Short passages for reading, drawn from history, legend, poetry and fiction.
© Leon Hawley, Geograph. Licence: CC-BY-SA 3.0.
Chad, the seventh-century Bishop of Mercia, seemed to be making a lot of music for one man.
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© shakko, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC-BY-SA 3.0.
Nicodemus did not allow intellectual doubts to get in the way of what he knew in his heart.
© Bikashrd, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0.
The Princely State of Mysore (today in Karnataka) was hailed as an example of good governance to all the world.
By J. M. W. Turner (1775-1851), via the National Gallery and Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.
A duke with a passion for the art of enchantment is stranded by his enemies on a deserted island.
Held at the Royal College of Music. Via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.
The most brilliant violinist of his generation, whose finely-crafted compositions showed off bravura and spoke tenderness.
By Annibale Gatti (1828-1909), via the Wellcome Trust and Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC-BY-SA 4.0.
John Milton (of ‘Paradise Lost’ fame) urged Parliament not to fall into bad old habits of censorship, whatever their fears may be.