British Culture - User contributions [en]

User:Wichtel

2011-05-10T19:58:35Z

Wichtel:

'''Articles authored:'''

[[Charles I]]

The [[Great Fire of London]]

The [[Great Plague]]

[[Sophia of Hanover]]

[[Horatio Nelson]]

[[Richard Arkwright]]

[[Mary of Modena]]

[[John of Gaunt]]

[[Stanley Baldwin]]

[[Benjamin Disraeli]]

[[John Russell]]

[[Edward Heath]]

Edward Heath

2011-05-10T19:58:04Z

Wichtel: Created page with 'Edward Heath (9th July 1916- 17th July 2005), whose full name was Sir Edward Richard George „Ted“ Heath, was a well-known British Conservative politician. During his politica…'

Edward Heath (9th July 1916- 17th July 2005), whose full name was Sir Edward Richard George „Ted“ Heath, was a well-known British Conservative politician. During his political career he held several important offices as Leader of the [[Conservative Party]] (1965-1975) and Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1970-1974). All in all, from 1950 to 2001 Edward Heath was a member of the British parliament (MP).

== His Life ==

Edward Heath was born on 9th July 1916 into a family that lived under simple conditions: his mother was a maid and his father was a carpenter who became successful in his later life.
Nevertheless his parents managed to send their son to Balliol College in London. From his earliest childhood on, Edward was very interested in music and it soon became clear that he was a very talented musician. That is why he even managed to win his college's organ scholarship.

When Edward Heath became a student at university his interest in politics increased. Therefore he became an active member of the [[Conservative Party]]. He was even brave enough to criticise the Conservative government publicly.
In 1937 he became President of the Oxford University Conservative Association and from then on he received different important political positions within the Conservative Association as his political dedication grew from one day to the other.
During his time as a student Edward Heath managed to travel a lot through Europe and thus he came into contact with different political situations and leading figures. With the help of these influences he built up his own opinion and demonstrated it publicly.

During World War II he served in the [[Royal Artillery]] in the outskirts of Liverpool which was very often attacked by German bombers. He did his job so well that in 1942 he received the title of Captain and subsequently received his own regiment.

== His political career as a Member of Parliament ==

In 1950 Edward Heath was elected Member of Parliament and from that moment on his political career started to grow. On 26th June 1950 he delivered his maiden speech, the first speech in parliament of a new member.
During his time as Member of Parliament Heath again received different positions and tasks among them Lord Privy Seal. His task hereby was to make sure that the consolidation between the European and the British Market was done correctly.

== His political career as Prime Minister ==

In 1970 Heath and his Conservative Party won the general election and as the Conservative leader Edward Heath became the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. His cabinet consisted of [[Margaret Thatcher]], who was responsible for Education and Science, William Whitelaw, who was the leader of the [[House of Commons]] and Sir [[Alec Douglas-Home]], who was responsible for foreign and Commonwealth affairs.

Nevertheless Heath's time as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom was not very easy. He had to cope with a lot of problems.
Edward Heath tried to change the political economic system as he decided to turn direct taxation into indirect one. But during that time the unemployment rate in Great Britain increased a lot and that is why his plans were not feasible. Instead he had to put a lot of money into the economy to offset the high unemployment rate. Later this event became known as the Barber-Boom.

In 1973 Heath decided that Great Britain had to join the European Community. Moreover he ended the British presence in the east of Suez and he called British troops back to Great Britain.

Edward Heath also had to cope with problems in Northern Ireland as in 1972 British troops caused the well-known [[Bloody Sunday]] in Derry.

On 4th March 1974 Edward Heath resigned from his position as Prime Minister of the country. His position was taken by Wilson and his [[Labour Party]].

On 17th July 2005 Edward Heath died from pneumonia and received a memorial in Westminster Abbey.

== Further links ==

Edward Heath wins the general elections in 1970: <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZmzT_QDEbo>

Margaret Thatcher and Edward Heath are talking about the European Common Market <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jwdg7qVoVXk>

Ziegler, Philip, Edward Heath: ''The Authorised Biography'', Harper Collins Publishers Limited: London, 2010.

John Russell

2011-01-13T11:42:19Z

Wichtel: /* Further Reading */

18 August 1792-28 May 1878. Prime Minister July 1846-February 1852 and October 1865-June 1866.

== Life ==

John Russell was the third son of John Russell, sixth Duke of Bedford, who was a known politician during his time. Very soon John Russell became a member of the Whigs.
At the age of 21 he became a member of the House of Commons for Tavistock with the help of his father's constituency. Since 1819 he started regular campaigns to reform the elections of parliament. At first, however, these bills were rejected by parliament in the first reading. It was only in 1826 that his proposal to restructure small constituencies and to integrate them into larger ones achieved a second reading after which the bill was rejected again.

By fighting for reforms of election processes he gained huge respects among the [[Whigs]], especially when he successfully fought for the emancipation of [[Catholicism|Catholics]] within the British population by abolishing the [[Test Acts]] in 1829.

In 1830 he started a new attempt to reform the British election process by introducing a new bill which intended to provide a representation in parliament for the cities Leeds, Manchester and Birmingham. The bill was not successful again. Nevertheless John Russell was appointed Paymaster General in the parliament of [[Charles Grey]], 2nd Earl Grey.

After two years of work under [[Charles Grey]], Russell handed in a reform bill again which was then accepted. This bill offered more people, especially the ones living in the north and lower class people, the right to vote for parliament if they fulfilled certain preconditions (e.g. owning a household worth at least 10 pounds).

In 1834 the Prime Minister of Great Britain, [[Lord Melbourne]], resigned from office and so did John Russell from now on representing the opposition under PM Robert Peel.
In 1835 Peel had to resign from his position as Prime Minister and John Russell took the position of Home Secretary until 1839. From 1839 to 1841 he served as Secretary of War and the Colonies.

The General Election of 1841 was won by the Conservatives. That is why Russell became MP for the City of London until 1861. On 30th July 1861 he became Earl Russell and as a Peer he became a member of the House of Lords.

== John Russell's first government (from July 1846 to February 1852) ==

In 1846, after [[Robert Peel]]'s resignation, John Russell became the official head of the Whigs and at the same time the Prime Minister of Great Britain.
It was his achievement to shorten working hours in factories by introducing the [[Factory Act]] in 1847. Moreover he passed the [[Public Health Act]] of 1848 and repealed the [[Navigation Act]] of 1849 which freed colonial trade.

From 1846 to 1847 Ireland suffered from the [[Great Famine]] but Russell and his government were not able to tackle the problem. Russell believed in the so-called ''laissez-faire'' economy which meant that each state should be able to help itself. John Russell was convinced that no direct state intervention should be applied in any case of misery.

Soon Russell had to realise that the starving did not stop. Instead it became worse as even illnesses spread throughout Ireland. That is why he offered a little bit of money for soup kitchens to help the people out. As the money was spent he rejected to support the country further as Ireland was not able to pay the [[Poor Law]] rates. He demanded that first Ireland had to pay these rates and then he would support the country further with money. This announcement led to violent riots as Russell even sent British troops to Ireland to get the money.

In December 1851 John Russell had a big argument with [[Lord Palmerston]] which led to the downfall of Prime Minister Russell in February 1852. From that moment on John Russell took over different offices as, for example, the administration of the colonies.

== John Russell's second government (from October 1865 to June 1866) ==

On 18th October 1865 [[Lord Palmerston]] died and John Russell took over the office of Prime Minister of Great Britain again. The office of the foreign minister was held by [[George Villiers]], fourth Earl of Clarendon.

As there were some big discussions with [[William Gladstone]] John Russell resigned from office again. Since this point of time he never held any other office. He only worked for the House of Lords until his death in 1878.

== Further Reading ==

Cook, Chris, ''The Routledge Companion to Britain in the Nineteenth Century ,1815- 1914,'' London: Routledge, 2005.

Reid, Stuart J., ''The Queen's Prime Ministers, Volume IX: Lord John Russell''. Gloucester: Dodo Press, 2009.

User:Wichtel

2011-01-06T13:42:39Z

Wichtel:

John Russell

2011-01-06T13:41:37Z

Wichtel: Created page with 'John Russell, 1st Earl of Russell, was born on 18th August 1792 in London and he died there as well on 28th May 1878. He is known for being Prime Minister under Queen Victoria fo…'

John Russell, 1st Earl of Russell, was born on 18th August 1792 in London and he died there as well on 28th May 1878.
He is known for being Prime Minister under Queen Victoria for two legislatory periods from July 1846 to February 1852 and from October 1865 to June 1866.

== His Life ==

John Russell was the third son of John Russell, sixth Duke of Bedford, who was a known politician during his time. Very soon John Russell became a member of the Whigs.
At the age of 21 he became a member of the House of Commons for Tavistock with the help of his father's constituency. Since 1819 he started regular campaigns to reform the elections of parliament. At first however these bills were rejected by parliament in the first reading. It was only in 1826 that his proposal to restructure small constituencies and to integrate them into larger ones achieved a second reading after which the bill was rejected again.

By fighting for reforms of election processes he gained huge respects among the Whigs, especially when he successfully fought for the emancipation of Catholics within the British population by abolishing the [[Test Acts]] in 1829.

In 1830 he started a new attempt to reform the British election process by introducing a new bill which intended to provide a representation in parliament for the cities Leeds, Manchester and Birmingham. The bill was not successful again. Nevertheless John Russell was appointed Paymaster General in the parliament of [[Charles Grey]], 2nd Earl Grey.

After two years of work under [[Charles Grey]], Russell handed in a reform bill again which was then accepted. This bill offered more people, especially the ones living in the north and lower class people, the right to vote for parliament if they fulfilled certain preconditions (e.g. owning a household worth at least 10 pounds).

In 1834 the Prime Minister of Great Britain, [[Lord Melbourne]], resigned from office and so did John Russell from now on representing the opposition under PM Robert Peel.
In 1835 Peel had to resign from his position as Prime Minister and John Russell took the position of Home Secretary until 1839. From 1839 to 1841 he served as Secretary of War and the Colonies.

The General Election of 1841 was however won by the Conservatives. That is why Russell became MP for the City of London until 1861. On 30th July1861 he became Earl Russell and as a peer he became a member of the House of Lords.

== John Russell's first government (from July 1846 to February 1852) ==

In 1846, after [[Robert Peel]]'s resignation, John Russell became the official head of the Whigs and at the same time the Prime Minister of Great Britain.
It was his achievement to shorten working hours in factories by introducing the [[Factory Act]] in 1847. Moreover he passed the [[Public Health Act]] of 1848 and repealed the [[Navigation Act]] of 1849 which freed colonial trade.

From 1846 to 1847 Ireland suffered from the [[Great Famine]] but Russell and his government were not able to tackle the problem. Russell believed in the so-called ''laissez-faire'' economy which meant that each state should be able to help itself. John Russell was convinced that no direct state intervention should be applied in any case of misery.

Soon however Russell had to realise that the starving did not stop. Instead it became worse as even illnesses widespread throughout Ireland. That is why he offered a little bit of money for soup kitchens to help the people out. As the money was spent he rejected to support the country further as Ireland was not able to pay the [[Poor Law]] rates. He demanded that first Ireland had to pay this rate and then he would support the country further with money. This announcement led to violent riots as Russell even sent British troops to Ireland to get the money.

In December 1851 John Russell had a big argument with [[Lord Palmerston]] which led to the downfall of Prime Minister Russell in February 1852. From that moment on John Russell took over different offices as for example the administration of the colonies.

== John Russell's second government (from October 1865 to June 1866) ==

On 18th October 1865 [[Lord Palmerston]] died and John Russell took again over the office of Prime Minister of Great Britain. The office of the foreign minister was held by [[George Villiers]], fourth Earl of Clarendon.

As there were however some big discussions with [[William Gladstone]] John Russell resigned from office again. Since this point of time he never held any other office. He only worked for the House of Lords until his death in 1878.

== Further Reading ==

Cook, Chris, ''The Routledge Companion to Britain in the Nineteenth Century ,1815- 1914,'' London, 2005.

Reid, Stuart J., ''The Queen's Prime Ministers, Volume IX: Lord John Russell''. Gloucester, 2009.

User:Wichtel

2010-10-30T15:21:51Z

Wichtel:

Benjamin Disraeli

2010-10-30T15:14:02Z

Wichtel:

== Introduction ==

Benjamnin Disraeli, whose full title was 1st Earl of Beaconsfield, was born of Jewish parents on 21 December 1804 in London and he died there as well on 19th April 1881. It was not until he turned 13 years old when he was baptized in the Anglican faith which he kept for his whole life.

During his lifetime he was very fond of politics. That is why he worked in the political sector and became a very important figure for the development of the [[Conservative Party]]. For two decades he even received the office as the Prime Minister of the [[United Kingdom]] (27 February 1868-1 December 1868 / 20 February 1874-21 April 1880). That made him the first Prime Minister with Jewish origin in British history.
His close relationship to [[Queen Victoria]] helped him survive difficult situations during his time in office.

Moreover Benjamin Disraeli was interested in literature and therefore he started to write his own novels during his free time. Two well-known ones are ''Sybil'' and ''Vivian Grey''.

== Benjamin Disraeli's private life ==

Benjamin Disraeli was the oldest son and the second-born child within the family which included five children. His father was [[Isaac D'Israeli]], who worked as a historian and a literary critic, and his mother was called [[Maria Basevi]].
In 1817 Disraeli’s father had a conflict with his home synagogue and that is why he decided to baptize his oldest son in the Anglican belief.
In 1824 [[Isaac D'Israeli]] decided to make a trip through Belgium and the Rhine Valley. As Benjamin was old enough he was allowed to accompany his father. He enjoyed this trip very much and wrote some travel descriptions about it.

After that Benjamin worked in several branches although he was not very successful. His last job even led him to his own total bankruptcy whose consequences he had to suffer from the rest of his life. To gain at least a bit of money he turned to his literary interest and started writing novels.
In 1826 Benjamin managed to publish his first novel Vivian Grey anonymously. However it turned out to be a huge success. Only some members of the Tory party had some objections against Disraeli's book when they discovered that it was written by him as it contained a lot of grammatical mistakes and absurdities. At that time authors should be highly educated and by publishing these grammatical mistakes or absurdities the book cast a poor light on Benjamin. Thus a lot of critical reviews came into being.
After having published the controversial novel ''Vivian Grey'' Benjamin went on publishing political pamphlets and further novels like [[The Young Duke]] (1831), [[Henrietta Temple]] (1837), [[Sybil]] (1840), etc.

Benjamin Disraeli was also interested in women and that is why he had some affairs with women from the higher class. It was not until he met [[Mary Anne Lewis]] in 1839, a rich widow, when he started his own family by marrying her.

== Benjamin Disraeli's political career ==

Benjamin Disraeli decided early in his life that he wanted to become a politician. In 1832 he started his first attempt to be realized by the parliament by reacting on an anti-Whig pamphlet dealing with the [[Reform Bill]] which was entitled England and France: or a cure for Ministerial Gallomania. The aim of Benjamin's reaction was to show a bit of rebellion and to gain a foothold in politics. As his response was however radical he was seen as a radical politician. This attitude was supported by his statement that at this point of time he was not able to identify himself neither with the [[Tories]] nor with the [[Whigs]]. Nevertheless he managed as a radical to become a person who might be elected. He was however not successful.
That is why he decided to become a member of the Tories. In 1837 he won his first seat in the [[House of Commons]] and represented Maidstone.
There he fought for an alliance between aristocrats and working-class people against the middle class to avoid exploitation by the middle class which became stronger and stronger.

In 1852 Benjamin Disraeli became Chancellor of the Exchequer under the new Prime Minister [[Edward Stanley]], who has received the title of the Earl of Derby. Stanley's predecessor Lord [[John Russell]] and his government had to resign as they did not manage to find a majority to accept the [[Ecclesiastical Titles Act]] in 1851. That is why in the next elections it was the Earl of Derby who won the office as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
After his inauguration Disraeli declared that taxes on malt and tea had to be reduced whereas house taxes had to be increased. Moreover Benjamin Disraeli introduced a regular income tax to gain more money.
Suddenly however there was a fast and high increase of money which was needed for the country's defense. This event was not included in Disraeli's plans for the country's financial basis and the whole finance collapsed. In December 1852 the government under the Earl of Derby was not re-elected.
Benjamin Disraeli had to take his seat on the opposition benches.
In 1867 Disraeli supported successfully the [[Representation of the People Act]] (Second Reform Bill) which enlarged the franchise and fixed a fairer distribution of seats in parliaments for representatives of the different towns and boroughs.

== Benjamin Disraeli's time as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom ==

In February 1868 the acting Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the Earl of Derby, got ill and had to resign. That is why he contacted his Chancellor of the Exchequer, Benjamin Disraeli, if he likes to be his successor. Disraeli accepted and on 27th February 1868 Queen Victoria appointed him as the new British Prime Minister.

During a short period of time in office he was able to pass the [[Public Schools Act]] (1886), the [[Telegraph Ac]]t (1868), the [[Capital Punishment Amendment Act]] (1868) and the [[Parliamentary Election Act]] (1868). The last one was the most important one as it gave the tribunal of judges the right to punish elections which were not handled in the right way. This task was until this point of time done by the [[House of Commons]].
Due to a highly expensive expedition which was authorized by Disraeli, he and his government got financial problems which led to the end of Disraeli being the Prime Minister of Great Britain.

In 1874 Benjamin Disraeli was again appointed as Prime Minister of Great Britain and at once he had to handle a big problem: the passing of the [[Public Worship Regulation Bill]]. This bill should clarify and fix rituals in the Church of England and at the same time it should respect Catholic rituals done in catholic churches. After a lot of discussions and obstacles Disraeli was successful and the bill was passed in parliament.
Moreover Disraeli fought again for an improvement of the conditions under which the working class had to live. Thus in 1875 he passed the [[Artisan's and Labourer's Dwellings Improvement Act]] which gave local councils more power to destroy slums for hygienic and medical reasons and to rebuild them in better conditions.
At the same time he secured properties of the working class with the help of the Friendly Societies Act (1875).

In 1876 Queen Victoria made him Earl of Beaconsfield and Viscount Hughenden. Thus Disraeli was a member of the [[House of Lord]]s.

In 1880 Disraeli's party was not re-elected and he had to give up his office. One year later he died at the age of 76 in London.

== Further Links ==

Prime Minister’s official homepage <http://www.number10.gov.uk/history-and-tour/prime-ministers-in-history/benjamin-disraeli> (accessed 29th October 2010)

Hibbert, Christopher, Disraeli: ''A Personal History'', London: Harper Collins, 2005.

Kirsch, Adam, ''Benjamin Disraeli'', New York: Nextbook ,2008.

