Table of contents for No. 107 in All About History

Onsens were, at one time, a key part of the Japanese lifestyle. These public baths were more than a place to clean yourself. Before the 19th century, when people didn’t have baths in their homes, onsens were a social hotspot. People would go and meet for conversation, as well as to use the leisure facilities provided along with the baths. Onsens grew in popularity after the arrival of Buddhism in Japan, as the religion taught that bathing prevented disease, so as Buddhism expanded across the country, so did public bathing. Prior to the Meiji Restoration and the arrival of Western culture in Japan, it was the norm for men and women to bathe together. It is still possible to find onsens that offer mixed bathing today, but these are rare.…

Vincenz Priessnitz Austrian, 1799-1851 Often considered the founder of modern hydrotherapy, Priessnitz is credited with creating the ‘wet compress’. When this idea failed to work, he introduced the notion of partial baths. Although he himself was almost illiterate, his work was documented by other doctors, who took his research and utilised it to further develop his methods. He conducted his work in Graefenberg, half-way up a mountain, where he was particularly talented at treating patients suffering from mercury poisoning. MONTEZUMA AZTEC, 1466-1520 The last Aztec emperor, who witnessed their downfall at the hands of Hernan Cortes, was also known for his bathing habits. The Aztecs were known to be exceptionally clean, and Montezuma is said to have bathed numerous times in a single day, even reputedly holding court while he…

TRAITOR • ADULTERER • MURDERER One of the most notorious figures in English history, Isabella of France has been described as a ‘shadow queen’, a ‘rebel queen’ and the ‘She-Wolf of France’. The only queen to have rebelled against her husband, Isabella lived in a time when female power was viewed as a threat – and she was willing to do whatever it took to fight for what was rightfully hers. Isabella was born in Paris around 1295, the daughter of King Philip IV of France and Queen Joan I of Navarre. Like all royal princesses, she was a political pawn raised with the expectation that her marriage would secure a foreign alliance. In 1299, when Isabella was three or four, it was decided she would marry Edward of Caernarfon,…

Japan’s post-war constitution prohibited the country from fighting offensive wars, relegating the Self-Defence Force (SDF) to a form of reserve defence force. In 2014, amid growing tensions with China and North Korea, Shinzo Abe’s Japanese parliament began broadening the SDF’s powers. However, the vast majority of the Japanese populace oppose this revision and remain committed to pacifism. The samurai values of honour, discipline and martial skill remain hallmarks of the country’s most popular martial arts, such as karate, kendo, judo, jujutsu and aikido. However, these are largely taught as forms of self-defence and personal development rather than preparation for war. Some analysts see other aspects of samurai culture – formality, respect for hierarchy and discipline – in Japan’s modern work culture, especially among the country’s ‘salarymen’. Fuelling the stereotype, in…

OTTOMAN ARMY OSMAN NURI PASHA Despite being unsuccessful in defending the city of Plevna against the Russians, Osman was still celebrated for his valiant leadership against an overwhelming force. He was awarded the title Gazi, meaning warrior or veteran, as well as the Order of the Medjidie and the Imtiyaz Medal for services to the empire. EDHEM PASHA Deputy to Osman Pasha in Plevna, Edhem was a field marshal and leading commander in the Ottoman army. He fought in the Greco-Turkish War 20 years after his involvement in the brutal fighting at Plevna, with particular success at the Battle of Domokos and later in capturing Larissa and Trikala. RUSSIAN ARMY ALEXANDER II Crowned as emperor of Russia in 1855, Alexander II’s most significant contribution to his country was the emancipation…

1940 RAF VICTORY By the autumn of 1940 the Luftwaffe campaign against the RAF was beginning to weaken. On 17 September Hitler suspended Operation Sea Lion – the planned invasion of the UK – and 31 October saw the final daylight raid by the Luftwaffe. Although seriously weakened, the RAF had successfully stopped the Germans gaining air superiority over Britain. 1940-41 THE BLITZ After it was realised the Luftwaffe had failed to gain air superiority over the UK, the Nazis switched to a focus on nighttime bombing raids. Known simply as the Blitz, for several months German bombers targeted major cities and industrial centres, but also the civilian population. Despite the widespread devastation and loss of life, the British morale remained strong, and the ‘Blitz Spirit’ of defiant endurance was…

