Category: History

Lambeth Palace Library

My maternal grandfather read Theology at St John’s College, Durham and was ordained. He was appointed junior chaplain to the Bishop of Bombay in 1906. Much later he became vicar for West Malling in Kent. 

Perfidious

You read “perfidious” and append Albion. Yup, there’s been plenty of dirty work at the crossroads but the UK does not have a monopoly in this department.

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Categorised as History

Nesselrode Pie

A theme of the Lyttelton/Hart-Davis letters is R H-D’s prodigious appetite for reading and eating. Not surprisingly, he is writing around 1960, the best meals are abroad.

The Long View

As Article 50 is triggered many of us take a long view. On BBC Radio 4 The Long View makes a comparison with the overtures made by Elizabeth I to Turkey, Asia and North Africa to open trade routes. You can hear it on iPlayer so it would be otiose to go on about that.

A Very Great Man

In his letter dated 13th November 1960, Rupert Hart-Davis challenges George Lyttelton: “here is a one-question exam-paper. Who wrote this and when?”

Galateo

Galateo has never been out of print, at least in Italy, since it was written in the 1550s. Its author, Giovanni Della Casa, was born near Florence in 1503.

Megalithic Temples of Malta

The Ġgantija temples stand at the end of the Xagħra plateau in the town of Xagħra on Gozo. Understandably they have been dubbed the Megalithic Temples of Malta for alliteration and ease of pronunciation.

Carnival and Churches

  A few tourists but mostly Maltese pour into Gozo for Carnival. The usual population is elderly but Carnival is for the young and thirsty. Robert and I must be the only people who didn’t have a drink – but we didn’t stay long. The parade hadn’t started which made it easy to take these… Continue reading Carnival and Churches

Martello Towers

The coastline of the British Isles was defended in the 19th century by Martello towers. One, in Aldeburgh in Suffolk, belongs to the Landmark Trust – you can rent it and stay there. James Joyce stayed in another Martello, in Sandycove near Dublin. Why are they called Martello? Signore Martello was a Venetian architect who… Continue reading Martello Towers

Indian Summer and Belisha Beacons

The tortuous and blood-stained road to Indian independence and partition is uncannily like the path taken in other countries. The most important political leaders are Mahatma Gandhi (Inner Temple), Mohammad Ali Jinnah (Lincoln’s Inn) and Jawaharlal Nehru (Harrow, Trinity College Cambridge and Inner Temple) …  and Lord Mountbatten who, like my cousin Richard, went to… Continue reading Indian Summer and Belisha Beacons