Benjamin Disraeli

2010-10-30T15:12:38Z

Wichtel: Created page with '== Introduction == Benjamnin Disraeli, whose full title was 1st Earl of Beaconsfield, was born of Jewish parents on 21 December 1804 in London and he died there as well on 19th…'

== Introduction ==

Benjamnin Disraeli, whose full title was 1st Earl of Beaconsfield, was born of Jewish parents on 21 December 1804 in London and he died there as well on 19th April 1881. It was not until he turned 13 years old when he was baptized in the Anglican faith which he kept for his whole life.

During his lifetime he was very fond of politics. That is why he worked in the political sector and became a very important figure for the development of the [[Conservative Party]]. For two decades he even received the office as the Prime Minister of the [[United Kingdom]] (27 February 1868-1 December 1868 / 20 February 1874-21 April 1880). That made him the first Prime Minister with Jewish origin in British history.
His close relationship to [[Queen Victoria]] helped him survive difficult situations during his time in office.

Moreover Benjamin Disraeli was interested in literature and therefore he started to write his own novels during his free time. Two well-known ones are ''Sybil'' and ''Vivian Grey''.

==
Benjamin Disraeli's private life ==

Benjamin Disraeli was the oldest son and the second-born child within the family which included five children. His father was [[Isaac D'Israeli]], who worked as a historian and a literary critic, and his mother was called [[Maria Basevi]].
In 1817 Disraeli’s father had a conflict with his home synagogue and that is why he decided to baptize his oldest son in the Anglican belief.
In 1824 [[Isaac D'Israeli]] decided to make a trip through Belgium and the Rhine Valley. As Benjamin was old enough he was allowed to accompany his father. He enjoyed this trip very much and wrote some travel descriptions about it.

After that Benjamin worked in several branches although he was not very successful. His last job even led him to his own total bankruptcy whose consequences he had to suffer from the rest of his life. To gain at least a bit of money he turned to his literary interest and started writing novels.
In 1826 Benjamin managed to publish his first novel Vivian Grey anonymously. However it turned out to be a huge success. Only some members of the Tory party had some objections against Disraeli's book when they discovered that it was written by him as it contained a lot of grammatical mistakes and absurdities. At that time authors should be highly educated and by publishing these grammatical mistakes or absurdities the book cast a poor light on Benjamin. Thus a lot of critical reviews came into being.
After having published the controversial novel ''Vivian Grey'' Benjamin went on publishing political pamphlets and further novels like [[The Young Duke]] (1831), [[Henrietta Temple]] (1837), [[Sybil]] (1840), etc.

Benjamin Disraeli was also interested in women and that is why he had some affairs with women from the higher class. It was not until he met [[Mary Anne Lewis]] in 1839, a rich widow, when he started his own family by marrying her.

== Benjamin Disraeli's political career ==

Benjamin Disraeli decided early in his life that he wanted to become a politician. In 1832 he started his first attempt to be realized by the parliament by reacting on an anti-Whig pamphlet dealing with the [[Reform Bill]] which was entitled England and France: or a cure for Ministerial Gallomania. The aim of Benjamin's reaction was to show a bit of rebellion and to gain a foothold in politics. As his response was however radical he was seen as a radical politician. This attitude was supported by his statement that at this point of time he was not able to identify himself neither with the [[Tories]] nor with the [[Whigs]]. Nevertheless he managed as a radical to become a person who might be elected. He was however not successful.
That is why he decided to become a member of the Tories. In 1837 he won his first seat in the [[House of Commons]] and represented Maidstone.
There he fought for an alliance between aristocrats and working-class people against the middle class to avoid exploitation by the middle class which became stronger and stronger.

In 1852 Benjamin Disraeli became Chancellor of the Exchequer under the new Prime Minister [[Edward Stanley]], who has received the title of the Earl of Derby. Stanley's predecessor Lord [[John Russell]] and his government had to resign as they did not manage to find a majority to accept the [[Ecclesiastical Titles Act]] in 1851. That is why in the next elections it was the Earl of Derby who won the office as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
After his inauguration Disraeli declared that taxes on malt and tea had to be reduced whereas house taxes had to be increased. Moreover Benjamin Disraeli introduced a regular income tax to gain more money.
Suddenly however there was a fast and high increase of money which was needed for the country's defense. This event was not included in Disraeli's plans for the country's financial basis and the whole finance collapsed. In December 1852 the government under the Earl of Derby was not re-elected.
Benjamin Disraeli had to take his seat on the opposition benches.
In 1867 Disraeli supported successfully the [[Representation of the People Act]] (Second Reform Bill) which enlarged the franchise and fixed a fairer distribution of seats in parliaments for representatives of the different towns and boroughs.

== Benjamin Disraeli's time as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom ==

In February 1868 the acting Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the Earl of Derby, got ill and had to resign. That is why he contacted his Chancellor of the Exchequer, Benjamin Disraeli, if he likes to be his successor. Disraeli accepted and on 27th February 1868 Queen Victoria appointed him as the new British Prime Minister.

During a short period of time in office he was able to pass the [[Public Schools Act]] (1886), the [[Telegraph Ac]]t (1868), the [[Capital Punishment Amendment Act]] (1868) and the [[Parliamentary Election Act]] (1868). The last one was the most important one as it gave the tribunal of judges the right to punish elections which were not handled in the right way. This task was until this point of time done by the [[House of Commons]].
Due to a highly expensive expedition which was authorized by Disraeli, he and his government got financial problems which led to the end of Disraeli being the Prime Minister of Great Britain.

In 1874 Benjamin Disraeli was again appointed as Prime Minister of Great Britain and at once he had to handle a big problem: the passing of the [[Public Worship Regulation Bill]]. This bill should clarify and fix rituals in the Church of England and at the same time it should respect Catholic rituals done in catholic churches. After a lot of discussions and obstacles Disraeli was successful and the bill was passed in parliament.
Moreover Disraeli fought again for an improvement of the conditions under which the working class had to live. Thus in 1875 he passed the [[Artisan's and Labourer's Dwellings Improvement Act]] which gave local councils more power to destroy slums for hygienic and medical reasons and to rebuild them in better conditions.
At the same time he secured properties of the working class with the help of the Friendly Societies Act (1875).

In 1876 Queen Victoria made him Earl of Beaconsfield and Viscount Hughenden. Thus Disraeli was a member of the [[House of Lord]]s.

In 1880 Disraeli's party was not re-elected and he had to give up his office. One year later he died at the age of 76 in London.

== Further Links ==

Prime Minister’s official homepage <http://www.number10.gov.uk/history-and-tour/prime-ministers-in-history/benjamin-disraeli> (accessed 29th October 2010)

Hibbert, Christopher, Disraeli: ''A Personal History'', London: Harper Collins, 2005.

Kirsch, Adam, ''Benjamin Disraeli'',New York: Nextbook ,2008.

User:Wichtel

2010-06-26T14:15:57Z

Wichtel:

Stanley Baldwin

2010-06-26T14:11:24Z

Wichtel:

== Introduction ==

Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley was born on 3rd August 1867 and died on 14th December 1947. He was a member of the [[British Conservative Party]]. He was elected three times for the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1923–1924, 1924–1929 and 1935–1937). He became known for his part at the abdication of [[Edward VIII]].

== Political career ==

In 1908 Baldwin’s father died and he decided to succeed him and adopted his position as a Member of Parliament.
When the first World War broke out, Stanley received the position as Parliamentary Private Secretary under the Conservative leader [[Andrew Bonar Law]]. In 1917 he became Financial Secretary to the Treasury. His task was to erase Britain’s war debts. Therefore he encouraged rich people to pay a little obolus. By collecting the amount of money of the volunteers a big sum was gathered with which some debts could be erased. To serve as a model Stanley Baldwin himself donated one fifth of his personal income.

He did his task so well that in 1920 Baldwin was appointed to the Privy Council and one year later he received the title President of the Board of Trade.

In 1922 the Conservative Party decided to form a coalition with the Liberal party under [[David Lloyd George]]. Soon however a lot of party members were no longer satisfied with this coalition, among them Stanley Baldwin. At a meeting of the Conservative MPs Baldwin publicly expressed his own point of view and insulted Lloyd George. The party decided to dissolve the coalition although a lot of party leaders were not satisfied with this decision. From this moment on party leader Bonar Law needed a few new ministers for his cabinet and at once it became clear that Stanley Baldwin became the new Chancellor of the Exchequer.
1922 a new general election took place in which the Conservative Party received the majority of the votes.

== Prime Minister (1923-1924) ==

In 1923 it became known that the Conservative leader Bonar Law suffered from cancer. He had to retire at once. His retirement was a big problem for the Conservative Party as it needed a new leader as quickly as possible.
[[George V|King George V]] suggested that Stanley Baldwin should succeed Bonar Law. As at this point of time Baldwin still held the position of Chancellor of the Exchequer it was necessary to find a new one who would be able to fulfill this position. After some disappointment about some rejections Baldwin appointed [[Neville Chamberlain]] as the new Chancellor of the Exchequer. Baldwin himself was now able to become Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

Before Baldwin could act freely in his new position he had to fight with Bonar Law’s promise that there would be no introduction of taxes before a new election. As Baldwin was no longer able to keep this promise he was forced to call for a new election in 1923. Thereby he hoped to get a mandate to introduce protectionist tariffs in order to reduce the unemployment rate. The British population, however, was not willing to support protectionist tariffs and that is why the Conservative Party had to accept an electoral defeat although they had had the majority before the election. In 1924 Stanley Baldwin decided to resign from his office as Prime Minister. Although he gave up the office of the Prime Minister Baldwin remained the party leader of the Conservatives for the following ten months.

== Prime Minister (1924-1929) ==

In October 1924 new general elections took place and Baldwin managed to improve the reputation of his party in such a way that it received the majority in the [[House of Commons]] again.

His new cabinet offered now a lot of politicians who were always connected with the Liberal David Lloyd George who Baldwin rejected. His new Chancellor of the Exchequer was Winston Churchill.
Together with his cabinet Baldwin managed to introduce the [[Electricity Supply Act]] 1926. This act standardised the British electricity supply to 132 kilovolts and 50 hertz. Until this year Britain was provided with electricity by a lot of different electricity supply companies which operated at different voltages and frequencies. That is why each household was dependent on one special electricity supply company.
With the introduction of the standardised electricity supply every household received AC electricity which became entended to a nationwide level in 1933.
The whole conversion of electricity was surveilled by the [[Central Electricity Board]] which became a state monopoly half-financed by the government and half-financed by local companies. Due to the monopoly status no competition could take place among electricity supply companies and therefore prices were set arbitrarily. Additionally costs decreased and consequently the Board's profits increased and thus Stanley Baldwin earned a lot from this development.

In 1929 new general elections took place and this time it was the Labour Party who won the majority. Again, Stanley Baldwin had to give up his position as Prime Minister.

== Prime Minister (1935-1937) ==

In 1935 it was the Conservative Party that convinced British people and that is why it received the majority within parliament. From this moment on Stanley Baldwin gained back his position as Prime Minister.
In Germany Hitler was accepted as leader of the country and it soon became clear that he was willing to wage wars to get more power. At the beginning Stanley Baldwin was not willing to improve the military equipment of the British forces as he explained "the bomber will always get through". Source: <http://www.number10.gov.uk/history-and-tour/prime-ministers-in-history/stanley-baldwin>

He preferred to support international disarmament.
But when the threat from Germany became stronger and stronger he accepted the cabinet's will and supported the improvement of the British forces. In 1937 Stanley Baldwin retired from work.

== Abdication of Edward VIII ==

During the [[Abdication Crisis]] in 1936, Baldwin accepted the affair between Edward VIII and [[Wallis Simpson]] until that day when Edward explained that he was going to marry he. Baldwin and the majority of Parliament was not willing to accept Wallis Simpson as Queen of England because of her past. That is why Baldwin presented Edward three options to choose from in the current situation: firstly Edward could renounce Mrs Simpson, secondly he could marry her but then Baldwin assured Edward that the government would resign and thirdly he could marry Wallis Simpson under the condition that he would abdicate the British throne and thereby give up the his own rights and the ones of his future children who he might have with Mrs Simpson. After some time of thinking Edward VIII chose the last option: he abdicated and was therefore able to marry Wallis Simpson in France in 1937.

Stanley Baldwin had hoped that Edward VIII would not abdicate and was very astonished when he realized that Edward was willing to give up his whole life for this woman. After Edward's abdication Baldwin was praised for his discreteness and his popularity was restored among the whole British population.

== Further Links and Reading ==

The official site of the Prime Minister's office <http://www.number10.gov.uk/history-and-tour/prime-ministers-in-history/stanley-baldwin>

BBC Radio 4 <http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00jhpj5>

Williamson, Philip, ''Stanley Baldwin: Conservative Leadership and National Values'', Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007.

Wiliamson, Philip; Baldwin, Edward, ''Baldwin Papers: A Conservative Statesman, 1908-1947'', Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004.

Stanley Baldwin

2010-06-24T10:05:12Z

Wichtel:

== Introduction ==

Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley was born on 3rd August 1867 and died on 14th December 1947. He was a member of the [[British Conservative Party]]. He was elected three times for the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1923–1924, 1924–1929 and 1935–1937). He became known for his part at the abdication of [[Edward VIII]].

== Political career ==

In 1908 Baldwin’s father died and he decided to succeed him and adopted his position as a Member of Parliament.
When the first World War broke out, Stanley received the position as Parliamentary Private Secretary under the Conservative leader [[Andrew Bonar Law]]. In 1917 he became Financial Secretary to the Treasury. His task was to erase Britain’s war debts. Therefore he encouraged rich people to pay a little obolus. By collecting the amount of money of the volunteers a big sum was gathered with which some debts could be erased. To serve as a model Stanley Baldwin himself donated one fifth of his personal income.

He did his task so well that in 1920 Baldwin was appointed to the Privy Council and one year later he received the title President of the Board of Trade.

In 1922 the Conservative Party decided to form a coalition with the Liberal party under [[David Lloyd George]]. Soon however a lot of party members were no longer satisfied with this coalition, among them Stanley Baldwin. At a meeting of the Conservative MPs Baldwin publicly expressed his own point of view and insulted Lloyd George. The party decided to dissolve the coalition although a lot of party leaders were not satisfied with this decision. From this moment on party leader Bonar Law needed a few new ministers for his cabinet and at once it became clear that Stanley Baldwin became the new Chancellor of the Exchequer.
1922 a new general election took place in which the Conservative Party received the majority of the votes.

== Prime Minister (1923-1924) ==

In 1923 it became known that the Conservative leader Bonar Law suffered from cancer. He had to retire at once. His retirement was a big problem for the Conservative Party as it needed a new leader as quickly as possible.
[[George V|King George V]] suggested that Stanley Baldwin should succeed Bonar Law. As at this point of time Baldwin still held the position of Chancellor of the Exchequer it was necessary to find a new one who would be able to fulfill this position. After some disappointment about some rejections Baldwin appointed [[Neville Chamberlain]] as the new Chancellor of the Exchequer. Baldwin himself was now able to become Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

Before Baldwin could act freely in his new position he had to fight with Bonar Law’s promise that there would be no introduction of taxes before a new election. As Baldwin was no longer able to keep this promise he was forced to call for a new election in 1923. Thereby he hoped to get a mandate to introduce protectionist tariffs in order to reduce the unemployment rate. The British population, however, was not willing to support protectionist tariffs and that is why the Conservative Party had to accept an electoral defeat although they had had the majority before the election. In 1924 Stanley Baldwin decided to resign from his office as Prime Minister. Although he gave up the office of the Prime Minister Baldwin remained the party leader of the Conservatives for the following ten months.

== Prime Minister (1924-1929) ==

In October 1924 new general elections took place and Baldwin managed to improve the reputation of his party in such a way that it received the majority in the [[House of Commons]] again.

His new cabinet offered now a lot of politicians who were always connected with the Liberal David Lloyd George who Baldwin rejected. His new Chancellor of the Exchequer was Winston Churchill.
Together with his cabinet Baldwin managed to introduce a law which led to the fact that the state gained a lot more money than before [how? please specify].
In 1929 new general elections took place and this time it was the Labour Party who won the majority. Again, Stanley Baldwin had to give up his position as Prime Minister.

== Prime Minister (1935-1937) ==

In 1935 it was the Conservative Party that convinced British people and that is why it received the majority within parliament. From this moment on Stanley Baldwin gained back his position as Prime Minister.
In Germany Hitler was accepted as leader of the country and it soon became clear that he was willing to wage wars to get more power. At the beginning Stanley Baldwin was not willing to improve the military equipment of the British forces as he explained "the bomber will always get through". Source: <http://www.number10.gov.uk/history-and-tour/prime-ministers-in-history/stanley-baldwin>

He preferred to support international disarmament.
But when the threat from Germany became stronger and stronger he accepted the cabinet's will and supported the improvement of the British forces. In 1937 Stanley Baldwin retired from work.

== Abdication of Edward VIII ==

During the [[Abdication Crisis]] in 1936, Baldwin accepted the affair between Edward VIII and [[Wallis Simpson]] until that day when Edward explained that he was going to marry he. Baldwin and the majority of Parliament was not willing to accept Wallis Simpson as Queen of England because of her past. That is why Baldwin presented Edward three options to choose from in the current situation: firstly Edward could renounce Mrs Simpson, secondly he could marry her but then Baldwin assured Edward that the government would resign and thirdly he could marry Wallis Simpson under the condition that he would abdicate the British throne and thereby give up the his own rights and the ones of his future children who he might have with Mrs Simpson. After some time of thinking Edward VIII chose the last option: he abdicated and was therefore able to marry Wallis Simpson in France in 1937.

Stanley Baldwin had hoped that Edward VIII would not abdicate and was very astonished when he realized that Edward was willing to give up his whole life for this woman. After Edward's abdication Baldwin was praised for his discreteness and his popularity was restored among the whole British population.

== Further Links and Reading ==

The official site of the Prime Minister's office <http://www.number10.gov.uk/history-and-tour/prime-ministers-in-history/stanley-baldwin>

BBC Radio 4 <http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00jhpj5>

Williamson, Philip, ''Stanley Baldwin: Conservative Leadership and National Values'', Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007.

Wiliamson, Philip; Baldwin, Edward, ''Baldwin Papers: A Conservative Statesman, 1908-1947'', Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004.

User:Wichtel

2010-06-23T12:07:30Z

Wichtel:

'''Articles authored:'''

[[Charles I]]

The [[Great Fire of London]]

The [[Great Plague]]

[[Sophia of Hanover]]

[[Horatio Nelson]]

[[Richard Arkwright]]

[[Mary of Modena]]

[[John of Gaunt]]

Stanley Baldwin

2010-06-23T12:05:35Z

Wichtel:

== Introduction ==

Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley was born on 3rd August 1867 and died on 14th December 1947. He was a member of the [[British Conservative Party]]. He was elected three times for the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1923–1924, 1924–1929 and 1935–1937). He became known for his part at the abdication of Edward VIII.

