Inhoudsopgave van May 2018 - History Revealed

While every detail of the imminent wedding of Prince Harry to Meghan Markle has been anticipated and analysed for months, the multiple nuptials of his Tudor namesake are less familiar. Indeed, the weddings of Henry VIII remain matters of supposition and conjecture. It is something of a curiosity that so little is known of these six days that in some ways defined the reign of England’s most famous monarch. We knew that if anybody could shed any light on these days of union, it would be Alison Weir, and her cover feature on page 28 is the next best thing to a place on the guestlist. More incredible stories from under the radar elsewhere this month include a cracking yarn about how the CIA tried to steal a Soviet nuclear…

1 HIRTA, ST KILDA, SCOTLAND The residents of this remote settlement on the island of Hirta asked to be moved to the mainland in 1929 after so many of them perished from harsh weather and smallpox. 2 IMBER, WILTSHIRE In November 1943, the residents of Imber were forced to leave in preparation for the Allied invasion of Europe. They were not allowed to return and it’s now a military training ground. 3 HALLSANDS, DEVON Once home to more than 160 people, this coastal village started to erode when the beach was dredged, leaving it exposed to the elements. A storm destroyed most of the homes here in 1917. 4 MORETON, SOMERSET Increased demand for drinking water led to the village of Moreton being evacuated in 1950 so a reservoir could…

“Cromwell was one of the most brilliant men of the Tudor age” Q If you could turn back the clock, which single event in history would you want to change? Setting aside world wars and the like, it would have to be the execution of Thomas Cromwell in 1540. During the preceding decade, Cromwell had overseen seismic changes in the religious, political and economic life of the kingdom, and he still had so much more to achieve. A true visionary, he was one of the most brilliant men of the Tudor age. Henry realised this too late and was soon bitterly lamenting the death of his “most faithful servant”. Q If you could meet any figure from history, who would it be? My all-time historical heroine, Elizabeth I. Her accession…

NEFERTITI When: 14th century BC, 18th Dynasty No woman of Ancient Egypt is as recognisable as Nefertiti, thanks to the 1912 discovery of her exquisite limestone bust. The Great Royal Wife of Amenhotep IV (later Akhenaten), her name means ‘a beautiful woman has come’, but she was much more than this. She took an active role as the kingdom reached the height of its power and wealth, and was a partner in a major religious revolution, replacing the traditional gods with a single deity, the sun disc Aten. In the art of the period, Nefertiti stands as her husband’s equal – and it is possible she ruled alone after his death. CLEOPATRA When: First century BC, Ptolemaic Dynasty A name synonymous with seduction, scandal and suicide, Cleopatra ranks as one…

The work of the Directorate of Science and Technology, a branch of the CIA, is one of the most under-appreciated stories of the Cold War. Over decades, a relatively small group of American scientists and engineers turned out one amazing machine after another. Here are their greatest hits: U-2 SPY PLANE CODE NAME: AQUATONE Developed by Lockheed in eight months and under budget, the U-2 appeared in 1955. Able to fly at 70,000 feet, above Soviet defences, it gave President Eisenhower the confidence that there was no ‘bomber gap’. The Soviets weren’t as far ahead as he had feared. SR-71 SPY PLANE CODE NAME: BLACKBIRD In 1962 came the first flight of the A-12, engineer Kelly Johnson’s successor to the U-2. Within two years it had been developed into the…

ARTHUR THISTLEWOOD The illegitimate son of a prosperous Lincoln farmer and a shopkeeper’s daughter, he forsook a career as a land surveyor to explore the countries where revolution had taken hold, America and France. Before his radical politics, he enlisted in the army and became an expert swordsman. When the Conspiracy was foiled, he put this skill to use by killing a Bow Street Runner. JOHN BRUNT A Londoner and boot maker, whose work was exhibited in a Strand shop’s window display. Brunt later found work in Wellington’s army in France, where he developed his radicalism. JAMES INGS Born in Portsea, Hampshire, to a family of respectable tradesmen, he initially became a successful butcher. His business declined rapidly, though, in the years of recession after the Napoleonic Wars. In 1819,…

ST MALO, AUGUST 1944 Sat in the ruined St Pierre d’Alet chapel, Miller was later put under temporary house arrest for being in the siege zone. “THE INFANTRY NEVER STOPS FOR LACK OF PETROL ... THEY OBEY” LEE MILLER NORMANDY, JUNE 1944 Miller reached France less than a month after D-Day with the crew of a tank landing ship – a huge vessel that ferried Allied armour to France. ST MALO, AUGUST 1944 The town of St Malo was nearly obliterated by British and American bombing. The fortress here was one of the most well-defended German strongholds. ST MALO, AUGUST 1944 Although female journalists were barred from reporting on combat, Miller found herself in the midst of a siege. These spotters are directing fire on the old town. ST MALO,…

