British Archives

Why we are still living with the legacy of Waterloo – that ‘most bloody battle’

by History Guild | May 5, 2025 | Historical Sites, Military History, Social and Cultural History | 0

Reading time: 6 minutes
Our views of war are sanitised today. In an age of professional armies trained for increasingly technical tasks, few of us have witnessed combat, much less taken part in it. In that vein, commemorations of the 200th anniversary of Waterloo will focus on the battle’s strategic significance. There are, though, individual accounts that give us a glimpse into what sword fights and cavalry charges must have been like – and the deadly consequences of defeat.

Remembering the Battle of Crete – 2025 Commemorations

by History Guild | May 1, 2025 | Military History | 0

This year is the 84th Anniversary of the Battle of Crete. The fighting around Rethymno will be...

The Malta convoys: Australian sailors speak

by History Guild | May 1, 2025 | Military History | 0

Reading time: 7 minutes
The island of Malta, located in almost the exact centre of the Mediterranean, was an important depot and staging post for the Allied efforts in North Africa and, later, the invasion of Italy. As a result, the Axis forces bombed it relentlessly for years, something you can read about more in our article on the Siege of Malta through Australian eyes.

What is suffragette white? The colour has a 110-year history as a protest tool

by History Guild | Apr 28, 2025 | Advocacy, Political and Economic History | 0

Reading time: 7 minutes
“Suffragette white” is proving to be a popular fashion choice for women who want to make a statement. Most recently, former Australia Post CEO Christine Holgate donned a white jacket in her appearance before a Senate inquiry into her controversial departure from the organisation.

Flies, filth and bully beef: life at Gallipoli in 1915

by History Guild | Apr 24, 2025 | Military History | 0

Reading time: 6 minutes
Many factors contributed to making the Gallipoli battlefield an almost unendurable place for all soldiers. The constant noise, cramped unsanitary conditions, disease, stenches, daily death of comrades, terrible food, lack of rest and thirst all contributed to the most gruelling conditions.

More than a century on, Gallipoli campaign should be more than just a symbol of futility

by History Guild | Apr 22, 2025 | Military History, Political and Economic History | 0

Reading time: 6 minutes
But the Gallipoli campaign’s result was especially troubling even at the time. Memorial services were held in April 1916 on the first anniversary of the initial landings. Subsequently, this anniversary has acquired special significance as Anzac Day, helping to shape and mark the transformation of Australia and New Zealand from British dominions to independent nations. And Gallipoli has become almost as notorious in British memory as the Somme and Passchendaele in symbolising the carnage of the war. The point is not simply the scale of the losses. It is also the fact that the campaign was so obviously a resounding defeat. What could have been more futile?

The forgotten Anzacs: ‘honoured guests’ of the Sultan

by History Guild | Apr 21, 2025 | Military History, Political and Economic History, Social and Cultural History | 0

Reading time: 7 minutes
As we undertake our annual remembrance of Australians at war, some attention should be paid to those personnel who were taken captive by the enemy and then faced long years in brutal conditions. Enduring starvation, beatings, disease, death marches and forced labour in extreme climatic conditions, many of them died from casual neglect, deliberate abuse and untreated medical conditions. And I’m not talking about prisoners of the Japanese in World War Two, but Australians taken captive by Ottoman forces during The Great War.

Gallipoli’s rich history of conflict started well before 1915

by History Guild | Apr 17, 2025 | Historical Sites, Military History, Social and Cultural History | 0

Reading time: 5 minutes
There are few geographical areas that have seen as much military action as the Gallipoli region, the site of the Anzac landings in 1915. The conflicts in the region include some of the most renowned wars from Greek antiquity.

What exactly is the Holy Grail – and why has its meaning eluded us for centuries?

by History Guild | Apr 14, 2025 | Social and Cultural History | 0

Reading time: 6 minutes
Type “Holy Grail” into Google and … well, you probably don’t need me to finish that sentence. The sheer multiplicity of what any search engine throws up demonstrates that there is no clear consensus as to what the Grail is or was. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t plenty of people out there claiming to know its history, true meaning and even where to find it.

The Catalpa Rescue: the Daring Escape of Irish Rebels from Australia

by History Guild | Apr 10, 2025 | Military History, Social and Cultural History | 0

Reading time: 12 minutes
When a plan to overthrow English rule in Ireland was foiled in the 1860s, hundreds of Fenian rebels were arrested and convicted. A handful of those were condemned to transportation to Australia with no hope of pardon or of ever seeing their families again.

Hidden in plain sight: Finding working-class women in The National Archives

by History Guild | Mar 31, 2025 | Advocacy, Social and Cultural History | 0

Reading time: 10 minutes
This article will make use of a particularly interesting case study of pit brow women in Lancashire, to explore the complexities and opportunities associated with archival work. The women’s lives can be revealed through analysis of documents from sources in the Copyright Office, and the Ministry of Power collections. By identifying strengths and weaknesses of records, they can be analysed with greater depth and nuance, so that they are used most effectively during an exploration of the past.

April Fools! The History Behind the World’s Greatest Day of Pranks

by History Guild | Mar 27, 2025 | Social and Cultural History | 0

Reading time: 7 minutes
The world loves a good April Fools’ Day prank – from telling your schoolmates it’s non-uniform to assuring a coworker the boss has definitely given everyone the day off, April 1st is a day of big and small pranks all around the world.
While mostly celebrated in Western countries such as Northern Europe, America, and other English-speaking countries like the UK, Australia, and New Zealand, much of the world knows of and sometimes takes part in the light-hearted tradition of April Fools.
But where does it come from?

Tag: British