Short passages for reading, drawn from history, legend, poetry and fiction.
© John Sutton, Geograph. Licence: CC BY-SA 2.0.
When Parliament overthrew the capricious tyranny of Charles I, it discovered an uncomfortable truth about power.
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© UtDicitur, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC-BY-SA 4.0.
Edmund Burke pleaded with Parliament to emerge from behind closed doors and reconnect with the British public.
© Jean Housen, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA 3.0.
The British liberated the Ionian islands from Napoleon, then gave them fifty happy years and the game of cricket.
Via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.
Scottish King David I hoped to exploit the unpopularity of the Normans by trading on his own English heritage.
From the Imperial War Museums, via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.
A civilian ferry captain was court-martialled by the Germans for thumbing his nose at their U-Boats.
© Geni, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0.
To prove that steam power was the future of railways, George Stephenson held a truly historic competition.