The Copybook

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

1495

© Colin Smith, Geograph. Licence: CC-BY-SA 2.0.

Fanny Comes Home Jane Austen

Fanny Price, eight years after being adopted by her wealthy uncle and aunt, has gone back home for the first time, full of anticipation.

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1496

© Brian Robert Marshall, Geograph. Licence: CC-BY-SA 2.0.

The Dove and the Flame Elfric of Eynsham

Elfric, Abbot of Eynsham in the reign of Æthelred the Unready, reflects on two appearances of the Holy Spirit in the New Testament.

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1497

From Wikimedia Commons. Public domain image.

The Character of Horatio Lord Nelson The Revd Alexander Scott

High praise from someone who knew him better than most.

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1498

By Godfrey Kneller (1646–1723), via the Scottish National Gallery and Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.

The ‘Glorious Revolution’ of 1688 Clay Lane

King James II was forced off the throne in favour of his daughter Mary, and a new English constitution was born.

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1499

© John Reavy, Geograph. Licence: CC-BY-SA 2.0.

The Law of the Innocents Clay Lane

St Adamnán worked tirelessly to secure protection, rights and dignity for the women of Ireland.

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1500

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

St Nicholas and the Luckless Sailor Clay Lane

After surviving a terrible storm, a crew-member on St Nicholas’s ship met with a tragic accident.

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