First World War ‘could have been averted’ claims historian

de bene esse: literally, of well-being, morally acceptable but subject to future validation or exception

The German advance could have been repelled much sooner if the British Government had adopted Winston Churchill’s proposed strategy for fighting the First World War, a historian has suggested. In his new book, Allan Mallinson claims Churchill’s plan of holding back the British forces until their numbers could be bolstered by other British troops stationed overseas might have changed the course of the conflict.

 

'Richard III should be buried at York Minster according to historyextra poll' 

Richard III should be buried at York Minster, according to more than half of readers who voted in our online poll. We asked historyextra readers where they thought the remains of the former king should be buried, offering a choice of Leicester Cathedral, York Minster, Westminster Abbey or ‘other’. Some 53 per cent voted for York, 33 per cent Leicester, 12 per cent Westminster, and two per cent ‘other’.

'Subterranean slave world discovered under Emperor Hadrian's Villa' 

Caving enthusiasts have discovered a subterranean slave world under Emperor Hadrian’s Villa at Tivoli. They found a jigsaw of paved, underground streets wide enough to accommodate two-way traffic of ox-drawn cartscarrying slaves, food and other goods.

'Sunk 17th-century warship to dock in east London' 

Maritime enthusiasts propose to build a replica of the 17th-century Restoration warship Lenox in the dockyard where she was originally constructed. More than 330 years after she was built at the Royal Naval Dockyard at Deptford, members of the local community hope to create a copy of the 52 metres-long Lenox.
A 70-gun third-rate of Charles II’s navy, Lenox fought in the Battle of Beachy Head and Barfleur-LaHogue. Representing the pinnacle of Restoration shipbuilding practice, the two-decker warship was recorded in great detail.
This, organisers of The Lenox Project explain, will enable them to build a true warship replica. Timbers will be fashioned using the latest computer controlled machines, and a numerical controlled routing machine will automatically produce frame pieces, knees and other ship components.

'US marks Martin Luther King "I have a dream" speech anniversary'

Wednesday marked the 50 year anniversary of Martin Luther King’s ‘I have a dream’ speech. It was delivered at the March for Jobs and Freedom rally in front of more than 250,000 people at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC. Half a century on we asked leading historians - is it the greatest speech in history?

'Excavation search for soldiers killed on Flodden battlefield'

Excavations are to take place on the Flodden battlefield at Branxton, in the hope of locating the remains of fallen soldiers. From Monday a team of volunteers will excavate the Northumberland site where, on 9 September 1513, some 14,000 Scottish and English soldiers lost their lives.

'Faces of 1943 Dambusters air raid crew revealed'

The faces of all the air crew who took part in the Dambusters raid have been published for the first time. Only 48 of the 133 who took part in the raid survived the war. The operation, on 16 May 1943, saw RAF bombers break two large dams in Germany using experimental "bouncing" bombs.

'Hand-written wills of fallen First World War soldiers published online for first time'

The wills of British soldiers killed during the First World War have been published online for the first time. Ahead of next year’s WW1 centenary, Her Majesty’s Court and Tribunal Service (HMCTS) has digitised its historic archive of 230,000 wills.

'Jack the Ripper murders played out via Twitter'

The 1888 Jack the Ripper murders are being played out via Twitter. Tweeting from the perspective of characters in Whitechapel at the time of the murders, The History Press hopes to retrace events as they unfolded, and put the killings in context.