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53 Articles

SECRETS OF STONEHENGE

Stonehenge is a massive stone monument on a chalky plain north of the modern-day city of Salisbury, England. Research shows that the site continuously evolved over about 10,000 years and new discoveries continue to be made, revealing a complex landscape that scholars are still trying to understand. Many other ancient megalithic structures have been discovered all around the world. While many of them are thought to be older, some are bigger and a few, arguably, are more historically important, Stonehenge remains by far the most famous – a household name that attracts curious visitors from all over the planet. Technologies such as ground-penetrating radar and electromagnetic induction surveys are revealing the remains of structures located beneath the surface, allowing for new discoveries to be made about the landscape that Stonehenge is located…

SECRETS OF STONEHENGE

A LESSER HENGE?

While Stonehenge is the most famous megalithic monument in the world – a household name that most people know – it is certainly not the oldest. In fact, it can also be argued that it is not the most important megalithic site. The site of Gobekli Tepe in southern Turkey was built about 11,000 years ago and has T-shaped pillars that have carvings of animals, people and abstract symbols. Study of artefacts found at the site indicate that people travelled long distances from across the region to visit the site. Sprawling over about eight hectares (20 acres), it was constructed using a geometric plan and is one of the earliest monuments ever constructed by humans. Some scholars regard it as being the world’s oldest known temple. It was built by hunter-gatherers at a…

A LESSER HENGE?

MERLIN AND STONEHENGE

There have been many wild ideas proposed about how Stonehenge was built and what it was built for, and one far-out idea was put forward by Geoffrey of Monmouth (1095-1155). In his book Historia Regum Britanniae (History of the Kings of Britain) he claimed that Stonehenge was commissioned by a king named Aurelius Ambrosius, who had prevailed in a war against the Saxons. The king wanted to build a memorial to the fallen and contacted Merlin, who advised him to use the ‘Giant’s Dance’ – a series of stones from a mountain in Ireland that giants had brought from Africa. Merlin claimed the giants used the stones to make baths and that the stones had mystical and medicinal powers. The king sent his army to Ireland and, after defeating an Irish force,…

MERLIN AND STONEHENGE

The ancient builders of Stonehenge used other stones to hammer the sarsens and bluestones into shape. English Heritage, the charity that oversees Stonehenge, revealed that large amounts of hammered-off sarsen and bluestone material was found along with broken hammerstones in a field north of Stonehenge. The hammerstones vary in size, with the larger hammerstones being used to break off large pieces and the smaller hammerstones being used to finish and smooth their surfaces. Some stones were more finely finished then others, with the stones in the centre of Stonehenge typically having a finer finish. To connect the stones together, circular protrusions were carved into the top of the upright stones while holes were carved into the bottom of the lintels. Additionally, a mortise and tenon-like design was used at the end of…

ZENOBIA WARRIOR QUEEN

Born in around 240 CE to an aristocratic Palmyrene family, Zenobia (her name may have been Bat-Zabbai or Na’ilah in her own language) married Septimius Odenathus at the age of 17 or 18. He was an important local aristocrat, an experienced general and the military commander of Palmyra. Odenathus was already a widower and had a son, Septimius Hairan (or Haeranes) Herodianus, by his first marriage. Zenobia would also give Odenathus a son, Septimius Vaballathus, born between 258 and 260 CE; there may also have been more sons, Septimius Antiochus, Herennianus, Timolaus and possibly another Hairan. We are also told of two daughters. Although no known statue or likeness of Zenobia can be identified with confidence, her portrait survives on coins and she was renowned for her beauty, wit and…

ZENOBIA WARRIOR QUEEN

FOUR ZENOBIA FACTS

INDEPENDENCE OF PALMYRA The wealthy city state of Palmyra held a unique position in the Roman Empire. It functioned as an independent colony, free to collect its own taxes, but privy to the protection of the emperor. Palmyra grew rich off the taxes levied on caravans travelling the Silk Road to the west. LOST IN TRANSLATION Zenobia’s full name in Greek was Septimia Zenobia, but was most likely a Latinisation of the Arabic al-Zabba, which was itself a translation of Zenobia’s true Aramaic name, Bat-Zabbai, or ‘daughter of Zabbai’. Her native language was Aramaic. SPICE SECURITY As a critical stop on the Silk Road, Palmyra was responsible for protecting the silk and spice caravans along the stretch of road within its boundaries. The task fell to private armies of swift horsemen that earned a reputation…

FOUR ZENOBIA FACTS

ZENOBIA TIMELINE

240 CE A QUEEN IS BORN Zenobia is born into the ruling family of Palmyra and schooled in language, philosophy, horse riding and hunting. She would claim lineage with Cleopatra. 258 CE HER MATCH IN MARRIAGE Zenobia becomes the second wife of Odaenathus, whose bravery and cunning on the battlefield are a perfect match for his ambitious young warrior bride. 259 CE AN HEIR IN WAITING Zenobia has a son, Vaballathus, but the direct heir to the Palmyrene throne is Hairan, a child by Odaenathus’ first wife. 266 CE ASSASSINATION OF ODAENATHUS Odaenathus and his eldest son die. The circumstances are unclear. His nephew Maeonius has been accused, as has Rome and Zenobia herself. Zenobia is now regent for her son. 269 CE TAKING EGYPT Zenobia and her trusted general march uncontested into Egypt while Rome’s military are fighting off Goth invaders and Libyan…

