This wonderful and typically American appellative refers to a prosperous group of ranchers, landowners and speculators whose intention it was to create the US state of Vermont, arising from territory whose ownership was disputed between New Hampshire and New York. (more…)
/ cutand parry.com
Carlism was (and is) a purely Spanish political movement of the Right. The name comes from Carlos-María Isidro de Borbón. With the death of his brother the unlamented Fernando VII in 1833, Carlos disputed the right to the Spanish throne of his own niece Isabel II. Civil wars were the result, from 1833 to 1840, 1846 to 49 and 1872 to 76. The Carlists failed to gain anything during these periods, partly because they chose to protect their own strongholds without necessarily making aggressive advances. (more…)
Artist’s impression of the battle / pubpages.unh.edu
This sea battle of the Great War is interesting for two reasons: the first is that Jutland was the first challenge to British naval superiority since Trafalgar in 1805; the second is that both Britain and Germany claimed they won it. There was no outstanding victory as such, nor was there a resounding defeat.
Admiral Jellicoe led the British Grand Fleet from their safe home at Scapa Flow to intercept the German High Seas Fleet off the coast of Jutland in Denmark. Prior to this Admiral Beatty in command of six battle cruisers had been searching the North Sea for a sign of Admiral Hipper’s force of five battle cruisers. The latter had ‘dared’ to leave port in the teeth of the nation that allegedly controlled the oceans. Then Beatty found the German ships and engaged them, but their superior gunnery promptly blew up two of Beatty’s warships – not a good start. Beatty learned that his cruisers had inadequate armour and easily-hit magazines. (more…)
Mexico became independent from Spain in 1821, the same year as Perú. Plenty of Mexicans had already settled in parts of northern Texas, but not enough to work the land properly, so Mexico offered cheap land grants to Americans, and by 1830 at least 20,000 Americans, mostly southerners, had taken advantage of the offer.
The Government of Mexico decided, in a state of nervousness, to forbid any more immigration by North American settlers. At the same time the government got itself into hot water by trying to ban slavery, as it was already illegal in Mexico. As a result, Texans declared their independence from everybody, and set up their own Republic of Texas. (more…)
The river Marne is a tributary of the Seine, leaving it at a point east of Paris. It was also famed for being the site of the furthest advance of the imperial German army into France during the Great War. Readers will remember that the Schlieffen Plan (q.v.) was designed to knock France out of the game in six weeks, before the mobilization of the enormous Russian army. Germany would advance in strength through Belgium, bypassing French defences along the German border, and then sweep down to surround Paris before attacking French forces in the rear.
The Schlieffen Plan might have worked had von Moltke (chief of staff) not enfeebled it by transferring forces from the German right-wing to East Prussia, which the Russians had already invaded. Still the Germans made swift progress through Belgium and northern France, leaving the French to make useless and expensive attacks on German forces in Lorraine and the Ardennes. (more…)
In 1905 during the first Russian revolution, Young revolutionaries founded the Kadets, a political party with the official name of ‘Constitutional Democrats’. Mostly young middle-class, they formed the largest party in the first Duma, representing professionals such as architects, teachers, musicians and artists, and the zemstva (district and provincial councils in the most westerly Russian territories, elected by landsmen, peasants and landlords, the latter with the biggest representation). Quite successful, they provided schools and hospitals; they even received the approval of the royal family. (more…)
SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES: February Revolution: On February 23, 1917 women in the streets of St. Petersburg filled the streets demanding bread, calling on factory workers to join them. Bolshevik, Menshevik and Socialist revolutionaries were hard at work stirring an already simmering pot. Soldiers fired at first into the crowds, but later refused to continue, arresting their officers instead. Nicholas II commented in his diary: ‘All around me I see treason, cowardice and deceit’.
The July Days: Bolshevik propaganda was calling for an end to the War. The garrison at St. Petersburg, already being called Petrograd, mutinied in favour of the Bolsheviks. The revolutionaries were in a fix; they did not wish to seize power yet because they thought the bid would be unsuccessful, but if they did nothing the support of the dissident soldiers and workers would be lost. On the 4th July they tried to take control of a movement they could not control.
The October Revolution was the actual Bolshevik seizure of power in Russia. Kornilov had attempted to set up a military dictatorship and failed. By September the Bolsheviks had a majority in the Petrograd Soviet, and soon afterwards in Moscow. Lenin returned from exile, but he knew that the October Revolution was not the end of the Bolshevik Revolution but the beginning.
Kerensky was born into the Russian educated class in 1881. He became a lawyer specialising in ‘cases for the people’s good’, and became a revolutionary. When St. Petersburg became Petrograd he was a leading member of its Soviet, and moved further upwards by becoming Minister of Justice in the Provisional Government riding high after the February Revolution. (more…)
France, Belgium, Poland & Central Italy: The July Revolution in France expelled Charles X and replaced him as King with Louis-Philippe. The Austrian Netherlands belonging to Belgium were united with Holland at the Congress of Vienna (1815), to form the United Kingdom of the Netherlands. But Roman Catholic Belgians (mostly French-speaking) resented the dominance of the Protestant Dutch (Flemish-speaking) in this new state.
After the expulsion of Charles in the July Revolution, there were riots in Brussels, exacerbated by the sending in of Dutch troops in an attempt to restore order. By September most of Belgium was in a state of revolt and Dutch King William asked the Great Powers for help. As Prussia, Russia and Austria were by their nature opposed to revolution and also fans of the monarchy, they were cautious to the extent of being un-cooperative, because if they sent soldiers to help the Dutch, French pressures would be inclined to compel Louis-Philippe to send aid to the Belgians. (more…)
Some notes on the 2000 TV series ‘The Scarlet Pimpernel’
I have in my possession a box set of this production, the material contained in four DVD discs. The series was adapted from the books by the Baroness Orczy by Richard Carpenter, and on the whole he has not done a bad job. Where the series fails, collapses in fact, is in the casting, with one exception – Ronan Vibert. Richard E. Grant plays Percy Blakeney, a difficult task because Blakeney must be an effeminate fop, pandering to the Prince of Wales (future George IV) in some scenes – and a highly dangerous, athletic, intelligent kind of 18th century ‘Bourne’ in others, rescuing aristos from the clutches of the French revolutionaries. Leslie Howard managed this tolerably well in a film made in the Thirties. David Niven failed completely in 1950. Grant’s problem is simply one of class. Good actor that he is, he hasn’t the right sound, looks or disdain to play an aristocrat. There are plenty of other actors who possess these essential traits – Sam West and Toby Stephens come to mind. (more…)