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.
The Christmas Truce 1914: When Peace Briefly Reigned on Earth
“And the guns fell silent on Christmas Eve … ” By December 1914, the war that was supposed to be over by Christmas was clearly far from it. Two entrenched armies were facing one another across No-Man’s Land. And then incredibly, on Christmas Eve carol singing broke out in the trenches. Slowly the two sides emerged and approached each other across No-Man’s Land…
Dickens and Debt: the story of London’s Marshalsea Prison
Charles Dickens’ novel ‘Little Dorrit’ is set within the Marshalsea Prison, where his own father was incarcerated and a place he knew well. This notorious, 500 year old prison was home to debtors, pirates, smugglers and other undesirables…
Women on the March: Camp Followers of the 17th and 18th Centuries
Viewers of the Sharpe TV series, based on the books by Bernard Cornwell on the Peninsular War, will be very familiar with the baggage train of camp followers, the women who accompanied their menfolk on campaign. These women were the backbone of the army, their contributions often ignored…
Mary Wollstonecraft
Writer, political philosopher and advocate of women’s rights, Mary Wollstonecraft’s experiences in Britain and Revolutionary France inspired much of her work. Her personal life however was complicated and full of heartache…
Naval Wives: The Hidden Strength of the Royal Navy
The important role of women on board ship during the Royal Navy’s heyday in the 1700s and 1800s has often been overlooked. As well as maintaining morale and caring for the men, many of these wives and girlfriends also worked as nurses and during battle, sometimes even as powder monkeys…
The Cobra Effect – When Incentives Go Wrong
The Cobra Effect is a term which describes the unintended results when an incentive scheme goes wrong. The term originates from an anecdote dating from the days of the British Raj. when a bounty was offered for dead cobras in an attempt to reduce the cobra population…
The Bombardment of Algiers
On 27th August 1816, the coastal city and capital Algiers was bombarded by an Anglo-Dutch fleet under the command of Admiral Edward Pellew. The goal was simple, to end the white slavery practised by the Barbary pirates out of Algiers…
Battle Of Cartagena de Indias: The Victory That Never Was
The attack on Spanish port of Cartagena during the War of Jenkin’s Ear was a total catastrophe for Britain. The death of the commander of the fleet early in the campaign left two inexperienced officers squabbling over tactics…
