The History of Britain Magazine
Welcome to the History of Britain! The home nations share a varied and shared history unlike anywhere else, so we thought it only right to create a section dedicated to our mutual heritage.
Keir Hardie
Keir Hardie played an important role in British political history. He was the founder of the Labour Party, the first Leader of the Labour Party and the first ever Labour Member of Parliament…
The Battle of the Nile
On 1st August 1798 at Aboukir Bay near Alexandria, Egypt, the Battle of the Nile began. It would turn out to be one of the Nelson’s greatest victories against the French…
Florence Nightingale
On 12th May 1820, Florence Nightingale was born. Famously nicknamed ‘The Lady with the Lamp’, she would go on to become a pioneer of modern medicine…
The Second Opium War
The First Opium War had culminated in the unequal Treaty of Nanking, with which neither Britain nor China were entirely happy. By October 1856 relations were becoming tense again between the two countries…
First Opium War
Learn how a trade dispute between Britain and China over the import of British opium into China would ultimately lead to war…
The Birth of the NHS
70 years ago, on the 5th July 1948 an historic moment occurred in British history, a culmination of a bold and pioneering plan to make healthcare no longer exclusive to those who could afford it but to make it accessible to everyone: the NHS was born.
James ‘Paraffin’ Young
There was a time (albeit a very short time) when Scotland was the largest producer of refined oil in the entire world, all because of just one man – James ‘Paraffin’ Young.