Just before midnight on 7 December 1941, Flying Officer Peter Gibbes stepped off the train at Kota Bharu on the coast of northeast Malaya after a long, tiring journey up the peninsula from Singapore. Gibbes, an airline pilot in peacetime, had been newly posted to the Royal Australian Air Force’s 1 Squadron, which in the ensuing hours would become the first Australian military unit to see action in the Pacific War.
This video vividly tells the story of Australia’s first action of the Pacific war.
This excellent video was created by the Australian Military Aviation History Association. See more of their great videos and information here.
A story of legends, families and capitalism: a candid history of the Christmas tree
Reading time: 7 minutes
The Christmas tree is a modern invention. It is a largely secular symbol, having no basis in the Bible. There are many trees in the Bible, from the Tree of Knowledge and the Tree of Life in Genesis to the reference to Christ’s cross as a “tree” in Acts. But there is no Christmas tree.
Mythbusting Ancient Rome: cruel and unusual punishment
Reading time: 7 minutes
Early Roman history is full of stories about the terrible fates that befell citizens who broke the law. When a certain Tarpeia let the enemy Sabines into Rome, she was crushed and thrown headlong from a precipice above the Roman forum.
Such tales not only served as a warning for future generations, they also provided a backstory for some of Rome’s cruellest punishments. Tarpeia is one of many legendary figures who appear in Livy’s History from the Foundation of the City; regardless of whether she was a real person, it became established practice to throw traitors from the “Tarpeian Rock”.
How the Establishment Resisted the Abolition of Slavery – New Podcast
Historian Michael Taylor discusses the resistance of the British establishment to the ending of the slave trade. A fascinating perspective on how the abolition of slavery was viewed in Britain in the years prior to it occuring. Or you can read the full story of how Britain got the slave owners to agree to abolition […]