== His political career ==

In 1908 Baldwin’s father died and he decided to succeed him and adopted his position as a Member of Parliament.
When the first World War broke out, Stanley received the position as Parliamentary ''Private Secretary'' under the Conservative leader [[Andrew Bonar Law]]. In 1917 he became Financial Secretary to the Treasury. His task was to erase Britain’s war debts. Therefore he encouraged rich people to pay a little obolus. By collecting the amount of money of the volunteers a big sum was gathered with which some debts could be erased. To serve as a model Stanley Baldwin himself donated one fifth of his personal income.

He did his task so well that in 1920 Baldwin was appointed Privy Council and one year later he received the title President of the Board of Trade.

In 1922 the Conservative Party decided to form a coalition with the Liberal [[David Lloyd George]]. Soon however a lot of party members were no longer satisfied with this coalition. Among them there was Stanley Baldwin as well. At a meeting of the Conservative MPs Baldwin publicly expressed his own point of view and insulted ''David Lloyd George''. The party decided to dissolve the coalition although a lot of party leaders were not satisfied with this decision. From this moment on party leader Bonar Law needed a few new ministers for his cabinet and at once it became clear that Stanley Baldwin became the new Chancellor of the Exchequer.
1922 a new general election took place which led to the fact that the Conservative Party received the majority of the votes.

== Prime Minister (1923-1924) ==

In 1923 it became known that the Conservative leader Bonar Law suffered from cancer. He had to retire at once. His retirement however was a big problem for the Conservative Party as it needed a new leader as quickly as possible.
[[King George V]] decided that Stanley Baldwin should succeed Bonar Law. As at this point of time Baldwin still hold the position of Chancellor of the Exchequer it was necessary to find a new one who would be able to fulfil this position. After some disappointment about some rejections Baldwin appointed [[Neville Chamberlain]] as the new Chancellor of the Exchequer. Baldwin himself was now able to become Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

Before Baldwin could act freely in his new position he had to fight with Bonar Law’s promise that there would be no introduction of taxes before a new election. As Baldwin was no longer able to keep this promise he was forced to call for a new election in 1923. Thereby he hoped to get a mandate to introduce protectionist tariffs in order to reduce the unemployment rate. The British population however was not willing to support protectionist tariffs and that is why the Conservative Party had to accept an electoral defeat although they had had the majority before the election. In 1924 Stanley Baldwin decided to resign from his office as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Although he gave up the office of the Prime Minister Baldwin remained the party leader of the Conservatives for the following ten months.

== Prime Minister (1924-1929) ==

In October 1924 new general elections took place and Baldwin managed to improve the reputation of his party in such a way that it received the majority in the [[House of Commons]].

His new cabinet however offered now a lot of politicians who were always connected with the Liberal David Lloyd George who Baldwin rejected. His new Chancellor of the Exchequer now was Winston Churchill.
Together with his cabinet Baldwin managed to introduce a law which led to the fact that the state gained a lot more money than before.
In 1929 new general elections took place and again it was the Labour Party who won the majority within the government. Stanley Baldwin had to give up his position as Prime Minister.

== Prime Minister (1935-1937) ==

In 1935 it was the Conservative Party that convinced British people and that is why it received the majority within parliament. From this moment on Stanley Baldwin gained back his position as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
In Germany Hitler was accepted as leader of the country and it soon became clear that he was willing to wage wars to get more power. At the beginning Stanley Baldwin however was not willing to improve the military equipment of the British forces as he explained "the bomber will always get through". Source: <http://www.number10.gov.uk/history-and-tour/prime-ministers-in-history/stanley-baldwin>

He preferred to support international disarmament.
But when the threat from Germany became stronger and stronger he accepted the cabinet's will and supported the improvement of the British forces. In 1937 Stanley Baldwin retired from work.

== Abdication of Edward VIII ==

During Baldwin's time in office [[Edward VIII]] was the king of the United Kingdom. One day [[Edward VIII]] started an affair with [[Wallis Simpson]], an American woman, who was not of noble origin. Moreover she was divorced twice.
Baldwin accepted the affair until that day when Edward explained that he was going to marry Mrs Simpson. He and the majority of Parliament was not willing to accept [[Wallis Simpson]] as Queen of England because of her past. That is why Baldwin presented Edward three options to choose from in the current situation: firstly Edward could renounce Mrs Simpson, secondly he could marry her but then Baldwin assured Edward that the government would resign and thirdly he could marry Wallis Simpson under the condition that he would abdicate the British throne and thereby give up the his own rights and the ones of his future children who he might have with Mrs Simpson. After some time of thinking [[Edward VIII]] chose the last option: he abdicated and was therefore able to marry [[Wallis Simpson]], his big love, in France in 1937.

Stanley Baldwin hoped that [[Edward VIII]] would never abdicate the British throne and that is why he was very astonished when he realized that Edward was willing to give up his whole life for this woman. After Edward's abdication Baldwin was praised for his discreteness and his popularity was restored among the whole British population.

== Further Links and Reading ==

The official site of the Prime Minister's office <http://www.number10.gov.uk/history-and-tour/prime-ministers-in-history/stanley-baldwin>

BBC Radio 4 <http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00jhpj5>

Williamson, Philip, ''Stanley Baldwin: Conservative Leadership and National Values'', Cambridge, 2007.

Wiliamson, Philip; Baldwin, Edward, ''Baldwin Papers: A Conservative Statesman, 1908-1947'', Cambridge, 2004.

Stanley Baldwin

2010-06-23T12:04:40Z

Wichtel:

== Introduction ==

Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley was born on 3rd August 1867 and died on 14th December 1947. He was a member of the [[British Conservative Party]]. He was elected three times for the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1923–1924, 1924–1929 and 1935–1937). He became known for his part at the abdication of Edward VIII.

== His political career ==

In 1908 Baldwin’s father died and he decided to succeed him and adopted his position as a Member of Parliament.
When the first World War broke out, Stanley received the position as Parliamentary ''Private Secretary'' under the Conservative leader [[Andrew Bonar Law]]. In 1917 he became Financial Secretary to the Treasury. His task was to erase Britain’s war debts. Therefore he encouraged rich people to pay a little obolus. By collecting the amount of money of the volunteers a big sum was gathered with which some debts could be erased. To serve as a model Stanley Baldwin himself donated one fifth of his personal income.

He did his task so well that in 1920 Baldwin was appointed Privy Council and one year later he received the title President of the Board of Trade.

In 1922 the Conservative Party decided to form a coalition with the Liberal [[David Lloyd George]]. Soon however a lot of party members were no longer satisfied with this coalition. Among them there was Stanley Baldwin as well. At a meeting of the Conservative MPs Baldwin publicly expressed his own point of view and insulted ''David Lloyd George''. The party decided to dissolve the coalition although a lot of party leaders were not satisfied with this decision. From this moment on party leader Bonar Law needed a few new ministers for his cabinet and at once it became clear that Stanley Baldwin became the new Chancellor of the Exchequer.
1922 a new general election took place which led to the fact that the Conservative Party received the majority of the votes.

== Prime Minister (1923-1924) ==

In 1923 it became known that the Conservative leader Bonar Law suffered from cancer. He had to retire at once. His retirement however was a big problem for the Conservative Party as it needed a new leader as quickly as possible.
[[King George V]] decided that Stanley Baldwin should succeed Bonar Law. As at this point of time Baldwin still hold the position of Chancellor of the Exchequer it was necessary to find a new one who would be able to fulfil this position. After some disappointment about some rejections Baldwin appointed [[Neville Chamberlain]] as the new Chancellor of the Exchequer. Baldwin himself was now able to become Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

Before Baldwin could act freely in his new position he had to fight with Bonar Law’s promise that there would be no introduction of taxes before a new election. As Baldwin was no longer able to keep this promise he was forced to call for a new election in 1923. Thereby he hoped to get a mandate to introduce protectionist tariffs in order to reduce the unemployment rate. The British population however was not willing to support protectionist tariffs and that is why the Conservative Party had to accept an electoral defeat although they had had the majority before the election. In 1924 Stanley Baldwin decided to resign from his office as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Although he gave up the office of the Prime Minister Baldwin remained the party leader of the Conservatives for the following ten months.

== Prime Minister (1924-1929) ==

In October 1924 new general elections took place and Baldwin managed to improve the reputation of his party in such a way that it received the majority in the [[House of Commons]].

His new cabinet however offered now a lot of politicians who were always connected with the Liberal David Lloyd George who Baldwin rejected. His new Chancellor of the Exchequer now was Winston Churchill.
Together with his cabinet Baldwin managed to introduce a law which led to the fact that the state gained a lot more money than before.
In 1929 new general elections took place and again it was the Labour Party who won the majority within the government. Stanley Baldwin had to give up his position as Prime Minister.

== Prime Minister (1935-1937) ==

In 1935 it was the Conservative Party that convinced British people and that is why it received the majority within parliament. From this moment on Stanley Baldwin gained back his position as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
In Germany Hitler was accepted as leader of the country and it soon became clear that he was willing to wage wars to get more power. At the beginning Stanley Baldwin however was not willing to improve the military equipment of the British forces as he explained "the bomber will always get through". Source: <http://www.number10.gov.uk/history-and-tour/prime-ministers-in-history/stanley-baldwin>

He preferred to support international disarmament.
But when the threat from Germany became stronger and stronger he accepted the cabinet's will and supported the improvement of the British forces. In 1937 Stanley Baldwin retired from work.

== Abdication of Edward VIII ==

During Baldwin's time in office [[Edward VIII]] was the king of the United Kingdom. One day [[Edward VIII]] started an affair with [[Wallis Simpson]], an American woman, who was not of noble origin. Moreover she was divorced twice.
Baldwin accepted the affair until that day when Edward explained that he was going to marry Mrs Simpson. He and the majority of Parliament was not willing to accept [[Wallis Simpson]] as Queen of England because of her past. That is why Baldwin presented Edward three options to choose from in the current situation: firstly Edward could renounce Mrs Simpson, secondly he could marry her but then Baldwin assured Edward that the government would resign and thirdly he could marry Wallis Simpson under the condition that he would abdicate the British throne and thereby give up the his own rights and the ones of his future children who he might have with Mrs Simpson. After some time of thinking [[Edward VIII]] chose the last option: he abdicated and was therefore able to marry [[Wallis Simpson]], his big love, in France in 1937.

Stanley Baldwin hoped that [[Edward VIII]] would never abdicate the British throne and that is why he was very astonished when he realized that Edward was willing to give up his whole life for this woman. After Edward's abdication Baldwin was praised for his discreteness and his popularity was restored among the whole British population.

== Further Links and Reading ==

The official site of the Prime Minister's office <http://www.number10.gov.uk/history-and-tour/prime-ministers-in-history/stanley-baldwin>

BBC Radio 4 <http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00jhpj5>

Williamson, Philip, Stanley Baldwin: ''Conservative Leadership and National Values'', Cambridge, 2007.

Wiliamson, Philip and Baldwin, Edward, ''Baldwin Papers: A Conservative Statesman, 1908-1947'', Cambridge, 2004.

Stanley Baldwin

2010-06-23T12:03:46Z

Wichtel: Created page with ' == Introduction == Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley was born on 3rd August 1867 and died on 14th December 1947. He was a member of the [[British Conservative Party…'

== Introduction ==

Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley was born on 3rd August 1867 and died on 14th December 1947. He was a member of the [[British Conservative Party]]. He was elected three times for the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1923–1924, 1924–1929 and 1935–1937). He became known for his part at the abdication of Edward VIII.

== His political career ==

In 1908 Baldwin’s father died and he decided to succeed him and adopted his position as a Member of Parliament.
When the first World War broke out, Stanley received the position as Parliamentary ''Private Secretary'' under the Conservative leader [[Andrew Bonar Law]]. In 1917 he became Financial Secretary to the Treasury. His task was to erase Britain’s war debts. Therefore he encouraged rich people to pay a little obolus. By collecting the amount of money of the volunteers a big sum was gathered with which some debts could be erased. To serve as a model Stanley Baldwin himself donated one fifth of his personal income.

He did his task so well that in 1920 Baldwin was appointed Privy Council and one year later he received the title President of the Board of Trade.

In 1922 the Conservative Party decided to form a coalition with the Liberal [[David Lloyd George]]. Soon however a lot of party members were no longer satisfied with this coalition. Among them there was Stanley Baldwin as well. At a meeting of the Conservative MPs Baldwin publicly expressed his own point of view and insulted ''David Lloyd George''. The party decided to dissolve the coalition although a lot of party leaders were not satisfied with this decision. From this moment on party leader Bonar Law needed a few new ministers for his cabinet and at once it became clear that Stanley Baldwin became the new Chancellor of the Exchequer.
1922 a new general election took place which led to the fact that the Conservative Party received the majority of the votes.

== Prime Minister (1923-1924) ==

In 1923 it became known that the Conservative leader Bonar Law suffered from cancer. He had to retire at once. His retirement however was a big problem for the Conservative Party as it needed a new leader as quickly as possible.
[[King George V]] decided that Stanley Baldwin should succeed Bonar Law. As at this point of time Baldwin still hold the position of Chancellor of the Exchequer it was necessary to find a new one who would be able to fulfil this position. After some disappointment about some rejections Baldwin appointed [[Neville Chamberlain]] as the new Chancellor of the Exchequer. Baldwin himself was now able to become Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

Before Baldwin could act freely in his new position he had to fight with Bonar Law’s promise that there would be no introduction of taxes before a new election. As Baldwin was no longer able to keep this promise he was forced to call for a new election in 1923. Thereby he hoped to get a mandate to introduce protectionist tariffs in order to reduce the unemployment rate. The British population however was not willing to support protectionist tariffs and that is why the Conservative Party had to accept an electoral defeat although they had had the majority before the election. In 1924 Stanley Baldwin decided to resign from his office as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Although he gave up the office of the Prime Minister Baldwin remained the party leader of the Conservatives for the following ten months.

== Prime Minister (1924-1929) ==

In October 1924 new general elections took place and Baldwin managed to improve the reputation of his party in such a way that it received the majority in the [[House of Commons]].

His new cabinet however offered now a lot of politicians who were always connected with the Liberal David Lloyd George who Baldwin rejected. His new Chancellor of the Exchequer now was Winston Churchill.
Together with his cabinet Baldwin managed to introduce a law which led to the fact that the state gained a lot more money than before.
In 1929 new general elections took place and again it was the Labour Party who won the majority within the government. Stanley Baldwin had to give up his position as Prime Minister.

== Prime Minister (1935-1937) ==

In 1935 it was the Conservative Party that convinced British people and that is why it received the majority within parliament. From this moment on Stanley Baldwin gained back his position as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
In Germany Hitler was accepted as leader of the country and it soon became clear that he was willing to wage wars to get more power. At the beginning Stanley Baldwin however was not willing to improve the military equipment of the British forces as he explained "the bomber will always get through". Source: <http://www.number10.gov.uk/history-and-tour/prime-ministers-in-history/stanley-baldwin>

He preferred to support international disarmament.
But when the threat from Germany became stronger and stronger he accepted the cabinet's will and supported the improvement of the British forces. In 1937 Stanley Baldwin retired from work.

== Abdication of Edward VIII ==

During Baldwin's time in office [[Edward VIII]] was the king of the United Kingdom. One day [[Edward VIII]] started an affair with [[Wallis Simpson]], an American woman, who was not of noble origin. Moreover she was divorced twice.
Baldwin accepted the affair until that day when Edward explained that he was going to marry Mrs Simpson. He and the majority of Parliament was not willing to accept [[Wallis Simpson]] as Queen of England because of her past. That is why Baldwin presented Edward three options to choose from in the current situation: firstly Edward could renounce Mrs Simpson, secondly he could marry her but then Baldwin assured Edward that the government would resign and thirdly he could marry Wallis Simpson under the condition that he would abdicate the British throne and thereby give up the his own rights and the ones of his future children who he might have with Mrs Simpson. After some time of thinking [[Edward VIII]] chose the last option: he abdicated and was therefore able to marry [[Walls Simpson]], his big love, in France in 1937.

Stanley Baldwin hoped that [[Edward VIII]] would never abdicate the British throne and that is why he was very astonished when he realized that Edward was willing to give up his whole life for this woman. After Edward's abdication Baldwin was praised for his discreteness and his popularity was restored among the whole British population.

== Further Links and Reading ==

The official site of the Prime Minister's office <http://www.number10.gov.uk/history-and-tour/prime-ministers-in-history/stanley-baldwin>

BBC Radio 4 <http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00jhpj5>

Williamson, Philip, Stanley Baldwin: ''Conservative Leadership and National Values'', Cambridge, 2007.

Wiliamson, Philip and Baldwin, Edward, ''Baldwin Papers: A Conservative Statesman, 1908-1947'', Cambridge, 2004.

John of Gaunt

2010-06-01T10:24:58Z

Wichtel:

== Introduction ==

John of Gaunt was born on 6th March 1340 in Ghent in Flanders and he died in Leicestershire in England on 3rd February 1399. He was the first Duke of Lancaster and Duke of Aquitaine.

He was the third surviving son of [[Edward III]], King of England and his wife Philippa of Hainault. During the nonage of his nephew [[Richard II]] and the period of political instability John had great influence over the English throne and the whole country. Despite his great power, he always staid loyal to the king.

John was married to three women, Blanche of Lancaster in 1359, [[Constance of Castile]] in 1371 and [[Katherine Swynford]] in 1396. He was a commoner with whom he had an affair before he married her. When they got married the couple had already four illegitimate children who were born under the name of Beaufort. These children were later legitimised by King Richard II and the Pope but excluded from the succession to the throne.

Altogether John of Gaunt had ten children. Among them were [[Katharine of Lancaster]], [[Henry Beaufort]] ([[Henry IV]]) and [[Cecily Neville]] who later gave birth to [[ Richard III]].

== Family Relations ==

John of Gaunt is [[Edward III]]'s son and [[Richard II]]'s uncle. One of his own sons later becomes [[Henry IV]]. His grand-daughter [[Margarete Beaufort]] married [[Edmund Tudor]]. John's brother is [[Prince Edward]], the so-called Black Prince.

== His Life ==

In 1359 John married his third cousin [[Blanche of Lancaster]]. Both were related to [[Henry III]]. In 1361 Blanche's father died and it was John who gained half of his land and the title Earl of Lancaster.

John joined his oldest brother Edward the Black Prince in 1366 in Aquitaine. He supported King Pedro the Cruel of Castile and subsequently fought in the van at Najera in 1367. The success brought Pedro his throne back. In 1369, John was in command of an army which fought France but failed to conquer their enemy. One year later, he went back to France and joined Edward. When Edward fell ill and went home, John of Gaunt became his Lieutenant. He went on waging war at his own cost.