REBEL GREEK PHILOSOPHERS

In the 5th century BCE a group of learned men, called Sophists, could be found going from city to city offering to teach wisdom, rhetoric and almost any other branch of knowledge in return for fees. Not everyone was happy with the new learning these philosophers brought with them. In the comic poet Aristophanes’ play The Clouds the Sophists, and the philosopher Socrates, are pilloried for the new-fangled education they are expounding in Athens. Socrates and his companions occupy a school called the Thinkery where they examine why gnats buzz (they fart, apparently) and other areas of research. Most importantly, they know how to use philosophy to make a bad argument sound good and a good argument sound bad. A father who sends his son to learn this ability becomes so…

REBEL GREEK PHILOSOPHERS

Tutankhamun – originally called Tutankhaten – was born around 1329 BCE. This was a time of great upheaval in Egypt, when the prince’s father, King Akhenaten, had reformed the country’s millennia-old traditions. With Queen Nefertiti, he had turned his back on the gods in favour of an obscure deity the Aten, or sun disc. As Akhenaten’s reign progressed, the god Amun, king of the gods, was targeted for attacks. The king’s followers smashed Amun’s statues across Egypt and scratched away his name from monuments. Amun represented all that was hidden, so Akhenaten perhaps regarded him as the antithesis of the Aten’s all-encompassing, life-giving light. But as the years passed, other gods were attacked too. To symbolise Egypt’s new beginning, Akhenaten moved the royal court to a newly built city in the…

SYMBOLS OF POWER

NEMES HEADDRESS Less of a crown and more a symbol of a pharaoh’s power, the nemes was a headdress that covered the whole crown, the back of the head and the nape of the neck. Usually striped with gold (to represent the ruler’s wealth), the nemes had two large flaps that hung behind the ears and draped over the front of the shoulders. CROOK AND FLAIL Originally linked solely to the god Osiris, the crook and flail later became a combined symbol of pharaonic authority. The shepherd’s crook stood for the power and responsibility of kingship, while the flail was shorthand for the fertility of the land. ANKH The ankh, which is usually grasped in the left hand of a pharaoh, is one of the most important symbols associated with the pharaohs. It represents the…

SYMBOLS OF POWER

ADVISERS TO THE BOY KING

AYE Ay (sometimes spelt Ay) was the immediate successor to Tutankhamun and had been one of the three men who acted as the young king’s chief advisors. He had risen as a political figure under Akhenaten, but is thought to have been one of the chief architects of the transition back to traditional Egyptian culture and religious practices under Tutankhamun. HOREMHEB This celebrated military figure became pharaoh after the death of Ay, with whom he had worked in advising Tutankhamun. He had been a commander in the Egyptian military, leading campaigns on the young king’s behalf. As pharaoh, he continued the moves away from the worship of Aten and back to Amun, the king of the Egyptian gods at that time. MAYA Serving the last three pharaohs of the 18th dynasty as treasurer, Maya was…

ADVISERS TO THE BOY KING

EGYPT’S YOUNG PHARAOHS

CLEOPATRA VII THEA PHILOPATOR Became pharaoh aged: 18 Reign: 51 – 30 BCE The famous queen of Egypt, who would prove to be the last pharaoh of her kingdom, took the throne alongside her brother after the death of their father, Ptolemy XII. She famously hitched her fortunes to Julius Caesar and then Mark Antony, but saw her power fall as each was killed during internal Roman power struggles. AMENHOTEP III Became pharaoh aged: 12 Reign: c.1391 – 1353 BCE Tutankhamun’s paternal grandfather had also ascended the Egyptian throne at a very young age and shared similar interests with his future heir. We know he enjoyed hunting, for instance, because he issued commemorative scarabs celebrating his feats. Amenhotep III is remembered as a diplomatic and peaceful ruler. PTOLEMY XIII THEOS PHILOPATOR Became pharaoh aged: 11 Reign: 51 – 47 BCE One…

EGYPT’S YOUNG PHARAOHS

MARY VS ELIZABETH

Mary I and her sister Elizabeth had little in common except their father: Henry VIII. Mary was a staunch Catholic, Elizabeth a devout Protestant. Mary was deeply conventional in her views of women and took a husband as soon as she ascended the throne, Elizabeth was determined never to marry and became the Virgin Queen of legend. Mary’s reign was brief and brutal, Elizabeth’s has been celebrated as one of the longest and most successful of any British monarch. They may have been opposites but the relationship between the two sisters would have a profound impact on the queenship of both. At 4am on 18 February 1516, Catherine of Aragon was delivered of a daughter. The child might not have been the son that her husband Henry VIII so craved but…

