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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

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Scandinavian History

The Luck of the Draw

Harald Hardrada made sure that his fate was never out of his own hands.

by Snorro Sturluson 1179-1241

Lives of the Saints

St Hild at Whitby

Hild founded an abbey that poured out a stream of priests and bishops for the revitalised English Church.

by St Bede of Jarrow 672-735

Discovery and Invention

A Precious Gift

In 1807, the Government in Canada urged the leaders of the Five Nations to join with them in a medical revolution.

by John Baron 1786-1851

Discovery and Invention

The Fleming Valve

A Victorian children’s book inspired the birth of modern electronics.

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Selected Authors

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Karl Philipp Moritz

Roof Riders

Sir Charles Villiers Stanford

On Thin Ice

A. G. Gardiner

Little Rays of Sunshine

Thomas Babington Macaulay

A Country Squire in London

Jane Austen

First Impressions, Second Thoughts

Laurence Sterne

Fricassée in France

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Selected Topics

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Bible and Saints

Tales from the Bible, including the parables of Jesus and the story of Esther, and miracles from the lives of saints, such as our own Cuthbert the Wonderworker.

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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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Discovery and Invention

Tales of scientific innovation and merchant enterprise, from steam power and life-saving medicines to new trade partners far away, and new ways to reach them.

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The British Constitution

Passages examining Britain’s sometimes baffling constitutional monarchy, and telling the story of its enemies, its champions, and its reformers.

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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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Animal Stories

Fables and true tales about animals, including a dog who regularly commuted to Matlock, a horse who didn’t approve of bad language, and a cat who saved her owners from an earthquake.

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The Copy Book

Readings in history, society and literature

The Copy Book

Readings in history, society and literature