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Passages for reading. Read them out aloud. Paraphrase or précis them. Discuss them with friends. Does anything surprise or impress you? How does the author work your feelings? Would you use his words? How would you direct the scene in a movie — and who would your stars be?

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On This Day

Sunday September 8 ns August 26 os

For Church feasts falling on September 8 in the New Style calendar, see The Feast of Nativity of the Virgin Mary and Finding of the Kursk icon.

August 26, 1395 os

Meeting of the ‘Vladimir’ Icon (1)

The Theotokos of Vladimir

It is one of the world’s most recognisable works of art, and a symbol of God’s blessing on all Christian Rus’.

September 8, 1380

The Battle of Kulikovo (1)

Dmitri of the Don

Grand Duke Dmitri of Moscow loosened the grip of the Tartar Horde on the people of Russia, but treachery robbed him of triumph.

by Lucy Cazalet 1870-1956

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International Relations

A Credit to His Country

The diplomat’s task is to see the best in other peoples, not to scold them for their failings.

by François de Callières 1645-1717

Lives of the Saints

The Synod of Whitby

In 664, a council at Whitby decided to align the traditions of the Northumbrian Church with those of Rome and Constantinople.

by John Richard Green 1837-1883

From the Archive

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Bible Stories Retold

The Battle of Jericho

The Israelites crossed over into the Land of Promise, only to find their progress barred by the well-fortified city of Jericho.

Liberty and Prosperity

Measured Government

To Napoleon, the way that politicians in Paris had forced metric measurements on the public was a lesson in bad government.

by Napoleon Bonaparte 1769-1821

Aulus Cornelius Gellius

Androcles and the Lion

Gaius Caesar is disappointed with the quality of the entertainment on offer in Rome’s Circus Maximus.

based on an account by Aulus Cornelius Gellius ?125–?180+

Stuart Era

The Ghosts of Edgehill

The first battle of the English Civil War was a cautious affair, but rumours persisted that it went on long after it had finished.

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Selected Authors

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Robert Louis Stevenson

‘My Shadow’

John Stuart Mill

The Decencies of Debate

William Ewart Gladstone

A Spirit of Self-Reliance

Thomas Babington Macaulay

The Siege of Arcot

Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington

Trunk and Disorderly

Sir Hubert Parry

Youth and Age

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Selected Topics

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Character and Conduct

Stories illustrating noble deeds in matters both great and small, such as the noble gesture of Sir Philip Sidney, and the determination of Benjamin Disraeli.

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France

Stories about our friends across the Channel, from Roman times to the Hundred Years’ War, her bloody Revolution, and the giddying rise and fall of Emperor Napoleon.

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Extracts from Fiction

Romance, adventure and comedy from the very best fiction writers, including Jane Austen, the Brontë sisters, Charles Dickens, John Buchan, and many more.

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The USA

Tales from our cousins to the West, telling of their independence from Britain, their bloody civil war, and their runaway prosperity — and the slender thread by which it hangs.

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Myths and Legends

Stories of wisdom, wonder and imagination from the Fables of Aesop and the epics of Homer to the folklore of India, Japan, Russia and Britain.

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India

Stories from the ancient and mighty civilisation of India, from classical mythology to the Mughal Emperors, the East India Company and the British Raj.

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The Copy Book

Readings in history, society and literature

The Copy Book

Readings in history, society and literature