MARY VS ELIZABETH

MARY I TIMELINE

18 February 1516 Mary born Daughter of King Henry VIII and his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, Princess Mary is born at the Palace of Placentia in Greenwich, London. 1525 Princess of Wales Mary is sent to Ludlow to preside over the Council of Wales and the Marches. She is referred to as the Princess of Wales but is never officially granted the title. 25 January 1533 Henry weds Anne Boleyn Having secretly married in November of the previous year, an official ceremony is held and later, in May, Henry’s marriage to Catherine is annulled by Archbishop Cranmer. 7 September 1533 Princess Elizabeth born Henry VIII has a second daughter, much to his continued frustration. Elizabeth is brought up at Hatfield and her mother Anne is killed before she turns three years old. November 1534 Acts of Supremacy Officially breaking from the Vatican, the…

MARY I TIMELINE

MARRIAGE MATERIAL

Mary and the Dauphin of France 1518 The first attempt to secure a worthy marriage for Mary took place while she was only two years old. The prospective union was with François, the eldest son of Francis I, and heir to the throne. The Dauphin was only a few months old himself. The proposal fell apart and relations between the kings disintegrated. Mary and Charles V 1522 With relations with France deteriorating, Henry looked to secure his relationship with the Holy Roman Emperor, who visited England, and his aunt Catherine of Aragon. Charles was therefore Mary’s first cousin. The Treaty of Windsor was signed to secure a marriage but this broke down and in 1526 Charles wed Isabella of Portugal. Mary and the Duke of Orleans 1527 Following discussions that the recently widowed King Francis…

MARRIAGE MATERIAL

BURIED TOGETHER

In life the sisters were frequently allied and torn apart by their changing fortunes, but in death they were finally brought together. Mary I was laid to rest at Westminster Abbey in 1558 in the north aisle of Henry VII’s Lady Chapel. She was buried in the vault, under the monument to her grandfather. When Elizabeth died in 1603, her successor James I (who didn’t attend the funeral ceremony) had a white marble monument to her built in the chapel as well. Her coffin was then placed on top of Mary’s in 1606. The base of the monument above carries the inscription: “Partners both in throne and grave, here rest we two sisters, Elizabeth and Mary, in the hope of the Resurrection.”…

BURIED TOGETHER

THE FIRST (and last) KING of HAITI

In November 1815, Londoners were treated to one of the grandest exhibitions of craftsmanship the city had seen for some time. 23 state carriages were put on public display in Charles Street, Marylebone. No one who saw them failed to be awed by their magnificence, from the gilt mouldings of the bodywork topped with crowned phoenixes and the finely painted coats of arms on the panels, to the luscious velvet interiors fringed with gold drapery. The carriages, along with harnesses, crimson saddles and silver-clawed tiger skin saddlecloths, had cost the coachmakers Crowther and Tapp an estimated £12,000 to make. “It is to be lamented that more time is not allowed the public,” wrote The Morning Chronicle, “to witness one of the grandest specimens of art and elegance ever combined in one…

THE FIRST (and last) KING of HAITI

REVOLUTIONARY LEADERS

Toussaint Louverture Known as the ‘Father of Haiti’, Louverture is credited with turning what started out as a slave rebellion into an organised and effective revolution. Under his leadership, Haiti established its independence, but when he was invited to negotiate with the French, he was arrested and deported to France, where he died in custody. Jean-Jacques Dessalines Dessalines was the first leader of fully independent Haiti as emperor of Haiti from 1804. It was under his rule that the island was the first nation in the Americas to abolish slavery completely. He took over leadership from Louverture after he was captured by the French, but was himself assassinated in 1806, possibly by some of his former allies. Alexandre Pétion The first president of the Republic of Haiti, Pétion ruled in the south as an elected…

REVOLUTIONARY LEADERS

A KING’S FORTRESS

The imposing Citadelle Henry, or Citadelle Laferrière as it is also known, was built from 1806 and completed in 1820. The original construction of a series of fortifications had been plotted by Christophe’s predecessor as the return of the French was an ongoing concern. The fortress sits on the Bonnet a L’Eveque mountain and, according to the citadel’s own website, is referred to by locals the ‘Eighth Wonder of the World’. It has much to commend it to such a title, being the largest fortress in the Americas, designed to house the local population while raining fire on the surroundings to keep enemies from destroying the new kingdom. It had 365 cannons, many of them obtained from European monarchs and carrying their crests, which you can still see today. Damaged,…

A KING’S FORTRESS

Victoria and Albert

History tells us that the marriage of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert was one for the ages, from love at almost first sight to its shattering, tragic end. Their story has endured as long as the image of the mourning queen swathed in black, her face set into a granite frown. In fact, their marriage was anything but a fairy story, but the couple held together through thick and thin. Victoria and Albert are one of the most famous ruling couples that the United Kingdom has ever known, but the path to the royal altar is rarely the smoothest nor the most romantic. As a young woman and the heiress to the throne that was currently occupied by her aged uncle, King William IV, Princess Victoria was eminently eligible. Across Europe,…

