Table of contents for No. 78 in All About History

Q. WHAT DO YOU CONSIDER TO BE THE MEANING OF THE TERM FASCIST? A. The great historian of fascism Roger Griffin has noted, about the “bewilderingly wide range of ideal types of their essential definitional traits [that have] accumulated over time”, that “there is no objective way of resolving the differences between them.” I agree with Griffin; it would be foolish not to, given the literature. I think we need a term for a certain social and political structure we can see replicated in otherwise very different historical circumstances. I think we can see chains of influence between movements with this structure. There is a certain political structure that you can find in the writings of European far right thinkers – for example, Guillaume Faye’s Why We Fight, or the…

Invalided west from the Russian Front following punishment for uttering ‘defeatist remarks’, Heinrich Severloh found himself manning a MG42 machine-gun at strongpoint WN62 overlooking Omaha on D-Day, even as the American landing craft disgorged their occupants onto the shore: “They jumped into the cold water up to their shoulders and chests. Some disappeared under the water for a moment and, half-swimming, half-wading, they began to move slowly onto the beach in front of our strongpoint. At that moment there was complete silence in the bay, not one shot was fired … Everything was so calm, so organised, that you had the impression that they were merely carrying out an exercise …. We were well aware that the GIs below us were being led like lambs to the slaughter.” Severloh’s commander,…

What drew you to the Sarah Wilson story? I used to collect early newspapers and I found a report in the St James’s Chronicle for 10 January 1765 of a young woman who turned up on a farmer’s doorstep. She was looking for a place to stay. She later let slip that she was shortly due to inherit the massive sum of £90,000. It appears that the farmer’s son and the young lady were growing increasingly fond of each other. Whether his ardour was enhanced by the information about her fortune is unclear. However, they got married on 17 December 1764. She told her father-in-law that the inheritance was due and that, because of her influence at court, she could procure a colonel’s commission for her husband if he could…

The coach of Plymouth Ladies, Frank Zanazzi, firmly believed in variety when training his team. As a gymnast and athlete himself he had regular sessions on the beach with his players, using shot putt, javelin and sprinting. And he was not alone in creating inventive ways for his ladies’ team to train and exercise. Under the keen eye of their manager Mr A Frankland, Dick Kerr’s of Preston would regularly be seen at their training ground involved in horse riding and even boxing! Other methods were equally extraordinary and even quite brutal. The coach of Coventry Ladies, FK Selman, sent his novice team off on a run. The fastest five to return were the forwards, the next midfield and so on down to the goalkeeper. The girls were also reluctant…

STRENGTH 6-7,000 MEN-AT-ARMS (DISMOUNTED) 2k-4k LONGBOWMEN 2k-3k GASCON INFANTRY 1,000-1,500 CAVALRY 60 MEN-AT-ARMS 100 ARXHERS PRINCE EDWARD OF WOODSTOCK Eldest son of king Edward III, born in 1330. One of the most successful English commanders during the Hundred Years’ War. +Intelligent, brave chivalrous -Ruthless and brutal, destroyer of those of lesser rank LONGBOWMAN Strong English and Welsh longbowmen dominated the battlefields of Europe for over 150 years. + High rate of fire and effective up to 300m against most armours - Longbowmen were vulnerable to enemy attack and ammunition needed to be plentiful LONGBOW The powerful English longbow was made of yew, 1.8 metres in length, it could fire arrows effectively up to 300 metres. + Rapid rate of fire, long range and effective on unarmoured targets. Used very successfully…

What were the circumstances leading up to the Korean War? The division of Korea happened in late 1945 after the Japanese surrender [in World War II]. The northern half of Korea was assigned to the Soviets, and the southern half was assigned to the United States. There were nationalists, Korean nationalists, on both sides. On the northern half, these were based around a guerrilla leader named Kim Il-sung. On the southern half there were a variety of leaders, but eventually they sort of coalesced around a guy named Syngman Rhee. Things were pretty violent from the beginning. A lot of people talk about the Korean War breaking out in June of 1950 as a real surprise, but there had been sporadic fighting all the way up until 1950. What happened…

Military aircraft took to the skies like never before during World War II. Although they had been used in the first global conflict – initially for reconnaissance but then as muscle to break the deadlock of trench warfare – advancing technology and an emphasis on strategic bombing made them more important. Both sides had considerable airpower and techniques up their sleeve. The Luftwaffe would fly above Germany’s army as it advanced across western Europe while the RAF used radar to detect and locate the position of approaching enemy aircraft. Radar enabled bombing raids to take place in the dead of night. Planes were also agile enough to be used in aerial combat. Targets were found on land and across the seas and, while bombs would drop in droves, air superiority…