John’s wife Blanche died in 1369 at Bolingbroke Castle from Bubonic Plague while John was away at sea. In 1371, John married the daughter of King Peter of Castile (Pedro the Cruel), [[Constance of Castile]], which gave him a claim to the throne in Castile. He tried to ascend to the throne for sixteen years. He thought of reaching his aim with the invasion of France in 1373 but the French were strong enough to resist the attack on Calais, the Champagne, Burgundy and Auvergne, but only a small amount of soldiers finally reached Bordeaux in a shattered state.

John went to Spain in 1386 claiming the throne in Castile again. A crisis arose as Richard’s misrule brought the country nearly to a civil war in 1387. John returned in 1389 and reached a compromise between [[Richard II]] and the [[Lord Appellants]] which led to a period of stability from then on.

Instead of John, his daughter [[Katherine of Lancaster]], who married [[Henry III]] of Castile became Queen of Castile in 1390.

After [[Constance of Castile]] died in 1394, John of Gaunt married Katherine Swynford two years later in 1396. He died from natural causes three years later in 1399 at Leicester Castle. He was buried in St Paul’s Cathedral in London.

== Relationship to [[Geoffrey Chaucer]] ==

John of Gaunt and [[Geoffrey Chaucer]] were brothers-in-law as John’s third wife Katherine was the sister of Chaucer’s wife [[Philippa de Roet]]. Chaucer’s ''Book of the Duchess'' which is also known as ''The Deth of Blaunche'' refers to Blanche of Lancaster, John’s first wife. The poem deals with the Black Knight and the White Lady which is an allegory to John of Gaunt (the Black Knight) and Blanche of Lancaster, Blanche standing for white.

== Further Links ==

< http://www.britannia.com/bios/royals/jgdklanc.html> (consulted: 28th May 2010)

< http://www.middle-ages.org.uk/john-of-gaunt.htm> (consulted: 28th May 2010)

== Further Literature ==

Empson, Charles William. ''John of Gaunt: His Life and Character (1874)''. Oxford: IndyPublish, 2008.

Seyton, Anya. ''Katherine''. Chicago: Chicago Review Press, 2004.

Shakespeare, William. ''Richard II''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000.

Weir, Alison. ''Katherine Swynford: The Story of John of Gaunt and His Scandalous Duchess''. New York: Vintage Books, 2008.

White, James. ''The Adventures of John of Gaunt. Duke of Lancaster''. Cambridge: Cambridge Scholar Publishing, 2009.

John of Gaunt

2010-06-01T10:21:49Z

Wichtel:

== Introduction ==

John of Gaunt was born on 6th March 1340 in Ghent in Flanders and he died in Leicestershire in England on 3rd February 1399. He was the first Duke of Lancaster and Duke of Aquitaine.

He was the third surviving son of [[Edward III]], King of England and his wife Philippa of Hainault. During the nonage of his nephew [[Richard II]] and the period of political instability John had great influence over the English throne and the whole country. Despite his great power, he always staid loyal to the king.

John was married to three women, Blanche of Lancaster in 1359, [[Constance of Castile]] in 1371 and [[Katherine Swynford]] in 1396. He was a commoner with whom he had an affair before he married her. When they got married the couple had already four illegitimate children who were born under the name of Beaufort. These children were later legitimised by King Richard II and the Pope but excluded from the succession to the throne.

Altogether John of Gaunt had ten children. Among them were [[Katharine of Lancaster]], [[Henry Beaufort]] ([[Henry IV]]) and [[Cecily Neville]] who later gave birth to [[ Richard III]].

== Family Relations ==

John of Gaunt is [[Edward III]]'s son and [[Richard II]]'s uncle. One of his own sons later becomes [[Henry IV]]. His grand-daughter [[Margarete Beaufort]] married [[Edmund Tudor]]. John's brother is [[Prince Edward]], the so-called Black Prince.

== His Life ==

In 1359 John married his third cousin [[Blanche of Lancaster]]. Both were related to [[Henry III]]. In 1361 Blanche's father died and it was John who gained half of his land and the title Earl of Lancaster.

John joined his oldest brother Edward the Black Prince in 1366 in Aquitaine. He supported King Pedro the Cruel of Castile and subsequently fought in the van at Najera in 1367. The success brought Pedro his throne back. In 1369, John was in command of an army which fought France but failed to conquer their enemy. One year later, he went back to France and joined Edward. When Edward fell ill and went home, John of Gaunt became his Lieutenant. He went on waging war at his own cost.

John’s wife Blanche died in 1369 at Bolingbroke Castle from Bubonic Plague while John was away at sea. In 1371, John married the daughter of King Peter of Castile (Pedro the Cruel), [[Constance of Castile]], which gave him a claim to the throne in Castile. He tried to ascend to the throne for sixteen years. He thought of reaching his aim with the invasion of France in 1373 but the French were strong enough to resist the attack on Calais, the Champagne, Burgundy and Auvergne, but only a small amount of soldiers finally reached Bordeaux in a shattered state.

John went to Spain in 1386 claiming the throne in Castile again. A crisis arose as Richard’s misrule brought the country nearly to a civil war in 1387. John returned in 1389 and reached a compromise between [[Richard II]] and the [[Lord Appellants]] which led to a period of stability from then on.

Instead of John, his daughter [[Katherine of Lancaster]], who married [[Henry III]] of Castile became Queen of Castile in 1390.

After [[Constance of Castile]] died in 1394, John of Gaunt married Katherine Swynford two years later in 1396. He died from natural causes three years later in 1399 at Leicester Castle. He was buried in St Paul’s Cathedral in London.

== Relationship to [[Geoffrey Chaucer]] ==

John of Gaunt and [[Geoffrey Chaucer]] were brothers-in-law as John’s third wife Katherine was the sister of Chaucer’s wife [[Philippa de Roet]]. Chaucer’s ''Book of the Duchess'' which is also known as ''The Deth of Blaunche'' refers to Blanche of Lancaster, John’s first wife. The poem deals with the Black Knight and the White Lady which is an allegory to John of Gaunt (the Black Knight) and Blanche of Lancaster, Blanche standing for white.

== Further Links ==

< http://www.britannia.com/bios/royals/jgdklanc.html> (consulted: 28th May 2010)

< http://www.middle-ages.org.uk/john-of-gaunt.htm> (consulted: 28th May 2010)

== Further Literature ==

Empson, Charles William. ''John of Gaunt: His Life and Character (1874)''. Oxford: IndyPublish, 2008.

Seyton, Anya. ''Katherine''. Chicago: Chicago Review Press, 2004.

Shakespeare, William. ''Richard II''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000.

Weir, Alison. ''Katherine Swynford: The Story of John of Gaunt and His Scandalous Duchess''. Place??? Vintage Books, 2008.

White, James. ''The Adventures of John of Gaunt. Duke of Lancaster''. Cambridge: Cambridge Scholar Publishing, 2009.

John of Gaunt

2010-05-28T18:33:25Z

Wichtel:

== Introduction ==

John of Gaunt was born on 6th March 1340 in Ghent in Flanders and he died in Leicestershire in England on 3rd February 1399. He was the first Duke of Lancaster and Duke of Aquitaine.

He was the third surviving son of [[Edward III]] of Windsor, King of England and his wife Philippa of Hainault. During the nonage of his nephew Richard II and the period of political instability John had great influence over the English throne and the whole country. He acted in such a way that nobody thought that John would work against the king. He was always on the king's side.

John was married to three women Blanche of Lancaster in 1359, [[Constance of Castile]] in 1371 and [[Katherine Swynford]] in 1396.
His affair with [[Katherine Swynford]] (1350-1403) who he married later is always associated with John of Gaunt as she was a commoner. When they got married the couple had already four illegitimate children who were born under the name of Beaufort. These children were later legitimised by King Richard II and the Pope but excluded from the succession to the throne.

Altogether John of Gaunt had ten children. Among them were [[Katharine of Lancaster]], [[Henry Beaufort]] ([[Henry IV]]) and [[Cecily Neville]] who later gave birth to[[ Richard III]].

== Family Relations ==

John of Gaunt is [[Edward III]]'s son and [[Richard II]]'s uncle. One of his own sons later becomes [[Henry IV]]. His grand-daughter [[Margarete Beaufort]] married [[Edmund Tudor]] which brought him directly into the Tudor line and the line of succession. John's brother is [[Prince Edward]].

== His Life ==

In 1359 John married his third cousin [[Blanche of Lancaster]]. Both were related to [[Henry III]]. In 1361 Blanche's father died and it was John who gained half of his land and the title Earl of Lancaster.

John joined his oldest brother Edward the Black Prince in 1366 in Aquitaine. He supported the King Pedro the Cruel of Castile and subsequently fought in the van at Najera in 1367. The success brought Pedro his throne back. In 1369, John was in command of an army which fought France but failed to conquer their enemy. One year later, he went back to France and joined Edward the Black Prince. When Edward fell ill and went home, John of Gaunt became his Lieutenant. He went on waging war at his own cost.

John’s wife Blanche died in 1369 at Bolingbroke Castle from Bubonic Plague while John was away at sea. In 1371, John married the daughter of King Peter of Castile (Pedro the Cruel), [[Constance of Castile]], which gave him claim to the throne in Castile which he always intended to do but never did. He tried so for sixteen years. He thought of reaching his aim – the succession to the throne – with the invasion of France in 1373 but the French were strong enough to resist the attack on Calais, the Champagne, Burgundy and Auvergne, but only a small amount of soldiers finally reached Bordeaux in a shattered state.

John went to Spain in 1386 claiming the throne in Castile again. A crisis arose through Richard’s misrule brought the country nearly to a civil war in 1387. John returned in 1389 and reached a compromise between [[Richard II]] and the [[Lord Appellants]] which led to a period of stability from then on.

Instead of John, his daughter [[Katherine of Lancaster]] who married [[Henry III]] of Castile became King and Queen of Castile in 1390.

After [[Constance of Castile]] died in 1394, John of Gaunt married Katherine Swynford two years later in 1396. He died from natural causes three years later in 1399 at Leicester Castle. He was buried in St. Paul’s Cathedral in London.

== Relationship to [[Geoffrey Chaucer]] ==

John of Gaunt and [[Geoffrey Chaucer]] were brothers-in-law as John’s third wife Katherine was sister of Chaucer’s wife [[Philippa de Roet]]. Chaucer’s book ‘Book of the Duchess’ which is also known as ‘The Deth of Blaunche’ refers to Blanche of Lancaster, John’s first wife. The poem deals with the Black Knight and the White Lady which is an allegory to John of Gaunt (the Black Knight) and Blanche of Lancaster, Blanche standing for white.

== Media ==

King Richard the Second (1978, directed by David Giles)

Richard II (1997, directed by Deborah Warner)

Richard II (2003, BBC Live recording from the Globe Theatre London)

== Further Links ==

< http://www.britannia.com/bios/royals/jgdklanc.html> (consulted: 28th May 2010)

< http://www.middle-ages.org.uk/john-of-gaunt.htm> (consulted: 28th May 2010)

== Further Literature ==

Empson, Charles William. ''His Life and Character (1874)''. IndyPublish 2008.

Seyton, Anya. ''Katherine''. Chicago: Chicago Review Press. 2004.

Shakespeare, William. ''Richard II''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 2000.

Weir, Alison. ''Katherine Swynford: The Story of John of Gaunt and His Scandalous Duchess''. Vintage Books, 2008.

White, James. ''The Adventures of John of Gaunt. Duke of Lancaster''. Cambridge: Cambridge Scholar Publishing, 2009.

John of Gaunt

2010-05-28T18:31:46Z

Wichtel: Created page with '== Introduction == John of Gaunt was born on 6th March 1340 in Ghent in Flanders and he died in Leicestershire in England on 3rd February 1399. He was the first Duke of Lancast…'

== Introduction ==

John of Gaunt was born on 6th March 1340 in Ghent in Flanders and he died in Leicestershire in England on 3rd February 1399. He was the first Duke of Lancaster and Duke of Aquitaine.

He was the third surviving son of [[Edward III]] of Windsor, King of England and his wife Philippa of Hainault. During the nonage of his nephew Richard II and the period of political instability John had great influence over the English throne and the whole country. He acted in such a way that nobody thought that John would work against the king. He was always on the king's side.

John was married to three women Blanche of Lancaster in 1359, [[Constance of Castile]] in 1371 and [[Katherine Swynford]] in 1396.
His affair with [[Katherine Swynford]] (1350-1403) who he married later is always associated with John of Gaunt as she was a commoner. When they got married the couple had already four illegitimate children who were born under the name of Beaufort. These children were later legitimised by King Richard II and the Pope but excluded from the succession to the throne.

Altogether John of Gaunt had ten children. Among them were [[Katharine of Lancaster]], [[Henry Beaufort]] ([[Henry IV]]) and [[Cecily Neville]] who later gave birth to[[ Richard III]].

== Family Relations ==

John of Gaunt is [[Edward III]]'s son and [[Richard II]]'s uncle. One of his own sons later becomes [[Henry IV]]. His grand-daughter [[Margarete Beaufort]] married [[Edmund Tudor]] which brought him directly into the Tudor line and the line of succession. John's brother is [[Prince Edward]].

== His Life ==

In 1359 John married his third cousin [[Blanche of Lancaster]]. Both were related to [[Henry III]]. In 1361 Blanche's father died and it was John who gained half of his land and the title Earl of Lancaster.

John joined his oldest brother Edward the Black Prince in 1366 in Aquitaine. He supported the King Pedro the Cruel of Castile and subsequently fought in the van at Najera in 1367. The success brought Pedro his throne back. In 1369, John was in command of an army which fought France but failed to conquer their enemy. One year later, he went back to France and joined Edward the Black Prince. When Edward fell ill and went home, John of Gaunt became his Lieutenant. He went on waging war at his own cost.

John’s wife Blanche died in 1369 at Bolingbroke Castle from Bubonic Plague while John was away at sea. In 1371, John married the daughter of King Peter of Castile (Pedro the Cruel), [[Constance of Castile]], which gave him claim to the throne in Castile which he always intended to do but never did. He tried so for sixteen years. He thought of reaching his aim – the succession to the throne – with the invasion of France in 1373 but the French were strong enough to resist the attack on Calais, the Champagne, Burgundy and Auvergne, but only a small amount of soldiers finally reached Bordeaux in a shattered state.

John went to Spain in 1386 claiming the throne in Castile again. A crisis arose through Richard’s misrule brought the country nearly to a civil war in 1387. John returned in 1389 and reached a compromise between [[Richard II]] and the [[Lord Appellants]] which led to a period of stability from then on.

Instead of John, his daughter [[Katherine of Lancaster]] who married [[Henry III]] of Castile became King and Queen of Castile in 1390.

After [[Constance of Castile]] died in 1394, John of Gaunt married Katherine Swynford two years later in 1396. He died from natural causes three years later in 1399 at Leicester Castle. He was buried in St. Paul’s Cathedral in London.

== Relationship to [[Geoffrey Chaucer]] ==

John of Gaunt and [[Geoffrey Chaucer]] were brothers-in-law as John’s third wife Katherine was sister of Chaucer’s wife [[Philippa de Roet]]. Chaucer’s book ‘Book of the Duchess’ which is also known as ‘The Deth of Blaunche’ refers to Blanche of Lancaster, John’s first wife. The poem deals with the Black Knight and the White Lady which is an allegory to John of Gaunt (the Black Knight) and Blanche of Lancaster, Blanche standing for white.

== Media ==

King Richard the Second (1978, directed by David Giles)
Richard II (1997, directed by Deborah Warner)
Richard II (2003, BBC Live recording from the Globe Theatre London)

== Further Links ==

< http://www.britannia.com/bios/royals/jgdklanc.html> (consulted: 28th May 2010)

< http://www.middle-ages.org.uk/john-of-gaunt.htm> (consulted: 28th May 2010)

== Further Literature ==

Empson, Charles William. ''His Life and Character (1874)''. IndyPublish 2008.

Seyton, Anya. ''Katherine''. Chicago: Chicago Review Press. 2004.

Shakespeare, William. ''Richard II''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 2000.

Weir, Alison. ''Katherine Swynford: The Story of John of Gaunt and His Scandalous Duchess''. Vintage Books, 2008.

White, James. ''The Adventures of John of Gaunt. Duke of Lancaster''. Cambridge: Cambridge Scholar Publishing, 2009.

User:Wichtel

2010-05-02T11:16:10Z

Wichtel:

'''Articles authored:'''

[[Charles I]]

The [[Great Fire of London]]

The [[Great Plague]]

[[Sophia of Hanover]]

[[Horatio Nelson]]

[[Richard Arkwright]]

[[Mary of Modena]]

Mary of Modena

2010-04-28T13:27:47Z

Wichtel:

== Introduction ==

Mary of Modena, whose full name was Maria Beatrice Eleonora Anna Margherita Isabella d'Este, was born on 5th October 1658 as Princess of the Italian Duchy of Modena and died from cancer on 7th May 1718. She was an abidingly Catholic woman. In 1673 she married King [[James II]] who was titled King of England, Scotland and Ireland. She bore him two children called Louise Mary and [[James Francis Edward Stuart]]. In April 1712 both children fell sick with smallpox and Louise Mary even died. [[James Francis Edward Stuart]], her brother, however recovered and became the only ancestor of his father King [[James II]] and therefore should secure the continuity of the Catholic. This fact however never came true.
After the [[Glorious Revolution]] Mary of Modena, her husband and her children had to escape into exile in France at the court of [[Louis XIV]] where she stayed until her death in 1718.

== Her Life ==

Mary was the eldest child of [[Alfonso IV]], Duke of Modena and [[Laura Martinozzi]]. As a member of a noble dynasty she received a good education. She spoke French and Italian fluently and was moreover taught in Latin and English.

Mary saw her husband for the first time on the day of their second marriage ceremony. For James it was his second marriage.
James was twenty-five years older than Mary and his face was covered with cicatrices – a result of his last disease: smallpox. Mary got desperate as she could not imagine living her whole life at King James' side. Contrary to James, he was really happy with his new wife.
After a while after both got to know each other more closely Mary changed her attitude towards him and started to accept and like him.

From his last marriage James brought Mary two children: Lady Mary and Lady Anne. In comparison to Lady Anne, Lady Mary accepted Mary of Modena, her father’s second wife. In 1677 Lady Mary was married to William of Orange who should later send James II, his wife’s father, and Mary, his wife’s stepmother, into exile in France and take over the throne of England, Scotland and Ireland.

Mary as the Queen of England, Scotland and Ireland:

In 1687 Mary of Modena became pregnant. [[James II]] received a male heir which led to fear within the population as from now on the Catholic continuity of James's dynasty was secured. As people were afraid of Catholics they started to search for a possible Protestant king. The son was called [[James Francis Edward]].
At once seven leading Whigs invited [[William of Orange]] who was a Protestant and married to one of James’s daughters of his first marriage to prevent England from a Catholic reign. After a hard battle which became known as the [[Glorious Revolution]] James, his wife Mary and their son Edward had to flee into exile in France to [[Louis XIV]], and William and Lady Mary took over the throne as Joint Rulers.
In exile Mary's daughter Louise Mary was born who died later at the age of twenty from smallpox.