Victoria and Albert

“Albert, who is just as tall as Ernest [Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha], but stouter, is extremely handsome; his hair is about the same colour as mine; his eyes are large & blue, & he has a beautiful nose, & a very sweet mouth with fine teeth; but the charm of his countenance is his expression, which is most delightful; c’est a la fois [that is both], full of goodness & sweetness, & very clever & intelligent.” Wednesday, 18 May 1836, when Albert visited following their introduction in April “Albert really is quite charming, and so excessively handsome, such beautiful blue eyes, an exquisite nose, and such a pretty mouth, with delicate moustachios, and slight but very slight whiskers; a beautiful figure, broad in the shoulders and a fine waist. My…

A PRINCESS IN DEMAND

PRINCE GEORGE (LATER GEORGE V OF HANOVER) The future King of Hanover had grown up in England and was one of the earliest young princes to be introduced to Victoria, from around 1828, when both were still children. But they never appeared to hit it off. ERNEST, PRINCE OF SAXE-COBURG AND GOTHA Introduced to Victoria in 1836 alongside his brother Albert, Ernest seems to have made the greater impression on the young princess at first. Later meetings saw her affections swing toward Albert, although Ernest frequently accompanied them and shared outings with the fledgling couple in the following years. GRAND DUKE ALEXANDER NIKOLAEVICH (LATER ALEXANDER II OF RUSSIA) Entertaining the future tsar of Russia in 1839 was the first time the recently crowned Victoria entertained foreign royalty and she seems to have taken to him…

A PRINCESS IN DEMAND

A ROYAL CHRISTMAS

CHRISTMAS TREE A popular 1848 engraving of Victoria and Albert decorating a Christmas may well have helped to popularise the tradition, originally from Germany, in Britain, but they weren’t the first royals to do it. Victoria’s mother had started doing the same from 1800. Still, the new royal family kept it up and insisted on decorating their Christmas tree themselves. A BIG CHRISTMAS MEAL A big family dinner was also common for Victoria on Christmas day with turkey a possibility, but roast beef was apparently the favourite for the royals. For other families in Britain, a goose might also have been more likely than turkey. Royal Christmas meals could be quite elaborate with multiple courses, sometimes up to 20 dishes, and rich desserts to finish. GIFT GIVING Victoria and Albert would give elaborate gifts of…

A ROYAL CHRISTMAS

TAMAR THE GREAT Georgia’s Golden Queen

From the 11th to the 13th century, Georgia experienced a Golden Age: a period of time where Georgian power was at its highest and art and culture flourished. As the territories of the state were expanded, one woman stood at the country’s head. Queen Tamar (c.1160 – c.1213) was the most notable monarch of this era as she led Georgia’s transformation during the peak of its strength and influence. This much-loved queen has since remained a symbol of Georgian pride in the centuries following her death. A queen is born Tamar’s route to the throne was unusual, particularly as a woman in the Middle Ages. Though her exact date of birth is unknown, historians believe she was born sometime between 1160 and 1165, the daughter of King George III and his wife…

TAMAR THE GREAT Georgia’s Golden Queen

Many sources refer to Tamar as a king of Georgia rather than a queen. While this might seem confusing, it is simply due to the fact that in the Georgian language there was no word for a queen regnant. Tamar was thus described as a ‘mepe’ (king) rather than a ‘dedopali’ (queen), which was the title given to the queen consorts of the kings who came before her. As Tamar was the sole ruler, the title of ‘mepe’ is often translated literally and so she becomes King Tamar. Tamar was not the first female ruler to be given the title of king. In Ancient Egypt, Hatshepsut was technically a king as she assumed the male roles that came with the title of pharaoh. Polish monarch Jadwiga was crowned as ‘king’ in…

The Knight in the Panther’s Skin

One of the most famous works of poetry associated with Queen Tamar was written by the acclaimed Georgian poet Shota Rustaveli. The Knight in the Panther’s Skin was possibly commissioned by Tamar, and tells the story of two friends, Avtandil and Tariel, who set out on a quest to find their much-beloved Nestan-Darejan. While the poem is fictional and set outside of Georgia, the tale is allegorical and is a thinly veiled ode to Tamar: in the poem Nestan-Darejan is said to represent the Georgian queen. Rustaveli also uses the poem to praise Tamar’s second husband, David Soslan, highlighting how pleased the Georgian people were with the queen’s choice of partner. Rustaveli himself may have been personally close to Tamar as there are some sources that suggest he served as…

The Knight in the Panther’s Skin

THE LAST CRUSADERS

The Order of the Teutonic Knights (known officially as The Order of the German House of St Mary in Jerusalem) is a charitable institution that remains active today. As indicated by its full name, it was primarily composed of German knights. The Order’s origins are directly linked to the time of the Crusades to the Holy Land, when it was first established as a charitable order around 1190, during the time of the Third Crusade (1188–92). However, it should be made clear that its members were not ‘crusaders’, but rather the members of a monastic corporation. They took lifelong vows of poverty and chastity, as opposed to the temporary vow made by those who journeyed on crusade. In any case, the knights and their activities in the Middle Ages were strongly linked…

