By Tim Lambert Until the year 1752, in England, New Year’s Day was, legally on 25 March, which was the Feast of the Annunciation when an angel told Mary the mother of Jesus that she was pregnant and would have a son. (It was also called Lady Day). However long before the legal change, most… Continue reading A Brief History of New Year’s Day
A History of Sport
By Tim Lambert Sport In The Ancient World Egyptian Sport People have always played sports. In Ancient Egypt, people went swimming. They also enjoyed boxing, wrestling, and archery. They also played a game that involved standing on a boat and trying to knock the opposing team into the water with a stick. The Olympic Games… Continue reading A History of Sport
A History of St George’s Day
By Tim Lambert St George is, of course, the patron saint of England. ‘Cry God for Harry, England, and Saint George!’ Those immortal words are from Shakespeare’s Henry V, but who was St George and how did he become the patron saint of England? St George was a Roman soldier who lived in the 3rd… Continue reading A History of St George’s Day
A Brief History of Toys
By Tim Lambert Early Toys Before the 20th century, children had few toys and those they did have were precious. Furthermore, children did not have much time to play. Only a minority went to school but most children were expected to help their parents by doing simple jobs around the house or in the fields.… Continue reading A Brief History of Toys
A History of Dentistry
By Tim Lambert Early Dentistry In Sumer (now Iraq) in 2000 BC, people believed that tooth decay was caused by worms. This strange belief carried on in the West until the Tudor Times. The Etruscans an ancient civilization that existed in Italy after 800 BC, were excellent dentists. They made false teeth from human or… Continue reading A History of Dentistry
A History of Hospitals
By Tim Lambert Early Hospitals The first hospitals were founded in the Ancient World. There were hospitals in India and Sri Lanka before 200 BC. By the 2nd century AD, the Romans had military hospitals called Valetudinaria. In the late 4th century The Roman Empire split in two, east and west. Meanwhile, Christians believed they… Continue reading A History of Hospitals
A Brief History of Life Expectancy
By Tim Lambert Life Expectancy Before the Industrial Revolution We do not know exactly what average life expectancy at birth was in the past (before the 19th century we can only give rough estimates). However, historians think it was about 35 years in the Middle Ages or the 16th Century. However, that does not mean… Continue reading A Brief History of Life Expectancy
A History of Medicine
By Tim Lambert MEDICINE IN THE ANCIENT WORLD Medicine among Primitive Peoples The first evidence of surgery is skulls from the Stone Age. Some adults had holes cut in their skulls. At least sometimes people survived the ‘operation’ because the bone grew back. We do not know the purpose of the ‘operation’. Perhaps it was… Continue reading A History of Medicine
A Brief History of Epidemics
By Tim Lambert Early Epidemics At different times in history, terrible pandemics have swept parts of the world killing millions of people. The best known is the Black Death of the 14th century but epidemics were nothing new in Europe. In 430 BC Athens was struck by an epidemic of an unknown disease, which devastated… Continue reading A Brief History of Epidemics
A Brief History of Poverty
By Tim Lambert Poverty in the Middle Ages Not much was written about poverty in the Middle Ages. The poor were not considered important. Much more was written about the rich and powerful. However, in the Middle Ages, poverty was common. England was basically a subsistence economy where each village made most of the things… Continue reading A Brief History of Poverty