Saturday 17 June 2023

British Civil War - Culloden 1746


 Jacobites. The ousted House Of Stuart tried a few times to retake the crown and led a few abortive uprisings in Britain, but the most famous battle & the last battle to be fought on British soil was Culloden, 16th April, 1746. Bonnie Prince Charlie on one side, son of James Stuart, rightful King James VIII of Britain v the Duke Of Cumberland, son of King George II of Hanover - legal King on the other. 

Much has been written and said of the uprisings and battles, but something that is sometimes not mentioned is the fact that there were Scots wearing redcoats as well as those with a blue bonnet & kilt This is true. Maybe some people don't like the truth, but there were Grants, Campbells, in the 1st, 21st & 25th Foot Regiments, Argyll Militia, Scottish Artillery and more in the British Army. The Jacobite Army was mostly Scottish but, it also contained English, Irish, Welsh & French. Much has been written about Culloden - and continues to be written byt Scotland's Story by Tom Steele, available 2nd hand on Amazon, is a good read as is Culloden by  John Prebble.

The battle took place near Inverness on Drumossie Moor and lasted about an hour. Flat boggy terrain, cold, wet miserable weather and the Jacobite Army at about a third of its strength made a fairly easy victory for the Redcoats. The resulting victory meant no more battles between England & Scotland, it was the last battle to be fought on British soil. Bonnie Prince Charlie escaped, on the run 5 months, escaped to Europe and died in Rome a drunk. Many of his comrades were not that fortunate, many transported to America to be indentured, many executed or imprisoned. No accurate figures exist but it is estimated 50 redcoats died and approximately 1250 Jacobites.




Monday 2 January 2023

Civil Wars #civil war #theanarchy

 Civil wars. A very strange description of something that really, in my opinion is anything but civil. They tend to be very bloody affairs. Civil wars often divide families;  brother fighting brother. cousin fighting cousin and so on. I am going to write about civil wars across the world, not just in Britain. 

When anyone mentions civil wars, people tend to think about the Union & Confederacy of the United States. That civil war must be one of the most discussed, researched and even photographed. There are many more for people to research and learn about. Civil wars in Russia for instance, France, Mozambique, Scotland, China, 

I am starting with the Anarchy. this took place in England & Normandy between 1138 & 1153. King Stephen & Queen Matilda appeared to be the main protagonists. 

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(The problem with blogging about events from over 900 years ago is there are no photographs or quality images!). 


How Did It Begin?


Like many wars, it began by accident. William, son of Henry I died when the White Ship sank in 1120. The line of succession was fought over by Stephen & Matilda. Matilda had been named successor, but was not popular because she was a woman, and also married to Geoffrey of Anjou, who had been at war with Henry at the time of his death. Stephen crossed the Channel from Boulogne and was crowned King on December 22nd. Matilda refused to step aside and war was the result.


Famous Battles & Sieges

1141 Lincoln


How Did It End?


Henry was Matilda's son, and was camped at Wallingford  July 1953 with his army. Stephen's army was also there, but nobles on each side refused to fight. The Treaty of Winchester meant Stephen continued to rule and Henry was to be his successor, the first Plantaganet King of England.



Monday 6 December 2021

Christmas & What It Means To Me

 

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Christmas Christmas is one of my favourite times of year. Sending Christmas cards to friends and relatives, getting the Christmas tree out of the loft and decorating it every year (including a star on the top), brightens up the house in our darkest month
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Christmas is one of my favourite times of year. Sending Christmas cards to friends and relatives, getting the Christmas tree out of the loft and decorating it every year (including a star on the top), brightens up the house in our darkest month of the year. As a Christian though, what I like most about Christmas is going to Church during Advent and (Covid allowing) going for Midnight Mass at my local Methodist Church. Singing Carols & Christmas songs probably makes Christmas for me - I sing in a local choir, and every year we have a concert (Covid permitting) to raise money for a children's charity -Action For Children https://www.actionforchildren.org.uk/. In 2019 we raised over £1500 from donations.

Christmas traditionally starts on December 25th in most countries and lasts for 12 days. It does not finish on Boxing Day so I make a point of playing Christmas songs for the duration of the festival & taking decorations down on 12th night. However, other Christian denominations may celebrate Christmas at different times of year-  (For Oriental Orthodox Christians Christmas starts on January 7th, Armenian Apostolic Church January 6th & Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem January 19th).

As a Christian I do get annoyed that Christmas is flogged to death by retail and the mantra is to spend, spend, spend. Christmas for many can mean new debt in the New Year. You don't have to spend a fortune, and let's be honest, how much will end up going to the tip or Charity shop within 12 months? How about a contribution to a charity or actually buying something that will be long lasting? What Christmas means to me is thinking of others especially those far less fortunate than us. Spending time with family & friends is something that money can't buy. I never tire of the story of the Nativity, how a star appeared and guided three/four Kings to a stable in Bethlehem to pay homage to Baby Jesus in a stable. Above all, what Christmas means to me is Peace & Goodwill to all men & women - regardless of belief, race, gender, age etc.

 

Some Christmas Factoids

 

December 25th was originally chosen for Christmas in Ancient Rome, this date was originally used to celebrate the unconquered sun (Saturnalia Festival

 

In Scandinavia, Yule was celebrated from December 21st- the Winter Solstice. The largest logs would be brought into the home which would burn up to 12 days, they feasted during this time. The Norse belief was that each spark from the fire would bear a new calf or piglet in the new year.