THE LAST CRUSADERS

TEUTONIC TIMELINE

1190-98 A Crusading Order German knights establish a field hospital at the Siege of Acre during the Third Crusade, and Pope Innocent III officially sanctions them as the Teutonic Order in 1198. 1226-74 Prussian Crusade The Order is invited by Polish princes to Christianise the pagan Prussians, who inhabit what are now the Baltic states. Teutonic knights quash several Prussian uprisings and eventually establish control of Prussia with the establishment of a monastic state. 1228-29 Sixth Crusade The Teutonic Order supports Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, when he invades Palestine. The crusaders manage to recapture Jerusalem through diplomatic means, and Teutonic knights escort Frederick for a political ‘coronation’ at Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre. 5 April 1242 Battle on the Ice Teutonic attempts to convert Orthodox Christians of Novgorod to Catholicism dramatically fail. Prince Alexander Nevsky wins a famous battle…

TEUTONIC TIMELINE

TACTICS AND ORGANISATION

The brother-knight of the Teutonic Order was a consummate professional warrior possessing enormous martial skill and unshakeable discipline. Upon joining the Order, a knight had to swear to obey the Order’s rules, renounce property and pledge his chastity. A Teutonic knight was very much a ‘warrior monk’ of immense religious dedication and a devoted crusader. The knight’s training as an armoured cavalryman served him in good stead against the Order’s enemies. His equipment was excellent. In the 13th century, the Teutonic knight’s primary weapon was a two-edged sword. He also carried a lance for use in the charge. The typical knight was equipped with chainmail that covered the entirety of his body. Over this was worn a white linen surcoat bearing a black cross. His armour was often reinforced with a…

TACTICS AND ORGANISATION

LEADERS & COMMANDERS

HERMANN VON SALZA 1165 – 1239 After a catastrophe in Cilicia in which the majority of the Teutonic Knights were slain, in 1210 leadership of the Order fell to Hermann von Salza. As hochmeister, or grand master, he oversaw a remarkable revival of the Order. He was an able diplomat who was able to win the affection of both the pope and the Holy Roman emperor. Von Salza was given the Golden Bull of Rimini, which gave him complete sovereignty over the lands held by the Order. He died in 1239, having set the Teutonic Order firmly on its course of crusading in the Baltic lands of Europe. HERMANN BALKE Unknown – 1239 In 1229 two of the Order’s knights were sent to Prussia, where they constructed the castle of Vogelsang on the…

LEADERS & COMMANDERS

REVENGE OF THE 47 RŌNIN

In January 1703, Japan was just days away from celebrating a century of Tokugawa rule when an incident broke out that threatened to throw the entire system into doubt. After years of waiting in the shadows, a group of samurai emerged from hiding to strike down the man responsible for their lord’s death. The act put the Tokugawa in an impossibly awkward situation, casting an ugly light on the hypocrisy of the warrior code underpinning their authority. Two years earlier, in 1701, Japan had been enjoying a period of hitherto unknown peace and prosperity after years of bloodshed and chaos. After completing the unification of Japan, the Tokugawa had brought an end to perpetual warfare, ushering in a new era of obsessive control. Although the country remained under the rule of…

REVENGE OF THE 47 RŌNIN

RISE OF THE CHŪSHINGURA

The revenge of the 47 rōnin was adapted into a gripping drama known as Chūshingura, The Treasury of Loyal Retainers. However, at first the Tokugawa desperately fought to suppress it, “slapping down” every play and print depicting the event, says Jonathan Clements, author of Japan at War in the Pacific: The Rise and Fall of the Japanese Empire in Asia: 1868-1945. He adds: “They really wished it would go away, but they were stuck with the fact that this event had really happened, and that it risked inspiring everyone to behave in the same way. The best analogy I can think of is American gun laws. “You have this antique custom, a ‘right to bear arms’, sitting there in the blueprint for society, and everyone pretends it doesn’t make that big…

RISE OF THE CHŪSHINGURA

THE MORAL QUESTION

Although the 47 rōnin were widely celebrated for avenging their lord, in the immediate aftermath there was some debate over their actions. On one hand, George Sansom points out that the Tokugawa “could not forbid acts of vengeance inspired by Confucian ideals of loyalty and piety.” On the other, he says: “Persons intending to execute vengeance had to apply to the Bakufu for permission, which was usually granted.” Stephen Turnbull says the 47 rōnin prompted reactions ranging from admiration to condemnation: “The secrecy involved in their convoluted plot compounded the utter illegality and underhand nature of their act, to which the shōgun responded correctly by invoking the law of the land.” Jonathan Clements says the events cut right to the core of samurai values: “Armchair critics, and that was pretty much everybody…

