Histatic!

Take the Puzzle Challenge!

2011-08-11T01:41:00.000-07:00

provided by flash-gear.com
Have a go at the puzzle above and tell where this iconic picture comes from and any other tid bits you may know about this event!

A Boer War Treat...

2011-04-25T11:03:00.000-07:00

I am sure I have mentioned before that I teach the Experience of Warfare in Britain, 1854-1929 to Year 12 students at my school, Great Wyrley High School. A few weeks ago one of my year 12 students surprised me with a genuine Boer War medal that his great-grandfather had received for service in the war. James (the student in question) was under strict guidance to have the medal back in his Dad's possession within the hour, so I had it long enough to get a few snaps of it. Above is a picture of the aforementioned medal-adorned with the image of Queen Victoria. Above the medal are 6 bars, each stamped with different battles of the war that James' great-grandfather took part in, including the relief of Ladysmith.
But the thing that excited me more than the medal was the accompanying letter that James brought along, written by his great-grandfather Patrick Traynor. Although the original letter was not sent due to its delicacy, James' Dad did type the letter up so that I could read what Patrick had written to his wife Florence and, I must say, it makes for insightful reading.
The letter is dated March 4 1900 and was written at Ladysmith:

Dear Florrie,
Just a few lines to let you know that Ned and I are quite safe after 7 weeks hard fighting and that Ladysmith is relieved. We have been having it very hard, what with marching and fighting in the sun and lying on the grass and on rock at night without any cover over us, and the nights are fearful cold and dewey [sic]. I have not had my pants off since we left the ship and my boots and socks are growing to my feet. There is not a man here that is not swarming with vermin and no matter what we do we can not keep them away. We have been in 4 different engagements and the regiment came out very lucky out of them. In the final one on 27th Feb last we had Colonel McCarthy O'Leary, Sgt Wheatley and 3 ptes killed and I don't know how (bottom of page missing)....Ladysmith yesterday. The troops that occupied it are very clean but have been on very short rations and have eaten very near all their horses. It is no use moaning about anything done out here but our Regt fairly went into it at the last fight, fixed bayonets and charged the trenches, our Coy [Company?] was the first and I believe (bottom of page missing)...60 of them. Sniping was kept up during the night but when morning came there was not a Boer to be seen nor a shot to be heard, they had all skedaddled [left]. I do not know where we will pick up with them again. It is reported that we [will] remain here for some time but I do not know for certain. Will have plenty news for you when I get home, can tell you better than writing.
I had a letter from Mr Snowdon on Friday.
No more at present, from your loving husband P Traynor.
Kisses for Dollie, Nellie and yourself, best love to all at home.
Good night and God Bless you xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Let me know what you thought when you read the letter

Edward Jenner and Smallpox....

2011-03-14T11:39:00.000-07:00

During the 1700s smallpox killed more children than any other disease and survivors were often left severely disfigured by scars from scabs that formed on the skin. The method of inoculation was used in China and other parts of Asia and Africa to stop people catching the deadly disease. This involved spreading pus from a smallpox pustule into a cut on the skin of a healthy person. If the person was lucky they got a mild dose of smallpox and did not catch it again as their body had developed antibodies against smallpox-although they would not have known this in the 1700s. If the person was unlucky they would develop a bad case of smallpox and die.
Lady Mary Wortley Montagu watched inoculation carried out in Turkey where her husband was the British Ambassador. During a smallpox epidemic in England she had her daughter inoculated in front of important doctors and the method rapidly became popular. Inoculation became big business-Robert and Daniel Sutton became very wealthy by carrying out many thousands of inoculations, charging up to £20 per patient (clearly only a procedure the very wealthy could afford). However, there were dangers with inoculation:
The person inoculated could get a strong dose of smallpox and die.
The person inoculated could pass smallpox onto someone else.
Most people could not afford inoculation so were not protected.
Some people thought that the milder disease of cowpox seemed to give protection against smallpox so deliberately infected themselves with cowpox. However, no doctors had written about or tested this idea scientifically.

Edward Jenner was born in 1749 and was a surgeon's apprentice at the age of 13. When Jenner was 21 he studied with John Hunter in London, the greatest surgeon of the time. In 1772 Jenner began working in Berkeley, Gloucestershire as a country doctor but kept in touch with Hunter about medical developments.
Jenner learned a lot from Hunter, who told his students to observe patients carefully and experiment to test their ideas. Jenner's discovery of vaccination followed Hunter's advice exactly. Jenner had long known the story that milkmaids who caught cowpox never seemed to get smallpox and he kept this idea in his mind, thinking about how to test it.
In the 1790s Jenner carried out experiments to test the theory, observing and recording all the details carefully. Then in 1798 he published his book describing vaccination and presenting his evidence, describing 23 different cases. He called this method vaccination because the Latin word for cow is vacca.
One of Jenner's famous experiments involved a dairy maid by the name of Sarah Nelmes and an 8 year old boy called James Phipps. Sarah Nelmes was infected with cowpox and was suffering from the usual symptoms that included a large sore. Jenner chose to infect James Phipps with matter from the cowpox sore on the hand of Sarah Nelmes. Jenner made two cuts on the boy and inserted the matter. Seven days later the boy complained of uneasiness, 2 days after that he became chilly, lost his appetite, had a slight headache and spent the night with some degree of restlessness but on the following day he was fine. To make sure that his idea had worked, Jenner inoculated James Phipps with smallpox matter but no disease followed. Jenner repeated this several months later and still no disease followed.
Jenner's work went down very well in America-by 1803 vaccination was being used in the USA-and, in 1805 Napoleon had the whole of the French army vaccinated. However, vaccination was not made compulsory in Britain until 1852, which Jenner didn't even live to see as he died in 1823. The problem was that in Britain there was a lot of opposition to vaccination and for many reasons. A lot of people were very religious and thought vaccination was against God's laws as it was unnatural to give people animal diseases. Coupled with this religious people thought smallpox was a punishment from God for sin, therefore the only cure was to pray to God for forgiveness. The men who had been making a mint inoculating people did not support vaccination as they feared it would cost them their jobs. The Royal Society didn't support vaccination as they saw it as too revolutionary, so they refused to publish Jenner's book. The general attitudes of the time also hindered the progress of widespread support for vaccination too-most people were unwilling to believe Jenner as firstly, they had no idea who he was and secondly, Jenner couldn't explain exactly why vaccination worked (as germs had not yet been discovered). Many people just didn't have the time or inclination to get vaccinated or have their children vaccinated-they either didn't trust the method; they saw it as too rushed and clumsy or, they had more important things to worry about, like finding work and food. The government's laissez faire attitude also meant that people were not forced to get vaccinated as the government felt that it didn't have the right to interfere in people's lives.
An Anti-Vaccine league was formed in 1866, the result of people's fears about vaccination. It didn't help that some people still caught smallpox even after they'd been vaccinated. Nor did it help that doctors performing vaccinations were not always as meticulous as Jenner had been-one doctor vaccinated patients in the same room as he inoculated others with smallpox. It was easy to get the diseases mixed up, and as a result patients often died.
In the long term, Jenner's work on vaccination led to smallpox being declared eradicated from the world in 1980. And, once germs were discovered in 1861, led to other vaccinations being discovered.

Winston Churchill Reports on the Boer War!

2011-01-27T07:15:00.000-08:00

My students have come up trumps again! My sixth formers have been studying the Boer war and were asked to write a report about the state of the British Army, reflecting on the Cardwell Reforms, as if they were Winston Churchill. They were told to think about the tone of the piece and what they think Churchill would have thought about the war. One example is so good that I have decided to showcase it on the blog-do allow for a little exaggeration here as they were told to make it a biased report.

'We haven't got quite the whole world yet-but we're getting it by degrees.'

We must continue to fight in South Africa. The future of our great nation and our Empire depends upon it! To quote Lord Salisbury, Undersecretary for the Colonies; "We must be prepared to make it clear to the Boers that we are the paramount power in South Africa. The real point to be made good to South Africa is that we, not the Dutch, are Boss."

In doing so we must prevent Kruger's Boer Government in the Transvaal from becoming both independent and too powerful. We can not allow a people who are already hostile towards us to become too powerful, as it would put the security of our entire Empire at risk; if the Transvaal was left to 'blossom' in Kruger's hands then we could face losing the Cape and South Africa, then our links up to India, the jewel in our Empire's crown. If we present ourselves as pushovers then we shall be treated so and we would be left helpless as our great and noble Empire crumbles before our very eyes.

These cowardly Boers; they want their independence but as soon as they face an enemy that they can not defeat alone, from whom do they seek protection? As soon as the threat is removed and they have got what they need they see fit to call on us and expect us to cater to their every whim! We have wiped the Zulu from the face of South Africa, and stamped out their mark on our territory. This should be proof enough for the Boers that we are a nation, nay an Empire that will not tolerate such treatment!

There have been many improvements since the Crimean War that will undoubtedly strengthen our army. The new organisation of our troops, thanks to the Cardwell Reforms, has improved their ability to cope with the tasks presented to them, which will prove effective in our fight for South Africa. One such reform is the division of regiments; half serve abroad whilst the other remains in Britain to train. This will ensure that our forces, while small in comparison to other continental powers, will be fit and ready to make their mark on South Africa. Also, the new, experienced generals (a result of the abolition of buying commissions) are proving their worth; Colonel Baden-Powell is said to be holding out against the Boer Commandos in Mafeking with a small, outnumbered force. Does this not illustrate my point? Ours is one of, if not the finest force in the civilised world.

What's more, British society has been bolstered as the urban unemployed have found jobs as soldiers and are able to support their families once more. Too often our beloved Tommie's fall foul of misplaced disapproval. They may be comprised of vagabonds and louts from the poorest elements of society, but, if we are truly intent on defending our claim to South Africa, then we must, all of us, rally together for the common good and preservation of our Empire. For this, they and all of our men in South Africa command the utmost respect.

For the sake of our national pride and our Empire, we must fight on! God save the Queen and long live our glorious Empire!

Winston Churchill.

The Nazi Nurse

2011-01-24T11:57:00.000-08:00

Something interesting I have just discovered on YouTube. OCR is the name of an examination board in England and Wales-I can not be sure whether this is something official that has been made by OCR, but it is informative nonetheless. Take a look and let me know what you think!

Can You Handle History?

2011-01-16T07:07:00.000-08:00

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

Victorians 5/5 Florence Nightingale

2010-11-23T11:36:00.000-08:00

Victorians 4/5 Florence Nightingale

2010-11-23T11:35:00.002-08:00

Victorians 3/5 Florence Nightingale

2010-11-23T11:35:00.001-08:00

Victorians 2/5 Florence Nightingale

2010-11-23T11:35:00.000-08:00

Victorians 1/5 Florence Nightingale

2010-11-23T11:34:00.000-08:00

Burke and Hare...

2010-10-31T02:40:00.000-07:00

It's January 1829 and on the Lawnmarket an infamous criminal is about to be put to death-people are clambering to see this historic event. Even Sir Walter Scott has a 'window seat' for the execution. The hanging of William Burke is the culmination of a trial that was dubbed the 'trial of the decade' in a recent documentary. It was the case of the accused William Burke, who was on trial for the murder of Mrs. Docherty, whose body Burke sold to one Dr. Knox. But this story isn't just about one death, it is believed that Mrs. Docherty was victim number 17 in a string of murders, committed by not just Burke but William Hare too.

In the 1820s, Edinburgh was leading the way in the field of medical science, and in order to continue this trend it is believed that the medical schools needed 520 bodies a year in order to teach anatomy. The only legal way to obtain cadavers was through taking the bodies of executed convicts. This was socially accepted because people thought that criminals did not have the right to a Christian burial-but this did not garner enough corpses for the schools. Anatomists were willing to pay large sums for cadavers; between £7 and £10 per corpse. This led to a lucrative trade in body snatching-Resurrectionists, as the grave robbers were known, provided many of the cadavers needed to the medical schools and quite a few pickled specimens found their way from Ireland to Edinburgh every year. But Burke and Hare were no Resurrectionists-what they were doing was far more sinister.

Edinburgh in the 1820s was a city divided-it had just gone through a phase of growth and regeneration, but in 1826 the boom went bust and the divide between the rich and the poor was even more extreme. Many of the working class lost their jobs and things went from bad to worse.

Margaret Laird arrived in Edinburgh in the 1820s and found a bustling environment-full of opportunity but with the bust of 1826, this opportunity very quickly diminished. Like many women in similar situations the only option was prostitution. It was through prostitution that Margaret seized her opportunities when she could-marrying a succession of men, almost bettering herself every time. Margaret ended up marrying the owner of a lodging house called Logue, who was fairly old compared to herself. It is believed that Margaret met William Hare at this lodging house. William Hare was an Irish immigrant who had been working on the canal as a navvy. Shortly after moving into Logue's lodge house, Hare and Logue had an argument and Hare left the lodge house. Logue mysteriously turned up dead not long after, and Hare quickly moved in with and married Margaret.

