Short passages for reading, drawn from history, legend, poetry and fiction.
© Marathon, Geograph. Licence: CC BY-SA 2.0.
French travel writer Pierre-Jean Grosley toured Georgian London just in time to witness a culinary revolution: the sandwich.
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© cartese, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA 2.0.
A loyal dog shows his initiative in recovering his master’s property, though his timing might have been better.
By Hubert Robert (1733–1808), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.
In 64, Nero watched on with fascination as Rome was consumed by fire — the Emperor’s idea of performance art.
Via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.
An angel appeared to Mary in her home in Nazareth, and offered her the chance to be part of nothing less than the reopening of the doors of Paradise.
Photo by Tomwsulcer, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication.
It was during the troubled reign of Charles I that the very first bananas seen in Britain went on display.
By Louis-Philippe Crépin (1772–1851), via wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.
A year into his reign as Emperor of France, Napoleon Bonaparte had much of Europe under his government but the United Kingdom still eluded him.