Author Daniel Kalder Publisher Oneworld Press Price £10.99 (paperback) Released Out now literature in their wider contexts, for example revealing that Soviet leaders were compelled by tradition to amass personal bodies of work – even if just tedious volumes of speeches. Less well-known dictators also feature, such as Turkmenbashi of Turkmenistan, who almost defies explanation. As Kalder writes: “Who else had a gold statue that stood atop a tripod with its arms held aloft, revolving throughout the day so that the sun was always in its grasp?” Mao wrote that “revolution is not a dinner party” and neither it emerges is the act Twentieth-century dictators such as Hitler and Stalin are among the historical figures most familiar to modern-day populations, so you’d be forgiven for thinking there isn’t really anything new…

Author James Holland Price £9.99 Publisher Corgi Books During the third week of February 1944, the combined Allied air forces launched their first ever round-the-clock bomber offensive against Germany. Code-named Operation Argument, this monumental air assault quickly became known as Big Week. Following the fortunes of pilots, aircrew and civilians on both sides, James Holland has produced a hard-hitting, authoritative narrative of one of World War II’s most critical moments, one that culminated in the largest air battle ever witnessed. “The author discusses the belief systems of peoples including the Celtic tribes and the Druids”…

1 In the midst of a political and constitutional crisis in which Italy is run by a weak and quarrelsome coalition government, the newly formed National Fascist Party led by Benito Mussolini holds a Fascist Congress in Naples on 23 October 1922. Fascist supporters have already taken control of the Po Valley and many towns in Northern Italy. 2 In front of an estimated 60,000 supporters, Mussolini lays out his plans for the Fascist Party to ascend to power by constitutional means through an election, but with a threat of violent action should that not come to pass. He ends by saying, “Either we will be given the government or else we must take it by marching on Rome.” 3 An ultimatum is made by the Fascist Party to King Victor Emmanuel III…

The Egyptians believed a human was made up of six components that needed to unite in the afterlife in order to be reborn successfully. These elements were: 1 The physical body, which was preserved through mummification. 2 The name of an individual, which was a powerful weapon. Many of the spells in the funerary texts name various components of demons and their weapons giving the deceased power over them. 3 The shadow is a confusing element described in the funerary texts as a powerful entity to be protected. When the sun sets/dies the shadow disappears only to be reborn in the morning. Therefore if the deceased individual has a shadow it shows the presence of the sun. 4 The ba was depicted as a human headed…

APOPHIS The enemy of the sun-god Ra, Apophis is depicted in various hours of the Underworld journey trying to intercept the sun-god. He was a giant snake and is generally shown being overcome by supporters of Ra. These include the god of chaos, Seth, the Eye of Ra, and even the sun-god in the form of the Great Cat. They attack Apophis enabling the sun-god and therefore the deceased to continue the journey to rebirth. Apophis is not known prior to the Middle Kingdom and gains in popularity throughout the New Kingdom. AKER This two-headed lion has one head facing forward and one facing to the rear. He is therefore often given the title of ‘He who is looking forward and behind.’ He was sometimes depicted as two lions –…

Oberst Hermann von Oppeln-Bronikowski made an impression. Tall and handsome, he had all the elegant manners of the Saxon aristocrat he was. In his black panzer uniform, with his Knight’s Cross dangling at his throat and his cigarette holder clamped between his teeth, he cut a real dash, as he had done before the war at the 1936 Berlin Olympics where he won a gold medal in the team equestrian dressage event. He’d served with distinction in World War I, becoming one of the youngest ever recipients of the Iron Cross First Class, and had continued this track record in the Second, becoming one of Germany’s famed ‘panzer aces’ in Russia. When the Red Army launched their Operation Uranus counterattack in mid-November 1942 in an attempt to encircle the German…

The Royal Oak in Boscobel Wood, Shropshire, has become an intrinsic and significant part of the story of Charles II’s great escape in 1651 thanks to the damp, boring and uncomfortable day that he spent hiding amongst its boughs with the courageous Captain Careless. Charles had barely slept since escaping Worcester a few days earlier and dozed off several times, which caused Careless some alarm when enemy troops passed closely by and even, on at least one occasion, paused underneath the tree. Later on, Charles would enjoy telling his courtiers about his escapades after Worcester and his story of hiding in the tree was definitely the highlight of an already epic tale – with the result that word spread and the famous oak attained celebrity status. Unfortunately, its fame would…

