Philosophy – A Journey

Philosophy – A Journey

Thomas Aquinas’s divine vision refers to a mystical experience he reportedly had near the end of his life, which profoundly influenced his perspective on his theological work. This event occurred on 6th December 1273, while he was celebrating Mass in a chapel. During...
Petrarch, Father of the Renaissance

Petrarch, Father of the Renaissance

I have written about Renaissance writers, artists, musicians, and scientists. But how did the Renaissance come about?  Francis Petrarch, often called the “Father of Humanism,” played a pivotal role in laying the intellectual and cultural groundwork for the...
Breakspear

Breakspear

At time of writing there have been seven popes during my lifetime. The only other pope that I know much about was Pope Paul V, because he features in Fire and Earth, the second book in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures. But there was an English Pope and his relatives...
Austerlitz

Austerlitz

Having served as an officer in the Royal Naval Reserve, when it comes to battles of 1805, I think of Trafalgar. Yet ashore the battle of the year was Austerlitz. The Battle of Austerlitz, also known as the Battle of the Three Emperors, was fought on the second of...
Expulsion of Jews from Russia

Expulsion of Jews from Russia

My post for 25th November concerned Elizabeth of Russia. She sounded quite good back then. But by 1st December 1742 she’d ordered the expulsion of all Jews from Russia. I sought in Called to Account, the fourth book in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures, to explore...