William Burke was also an Irish immigrant who emigrated to Scotland in 1817. There he had had many different jobs, but at the time of meeting Margaret Hare, Burke was a cobbler. Burke and his wife, Helen McDougal, were invited by Margaret to stay at her lodge house. It is then that these string of murders started. It is believed that the first body Burke and Hare sold was not the result of a murder, but rather the result of a fellow lodger dying. Burke and Hare sold the body as the old war pensioner, called Donald had no family and so no one to bury him. The man they sold the body to was the enigmatic Dr.Knox-a lecturer of anatomy at the medical school. Knox made it clear to Burke and Hare that he would always be willing to buy bodies in the future.
The first murder took place about a month later, the result of fear. It was clear that one of the lodgers was dying in his room-the man was probably dying of the plague. If the plague had been discovered at the lodge house then it would have been closed down by the authorities. Remembering what Knox had told the two men, acting quickly Burke and Hare finished the dying man off and promptly took his body to Knox. Burke and Hare's murderous career had begun. How Burke and Hare went on to kill their victims is still known as 'burking' today-the method was Hare would hold his hand over the victim's nose and mouth and Burke would put the weight of his body across the chest of the victim-asphyxiating them. Burke and Hare would ply their chosen victim with drink before leading them away to kill them in the burking fashion. No one was safe and Burke and Hare generally preyed on the weak, vulnerable and lonely-even children.
Dr. Knox certainly knew what Burke and Hare were doing and even took part in covering up the murders. One of the victims, known as 'Daft Jamie', had deformed feet and was well known in the area. When Burke and Hare delivered Jamie's body to the doctor, Knox cut off Jamie's feet and face so that his cadaver was unrecognisable when he came to use it in a dissection for his students.
Dr.Knox was a flamboyant lecturer who wore a bright purple coat, had curly hair, one eye and pitted skin as a result of smallpox. He attracted many students to Edinburgh, at one point teaching 500 in one year. Dr. Knox would cut up about 80 bodies a year in order to attract high numbers of students, which meant he needed a steady supply. He also brought great wealth to the area-could this mean that people were willing to turn a blind eye to these murders?

Within a few months, Burke and Hare had provided Knox with 16 bodies-netting the equivalent of £130,000 in today's money. It would be victim number 17 that saw the end to this horrendous string of murders. By the time victim number 17 met her fate, Burke had his own house, let's be honest he could afford it, and it was there that he murdered Mrs. Docherty. At the time, two of Burke's wife's relatives were staying at the house and it was them who found the body and alerted the police. By the time the police arrived at Burke's house, the body was gone. The police were tipped off though-they were told to check Dr.Knox's office and they would find the body of the recently deceased victim. In November 1828 Burke, Hare, Margaret Hare and Burke's wife were arrested.. In exchange for immunity for himself and his wife, Hare agreed to testify against Burke and Burke wrote a written confession in which he stated his wife and Knox were innocent. So, in the end, only Burke was convicted of the murder.
The notoriety of the case made it Britain's 'trial of the decade'-all of Scotland's top lawyers were involved, and on the first day of the trial (24th December 1828) the 'court was packed to suffocation'. Burke was found guilty and one month after the conviction he was hanged by the neck until he was dead. The 'honour' of dissecting Burke's body was given to Dr. Monroe. A number of items were made of out Burke's skin and his skeleton is still used in the same medical school where he was dissected today.
I will be eagerly awaiting the release of the new feature film, Burke and Hare, to see how accurate the portrayal of the story is!!

The Battle of Ruddy Balaclava!

2010-10-21T12:54:00.000-07:00

Michael's blog

The other day I thought it would be a good idea to get my A level students to use historical sources in a slightly different way to what they're used to. So using the events of the Charge of the Light Brigade I gave my students sources related to particular people involved in the charge.
So one pair were given sources about Lord Lucan's actions, another pair about Lord Cardigan's and so on. The idea was that the students would use the sources to write a blog of that particular person's perspective on the charge-as if it was happening in real time (I told them to imagine that everyone there had Blackberry phones!) I had originally wanted them to use Twitter for this as I have seen similar things done using that particular medium-but unfortunately, Twitter is blocked by our school server, so we used blogspot instead. Despite this, the finished blogs were absolutely fab! I told my year 12 class that the one I thought was the best (although it was tough decision to make, as they were all so good), would be featured on my blog. So, the 'winning' blog was the one done by Michael who had to blog about Lord Raglan's perspective of the Charge. Please go over to Michael's blog and take a look at what he's written and if you see what you like, let him know by leaving a comment! Thank you.

A War over Keys??

2010-08-19T11:13:00.000-07:00

We all know that there are many examples in History where war has started over, what seem to be, rather silly reasons. For the A Level course I am teaching, The Experience of Warfare 1855-1929; I have been researching the Crimean War (1855-1856), and I must say the short term causes of the war seem to be, to me, borderline ridiculous.

Crimea at the time was part of the Ottoman Empire-the Ottoman Empire had control of the ports that led out to the Mediterranean Sea-favourable for trade. This is something that Russia lacked and was envious of-Tsar Nicholas I even alluded to wanting to carve up the Turkish empire, calling it the 'sick man of Europe'. The Tsar saw the Ottoman Empire as weak and could see huge benefits in taking a large proportion of it.

According to historian Christopher Hibbert the Prime Minister, Lord Aberdeen, and the Foreign Secretary, Lord Clarendon did not want war with Russia. But the more powerful Lord Palmerston, Home Secretary and Russophobe, saw Russia's imperialism as a threat to the British Empire, in particular to India. He saw that the areas around the Med needed to remain in friendly hands, that of the Turks, in order to maintain the route the British took to India and continue lucrative trade.

A quarrel in the Holy Land provided a reason for tensions to escalate not only between Turkey and Britain with Russia, but also with France and Russia. The monks of the Roman Catholic Church, supported by France, and the monks of the Orthodox Church, supported by Russia, were arguing over rights and privileges concerning the Church of the Nativity and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. In 1852 the Turks, being the imperial rulers of the Holy Lands, decided that the Roman Catholic monks should have the keys to these important churches-aligning themselves with France.

In 1853 the Tsar sent Prince Menshikov (left) to maintain the privileges of the Orthodox Christians and to insist on Russia's rights to protect the Ottoman Empire's Orthodox Christian subjects.Arguments over the holy places came to a head when the Roman Catholic monks placed their own silver star over the manger in the Church of the Nativity. The Orthodox monks tried to prevent the Catholic monks from doing this and in the struggle some were killed. The Russians thought that the Turkish authorities had connived in the murder of the monks-within days a Russian army was marching towards the Danube in order to protect the Holy Places from Islam.

The Russians demanded that Turkish troops withdraw from Christian Montenegro, where they were suppressing a revolt-this demand was rejected. To 'encourage' Turkish cooperation, the Russian government announced that unless Turkey did what they wanted, Russian troops would occupy Moldavia and Wallachia-countries under joint protectorate of Turkey and Russia as they bordered the boundaries of both the Russian and Turkish empires.

Behind the scenes the British ambassador in Turkey, Lord Stratford de Redcliffe, had been encouraging the Sultan to reject the Russian demands. Learning of the Russian threats, Britain and France decided to intervene. On June 15th 1853, a combined British and French fleet was sent to the Dardanelles to show solidarity with Turkey.

A draft compromise, drawn up by Austria, was rejected by the Sultan-perhaps he was buoyed up by the support of Britain and France? In July the Tsar ordered Russian troops into Moldavia and Wallachia. It was still hoped by many that war would not come. But, on 5th October 1853, hoping Britain and France would support Turkey rather than see the Ottoman Empire collapse, the Sultan declared war on Russia.

Weeks later thousands would be slaughtered as the result of strategic mishaps-young men cut down in their prime. All over keys??

Let me know what you think...

The Twentieth Century in 5 minutes...

2010-07-22T11:05:00.000-07:00

We didn't start the Fire, by Billy Joel, must be one of the best songs ever-as a History teacher I find this song fascinating-there is so much mentioned! The song basically accounts for most major events that happened in the twentieth century mixed with some American popular culture. It is basically the Cold War in a song.

What If....

2010-05-25T07:36:00.000-07:00

Adolf Hitler had been accepted into the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna? Would he still have developed his intolerable hatred of Jews? Would he have ever become interested in Politics and go on to be Chancellor of Germany? Would the dreadful atrocities of the Holocaust have happened?

Adolf Hitler was born in Austria on 20th April 1889, but his family moved to Passau, Germany when Adolf was three, which led Hitler to later identify more with Germany than his native Austria. As a young boy, Adolf was a normal child who played 'cowboys and Indians', a game that first sparked his fascination with war and being a soldier. But in 1900, Hitler's younger brother, Edward died after contracting measles. After this, Hitler is said to have become sullen, morose and detached, often arguing with teachers at school and his strict Father at home. Adolf and his Father, Alois, would often clash, mainly over Hitler's desire to attend the Classical High School rather than the Technical School, which is where his Father wanted him to go so that Adolf could become an Austrian Customs Official. Adolf and Alois could never see eye to eye and Adolf was regularly beaten by his Father. In order to show his resentment towards his Dad, a keen lover of all things Austrian, Hitler became obsessed with German Nationalism, using the German greeting 'Heil' and singing the German national anthem rather than the Austrian one.

Despite the obvious tension between Adolf and Alois, when his father suddenly died in 1903 Hitler became very disruptive at school and was asked to leave. Hitler enrolled at a different school but was expelled in his second year after an incident with his school certificate. At a loss of what to do Hitler travelled to Vienna in 1905, living a bohemian life, in order to gain acceptance into the Academy of Fine Arts.

Hitler drew scenes around Vienna and lived off an Orphan's pension and support from his beloved Mother. Hitler made his first attempt at gaining entry into the art school in 1907 but was told that his skill as a painter was not good enough. Above is one of Hitler's drawings-to the untrained eye it looks rather skilfully done.

In December 1907, Hitler's Mother, Klara, who Adolf adored, died of breast cancer. A court ordered that Hitler give his share of the Orphan's pension he received to his sister, Paula. With no money Hitler struggled as a painter in Vienna-he would copy post cards and sell them but this made him very little. In 1908, Hitler failed a second time to be accepted into art school-with no money left Hitler had no choice but to live in a shelter for the homeless (incidentally, a group of 'undesirables' that Hitler would later persecute).

It was in Vienna that Hitler, as he describes in Mein Kampf, first began hating Jews. Where Hitler had grown up he had only ever seen 'Europeanised' Jews but in Vienna he saw Orthodox Jews-Hitler didn't like what he saw-he even went as far as questioning whether these deeply religious people could possibly be German.

Hitler's way out of homelessness came in 1914-the outbreak of the First World War. Hitler was desperate to fight for a Bavarian regiment, and so petitioned King Ludwig III of Bavaria for permission to serve-this was granted. By all accounts Hitler was a rather good soldier-a runner on the front line he was twice decorated for bravery and ended his army career as the British equivalent of a Lance Corporal. Hitler even suffered temporary blindness as a result of a mustard gas attack and had to spend a few weeks in a military hospital. Some Historians argue that it is during this period that Hitler first had the unforgivable idea of exterminating Jews.

Hitler was a firm lover of Germany and his service during the Great War only cemented this further. So when the armistice was signed in November 1918 and Germany admitted defeat, Hitler was devastated and couldn't understand why Germany had surrendered when they still held enemy territory. Further humiliation came with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919-terms of the treaty saw Germany take full blame for outbreak of war in 1914, a massive reduction in Germany's standing army, demilitarisation of the Rhineland, and a massive debt, or reparations, that surmounted to an amount that was unrealistic to expect Germany to pay. Hitler became obsessed with getting revenge for the treaty, which he saw as the cause of many of Germany's problems after the war, that of course and the Jews. Hitler saw Germany go from a great nation before the war to a struggling country where unemployment was sky high and people were miserable-forced to be humiliated first by defeat and then by the conditions of Versailles. All the while, as Hitler saw it, German people were starving and poor, whereas Jewish people seemed to be getting on fine-Hitler's hatred of the Jews was gradually getting deeper and deeper.

After the war, Hitler became actively involved in politics, shaping his political ideas in the German Workers Party (the name would later be changed to the infamous name of National Socialist German Workers Party), where the leaders were impressed by his oratory skills. Hitler was eventually elected leader of this party in 1921. The party was elected to power in Germany with Hitler becoming Chancellor of Germany in 1933. The rest as they say, is History. A very dark and disgusting period of history to say the least.

Could it be that if Hitler had been accepted into art school that he would not have gone on to be Chancellor of Germany? Could he have ended up just another humble painter? It certainly wouldn't have prevented his hatred of Jews as this first started when he was in Vienna. But could it have provided Hitler with a different path? Even if he had have gained entry into art school the First World War still came along. Hitler was Germany obsessed-he certainly would have still wanted to fight for Germany in 1914. It is during his time as a soldier that his love with Germany became a sort of intense 'love affair', and where he experienced the cutting humiliation of defeat and the terms of the Treaty of Versailles. Maybe then we could argue that if the First World War had never have happened that Hitler would not have experienced such humiliation, and therefore, have not had the need to vent his frustration with the world in a hot bed of politics, leading to his domination of a party full of anti-Semites.

Let me know what you think on this subject.

Please note-this post is not designed in any way to offend anyone and is certainly not absolving Hitler's behaviour in any way. What Ifs in history are just things I like to contemplate.

Anatomy and its murky past...

2010-05-14T04:28:00.000-07:00

History is intriguing, scandalous and hugely entertaining-it can also be dark, mysterious and a little macabre. The picture above is from a series being shown on British TV called 'History Cold Case'-every week a crack team of forensic scientists shed light on our past by examining the dead. This weeks show saw the investigation of a mummified body of a young boy-maybe around 7 or 8 years of age. The team wanted to find out the history of the boy and under what circumstance he came to be used as a anatomical specimen. The team think the boy was preserved to be used as a display or as a tool to help train anatomists- as they delve deeper into the history of anatomy, in particular how bodies came to be acquired, they reveal a murky past.