“The RAF was controversial throughout its infancy; not everyone was too happy about this new upstart” The Birth of the RAF, 1918 By Richard Overy Allen Lane, £14.99, hardback, 160 pages This year marks the centenary of the formation of the RAF, the world’s oldest independent air force. Established in the dying days of World War I – the first conflict that saw significant aerial combat – it would prove an essential element of the armed forces during World War II just a few decades later. Yet the RAF was surprisingly controversial throughout its infancy; as Richard Overy documents in his new book, not everyone was too happy about this new upstart. This is a concise, insightful look at the forces and figures responsible for shaping an organisation that endured…

Alison Weir One of the biggest-selling history writers in the UK, Alison has written many books about the Tudor dynasty, as well as our cover feature. See page 28 Roger Hermiston Formerly of BBC Radio 4’s flagship Today programme, Roger now writes about the past. He traces an attempted coup in London. See page 58 Richard Overy The award-winning historian’s latest book tells the story of the birth of the RAF a century ago, so we caught up with him about it. See page 86 GET INVOLVED Like us on Facebook: facebook.com/HistoryRevealed Follow us on Twitter: twitter.com/HistoryRevMag Follow us on Instagram: @HistoryRevMag Email us: haveyoursay@historyrevealed.com Or post: Have Your Say, History Revealed, Immediate Media, Tower House, Fairfax Street, Bristol BS1 3BN Subscription enquiries: Phone: 03330 162 116 Email: historyrevealed@buysubscriptions.com Post: History…

Imagine reaching the end of a long day, climbing into bed and resting your head... not on a soft pillow, but this Ancient Egyptian headrest. While this example, from the 18th Dynasty of the New Kingdom in the 14th century BC, is made of wood, similarly uncomfortable-sounding stone, ivory and marble variants were also used. This one features duck heads on the legs and the face of the god Bes, protector of mothers and children. Protector of neck cramps may have been more appropriate.…

The celebrations that followed the House of Commons vote to end centuries of the death penalty in the UK, in February 1956, turned out to be somewhat premature. The bill, put forward by longtime abolitionist Sydney Silverman, failed to pass through the House of Lords, so hanging returned the following year. Nonetheless, that the bill had passed the Commons reflected how attitudes towards hanging had changed in the wake of World War II – with three high-profile miscarriages of justice, in particular, causing discontent to intensify. PUBLIC OUTCRY Timothy Evans was hanged in 1950 for murdering his wife and infant daughter, only for the revelation three years later that his neighbour, John Christie, was a serial killer. Christie confessed to killing Evans’ wife. Three years later came Derek Bentley’s execution…

JANUARY William Pitt the Younger enters parliament as MP for Appleby. In 1783, aged 24, he becomes the youngest Prime Minister in Britain’s history. 1 JANUARY The 30-metre Iron Bridge spanning the River Severn in Shropshire opens. It is considered to be the first cast-iron bridge in the world. 12 OCTOBER With Scottish culture under threat by the Highland Clearances, the first bagpipe competition is held in Falkirk. It becomes an annual event. 13 OCTOBER Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II issues the Patent of Toleration, extending limited religious freedoms to non-Catholic Christians. 19 OCTOBER The American Revolutionary War essentially ends with the British surrender at Yorktown, though peace is not agreed for another two years. 29 NOVEMBER A group of friends meet at the King’s Arms tavern in London and…

1100  The first royal to be married in Westminster Abbey was Henry I in 1100. It has hosted over a dozen royal weddings since, most recently that of Prince William and Kate Middleton. 1328  Edward III chose York Minster for his wedding to Philippa of Hainault in 1328, even though it was still being built and had no roof. The king got a white wedding of sorts, as it snowed during the ceremony. 1464  Edward IV kept his marriage to Elizabeth Woodville a secret, as she was a widow and commoner. The exact date of their 1464 wedding is still debated. 1503  Henry VII considered a marriage between James IV of Scotland and his daughter, Margaret – a five-year-old. She was bethrothed (by proxy) in 1502, when she was 12…

No fewer than 20 Medals of Honor, the highest military decoration in the United States, were subsequently awarded to troopers of the 7th Cavalry present at Wounded Knee. A further 12 were given to soldiers involved in other aspects of the campaign. Although the Medal of Honor was a far more common award in the 19th century than it is today, it has been argued that the issue of so many for Wounded Knee is evidence of the government’s determination at the time to present the massacre in as favourable a light as possible. Following a review of the award in 1916, over 900 Medals of Honor were rescinded for various reasons, and there have been repeated calls for the Wounded Knee medals to follow this example.…

The England of 1820 was a nervous, disordered country on the brink of revolt. Peace with Europe, secured with the end of the Napoleonic Wars five years earlier at Waterloo, ought to have ushered in a period of growing prosperity and progress at home. But when King George III died on 29 January after 60 years on the throne, he bequeathed a nation – to a dissolute son and a repressive government – stricken by austerity and riven by political turmoil. Just three weeks into the new reign of George IV, there was a sensational plot to kill all the members of Cabinet, including the Prime Minister, and set up a revolutionary government along the lines of the Committee of Safety in Robespierre’s France 30 years earlier. The Cato Street…

