After Dunkirk and the fall of France in 1940, it was obvious it would be years before the British army could mount conventional military operations on land in Europe. Prime Minister Winston Churchill
Illuminated manuscripts are among the most beautiful, precious and mysterious works of Western art. Before the printing press was invented, books were produced by hand, and their illustration using br
Designed both to protect the their inhabitants of the towns they towered over and cow them into submission, castles dominated the landscape of Medieval England and Wales. Though some were built before
The 1970s was a decade of style contrasts. More so than in any other decade, every extreme of fashion was met by an equally trendy opposite reaction. Ankle-length maxi skirts vied for attention with s
‘This War is a Food War…’ In 1941 Lord Woolton, Minister for Food, was determined that the Garden Front would save England: ‘Dig for Victory’ was the slogan, digging for dinner the reality. With food
Victorian pumping stations are colorful cathedrals of utility. Their imposing and striking exteriors enclose a highly decorative cast-iron frame, built to encage mighty steam engines. They are gloriou
William Hillman was an early maker of cars in Coventry: he produced cars from 1907 before selling his company to the Rootes Brothers in 1928. Three years later came the Hillman Minx, the first of a li
Between the 1940s and the 1960s the microcar posed a challenge to large companies producing cars in huge volumes to a uniform pattern. The microcar was the opposite, produced by small entrepreneurial
In the 1950s and 1960s, British sports car ruled the road, and their charge was led by Triumphs. From the TR2, its first modern sports car, Triumph went on to produce a host of classic sports design
A brief history of the design and use of railway carriages in the UK, ideal for those interested in railway and social history.Evolving from the horse-drawn stage coaches that they soon eclipsed, rail
The history of the Rootes Group (1913-1978) and its subsidiaries - Hillman, Humber, Singer, Sunbeam, Karrier, and Commer.This is the story of the Rootes Group which was both an important British car m
An engaging introduction to the workings of church buildings and churchyards, explaining the integral elements of a working church and how they have changed over time.The parish church is a symbol of
From the Middle Ages to the present day, parsonages - vicarages and rectories, and later manses, presbyteries and chapel houses - have been amongst the most significant dwellings in every kind of Brit
The 00 gauge train set was the ultimate "boy’s toy" of the 1950s and ’60s .Electric 00 gauge trains were introduced by Trix and Hornby Dublo in the mid-1930s, but the Second World War quickly halted p
Vespa and Lambretta remain the two most iconic motor scooter brands, even four decades after the latter’s demise. But what made them such a European sensation in the postwar era? And why were they par
Sir Christopher Wren (1632–1723) is now mostly remembered as a genius of architecture – but he was also an accomplished polymath, who only came to architecture quite late in life. Most famous as the m
Brunel called his Great Western Railway the "finest work in England" and it certainly contained many special and groundbreaking new features, but none was as unorthodox as the decision to abandon the
The London and North Eastern Railway, or LNER as it was familiarly known, was one of the Big Four companies that took control of Britain's railway network following the "Grouping" in 1923. This networ