THERAPEUTIC TREATMENT Today, we use the modern shower for maintaining personal hygiene. However, in Victorian and Edwardian Britain the needle shower was used for healing and medicinal purposes. The jets of water were supposed to massage the internal organs such as the kidneys and liver, as well as the spine. USER CONTROL The water-flow and pressure of needle showers were controlled with a range of valves and taps. A mixing chamber was used to regulate the temperature of the water. RARE FIND Also known as cage showers, needle showers were commonly made from brass that was sometimes plated in nickel. Brass was expensive and the showers were frequently ripped out for scrap when the owners moved home, so there are few original examples surviving today. EXPENSIVE TECHNOLOGY Needle showers were…

It is usually presumed that medieval people were dirty and that they did not practise good personal hygiene. Is this true? Definitely not! There is actually a surprising amount of evidence to show that medieval people not only washed but that they actively enjoyed doing so, and that they strongly disliked being dirty. Like us, they considered cleanliness to be good manners and they were well aware of the health risks posed by dirt. And so, even though practising good personal hygiene in a world without all our modern conveniences could be difficult and sometimes dangerous, most people washed often and did their very best to keep themselves, their clothes and their surroundings clean. What was the medical advice surrounding hygiene during the medieval period? Hygiene played a really important…

Empress Matilda 1102-67 A claimant to the English throne during the Anarchy, a civil war between England and Normandy, Empress Matilda almost became England’s first female ruler. She was the daughter and heir of King Henry I, but after his death the throne was seized by her cousin Stephen of Blois. Although Matilda defeated Stephen at the Battle of Lincoln in 1141, she was driven out of London before her coronation could be held. In 1153, she signed the Treaty of Winchester, which agreed that Stephen could remain king as long as Matilda’s son, Henry, was named his heir. Eleanor of Aquitaine c.1122 – 1204 Eleanor was queen of France through her marriage to King Louis VII. After that marriage was annulled, she became queen of England after marrying King…

In the long history of the Roman Empire, the Romans (obviously) won many more times than they lost. In their military history, however, they also suffered some devastating defeats and setbacks. If they were any other empire, those defeats may have spelled their demise, but the Romans had a habit of coming back and, if you did not wipe them out, they would get you in the end. There are, however, several tricks and lessons we can learn from those occasions on which the Romans were bested. If you learn your lessons from history well, perhaps you too could beat the Romans. TRICK THEM AND TRAP THEM The Battle of the Caudine Forks, 321 BCE As Rome began to take the first steps towards empire and pressed her cause to…

Casino Royale 1953 British Secret Service Agent James Bond is sent on a mission to defeat Soviet banker Le Chiffre in a high-stakes poker game. Dr No 1958 Bond goes to Jamaica to investigate the death of a fellow secret agent, and takes on the malevolent Dr No. Live and Let Die 1954 Bond is sent to Jamaica to investigate Mr Big, a crime boss, voodoo cult leader and operative of Soviet organisation SMERSH. Goldfinger 1959 Investigating gold smuggler Auric Goldfinger, Bond uncovers a sinister plot to rob Fort Knox in Kentucky, USA. On Her Majesty’s Secret Service 1963 Bond travels to Switzerland to hunt down SPECTRE chief Blofeld and falls in love. Moonraker 1955 Bond investigates the Moonraker, a nuclear missile project and its mysterious head, Hugo Drax. For…

EXPERT FRANNY MOYLE Franny Moyle is the author of several works of history, including Constance: The Tragic and Scandalous Life of Mrs Oscar Wilde and Desperate Romantics: The Private Lives of the Pre-Raphaelites, which was adapted into a BBC drama. Her latest book on Hans Holbein is available now. Even if you don’t know much about Hans Holbein the Younger, the 16th century German artist who spent the second half of his career as Henry VIII’s court painter, you are likely to know his portraits of the king. That imposing figure of the monarch: his legs spread wide, his shoulders broadened by the huge fur collar he wears, his hands resting on his hip and dagger, and his gaze trained directly on the viewer. It’s an image of supreme power…