James however was not satisfied with the fact that he had to give up the throne. That is why he planned an attack to gain everything back. This attack became known as the [[Battle of the Boyne]] in Ireland in 1690. He was however defeated again by William. Nevertheless Mary encouraged him all the time.

In 1701 [[James II]] became ill and died. As Edward was too young to become king it was Mary who took over the reign until her son would be old enough to do it on his own. As her first act she prepared a manifesto which showed all English people [[James Francis Edward]]'s aims. It was however only in Scotland where it was accepted. Scottish lords even tried to convince Mary of the fact that her son had to become a Protestant to facilitate his possibility of becoming King after William's death. Mary however was not satisfied with this solution and that is why it was agreed that when James should become king he should limit Catholic priest in England and he should not block the Church of England. Scottish lords promised to do everything to stop the succession line of King [[William of Orange]].
This act however failed and when [[James Francis Edward]] became 16 years old Mary's reign ended.

Mary went on living in exile where she also died from cancer without having any contact to her relatives in England.

== Further Links ==

English Monarchs <http://www.englishmonarchs.co.uk/stuart_4.htm> (28th April 2010)

Bucholz, Robert; Key, Newton, ''Early Modern England 1485-1714'', Chichester: Blackwell Publishing, 2009.

Haile, Martin, ''Queen Mary of Modena: her Life and Letters'', Cambridge: Cambridge Scholar Publishing, 2009.

Mary of Modena

2010-04-28T13:26:37Z

Wichtel:

== Introduction ==

Mary of Modena, whose full name was Maria Beatrice Eleonora Anna Margherita Isabella d'Este, was born on 5th October 1658 as Princess of the Italian Duchy of Modena and died from cancer on 7th May 1718. She was an abidingly Catholic woman. In 1673 she married King [[James II]] who was titled King of England, Scotland and Ireland. She bore him two children called Louise Mary and [[James Francis Edward Stuart]]. In April 1712 both children fell sick with smallpox and Louise Mary even died. [[James Francis Edward Stuart]], her brother, however recovered and became the only ancestor of his father King [[James II]] and therefore should secure the continuity of the Catholic. This fact however never came true.
After the [[Glorious Revolution]] Mary of Modena, her husband and her children had to escape into exile in France at the court of [[Louis XIV]] where she stayed until her death in 1718.

== Her Life ==

Mary was the eldest child of [[Alfonso IV]], Duke of Modena and [[Laura Martinozzi]]. As a member of a noble dynasty she received a good education. She spoke French and Italian fluently and was moreover taught in Latin and English.

Mary saw her husband for the first time on the day of their second marriage ceremony. For James it was his second marriage.
James was twenty-five years older than Mary and his face was covered with cicatrices – a result of his last disease: smallpox. Mary got desperate as she could not imagine living her whole life at King James' side. Contrary to James, he was really happy with his new wife.
After a while after both got to know each other more closely Mary changed her attitude towards him and started to accept and like him.

From his last marriage James brought Mary two children: Lady Mary and Lady Anne. In comparison to Lady Anne, Lady Mary accepted Mary of Modena, her father’s second wife. In 1677 Lady Mary was married to William of Orange who should later send James II, his wife’s father, and Mary, his wife’s stepmother, into exile in France and take over the throne of England, Scotland and Ireland.

Mary as the Queen of England, Scotland and Ireland:

In 1687 Mary of Modena became pregnant. [[James II]] received a male heir which led to fear within the population as from now on the Catholic continuity of James's dynasty was secured. As people were afraid of Catholics they started to search for a possible Protestant king. The son was called [[James Francis Edward]].
At once seven leading Whigs invited [[William of Orange]] who was a Protestant and married to one of James’s daughters of his first marriage to prevent England from a Catholic reign. After a hard battle which became known as the [[Glorious Revolution]] James, his wife Mary and their son Edward had to flee into exile in France to [[Louis XIV]], and William and Lady Mary took over the throne as Joint Rulers.
In exile Mary's daughter Louise Mary was born who died later at the age of twenty from smallpox.

James however was not satisfied with the fact that he had to give up the throne. That is why he planned an attack to gain everything back. This attack became known as the [[Battle of the Boyne]] in Ireland in 1690. He was however defeated again by William. Nevertheless Mary encouraged him all the time.

In 1701 [[James II]] became ill and died. As Edward was too young to become king it was Mary who took over the reign until her son would be old enough to do it on his own. As her first act she prepared a manifesto which showed all English people [[James Francis Edward]]'s aims. It was however only in Scotland where it was accepted. Scottish lords even tried to convince Mary of the fact that her son had to become a protestant to facilitate his possibility of becoming king after William's death. Mary however was not satisfied with this solution and that is why it was agreed that when James should become king he should limit Catholic priest in England and he should not block the Church of England. Scottish lords promised to do everything to stop the succession line of King [[William of Orange]].
This act however failed and when [[James Francis Edward]] became 16 years old Mary's reign ended.

Mary went on living in exile where she also died from cancer without having any contact to her relatives in England.

== Further Links ==

English Monarchs <http://www.englishmonarchs.co.uk/stuart_4.htm> (28th April 2010)

Bucholz, Robert; Key, Newton, ''Early Modern England 1485-1714'', Chichester: Blackwell Publishing, 2009.

Haile, Martin, ''Queen Mary of Modena: her Life and Letters'', Cambridge: Cambridge Scholar Publishing, 2009.

Mary of Modena

2010-04-28T13:25:45Z

Wichtel: Created page with '== Introduction == Mary of Modena, whose full name was Maria Beatrice Eleonora Anna Margherita Isabella d'Este, was born on 5th October 1658 as Princess of the Italian Duchy of…'

== Introduction ==

Mary of Modena, whose full name was Maria Beatrice Eleonora Anna Margherita Isabella d'Este, was born on 5th October 1658 as Princess of the Italian Duchy of Modena and died from cancer on 7th May 1718. She was an abidingly Catholic woman. In 1673 she married King [[James II]] who was titled King of England, Scotland and Ireland. She bore him two children called Louise Mary and [[James Francis Edward Stuart]]. In April 1712 both children fell sick with smallpox and Louise Mary even died. [[James Francis Edward Stuart]], her brother, however recovered and became the only ancestor of his father King [[James II]] and therefore should secure the continuity of the Catholic. This fact however never came true.
After the [[Glorious Revolution]] Mary of Modena, her husband and her children had to escape into exile in France at the court of [[Louis XIV]] where she stayed until her death in 1718.

== Her Life ==

Mary was the eldest child of [[Alfonso IV]], Duke of Modena and [[Laura Martinozzi]]. As a member of a noble dynasty she received a good education. She spoke French and Italian fluently and was moreover taught in Latin and English.

Mary saw her husband for the first time on the day of their second marriage ceremony. For James it was his second marriage.
James was twenty-five years older than Mary and his face was covered with cicatrices – a result of his last disease: smallpox. Mary got desperate as she could not imagine living her whole life at King James' side. Contrary to James, he was really happy with his new wife.
After a while after both got to know each other more closely Mary changed her attitude towards him and started to accept and like him.

From his last marriage James brought Mary two children: Lady Mary and Lady Anne. In comparison to Lady Anne, Lady Mary accepted Mary of Modena, her father’s second wife. In 1677 Lady Mary was married to William of Orange who should later send James II, his wife’s father, and Mary, his wife’s stepmother, into exile in France and take over the throne of England, Scotland and Ireland.

Mary as the Queen of England, Scotland and Ireland:

In 1687 Mary of Modena became pregnant. [[James II]] received a male heir which led to fear within the population as from now on the Catholic continuity of James's dynasty was secured. As people were afraid of Catholics they started to search for a possible Protestant king. The son was called [[James Francis Edward]].
At once seven leading Whigs invited [[William of Orange]] who was a Protestant and married to one of James’s daughters of his first marriage to prevent England from a Catholic reign. After a hard battle which became known as the [[Glorious Revolution]] James, his wife Mary and their son Edward had to flee into exile in France to [[Louis XIV]], and William and Lady Mary took over the throne as Joint Rulers.
In exile Mary's daughter Louise Mary was born who died later at the age of twenty from smallpox.

James however was not satisfied with the fact that he had to give up the throne. That is why he planned an attack to gain everything back. This attack became known as the [[Battle of the Boyne]] in Ireland in 1690. He was however defeated again by William. Nevertheless Mary encouraged him all the time.

In 1701 [[James II]] became ill and died. As Edward was too young to become king it was Mary who took over the reign until her son would be old enough to do it on his own. As her first act she prepared a manifesto which showed all English people [[James Francis Edward]]'s aims. It was however only in Scotland where it was accepted. Scottish lords even tried to convince Mary of the fact that her son had to become a protestant to facilitate his possibility of becoming king after William's death. Mary however was not satisfied with this solution and that is why it was agreed that when James should become king he should limit Catholic priest in England and he should not block the Church of England. Scottish lords promised to do everything to stop the succession line of King [[William of Orange]].
This act however failed and when [[James Francis Edward]] became 16 years old Mary's reign ended.

Mary went on living in exile where she also died from cancer without having any contact to her relatives in England.

== Further Links ==

English Monarchs <http://www.englishmonarchs.co.uk/stuart_4.htm> (28th April 2010)

Bucholz, Robert; Key, Newton, Early Modern England 1485-1714, Chichester: Blackwell Publishing, 2009.

Haile, Martin, Queen Mary of Modena: her Life and Letters, Cambridge: Cambridge Scholar Publishing , 2009.

Richard Arkwright

2010-01-17T16:53:54Z

Wichtel:

==Introduction==

Richard Arkwright was a British inventor and entrepreneur who became famous for the development of spinning machinery and the water frame with was a huge contribution for the industrial revolution and thereby laid the first foundation stone for mass production in England. This led to a rise in society as he was later knighted to Sir Richard Arkwright in 1786. He was born on 23rd December 1732 in Preston, Lancashire and died on 3rd August 1793 in Cromford, Derbyshire.

==His Life==

Born in 1732 in Preston, Richard Arkwright grew up under very poor conditions and therefore he did not receive any public schooling. Instead it was his cousin who taught him reading and writing. His father, [[Thomas Arkwright]], was a tailor in his home town.

From very early on Richard started working as a hairdresser and wig-maker. His wish to run his own company became stronger and stronger.

In 1762, his second wife [[Margaret Biggins]] offered him the money he needed to start his own wig-making business. For that purpose he travelled around the country in order to gather peoples' discarded hair. During those journeys he got in touch with [[John Kay]] and [[Thomas Highs of Leigh]] who were both working on a new spinning machine. However, they did not have enough money and were forced to give up the whole project. Richard Arkwright was impressed by their plans, employed them in his company and offered them the money they needed to finish their project.

Together they produced the so called [[spinning-frame]]. In 1769, Arkwright asked a [[Ichabod Wright]], a banker, for new funds to widen his business throughout the country. Thereby he got in touch with [[Samuel Need]] and [[Jedediah Strutt]] with who he agreed on a partnership. As the team soon realized that the new spinning-frame needed strong power to work, Need, Strutt and Arkwright created the world's first water-powered mill at Cromford. This mill was strong enough to let this invention work.
The spinning-frame became now known as the [[water-frame]]. Arkwright started building water-mills throughout the whole country.

The water-frame was such a big success that Arkwright had difficulties to get patent of the water-powered engine on time. It was not before 1775 that he was successful. He hoped to gain the monopoly of the whole producing industry. In 1781 however, his patent was rejected as Lancashire explained that Arkwright had only copied and improved already existing ideas by e.g. [[Thomas Highs]].

Despite all this, he was knighted in 1786. He died six years later on 3rd August 1792 at Willersley Castle in Cromford, Derbyshire.

==Importance for the 18th Century==

Later he was named the 'Father of the [[Industrial Revoution]]' as he introduced a certain discipline among the workers and a profitable working system which became the basis for the Industrial Revolution.

The workers lived next to the factory in small houses. They had to start working on time at 5 a.m. and if they were too late they were not allowed to work for the whole day left. Their daily income was lost. They left the factory at 5 p.m. The employees had one week holiday per year but under the conditions that they were not able to leave the village. Arkwright employed whole families, even children from the age of 7.

==Further literature==

Allen, Robert C.: ''The British Industrial Revolution in Global Perspective''. Campridge: Cambridge University Pres, 2009.

Hills, Richard Leslie:'' Richard Arkwright and Cotton Spinning''. London: Wayland Ltd. 1980.

==Further links==

Historisches Zentrum Wuppertal: <http://www.historisches-zentrum-wuppertal.de/frueh3c1-frame.html> (17th January 2010)

Yale University: <http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1981/2/81.02.06.x.html> (17th January 2010)

User:Wichtel

2010-01-17T16:51:57Z

Wichtel:

'''Articles authored:'''

[[Charles I]]

The [[Great Fire of London]]

The [[Great Plague]]

[[Sophia of Hanover]]

[[Horatio Nelson]]

[[Richard Arkwright]]

Richard Arkwright

2010-01-17T16:51:21Z

Wichtel:

==Introduction==

Richard Arkwright was a British inventor who became famous for the development of spinning machinery and the water frame with was a huge contribution for the industrial revolution and thereby laid the first foundation stone for mass production in England. This led to a rise in society as he was later knighted to Sir Richard Arkwright in 1786. He was born on 23rd December 1732 in Preston, Lancashire and died on 3rd August 1793 in Cromford, Derbyshire.

==His Life==

Born in 1732 in Preston, Richard Arkwright grew up under very poor conditions and therefore he did not receive any public schooling. Instead it was his cousin who taught him reading and writing. His father, [[Thomas Arkwright]], was a tailor in his home town.

From very early on Richard started working as a hairdresser and wig-maker. His wish to run his own company became stronger and stronger.

In 1762, his second wife [[Margaret Biggins]] offered him the money he needed to start his own wig-making business. For that purpose he travelled around the country in order to gather peoples' discarded hair. During those journeys he got in touch with [[John Kay]] and [[Thomas Highs of Leigh]] who were both working on a new spinning machine. However, they did not have enough money and were forced to give up the whole project. Richard Arkwright was impressed by their plans, employed them in his company and offered them the money they needed to finish their project.

Together they produced the so called [[spinning-frame]]. In 1769, Arkwright asked a [[Ichabod Wright]], a banker, for new funds to widen his business throughout the country. Thereby he got in touch with [[Samuel Need]] and [[Jedediah Strutt]] with who he agreed on a partnership. As the team soon realized that the new spinning-frame needed strong power to work, Need, Strutt and Arkwright created the world's first water-powered mill at Cromford. This mill was strong enough to let this invention work.
The spinning-frame became now known as the [[water-frame]]. Arkwright started building water-mills throughout the whole country.

The water-frame was such a big success that Arkwright had difficulties to get patent of the water-powered engine on time. It was not before 1775 that he was successful. He hoped to gain the monopoly of the whole producing industry. In 1781 however, his patent was rejected as Lancashire explained that Arkwright had only copied and improved already existing ideas by e.g. [[Thomas Highs]].

Despite all this, he was knighted in 1786. He died six years later on 3rd August 1792 at Willersley Castle in Cromford, Derbyshire.

==Importance for the 18th Century==

Later he was named the 'Father of the [[Industrial Revoution]]' as he introduced a certain discipline among the workers and a profitable working system.

The workers lived next to the factory in small houses. They had to start working on time at 5 a.m. and if they were too late they were not allowed to work for the whole day left. Their daily income was lost. They left the factory at 5 p.m. The employees had one week holiday per year but under the conditions that they were not able to leave the village. Arkwright employed whole families, even children from the age of 7.

==Further literature==

Allen, Robert C.: ''The British Industrial Revolution in Global Perspective''. Campridge: Cambridge University Pres, 2009.

Hills, Richard Leslie:'' Richard Arkwright and Cotton Spinning''. London: Wayland Ltd. 1980.

==Further links==

Historisches Zentrum Wuppertal: <http://www.historisches-zentrum-wuppertal.de/frueh3c1-frame.html> (17th January 2010)

Yale University: <http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1981/2/81.02.06.x.html> (17th January 2010)

Richard Arkwright

2010-01-17T16:50:35Z

Wichtel: Created page with ''''Richard Arkwright''' ==Introduction== Richard Arkwright was a British inventor who became famous for the development of spinning machinery and the water frame with was a hug…'

'''Richard Arkwright'''

==Introduction==

Richard Arkwright was a British inventor who became famous for the development of spinning machinery and the water frame with was a huge contribution for the industrial revolution and thereby laid the first foundation stone for mass production in England. This led to a rise in society as he was later knighted to Sir Richard Arkwright in 1786. He was born on 23rd December 1732 in Preston, Lancashire and died on 3rd August 1793 in Cromford, Derbyshire.

==His Life==

Born in 1732 in Preston, Richard Arkwright grew up under very poor conditions and therefore he did not receive any public schooling. Instead it was his cousin who taught him reading and writing. His father, [[Thomas Arkwright]], was a tailor in his home town.

From very early on Richard started working as a hairdresser and wig-maker. His wish to run his own company became stronger and stronger.

In 1762, his second wife [[Margaret Biggins]] offered him the money he needed to start his own wig-making business. For that purpose he travelled around the country in order to gather peoples' discarded hair. During those journeys he got in touch with [[John Kay]] and [[Thomas Highs of Leigh]] who were both working on a new spinning machine. However, they did not have enough money and were forced to give up the whole project. Richard Arkwright was impressed by their plans, employed them in his company and offered them the money they needed to finish their project.

Together they produced the so called [[spinning-frame]]. In 1769, Arkwright asked a [[Ichabod Wright]], a banker, for new funds to widen his business throughout the country. Thereby he got in touch with [[Samuel Need]] and [[Jedediah Strutt]] with who he agreed on a partnership. As the team soon realized that the new spinning-frame needed strong power to work, Need, Strutt and Arkwright created the world's first water-powered mill at Cromford. This mill was strong enough to let this invention work.
The spinning-frame became now known as the [[water-frame]]. Arkwright started building water-mills throughout the whole country.

The water-frame was such a big success that Arkwright had difficulties to get patent of the water-powered engine on time. It was not before 1775 that he was successful. He hoped to gain the monopoly of the whole producing industry. In 1781 however, his patent was rejected as Lancashire explained that Arkwright had only copied and improved already existing ideas by e.g. [[Thomas Highs]].

Despite all this, he was knighted in 1786. He died six years later on 3rd August 1792 at Willersley Castle in Cromford, Derbyshire.

==Importance for the 18th Century==

Later he was named the 'Father of the [[Industrial Revoution]]' as he introduced a certain discipline among the workers and a profitable working system.