After observing the remains the team leader, Professor Sue Black, notices that, although the size of the head and the fact that he has most of his adult teeth point to him being around 8 years old, his arms and legs look to be quite short. After a full x-ray of the remains Professor Black notes that the leg bones have a series of faint white lines going through them-this she says could mean that either the boy had a succession of diseases, or that he had been malnourished-resulting in stunted growth. From this Professor Black deduces that the boy could have possibly been living at a poor house for some time, and that upon his death he was handed over to a school of anatomy under the Anatomy Act of 1832-which allowed the dissection of the destitute. However, when one of the team take a photograph of the mummified boy to a specialist at the Huntarian Museum in London he thinks the remains could possibly date from the 17th or early 18th century, due to the way the boy has been posed. Shockingly, this reveals that the body of the boy may have been obtained before the Anatomy Act of 1832, which means he was taken illegally. Could somebody have stolen this poor boy's body or could there be a more sinister explanation?

The team do an in-depth analysis of the flame red resin that was used to preserve the arteries of the boy to try to get a more accurate date of when the boy was preserved. The results showed that the resin found in the boys vessels was a close match to the resin used by famed surgeon and anatomist John Hunter, which therefore, dates the mummified boy to late 18th century or early 19th century. The team theorise that the boy could have been preserved by John Hunter himself, or at least one of his pupils, and also come to the conclusion that the boy was probably from London, which is where John Hunter was based.

It looks then like the body of the boy was obtained illegally-as a result of this the team go on a fact finding mission to discover just how rife body snatching was in the 18th century. After a trip to the archives it transpires, after reading the diary of a resurrectionist (a name given to body snatchers), that grave robbers used to have watchers to tell them about newly buried corpses, which they would then dig up and steal in order to sell them at a high price to hospitals. The investigation leads to Saint Sepulchre's Church on Giltspur Street, North London, which was at the centre of a very lucrative trade in fresh corpses. The area was surrounded by hospitals teeming with medical students-the demand was so high for bodies that the local council became increasingly worried about the numbers 'going missing', that they raised the money to have a watch house constructed on the boundary of St. Sepulchre's graveyard in 1791. However, a lot of the men who ran the watch houses were corrupt and for a bribe would turn a blind eye, or in some cases help the resurrectionists. So, the illegal trading of bodies remained a lucrative business until 1832. The reason the body trade was so lucrative near Sepulchres was because of the nearby St Bartholomew's Hospital-porters from the hospital would leave hampers out at night for the body snatchers to use to transport the dead bodies to a nearby public house, that acted as a safe house for the resurrectionists, where the cadavers would be laid out ready for surgeons and anatomists to pick from.

The business of selling bodies was such a good money maker that some people even kidnapped and murdered children in order to sell their bodies to the highest bidder. One such prolific grave robber was John Bishop, who was actually tried and convicted of murdering a 14 year old boy for the purposes of selling him to a surgeon. All together Bishop admitted to stealing between 500 and 1000 corpses and of murdering 3 people to sell their bodies, although that number could be higher. Could the mummified boy have been the victim of such a heinous crime? The trial of John Bishop and his accomplices in 1831 highlighted the need to do something about these terrible goings on-and so the following year the Anatomy Act was passed.

What the team concluded about the boy: He was around 8 years old, was well nourished but suffered periods of illness and was dissected and preserved in London before the anatomy act of 1832-either stolen from his grave or murdered to furnish the demands of the anatomists.

Let me know what you think on this subject!

History and Me...My 100th Post!

2010-05-09T09:18:00.000-07:00

This is my 100th Post! I can hardly believe it! I have called this post History and Me as I intend to write about my recent historical experiences, which I had during my holiday in Dorset.

I want to start with an excellent little find I made in a quaint shop dedicated to the works of Enid Blyton called The Ginger Pop Shop. The shop itself has many fine gifts and amongst all the Enid Blyton books and memorabilia I discovered one of the cutest things I have seen in a long time-a little paper evacuee doll! The doll came with little paper clothes, identity card and a gas mask! The pack the doll came in also contained a story of the evacuee doll that highlights the trauma evacuated children suffered as a result of being uprooted from their homes. As soon as I saw the doll I immediately thought of a good way to use it in a lesson with my Year 9 groups! Excellent!
My visit to Wareham in Dorset also gave me the opportunity to use my much beloved National Trust membership (thanks to the guys at Swanwick for that marvelous gift). As soon as we drove into Corfe we saw this wonderful ruined castle-so big that it is literally all you can focus on for miles! Corfe Castle stands between the Purbeck hills, an ideal position when the castle was built to defend inland Dorset from attacks from the sea. The castle itself was built by William the Conqueror soon after his arrival in 1066. The castle was a favourite haunt of King John (1167-1216) who made vast improvements to its defences between 1199 and 1216.

When I was walking around the ruined castle I couldn't help but question my own fitness as I was out of breath pretty much straight away! It was built on a very steep hill-for obvious defence reasons I know-but it was a challenge to get around the site! I climbed to the highest point you can get to safely and stood at the top for quite a while-mainly because I could make out the figure of my Dad down in the centre of the town and was waving frantically to him, but he didn't look up. I was in awe of the vistas from such a height and what I found even more intriguing was how you could make out the stages the castle would have been built in. When the Normans first came to England they built wooden Motte and Bailey castles for speed and because the raw materials were all around-a bit like Medieval flat pack castles-of course none of the wooden structure of Corfe still exists, for obvious reasons. The next stage would have been a stone keep castle, the keep still remains, partly destroyed, at Corfe. Then followed the concentric outer wall, which acted as an extra defence-a lot of this still exists at the site in a partly ruined state and can clearly be seen in the above picture. Below is an artists impression of what Corfe Castle would have looked like in 1643.

Let me know about your recent historical experiences-would love to hear about them!

Braveheart...a bit rubbish really!

2010-04-27T13:36:00.000-07:00

My husband, who is Scottish, has loved the film Braveheart ever since he went to see it at Stirling cinema in 1995 when he was 13. If the truth be told, he was so moved by the spectacle that it made him cry! He had fallen hook, line and sinker for the hugely inaccurate portrayal of the first Scottish war of independence.
The film was released in 1995 and starred Mel Gibson, who doubled up as director, as William Wallace, a 13th century Scottish nationalist. According to this website the film is littered with inaccuracies from the very second it starts-the author lists 18 errors in the first 2 1/2 minutes of the film alone!
For the blog I have picked a number of inaccuracies to share with you, which I have sourced from numerous sites!

The film starts in 1280, claiming the King of Scotland is dead leaving no heir, thus leaving Edward I of England to seize the throne. In fact, in 1280 King Alexander III of Scotland was alive and had two sons, although neither succeeded him. Alexander III was succeeded by Margaret of Norway in 1286.
No conflict between England and Scotland actually occurred until 1296 when there was a small rebellion.
In the 13th century Scots did not wear plaids nor kilts
Wallace never met Isabelle as she married King Edward II, not when he was Prince of Wales, as depicted in the film, three years after Wallace's death

Robert the Bruce was not even present at the battle of Falkirk, let alone take the side of the English, as depicted in the film.
Primae noctis, a Lord's right to take the virginity of women living on his estate, was never used by Edward I. In fact, little evidence exists that suggests the decree ever existed in the first place.
Lastly, The Battle of Stirling Bridge doesn't even take place on a bridge in the film, a major factor in why the Scots won the battle.

So there you have it, Braveheart is definitely not a true historical account. Some would argue that it was never meant to be, which maybe it wasn't as Mel Gibson did acknowledge the errors in the film at the time, but the film did go a long way in misleading many people to believe what it was portraying, which even led to a surge in Anglophobia according to some.

Let me know of any errors not mentioned above that you would like to share!

Joseph Rowntree, a social hero...

2010-03-20T01:29:00.000-07:00

Joseph Rowntree was born to a Quaker family in York on the 24th May 1834. Joseph's father was a grocer and when he was 14 he started work with him. His work took Joseph to London where he attended the Commons after becoming interested in politics. In 1869, he decided to change career and began working with his brother, Henry, at his factory; the Cocoa, Chocolate and Chicory Works in York. Joseph was very influential at the factory and under his supervision it expanded rapidly, especially after he introduced the fruit pastille in 1881.
In 1883, Henry Rowntree died leaving Joseph as owner of the business. Joseph was not only an excellent businessman but also a charitable man who did many good works during his lifetime, including teaching a class for adults on Sundays, helping set up the York Public Library and providing a park in York to be used as a First World War memorial. But what Rowntree is perhaps most famous for (apart from his delectable sweets) is his work to help the poor. After becoming influenced by a book written by his son, Benjamin Seebohn Rowntree, called 'Poverty, A Study of Town Life, Joseph installed a library in his factory and provided all workers under the age of 17 with free education.

Rowntree very generously provided his workers with a doctor and a dentist and, in 1906, set up a Pension Fund for his workers, donating £10,000 to it. But what Rowntree was most concerned with was finding ways of reducing poverty where he saw it. In 1863 he produced a statistical study linking crime and poverty and two years later published his second study; Pauperism in England and Wales. In 1901, Rowntree even purchased 123 acres of land to build homes for low-income families at New Earswick, York. Rowntree went on to be a lifelong advocate for social reform right up to his death in 1925. Today, The Joseph Rowntree Foundation continue what he started spending £10.5 million on research and development to put forward key messages (souce: JRF).

A Much Needed Return! A baby and a book review

2010-03-15T06:19:00.000-07:00

It feels like an absolute age since I was on here blogging but I feel that I am more than ready to return. Needless to say I have been very busy since I last blogged way back in November-after leaving my humble teaching job to start maternity leave in late November I had a very restful December and in January gave birth to my beautiful daughter, Eleanor Faith. Since then I have been adjusting to becoming a mother whilst still trying (and mostly failing) to keep a tidy house! With Ellie turning ten weeks old yesterday and celebrating Mother's Day for the first time, I feel it's the right time to start up my blogging hobby again, especially as Ellie's colic has calmed down a lot!
You may or may not be surprised to find that I have managed to read just one book this year-those readers with children will understand how hard it really is to juggle normal day to day activities with a new baby, let alone find time to do anything for pleasure!

The book in question is 'The Lieutenant' by Kate Grenville, the best-selling Australian author. I must admit that I had not heard of the author before picking up this book in Tesco one Wednesday night. I was attracted to the book's very pretty cover-it is covered in tiny gold specks that represent stars, as the protagonist in the book, Daniel Rooke, is an Astronomer. I then read the back cover and was interested immediately-set in 1788, this work of historical fiction tells the story of a Lieutenant in the First Fleet who travels to New South Wales and sets up an observatory at Sydney Cove. The character Daniel Rooke is loosely based on a real member of the Royal Navy, William Dawes who was prosecuted for attempting to learn the language of the Aborigines. From the beginning of the story the reader soon learns that Rooke is the shy retiring type that just wants to be able to study-he has a firm love of mathematics, astronomy and the sciences. Rookes love of knowledge and his yearning for something new leads him to join the navy and to New South Wales. Keen to stay out of the way, Rooke convinces his superiors that an observatory is needed so that Rooke can keep watch for a foreseen comet.
It is while Rooke is living alone in his observatory that he is first approached by some of the natives, including a young girl called 'Tagaran'. After a couple of initial meetings Rooke and Tagaran begin this wonderful exchange of language set against a backdrop of colonisation. Right from their first meeting, Rooke and Tagaran seem to have this unique bond that enables them to understand what one another are saying, despite the fact that they are both speaking a different language to the other.
At first Rooke is more concerned with learning the native tongue from Taragan, so much so that he fastidiously writes down everything she says and what he thinks is the English equivalent. But pretty soon their union blossoms into something so much more than just wanting to learn a language. In a way, Grenville is wanting the reader to understand that while Taragan and Rooke's friendship is blossoming a way of life is coming to an end; the way of life of the aborigines. It seems the more Rooke and Tagaran get to know one another the more the British gain control of New South Wales and exert their power over the natives.
One very graphic part of the novel involves a native being made an example of when a British prisoner acting as gamekeeper for the colony is attacked. The innocent man is lashed in front of the Royal Navy and many of the natives. The British here are using a punishment that is extremely foreign to the natives. Taragan sees her fellow native being lashed and sees Rooke standing by and watching-not realising that if Rooke was to step in and rescue the man that it would mean Rooke might receive the same punishment or worse. It is at this point that both Rooke and Taragan realise that their flirtations with a foreign culture are to remain just that-they could not possibly be accepted as being friends by either side as they are so different.
The book ends with a beautiful moment where Rooke is being transported back to Britain and he is waving goodbye to Taragan who is stood on the shore. In my opinion, which is not a learned opinion by far, Grenville is making the point that it isn't just old friends waving goodbye to each other for last time, but that the world is waving goodbye to a whole way of life.
The book in three words; beautiful, tragic, wonderful.
If you have read the book or are planning to-let me know what you think!

Poppy Man!

2009-11-10T11:05:00.001-08:00

As part of Great Wyrley History department's Remembrance Day activities, two of my year 9 groups took part in making a 'Poppy Man'. 9Asia and 9Pare were asked to write on a poppy why it was important to remember people who have fought for Britain and think of those people who are still fighting for Britain. I was really impressed with the responses from both groups-so I would like to say a big well done to those students! Pictured with the Poppy Man above are two of the students who contributed: Georgia and Kalyca!

Here is the top part of the poppy man-I couldn't fit him all on as he is quite tall! He is covered from top to toe with poppies carrying remembrance messages. At the minute he is in the foyer of the school for Remembrance Day tomorrow!
Also I visited the National Memorial Arboretum in Alrewas, Staffordshire on Remembrance Sunday to pay my respects. Below are just a few of the poppy wreaths that were left in remembrance of our brave heroes.

