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4 July 1940: The British government launched a project...

National or international item

4 July 1940

The British government launched a project known as Auxiliary Units, with headquarters at Coleshill House near Faringdon in Berkshire.
“Secret wartime past revealed”. National Trust: Near you, Berkshire / Buckinghamshire / Hampshire / Oxfordshire / Isle of Wight / London, 2010.
4

30 January 1990: Surgeons at Guy's Hospital in London performed...

Building and people item

30 January 1990

Surgeons at Guy's Hospital in London performed the first surgical operation on a baby still in the womb.
Williams, Neville et al. Chronology of the 20th Century. Helicon, 1996.
499

18 November 1837: The Chartist paper The Northern Star and...

National or international item

18 November 1837

The Chartist paper The Northern Star and Leeds General Advertiser began publication from Leeds.
Thompson, Dorothy, 1923 - 2011, editor. The Early Chartists. Macmillan, 1971.
38
Thompson, Dorothy, 1923 - 2011. Outsiders: Class, Gender and Nation. Verso, 1993.
53
Royle, Edward. Chartism. Longman, 1980.
75

July 1616: Frances Howard, Countess of Essex (and by...

National or international item

July 1616

Frances Howard, Countess of Essex (and by her latest marriage Countess of Somerset), pleaded guilty to accusations of having Sir Thomas Overbury poisoned to end his publicizing her sexual misconduct.
Purkiss, Diane. The Witch in History: early modern and twentieth-century representations. Routledge, 1996.
215-16, 223
Matthew, Henry Colin Gray et al., editors. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. http://www.oxforddnb.com/.

Pamela Hansford Johnson

PHJ had a long and prolific writing career, from before the second world war until late twentieth century. She is remembered primarily as a novelist (with twenty-seven titles),
Hadley, Tessa. “He wants me no more”. London Review of Books, Vol.
38
, No. 2, 21 Jan. 2016, pp. 29-30.
30
though she also wrote poetry, drama...
Pamela Hansford Johnson Black and white photograph of Pamela Hansford Johnson, seated, with her hands clasped, wearing a white polo-neck sweater with a brooch on the collar. Her dark, wavy hair is smooth and short.

13 April 1993: Tom Stoppard's Arcadia, a play whose action...

Writer or writing item

13 April 1993

Tom Stoppard's Arcadia, a play whose action is divided between the early nineteenth century and the present day, opened (after previews) at the National Theatre in London.
“The Times Digital Archive 1785-2007”. Thompson Gale: The Times Digital Archive.
64610 (5 April 1993): 28

1913: The Mental Deficiency Act set up a Board...

Building and people item

1913

The Mental Deficiency Act set up a Board of Control to take on the powers and responsibilities hitherto exercised by the Lunacy Commissioners.
Roberts, Andrew. “English Mental Health Law Forms”. The Lunacy Commission. A Study of its Origin, Emergence and Character, 1981.

January 1688: Lord Halifax published The Lady's New-Year's...

Building and people item

January 1688

Lord Halifax published The Lady's New-Year's Gift; or, Advice to a Daughter (generally known by its subtitle), which long remained popular as advice-literature.
Halifax, George Savile, Marquess of. Complete Works. Editor Kenyon, John Philipps, Penguin, 1969.
270

11 October 1869: Louis Riel, leader of the Métis or mixed-race...

National or international item

11 October 1869

Louis Riel, leader of the Métis or mixed-race people, headed the Red River Rebellion near Winnipeg, Canada.
Palmer, Alan, and Veronica Palmer. The Chronology of British History. Century, 1992.
290
Cook, Chris, and John, 1946 - Stevenson. The Longman Handbook of Modern British History 1714-1987. 2nd ed., Longman, 1988.
269

26 March 1658: Jane Brooks was executed for witchcraft:...

Building and people item

26 March 1658

Jane Brooks was executed for witchcraft: a small boy had fallen ill after she had given him an apple.
Purkiss, Diane. The Witch in History: early modern and twentieth-century representations. Routledge, 1996.
107, 117n78

1 January 1801: The first asteroid ever sighted (and thought...

Building and people item

1 January 1801

The first asteroid ever sighted (and thought at first to be a planet) was observed by an astronomer at Palermo, Giuseppe Piazzi, who named it Ceres.
Steel, Duncan. “2001: A space anniversary”. Guardian Weekly, 4–10 Jan. 2001, p. 22.
22

4 February 1948: Ceylon became self-governing within the British...

National or international item

4 February 1948

Ceylon became self-governing within the British Commonwealth.
Steinberg, Sigfrid Henry. Historical Tables: 58 BC-AD 1985. 11th ed., Garland Publishing, 1986.
252, 264
Williams, Neville. Chronology of the Modern World: 1763 to the Present Time. David McKay, 1967.
610

Mid 1850s-1870s: During this period, machine technology infiltrated...

