In 1774, following the infamous Boston Tea Party the previous December, when residents had dumped a cargo of imported tea into the Harbour at Boston, Massachusetts, the British governor to the state had been ordered, using amendments to the Massachusetts Colonial Government Charter, to disband the locally elected councils in favour of members appointed by […]
Category: England
Darwin’s tortoises
Americas, England, JJ, Northern Europe, South America
While visiting the Galapagos archipelago in 1835, Charles Darwin (1809-1882) encountered the giant tortoise and observed that, as with the finches, each island had its own unique types of tortoise. The most notable difference, it turned out, was in the shape of the shell – some giant tortoises were able to extend their necks higher […]
Mary I’s phantom pregnancies
Mary I of England was overjoyed at her marriage to Prince Philip of Spain. She had married a man of royal blood, the son of her adviser and cousin Charles V of Spain and had laid the foundation for the passing of the throne to a true born Catholic heir. There was only one fly […]
Second Act of Succession- Declaring Mary and Elizabeth bastards
Everyone knew there could not be a Queen of England alone on the throne. The last Queen Regnant of England was arguably Margaret the She Wolf of France or if you chose to disregard Margaret then Matilda of England. Both had periods of rule riddled with strife and open warfare. These were not pleasant memories […]