 

Winter feasts were traditional in pagan times, celebrating the end of winter as cattle were slaughtered so they did not need feeding in winter and alcohol had finished fermenting.

 

From 1644 when Britain was a Republic, Christmas was banned until 1660, to help rid England of 'decadence'. Ba Humbug eh?

 

Father Christmas was first seen in England in the Fifteenth Century, his popularity declined until Victorian times when Christmas became centred around children, and Father Christmas became a bringer of presents.

 

I hope you enjoyed reading this,

 

Merry Christmas From Me Everyone!

Friday 8 October 2021

Arthur Wharton -The World's First Professional Black Footballer




  Image found at:https://abrempongradiogh.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/sport-4.bmp, accessed 7.10.2021.

I was inspired by the story of Arthur Wharton, the world's first black professional footballer and thought I would share the story for Black History Month.

Arthur 'Kwame' Wharton  was born in Jamestown, Ghana in 1865, in 1883 he moved to Darlington to train as a Missionary at Cleveland College. He became a professional footballer at the town's football club, playing mostly in goal but also played on the wing. Arthur became known as a goalkeeper with the 'prodigious punch'.He moved onto other clubs in his career including Preston North End, Rotherham & Newcastle & District which later became Newcastle United. In a match between Rotherham & Sheffield Wednesday, he was in goal, and to save a shot, he jumped to the crossbar catching the ball between his legs, causing the three opposition players to collide in a heap in the net.

 

 Not only was Arthur adept on a football pitch, he was a professional athlete, cyclist, cricketer & rugby player. He was the first Official Fastest Man, running 100 yards in 10 seconds straight on 3rd July 1886 at Stamford Bridge, London. ...'He was called “invincible” by one 19th-century newspaper, and a man who, even in the ideological context of Victorian Britain, refused to accept racism lying down. While waiting for an athletics race in his early 20s, he overheard two other competitors calling him the n-word'. “Allow me to give you to understand,” he later recalled telling the pair, “I not only run but do a little boxing when required.” They piped down. He won the race. (Sourced from The Independent Online, found at: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/arthur-wharton-darlington-first-black-professional-footballer-b1286187.html accessed 8.10.2021).

After his sporting career he moved to Edlington, Doncaster in 1915 & worked as a haulage hand at Yorkshire Main Colliery. Arthur Wharton joined the Home Guard in The Great War |(date unknown). Sadly Arthur died penniless in 1930 in the Springwell Sanitarium, Balby and was buried in an unmarked grave at Edlington Cemetery. In May 1997, Arthur’s grave was given a headstone after a campaign by anti-racism organisation Football Unites Racism Divides for recognition of his achievements.


This may be considered a very short sporting career by today's standards, but there was no Sky TV, Premiership league or a million pound salary in those days. Football was in it's infancy and hard times were common, particularly in the economic climate of the late 20's and early 30's. Although Arthur Wharton died penniless, his story of overcoming racial barriers in sport have given us a an inspirational legacy that is everlasting, inspiring the likes of Marcus Rashford & Usain Bolt. Statues of Wharton are all over the world, from his native Ghana to the F.A Offices of London. My favourite Memorial to Arthur Wharton is in Darlington on the side of a house - a two story mural.

 

Sources

There are loads of websites with information on Arthur Wharton including these:

 

Arthur Wharton: The First Black Footballer, found at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/tyne/roots/2003/10/arthur_wharton.shtml

Arthur Wharton Foundation:, found at: https://arthurwhartonfoundation.org/

Great LivesA Talk Featuring Viv Anderson talking about Arthur Wharton, you can listen here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00sg13b

 








Thursday 26 December 2019

There Are 12 Days Of Christmas...

There are 12 days of Christmas, we all know the Carol. So why do you not hear Christmas songs on the radio or see the videos on TV after Christmas? Ba Humbug is what I say!
I will try and put Christmas themed content on the blog until January 5th. Merry Christmas Everyone!


https://youtu.be/A6iamZpEzMw

Why Do People Go Shopping On Boxing Day?

Boxing Day Sales Why Do We Need Them?

Christmas. We all eat drink & are merry. Boxing Day on 26th December, is when all supermarkets & shops open & we pile in buying everything in sight. Why? Why can't retail workers have a day off like everyone else? Nowadays companies like Tesco do not pay a decent overtime rate, usually they demand you go in if you are on a flexible contract. Hardly any shoppers turn up at supermarkets anyway so what's the point? So please be like me and BOYCOTT SHOPPING ON SUNDAYS & BANK HOLIDAYS. Remember the people working probably aren't doing it out of choice & they would rather be home with their families.

NB found this petition link in a Birmingham Mail article to stop Boxing Day Opening, please sign it:https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/petition-stop-shops-opening-boxing-17288455

Tuesday 19 November 2019

The Olde Curiosity Blog: Letters To Father Christmas? Here Is The Official ...



how-mariah-carey-spends-christmas
Mariah Carey at Christmas

Please have a look at a post from last year, get  those letters out to Father Christmas and who knows what may be under the tree on Christmas morning?



The Olde Curiosity Blog: Letters To Father Christmas? Here Is The Official ...: Father Christmas, found at: https://thegraphicsfairy.com/100-free-christmas-images/ It's that time of year when children are ask...