THE MORAL QUESTION

THE LIFE AND DEATH OF THE USS INDIANAPOLIS

After completing its mission to deliver components of the nuclear bomb Little Boy to the island of Tinian in the Marianas during World War II, the heavy cruiser USS Indianapolis was torpedoed and sunk by the Japanese submarine I-58 in the Philippine Sea shortly after midnight, 30 July 1945. Approximately 300 men of the ship’s complement of 1,195 personnel were killed when the warship plunged to the bottom just 12 minutes after being struck by two Type 95 torpedoes, while nearly 900 were cast into the sea with only life vests and a few rafts. Through a series of miscommunications, the sinking was not reported in a timely manner and the survivors drifted in the open sea for nearly four days. During the horrific period, many succumbed to saltwater poisoning, exposure…

THE LIFE AND DEATH OF THE USS INDIANAPOLIS

THE ENEMY’S TESTIMONY

The commander of an enemy naval vessel being called to testify in the court martial of a US Navy officer was an unprecedented turn of events. Nevertheless, in November 1945 Lieutenant Commander Mochitsura Hashimoto was flown to Washington, DC, and took the stand during the military trial of Captain McVay, commander of the USS Indianapolis. During questioning, Hashimoto, who ordered the firing of the torpedoes that sank the ship, stated that even if the Indianapolis had followed a defensive zigzag course it would have made no difference to the success of his submarine’s attack. Despite Hashimoto’s testimony, McVay was convicted of placing his ship at undue risk. Decades later, Hashimoto intervened once again. Senator John Warner, chairman of the Senate Committee On Armed Services, was preparing to ask the Senate to vote…

THE ENEMY’S TESTIMONY

REDISCOVERING THE INDIANAPOLIS

After numerous failed attempts to locate the wreckage of the USS Indianapolis, sunk on 30 July 1945 in the Philippine Sea by the Japanese submarine I-58, new clues as to the location of the ship surfaced in 2016. Naval historian Dr Richard Hulver conducted research that led him to believe that the actual resting place of the Indianapolis was further west than had been previously thought. Hulver’s investigations revealed that the LST 779, a US Navy transport ship, had passed the Indianapolis on 29 July, approximately 11 hours before the cruiser was torpedoed. This new information narrowed the search area to 1,550 square kilometres of ocean (still a huge challenge) and indicated that the wreck might be around 40km away from the previously concentrated search area. On 19 August 2017 the…

REDISCOVERING THE INDIANAPOLIS

WELCOME TO GANGSTERS PARADISE

A regal dictator calmly addresses a crowd during a New Year’s Eve celebration; he speaks with stoic poise, hoping to make a grand exit as low key as possible. As he departs, followed by confidants and staff in step, guests process the grim reality of the situation and panic soon paints their expressions. They rapidly shuffle out and the scene cuts to ragtag rebels motoring through the streets in their own celebratory way. The Godfather Part II cinematically captured both the exotic beauty and maligned undercurrents of political turmoil and a mobbed up Havana masterfully, but that was a fictionalised tale with characters only loosely based on the actual criminal overlords. So then, who were the real people involved, and how did the organised crime’s virtual utopia in Cuba come…

WELCOME TO GANGSTERS PARADISE

PICTURE WORTH A THOUSAND IMPLICATIONS

When the crooner landed in Havana on 11 February 1947, a newsreel team happened to be there too. A still frame shows (according to government agents at the time) Sinatra situated near Chicago gangsters Joe and Rocco Fischetti (a third Fischetti, Charlie, was also on the flight). That image furthered suspicion and narratives formulated by unfriendly columnists and agents of the FBI and Narcotics Bureau. Sinatra already bore bad blood with some gossip columnists, but the Feds to that point only had him on radar for reasons relating to the ‘red scare’ (communist rhetoric). Everything changed quickly when American writer Robert Ruark outed Lucky Luciano’s presence in Havana and implied Sinatra and the kingpin were pals. If the primary target of Ruark’s war of attrition was Luciano, with Sinatra secondary,…

PICTURE WORTH A THOUSAND IMPLICATIONS

Lucky Luciano quietly entered Cuba in October 1946 and moved into an upscale Miramar neighbourhood. Cuban officials, some in collusion, were very much aware of Luciano’s sence. Things went smooth until February 1947 when a burgeoning columnist named Robert Ruark heard an infamous American gangster living it up in Havana’s night life. Ruark, who in later years admitted as much, knew immediately the scoop could be life-changing. Ironically though, Ruark wasn’t even sure he could positively recognise the mobster, so he asked around, finally landing on Connie Immerman – a guy who knew everyone. Probably with no maligned thought whatsoever, Immerman simply pointed out which fellow was indeed Lucky. The first (of many) articles written by Ruark about the Luciano-Sinatra intrigue was published in American papers on 20 February 1947…