The Cato Street Conspiracy had been undone by a spy, George Edwards, working for the Home Secretary. Lord Sidmouth never struggled to find volunteers for his network, but the quality of his informers – mostly poor men – was patchy. And as local magistrates were in charge of recruitment and deployment, the system was decentralised and he never exercised full control. The most notorious agent was William J Oliver. After the Pentrich armed uprising in June 1817, which ended with the execution of leader Jeremiah Brandreth and two others, the Leeds Mercury exposed Oliver’s role as an agent provocateur in that event. The news sparked outrage, and a whole rash of acquittals followed in other cases involving Oliver. Another spy with unreliable information was petty criminal John Castle, who was…

 Why was the RAF formed in 1918? “Founding any new service during a war is an exceptional event” The Germans really helped to create the RAF. If the German high command had not approved the bombing of London and other towns by aeroplane in the summer of 1917, it is unlikely that there would have been any change in the existing army and navy air forces, such as the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and the Royal Naval Air Service. The bombing prompted the prime minister, David Lloyd George, to set up a committee to recommend how to cope with it. The subsequent reports called for a new air defence system for London and, above all, an air ministry and independent air force – one that could bomb Germany back. Was…

Anne Frank, a Jewish girl of around five or six, looks at her watch while standing outside her father’s office in Amsterdam. Her family had fled to the city from their native Germany shortly after Hitler’s rise to power. Five years later, Amsterdam would be occupied by the Nazis; two years after that, the Franks would be forced into hiding in a secret annex. Anne took with her the present she had received for her 13th birthday, a red-and-white chequered book, to use as a diary.…

49 Condemned men and women reprieved when parliament voted to end the death penalty in 1956. The House of Lords didn’t pass the bill and hanging resumed in 1957. See page 18. £250m The equivalent in today’s money that George IV spent on renovations to Windsor Castle. He died 18 months after works were completed. See page 84. 20 The number of Medals of Honor awarded to US soldiers at the massacre of Wounded Knee, at which as many as 300 Native American men, women and children were slaughtered. See page 40.…

Pensioner Stanislaw Chrzanowski has become the first UK resident to be investigated by Germany for war crimes during WWII. Chrzanowski, who was unaware of the investigation, lived in Shropshire until his death last year. His alleged crimes focus on the murder of civilians in his home town of Slonim, Belarus. The case is being hailed as a unique breakthrough in the investigations of Nazi war crime. Chrzanowski first caught the attention of authorities several years ago when his stepson gave a dossier of evidence to police, but this was dismissed as insufficient. The case was reopened last year by war crime prosecutors in Germany. Chrzanowski always denied that he was a war criminal.…

Years of planning, practising, secrecy and technological strides, which ended up costing $800 million (almost £3 billion today), all led to a few weeks in the summer of 1974. The slow process of lowering the salvage system, picking up K-129 from the seabed and raising it back up relied on thousands of little things going smoothly. But a big thing went wrong. The claw broke, so only a section of the sub could be retrieved. The recovery stage ended on 9 August, the very day President Nixon resigned. CLEMENTINE Myriad faults meant the descent of the Capture Vehicle took two weeks. Nicknamed Clementine, it was equipped with sonar, cameras and lights so engineers could see what they were doing. PIPE STRING The three miles from surface to seabed was covered…

LORD LIVERPOOL PRIME MINISTER Having witnessed the fall of the Bastille while on a holiday to Paris in 1789, he had a terror of revolution. He struggled to cope with the 1817 economic recession, passing harsh legislation on the working classes, like the Corn Laws and Game Laws. The later 19th-century PM Benjamin Disraeli summed him up: “The Arch-Mediocrity who presided, rather than ruled, over this Cabinet of Mediocrities.” LORD CASTLEREAGH FOREIGN SECRETARY AND LEADER OF THE COMMONS “I met Murder on the way – He had a mask like Castlereagh,” wrote Shelley after Peterloo and the passing of the Six Acts. A master diplomat in Europe, Castlereagh organised the coalition of nations that eventually crushed Napoleon. He once challenged a Cabinet colleague to a duel. THE DUKE OF WELLINGTON…

The trauma of the Cato Street Conspiracy had a sobering effect on reactionaries and radicals alike. “From that day”, wrote journalist William Cobbett, “the tone of the sons of corruption became less insolent and audacious.” Meanwhile the tone of the sons of liberty became less truculent. Peterloo had been a warning light, and improbable though it seemed at the time, Cato Street proved a catalyst for change. Despite being a failure, it helped set a new course, which was to lead directly to the Great Reform Act of 1832 and the first significant extension of the franchise.…

RENNES, AUGUST 1944 French women suspected of collaborating with Germans had their heads shaved and were paraded through the streets. Miller called them “stupid little girls not intelligent enough to feel ashamed”. PARIS, AUGUST 1944 After the brutality of combat, Miller witnessed the liberation of Paris in 1944. The whole city breathed a sigh of relief and celebrated with the “world’s most gigantic party”. LUXEMBOURG, SEPTEMBER 1944 These joyful photos are a stark contrast to Miller’s combat images. The country suffered devastating losses during the war: 5,700 deaths, equivalent to two per cent of the population.…