They were Jutes, a Germanic tribe whose names are preserved today in Jutland and Juteborg. They invaded Britain in the 5th century under the leadership of Hengist and…
Six wives for Henry VIII
“History!” snorted an ex-pupil of mine the other day, “nothing but kings and dates!” I am not even sure if History is still taught in British schools of…
Orange and Orléans
When James II made his Catholicism too ostentatious for seventeenth century Protestant politicians to stomach, a successful conspiracy was made to remove him from the throne he had…
Normandy, Normans and the Norman Conquest
Normandy was once the home of Celtic tribes in north-western France. It was the kingdom of Clovis, founder of the Frankish empire (466 – 511). It came under…
New England and New France
Of course we have all heard of New England, though its composition may confuse us at times, but did we know that there was a New France? America…
A brief history of Turkey
Turkey is one of those countries where people are proud of being Asian, and at the same time dream of becoming European. Geographically the division exists; the Asian…
Titus Oates (1649 – 1705): a great scoundrel
Oates had an erratic career; he was certainly a pathological liar, and lived in a dream world of his own, people with conspirators whom he determined to stamp…
Quis? Who is the man in the ancient photograph?
The seventh in our new series of pictures from the past; can you tell us who this is? Here is the clue: His mind was full of songs…
Two proud Dukes of Buckingham (too proud perhaps?)
Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham was born around 1454 in Salisbury, Wiltshire. He was a member of the House of Lancaster, being a descendent of Edward III,…
A brief history of Greece
Greece is a maritime, mountainous country in south/east Europe, bounded by Albania, Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north and Turkey to the east. It mostly consists of islands,…