The Copybook

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

865

© Jza84, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA 2.0.

The Day London Bridge Fell Down Snorro Sturluson

In 1014, Norwegian prince Olaf Haraldsson sailed to the aid of King Ethelred the Unready in his struggle with the Danes.

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866

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

The Conversion of Rogaland Snorro Sturluson

Zealous convert Olaf Tryggvason went from England to Norway to spread the Gospel, but it seemed the Lord did not like Olaf’s way of doing it.

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867

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

Mr and Mrs Raffles Abdullah Abdul Kadir

Abdullah Abdul Kadir gives us his first-hand impressions of the Founder of Singapore and of his first wife, Olivia.

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868

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

Raffles and the Reprieve of Malacca William Cross

The busy trading hub of Malacca was to be consigned to history, until Stamford Raffles saw that history was one of its assets.

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869

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

Image of Joy Clay Lane

In 1274, the Pope and the Patriarch of Constantinople signed a historic reunion, but there were some formidable dissenters.

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870

Morgan Library & Museum, via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.

The Wooing of Olaf Tryggvason Snorro Sturluson

An aristocratic widow advertises for a husband, and among the line-up of natty and noble suitors is a rough-and-ready Olaf Tryggvason.

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