1. Be a patient listener (it is this, not fast talking, that gets a con-man his coups). 2. Never look bored. 3. Wait for the other person to reveal any political opinions, then agree with them. 4. Let the other person reveal religious views, then have the same ones. 5. Hint at sex talk, but don’t follow it up unless the other fellow shows a strong interest. 6. Never be untidy. 7. Never discuss illness, unless some special concern is shown. 8. Never pry into a person’s personal circumstances (they’ll tell you all eventually). 9. Never boast. Just let your importance be quietly obvious. 10. Never get drunk.…

Even with the tremendous surge in interest for the women’s game today, average attendance for a match in the Women’s Super League in England is around 2,000 at best. The exceptions are FA Cup ties and of course the World Cup, plus a number of European games such as the March 2019 game between Atletico Madrid and Barcelona, which was seen by over 60,000 in the Spanish capital. By contrast, in 1920 the average gate for a match in the UK was 12,000 with the game at Everton in 1920 standing as a record for women’s football even right up to most recent times. What this extract from the diary of Dick Kerr’s player Alice Woods also shows is the punishing scale of the playing schedule, just for one month!…

Have you discovered anything new about Anne of Cleves during your research? Well, I’ve got some new theories about her! It was something that King Henry VIII said after their wedding night that gave me a storyline, because he kept saying that she was no virgin. Now, that was quite startling actually because you would have thought that a royal princess would have been brought up quite strictly in a very sheltered manner. It made me wonder what if Henry was telling what he believed to be the truth? And then I thought how could Anna have conducted an illicit affair or even have had an illegitimate baby? So that gave me one of the storylines for the novel – and when I was re-researching Anna, I found what could…

STRENGTH 11-60,000 MEN-AT-ARMS (DISMOUNTED) 8,000 ARBALESTERS 2,000 LIGHT-ARMED TROOPS 16-50,000 CAVALRY 300-500 KING JEAN II LE BON Jean became king on the death of his father Philip in 1350. He inherited multiple crises in the form of English invasions and the Black Death. + Honourable and keen on negotiation - Overconfident and with an outdated military system ARBALESTERS The arbalest was a late model crossbow that was larger and stronger than earlier models + Fire could penetrate armour, superior effective range - Slow rate of fire (about two bolts a minute), highly specialised, expensive LANCE The lance was the mounted weapon of choice for knights and men-at-arms during the Hundred Years’ War. It needed to be cut down to be used on foot, as at Poitiers. + Powerful and easily…

It appears that a primary challenge from within Eisenhower’s own party is looking more and more likely, with junior senator Joseph McCarthy increasingly hinting that he will stand against the beleaguered incumbent. After humiliating defeat in Korea, there is increased feeling within the GOP that they need a change of leadership to hold off Democrats in the next election. “The Korean War happens at the same time as the ‘Red Scare’ in the United States”…

6 June 2019 marks the 75th anniversary of the largest sea and air operation in history, D-Day. This massive military engagement marked the turning point of World War II and the beginning of the liberation of Europe. In this special, presented by History Of War, you’ll learn about the heroes who fought on the beaches, the leaders who planned Operation Overlord and how French Resistance helped lay the ground. You can also read the accounts of veterans who were there on the day to see it all unfold and play their part. A fantastic way to immerse yourself in the subject. Buy the History Of War D-Day 75th Anniversary Special in shops or online at myfavouritemagazines.com Price: £15.99…

Author Martin Wall Publisher Amberley Publishing Price £20 Released Out now for example, the section about 16th-century astrologer and mathematician John Dee could have been supplemented with material on the wider spiritual activities of the Elizabethan court, and although James VI’s much-chronicled views on witches are noted, a wider discussion of witch trials across the British Isles – and indeed civilians’ beliefs about witches from the medieval era onwards – could have been interesting. The book is also subject to digression in some parts such as comments on consumerism – while discussing modern spiritualism, or lack thereof – which do Britain’s myths, magic and folklore are the focus of this work charting an alternative history of our island story. Martin Wall explores eras from ancient times to today in presenting a…

CORNELIS VAN GEELKERKEN DUTCH 1901-1976 A co-founder of the Dutch National Socialist Movement, van Geelkerken created the party in the image of the German National Socialists, pretty much just translating their ideology into his native language. He was more hands-on than his leader, Anton Mussert, constantly encouraging the members. In 1934 he founded the youth division and relished his role in educating the young. From 1936 to 1940, he finally became head of the party’s propaganda. ERNEST BLYTHE IRISH 1889-1975 Twentieth century Ireland was a place of turmoil, and so fascism on the island is often overlooked. Ernest Blythe, who managed to be a member of both the Orange Order and the Republican movement at the same time, became a leading member of the Blueshirts, Ireland’s fascist movement. In the…