The workers lived next to the factory in small houses. They had to start working on time at 5 a.m. and if they were too late they were not allowed to work for the whole day left. Their daily income was lost. They left the factory at 5 p.m. The employees had one week holiday per year but under the conditions that they were not able to leave the village. Arkwright employed whole families, even children from the age of 7.

==Further literature==

Allen, Robert C.: ''The British Industrial Revolution in Global Perspective''. Campridge: Cambridge University Pres, 2009.

Hills, Richard Leslie:'' Richard Arkwright and Cotton Spinning''. London: Wayland Ltd. 1980.

==Further links==

Historisches Zentrum Wuppertal: <http://www.historisches-zentrum-wuppertal.de/frueh3c1-frame.html> (17th January 2010)

Yale University: <http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1981/2/81.02.06.x.html> (17th January 2010)

User:Wichtel

2009-11-13T21:28:43Z

Wichtel:

'''Articles authored:'''

[[Charles I]]

The [[Great Fire of London]]

The [[Great Plague]]

[[Sophia of Hanover]]

[[Horatio Nelson]]

Sophia of Hanover

2009-11-11T18:39:01Z

Wichtel:

== '''Introduction''' ==

Sophia of Hanover lived from 14 October 1630 (The Hague) to 8 June 1714 (Herrenhausen). She died aged 83 during a walk through her garden. She was born as the youngest of five daughters of [[Frederick V Elector Palatine]] of the [[House of Wittelsbach]] and [[Elizabeth Stuart]], the daughter of [[James I]]. Thus she is commonly referred to as Sophia of Palatine (Sophie von der Pfalz) or Duchess Sophia. She married [[Ernest Augustus]] of Hanover in 1658 with whom she had several children, seven of them survived: George I of Great Britain (1660-1727), Friedrich August of Brunswick and Lunenburg (1661-1691), Maximilian William of Brunswick and Lunenburg (1666-1726), Sophia Charlotte (1668-1705), Karl Philipp of Lunenburg (1669-1690), Christian of Brunswick and Lunenburg (1671-1703) and Ernst August II of Brunswick and Lunenburg (1674-1728).

== '''Biography''' ==

Growing up in The Hague in exile as her father (known as the "Winter King" and "King of Bohemia") lost the [[Battle of White Mountain]] she was advised to marry her neighbouring first cousin [[Charles II]], but she refused. So she lived with her brother [[Charles I Louis]].

1657 Sophia's niece [[Elizabeth Charlotte of the Palatinate]] (in Germany known as Lieselotte von der Pfalz) started living with her. It was only when Elizabeth Charlotte got married to the brother of [[ Louis XIV of France]] when she left. However both women kept in touch with the help of letters in which Sophia was informed about life at the court of Louis XIV.

In 1658 Sophia of Hanover married Ernest Augustus, a second cousin of [[Elizabeth Stuart]], in Heidelberg who later became Elector of Brunswick-Lüneburg. That is why she herself received the title of Electress of Hanover.

In 1676 Sophia was introduced to [[Gottfried Leibniz]] who was employed at her court. She became attached to his theories and a close friendship between the two of them developed until Leibniz died. As Sophia also knew the works of [[René Descartes]] and [[Baruch Spinoza]], it can be said that she was a highly intellectual woman who was interested in politics and philosophy.

In 1700 Sophia met her cousin [[King William III]] of England. A short time before this meeting [[Anne I|Queen Anne]]'s son [[Prince William of Denmark and Norway]] died who would have been the proper (because Protestant) heir to the British throne. The rest of the Stuart descendants were Catholics or girls. Or both.
One year later in the [[Act of Settlement]] Sophia, member of the Protestant Church, and her Protestant children were declared the legitimate heirs of the British Crown:

“The most excellent Princess Sophia Electress and Duchess dowager of Hanover daughter of the most excellent Princess Elisabeth late Queen of Bohemia daughter of our late sovereign lord King James the First of happy memory be and is hereby declared to be the next in succession in the protestant line to the imperiall crown and dignity of the (said) realms of England, France and Ireland with the dominions and territories thereunto belonging after his Majesty and the Princess Ann of Denmark and in default of issue of the said Princess Ann and of his Majesty respectively and that from and after the deceases of his said Majesty our new sovereign lord and of her royall Highness the Princess Ann of Denmark and for default of issue of the said Princess Ann and of his Majesty respectively the crown and regall government of the said kingdoms of England, France and Ireland and of the dominions thereunto belonging with the royall state and dignity of the said realms and all honours stiles titles regalitieS prerogatives powers jurisdictions and authorities to the same belonging and appertaining shall be remain and continue to the said most excellent Princess Sophia and the heirs of her body being protestants. And thereunto the said lords spirituall and temporall and commons shall and will in the name of all the people of this realm most humbly and faithfully submitt themselves their heirs and posterities and do faithfully promise that after the deceases of his Majesty and her royall Highness and the failure of the heirs of their respective bodies to stand to maintain and defend the said Princess Sophia and the heirs of her body being (protestante) according to the limitation and succession of the crown in this Act specified and contained to the utmost of their powers with their lives and estates against all persons whatsoever that shall attempt any thing to the contrary.” ([[Act of Settlement]] (1701)

However Sophia died on 8 June 1714 a sudden death and that is why she was not able to inherit the British throne. Instead it was her eldest son Elector [[George Ludwig of Hanover]] who took his mother's position after Queen Anne's death August 1, 1714.

The Act of Settlement is still in use, hence British royals still have to be Protestants and cannot be married to a Catholic if they want to inherit the throne.

== '''Her achievements''' ==

In 1680 Ernest Augustus inherited the Leineschloss in Hanover and the duchy Braunschweig-Lüneburg of his brother. Together with his wife Sophia he moved to the castle.
While he was busy with politics Sophia renovated the castle of [[Herrenhausen]] and its gardens. With the help of architects, artists, gardeners and sculptors she was able to create a real masterpiece which can be visited even nowadays.

== '''Books''' ==

Rait, Robert S., ''Five Stuart Princesses: Margaret of Scotland, Elizabeth of Bohemia, Mary of Orange, Henrietta of Orleans, Sophia of Hanover'', Whitefish: Kessinger Publishing, 2007.

== '''External Links''' ==

<http://www.verfassungen.eu/gb/gb1701.htm>

Horatio Nelson

2009-11-11T18:34:37Z

Wichtel:

== Life ==

Rear Admiral Horatio Nelson was born on 29th September 1758 in Burnham Thorpe, Norfork, UK and died on 21st October 1805 in Kap Trafalgar in Spain during the famous [[Battle of Trafalgar]]. His father was Reverend [[Edmund Nelson]], an Anglican priest and his mother, [[Catherine Suckling]] was grand-niece to Robert Walpole, the First Earl of Oxford. When he was 9 years old, his mother died, leaving her husband and Horatio’s 7 siblings behind. He began his naval career when Horatio was 12. Although he was often seasick, his uncle, Captain [[Maurice Suckling]], offered him a position on his ship Raissonable. He quickly became successful and entered the records as the youngest captain in Great Britain at the age of 20 when he obtained his first command in June 1779 on the frigate Hitchenbroke. In the end, he was promoted Vice Admiral of the Blue on 1st January 1801, the fourth highest rank of the Navy.

He married [[Fanny Nisbet]] in the Caribbean which he married on 11th March 1787 after one of his mission about disloyal American provinces that were not allowed to trade with the British colonies.

Nelson was also famous for his affair with the British ambassador’s wife [[Emma Hamilton]] in Naples. Nelson did not mind the gossip when the two moved to a country estate together with [[Emma Hamilton]]’s husband Sir William Hamilton. Nelson and Hamilton even had a child together, Horatia. However, for the public’s sake, the two marriages remained in existence side by side.

He is buried in St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. Today, he is still remembered through the statue on Trafalgar Square in London. Unfortunately, his monument in Dublin ([[Nelson’s Pillar]]) was destroyed by a terrorist attack in 1966.

== His military achievements ==

In 1781, Nelson bombarded the Spanish fleet in Nicaragua, won the battle but had to return to English shortly afterwards due to continuous illness.

However, one year later, he obtained the command of the Albermarle where he fought American rebels until the American Revolutionary War was over in 1783.

Nelson is most famous for his achievements in the [[Napoleonic Wars]], i.e. the wars against [[Napoleon Bonaparte]] and his French fleet intending to attack Britain.

During the French revolution after several years of rest, he returned to work and became commander of the Agamemnon with which he went to Corse in the Mediterranean Sea. He was shot in the eye which resulted in insidious blindness as both eyes were severely affected by this.

In 1796 he was promoted Commodore and only one year later, he won the famous [[Battle of Cape St. Vincent]] after which he was knighted. In April 1797, he became Rear Admiral of the Blue, the sixth highest rank in military of the Royal Navy.

Unfortunately, he lost his arm the same year, when he was shot in his elbow; he lost half of his arm in Tenerife.

When in 1793, the French waged war against the British, he went on fighting. He defeated the Napoleonic fleet near Alexandria which brought him to additional fame. Although the French were outnumbering the British fleet, by Nelson’s tactic, 13 French warships were destroyed when Nelson went directly in the midst of the French fleet.

The war against the French continued when on 1st August 1798, he defeated them in a glorious battle – the [[Battle of the Nile]], also referred to as The [[Battle of Abikur]]. Due to Nelson’s tactics, the French troops were finally trapped in Egypt and had to be brought back to France. For this achievement, Nelson received the honour of obtaining the title baron.

== The [[Battle of Trafalgar]] ==

His last battle, during which he also died, took place on 21st October 1805 when Nelson had to face Spanish and French troops near Cadiz in Spain with 33 warships on Napoleon’s side and only 27 British warships against them. Nelson commanded the flagship Victory which first destroyed the French flagship Beaucentaure but was finally defeated shortly afterwards. Nelson was shot by a sniper in his shoulder and through his lungs after which he died tragically but gloriously. Shortly before his death, Nelson received the good news about the British defeat of the French and Spanish troops and thus the victory of the British against Napoleon.

== Bibliography ==

Adkin, Mark: Trafalgar Companion: ''The Complete Guide to History’s Most Famous Sea Battle and the Life of Admiral Nelson''. London: Aurum Press, 2005.

Knight, Roger: The Pursuit of Victory:'' The Life and Achievement of Horatio Nelson. London: Penguin Books, 2006.

Lavery, Brian: Horatio Lord Nelson. London: The British Library, 2003.

Sontag, Susan: The Volcano Lover: ''A Romance''. London: Penguin Books, 2009.

White, Colin: The Nelson Encyclopedia: ''People, Places, Battles, Ships, Myths, Mistresses, Memorials and Memorabilia''. Newbury: Chatham Publishing, 2005.

Horatio Nelson

2009-11-11T18:20:05Z

Wichtel:

== Life ==

Rear Admiral Horatio Nelson was born on 29th September 1758 in Burnham Thorpe, Norfork, UK and died on 21st October 1805 in Kap Trafalgar in Spain during the famous [[Battle of Trafalgar]]. His father was Reverend [[Edmund Nelson]], an Anglican priest and his mother, [[Catherine Suckling]] was grand-niece to Robert Walpole, the First Earl of Oxford. When he was 9 years old, his mother died, leaving her husband and Horatio’s 7 siblings behind. He began his naval career when Horatio was 12. Although he was often seasick, his uncle, Captain [[Maurice Suckling]], offered him a position on his ship Raissonable. He quickly became successful and entered the records as the youngest captain in Great Britain at the age of 20 when he obtained his first command in June 1779 on the frigate Hitchenbroke. In the end, he was promoted Vice Admiral of the Blue on 1st January 1801, the fourth highest rank of the Navy.

He married [[Fanny Nisbet]] in the Caribbean which he married on 11th March 1787 after one of his mission about disloyal American provinces that were not allowed to trade with the British colonies.

Nelson was also famous for his affair with the British ambassador’s wife [[Emma Hamilton]] in Naples. He did not mind the gossip when the two moved to a country estate together with [[Emma Hamilton]]’s husband. Nelson and Hamilton even had a child together, Horatia. However, for the public’s sake, the two marriages remained in existence.

He is buried in St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. Today, he is still remembered through the statue on Trafalgar Square in London. Unfortunately, his monument in Dublin ([[Nelson’s Pillar]]) was destroyed by a terrorist attack in 1966.

== His military achievements ==

In 1781, Nelson bombarded the Spanish fleet in Nicaragua, won the battle but had to return to English shortly afterwards due to continuous illness.

However, one year later, he obtained the command of the Albermarle where he fought American rebels until the American Revolutionary War was over in 1783.

Nelson is most famous for his achievements in the [[Napoleonic Wars]], i.e. the wars against [[Napoleon Bonaparte]] and his French fleet intending to attack Britain.

During the French revolution after several years of rest, he returned to work and became commander of the Agamemnon with which he went to Corse in the Mediterranean Sea. He was shot in the eye which resulted in insidious blindness as both eyes were severely affected by this.

In 1796 he was promoted Commodore and only one year later, he won the famous [[Battle of Cape St. Vincent]] after which he was knighted. In April 1797, he became Rear Admiral of the Blue, the sixth highest rank in military of the Royal Navy.

Unfortunately, he lost his arm the same year, when he was shot in his elbow; he lost half of his arm in Tenerife.

When in 1793, the French waged war against the British, he went on fighting. He defeated the Napoleonic fleet near Alexandria which brought him to additional fame. Although the French were outnumbering the British fleet, by Nelson’s tactic, 13 French warships were destroyed when Nelson went directly in the midst of the French fleet.

The war against the French continued when on 1st August 1798, he defeated them in a glorious battle – the [[Battle of the Nile]], also referred to as The [[Battle of Abikur]]. Due to Nelson’s tactics, the French troops were finally trapped in Egypt and had to be brought back to France. For this achievement, Nelson received the honour of obtaining the title baron.

== The [[Battle of Trafalgar]] ==

His last battle, during which he also died, took place on 21st October 1805 when Nelson had to face Spanish and French troops near Cadiz in Spain with 33 warships on Napoleon’s side and only 27 British warships against them. Nelson commanded flagship Victory which first destroyed the French flagship Beaucentaure but was finally defeated. Nelson was shot by a sniper in his shoulder through his lungs after which he died gloriously. Shortly before his death, Nelson received the good news about the British victory.

== Bibliography ==

Adkin, Mark: Trafalgar Companion: ''The Complete Guide to History’s Most Famous Sea Battle and the Life of Admiral Nelson''. London: Aurum Press, 2005.

Knight, Roger: The Pursuit of Victory:'' The Life and Achievement of Horatio Nelson. London: Penguin Books, 2006.

Lavery, Brian: Horatio Lord Nelson. London: The British Library, 2003.

White, Colin: The Nelson Encyclopedia: ''People, Places, Battles, Ships, Myths, Mistresses, Memorials and Memorabilia''. Newbury: Chatham Publishing, 2005.

Horatio Nelson

2009-11-11T18:18:08Z

Wichtel:

== Life ==

Rear Admiral Horatio Nelson was born on 29th September 1758 in Burnham Thorpe, Norfork, UK and died on 21st October 1805 in Kap Trafalgar in Spain during the famous [[Battle of Trafalgar]]. His father was Reverend [[Edmund Nelson]], an Anglican priest and his mother, [[Catherine Suckling]] was grand-niece to Robert Walpole, the First Earl of Oxford. When he was 9 years old, his mother died, leaving her husband and Horatio’s 7 siblings behind. He began his naval career when Horatio was 12. Although he was often seasick, his uncle, Captain [[Maurice Suckling]], offered him a position on his ship Raissonable. He quickly became successful and entered the records as the youngest captain in Great Britain at the age of 20 when he obtained his first command in June 1779 on the frigate Hitchenbroke. In the end, he was promoted Vice Admiral of the Blue on 1st January 1801, the fourth highest rank of the Navy.

He married [[Fanny Nisbet]] in the Caribbean which he married on 11th March 1787 after one of his mission about disloyal American provinces that were not allowed to trade with the British colonies.

Nelson was also famous for his affair with the British ambassador’s wife [[Emma Hamilton]] in Naples. He did not mind the gossip when the two moved to a country estate together with [[Emma Hamilton]]’s husband. Nelson and Hamilton even had a child together, Horatia. However, for the public’s sake, the two marriages remained in existence.

He is buried in St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. Today, he is still remembered through the statue on Trafalgar Square in London. Unfortunately, his monument in Dublin (Nelson’s Pillar) was destroyed by a terrorist attack in 1966.

== His military achievements ==

In 1781, Nelson bombarded the Spanish fleet in Nicaragua, won the battle but had to return to English shortly afterwards due to continuous illness.

However, one year later, he obtained the command of the Albermarle where he fought American rebels until the American Revolutionary War was over in 1783.

Nelson is most famous for his achievements in the [[Napoleonic Wars]], i.e. the wars against [[Napoleon Bonaparte]] and his French fleet intending to attack Britain.

During the French revolution after several years of rest, he returned to work and became commander of the Agamemnon with which he went to Corse in the Mediterranean Sea. He was shot in the eye which resulted in insidious blindness as both eyes were severely affected by this.

In 1796 he was promoted Commodore and only one year later, he won the famous [[Battle of Cape St. Vincent]] after which he was knighted. In April 1797, he became Rear Admiral of the Blue, the sixth highest rank in military of the Royal Navy.

Unfortunately, he lost his arm the same year, when he was shot in his elbow; he lost half of his arm in Tenerife.

When in 1793, the French waged war against the British, he went on fighting. He defeated the Napoleonic fleet near Alexandria which brought him to additional fame. Although the French were outnumbering the British fleet, by Nelson’s tactic, 13 French warships were destroyed when Nelson went directly in the midst of the French fleet.

The war against the French continued when on 1st August 1798, he defeated them in a glorious battle – the Battle of the Nile, also referred to as The Battle of Abikur. Due to Nelson’s tactics, the French troops were finally trapped in Egypt and had to be brought back to France. For this achievement, Nelson received the honour of obtaining the title baron.

== The [[Battle of Trafalgar]] ==

His last battle, during which he also died, took place on 21st October 1805 when Nelson had to face Spanish and French troops near Cadiz in Spain with 33 warships on Napoleon’s side and only 27 British warships against them. Nelson commanded flagship Victory which first destroyed the French flagship Beaucentaure but was finally defeated. Nelson was shot by a sniper in his shoulder through his lungs after which he died gloriously. Shortly before his death, Nelson received the good news about the British victory.

== Bibliography ==

Adkin, Mark: Trafalgar Companion: ''The Complete Guide to History’s Most Famous Sea Battle and the Life of Admiral Nelson''. London: Aurum Press, 2005.

Knight, Roger: The Pursuit of Victory:'' The Life and Achievement of Horatio Nelson. London: Penguin Books, 2006.

Lavery, Brian: Horatio Lord Nelson. London: The British Library, 2003.

White, Colin: The Nelson Encyclopedia: ''People, Places, Battles, Ships, Myths, Mistresses, Memorials and Memorabilia''. Newbury: Chatham Publishing, 2005.

