Since next year brings a new interest in Washington D.C. and the inner workings of the American government, I thought it best to deviate from my emphasis on Edwardian Britain and swing the focus to Washington D.C. of the 1880s to 1910s. Regardless of personal views on the outgoing President, or the [...]
Archive for December, 2008
The Christmas Truce
Christmas Eve, darkness fell at about 7 pm on a long line of trenches held, on the one side, by a body of Saxon troops, on the other by the Leicestershire Regiment, the London Rifle Brigade, and some other British units. With it came a sudden calm. The German snipers seemed to have disappeared, and [...]
Christmas with Queen Victoria
In the third week of December, Victoria traveled south aboard the royal train to Portsmouth where she boarded the 160-foot-long, 370-ton paddle-wheel steamer Alberta. The steamer bore the queen across the silent, gray waters of the Solent to the Isle of Wight, landing at East Cowes. Her Majesty then[...]
December 23rd, 2008 - 6:00 am § in Politics
Daily Life in the British Parliament: Understanding the Political Parties
Here’s a brief breakdown of the major political parties in Edwardian Britain: Conservative Party Tracing its origins to a faction, rooted in the 18th century Whig Party, that coalesced around William Pitt the Younger, it was originally known as “Independent Whigs”, “Friends o[...]
The Christmas Kettle
Dropping change or bills, or even jewelry and rare coins into those red kettles may come second nature to nearly everyone during the holiday season. Just the sound of the bells chiming as the Salvation Army worker, or perhaps Santa Claus, sounds like Christmas. The organization and its annual Christ[...]
L’Affaire Humbert
Today, society is shocked by the revelation of Bernard L. Madoff’s “Ponzi Scheme,” and many sources compare his fraud to that of Richard Whitney. However, Madoff is closer in relation to the infamous Le Grande Therese, than the sad case of Whitney. In 1902, a political and financial scandal ro[...]
Lobster Palace Society
From the late 1890s through the 1910s, there emerged a spectacular, dazzling nightlife along Broadway. At that time, Broadway was a two mile stretch of din and dazzle between Madison and Longacre Square (renamed Times Square in 1904). One might rub shoulders with sparkling showgirls and squalid pros[...]
“Historical” Myths Busted: The Ton
The aristocracy of Britain is a mystifying body of people; titles, orders of precedence, and strawberry leaves notwithstanding, there has been a misconception of the actual numbers of which British (which means English, Irish, Scottish, and Welsh) nobility comprises. The most common misnomer and mis[...]