3RD MILLENIUM BCE GREAT BATH OF MOHENJO-DARO The earliest known public baths in the world, the Great Bath is in modern-day Pakistan. Belonging to the Indus civilisation, it’s part of the archaeological evidence that suggests an emphasis on cleanliness and sanitation. Most homes that have been uncovered also have their own washrooms. 2181 BCE BATHE LIKE AN EGYPTIAN In Ancient Egypt, no matter the class, people bathe as soon as they wake up. Every household has a basin and jug for washing hands and showering, and they were also used before and after meals. 2ND CENTURY BCE ROMAN BATHS The first Roman baths are constructed in the 2nd century BCE. Supplied by aqueducts, more bath houses crop up around Europe, nearing 1,000 by the 5th century CE. They become a…

GREEK BATHS OF GELA CALTANISSETTA, ITALY While it may seem odd to some to visit Ancient Greek baths in Sicily, the Greeks lived on the island for quite a while, and they certainly left their mark. The Greek baths at Gela – allegedly the second-oldest town in Sicily after Syracuse – are one of the oldest baths in all of Italy, dating back to the 4th century BCE. At the baths, you’ll find 36 tanks and underground drainage systems, all rediscovered in 1957. They’re the only extant Greek baths in Sicily, and are located just 500 metres from the city walls on Via Europea – perfectly located for visitors to the town. The site itself is comparable with ones that can be found in Delphi, Olympia and further afield, but…

During her time as regent, Isabella attempted to claim the French throne for her son Edward. Her brother, King Charles IV, died in 1328 without leaving a male heir to succeed him. His first cousin, Philip of Valois, was chosen to be the next king of France as Philip VI. However, Edward was actually Charles’ nephew and nearest male relative, so why did he not inherit the French crown? According to Salic law in France, the throne could not be inherited either by a woman or through the female line. Since Edward’s claim to the French throne was through Isabella, a daughter of King Philip IV, he was excluded from the line of succession. But like his mother, Edward was not one to give up on what he saw as…

EXPERT BIOS PROFESSOR OLIVER BUCKTON Oliver Buckton is professor of English at Florida Atlantic University and an expert in espionage literature and film, among numerous other topics. He is the author of The World is Not Enough: A Biography of Ian Fleming. DAVID ZARITSKY David Zaritsky is a Bond expert and super-fan, and the mastermind behind The James Bond Experience YouTube channel and website. His love of the films centres on “living like James Bond” and emulating the style featured within them. “I’m going to write the spy story to end all spy stories” This statement must have seemed half humorous to Robert Harling when it was said to him by a friend and fellow officer in the 30 Commando Assault Unit during World War II. Harling could hardly have…

Few acts better encapsulate the spirit of the samurai than the ritualistic form of suicidal belly-cutting, known as seppuku, or harakiri. The ultimate extension of martial virtue, honour suicide was woven through the gradual development of samurai culture. It represented an embrace of an agonising death over dishonour, an oath of loyalty to one’s lord unto the grave, and the ultimate form of discipline. The act was also incredibly subjective in intent; for those who had disgraced themselves, it was a grotesque form of baptism by pain, through which warriors could purify their transgressions. Like Cato, who killed himself to deny Julius Caesar the satisfaction of pardoning him, it was also practised as a form of protest. Ritualistic suicide in Japan can be traced back to the act of junshi…

SIGNS OF MORTALITY Jean de Dinteville on the left has a skull broach on his cap; inscribed on the dagger in his hand is his age, 29 years old, when the painting was done. On the right, Georges de Selve leans on a book with his age, 25, also written on it, reminding us of both their youth and mortality. UPPER SHELF The items on the upper shelf between the figures are a celestial globe, a sundial and other instruments for measuring and tracking events in the sky or measuring time and are concerned with matters of the heavens. However, they are misaligned, suggesting that the heavens are out of sorts. HIDDEN SKULL The most striking ‘hidden’ element of the painting is the anamorphic skull placed between their feet that…

INTERVIEW WITH ANDY SAUNDERS Andy is an author and researcher who specialises in the air war over Europe 1939-45, with a particular interest in the Battle of Britain. He was a founder and the first curator of Tangmere Military Aviation Museum and is a regular TV and film consultant. He currently edits the German military history magazine, Iron Cross. The Battle of Britain was a critical moment in World War II, a tussle that saw the Royal Air Force and other British services stop the German Luftwaffe gaining air superiority over the UK. Since the end of the war many historians have speculated and debated the possible outcomes if the RAF had been defeated in 1940. This usually centres on the idea that a defeat would have been followed by…