The University of Portsmouth’s successful MA in Naval History is producing some exciting research into the social and cultural background of the Royal Navy. Distance Learning Student and ex-Royal Navy Artificer, John North, is researching the history of Artificers in the RN, and is calling on the public to help him write a history of […]
On August 29th 1782, the 100-gun warship HMS Royal George sunk whilst lying at anchor off Spithead. The death toll was huge, with estimates varying between six hundred and one thousand people drowned. Most accounts of the sinking have sought to explain why the ship sank and who was to blame, but by placing the […]
Book Review by James H Thomas on Daphne Palmer Geanacopoulos, The Pirate Next Door: The Untold Story of Eighteenth Century Pirates’ Wives, Families and Communities (Carolina Academic Press: Durham, North Carolina, 2017), 147pp. £11-12 (Kindle and Paperback). This is a slim volume which promises much, delving ‘into the inner lives of pirates, focusing on their […]
An interesting story about how a town in Canada wish to honour their Royal Naval namesake has been unearthed by Port Towns and Urban Cultures. It is a perfect story about how maritime heritage, imperial sentiment, and urban identities can converge, but could you help them find out more? The town of Ajax, Ontario, Canada, […]
PTUC’s Rob James and John Bolt, Research Assistant and PhD student, have created an online map, with the help of a local community group, Portsdown U3A, which identifies the impact of the Battle of Jutland on the people of Portsmouth and the local area. Below, they relate their experiences of the project and chart its achievements. Follow […]
In July 1937 their Majesties King George VI and Queen Elizabeth paid a state visit to Northern Ireland as part of the celebrations to mark the Coronation of the new monarch. Arriving at Thompson’s Wharf in the port of Belfast aboard HMY Victoria and Albert, the Royal procession travelled from Donegal Quay along the High […]