Remembrance Sunday

2009-11-08T05:03:00.000-08:00

Today is Remembrance Sunday and I would like to remember some lost loved ones who played their part in war.
My Grandad O'Connor and Grandad Sid who were both in the Navy during the Second World War.
My Grandad Dent who worked long and hard hours in protected services down the pits.
My husband's Grandad Magee who was in the RAF during WW2 and his Grandad McLaughlin who was in protected services in the pits.
My Great Uncle Billy who was a Sergeant Major during the Second World War and who also served as an underage lad during World War One.
All of my relatives who served survived the horrors of war and,I am sure,if they were here today would be remembering their lost comrades.
My thoughts and thanks go out to all service men and women who have fought and who are still fighting on behalf of Britain.
If you would like to leave a message of remembrance please do...

The Man who REALLY Shouldn't have been Shot!

2009-10-12T10:48:00.000-07:00

I've recently been teaching the causes of the First World War to my year 9 classes at Great Wyrley. Every time I teach the assassination of Franz Ferdinand it always amazes me as the assassination, although intended, was a comedy of errors and really should not have been able to come about!
It's the 28th June and the Arch Duke Franz Ferdinand is on a tour of Sarajevo, Bosnia, representing the Austro-Hungarian empire as heir. With him is his pregnant wife, Sophie, who, because of her low birth status, would not normally accompany the arch duke on an official outing but is this time as a special anniversary treat. Franz insists on riding in an open top limousine and refuses to have any army present to protect him, even though he knows his reception may be hostile. Instead, only 120 policemen line the arch duke's entire route-certainly not enough to give any kind of protection.
A small group of terrorists from Serbia, called the Black Hand, are in Sarajevo too-armed with pistols and hand grenades with orders to assassinate the arch duke (Serbia has a severe dislike of the Austro-Hungarian empire and thinks Austria-Hungary wants Serbia as part of their empire). The terrorists take their places along the route the arch duke intends to travel-known as the route had been published in the newspapers. One of the terrorists even asks which car the arch duke will be in and a policeman tells him that Franz will be in the third car in the procession.
Now, the errors are not just on the part of the Austro-Hungarians but also on the terrorists themselves. Firstly, when the arch duke's car passes the first of the terrorists he freezes and does not act. Secondly, as the arch duke's procession passes the next would be assassin, he throws his grenade towards the arch duke's car but it misses. To top it off, the assassin had forgotten that the grenade had a 10 second delay and so by the time the grenade goes off, Franz is well away in his car. This failed would be assassin sticks to the plan and downs his cyanide, intending to end his life. His cyanide, however, is very old and the most effect it has is to make the terrorist sick. Realising the cyanide isn't working the terrorist throws himself into the nearby river with the hope of drowning. This did not work either as the river was only 4 inches deep. The would be assassin is then apprehended.
The two would be assassins next in line to try to kill the arch duke heard the grenade go off. Expecting the arch duke to be dead, when they see the procession coming passed them they are surprised to see that Franz is still alive and are too shocked to act.

Meanwhile, Gavrilo Princip has momentarily left his spot on the route to get a sandwich. This, as well as the arch duke's driver taking a wrong turn off the intended route, means that Princip and the arch duke meet in a back street-a place neither were ever meant to be. After taking the wrong turn, the arch duke's driver is ordered to reverse and go back. As the driver attempts this his gear jams, giving Princip ample time to not only consider how lucky he is but to also fire two shots directly at the arch duke. One bullet hits Franz directly in his throat whilst the other strikes his poor wife Sophie in the stomach (and she wasn't even meant to be there!). Both bleed to death.
This event is what finally 'sparked' off the First World War. It is the story of the one bullet that killed over 9 million people.

Wild, Wild West!

2009-09-29T04:44:00.000-07:00

On timelines.tv, an old favourite of mine, I have just discovered a new timeline dedicated to the history of the American West. There are seven eye-witness accounts of the West, including that of the pioneers, the homesteaders, and of course, the Native Americans-detailing Black Elk's (man pictured) story of life on the Plains, the struggle against white settlers, the Fort Laramie Treaty, and the Battle of Little Bighorn.
These videos are detailed and will make an excellent resource for revision for those students studying the American West as part of their History GCSE, including Great Wyrley's four GCSE groups!

Take a look and let me know what you think.

What's in a Portrait? A Challenge...

2009-09-21T08:40:00.000-07:00

It's the new academic year and my year 8 classes are studying portraits. I have always found portraits to be fascinating-especially if they are of people I really like (Charles II and Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire in particular).
One of the portraits we've been studying is the above 1588 portrait commemorating the defeat of the Spanish Armada. My challenge to you is to study this portrait and let me know what you see and what the symbolism in the portrait means-maybe you'll be able to tell me anything about it I may have missed! Also, let me know what your fave portrait is!

The Necessary Evil?

2009-07-20T06:13:00.000-07:00

It is hard not to have some sort of opinion on Truman's decision to drop the Atomic bomb on Japan in 1945. The question is; what opinion should we have? What opinion is the PC one? Does what you think depend on whether you're an American or Japanese?
I have always felt immense sympathy for the residents of Hiroshima and Nagasaki-but then I think about the 'what ifs?' What if Truman had decided not to use the A-Bomb and had gone for full scale invasion instead?-it would have meant the death of an estimated 1/4 million to 1 million American troops. Would that have been the more humane alternative? I'm not quite sure. After all, the Japanese did attack the US first and, three months after the end of war in Europe, Japan was still carrying on the fight in the Pacific. The war needed to be put to an end and the Japanese were given ample time to surrender. But, the Japanese had always had a militaristic attitude; after all, they were fighting for an Emperor who they believed was a God on earth-they were fighting for their rights, their beliefs, and themselves. Even school children were being trained with bamboo spears to kill any enemy they may come across in an invasion of their land.
The atomic bomb was a new and immensely powerful weapon with a destructive force equivalent to a 2,000-bomber raid. One bomb of this capability had never been tested on humans before-just in the deserts of New Mexico. A select number of people knew what the bomb could do in terms of destruction but they were not fully sure of the after effects it would have on humans.

"In the first billionth of a second of the bomb impacting the temperature reaches 60 million degrees centigrade, 10,000 times hotter than the sun's surface. Within the first 3 seconds, thousands of people are incinerated, carbonised into charred smoking bundles. Birds ignite in mid-air. Steel-framed buildings liquefy like wax...Hundreds of radioactive isotopes spill out of the fireball [that followed], penetrating flesh and bone...Perhaps 80,000 people died in those first seconds after the blast. Thousands more would die later from burns and radiation poisoning".
It is the awful after effects of the bomb, like radiation sickness, that makes me think whether dropping the bomb was the right decision or not-I guess it's hard for me to have a worthy opinion on this with me being neither American nor Japanese.

But I would like to know what you all think about this topic...

Quote taken from BBC History Magazine, Vol 6, no 8, August 2005

Art or a little morbid?

2009-07-15T02:24:00.000-07:00

I have recently discovered the 'art' of post-mortem photography-popular during the Victorian age.
These often disturbing photographs were popular with families who couldn't necessarily afford proper family portraits and so didn't have pictures of the deceased in order to remember them. Sometimes families would have post-mortem photographs taken to capture the deceased as they looked when they died to give to family members who lived far away-so that they could see the deceased as they looked, especially if the family members had not seen the deceased for a number of years.

These post-mortem photos have become a form of art that some people seem to want to collect. I have seen a number of these photos on auction websites-like the one to the right-that are being sold. I am not sure whether I would class such pictures as art but obviously there are people who do.
What do you think?
Some of the examples I found on the Internet are a little too disturbing, in my opinion, to put on a blog-as there are a number of post-mortem photographs of live children posing alongside their recently deceased sibling.

I'm an American President!

2009-06-18T11:03:00.001-07:00

http://i42.tinypic.com/10idoxj.jpg
I was directed to really cool website where you can superimpose images onto ready-made pictures-and I found this one of Mount Rushmore and, as it is was the only vaguely historical photo on the website, I used it to superimpose myself on to! My rocky face looks great!

A Challenge!

2009-06-15T06:39:00.000-07:00

I have bloggers block! For a while now I have been at a loss for something I can blog about-I haven't seen any interesting articles (History related), nor read any books recently (too busy), and so have nothing to blog about. I would like to my readers to challenge me to blog about something of their choice-I think it would be a nice little project for me! So, please get suggesting!

And Another Historical Advert!

2009-05-28T10:23:00.000-07:00

Another great advert inspired by History, this time celebrating 125 years of Marks and Spencer's. Rather good, but still not as good as the Hovis one from last year!

Adverts and History!

2009-05-13T01:57:00.000-07:00

Another fantastic advert inspired by History has been produced; this time for supermarket chain Sainsbury's. Take a look and let me know what you think!

Sorry about the quality-I'll post a better one when it is available!

Who would you Tweet about?

2009-04-28T05:20:00.000-07:00

Twitter has become a place where you can read the thoughts and musings of famous people who have been 6ft under for many years, including Henry VIII and Winston Churchill! The tweets (as the posts are dubbed) imagine how important historical figures may have thought about major events that happened in their life time. Read more about these famous tweeters here.

Which historical figure would you tweet as??

The Duchess of Devonshire...Part 2

2009-04-12T06:22:00.001-07:00

To Georgiana's disappointment the Duke was not different in private to what he was in public-he remained cold and unemotional. This was the cause of much distress to Georgiana who was in a sense the exact opposite to the Duke-she was passionate, fun-loving and sociable. Georgiana could only hope that affection, and possibly love, would come later.
It was because of Georgiana's many attributes that she soon became a popular public figure and leader of the Ton-a group of high society who inspired fashion, trends and tabloid headlines. Anything Georgiana did was the 'done' thing and anything Georgiana wore became the 'it' item of the season. She was a tabloid sensation-reporters followed her wherever she went. You could say that modern celebrity journalism started with her.
It was after Georgiana became an integral part of fashionable society that she started to gamble-initially just to get out of Devonshire House, which was boring and monotonous to her. But Georgiana's gambling would become a problem, especially in later years when creditors were pressing Georgiana to pay them back. For many years Georgiana was able to keep the creditors at bay with loans from friends, including from the Prince of Wales, but there would come a day when Georgiana had to confess all to the Duke as the debts mounted.
By 1782 Georgiana had still not produced an heir; so the Duke and the Duchess decided to travel to Bath so that Georgiana could take the waters there, with the hope of improving her fertility. It was in Bath that Georgiana met Lady Elizabeth Foster, known as Bess, a separated mother of two who was estranged from her husband, and therefore did not see her sons for 14 years. Georgiana and Bess soon became extremely close and ended up being life long friends. Bess was a main stay in Georgiana's life up until Georgiana's death in 1806, even when Georgiana discovered that Bess and the Duke were having an affair. The affair would serve as an advantage to Georgiana however, as Bess was able to smooth over conflict and disagreement between the Duke and the Duchess. Bess also provided Georgiana with the love and affection she craved from her husband, and so Georgiana would not hear bad things said about Bess and ignored all her mother's calls for Georgiana to send Bess away. Although Bess did truly love and care for Georgiana she was always jealous of her friends popularity and status-Bess' commitment to the Devonshires served her well in the end when she became the second Duchess of Devonshire in 1809.

Come back for the third installment when we discover what Georgiana was like as a mother and about her involvement in politics!

Meme...

2009-04-08T11:41:00.000-07:00

SallyMandy has opened this up to everyone and I will too, so here goes:

What is your current obsession? Georgiana Duchess of Devonshire. After recently finishing Amanda Foreman's fab book about Georgiana all I have done is talk about her non-stop! I'll be visiting Chatsworth soon!!!

Good fika place? (That would be coffee to us non-Swedes)
Every morning on my way to work I pick up a large black coffee from my local mickey d's-it is seriously the best coffee I have ever tasted!! Honest!

Do you nap a lot? No-not a napper at all.

Who was the last person you hugged? My husband-he's yummy.

What’s for dinner? Jacket spuds with beans and cheese. Delicious!

What was the last thing you bought? The tour guide to Calke Abbey-a country house in Ticknall, Derbyshire.

What are you listening to right now? I have been listening to all sorts this week as I am on holiday from school. This morning it was Michael Jackson's Dangerous album, his best in my opinion.

What’s on your bedside table? Books-I just love them.

Say something to the person/s who tagged you. SallyMandy, your blog is uber interesting! Keep up the good work!

If you could have a house totally paid for, fully furnished anywhere in the world, where would you want it to be? I would have to say the Vatican city-not because I am religious but because myself and colleague were talking about this last week and I said I quite fancied living in Vatican City. I realise a number of obstacles would have to be overcome but hey?

Favourite holiday (sorry) spot? Isle of Wight-it is a lovely little Island and home to Osborne House-Queen Victoria's most favourite residence.

Name the things you can’t live without. I can not live without my husband, my close family and friends and my comfy little abode.

What would you like to have in your hands right now? A black coffee from mickey d's.

What is your favourite tea flavour? I hate tea. A very un-English thing to say but it's rank.

What would you like to get rid of? Manchester United Football Club.

If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go? The Maldives. An hour is plenty for a small atoll with not much to look at-just enjoy the peace and solitude for an hour would be bliss.

What did you want to become as a child? A teacher-honest! And I am!

What do you miss? (This is Belette Rouge's question) University-it was awesome.

What are you reading right now? Becoming Queen, Kate Williams.

What do you fear the most? Things changing.

What designer piece of clothing would you most like to own (new or vintage)? Not really into designer clothing but would love to own a number of designer bags-the Dior saddle bag mostly.

