Antwerp
On the 4th of November, 1576, Spain captured the city of Antwerp during the Eighty Years’ War. My ancestor, the Elizabethan Spy, Sir Anthony Standen was working for Walsingham during this stage of the Eighty Years’ War, as narrated in The Spy who Sank the Armada. The...
William Howard Taft
Running through the possible events to write about for the 3rd of November, I am drowning in US presidents who took office on this day. I shall choose William Howard Taft because he’s often a pointless answer on Pointless and I don’t know much about him. William...
George Bernard Shaw
The great playwright, George Bernard Shaw, died on the 2nd of November, 1950, aged 94. George Bernard Shaw was born on the 26th of July, 1856, in Dublin. He was a towering figure in the world of literature, known for his wit, sharp intellect, and profound influence on...
Michelangelo
On the 1st of November, 1512, the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, painted by Michelangelo, was exhibited to the public for the first time. Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni, widely known simply as Michelangelo, is one of the most emblematic figures of the...
John Dalton and Colour Blindness
On the 31st of October, 1794, John Dalton gave a lecture to the Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society on the subject of colour blindness. He suffered red green colour blindness, which is a bit of a sore subject with me. I was at primary school when the dreaded...
Enigma
I have long been fascinated by codes and cyphers, as readers of my Sir Anthony Standen Adventures will be aware. So today’s post is about Enigma. On the 30th of October, 1942, Lieutenant Francis Anthony Blair Fasson was drowned together with Able Seaman Colin Grazier...
Palestine
On the 29th of October, 1941, over 10,000 Jews were massacred by German soldiers at the Ninth Fort in Kaunas, Lithuania. The holocaust was already well underway. In the wake of the holocaust it is virtually impossible to deny the right of the Jewish people to a...
Siege of La Rochelle
The siege of La Rochelle ended on the 28th of October, 1628, after fourteen months. It falls beyond the span of my work in progress, The Favourite Murder, the fifth book in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures. However it does introduce Cardinal Richelieu, a key figure...
Michael Servetus
On the 27th of October, 1553, Michael Servetus was burnt alive on a pyre of his own books. He features in Called to Account, the fourth book in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures. A key character, Manuel, is a doctor of medicine. The main theme of the book is racism...
Antwerp
On the 4th of November, 1576, Spain captured the city of Antwerp during the Eighty Years’ War. My ancestor, the Elizabethan Spy, Sir Anthony Standen was working for Walsingham during this stage of the Eighty Years’ War, as narrated in The Spy who Sank the Armada. The...
William Howard Taft
Running through the possible events to write about for the 3rd of November, I am drowning in US presidents who took office on this day. I shall choose William Howard Taft because he’s often a pointless answer on Pointless and I don’t know much about him. William...
George Bernard Shaw
The great playwright, George Bernard Shaw, died on the 2nd of November, 1950, aged 94. George Bernard Shaw was born on the 26th of July, 1856, in Dublin. He was a towering figure in the world of literature, known for his wit, sharp intellect, and profound influence on...
Michelangelo
On the 1st of November, 1512, the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, painted by Michelangelo, was exhibited to the public for the first time. Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni, widely known simply as Michelangelo, is one of the most emblematic figures of the...
John Dalton and Colour Blindness
On the 31st of October, 1794, John Dalton gave a lecture to the Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society on the subject of colour blindness. He suffered red green colour blindness, which is a bit of a sore subject with me. I was at primary school when the dreaded...
Enigma
I have long been fascinated by codes and cyphers, as readers of my Sir Anthony Standen Adventures will be aware. So today’s post is about Enigma. On the 30th of October, 1942, Lieutenant Francis Anthony Blair Fasson was drowned together with Able Seaman Colin Grazier...
Palestine
On the 29th of October, 1941, over 10,000 Jews were massacred by German soldiers at the Ninth Fort in Kaunas, Lithuania. The holocaust was already well underway. In the wake of the holocaust it is virtually impossible to deny the right of the Jewish people to a...
Siege of La Rochelle
The siege of La Rochelle ended on the 28th of October, 1628, after fourteen months. It falls beyond the span of my work in progress, The Favourite Murder, the fifth book in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures. However it does introduce Cardinal Richelieu, a key figure...
Michael Servetus
On the 27th of October, 1553, Michael Servetus was burnt alive on a pyre of his own books. He features in Called to Account, the fourth book in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures. A key character, Manuel, is a doctor of medicine. The main theme of the book is racism...