Portsmouth Poetry: Remembering Passchendaele
Local cultural organisation ‘Portsmouth Poetry’ has been awarded a grant of £10,000 by the Heritage Lottery Fund for a project “I Died In Hell” which will commemorate the centenary of the Battle of Passchendaele, 1917. The project will focus on telling the story of Portsmouth people who participated in one of the worst conflicts of […]
Following Henry’s lead: clothes and the construction of masculinity during the reign of Henry VIII
Andrew McCarthy, a current third year student in History and Politics, tells us about what attracted him towards his dissertation topic, what research challenges he faced along the way and what he was able conclude from his research. Andrew is planning to study for an MA in Early Modern History at Birkbeck next year. The […]
Using Visual Sources: Edward Armitage’s Retribution (1858)
Rozene Smith, a second year history student at the University of Portsmouth, wrote the following blog entry on how historians can use Retribution (1858) to reflect on representations of the British Empire for the Introduction to Historical Research Unit. The unit is co-ordinated by Dr Jessica Moody, Lecturer in Modern History and Heritage at Portsmouth. Studying a “Museum […]
Jutland Exhibition
An exhibition that maps the distribution of men from Portsmouth and the local area who died during the Battle of Jutland on 31 May 1916 has opened at the History Centre in Portsmouth’s Central Library. The free exhibition is the result of a collaboration between Dr Rob James, his Research Assistant, John Bolt, and the […]
How to ‘forget’ difficult pasts: slavery, memory, and the maritime frame
In Theresa May’s ‘Brexit speech’, on January 17th 2017, the prime minister suggested that Britain’s “history and culture is profoundly internationalist” [1]. This is certainly one way of framing Britain’s historic relationship with the rest of the world. Alternatively, you might suggest that May spelt “centuries of colonial rule, oppression, slavery and genocide” wrong. As […]
Using Official Sources: The Chadwick Report (1843)
Rozene Smith, a second year history student at the University of Portsmouth, wrote the following blog entry on how historians can use The Chadwick Report (1843) to understand 19th century social reform for the Introduction to Historical Research Unit. The unit is co-ordinated by Dr Jessica Moody, Lecturer in Modern History and Heritage at Portsmouth. The […]