If you could go back in time what period and where would you go to and why? (question added by TammiMagee of Histatic!) At the minute I would go to the mid to late 18th century in order to meet Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire to see what she was like in person.

Last question, added by Sallymandy: How do you feel about the economy? (please feel free to respond, whether you do the whole meme or not). It's rubbish-too many people are losing their jobs!

That’s all for me. If you’d like to do the meme, here’s how it works.

1. Respond and rework. Answer the questions on your blog, replace one question you dislike with a question of your own invention; add a question of your own.

2. Tag eight other un-tagged people. (I decided to open this up to anyone.)

The Duchess of Devonshire...Part 1

2009-04-05T01:47:00.000-07:00

I have just finished reading Amanda Foreman's wonderful biography 'Georgiana-Duchess of Devonshire', published in 1998. All I can say is that I've been truly captivated by this extraordinary woman and her high octane life. Georgiana was born into the Spencer family at Althorp on 7th June, 1757. Georgiana, despite being closely followed by a baby brother, was her mother's life-long favourite.
Georgiana had a typical aristocratic upbringing-her life governed by the seasons and moving from house to house depending on what time of the year it was. As with all aristocratic families the Spencer's regularly took holidays on the continent to enjoy the benefits of a warmer climate. The whole Spencer family embarked on a Grand Tour in 1772 when Georgiana was 15. Society everywhere admired Georgiana wherever she went-Georgiana was beautiful and graceful, even as a 15 year old girl.
During this tour the Spencer's moved to Spa in 1773-this is where Georgiana met the twenty-four year old Duke of Devonshire. After Georgiana had danced with the Duke several times and sat next to him at various dinners, she was quite 'in love' with the idea of being his wife. The Duke of Devonshire was rather inept in public, not very talkative or one to show his emotions but Georgiana thought that, like her father, the Duke would be different in private.
In 1774 talks about a marriage between the Duke and Georgiana were concluded-it was set-Georgiana would be the Duchess of Devonshire. Georgiana's reaction to the proposal convinced her mother and father that she was truly in love with the Duke, however, Amanda Foreman believes that Georgiana reacted in such a happy way because she knew the marriage would please her parents.
Georgiana was married on her 17th birthday in 1774 to the Duke in what was being dubbed the 'wedding of the year' by society. There were high hopes for the marriage; of course, one high hope would prevail over all others-the hope that Georgiana would give the Duke an heir.

High Street History

2009-03-24T05:32:00.001-07:00

Another great find! Are you interested to see how your high street has changed over time? If you are, take a look at this fab little tool that takes you through a little street and explains why some aspects of towns are preserved and why others are left to decay.

Nazi Gold...

2009-03-19T13:45:00.000-07:00

To finance their expensive war and domination campaign, the Nazis looted gold and other valuable possessions from any country they invaded, including Belgium and the Netherlands. The Nazis would even loot private citizens of countries of their valuables, such as jewellery and art.
There are many theories as to where the Nazis deposited the stolen booty; the obvious location has been deemed to be the Swiss National Bank, as they have one of the most secure and secretive banking systems in the world. The Swiss banks have very strict privacy laws on all accounts; this means that under no circumstances can the banks share any information with third parties, unless it is requested by a Swiss judge's subpoena. This then has made it incredibly difficult for any government to determine who or which country owns any of the Nazi gold that the SNB may have. If the SNB did take in gold and valuables on behalf of the Nazi regime then they most definitely have made a very tidy sum from it!

Should the Swiss banks be forced to return any Nazi gold they may have? Let me know what you think!

Why did London Stink?

2009-03-19T07:21:00.000-07:00

I've just discovered a fantastic quiz that would be great to use as a revision tool for Medicine Through Time!

Have a go and let me know how you get on!

Medicine Revision!

2009-03-19T07:07:00.001-07:00

If you are in Year 10 and are studying History you will know that after the Easter break you will be starting your 'Prohibition' coursework. This means that you will shortly be finishing the Medicine Through Time unit. I have found a really useful interactive tool that can be used as a revision aid. Just type in any question about Medicine Through Time that you have and Dr.Fox will try her best to answer it for you!

Amusing WWII Cartoon...

2009-03-09T03:49:00.000-07:00

I've just been looking at a great blog called Strange Maps and have spotted a very amusing cartoon that makes clever use of cartography to explain the Second World War.

Take a look and let me know what you think!

Food Inspired by History!

2009-03-07T06:00:00.000-08:00

Last week I watched a very entertaining cookery show headed by top chef Heston Blumenthal that saw Heston create a lavish Victorian feast inspired by History! Heston took inspiration from a number of Victorian recipe books and from Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland to create an unusual 'Mad Hatter' style banquet.
Heston's Victorian Feast included a drink that was made up of five distinct flavours, Mock Turtle Soup, and insects-a popular alternative to meat for poorer Victorians, and jelly laced with Absinthe-a drink that Oscar Wilde claimed made him hallucinate.
Next weeks episode will be food inspired by the Medieval era-I'm looking forward to watching it!

Friendliness Award!

2009-03-04T03:17:00.001-08:00

I am very pleased to have received this award from someone who herself has been very friendly to me and my blog-so thank you Ms.Lucy of Enchanted by Josephine!

This award represents:

"This blog invests and believes in the PROXIMITY-nearness in space, time and relationships. These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandizement! Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers! Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eight more and include this clever-written text into the body of their award."

I now need to pass this award on to 8 fellow friendly bloggers-some will probably have already been given the award, so if it is bestowed again class yourself as extra-friendly! :)

I present the award to:

Miss Ellis of geogtastic!
Eliza Knight of History Undressed
Elizabeth Kerri Mahon of Scandalous Women
Pte Harry Lamin of WW1: Experiences of an English Soldier
Bearded Lady of The Raucous Royals
Lauren of Marie Antoinette's Gossip Guide to the 18th Century
Vic of Jane Austen's World
HT of Wonders and Marvels

My Visit to Sudbury Hall

2009-03-03T10:34:00.000-08:00

I am very lucky to live in the middle of England where there are so many fantastic places to visit quite close. One of those places, which I have had the pleasure of visiting countless times, is Sudbury Hall. Sudbury is not big in size, as far as country houses go, but it is a wonderful house. The house is owned by the National Trust and is open from early February until November.
Sudbury Hall is the creation of George Vernon (1635-1702), built from 1660 onwards when Vernon acquired the family estate. Sudbury remained the home of the Vernon family until 1967, when it was given to the Treasury as part-payment of duties after the death of the 9th Lord Vernon. After the house was transferred to the National Trust several rooms were redecorated.
This time when I visited Sudbury I was most anxious to see the Long Gallery, as it featured in the 1995 Pride and Prejudice series, which I love!
This clip from the series sees Elizabeth visiting the fictional house 'Pemberley', the home of Darcy. The interior scenes were filmed at Sudbury Hall, although the exterior is that of Lyme Park in Cheshire.

My highlight of the visit though was spotting two very interesting portraits-upon closer inspection I discovered that one was of Barbara Villiers and the other of Nell Gwyn, both of whom were one time mistresses of Charles II-my favourite British Monarch!

Tell me about an interesting place you've recently visited!

Source and Cartoon Help...

2009-02-25T12:20:00.000-08:00

I would like to start this post by saying how great mine and Mrs. Porritt's Year 10 group did in their mock exams-our group got a well deserved 52% A*-C, which is fantastic!

Now, I've just stumbled across a great website that has some very helpful tips and guidance on how to use sources and how to interpret cartoons. I strongly advise all GCSE History students to use this help as part of their revision, because being able to understand and use sources is a key skill that will need to be honed for the actual exam next year.

Year 9 War Art...

2009-02-12T13:01:00.000-08:00

My Year 9 History group have just finished the First World War unit and ended it by creating their own pieces of war art.

Here are a few excellent examples:

By Frankie K 9EAr

By Hannah H 9EAr

By Sarah B 9JCo

Let me know what you think!

An amusing video about Joseph Lister

2009-02-12T12:56:00.001-08:00

A rather amusing video about Lister and antiseptics!

Medicine Through Time-Surgery Video

2009-02-12T12:44:00.001-08:00

A really useful video on surgery-including Simpson and Lister! Take a look and let me know what you think!

Edward Jenner-video re-cap!

2009-02-12T12:03:00.000-08:00

A nice revision tool for you GCSE History students! Thanks to Doug Belshaw for allowing me to use this.

Year Nine Options Evening...

2009-02-11T12:13:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday night Swanwick Hall had an options evening for all year 9 students. I was involved as part of the History department and it seemed to be a huge success! Don't forget-if you've got any questions about what we study at GCSE History just ask!

Some pics from the night:

Mr. Stowell and the History display!

Histatic Competition!

2009-02-09T04:35:00.000-08:00

This is a first for Histatic-a quote competition!

I want to know what it means and who the people are that have been referred to.

"Rosa sat so Martin could walk; Martin walked so Obama could run; Obama is running so our children can fly"

The first Swanwick Hall student to get the correct answer will win a prize! Answers are to be posted on here.

Good luck!

Find out about your surname...

2009-02-08T07:15:00.000-08:00

I've just stumbled across a surname location generator on the National Trust website that shows the distribution of any surname you type into it. The generator shows the distribution of names in the UK in 1881 and then in 1998, so that you can see the changes, if any.
I put in my maiden name of O'Connor first and in 1881 most O'Connors lived in Liverpool (where my family moved to during the Irish potato famine), and in 1998 the generator still showed that the majority of O'Connors live in Liverpool today.

Type in your surname and see what you discover!

Historical Twitter

2009-02-05T12:15:00.001-08:00

Ever wondered what dead famous people might say? Well, Historical Twitter has the answer! Log in for a bit of a giggle and for quips that will make you smile-you might learn something too!

Let me know what you think...

You think we've got it bad...1947 was worse!

2009-02-05T00:52:00.000-08:00

Having been given the day off school because of the harsh snowy conditions, I thought I would try to find the last really bad case of snow in this country-alas, it was the winter of 1947 (there was a particularly harsh winter in 1963 too).
For about 2 months, from January 1947 to March 1947, snow fell somewhere everyday in the UK. In some areas the amount of snowfall measured 150cm deep, many areas saw snowdrifts of more than 5m deep blocking the roads and railways, and in a few places supplies had to be flown in by helicopter because people were cut off completely! Take a look at some snaps from 1947:

Hopefully things will not get as bad this time in what some people are calling the 'Big Freeze'.

My Dickensian back yard! Love it!

Let me know how you're spending your snowy day!

Buy Cromwell's Death Mask-warts and all!

2009-02-04T08:27:00.001-08:00

Do you fancy owning the death mask of Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell? The above is for sale and could be yours for around £1000! The mask is about 350 years old and shows Cromwell in an exact light-just how he intended! Cromwell was not a fan of vanity in the slightest and insisted that all portraits, even after he expired, were done to show 'warts and all'.

Genocide under the Nazis Timeline

2009-02-02T09:45:00.000-08:00

I have just come across an interactive timeline on the BBC History website called 'Genocide under the Nazis'. The interactive timeline charts the anti-Jewish and racist policies the Nazi regime introduced during their 12 year period in charge of Germany. The timeline "deliberately deprives you of the benefit of hindsight or a view of the future, ensuring you experience events in the sequence they happened to those who lived through them" (taken from BBC History).

Let me know what you think...

Laissez-Faire and the Victorians Quiz

2009-02-02T09:32:00.000-08:00

I recently introduced the term 'Laissez-Faire' to my year 10 History group, who picked up the meaning of the phrase quite well during a recent lesson on public health during the 19th Century. The BBC History website has a great quiz you can do to remind you (for revision) about laissez-faire attitudes during the 1800s.

Remember-it is only a week and a half until you sit your year 10 exams so get revising!

Can You Handle History?

2009-02-01T06:39:00.001-08:00

Holocaust Memorial Day

2009-01-27T11:33:00.000-08:00

Each year the atrocities that took place under the Nazi regime are remembered on the anniversary of the liberation of the concentration camp at Auschwitz-Birkenau. Holocaust Memorial Day, January 27th, commerates the loss of life in genocides not only during the Second World War but also in Cambodia, Bosnia, Rwanda and Darfur.

Find out more about Holocaust Memorial Day and show your support by lighting a candle to remember those who have been victims of genocide.

Cholera, John Snow and the Broad Street Pump!

2009-01-15T11:50:00.000-08:00

There is no mistaking the fact that London was a very dirty place in the 19th century-filth and rubbish was everywhere! The above cartoon, aptly called 'A Court for King Cholera', published in Punch magazine in 1852 outlines just some of the horrid conditions experienced by people in the 1800s.
Conditions were so bad at this point due to rapid population growth as a result of industrialisation. Growth was so quick that towns could not cope with the need to house people and provide them with water and facilities to remove their sewage. In these conditions, nasty and devastating diseases spread very quickly.
The first case of widespread cholera hit Britain in 1831-it was a 'shock disease' that killed quickly. Sufferers would have to endure sudden and prolonged bouts of diarrhoea and vomiting-death as a result of cholera was swift, painful and unpleasant. It was because of these dreadful symptoms that cholera was the most feared disease during this time.
Of course at this time people did not understand that germs caused cholera, as Pasteur's Germ Theory was not published until 1861. People had all sorts of explanations for disease-punishment from God, Miasma or 'bad air', and the movement of the planets.

In 1832 many people studied the cholera epidemic of that year and, after careful observation of the disease, they deduced that there was a link between cholera and water supply. Obviously, this could not be explained because Pasteur had not discovered germs yet!
In 1854 Dr. John Snow made a breakthrough in proving that there was a link between cholera and water supply. Snow used meticulous research, observation, and house-to-house interviews to build up a detailed picture of a limited cholera epidemic which hit one particular area of London.

