Posts by HLB

English Medieval Pilgrimage

English Medieval Pilgrimage

The English Medieval pilgrimage holds up a mirror to what life was really like in Britain during these fraught and terrifying times. Who undertook these journeys and why?

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Wynkyn de Worde Printer

Sign of the Sun

Wynkyn de Worde the printer and publisher of Shoe Lane Fleet Street who became a great typographist in addition to the 800 books he produced during the early part of the 16th century.

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Laura Bassi Scientist

Laura Bassi

Laura Bassi was born in Bologna in 1711, the same year as St Paul’s Cathedral in London was completed. Laura Maria Caterina Bassi was a brilliant and erudite young woman, born into a heady atmosphere of early 18th century Bologna, a melting pot of ideas and fusion of like minded scholars, caught in the bosom…

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The Haberdasher’s Company

Haberdashers Company

The Haberdasher’s Company is one of the Great City of London Companies and was founded in the 15th century and was granted it’s first charter in 1448. But what did the haberdashers actually sell and what legacy has this great company left?

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Rachel Wriothesley wife of Lord Russell

Rachel Wriothesley

Rachel Wriothesley played an interesting role in 17th Century intrigue but who was she? Rachel was born in 1636 in Titchfield Hampshire, the daughter of Thomas Wriothesley the 4th Earl of Southampton. The Wriothesley’s had an illustrious history, after the Reformation, the family grew more powerful and wealthier than ever before. Thomas Wriothesley, the 1st…

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Cult of the Virgin Mary

Cult of the Virgin Mary

The Cult of the Virgin Mary is seen by many as having its origins in the Medieval period but the mythologizing of Mary began with Pope Gregory I. It grew as the Crusaders returned to the west and shrines and icons to the Virgin Mary appeared in churches, on the wayside and in people’s homes.

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Sarah Guppy an English Inventor

sarah guppy

Sarah Guppy an English inventor and a rare breed indeed. She was born in 1770 and developed a passion for engineering that culminated in a plethora of useful and esoteric inventions.

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The Cult of Chivalry

cult of chivalry

The cult of chivalry was born out of the military culture that existed in the 11th century Chivalry was a code of honour for military warriors to follow. These men came from part of the elite ‘aristocratic’ society that existed at the time. Quite literally, the word chivalry came from the French word ‘chevalerie’ meaning…

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