'England's difficulty is Ireland's opportunity': How Irish Nationalism responded to the Great War Joe Mooney (East Wall History Group, Dublin) This talk will outline the difficulties of the 'Irish question', the movement towards Home Rule and the rise of armed bodies in 1913/1914. How did these conflicting groups react to the outbreak of war - and why did some Nationalist support the war effort while others opposed it? The Irish rebellion of 1916 saw revolutionary nationalists, radical Trade […]
Not A BRHG Event
Documentary revealing how the First World War shaped Gandhi’s rise to prominence in India and the path to independence. Focusing on the bloody mutiny of the Indian battalion in Singapore in 1915, with eyewitness and expert interviews shot in India, Singapore, Germany and the UK. The film also features archive footage and drama interpretation. (50 minutes) Tony T of Sweet Patootee (who conceived, researched, wrote and produced the film) will be there to speak about the film and answer questions.
Not A BRHG Event
Two critical presentations about the role of India, East Africa, Nigeria and the West Indies in WWI, including colonialism and recruitment, the impacts of war and our ongoing culture of war followed by discussion. Cultural Representations of World War One and other wars: how colonies are kept invisible. Presented by Kooj Chuhan Colonial realities of WWI: uncovering the involvement and experience of peoples from British colonies Presented by Dipali Das and Ruth Tait The Great War of 1914 -1918 is […]
Not A BRHG Event
Tony T presents his documentary 'Mutiny' which looks at the British Caribbean experience of the First World War and its legacies, as revealed by the last surviving veterans of the British West Indies Regiment. The film is formed of archival materials, drama reconstructions and eye-witness and expert interviews shot in Jamaica, Cuba, Guyana, Barbados, St. Lucia, Italy and the UK. (50 minutes). Tony T of Sweet Patootee (who conceived, researched, wrote and produced the film) and Julian Putkowski […]
Clevedon-born author and historian Jan Morris describes herself as ‘by loyalty Welsh’, and writes about her subject with warmth and eloquence. As a book that captures the spirit of place, Wales: Epic Views of a Small Country, cannot be bettered. Morris gives a brusque sense of intimacy so that you feel you’ve been grabbed by the arm and are being led across the bridges and down the valleys of Wales in your wellies, while she confides everything that she is passionate about. Far from being a dry […]
If you walk down Market Street in St. John’s, the capital of Antigua and Barbuda, you will come across a grand stone building that was once the court house and now known as the Old Court House. It was built in 1747 on the site of the first city market, and to its pride is the oldest building still in use in the city. The Old Court House was designed by prominent English-born architect, Peter Harrison and financed by a tax levied on Antigua’s slave owners. It has become the perfect home […]
A Life of Pleasure After a tip off last year by a member of BRHG I took a trip to Bristol Archives to take a look at some diaries written by Harry Bow in the 1890s. Bow, a Bristolian, was an enthusiastic 'army spotter', that is, he loved to record and illustrate public displays of the British military in the late Victorian period. Amongst the notes and beautiful line drawings recording parades, army camps and the use of cavalry against Bristolian trade unionists and their supporters on 'Black […]
Not A BRHG Event
Artists’ video installation at the Bearpit, (underpass to Broadmead shops) St James Barton roundabout, BS1 3LY Shot in landscapes of Eastern Nigeria, Nevis & Greenbank cemetery Bristol UK, played on a loop in the Bearpit unfolds a human story in a trilogy of artist video film shorts that renders visible three generations of 18th century African women from one family separated by the transatlantic trade in human trafficking; Fanny (Fumnanya) Coker, her mother Igbo Polly (Adaeze) & […]
Few historians mention that both the first and last campaigns of World War One took place, not in Europe but in Africa. In 1914, all of sub-Saharan Africa, except Ethiopia and Liberia, was in the hands of European powers. Colonial subjects contributed people, money and resources to their imperial rulers to wage war not only in Africa but also in Europe. In both its costs and its consequences, WW1 had a major social, economic and political impact on Africa. Besides the huge human cost, the social […]
Starting with St Mary Redcliffe church, this walk takes in other historic Diocese of Bristol churches in the city centre where 'the life and work' of Edward Colston is still provided religious legitimacy on an annual basis. Along the way we will share the most recent historical research regarding this man's involvement with the transatlantic slave trade and discover how the Victorian elite created a 'cult of Colston' that is now said to form part of our city's 'identity'. At our final stop, […]