Within 10 days of the cholera outbreak around Broad Street in London, 500 people had died of the disease. Snow's research led him to discover that all of these deaths occurred within 250 yards of the water pump on Broad Street. Snow started to investigate the surrounding area of the pump and what he found led him to request that the council disable the Broad Street pump-once this was done no more deaths occurred in that same area.
Snow had found a link between the people who were getting their drinking water from the Broad Street pump and the people dying from cholera-it was mostly people using this pump that were falling victim to the terrible disease.
Cholera is spread by infected water and it was later discovered that a cesspool, one metre away from the pump, had a cracked lining allowing the contents to seep into the drinking water.
Unfortunately, John Snow, who was one of the more forward thinking surgeons of his time being one of the first to champion the use of chloroform, didn't live to see why his theory about cholera being linked to water was correct. Snow died in 1858 as the result of a stroke, three years before germs were discovered.

Victoria...an unlikely Queen

2009-01-02T09:25:00.001-08:00

Queen Victoria was never meant to be Queen of Britain. Born to the Duke of Kent on 24th May 1819 she was the fourth in line to the throne. Needless to say, Victoria's birth did not send shock waves through the country. The most that was expected of her was to make a good marriage.
However, Victoria was born during a time when the Royal Family were experiencing a succession crisis. George III's five surviving daughters and seven sons were middle aged and had had only one legitimate heir between them by 1817. The legitimate heir was Princess Charlotte-the whole country were pinning all their hopes on her producing a male heir. When Princess Charlotte and her hubby, Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg, were expecting a child the country breathed a sigh of relief. But after an extremely long and difficult labour, Charlotte produced a still born baby boy. If this was not enough bad luck for the Royal family, within hours of the birth Princess Charlotte contracted a fever and died. A wave of panic came over the Royal family and the country because of the lack of an heir.
The panic started what can only be described as a competition between the Dukes to see who could produce an heir first. The Duke of Kent (below) married Prince Leopold's sister, Victoire, and started the race to produce an heir.

Victoire soon became pregnant and the Duke of Kent was elated-he had won the race. The Prince Regent was not elated-he was so unhappy that he was determined to put a dampener on things.
The Prince Regent only allowed a handful of people to attend the christening of the new member of the royal family. The Duke and Duchess had planned to name their daughter Georgiana Charlotte Augusta Alexandrina Victoria. However, the Prince Regent, who was one of the baby's godfathers, refused to allow his own name (George) or his late daughter's name (Charlotte Augusta) to be bestowed upon this possible future queen. He announced that the baby would be named Alexandrina after her other godfather, Russian Tsar Alexander I. When Edward suggested Elizabeth as a second name, the Prince Regent shook his head and declared, "Give her the mother's name also then". Victoria was christened Alexandrina Victoria, although her mother preferred to call her Victoria.
At aged 8 months, Victoria's father died after taking to his bed with a chill. This left Victoria and her mother in a dire situation. They had little money and needed help. Prince Leopold persuaded the Prince Regent to allow Victoria and her mother to live in Kensington Palace. He begrudgingly obliged. The day Victoria and the Duchess moved into Kensington Palace King George III died-the Prince Regent was crowned George IV. Victoria was now third in line to the throne.

Victoria's mother and her close friend, Sir John Conroy, were convinced that Victoria would become Queen and so made sure that they conditioned Victoria for that result. Everything Victoria did was monitored-she was seldom left alone at any time-even all of her food was tasted before she ate anything.
As Victoria grew her Uncles remained childless. The Duke of Clarence came close to producing an heir but the two daughters he had both died in infancy. When Victoria was 11 King George IV died and the 64-year-old Duke of Clarence became King William IV. Victoria was now heir to the throne of Britain. Victoria's mother began to flaunt Victoria around all over the country-her daughter was sure to be Queen!
The politicians of the day thought that the name Victoria to be unsuited for a Queen and tried to get her mother to change Victoria's name to something more suitable, like Elizabeth or Charlotte. After some thought, the Duchess refused-the thought of her daughter bearing her name as Queen was far too appealing to change. Just imagine if the Duchess had agreed to the name change-we would have no great 'Victorian Age' but something else entirely! It just would not be the same would it?

The Cottingley Fairies...real or fake?

2008-12-30T08:16:00.001-08:00

In 1917 two young girls took some photographs that would go on to captivate the world. Frances Griffiths and Elsie Wright, who lived in Cottingley, produced the most famous fairy pictures in Britain. But were the pictures real or fake?
Frances and Elsie lived in an area called Bingley where there was a strong belief in fairies-existing from local folklore passed down through the generations. Harry Speight author of 'Chronicles and Stories of Bingley and District', 1904, wrote that the fairies "looked like tiny white garments hung out on the trees". Frances and Elsie believed they had seen these fairies that Speight had described and so headed off with Elsie's father's quarter plate camera to capture stills of the fairies and prove they were real.
Frances and Elsie headed off with the camera and an hour later returned triumphant. Mr. Wright developed the plates and upon seeing the images declared the pictures of the fairies to be fakes and put them away in a drawer. Mrs. Wright, however, was adamant that the pictures were genuine. The girls were banned by Mr. Wright from using the camera again.

The pictures of the fairies were all but forgotten until 3 years later in 1920 when Mrs. Wright went to a folklore lecture in Bradford. Fairies were mentioned in the lecture and after Mrs. Wright had a conversation with a friend about fairies, mentioning the pictures. This exchange was overheard by a friend of Edward Gardner, a leading theosophist-Edward was informed of the pictures and he asked to see them.
Gardner got a leading photographer to examine the pictures for authenticity-the photographer, Harold Snelling, studied the pictures and declared them to be "entirely genuine unfaked photographs". Gardner asked Snelling to make lantern slides of the fairy pictures-these slides were shown at a lecture where they caught the attention of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Gardner and Conan Doyle joined forces on pursuing the intrigue and mystery behind the pictures and set up a meeting with Kodak in order for them to give a second opinion on the pictures authenticity. Once Gardner and Conan Doyle had Kodak authenticate the pictures they would take the story to the press.
Kodak examined the pictures and they declared that the pictures had not been tampered with but that it was impossible for fairies to exist and therefore fake-so an authenticity certificate was not issued. Despite this minor set back and after personally interviewing Mr. and Mrs. Wright and Elsie Wright, Gardner and Conan Doyle took the pictures to The Strand magazine in 1920. The article was entitled 'An Epoch Making Event-Fairies Photographed' and the publication was sold out within a matter of days. It was the start of a phenomenon that would last for over sixty years.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, author of the Sherlock Holmes books, was utterly convinced by the photographs-he even published a book called 'The Coming of the fairies' that detailed the whole fairy picture affair.
Many people were certainly taken in by the pictures, especially the fifth picture of the fairies (below) that does seem to have an air of realistic charm about it. But Fairies? Could they possibly be real?

It seems not. In 1981 when being interviewed yet again about the fairies, Frances and Elsie declared the pictures to be fakes. They both said that they had held up cut-out fairies with hatpins to capture the pictures that would go on to fool the world. Despite this eventual revelation Frances Griffiths continued to maintain that they had seen the fairies and that the fifth picture was the one picture that was in fact real. Since Frances and Elsie have been dead many experts have looked into the Cottingley Fairy mystery and most have declared it to have been a hoax by the girls.
I am quite a big fan of fairies and would love to think that fairies were real-but alas I have never seen one! Perhaps if I go to Yorkshire myself, to the place where Frances and Elsie 'saw' their fairies I might see one?

First World War animations

2008-12-21T09:55:00.000-08:00

When Swanwick Hall's students come back to school in the new year Year 9 will be studying the First World War. The BBC have got a great website dedicated to all things history and I have just discovered a great set of interactive animations about Britain and the 'Great War'. The animations look at many of the things the Year 9 students will be studying over the 6 week course-take a look and let me know what you think.

Victorian Child Labour...

2008-12-21T08:21:00.000-08:00

In Victorian Britain if you came from a poor family, when you reached a certain age you wouldn't go to school instead you would start work in order to help support the family. Poor children would start hard physical work from as early as aged 5! Many of the jobs children did at this time were unpleasant and often were rather dangerous.
Some children worked in coal mines pushing heavy trucks of coal to the surface. They did all of their work in the dark with only the light of a candle to help them see. Some children were employed by mine owners to hold shaft doors open to let air in and to clear the way for children coming with trucks of coal.

Other children worked in factories where they were employed to piece cotton together and fix machinery-as they were small enough to get in between the moving parts. Many children fell ill as a result of working in cotton mills or had bad accidents, which left them with injuries.
Most factory owners and mine owners did not think anything was wrong with giving nasty jobs to children as there were no laws against it. Children were forced to work long hours with very little pay.
Children in the country also worked; they did jobs like picking up stones before the crops were sown or scaring birds away from the crops. Jobs in the country were just as hard as jobs in towns and cities but also involved working in cold and wet conditions.
Children were employed as cheap labour and could not complain, as there were no laws protecting them, and if they did the consequences could be severe: they could be beaten by the Overseers or even lose their job!
Some orphans and homeless children were sold to employers. A lot of small and thin boys were used as chimney sweeps-as they could fit up the narrow chimney shafts. These boys would clean the chimneys in rich people's homes-probably wondering why he was squeezing through a dirty chimney while rich children could go to school and had nice toys. Being a chimney sweep was quite a dangerous job-it was often done with no shoes on so the boys feet would be sore and bleeding. Chimney sweeps were fed very little as they had to stay lithe to be able to fit up the chimney stack-this meant they were hungry most of the time and therefore rather weak. If the chimney sweeper's master thought the sweep was taking too long he would thrust a long stick up the chimney in order to hurry the sweep up, or even worse he would light the fire at the bottom so that the sweep had no choice but to hurry up the flue.

In 1833 the first Factory Act was passed thanks to the successful campaigning of Lord Shaftesbury, who had gathered evidence from working children to condemn the condition they worked in. The act made it illegal to employ children as workers under the age of 9, children between 9 and 13 could work no more than 9 hours a day, children from 13 to 18 could work no more than 12 hours a day and all employed children had to have at least 2 hours of schooling a day. Conditions didn't change for working children overnight and many factory and mine owners ignored the legislation, but at least it was the start of change for children, albeit the start of a slow change.
So, next time your parents ask for a cuppa-don't moan, just think of how lucky you actually are!

If only Galen could see this!

2008-12-16T07:47:00.001-08:00

The infamous and yet engrossing exhibition designed by German anatomist Gunther Von Hagens, has come back to the UK. The exhibition sees the return of examples of Hagen's work, which includes specimens of human organs and human bodies that have been through the process of Plastination. The human bodies on display, which were once living and breathing people, have been preserved using the special technique in order for curious folk to see how the human anatomy works. The 'articles' on display are incredibly real looking with muscles and facial features still intact-you can even see veins and arteries!
Swanwick Hall's GCSE History students will be well aware of the famous anatomist Claudius Galen, who's ideas about the human body were followed almost religiously for around 1500 years. The only problem with that was Galen had been wrong about most of his findings-mainly because he dissected animals as dissecting humans was prohibited by the Church in the 2nd century. If only Galen could see Hagen's exhibit!

Have A Victorian Christmas!

2008-12-14T09:08:00.001-08:00

Ever wondered where we get our Christmas traditions from? Well, we have those glorious Victorians to thank for some of our most beloved festive past times! Before Victoria was crowned Queen in 1837 nobody in Britain had heard of Santa Claus or Christmas crackers. No Christmas cards were sent and most folk did not have time off work.
Here are a few noteworthy Yuletide customs that date from the Victorian era:

The Holidays: The wealth generated by the new factories and industries of the Victorian age allowed Middle Class families to take time off work and celebrate over two days; Christmas Day and Boxing Day. December 26th was given the nickname 'Boxing Day' because on the 26th servants and workers would open the boxes in which they had collected gifts of money and food from the rich.

The Gifts: At the start of Queen Victoria's reign, children's toys tended to be handmade and therefore costly, which meant they were unaffordable for most people. With factories, however, came mass production, which brought with it games, dolls, books and clockwork toys at more affordable prices. Even these more affordable gifts were only affordable by the Middle Class. Poor children made do with only a stocking in which only an apple, orange and a few nuts could be found (something that my Nan reminds me about yearly).

Santa: The stories of St. Nicholas (Sinter Klaas in Holland) came via Dutch settlers to America in the 17th century. From the 1870s Sinter Klaas became known in Britain as Santa Claus and with him came his story of delivering gifts using reindeer and a sleigh.

Christmas Cards: The 'Penny Post' was first introduced in Britain in 1840 by Rowland Hill. In 1843, Sir Henry Cole (who had been part of introducing the Penny Post and is often credited with designing the worlds first postage stamp; the Penny Black) printed a thousand cards for sale in his art shop in London at 1 shilling each. These became the first lot of Christmas cards sent in Britain. The popularity of sending cards was helped in 1870 when a half penny postage was introduced as a result of the efficient railways.

The Tree: Queen Victoria's husband, Prince Albert, made the Christmas tree a hit in Britain. Christmas trees were popular in Prince Albert's native country Germany, and so Albert introduced what is arguably the epitome of Christmas; the decorated Christmas tree (pictured above), in the 1840s.

The Cracker: An idea from sweetmake Tom Smith in 1846-Tom Smith had the idea to wrap his sweets in fancy coloured paper. This idea later developed further when Tom Smith's twisted paper surprise had other things added to it: a motto, a paper hat, a small toy and a bang!

Thank goodness for the Victorians-we may not have such a lovely Christmas if it hadn't have been for them!

