In this week’s Dispatches from The Secret Library, Dr Oliver Tearle heads off to medieval America and the world of the sagas Christopher Columbus discovered America in 1492, when he landed on mainland North America, thus sparking the colonisation of the continent by the Europeans. This is the mainstream conception, […]
Interesting trivia about the pioneer of English printing 1. The first book printed by Caxton in English was a book about Troy. Recuyell of the Historyes of Troye (alternatively spelt Recueil des Histoires de Troye) was printed by Caxton in 1475. It was the first book printed in English, though […]
A short and interesting history of Magna Carta and its surprising legacy So few of the facts about Magna Carta in popular circulation are true. Its enduring place in popular consciousness is, however, indisputable. Its influence even extends to music: Kurt Weill composed a cantata, The Ballad of Magna Carta, about it. […]