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 Nazi Occupation of the Islands of Guernsey
2020 marks the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Islands of Guernsey (Guernsey, Herm, Sark, Alderney and Lihou) from German occupation during World War Two.
Siege of Sidney Street
Read about the Houndsditch murders of 1910 and the subsequent Siege of Sidney Street of 1911 which left three police officers dead and three more seriously injured.
Albert Ball, First World War Fighter Ace
The remarkable Captain Albert Ball VC, MC, DSO and Two Bars was a World War One fighter ace. His daring exploits set him apart from other pilots…
Barnbow Lasses
The story of the Barnbow lasses, workers at the munitions factory at Barnbow, Leeds and the explosion in 1916 that killed 35 women.
A World War Two Christmas
Britain was at war and supplies were becoming scarce. The ships of the Merchant Navy were under attack from German U-Boats at sea and rationing…
The History of Firearms in the British Police
The image that springs to mind of the British Police is that of a bobby swinging a truncheon, chasing down criminals and sending them away in handcuffs…
Robert Owen, Father of British Socialism
Known as the ‘Father of British Socialism’, Robert Owen was a textile manufacturer turned social reformer, and an early advocate of utopian socialism…
Thankful Villages
Millions of families throughout the UK suffered the loss of close family relatives in the Great War of 1914 -18. It appears that barely a family or community across the UK escaped World War I untouched, except that is for the “Thankful Villages”…
Sir George Cayley, The Father of Aeronatics
Wilbur Wright commented in 1909: “About 100 years ago, an Englishman, Sir George Cayley, carried the science of flight to a point which it had never reached before and which it scarcely reached again during the last century.” Despite being widely regarded as ‘The Father of Aeronautics’, Cayley remains one of the little-known pioneers of aviation…