Revision is key to exam success!

2008-12-12T08:05:00.000-08:00

Most of my GCSE History students will know that the key to exam success is revision! For those of you that are in year 11, I am sure that revision will be on your mind. so I have looked out some great revision guides for you. Revision guides are definitely worth investing in as they cover all the things you need to know, offer sound advice and can be sold on to year 10's when you no longer need them! A totally win/win situation!

Do make sure that any revision guide you buy for GCSE History is for the Edexcel course!

Anaesthetics!

2008-12-11T10:54:00.000-08:00

In Year 10 History we have been studying 19th century surgery this week, paying particular attention to Simpson and chloroform. I have just discovered an interesting article about the dark side of anaesthesia-take a read and let me know your thoughts! Keep on going histatic!

p.s.-after the Christmas hols we'll be looking at Lister and carbolic spray!

Girl Power-Elizabeth Garrett (1836-1917)

2008-12-09T11:09:00.001-08:00

If you are doing GCSE History at Swanwick Hall, you will be studying Medicine Through Time. There is a chance that you'll get a question on the role of women in medicine, so here is an article that is going to be a good revision tool for you!

In the Middle Ages the Church only allowed men to train as doctors. In the 1600s the Church also took over the licensing of all healers. It did not give licenses to wise women or village healers because they were often suspected of being witches. By the 1700s surgeons also had to have a university degree, and, as women could not go to university they were effectively barred from becoming surgeons. In the 1700s male doctors became fashionable, and began to take over the traditional role of midwives among wealthy families because they were the only ones trained to use forceps. Finally, in 1852, the government introduced the Medical Registration Act which required all doctors to belong to one of the Colleges of Physicians, Surgeons or Apothecaries. All of these were closed to women.

Ever since early medicine women had taken a prime role in caring for their families-mixing herbal remedies and delivering babies-but for hundreds of years women were prevented from becoming professional physicians. In the 1850s women began to fight back. However, the problems for ambitious women began long before they reached the age when they might want to study medicine. Schools for girls were a rarity before the 1860s-certainly ones that taught anything other than reading, writing, cooking and dressmaking. Science? That was a subject for boys! Even those girls lucky enough to be educated at a good school found that their days of learning were over when they reached their mid-teens because women were not allowed to attend universities. Most men could not see any sense in educating women when their most important roles were as obedient wives, dutiful mothers and efficient housekeepers.

Despite these obstacles a handful of women fought for the right to become doctors. Elizabeth Blackwell was the first woman to qualify as a doctor in the United States in 1849. She visited England 10 years later, inspiring Elizabeth Garrett to follow in her footsteps. Elizabeth Garrett was the first woman to qualify in Britain as a doctor but she had to overcome immense difficulties, first to get training, and then to be allowed to practise as a doctor.

Elizabeth received a good education as a girl because her father had become a successful businessman. Elizabeth decided, after being inspired by Elizabeth Blackwell, that she wanted to be a doctor. Elizabeth enrolled as a nursing student at Middlesex University and attended classes that were for male doctors. After a number of complaints from the male students, Elizabeth was barred from going into the lecture hall. Elizabeth discovered that the Society of Apothecaries did not specify that females were banned for taking their examinations. In 1865 Elizabeth sat and passed the Apothecaries examination. As soon as Elizabeth was granted the certificate that enabled her to become a doctor, the Society of Apothecaries changed their regulations to stop other women from entering the profession in this way. With support and financial backing from her father, Elizabeth opened up her own medical practice in London. As all doctors now had to belong to a College to be recognised as a professional, the Colleges of Surgeons, Physicians or Apothecaries had to decide whether to accept Elizabeth as a qualified doctor. They refused-so Elizabeth took the College of Apothecaries to court to force them to accept her. In 1876 a new law was passed opening all medical qualifications to women.

Women were now allowed to train and qualify as doctors, however, progress was slow. The first real increase in the number of women doctors came when there was a sudden demand for more doctors during the First World War.

Sophie Scholl

2008-12-03T11:59:00.001-08:00

Sophie Scholl has been someone who I have admired for quite a while-ever since I saw the amazing 2003 Marc Rothemund film about her. The film is great and I highly recommend it to everybody! My year 9 students will watch elements of the film when we study the Second World War.
Sophie Scholl was only a young girl when Adolf Hitler came to power in Germany in 1933. Over the years Sophie witnessed the Nazi atrocities that were taking place in Germany and, after joining the BDM (which opened Sophie's eyes to what Nazism was) and becoming influenced by her father's dissenting views, she became a firm objector to Nazism.
In 1942 Sophie enrolled at Munich University to study biology and philosophy. Sophie's brother, Hans, also studied at the university and introduced Sophie to his friends. Sophie, Hans and their friends were keen lovers of art, music, literature, philosophy and theology-interests that led them to question the authority of the Nazi regime and the suppressing nature Nazi policies. The group of friends secretly discussed politics together and formed the anti-Nazi youth organisation called the 'White Rose'.
In 1942 the White Rose started to publish leaflets anonymously that called for Germans to passively resist the Nazi regime. Sophie did not take part in writing the leaflets but, after discovering what her brother and his friends were doing, insisted on helping distribute the leaflets. This was handy for the White Rose because with Sophie being female it meant she was less likely to be stopped and searched by the SS.

On 18th February 1943, Sophie took part in the distribution of the sixth leaflet that the White Rose produced. The plan was simple; Sophie and Hans would go into Munich University while morning lectures were still on to distribute the leaflets. Sophie would carry the suitcase containing the leaflets and, if asked about why she had the case, would say that she had it because she was taking laundry to her Mother in Ulm. As for the reason Sophie was at the university before leaving for Ulm, she would say that she had a lunch date with a friend before her train to Ulm was due. Sophie and Hans would put out all the leaflets and would be undiscovered. The resulting influx of students from the lecture halls into the corridors where Sophie and Hans would leave the leaflets would mean that all the leaflets would be picked up. This plan almost worked for Sophie and Hans-just before they were about to leave, after believing they had distributed all the leaflets they had in the case, Sophie noticed that there were more. Not wanting to waste them, as paper was expensive during wartime, Sophie and Hans would continue putting out the leaflets. As the bell went to signal the end of morning lectures, Sophie, without thinking, pushed a stack of leaflets off a balcony. This one careless act was witnessed by a custodian who was, or at least pretended to be, a Nazi through and through. The custodian reported Sophie and Hans to the university and both were quickly arrested.
The clip below from the film 'Sophie Scholl' shows Sophie and Hans distributing the sixth leaflet.

During Sophie's trial she was very outspoken about her actions and her abhorrence of the Nazi regime right to the end, even when the judge, the dreaded Roland Freisler, sentenced Sophie to death for treason. Sophie's bravery has earned her a lot of respect and admiration-she has become a key figure in German history because of her actions.
Instead of receiving the usual 100 days in prison, given to prisoners who had been sentenced to death before the sentence was carried out-Sophie, Hans and Christoph Probst-another member of the White Rose, were killed the very same day of their sentencing. At 17:00 Sophie was led away to the guillotine that would cut her life short-it has been recorded that her last words before her execution were: "How can we expect righteousness to prevail when there is hardly anyone willing to give himself up individually to a righteous cause. Such a fine, sunny day, and I have to go. But what does my death matter, if through us thousands of people are awakened and stirred to action?".
Sophie was a brave, intelligent, awe-inspiring young woman who was willing, along with her White Rose counterparts, to stand up for what was right and to speak out against a regime of hate. For this, Sophie has been honoured in many ways by Germany-and rightly so.

Let me know what you make of Sophie Scholl and the White Rose.

A Pushy Mother? Part 4

2008-12-02T10:56:00.000-08:00

As a child Winston Churchill longed for attention and affection from his mother; even when Winston was away at boarding school he would write to his mother pleading for her to visit him. But Jennie Jerome was far too busy trying to further her husband's political career to be particularly moved my Winston's pleas. It wasn't until Jennie's husband, Lord Randolph, died that Jennie began to show any real interest in her son and his career.
In 1895 Winston passed out as a Lieutenant from the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst and directly began his military career. Winston was a very ambitious young man who wanted desperately to impress his mother. Whilst on duty, Winston would often write to his mother about his achievements and his bravery on the front. Winston didn't shy away from his duties in the cavalry; he would purposefully get into dangerous situations whilst in battle so that he could write to his mother about his fearless attitude. Winston saw action in Cuba (where he first came under fire-much to his delight and started his 'love affair' with Cuban cigars), India, Malakand (now in Pakistan), Sudan, South Africa (where he escaped from a prison camp after being caught by the Boers), and on the front during the First World War (after having to leave the war cabinet after the disastrous Gallipoli campaign).

Throughout Winston's military and political career up until her death in 1921, Jennie took a primary role in her son's professional life. Winston was a keen writer and when he wanted to publish his accounts of life in battle, his mother used her contacts to make it happen. When Winston had a desire to join the British campaign in North Africa to further his career, Jennie travelled to Cairo to see a lover who was in a position to 'make things happen' for Winston. Thanks to Jennie's influential contacts and her determination to make her son a success, Winston's career went from strength to strength. But what Jennie really wanted for her son was to pick up where her late husband had left off; to be successful in politics. Winston had tried and failed to get into politics in 1899 when he stood for a seat in Oldham. With Jennie's help and persuasion, Winston stood again in 1900 with success and was elected the MP for Oldham.
Like his father, Winston quickly rose up the ranks in politics, getting his first minister position when he was 34 and becoming the Home Secretary at 36. Jennie always maintained and told her son regularly that he was destined for great things. Winston realised that being successful meant that he would have all the attention and praise that he had craved from his mother as a child. However, Winston's rise didn't come without a minor set back: the Battle of Gallipoli.
In 1914, Britain declared war on Germany for violating Belgium's neutrality. In 1911 Winston had been promoted to First Lord of the Admiralty, which put him in charge of the Royal Navy. In 1915 Winston was one of the organisers of the disastrous Dardanelles campaign and, when the campaign was deemed a complete failure, took the blame for the fiasco. As a result, Winston was forced to take a demotion and in November 1915 resigned from government altogether, although he still remained an MP. To Jennie it seemed like history was repeating itself and she was angry with Winston for resigning. However, Jennie still carried on telling Winston that he was destined for great things. Jennie's support and encouragement never ceased and was rewarded when Winston decided to make a return to government in 1917.
Jennie was able to see Winston become active and successful in politics once more but she was never to see her son become Prime Minister, something that deeply saddened Winston. Jennie always knew that Winston was destined for great things but, unfortunately, never saw Winston become PM in 1940. Jennie died in 1921 from a hemorrhage after having to have a leg amputated because of a fall.
There is no doubt that Jennie was desperate for success and influence, but I am not sure that she was a 'pushy' mother. Jennie certainly wanted Winston to do well in life but often Jennie only acted to help her son when he requested her to do so. I believe Winston was just as ambitious as his mother and didn't need much 'pushing' to follow the path that he did. It seems that Winston's ambition stemmed from the fact that he had a rather loveless childhood and a mother whom he adored and desperately wanted to please.

What do you think?

I love History Too!

2008-12-02T08:09:00.000-08:00

I have just come across a great website for lower school students aptly called 'I Love History' (many of my students will hear me say that a lot!). The website has lots of great information and links to games, podcasts and other great websites that relate to the curriculum at Swanwick Hall! Unfortunately the revision podcasts for GCSE are no use to our students as they do not cover the topics we study.

Take a look at the website and look out for new content that relates to your lessons!

Which Way?

2008-11-23T08:49:00.001-08:00

This is not history-it's geography!

A Pushy Mother? Part 3

2008-11-23T02:57:00.001-08:00

Soon after their marriage Jennie and Randolph Churchill became society's 'golden couple'. Together Jennie and Randolph were a formidable team-Jennie knew that the only way she would get what she wanted was if she helped Randolph along the way in his political career. In personality Jennie and Randolph were quite different; he was deemed rude and awkward in social situations, whereas, Jennie was quite the social butterfly. Jennie would make polite conversation with people she met and would charm them with her wit and knowledge. If Jennie wanted Randolph to be successful in politics she knew she would have to push him hard.

Luckily for Lord Randolph, Jennie had many important social and political contacts, as well as the drive and ambition to work hard herself to make sure her new hubby started to fly high in politics. Jennie was a risk taker and the intensity of politics excited her-she joined up with Lord Randolph to make a very successful political team. Jennie would canvass for her husband and even make political speeches on his behalf! It was this self confidence that Jennie displayed regularly that made her a magnet-men seemed to fall at her feet where ever she went. Lord Randolph didn't seem to mind all his wife's affairs-as they would often benefit his career. By the time Lord Randolph was 37 he was the Chancellor of the Exchequer and many, including Jennie, believed that he would become Prime Minister. Jennie was intensely loyal to her husband, especially when it concerned his career. So when Lord Randolph resigned from his job in 1886 over a minor detail of government policy, Jennie was extremely angry. This act meant that Jennie had lost hope in her dream of becoming even more influential and powerful than she already was.

Not long after Lord Churchill's resignation his health started to deteriorate-it is now believed that he was suffering from syphilis, a sexually transmitted infection that he probably caught from sleeping with prostitutes in Paris. Unfortunately, syphilis was incurable in the 19th century and so Lord Randolph had to suffer the awful effects of the disease. When Lord Randolph's condition deteriorated further he did what many rich people did at the time; he went travelling, with the idea that the fresh air would be beneficial to his health. Ever the loyal wife, Jennie went with him on his trips, as did Lord Randolph's coffin-just in case he died. Within a few years of Lord Randolph contracting syphilis he was reduced to insanity and in January 1895 he died.
Now that her husband was gone, Jennie had to rethink her political plans-she no longer had Lord Randolph to push into working hard to achieve her dreams. Jennie would have to look to her up and coming son, Winston, to achieve them for her instead.

