The Copybook

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

397

© 先従隗始, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain image.

Hideyoshi Changes His Mind by Joseph Longford

Toyotomi Hideyoshi, Chancellor of the Realm and Imperial Regent of Japan, was inclined to encourage Christianity until he found out why European Powers were so keen on it.

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398

Anonymous, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA 3.0.

The Third Hand by Joseph Hirst Lupton

John Mansur, working in Islamic Syria, thought he could safely criticise the Roman Emperor for meddling in Christian worship. But he was wrong.

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399

© Maverick.bukhari, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0.

Akbar Takes the Plunge by Samsam ud Daula Shah Nawaz Khan

Emperor Akbar’s court physician told his nobles that beneath the waters of a lake was a dry, cosy room, and dared them to find a way in.

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400

© Tim Green. 2.0.

The Better Man from Holinshed’s Chronicles

Two monks vying for the abbot’s chair at one of England’s prestigious monasteries each promised King William Rufus handsome rewards for his favour.

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401

Richard Caton Woodville, Jr. (1856–1927), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.

Pillars of Justice by Mirza Abu Taleb Khan

A witness appeared before a Calcutta court, only to find that judge and learned counsel were determined to discredit her.

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402

By Thomas Rowlandson (1756–1827), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.

A Shabby Suit by Mirza Abu Taleb Khan

When he left Calcutta in February 1799 for a tour of Europe, Abu Taleb Khan scarcely expected to spend so much of his time in England trying to keep out of the courts.

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© Nicholas Armitage / Clay Lane, 2025

May 1 NS

April 18 OS

Flying Scotsman : In 1928, a train service linking London and Edinburgh became the world’s longest non-stop run.
Two Letters Home : A German soldier stopped the Great War so he could ask Captain Hulse to post a letter for him.
Smile : Choose adjectives of praise for these nouns, at about the 7/10 level.
The Making of Mark : St Mark wrote his Gospel as a summary of the preaching of St Peter.
Zheng He and the Rise of Malacca : Malacca became a refuge from the overbearing empires of the Far East, thanks to a celebrated Chinese admiral.
Confusables : Compose sentences to bring out the similarities and differences between these words.
Jill and I : Include yourself in these sentences about Jill.
Saddled : Use these words in sentences, and see if you can use one of them as a verb.
Russia’s Heroic Stand : In 1941, with much of the West subdued, Adolf Hitler bent the full force of his hatred on Moscow.
Approachable : Replace the verb ‘can’ with these alternatives, and explain how the meaning of the sentence has changed.
The First Easter : In a translation from the Authorized Version of the Bible, published in 1611, St Mark recounts the discovery of Christ’s empty tomb.
A Collect for Easter Day : A short prayer from the Book of Common Prayer, for the day of Christ’s resurrection.
The Gambler : Which well-known expression is Dr Johnson talking about here?
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