Building and people item

Mid 1850s-1870s

During this period, machine technology infiltrated the footwear trades.
Adburgham, Alison. Shops and Shopping 1800-1914: Where, and in What Manner the Well-Dressed Englishwoman Bought Her Clothes. Allen and Unwin, 1964.
32

1858: Jews in Britain first received full political...

National or international item

1858

Jews in Britain first received full political rights.
Beckman, Linda Hunt. Amy Levy: Her Life and Letters. Ohio University Press, 2000.
8

1878: Two attempts to assassinate Emperor William...

National or international item

1878

Two attempts to assassinate Emperor William I of Germany failed.
Cowie, Leonard W., and Leonard Woolfson. Years of Nationalism: European History 1815-1890. Edward Arnold, 1985.
316

1883: The Church Schools Company was founded in...

Building and people item

1883

The Church Schools Company was founded in London.
Purvis, June. A History of Women’s Education in England. Open University Press, 1991.
77
Barnard, Howard Clive. A History of English Education from 1760. 2nd ed., University of London Press, 1961.
165

19 February 1747: Mrs Penelope Pry (possibly though not probably...

Building and people item

19 February 1747

Mrs Penelope Pry (possibly though not probably Eliza Haywood) edited the only surviving issue of The Lady's Weekly Magazine, published in London.
White, Cynthia L. Women’s Magazines 1693-1968. Michael Joseph, 1970.
28

1957: Valentine, with romantic comics directed...

Building and people item

1957

Valentine, with romantic comics directed towards lower-class teenagers, began publication from Fleetway Publications Limited of London.
White, Cynthia L. Women’s Magazines 1693-1968. Michael Joseph, 1970.
174
Braithwaite, Brian, and Joan Barrell. The Business of Women’s Magazines. Associated Business Press, 1979.
24

1929: The publishing firm of Faber and Gwyer became...

Writer or writing item

1929

The publishing firm of Faber and Gwyer became Faber and Faber, when the Gwyer family pulled out.
Matthew, Henry Colin Gray et al., editors. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. http://www.oxforddnb.com/.
under Geoffrey Faber

By 7 November 1874: Mary Bramston (a friend of Charlotte Yonge...

Women writers item

By 7 November 1874

Mary Bramston (a friend of Charlotte Yonge and Christabel Coleridge) published a comedic novel entitled The Carbridges.
Athenæum. J. Lection.
2454 (1874): 606

2 September 1945: Japan formally surrendered to the Allies...

National or international item

2 September 1945

Japan formally surrendered to the Allies.
Messenger, Charles. World War Two Chronological Atlas: When, Where, How and Why. Bloomsbury, 1989.
240-1
Keegan, John. The Second World War. Viking, 1990.
584-5
Preston, Peter. “The convenience of forgetting”. Guardian Weekly, 16–22 Mar. 2007, p. 25.
25

By 14 April 1561: Sir Thomas Hoby's The Courtyer, translated...

Writer or writing item

By 14 April 1561

Sir Thomas Hoby's The Courtyer, translated from Baldassare Castiglione's Il Cortegiano, was entered at the Stationers' Company ; it was published the same year.
Drabble, Margaret, editor. The Oxford Companion to English Literature. 5th ed., Oxford University Press, 1985.
English Short Title Catalogue. http://estc.bl.uk/.

22 February 1797: Irish-American colonel William Tate landed...

National or international item

22 February 1797

Irish-American colonel William Tate landed a small French invasion force at Fishguard Bay, Wales. This followed a larger-scale attempt through Ireland begun on 15 December 1796 which was abandoned the next month.
“On This Day: 22 February 1797”. BBC History.
“The French Invasion of Fishguard”. Historic UK: The History of Wales.
“FamilySearch Internet Genealogy Service”. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
68 (1798): 162-3

29 January 1848: Insurgency in Sicily resulted in the declaration...

National or international item

29 January 1848

Insurgency in Sicily resulted in the declaration of Sicily's independence and the granting on this date, by Ferdinand II of Naples, of a constitution.
Cowie, Leonard W., and Leonard Woolfson. Years of Nationalism: European History 1815-1890. Edward Arnold, 1985.
183-184

13 February 1956: Guy Burgess and Donald Maclean, English spies...

National or international item

13 February 1956

Guy Burgess and Donald Maclean, English spies who had fled on 25 May 1951 to the Soviet Union (whose undercover agents they had been), gave a press conference which riveted British attention on the...