'Do you Smell something Burning?'

2008-11-22T04:55:00.000-08:00

We recently studied disasters as part of our H-Links curriculum and a lot of you really enjoyed looking at the Great Fire of London. If you want to read up on the fire a little more I have found a great article. Most of the detail in the article is what we covered in class but it makes an excellent read. Enjoy!

A Pushy Mother? Part 2

2008-11-17T12:42:00.000-08:00

Jennie Jerome's rise to the landed aristocracy in England started at a time when the English aristocracy was in desperate need of some new money and new blood to revitalise it. The young and ambitious Jennie moved to London with the hope of mixing with the right people. Jennie caused a stir almost immediately-even getting the attention of HRH the Prince of Wales (who would later become King Edward VII). Jennie was everything a young woman was supposed to be-she was charismatic, vivacious, charming, well-read, and an accomplished pianist. It goes without saying that Jennie Jerome impressed the high society in England.

It wasn't long before Jennie was being invited to all the best parties, including a party thrown by the 'Playboy Prince' himself, where Jennie would meet her future husband, Lord Randolph Churchill, for the first time. Churchill was completely captivated by Jennie's charm and beauty-he even said to his friend that he would marry her. True to his word, three days later Lord Randolph proposed to Jennie Jerome.

It was a match that was advantageous for both sides; Jennie had succeeded in securing the life that she desperately wanted, and Randolph was given an astonishing £3 million-a very tidy sum for 1874! However, despite the great start Jennie and Randolph got in the married life it would not be an easy marriage for the couple.

Histatic Quiz 2!

2008-11-17T12:36:00.000-08:00

Here it is-the all new Histatic quiz! Have a go...

1. Who is the only British Prime Minister to be buried in St Paul's Cathedral?
2. Name the four American Presidents on Mount Rushmore.
3. Who is the famous son of Lady Randy? (see blog below for help)
4. Who discovered the smallpox vaccine?
5. What was Georgiana Duchess of Devonshire's marital surname?
6. What was the name of Oliver Cromwell's son?
7. When Nelson won the Battle of Trafalgar, which two nations did he beat?
8. What was the name of the rebellious Iceni Queen?
9. In what year was the Globe theatre originally opened?
10. When was the first electric powered washing machine invented?

Questions compiled with the help of Emma Basden!

Have fun!

A Pushy Mother? Part 1

2008-11-12T11:24:00.000-08:00

Winston Churchill once said of his mother that he "loved her deeply, but from a distance". Obviously, Jennie Jerome, Churchill's mother's name before she married Lord Randolph Churchill in 1874, was not what you would call a 'hands on' kind of parent. In fact, 'Lady Randy' (dubbed this because of her somewhat questionable lifestyle), was not at all maternal towards her son-as soon as young Winston was old enough he was packed away to Boarding school; a situation that Lady Churchill was quite happy about, maybe because she could carry on her lavish lifestyle without having to bother with giving her son any attention. Despite this quite lonely and seemingly loveless childhood, Winston Churchill went on to achieve many great things, including leading Britain through the Second World War. Many historians argue that this was down to the influence of his power hungry Mother.

Jennie Jerome was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1854 to an affluent family; Jennie's Father had made money from investing in the Railway. Jennie grew up watching her father work very hard for what he got. Even though some of his ventures failed, her father would always get straight back to work. This strong work ethic stayed with Jennie; she realised that if she too worked hard like her father, she would achieve all that she desired. And what Jennie Jerome desired was power, influence and wealth.

Lest We Forget

2008-11-10T14:07:00.000-08:00

This November marks the 90th anniversary since the end of the First World War. Tomorrow is Remembrance Day where most people will show their respect by wearing a Poppy and observing a 2 minute silence at 11am.
The reason Remembrance day is held on the 11th November at 11am every year is because on 11th November 1918 the Armistice was signed between the Allied and German armies, ending the First World War – a global war that lasted four years with the total human cost to Britain and the Empire of 3,049,972 casualties, including 658,705dead.
Every year people remember our war heroes and all the service men and women who are currently fighting. The money raised from the Poppy Appeal is used to help ex-service men and women, their families, injured and disabled soldiers, and soldiers who need help in any way.

Iconic Images

2008-11-02T01:54:00.000-07:00

I have just come across a fantastic website called 'World's Famous Photos' that contains hundreds of iconic images, many I recognise myself. I very often look for a number of these famous pictures to use with my groups at school, now, thanks to this website, it will be a much easier task!

The picture I have posted at the top is one that I came across many years ago that I keep coming back to. I find this image to be very poignant, not only for what it is showing; the plight of Sudan during a terrible famine and the starving boy that is being stalked by a vulture,that is waiting for the child to die, but also for the story behind this photo. The photo was taken in 1994 by Kevin Carter in Sudan. The dying child is crawling towards a United Nations food camp, located a kilometer away. Carter took a photo of this scene to highlight the plight of the Sudanese people, but after the picture was taken he left the scene. Carter's image went on to win the Pulitzer Prize. No one knows what happened to the starving child depicted in this photo, not even Carter. The picture did generate public interest in the plight of Sudan but Carter couldn't live with the guilt of leaving the child. Three months after taking the photo Carter committed suicide.

Take a look at the images contained on the website and let me know which one stands out the most for you!

Medieval Tipples!

2008-10-29T14:14:00.000-07:00

Ever wondered what people drank during the Middle Ages? I have found an interesting article that will tell you!

Get Your Poppy!

2008-10-27T09:21:00.000-07:00

The Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal has begun! Get yours at any local supermarket now!

The Black Death Quiz

2008-10-13T04:18:00.000-07:00

This weeks Year 7 H-Links homework is to play the Black Death Penalty Shootout game. Don't forget to write in your H-Links books what score you get! Enjoy!

Ride To The Wall-A Great Success!

2008-10-11T05:09:00.000-07:00

The first ever Ride To The Wall remembrance event has been a huge success! The event was organised by the Nene Valley Harley Owners Group to remember those that have died on duty since the Second World War. Sources estimated that over 800 bikers would be taking part but the actual number was closer to 2500 bikers! The riders involved started to arrive at round 11.30am and soon filled up the designated space allocated to them, and so other places had to be found for them to park. The procession didn't slow down until about 50 minutes later when the last lot of bikers had to pull up on the road outside of the arboretum, because so many had come to take part. It was a glorious sight to see so many people attending the remembrance service, which comes exactly one month before Remembrance Day. Many of the bikers that took part have connections to war; many were once on active service or have children who are currently on duty, and quite a few were taking part for more emotional reasons to remember lost loved ones.

Hopefully, this event will be an annual commeration that will attract more and more visitors to the National Memorial Arboretum, as the memorial relies solely on donations to keep it going. The arboretum is a magnificent place to visit, for more information visit their website.

Get on Your Bike!

2008-10-10T11:43:00.000-07:00

The Nene Valley Harley Owners Group are hosting the first ever 'Ride To The Wall' bike ride to The National Memorial Arboretum in Alrewas, near Burton upon Trent in Staffordshire. The event will take place on Saturday 11th October to remember all the troops that have died on duty since the Second World War. It has been estimated that over 800 bikers have signed up for the event, so it should be a grand sight! I have been to the arboretum many times, as it is just down the road from where I live, and it is a humbling place to visit-I definitely recommend it. I will be going down to the arboretum early as the biker parade is due to reach its destination at around 10am. Look out for pictures on Histatic!

Ancient History Animoto

2008-10-09T10:34:00.001-07:00

The Guardian does Black History Month!

2008-10-09T03:14:00.002-07:00

This month is Black History month and to celebrate this the Guardian is giving away 5 posters, that when put together will form a timeline of events of the Black Civil Rights movements in the USA and in Britain. I have seen previews of these posters and they do look like they will be very good! The History department at Swanwick Hall will be investing in a set to display!

I have a Dream!

2008-10-08T09:46:00.000-07:00

For my Year 9's, who are currently looking at Black Civil Rights, and in particular those who question why we are studying it. I don't think I really need to explain! But all I will say is this: 'We're all EQUAL!'

Let me know what you think of the cartoon!

Purging etc! Medieval Medicine!

2008-10-08T09:36:00.000-07:00

I have found a great article about medicine and treatment during the Middle Ages on one of my favourite history blogs: History Undressed! This will be really useful for Year 10 History students to read and make some notes on! My group will certainly be having a look at this for homework! Enjoy!

War Hero's Sketchy Past

2008-10-08T09:25:00.001-07:00

A brave soldier's war time sketches of life on the front have been compiled into a book. Soldier Len Smith sketched many scenes during his time in France during the First World War, even putting his life at risk by sneaking into enemy territory to sketch various things for espionage missions! These amazing sketches, along with some of Len's diary extracts, can he found online thanks to Len's nephew who has compiled all of Len's material. Take a look!

U.S. History-South Park Style!

2008-10-07T12:47:00.000-07:00

This is a great little clip showing a very brief version of U.S. history! Please bear in mind that this is not to be taken too seriously! Let me know what you think!

Read all about Harry!

2008-10-07T08:41:00.000-07:00

We have known about this extra special blog for a while at Swanwick Hall and we think it is a really good treat, especially if you love the history of the First World War. This blog is documenting the diaries of a British soldier called Harry who fought during WW1. The diary entries are published on the same date that they were originally written 90 years ago-the latest entry is dated 1st October 1918, so not too long before Armistice. This blog is a great insight to the life of a soldier during WW1 and opens our eyes to some of the horrors that our brave soldiers experienced.

Have a look and let me know what you think!

Of Course Knowing about Black Civil Rights Matters!

2008-10-06T10:04:00.000-07:00

I was recently asked by one of my Year 9 students about why we were studying the Black Civil Rights campaign that took place in the USA-after ranting and raving about how important the campaign was and still is to many millions of people for about 5 minutes, and while realising that the student probably wished she hadn't asked, I resolutely declared that 'it would be a very sad day when people stopped caring about things that have happened in our past and that have so much affect on people!'. And I will always maintain that it would be very sad indeed. I was happy to read about the powers that be in Washington who have recently had a iron statue of Civil Rights campaigner Frederick Douglass installed in Judiciary Square. I am very pleased to see the people of America championing legends, like Frederick Douglass who did so much to try to achieve equality for black people in the United States.

Is there any particular person from History that you would like to see commemorated in this way? Let me know your thoughts!

Dare you take the Histatic Quiz?

2008-10-06T07:42:00.001-07:00

We recently had an opening evening at our school where parents of Year 6 students came for a visit. The history department devised a histatic quiz for the children and their parents to take part in while they enjoyed their time in Humanities! Dare you take the quiz? Here are the questions:

1. How many Children did Elizabeth I have?
2. What Nationality was Hitler?
3. Which dictator's name translates as 'Man of Steel'?
4. What was the last battle fought on British mainland?
4. Which statesman was assassinated on 4th April 1968?
5. What important figure in medicine carried an owl in their pocket?
6. What cards were Bill Hickock holding when he was killed?

Post your answers!

New Histatic Widget!

2008-10-05T03:28:00.000-07:00

Check out the latest 'histatic' widget, which can be found in the right hand column, this time from another one of my favourite historical websites 'activehistory.co.uk'. These widgets are great for keeping you history mad lot up to date with the latest news in the histatic world of history! Make sure you keep an eye out for stories related to the topics you study at school!

History Brought to Life!

2008-09-26T07:38:00.000-07:00

I have recently stumbled across a fantastic website called 'Timelines TV'-like the BBC interactive timeline, you can explore periods of British History but with this website you can actually view videos that tell you about each period! This is truely brilliant and ideal for use at home and in the classroom. I will definitely be trying it out in my classroom soon!

Take a look and let me know what you think! Enjoy!

The BBC score high again with an Interactive Timeline!

2008-09-21T11:12:00.000-07:00

Like me, have you ever wanted to find out something about British History really quickly without getting out a huge, dusty old book? Of course you have! Well, the BBC History website has come up with an answer: an interactive timeline! I have just had a fiddle with it and it is brill! It is really easy to work and isn't too fussy looking! Have a go yourself and let me know what you think!

Histatic Films!

2008-09-21T10:28:00.000-07:00

Nicole Kidman is set to star in an upcoming film called 'The Eight Wonder' about an amazing archaeological find. Hopefully, this will be another example of a great Hollywood film that makes History and Archaeology fun for us all!
I am a huge fan of films that are set in a historical context. I recently went to see 'The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor', which, although not being entirely based on historical fact, made for excellent viewing!
One of my favourite historical films has got to be Marc Rothemund's 'Sophie Scholl', which is a German film about the 'White Rose Movement' activist Sophie Scholl, whose views on the Nazi government during World War Two resulted in her execution in 1943. There are many other great historical films that I love but do not have time to mention!

What is your favourite historical film?

What have the Romans Ever Done for Us?

2008-09-14T01:38:00.000-07:00

Those of you in Year 8 are currently studying 'The Romans'. This is a very famous clip from the Monty Python's Life of Brian, where several rebels are debating what the Romans have ever done to benefit them. Classic!

Hovis goes Histatic!

2008-09-13T05:49:00.000-07:00

This is the brand new Hovis advert and it is fab! The advert covers the 122 years that Hovis has been in existence in just 2 minutes! Included in the advert are many scenes depicting some iconic British History that many of you will no doubt recognise; like, the outbreak of war, the blitz, the swinging 60s, and the infamous miners strike.

Let me know what you think!