20th Century
On this day, 1945
On this day 80 years ago, the Allied powers accepted Germany’s unconditional surrender, bringing an official end to World War II in Europe. We in the U.K. celebrate 8 May as Victory in Europe Day, [more…]
History
20th Century
In the Graveyard of St Nicholas, Moreton
During a visit to the Tank Museum at Bovington Camp, Dorset, with my daughter, we decided first to go to the graveyard of the Church of St Nicholas in the village of Moreton in the [more…]
19th Century
Book review: Custer’s Trials, by T.J. Stiles
Writing another biography of Custer (1839-1876) is, as Stiles says, a bit like walking round Grand Central Station trying to find a piece of floor someone hasn’t already stepped on. Such is the fascination with [more…]
Christianity
An Appreciation Of The Papacy of Francis I
Might every age get the Pope it deserves? If so, then what of the Age of Francis I? Jorge Mario Bergoglio, once Archbishop of Buenos Aires and the latest Bishop of Rome, died on Easter [more…]
20th Century
Always Worth Saying’s Railway Review
Apologies for last week’s Railway Review, which was far too populist. An article on a mineral railway in Northern Brazil is exactly the type of thing you might read about in a 1960s edition of [more…]
20th Century
Book Review: Soldaten, ‘On fighting, killing and dying’
This book, originally published in 2012, is based on the discovery of transcripts of covert surveillance of German prisoners of war in WW2, found initially in archives in Great Britain and latterly in archives in [more…]
20th Century
The Reece Committee: Lessons from history
In the early 1950s, against the backdrop of the Cold War and growing concerns over potential clandestine efforts at internal subversion, the United States Congress launched an investigation into the activities of major tax-exempt foundations. [more…]
20th Century
Always Worth Saying’s Railway Review
How I miss Question Time. One hankers after £30,000-an-hour Fiona Bruce pontificating on inequality before a representative audience of progressive liberals who have a relative at the BBC. As our £110,000-a-year elected representatives take a [more…]
20th Century
Fitzroy Maclean
When you hear the name Fitzroy Maclean, what comes to mind? For many, it’s his role as a founding member of the SAS, those daring desert raiders of World War II. Others might recall his [more…]