User:Wichtel

2009-11-07T15:27:21Z

Wichtel:

'''Articles authored:'''

[[Charles I]]

The [[Great Fire of London]]

The [[Great Plague]]

[[Sophia of Hanover]]

User:Wichtel

2009-11-07T15:26:58Z

Wichtel:

'''Articles authored:'''

[[Charles I]]

The [[Great Fire of London]]

The [[Great Plague]]

[Sophia of Hanover]

Sophia of Hanover

2009-11-02T21:51:26Z

Wichtel: Created page with '== '''Introduction''' == Sophia of Hanover lived from 14 October 1460 (The Hague) to 8 June 1714 (Herrenhausen) aged 83 during a walk through her garden. She was born as the yo…'

== '''Introduction''' ==

Sophia of Hanover lived from 14 October 1460 (The Hague) to 8 June 1714 (Herrenhausen) aged 83 during a walk through her garden. She was born as the youngest of five daughters of [[Frederick V. Elector Palatine]] of the [[House of Wittesbach]] and [[Elizabeth Stuart]]. Thus she is commonly referred to as Sophia of Palatine or Duchess Sophia. She married [[Ernest Augustus]] in 1658 with who she had several children, seven of them survived: George I of Great Britain (1660-1727), Friedrich August of Brunswick and Lunenburg (1661-1691), Maximilian William of Brunswick and Lunenburg (1666-1726), Sophia Charlotte (1668-1705), Karl Philipp of Lunenburg (1669-1690), Christian of Brunswick and Lunenburg (1671-1703) and Ernst August II of Brunswick and Lunenburg (1674-1728).

== '''Biography''' ==

Growing up in The Hague in exile as her parents lost the [[Battle of White Mountain]] she was advised to marry her neighbouring first cousin [[Charles II]], but she refused. So she lived with her brother [[Charles I Louis]].

1657 Sophia's niece [[Elizabeth Charlotte of the Palatinate]] started living with her aunt Sophia. It was only when Elizabeth Charlotte got married to the brother of[[ Louis XIV of France]] when she left Sophia of Hanover. However both women kept in touch with the help of letters in which Sophia was informed about life at the court of Louis XIV.

In 1658 Sophia of Hanover married Ernest Augustus, a second cousin of [[Elizabeth Stuart]], in Heidelberg who later became Elector of Brunswick-Lüneburg. That is why she herself received the title of Electress of Hanover.

In 1676 Sophia was introduced to [[Gottfried Leibniz]] who was employed at her court. She became attached to his theories and he himself and that is why a close friendship between both of them developed until Leibniz died. As Sophia also knew the works of [[René Descartes]] and [[Baruch Spinoza]] as well, it can be said that she was a highly intellectual woman who was interested in politics and philosophy.

In 1700 Sophia met her cousin [[King William III of England]]. A short time before this meeting Queen Anne's son [[Prince William of Denmark and Norway]] died who was the last Protestant heir to the British throne. The rest of the Stuart descendants were Catholics or girls.
One year later Sophia, member of the Protestant Church, and her Protestant children were declared the legitimate heir of the British Crown:

“The most excellent Princess Sophia Electress and Duchess dowager of Hanover daughter of the most excellent Princess Elisabeth late Queen of Bohemia daughter of our late sovereign lord King James the First of happy memory be and is hereby declared to be the next in succession in the protestant line to the imperiall crown and dignity of the (said) realms of England, France and Ireland with the dominions and territories thereunto belonging after his Majesty and the Princess Ann of Denmark and in default of issue of the said Princess Ann and of his Majesty respectively and that from and after the deceases of his said Majesty our new sovereign lord and of her royall Highness the Princess Ann of Denmark and for default of issue of the said Princess Ann and of his Majesty respectively the crown and regall government of the said kingdoms of England, France and Ireland and of the dominions thereunto belonging with the royall state and dignity of the said realms and all honours stiles titles regalitieS prerogatives powers jurisdictions and authorities to the same belonging and appertaining shall be remain and continue to the said most excellent Princess Sophia and the heirs of her body being protestants. And thereunto the said lords spirituall and temporall and commons shall and will in the name of all the people of this realm most humbly and faithfully submitt themselves their heirs and posterities and do faithfully promise that after the deceases of his Majesty and her royall Highness and the failure of the heirs of their respective bodies to stand to maintain and defend the said Princess Sophia and the heirs of her body being (protestante) according to the limitation and succession of the crown in this Act specified and contained to the utmost of their powers with their lives and estates against all persons whatsoever that shall attempt any thing to the contrary.” ([[Act of Settlement 1701]])

However Sophia died on 8 June 1714 a sudden death and that is why she was not able to inherite the British throne. Instead it was her eldest son Elector George Ludwig of Hanover who took his mother's position.

The Act of Settlement is still in use which makes Sophia of Hanover the legal ancestress of the British Royal dynasty.

== '''Her achievements''' ==

In 1680 Ernest Augustus inherited the Leineschloss in Hanover and the duchy Braunschweig-Lüneburg of his brother. Together with his wife Sophia he moved to the castle.
While he was busy with politics Sophia renovated the castle of [[Herrenhausen]] and its gardens. With the help of architects, artists, gardeners and sculptors she was able to create a real masterpiece which can be visited even nowadays.

== '''Books''' ==

Rait, Robert S., Five Stuart Princess: Margaret of Scotland, Elizabeth of Bohemia, Mary of Orange, Henrietta of Orleans, Sophia of Hanover, Westminster, 1902.

== '''External Links''' ==

<http://www.verfassungen.eu/gb/gb1701.htm>

Great Fire of London

2009-05-06T17:41:52Z

Wichtel:

== Course of the Fire ==

The Great Fire of London took place on 2nd September 1666 in London –just one year after the [[Great Plague]] hit London- in a huge part of London covering an area from the Tower in the East to Hollborn Hill in the western part of the city. The south was limited by the river [[Thames]] and in the North the fire stopped at Smithfields, Moorfields and Spitalfields. It first started in Thomas Farynor’s bakery as a small fire on Pudding Lane. Thomas Farynor was baker to the King [[Charles II]]. The fire quickly expanded due to strong winds and the fact that all houses and buildings were built very closely together and that they consisted of wood which supported the fire to spread around.

== Loss and casualties ==

About 430 acres of the city were destroyed, among the destroyed buildings were 13,000 houses, 52 Guild Halls and 89 churches. Thousands of citizens lost their homes and money. St. Paul’s Cathedral also became a victim of the flames. Only about 200,000 people survived the horrible fire in London.

== End of the Fire ==

Usually fires were stopped by cutting down houses in its way to prevent the fire from spreading, so called “fire-breaks”. However, afraid of the immense costs of rebuilding the houses, Lord Mayor [[Blundworth]] did not issue such a command early enough. By the time the command was carried out by [[Samuel Pepys]], the fire has already been out of control and the following demolition of the houses only supported the fire as the debris first had to be moved away. Samuel Pepys was Secretary of the Admiralty and observed the fire from a safe place. He described his observations in his diaries as follows:

''"September 2nd: Jane (his maid) comes and tells us that she hears that above 300 houses have been burned down by the fire…..poor people staying in their houses as long as till the very fire touched them, and then running into boats or clambering from one pair of stairs by the waterside, to another…
I saw a fire as one entire arch of fire above a mile long: it made me weep to see it. The churches, houses are all on fire and flaming at once, and a horrid noise the flames made and the cracking of the houses."''

Source: < http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/great_fire_of_london_of_1666.htm>

So the fire continued for three more days until the Duke of York and latter King [[James II]] had the Paper House torn down in order to create another fire break which in addition to a change of wind direction finally led to an end of the fire.

== Aftermath ==

King [[Charles II]] ordered the city to be rebuilt. The buildings were to be refurbished with bricks and stone. It was Sir [[Christopher Wren]] who sent his plans to rebuild the city to the King and eventually it was him who was responsible for the restoration of about 50 churches including [[St. Paul’s Cathedral]] and it was him who was ordered to design and build [[The Monument]] (1671-1679) which still stands at the bakery where the fire broke out. The street is now called Monument Street.

320 years later, in 1986, the small bakery issued an apology for having caused the fire.

== Books on the Great Fire of London ==

Hanson, Neil. ''The Dreadful Judgement: The True Story of the Great Fire of London''. New York: Doubleday. 2001.

Roubard, Jacques. ''The Great Fire of London.'' Champaign: Dalkey Archive Press. 2006.

Pepys, Samuel. ''The Diary of Samuel Pepys''. London: Random House. 2003.

== Films ==

"History Bites" Great Fire of London (1998), directed by Rick Green

Plague, Fire, War and Treason: The Great Fire of London (2001), directed by James Runcie

== External Links ==

<http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/great_fire_of_london_of_1666.htm>

< http://www.pepys.info/fire.html>

User:Wichtel

2009-05-05T21:07:46Z

Wichtel:

'''Articles authored:'''

[[Charles I]]

The [[Great Fire of London]]

The [[Great Plague]]

Great Plague

2009-05-05T21:05:38Z

Wichtel:

The Great Plague, also known as the Black Death or Bubonic Plague and came to England in May 1665 and a second time in the summer of 1665.

== Course of the Plague ==

Probably from China where the Plague emerged, it quickly spread to Europe where it arrived in London and then spread to a hugely over-populated town called St. Giles-in-the-Field.

King [[Charles II]] fled from London to Oxford. Rich people followed him in their flight out of the city whereas poor people were forbidden to move out. They were forced to stay in their houses and eventually died there. Other European countries built so called pest houses, i.e. hospitals to gather the victims together.

By June, the Lord Mayor closed the gates out of London and only those were granted way to leave London who had a health certificate which from then on became very valuable.

[[Samuel Pepys]], Member of Parliament wrote down the observations on the flight and empty streets in his diaries which give a precise overview of what has happened at that time.

The Plague spread all around England with York being affected very badly. But also a small town called Eyam in Derbyshire, about 80 % of the population died after a basket of laundry infected with the lethal fleas was deposited in the town by a traveller passing by. But thanks to the courageous local rector William Mompesson who could convince the citizens of Eyam to stay and not to spread the disease around, Derbyshire was spared by the Great Plague.

== Cause of the Great Plague ==

There are several theories on how the Great Plague developed. Some people believe that the peoples’ symptoms were inflicted by inhaling poisonous air, others blamed livestock for the disease and others again said it was God’s work to punish peoples’ sins. However, the real cause was a bacillus called Yersinia pestis transported by fleas which lived on black rats. Especially the rats were responsible for the spreading of the illness.

Supported by hot weather, the bacillus spread very quickly.

== Victims ==

By May 1665, 43 people have died, in June over 6,000 people lost their lives and in July the number of fatalities rose up to over 17,000 reaching its peak just one month later with over 31,000 casualties with an overall loss of 15 % of the population. In addition to that 40,000 dogs and 200,000 cats died in the course of the Black Death.

== Literature on the Great Plague ==

Bell, Walter George. "The Great Plague in London in 1665." London: John Lane, The Bodley Head, 1924.

Defoe, Daniel. Journal of the Plague Year. London: Penguin. 2003.

Nursery Rhyme: [[Ring a Ring o' Roses]], first published in: Kate Greenaway. Mother Goose. 1881.

== Films ==

Secrets of the Great Plague (2006), directed by Tom Pollock

== Further Reading and References ==

<http://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/England-History/GreatPlague.htm>

Great Plague

2009-05-05T21:04:43Z

Wichtel:

The Great Plague, also known as the Black Death or Bubonic Plague and came to England in May 1665 and a second time in the summer of 1665.

== Course of the Plague ==

Probably from China where the Plague emerged, it quickly spread to Europe where it arrived in London and then spread to a hugely over-populated town called St. Giles-in-the-Field.

King [[Charles II]] fled from London to Oxford. Rich people followed him in their flight out of the city whereas poor people were forbidden to move out. They were forced to stay in their houses and eventually died there. Other European countries built so called pest houses, i.e. hospitals to gather the victims together.

By June, the Lord Mayor closed the gates out of London and only those were granted way to leave London who had a health certificate which from then on became very valuable.

[[Samuel Pepys]], Member of Parliament wrote down the observations on the flight and empty streets in his diaries which give a precise overview of what has happened at that time.

The Plague spread all around England with York being affected very badly. But also a small town called Eyam in Derbyshire, about 80 % of the population died after a basket of laundry infected with the lethal fleas was deposited in the town by a traveller passing by. But thanks to the courageous local rector William Mompesson who could convince the citizens of Eyam to stay and not to spread the disease around, Derbyshire was spared by the Great Plague.

== Cause of the Great Plague ==

There are several theories on how the Great Plague developed. Some people believe that the peoples’ symptoms were inflicted by inhaling poisonous air, others blamed livestock for the disease and others again said it was God’s work to punish peoples’ sins. However, the real cause was a bacillus called Yersinia pestis transported by fleas which lived on black rats. Especially the rats were responsible for the spreading of the illness.

Supported by hot weather, the bacillus spread very quickly.

== Victims ==

By May 1665, 43 people have died, in June over 6,000 people lost their lives and in July the number of fatalities rose up to over 17,000 reaching its peak just one month later with over 31,000 casualties with an overall loss of 15 % of the population. In addition to that 40,000 dogs and 200,000 cats died in the course of the Black Death.

== Literature on the Great Plague ==

Bell, Walter George. "The Great Plague in London in 1665." London: John Lane, The Bodley Head, 1924.

Defoe, Daniel. Journal of the Plague Year. London: Penguin. 2003.

Nursery Rhyme: Ring a Ring o' Roses, first published in: Kate Greenaway. Mother Goose. 1881.

== Films ==

Secrets of the Great Plaque (2006), directed by Tom Pollock

== Further Reading and References ==

<http://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/England-History/GreatPlague.htm>

Great Plague

2009-05-05T21:01:48Z

Wichtel:

The Great Plague, also known as the Black Death or Bubonic Plague and came to England in May 1665 and a second time in the summer of 1665.

== Course of the Plague ==

Probably from China where the Plague emerged, it quickly spread to Europe where it arrived in London and then spread to a hugely over-populated town called St. Giles-in-the-Field.

King [[Charles II]] fled from London to Oxford. Rich people followed him in their flight out of the city whereas poor people were forbidden to move out. They were forced to stay in their houses and eventually died there. Other European countries built so called pest houses, i.e. hospitals to gather the victims together.

By June, the Lord Mayor closed the gates out of London and only those were granted way to leave London who had a health certificate which from then on became very valuable.

[[Samuel Pepys]], Member of Parliament wrote down the observations on the flight and empty streets in his diaries which give a precise overview of what has happened at that time.

The Plague spread all around England with York being affected very badly. But also a small town called Eyam in Derbyshire, about 80 % of the population died after a basket of laundry infected with the lethal fleas was deposited in the town by a traveller passing by. But thanks to the courageous local rector William Mompesson who could convince the citizens of Eyam to stay and not to spread the disease around, Derbyshire was spared by the Great Plague.

== Cause of the Great Plague ==

There are several theories on how the Great Plague developed. Some people believe that the peoples’ symptoms were inflicted by inhaling poisonous air, others blamed livestock for the disease and others again said it was God’s work to punish peoples’ sins. However, the real cause was a bacillus called Yersinia pestis transported by fleas which lived on black rats. Especially the rats were responsible for the spreading of the illness.

Supported by hot weather, the bacillus spread very quickly.

== Victims ==

By May 1665, 43 people have died, in June over 6,000 people lost their lives and in July the number of fatalities rose up to over 17,000 reaching its peak just one month later with over 31,000 casualties with an overall loss of 15 % of the population. In addition to that 40,000 dogs and 200,000 cats died in the course of the Black Death.

== Literature on the Great Plague ==

Bell, Walter George. "The Great Plague in London in 1665." London: John Lane, The Bodley Head, 1924.

Defoe, Daniel. Journal of the Plague Year. London: Penguin. 2003.

Nursery Rhyme: Ring a Ring o' Roses, first published in: Kate Greenaway. Mother Goose. 1881.

Films

Secrets of the Great Plaque (2006), directed by Tom Pollock

Further Reading and References

<http://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/England-History/GreatPlague.htm>

Great Fire of London

2009-05-05T20:59:59Z

Wichtel:

== Course of the Fire ==

The Great Fire of London took place on 2nd September 1666 in London –just one year after the [[Great Plague]] hit London- in a huge part of London covering an area from the Tower in the East to Hollborn Hill in the western part of the city. The south was limited by the river [[Thames]] and in the North the fire stopped at Smithfields, Moorfields and Spitalfields. It first started in Thomas Farynor’s bakery as a small fire on Pudding Lane. Thomas Farynor was baker to the King [[Charles II]]. The fire quickly expanded due to strong winds and the fact that all houses and buildings were built very closely together and that they consisted of wood which supported the fire to spread around.

== Loss and casualties ==

About 430 acres of the city were destroyed, among the destroyed buildings were 13,000 houses, 52 Guild Halls and 89 churches. Thousands of citizens lost their homes and money. St. Paul’s Cathedral also became a victim of the flames. Only about 200,000 people survived the horrible fire in London.

== End of the Fire ==

Usually fires were stopped by cutting down houses in its way to prevent the fire from spreading, so called “fire-breaks”. However, afraid of the immense costs of rebuilding the houses, Lord Mayor [[Blundworth]] did not issue such a command early enough. By the time the command was carried out by [[Samuel Pepys]], the fire has already been out of control and the following demolition of the houses only supported the fire as the debris first had to be moved away. Samuel Pepys was Secretary of the Admiralty and observed the fire from a safe place. He described his observations in his diaries as follows:

"September 2nd: Jane (his maid) comes and tells us that she hears that above 300 houses have been burned down by the fire…..poor people staying in their houses as long as till the very fire touched them, and then running into boats or clambering from one pair of stairs by the waterside, to another…
I saw a fire as one entire arch of fire above a mile long: it made me weep to see it. The churches, houses are all on fire and flaming at once, and a horrid noise the flames made and the cracking of the houses."

Source: < http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/great_fire_of_london_of_1666.htm>

So the fire continued for three more days until the Duke of York and latter King James II had the Paper House torn down in order to create another fire break which in addition to a change of wind direction finally led to an end of the fire.

== Aftermath ==

King [[Charles II]] ordered the city to be rebuilt. The buildings were to be refurbished with bricks and stone. It was Sir [[Christopher Wren]] who sent his plans to rebuild the city to the King and eventually it was him who was responsible for the restoration of about 50 churches including St. Paul’s Cathedral and it was him who was ordered to design and build [[The Monument]] (1671-1679) which still stands at the bakery where the fire broke out. The street is now called Monument Street.

320 years later, in 1986, the small bakery issued an apology for having caused the fire.

== Books on the Great Fire of London ==

Hanson, Neil. The Dreadful Judgement: The True Story of the Great Fire of London. New York: Doubleday. 2001.
Roubard, Jacques. The Great Fire of London. Champaign: Dalkey Archive Press. 2006.

