History@Portsmouth

University of Portsmouth's History Blog

Tag Archives | archives

By photographer not identified - This is photograph Q 114833 from the collections of the Imperial War Museums (collection no. 8502-08 [1]), Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2872345

Don’t believe everything you read…

By on February 5, 2018 in Public History, Research in Focus

Dr Rob James, Senior Lecturer in History, recently worked with a local community group, Portsdown U3A, on a Heritage Lottery Funded project that sought to find out the impact of the Battle of Jutland on the people of Portsmouth and the local area. With the help of research assistant and PhD student John Bolt, and a team of Online Course Developers at the University, Dr James created an online map using the data collected by members or Portsdown U3A. One of the most interesting findings made by the U3A when conducting their research was that one celebrated V.C. holder – Commander Loftus William Jones – was born in Portsmouth, not […]

Continue Reading 2
Skylark launch

Using Oral Sources: Recovering the history of the Skylark rocket

By on January 17, 2018 in Learning in Focus

Daniel Millard, a second year History student at the University of Portsmouth, wrote the following blog entry on how historians can use oral history testimony to reflect on Britain’s attempts to enter the ‘space race’ in the late-1950s for the Introduction to Historical Research Unit.  The unit is co-ordinated by Dr Maria Cannon, Lecturer in Early Modern History at Portsmouth. In 1957 Britain entered the space race with the launch of the Skylark sounding rocket. Conceived at a time when the nation was seeking to develop ballistic missile capabilities Skylark quickly positioned itself as a valuable research tool with which to help scientists unlock secrets from above the Earth’s upper atmosphere. […]

Continue Reading 0
Chocolate Zoned (2)

“Don’t blame the shopkeeper!!”: Food, drink and confectionery advertising and British Government market controls during the Second World War

By on December 8, 2017 in New Publications, Research in Focus

An article on the ways in which food, drink and confectionary companies used advertising to respond to the government’s control of the market during the Second World War by Mick Hayes, doctoral student in History at the University of Portsmouth, has recently been published in the Journal of Historical Research in Marketing. See below for the abstract, and if you want to read the article, click here. Abstract The aim of this paper is to illustrate the impact of zoning and pooling on food, drink and confectionary brands during the Second World War, something that has not been covered in depth in historical literature, despite the significant amount of research […]

Continue Reading 0
BSC First Aid 1972

If you go down to the Archives today …

By on November 21, 2017 in Events, New Publications, Public History, Research in Focus

In this post, Mike Esbester brings us up to date on the book he wrote earlier in the year, marking the 60th anniversary of the British Safety Council – now picked up by The National Archives and health and safety professionals. 2017 marks the 60th anniversary of the British Safety Council, one of the leading organisations aimed at improving health, safety and wellbeing in the workplace, in the UK and beyond. Fortunately the BSC is an organisation attuned to the value of the past, and – as discussed in an earlier post  – has been prepared to put its money where its mouth is, including creating an excellent digital archive , […]

Continue Reading 0
1960s-recipe-book-1

‘Fodder for the masses’: Student recipes in the 1960s

By on October 19, 2017 in Learning in Focus, Research in Focus

Dr Jodi Burkett is Principal Lecturer in History at the university, and teaches across the undergraduate course including a special subject on ‘Students and Youth in postwar Britain’. She is currently doing research on student activism around issues of ‘race’, racism and anti-racism between the late 1960s and early 1990s which includes reading a lot of student newspapers. While waiting in an epic queue in the Hub, or eating your Co-op meal deal, I’m sure many of you have asked yourselves: What did students eat in the late 1960s? For many undergraduate students, going to University is the first time that they are living on their own and having to cook […]

Continue Reading 0
portsmouth

Historical Association (Portsmouth Branch) lecture programme 2017-18

By on September 15, 2017 in Events, News

Dr James Thomas, Reader in History at the University of Portsmouth, coordinates events for the Portsmouth Branch of the Historical Association.  Talks meet in the University’s Park Building, room 2.07, at 7.00 pm and finish by 8.30 pm.  There are some exciting talks coming up, including, on the 14th November, one on the Russian Revolution, by our School’s own Dr Paul Flenley For further details, contact James.Thomas@port.ac.uk or search the Historical Association website at: https://www.history.org.uk/events/categories/511/resource/4361/portsmouth-branch-history All welcome.  Hope to see you there!   2017 10th October Operation Tadpole, Dr John Bevan, the Diving Museum, diver and author The British anti-sabotage operations against the Italin frogmen attacks in Gibraltar during WWII. […]

Continue Reading 0