Short passages for reading, drawn from history, legend, poetry and fiction.
© Lucas Migliorelli, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA UK 3.0.
Olaf hears that the ruler of Norway has lost the support of his noblemen, and sails away from England to claim his crown.
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© Dr Raju Kasambe, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA 3.0.
A mouse’s delight at seeing his old enemy caught in a trap proves short-lived.
From the British Library, via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.
Viking raider Olaf Tryggvason, newly converted to Christianity, threw his weight behind a Danish invasion of England.
© Tom Corser, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA UK 2.0.
Viking raider Olaf Tryggvason, taking a break on the Isles of Scilly, cannot resist the temptation to hear his fortune told.
By Nathaniel Dance-Holland (1735-1811), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.
Captain Cook’s friend and ship’s surgeon David Samwell gives us his impressions of the great explorer.
By Illarion Pryanishnikov, via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.
With Christianity faltering in the British Isles, Pope Gregory took the first definite steps towards restoring its vigour.