Finest Hour
On the 18th of June, 1940, Winston Churchill delivered his “Finest Hour” speech in the House of Commons. It came at a moment when the fate of Britain appeared extremely uncertain. Europe had largely fallen under the control of Adolf Hitler, and Britain faced the...
Boxer Rebellion
On the 17th of June, forces of the Eight-Nation Alliance captured the Taku Forts in Tianjin, China, during the Boxer Rebellion. The Boxer Rebellion (1899–1901), also known as the Boxer Uprising, was a violent anti-foreign and anti-Christian movement that took place in...
Vichy France
On the 16th of June, 1940, Henri Philippe Pétain became chief of state of Vichy France. Henri Philippe Pétain was one of the most controversial figures in modern French history. Revered as a national hero after the First World War, he later became the leader of the...
Franco
On the 15th of June, 1977, the first democratic elections took place in Spain following the death of Francisco Franco in 1975. One may wonder why it took so long for elections to be held. The spectre of the civil war haunted Spain. Francoists on the far right held...
Richard II
On the 14th of June, 1381, King Richard II met leaders of the Peasants’ Revolt at Mile End, and the Tower of London was stormed by rebels without resistance. This has caught my eye this morning as it has a connection to my work in progress, Cade’s Point, the sixth...
Battle of Villers-Bocage
The Battle of Villers-Bocage was fought on the 13th of June 1944 and my father fought in it. It was one of the most dramatic armoured engagements of the early Battle of Normandy following the Allied landings in Operation Overlord. Taking place in and around the small...
Anne Frank
On the 12th of June, 1942, Anne Frank received a diary for her thirteenth birthday. Anne Frank (1929–1945) is one of the most widely known victims of the Holocaust. Through the diary she kept while hiding from Nazi persecution during the World War II, she left behind...
Malta
The siege of Malta began on the 11th of June, 1940. I learnt to SCUBA dive in Malta in 1988. I haven’t been back to Malta since, but I don’t know why, I really enjoyed it. The Siege of Malta during World War II was one of the longest and most intense sieges of the...
Battle of Záblatí
The Battle of Záblatí was fought on the 10th of June 1619, during the Bohemian period of the Thirty Years’ War. I have researched and written a lot about the Eighty Years’ War because that was my ancestor Sir Anthony Standen’s war, but I think this is my first post on...
Finest Hour
On the 18th of June, 1940, Winston Churchill delivered his “Finest Hour” speech in the House of Commons. It came at a moment when the fate of Britain appeared extremely uncertain. Europe had largely fallen under the control of Adolf Hitler, and Britain faced the...
Boxer Rebellion
On the 17th of June, forces of the Eight-Nation Alliance captured the Taku Forts in Tianjin, China, during the Boxer Rebellion. The Boxer Rebellion (1899–1901), also known as the Boxer Uprising, was a violent anti-foreign and anti-Christian movement that took place in...
Vichy France
On the 16th of June, 1940, Henri Philippe Pétain became chief of state of Vichy France. Henri Philippe Pétain was one of the most controversial figures in modern French history. Revered as a national hero after the First World War, he later became the leader of the...
Franco
On the 15th of June, 1977, the first democratic elections took place in Spain following the death of Francisco Franco in 1975. One may wonder why it took so long for elections to be held. The spectre of the civil war haunted Spain. Francoists on the far right held...
Richard II
On the 14th of June, 1381, King Richard II met leaders of the Peasants’ Revolt at Mile End, and the Tower of London was stormed by rebels without resistance. This has caught my eye this morning as it has a connection to my work in progress, Cade’s Point, the sixth...
Battle of Villers-Bocage
The Battle of Villers-Bocage was fought on the 13th of June 1944 and my father fought in it. It was one of the most dramatic armoured engagements of the early Battle of Normandy following the Allied landings in Operation Overlord. Taking place in and around the small...
Anne Frank
On the 12th of June, 1942, Anne Frank received a diary for her thirteenth birthday. Anne Frank (1929–1945) is one of the most widely known victims of the Holocaust. Through the diary she kept while hiding from Nazi persecution during the World War II, she left behind...
Malta
The siege of Malta began on the 11th of June, 1940. I learnt to SCUBA dive in Malta in 1988. I haven’t been back to Malta since, but I don’t know why, I really enjoyed it. The Siege of Malta during World War II was one of the longest and most intense sieges of the...
Battle of Záblatí
The Battle of Záblatí was fought on the 10th of June 1619, during the Bohemian period of the Thirty Years’ War. I have researched and written a lot about the Eighty Years’ War because that was my ancestor Sir Anthony Standen’s war, but I think this is my first post on...