THE FORGER WHO FOOLED THE NAZIS

In the ruins of Berlin in 1945, a book with a curious inscription was discovered in the personal library of Adolf Hitler. The deluxe volume of poems, co-authored by a Nazi Dutch writer, contained illustrations from artist and fellow countryman Han van Meegeren. Within its pages, van Meegeren had seemingly penned a glowing dedication to his “beloved Führer|”, which posed a considerable threat to the painter who had by then been arrested as a potential Nazi collaborator, with a possible jail sentence looming over him. But it was to be his association with another Nazi leader – notorious art plunderer Hermann Göring – that would garner the vast majority of the public’s attention. A few years earlier, the German Reichsmarschall had purchased a painting he believed to be the creation of…

THE FORGER WHO FOOLED THE NAZIS

‘JO DIDN’T KNOW’

Johanna’s involvement in her husband’s forgery empire has been speculated upon ever since van Meegeren’s deception was uncovered. A professional actress, she had been married before to art critic Carel de Boer, whom she divorced in 1927. Johanna and van Meegeren had long been entangled in a love affair, and in 1928 they married. Whether their relationship extended to partners in crime is a matter reserved for conjecture, however probable it appears. Van Meegeren was consistent in telling interested parties that “Jo didn’t know”, despite several factors pointing in the opposite direction. Namely, their seemingly strategic divorce in December 1943 – while they stayed together – enabled the artist to transfer funds into her accounts, thereby protecting the money from unexpected circumstances. Even prior to that stage, when van Meegeren…

‘JO DIDN’T KNOW’

LIKE FATHER LIKE SON

For most forgers, the art of becoming a fraud is a skill learnt with time, trial and error. For Han van Meegeren’s son Jacques, it appeared that genes had at least a minor part to play as well. Born in 1912 to his father’s first wife, Jacques was reported to be a sickly child who shared a distant relationship with the painter. The boy nevertheless loved being allowed into van Meegeren’s studio, where he was occasionally permitted to help tidy or clean brushes. In later years, he accompanied his father on trips to art dealers or museums, offering him an insight into the inner workings of the world van Meegeren inhabited. Jacques learned how to sketch and draw, although he still had to endure periods of paternal neglect. But there…

LIKE FATHER LIKE SON

THE BIRTH OF THE YAKUZA

The Yazuka are a contradiction. Unlike the most notorious organised crime syndicates globally – the Italian Mafia, the Russian Vory, the South American cartels – they are rarely seen being violent in public. Few drive-by assassinations, warning killings, or even street brawls. They are at once a shadowy institution while simultaneously their offices are easy to find in any Japanese city. Extortion, smuggling, drugs, loansharking, prostitution… the Yakuza are involved in them all and more, yet they maintain a front of legitimate businesses. They are one of Japan’s largest charitable organisations, universally praised for their rapid response when disasters, earthquakes, tsunamis strike, including the Fukushima nuclear disaster of 2011. Their smart suits, finger severing, and especially the elaborate tattooing have become culturally iconic. Japanese TV is flooded with, often sympathetic, Yakuza…

THE BIRTH OF THE YAKUZA

RITUAL ATONEMENT

Dramatic gestures are a part of Yakuza life. Yubitsume or the cutting off of one’s finger, is a form of penance or apology. For a first offence, the tip of the left little finger is cut off and the severed portion given to the oyabun. Further offences may result in more fingers being cut off. Historically this would gradually weaken the offender’s sword grip, forcing them to rely on their comrade more and learn from that. Today the practice is unpopular as it clearly identifies Yakuza members to the police, though prosthetic fingers are often used to avoid detection. Seppuku is a traditionally samurai practice that still occurs occasionally – though far more in Yakuza movies than real life. Literally ‘stomach cutting’ it is a ritual form of suicide by disembowelment…

RITUAL ATONEMENT

FULL-BODY TATTOOING

Full-body tattooing (irezumi) remains common among Yakuza in Japan. The process can take years, including tattooing the genitals in some cases, and if done traditionally involves no electrical machines but rather is ‘hand-poked’ with the ink inserted beneath the skin using needles of sharpened bamboo or steel. Again, as with yubitsume, tattoos are an easy identifier to police of Yakuza membership and this is one reason that long-sleeved shirts, suits and shirts with neck collars are worn. The tattoos are not normally displayed in public. Tattooing is symbolic of the Yakuza’s outsider status. In the Edo period criminals were tattooed to identify their crimes – thieves on the arms, murderers on the head. Other tattoos would indicate where the crimes occurred. The Meiji government sought to outlaw tattooing altogether, creating a stigma…

FULL-BODY TATTOOING

Mary Wollstonecraft THE FIRST FEMINIST?

Emotionally tumultuous, the life of Mary Wollstonecraft was shaped by the people that came in and out of it, and her relationships to the people and world around her. Wollstonecraft’s life may have been tragically short, but she ensured an enduring legacy. In 37 years she travelled, wrote on a wealth of topics across a number of genres and for all kinds of audiences, and today she is still remembered as a pioneer of the movement to ensure women’s rights; the ‘mother of feminism’. She is best remembered for writing A Vindication of the Rights of Woman: with Strictures on Political and Moral Subjects (1792). Wollstonecraft was born in 1759 in London, one of seven siblings. When she died on the 10 September 1797 of septicaemia, only 11 days after the…

Mary Wollstonecraft THE FIRST FEMINIST?