On the Silver Screen Woman In Gold, the 2015 film starring Helen Mirren as Altmann and Ryan Reynolds as her lawyer, E Randol Schoenberg, is based on Maria Altmann’s battle to regain her aunt’s portrait, along with the other Klimt paintings taken from her family. Hiding the Truth After the portrait was given to the Galerie Belvedere, it was renamed ‘Dame in Gold’ (also known as The Lady in Gold) so that would not be associated with Adele – even though she is the figure in the painting – because of her Jewish heritage. Family Heirlooms The beautiful diamond choker that Adele wears in the portrait was actually given to her niece Maria as a present on her wedding day in December 1937. Just months later, it was seized by…

The Book of Going Forth by Day was the first funerary text to specify that some chapters should be written on specific objects. For example Spell Six was to be written on shabti (or ushabti) figures. These were small servant statues placed in the tomb who worked on behalf of the deceased should it be required. The spell reads: “O Shabti, allotted to me, if I be summoned or if I be detailed to do any work which has to be done in the realm of the dead: if indeed obstacles are implanted for you therewith as a man at his duties, you shall detail yourself or me on every occasion of making arable the fields, of flooding the banks, or of conveying sand from east to west; ‘Here I…

With the cancellation in late 1940 of Operation Sealion – the planned Nazi invasion of Great Britain – and the entry into the war of the United States of America in December 1941, Berlin knew it was only a matter of time before the now-Allies landed on continental Europe. Set out in Führer Directive No 51 on 3 November 1943, Hitler’s answer was to build the Atlantic Wall – der Atlantikwall – hundreds of miles of fortifications that would stretch unbroken from northern Norway all the way down to the Pyrenean border between France and Francoist Spain. It was intended to be a truly vast scheme that would create an impregnable barrier of 15,000 strongpoints manned by a third of a million men. The paramilitary Organization Todt – OT for…

Minutes of the Football Association Emergency Committee, 23 August to 3 October 1921 5. Women’s Football Matches. The following Resolution was adopted: Complaints having been made as to football being played by women, Council feel impelled to express their strong opinion that the game of football is quite unsuitable for females and should not be encouraged. Complaints have also been made as to the conditions under which some of the matches have been arranged and played, and the appropriation of receipts to other than charitable objects. The Council are further of the opinion that an excessive proportion of the receipts are absorbed in expenses and an inadequate percentage devoted to charitable objects. For these reasons the Council requests the Clubs belonging to the Association refuse the use of their grounds…

Author Gordon Campbell (Editor) Publisher Oxford University Press Price £30 Released Out now The Oxford Illustrated History Of The Renaissance is the latest title in the celebrated Oxford Illustrated History series. Always generously illustrated, these single-volumes have so far spanned a huge range of topics including the world itself, Greece, opera and the Reformation. Edited by Gordon Campbell, a noted expert in Renaissance Studies, this volume brings together some of the finest scholarship from across the globe to examine an enthralling topic. “This fascinating work is at pains to prove that the Renaissance isn’t simply a story of Europe” The Illustrated Histories pride themselves on being relevant not only to researchers, but to those with a more casual interest in the field under discussion, and this is no exception. Although…

Author Lee Jackson Publisher Yale University Press Price £20 Released Out now “We are not amused” is a quotation aimed far too often at the supposedly straight-laced, po-faced Victorians but in his new book, Palaces Of Pleasure, Lee Jackson sets out to prove just how wrong that statement is. The subtitle of Palaces Of Pleasure is From Music Halls To Football, How The Victorians Invented Mass Entertainment, and the book is persuasive enough to convince even the most doubting reader. As industry blossomed and Victorians found themselves with money to spend on entertainment, there emerged a new class of entrepreneurs who created vast palaces dedicated to pleasure. From music halls to gin palaces, pleasure gardens to football clubs and of course, the ever-popular seaside resorts, the Victorians found themselves with…

Author Eric Haseltine Publisher Icon Books Price £12.99 Released Out now interested in learning more about the spy agencies of the 1970s, this is the book for you. Likewise, considering current affairs and the ongoing discussion regarding Russian intelligence and the 2016 US election, this is an interesting and rather timely read. Unsurprisingly, considering the subject matter, the language gets a bit technical at times and can be a bit complicated for the average reader. However, the actual plot remains easy to follow, particularly as the focus of the book narrows in the latter half, and it is interesting to learn about spycraft during the Cold War. Personally speaking, it would have been preferable if the book placed a bit more emphasis on the people rather than the technology, but…