deep Harmony : In the midst of the US Civil War, a simple melody briefly brought the warring factions together.
Thirty Minutes : Describe half an hour in one of these places.
And is there Care in Heaven? : Sir Guyon lies in an enchanted swoon, but he is not without help.
Pirate : For each of these words, suggest others that seem to go with it, and use them to bring a scene to life.
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