Short passages for reading, drawn from history, legend, poetry and fiction.
© Osama Shukir Muhammed Amin, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0.
St Bede examines the connection between Passover and Easter, and shows how the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ complete a pattern.
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Attributed to George Morland (1763-1804), via Royal Museums Greenwich and Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.
Harry Paulet was going about his unlawful business when he spotted a French fleet slip quietly out of Brest and into the Atlantic.
By Theodoor Smits (1635–1707), via the Residenzgalerie Salzburg and Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.
Sir Walter Raleigh was within his rights to experiment with the Native American habit of smoking tobacco, but he should have told his servants first.
Attributed to William Segar (1564–1633), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.
When young Walter Raleigh first came to the court of Queen Elizabeth I he had little more than his wardrobe in his favour, and he wore it wisely.
By William Charles Ross (1794–1860), via the National Portrait Gallery and Wikimedia Commons. Licence: ? Public domain.
Fiery young attorney Thomas Erskine stood up in the House of Commons to denounce a bill aiming to silence critics of the Government.
By Sir Thomas Lawrence (1768-1830), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.
Unlike some of his fellows in Westminster, Scottish statesman Henry Dundas made no attempt to make himself sound more ‘English’.