Unlucky in love

Wollstonecraft went to France in 1792 “partly to be able to write about what is happening,” says Tomaselli. “It’s partly because she’s curious – she has political curiosity. She’s not the only woman to report to live in Paris and report back to England. Nonetheless it’s very much part of her character… just pack up and go. And when there she meets the father of her first child, Gilbert Imlay.” He is an American businessman, and together they have a child out of wedlock. This reframes her life almost completely. She passes as his wife and lives with him, which increases her safety as a woman living in revolutionary France, as well as their child’s, who had a ‘legitimate’ father. “While she still has hope of continuing a relationship with…

Unlucky in love

A woman’s destiny

Wollstonecraft’s best friend, Fanny, whom she named as the person who opened up her mind, embodied the potentials of a pure, almost holy female utopia that could have been formed. They planned to live together but could not make this dream work under the financial constraints of their life. Fanny, whose health was always poor, moved to Lisbon with her new husband, and died there in childbirth in 1785, nursed by Wollstonecraft. This loss was devastating, and inspired Wollstonecraft’s first novel Mary: A Fiction (1788). Later, Wollstonecraft named her first daughter Frances, or Fanny, for her dear friend. Before this, in 1784, Wollstonecraft’s sister Eliza was suffering badly from postpartum depression. Wollstonecraft implored her, and eventually persuaded and helped Eliza to leave her husband and child, in what was a…

A woman’s destiny

MURASAKI SHIKIBU The first novelist

Since the days of the earliest civilisations, storytelling has sat at the heart of communication. From tales depicted in cave paintings and hieroglyphics and passed down through the oral tradition all the way to the stories of television, cinema and even viral videos and Twitter threads, storytelling is a way of understanding the world and connecting to those around us and those living completely different lives to our own. Novels are one of the most accessible and popular methods of storytelling, but they didn’t come onto the scene until the 11th century, when what is often considered to be the world’s oldest novel came from an unlikely source. And like many of the world’s greatest, largely anonymous innovations, it came from a woman: Japanese author Murasaki Shikibu. You’d be forgiven for…

MURASAKI SHIKIBU The first novelist

The Life of GENTLEMAN JACK

Today, the name of Yorkshire businesswoman and trailblazing lesbian Anne Lister is known to audiences across the globe. Thanks to Gentleman Jack, BBC/HBO’s enormously successful biographical drama, Lister’s life and her refusal to compromise on her ideals and passions have become an inspiration. Yet Anne Lister sprang not from the pages of fiction, but from the very real world of Georgian England. Her story is as remarkable today as it ever was, and a testament to her intelligence and determination in a world that wasn’t used to women who trod their own path. Anne Lister was born in Halifax, in the West Riding of Yorkshire, on 3 April 1791, and spent her early years on the family estate of Skelfler House in Market Weighton. As a child she was a regular…

The Life of GENTLEMAN JACK

Anne Lister’s Grave

Anne Lister was buried in Halifax Minster in West Yorkshire on 29 April 1841. Her tombstone was later covered by a floor in 1879 and lost. For well over a century the grave and tombstone were forgotten, and seemingly no mention was made of it in official church records. That all changed in early 2000, when a number of Victorian pews were being removed during restoration work of the north east corner of the church. Only then were the incomplete, smashed remains of Lister’s tombstone discovered, having been lost for 121 years. Why the stone was smashed is a mystery and the whereabouts of much of the stone remains unknown. Today the surviving pieces of the tombstone are cared for at Halifax Minster. Sadly, the exact location of Anne Lister’s grave also…

Anne Lister’s Grave

When Sally Wainwright’s Gentleman Jack debuted in 2019, it became an overnight sensation. The series, a co-production between the BBC and HBO, revealed Anne Lister’s remarkable story to audiences across the globe, and found a passionate following that continues to this day. Though it was not the first televisual treatment of Anne Lister’s story, it is certainly the most well-known. In the wake of Gentleman Jack, interest in Anne Lister and Ann Walker has reached new heights, and visitors flock to Halifax and Shibden Hall, eager to tread in the footsteps of their heroine. Lister’s story was also told in 2010 on BBC Two in The Secret Diaries Of Miss Anne Lister, and has inspired other drama and music, as well as numerous books and articles. However, despite Gentleman Jack’s popularity,…

WOMEN OF THE RENAISSANCE

From the 14th to the 17th century, the city-states that now make up Italy underwent a cultural transformation. As the Middle Ages drew to a close, a ‘rebirth’ or ‘renaissance’ of art, politics, economics and philosophy emerged from the Republic of Florence and began to spread throughout the region. In a period of rediscovering the classical culture of Ancient Greece and Rome, some of the greatest artists, intellectuals and inventors like Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo and Niccolò Machiavelli to name but a few dominated the cultural landscape and made their mark on the history of society and art. While these names are familiar to us, there was also a small but significant group of women who defied the expectations of their time and participated in arts and literary activities to…

WOMEN OF THE RENAISSANCE

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