1369
A proudly British group of islands far off in the South Atlantic.
The Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic Ocean were discovered by the British in the 17th century, and given their first government by London early in the 19th. The islands are an important centre for farming and trade, a haven for extraordinary wildlife, and British to the core.
Picture: © CHK46, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC-BY-SA 4.0. Source.
Posted May 25 2016
1370
England’s first and greatest historian explains why history is so important.
St Bede begins his famous ‘History’, written in AD 731, with an open letter to the King of Northumbria, Ceolwulf, explaining that history, rightly told, teaches us to refuse the evil, and choose the good. King Ceolwulf later resigned his throne to become a monk, and a saint.
Picture: © Chris Downer, Geograph. Licence: CC-BY-SA 2.0.. Source.
Posted May 25 2016
1371
How the cricketing rivalry between England and Australia got its name.
The Ashes is the name given to any Test Match series between the cricket teams of England and Australia, in a tradition which began as newspaper joke.
Picture: © Nic Redhead, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC-BY-SA 2.0.. Source.
Posted May 24 2016
1372
Elizabeth Bennet began to wonder if being Mr Darcy’s wife might have had its compensations.
Elizabeth Bennet has recently turned down a proposal of marriage from Mr Darcy; now, having recently visited his snobbish aunt, Lady Catherine de Bourgh, she is on a guided tour round Mr Darcy’s own magnificent country house in Derbyshire, ‘Pemberley’.
Picture: © Tony Hisgett, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC-BY-SA 2.0.. Source.
Posted May 24 2016
1373
An improbable chain of coincidences led to one of the great medical revolutions just when it was most needed.
Alexander Fleming (1881-1955) discovered the principle underlying antibiotics, a genuine medical revolution, and it all happened by accident. But whereas the excitable Archimedes cried ‘Eureka!’ on making his famous discovery, Scotsman Fleming muttered a more British ‘That’s funny’.
Picture: © Erlend Schei, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC-BY-SA 2.0.. Source.
Posted May 24 2016
1374
Napoleon’s six-year-long campaign (1808-1814) to bring Spain and Portugal into his united Europe was frustrated by Arthur Wellesley.
Napoleon Bonaparte declared himself Emperor of the French in 1804, with the aim of bringing order to the chaos of a disunited Europe through his ‘Napoleonic Code.’ Spain initially welcomed Napoleon’s vision, but when his true ambitions became clear the Spanish appealed for help from Napoleon’s most powerful enemy: the United Kingdom.
Picture: © Zarateman, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA 1.0 Universal public domain dedication.. Source.
Posted May 23 2016