16th Century
There are more things…
First an apology. I was going to insert photos into this piece, but the ones I took were rubbish and not wishing to compromise SB’s site with unauthorised clips I gave up with the visuals. [more…]
16th Century
16th Century
Postcard From The Scottish Reformation
I have a strange sensation in my trousers while strolling Edinburgh’s Royal Mile arm in arm with Mrs AWS. Behave yourselves. Regular readers will be unsurprised to learn my work colleagues pay me not to [more…]
16th Century
Postcard From The King’s Gallery
On our day trip to Edinburgh, Mrs AWS and I de-trained on Waverley’s Platform 9 at 12:17 prompt. While a disappointing first-class breakfast rattled in our tums, we allowed ourselves to be swept out of [more…]
16th Century
Henry VIII’s Six Marriages
Like them or loathe them, royals seem to occupy a perennially-popular position in our national consciousness, and royal gossip even more so. We also seem fascinated as a country by our history, and by how [more…]
16th Century
Miguel de Cervantes
Miguel de Cervantes was born in Alcala de Henares on the 29th September 1547, the second son of Rodrigo de Cervantes and Leonor de Cortinas. His father led a precarious and unsettled life as an [more…]
16th Century
The History of the Pencil
Before the pencil Pens and ink have been in existence for a very long time, being used by the ancient Egyptians for writing and drawing on papyrus, a papery substance made by beating reeds flat. [more…]
16th Century
A View From The Greenhouse;Thoughts On Life (And Death)
Why a Puffin you may (or may not) be asking yourselves, but there’s no great mystery or even significance behind the header picture of my latest ramblings being of our “Spirit” bird. I’ve made the [more…]
15th Century
The Amazing Life (And Death) of Xpoual (Es-po-al) De Colon
There is no definitive date for the birth of Xpoual de Colon. It is believed he was born between August 26th and October 31st in 1451 in Genoa, although there are also claims that he [more…]
16th Century
The Troubled History of the Potato
The potato is a native of the high Andes, a low-growing plant (Solanum tuberosum) with pretty purple flowers and round black fruits. To survive in its harsh environment it has evolved the habit of growing [more…]