PERIOD OF HISTORY

Queen Elizabeth I Statue London

Queen Elizabeth I statue
This entry is part 4 of 5 in the series Intriguing London

The Queen Elizabeth I statue in London is that city’s oldest outdoor statue but it no longer stands where it was intended. It was re-positioned in the 1920’s and unveiled by Millicent Fawcett, the noted feminist.

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William Tyndale

William Tyndale

William Tyndale appeared in 1526, determined to translate the New Testament into English but why was this so important? How did King Henry VIII deal with Tyndale was he supportive of him or did he see him as a heretic?

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Appeasement as Pragmatic Policy

Appeasement Policy, why did it have any credibility in Neville Chamberlain’s eyes? Could he really believe Hitler wanted peace and when it did unravel was he really surprised and ill-prepared? Would Churchill have handled this period any better and with the position Britain found itself in at that particular point could Churchill really have fared any better by outright confrontation before 3rd Sept 1939?

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Thomas Cromwell

Thomas Cromwell

Thomas Cromwell, the black clad lawyer who rose to power after the decline and death of the red clad Cardinal Wolsey. King Henry’s advisor and who figaratively wielded the axe across the neck of many Tudor conservatives.

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Crossbones Graveyard

Crossbones graveyard
This entry is part 3 of 5 in the series Intriguing London

Crossbones graveyard in Southwark is adorned with colourful ribbons, a tribute to those Winchester Geese and others who exist on the margins of society. This burial ground has been in existence since Medieval times.

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Edward Coke 1552 – 1634

Edward Coke and British Government and Democracy

Edward Coke, supreme barrister and politician of the C16th and C17th, whose belief and work in Common Law became part of the English and US Constitution whose name should be known by every child in the UK.

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Arthur James Balfour Prime Minister 1902-1905

This entry is part 2 of 2 in the series British Prime Ministers

Arthur James Balfour was a Prime Minister cut from the old aristocratic mould, an intelligent man who perhaps lacked emotional intelligence to match. Educated at Eton and Cambridge, nephew of Lord Salisbury, his mother’s brother. He would serve in coalition during WWI alongside Lloyd George more than strange bed-fellows. It was then that his now infamous Balfour Declaration would be declared and continues to cited as the root cause of the troubles between the Arab and Zionist causes in Palestine. and modern Israel. Unsuccessful Prime Ministers can be even more important it would seem than those that succeed and the failures may also be greatest when they are no longer in the top job.

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Act of Settlement 1701

Act of Settlement 1701 ensures that preference is given to Sophia and her issues as Elector of Hanover if William or Anne die without a surviving heir. In effect it bypasses the stronger hereditary claim of the Stuarts and ensues that the Enligh Monarch will remain Protestant.

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