Pepys, Samuel. The Diary of Samuel Pepys. London: Random House. 2003.

== Films ==

"History Bites" Great Fire of London (1998), directed by Rick Green

Plague, Fire, War and Treason: The Great Fire of London (2001), directed by James Runcie

== External Links ==

<http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/great_fire_of_london_of_1666.htm>

< http://www.pepys.info/fire.html>

Charles I

2009-04-29T21:59:41Z

Wichtel:

Charles I was born in 1600 and died in 1649 on the gallows. He was the son to King [[James I]] of England, was an Anglican King of England, Scotland and Wales from 1625 to his execution in 1649.

==Biography==

He was born to James VI of Scotland and [[Anne of Denmark]] in Dunfermline, Fife, on 16 November 1900. He was raised in the belief that the king is the divine leader of a country and therefore has special powers like curing people and being head of the state and Church. His older brother Henry who Charles adored, died in 1612 which led him to be as the second of the Stuart kings in 1625. He married Henrietta Mary of France on 13th June 1625 with who he had nine children:

• Charles James (*/† 13. Mai 1629)
• [[Charles II]] (1630–1685)
• Mary (1631–1660) ∞ [[William II]], Prince of Orania
• [[James II]] (1633–1701)
• Elisabeth (29th December 1635–13th September 1650)
• Anne (17th March 1637–15th November 1640)
• Katherine (*/† 29 June 1639)
• Heinrich, Duke of Gloucester (8th July 1640–8th September 1660)
• Henrietta Anne (1644–1670) ∞ Philipp I., Duke of Orleans.

He was beheaded on 30th January 1649 in London and is buried in [[St. George’s Chapel]], Windsor.

==Reign==

His reign was marked by religious conflicts. He married a French and Catholic princess against the Parliament and public’s approval. He furthermore allied with religiously controversial figures, among them [[William Laud]], who Charles I appointed Archbishop in 1633. During Charles I’s reign, he had to cope with conflicts against France and Spain as well. From 1629, his reign as King of England, Scotland, France and Ireland was known as a time without parliament. He could then only rely on his counsellors and friends [[Thomas Wentworth]] (1st Earl of Strafford) and [[William Laud]] ([[Archbishop of Canterbury]]). He was known for his pro-war attitude which was opposite to his fathers.

==1st Civil War==

During the [[Civil Wars]], Charles I and his troops fought against Oliver Cromwell. The First Civil War started in 1642 and lasted until 1645. The outcome was surprising for Parliament that expected Charles to establish a British constitutional monarchy which Charles I refused. Instead, he fostered an alliance with Scotland and escaped to the Isle of Wight.

==2nd Civil War==

During the 2nd Civil War (1648-1649) Charles I was imprisoned. The Civil War led to the trial and execution of Charles I and the exile of his son [[Charles II]]. He was tried, convicted and executed for reasons of high treason.

==Execution==

In 1639, Charles I asked the parliament for extra money for the war against Scotland as his own methods of earning money were not sufficient. The Parliament was only willing to accept his enquiry if in return Charles was willing to accept their new laws.
It was the first time in his reign that Charles came into dependency on his parliament as he was able to make his own money by for example selling titles or inventing special taxes (e.g. ship money).
At once he refused and that as a consequence the parliament did not give any money.

In wrath and in desire to demonstrate his power Charles I dissolved the [[Short Parliament]] as it only lasted three weeks and in November 1640, new elections for the so-called [[Long Parliament]] were held. However this parliament went on countermove against Charles I and refused everything as their aims were to constrain monarchy in England and to become the only power ruling over England. Therefore they passed a law which forbid a dissolution of the new parliament and to confine the king it declared old laws like Ship Money as illegal.

Charles I was dismissed from politics. His supporters were not satisfied and founded the Royalists who fought for the king. As countermove the parliament founded the Parliamentarians, fighting for their desires.

A civil war between those two parties arose which was lost by Charles and his supporters. At once the Parliamentarians accused Charles I of fighting against his own country (high treason) and executed him on 30th January 1649.

Charles I was the first of the English kings to be put on trial. He was accused on 1st January 1649 of being a tyrant, traitor and murderer as well as a public enemy to the Commonwealth of England which eventually led to his execution. His execution was a very controversial issue as no law dealt with the trying a monarch He was executed on 30th January 1649 followed by the abolition of the monarchy.

==Aftermath==

Parliament confirmed that the monarchy was an unnecessary institution and has therefore to be replaced by a republic called the [[Commonwealth of England]] (1649-1653) often also referred to as the [[Cromwellian Interregnum]] and then with a [[Protectorate]] (1653-1659) under the reign of [[Oliver Cromwell]]. Monarchy was likewise changed in 1649 to the so called [[Council of State]] with Oliver Cromwell as first chairman.

After the restoration of the monarchy in 1660, Charles I’s son Charles II became King of England.

==Books on Charles I==

As Charles I became a very popular personality during his reign, numerous books have been written about him. A selection of publications is to be outlined here:

* Hibbert, Christopher. “Charles I: A Life of Religion, War and Treason” New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2007.

* Hilaire, Belloc. “Charles I” Norfolk: IHS Press, 2003.

*Carlton, Charles. “Charles I: The Perosnal Monarch” London. Routledge, 1995.

*Sharpe, Kevin. “The Personal Rule of Charles I” Yale: Yale University Press, 1992.

*Cust, Richard. “Charles I: A Political Life” Harlow: Pearson, 2007.

*Partridge, Robert B. “O Horrable Murder: The Trial, Execution and Burial of King Charles I” London: Rubicon Press. 1998.

==Novels on Charles I==

As Charles I was a prominent figure of his time, several novels on him were written from which a selection is mentioned below:

*Lane, Jane. “The Young and Lonely King.” London: Sphere, 1971.

*Lane, Jane. “The Severed Crown.” London: Peter Davis, 1972.

==Films on the Charles I==

Several different films such as documentaries, on Charles I have been produced and shown on TV:

[[Cromwell]] (1970), directed by Ken Hughes.

Great Kings of England: King Charles I (2000)

==Poetry on Charles I==

*[[Percy Bysshe Shelley]]. “Archie’s Song from Charles I”

*Anonymus. “Upon a Quiet Conscience”

==External links==

<http://anglicanhistory.org/charles/charles1.html> cites the last speech of Charles I just before his execution in London in 1649.

<http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/charles_i_king.shtml>

==References and Further Reading==

<http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/civil_war_revolution/personality_charles_01.shtml>

<http://www.british-civil-wars.co.uk/biog/charles1.htm>

<http://www.britannia.com/history/monarchs/mon47.html>

Charles I

2009-04-29T21:57:36Z

Wichtel:

Charles I was born in 1600 and died in 1649 on the gallows. He was the son to King [[James I]] of England, was an Anglican King of England, Scotland and Wales from 1625 to his execution in 1649.

==Biography==

He was born to James VI of Scotland and [[Anne of Denmark]] in Dunfermline, Fife, on 16 November 1900. He was raised in the belief that the king is the divine leader of a country and therefore has special powers like curing people and being head of the state and Church. His older brother Henry who Charles adored, died in 1612 which led him to be as the second of the Stuart kings in 1625. He married Henrietta Mary of France on 13th June 1625 with who he had nine children:

• Charles James (*/† 13. Mai 1629)
• [[Charles II]] (1630–1685)
• Mary (1631–1660) ∞ [[William II]], Prince of Orania
• [[James II]] (1633–1701)
• Elisabeth (29th December 1635–13th September 1650)
• Anne (17th March 1637–15th November 1640)
• Katherine (*/† 29 June 1639)
• Heinrich, Duke of Gloucester (8th July 1640–8th September 1660)
• Henrietta Anne (1644–1670) ∞ Philipp I., Duke of Orleans.

He was beheaded on 30th January 1649 in London and is buried in [[St. George’s Chapel]], Windsor.

==Reign==

His reign was marked by religious conflicts. He married a French and Catholic princess against the Parliament and public’s approval. He furthermore allied with religiously controversial figures, among them [[William Laud]], who Charles I appointed Archbishop in 1633. During Charles I’s reign, he had to cope with conflicts against France and Spain as well. From 1629, his reign as King of England, Scotland, France and Ireland was known as a time without parliament. He could then only rely on his counsellors and friends [[Thomas Wentworth]] (1st Earl of Strafford) and William Laud (Archbishop of Canterbury). He was known for his pro-war attitude which was opposite to his fathers.

==1st Civil War==

During the [[Civil Wars]], Charles I and his troops fought against Oliver Cromwell. The First Civil War started in 1642 and lasted until 1645. The outcome was surprising for Parliament that expected Charles to establish a British constitutional monarchy which Charles I refused. Instead, he fostered an alliance with Scotland and escaped to the Isle of Wight.

==2nd Civil War==

During the 2nd Civil War (1648-1649) Charles I was imprisoned. The Civil War led to the trial and execution of Charles I and the exile of his son [[Charles II]]. He was tried, convicted and executed for reasons of high treason.

==Execution==

In 1639, Charles I asked the parliament for extra money for the war against Scotland as his own methods of earning money were not sufficient. The Parliament was only willing to accept his enquiry if in return Charles was willing to accept their new laws.
It was the first time in his reign that Charles came into dependency on his parliament as he was able to make his own money by for example selling titles or inventing special taxes (e.g. ship money).
At once he refused and that as a consequence the parliament did not give any money.

In wrath and in desire to demonstrate his power Charles I dissolved the [[Short Parliament]] as it only lasted three weeks and in November 1640, new elections for the so-called [[Long Parliament]] were held. However this parliament went on countermove against Charles I and refused everything as their aims were to constrain monarchy in England and to become the only power ruling over England. Therefore they passed a law which forbid a dissolution of the new parliament and to confine the king it declared old laws like Ship Money as illegal.

Charles I was dismissed from politics. His supporters were not satisfied and founded the Royalists who fought for the king. As countermove the parliament founded the Parliamentarians, fighting for their desires.

A civil war between those two parties arose which was lost by Charles and his supporters. At once the Parliamentarians accused Charles I of fighting against his own country (high treason) and executed him on 30th January 1649.

Charles I was the first of the English kings to be put on trial. He was accused on 1st January 1649 of being a tyrant, traitor and murderer as well as a public enemy to the Commonwealth of England which eventually led to his execution. His execution was a very controversial issue as no law dealt with the trying a monarch He was executed on 30th January 1649 followed by the abolition of the monarchy.

==Aftermath==

Parliament confirmed that the monarchy was an unnecessary institution and has therefore to be replaced by a republic called the [[Commonwealth of England]] (1649-1653) often also referred to as the [[Cromwellian Interregnum]] and then with a [[Protectorate]] (1653-1659) under the reign of [[Oliver Cromwell]]. Monarchy was likewise changed in 1649 to the so called [[Council of State]] with Oliver Cromwell as first chairman.

After the restoration of the monarchy in 1660, Charles I’s son Charles II became King of England.

==Books on Charles I==

As Charles I became a very popular personality during his reign, numerous books have been written about him. A selection of publications is to be outlined here:

* Hibbert, Christopher. “Charles I: A Life of Religion, War and Treason” New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2007.

* Hilaire, Belloc. “Charles I” Norfolk: IHS Press, 2003.

*Carlton, Charles. “Charles I: The Perosnal Monarch” London. Routledge, 1995.

*Sharpe, Kevin. “The Personal Rule of Charles I” Yale: Yale University Press, 1992.

*Cust, Richard. “Charles I: A Political Life” Harlow: Pearson, 2007.

*Partridge, Robert B. “O Horrable Murder: The Trial, Execution and Burial of King Charles I” London: Rubicon Press. 1998.

==Novels on Charles I==

As Charles I was a prominent figure of his time, several novels on him were written from which a selection is mentioned below:

*Lane, Jane. “The Young and Lonely King.” London: Sphere, 1971.

*Lane, Jane. “The Severed Crown.” London: Peter Davis, 1972.

==Films on the Charles I==

Several different films such as documentaries, on Charles I have been produced and shown on TV:

[[Cromwell]] (1970), directed by Ken Hughes.

Great Kings of England: King Charles I (2000)

==Poetry on Charles I==

*[[Percy Bysshe Shelley]]. “Archie’s Song from Charles I”

*Anonymus. “Upon a Quiet Conscience”

==External links==

<http://anglicanhistory.org/charles/charles1.html> cites the last speech of Charles I just before his execution in London in 1649.

<http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/charles_i_king.shtml>

==References and Further Reading==

<http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/civil_war_revolution/personality_charles_01.shtml>

<http://www.british-civil-wars.co.uk/biog/charles1.htm>

<http://www.britannia.com/history/monarchs/mon47.html>

Charles I

2009-04-29T21:54:56Z

Wichtel:

'''Charles I'''

Charles I was born in 1600 and died in 1649 on the gallows. He was the son to King [[James I]] of England, was an Anglican King of England, Scotland and Wales from 1625 to his execution in 1649.

[[Image:charles_i.jpg]]

==Biography==

He was born to James VI of Scotland and [[Anne of Denmark]] in Dunfermline, Fife, on 16 November 1900. He was raised in the belief that the king is the divine leader of a country and therefore has special powers like curing people and being head of the state and Church. His older brother Henry who Charles adored, died in 1612 which led him to be as the second of the Stuart kings in 1625. He married Henrietta Mary of France on 13th June 1625 with who he had nine children:

• Charles James (*/† 13. Mai 1629)
• [[Charles II]] (1630–1685)
• Mary (1631–1660) ∞ [[William II]], Prince of Orania
• [[James II]] (1633–1701)
• Elisabeth (29th December 1635–13th September 1650)
• Anne (17th March 1637–15th November 1640)
• Katherine (*/† 29 June 1639)
• Heinrich, Herzog von Gloucester (8. Juli 1640–8. September 1660)
• Henrietta Anne (1644–1670) ∞ Philipp I., Duke of Orléans.

He was beheaded on 30th January 1649 in London and is buried in [[St. George’s Chapel]], Windsor.

==Reign==

His reign was marked by religious conflicts. He married a French and Catholic princess against the Parliament and public’s approval. He furthermore allied with religiously controversial figures, among them [[William Laud]], who Charles I appointed Archbishop in 1633. During Charles I’s reign, he had to cope with conflicts against France and Spain as well. From 1629, his reign as King of England, Scotland, France and Ireland was known as a time without parliament. He could then only rely on his counsellors and friends [[Thomas Wentworth]] (1st Earl of Strafford) and William Laud (Archbishop of Canterbury). He was known for his pro-war attitude which was opposite to his fathers.

==1st Civil War==

During the [[Civil Wars]], Charles I and his troops fought against Oliver Cromwell. The First Civil War started in 1642 and lasted until 1645. The outcome was surprising for Parliament that expected Charles to establish a British constitutional monarchy which Charles I refused. Instead, he fostered an alliance with Scotland and escaped to the Isle of Wight.

==2nd Civil War==

During the 2nd Civil War (1648-1649) Charles I was imprisoned. The Civil War led to the trial and execution of Charles I and the exile of his son [[Charles II]]. He was tried, convicted and executed for reasons of high treason.

==Execution==

In 1639, Charles I asked the parliament for extra money for the war against Scotland as his own methods of earning money were not sufficient. The Parliament was only willing to accept his enquiry if in return Charles was willing to accept their new laws.
It was the first time in his reign that Charles came into dependency on his parliament as he was able to make his own money by for example selling titles or inventing special taxes (e.g. ship money).
At once he refused and that as a consequence the parliament did not give any money.

In wrath and in desire to demonstrate his power Charles I dissolved the [[Short Parliament]] as it only lasted three weeks and in November 1640, new elections for the so-called [[Long Parliament]] were held. However this parliament went on countermove against Charles I and refused everything as their aims were to constrain monarchy in England and to become the only power ruling over England. Therefore they passed a law which forbid a dissolution of the new parliament and to confine the king it declared old laws like Ship Money as illegal.

Charles I was dismissed from politics. His supporters were not satisfied and founded the Royalists who fought for the king. As countermove the parliament founded the Parliamentarians, fighting for their desires.

A civil war between those two parties arose which was lost by Charles and his supporters. At once the Parliamentarians accused Charles I of fighting against his own country (high treason) and executed him on 30th January 1649.

Charles I was the first of the English kings to be put on trial. He was accused on 1st January 1649 of being a tyrant, traitor and murderer as well as a public enemy to the Commonwealth of England which eventually led to his execution. His execution was a very controversial issue as no law dealt with the trying a monarch He was executed on 30th January 1649 followed by the abolition of the monarchy.

==Aftermath==

Parliament confirmed that the monarchy was an unnecessary institution and has therefore to be replaced by a republic called the [[Commonwealth of England]] (1649-1653) often also referred to as the [[Cromwellian Interregnum]] and then with a [[Protectorate]] (1653-1659) under the reign of [[Oliver Cromwell]]. Monarchy was likewise changed in 1649 to the so called [[Council of State]] with Oliver Cromwell as first chairman.

After the restoration of the monarchy in 1660, Charles I’s son Charles II became King of England.

==Books on Charles I==

As Charles I became a very popular personality during his reign, numerous books have been written about him. A selection of publications is to be outlined here:

* Hibbert, Christopher. “Charles I: A Life of Religion, War and Treason” New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2007.

* Hilaire, Belloc. “Charles I” Norfolk: IHS Press, 2003.

*Carlton, Charles. “Charles I: The Perosnal Monarch” London. Routledge, 1995.

*Sharpe, Kevin. “The Personal Rule of Charles I” Yale: Yale University Press, 1992.

*Cust, Richard. “Charles I: A Political Life” Harlow: Pearson, 2007.

*Partridge, Robert B. “O Horrable Murder: The Trial, Execution and Burial of King Charles I” London: Rubicon Press. 1998.

==Novels on Charles I==

As Charles I was a prominent figure of his time, several novels on him were written from which a selection is mentioned below:

*Lane, Jane. “The Young and Lonely King.” London: Sphere, 1971.

*Lane, Jane. “The Severed Crown.” London: Peter Davis, 1972.

==Films on the Charles I==

Several different films such as documentaries, on Charles I have been produced and shown on TV and the cinema:

[[Cromwell]] (1970), directed by Ken Hughes.

Great Kings of England: King Charles I (2000)

==Poetry on Charles I==

*[[Percy Bysshe Shelley]]. “Archie’s Song from Charles I”

*Anonymus. “Upon a Quiet Conscience”

==External links==

<http://anglicanhistory.org/charles/charles1.html> cites the last speech of Charles I just before his execution in London in 1649.

<http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/charles_i_king.shtml>

==References and Further Reading==

<http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/civil_war_revolution/personality_charles_01.shtml>

<http://www.british-civil-wars.co.uk/biog/charles1.htm>

<http://www.britannia.com/history/monarchs/mon47.html>