A Hapless Historian

The musings of an aspiring historian.

[leonhartkonigs]

Day 3 of 800 (apparently).

Second day of induction at university. It is interesting, to say the least. Living on campus, the aged 31 year old man amongst a sea of 18-20 years old (who have all been very kind to this aged fellow). Had my second induction thing this morning, which was about picking our options for Year 1.

For the first semester, I have just a single compulsory module - ‘Rethinking History’, which I feel goes hand-in-hand with the book ‘Why History Matters’ by John Tosh (a damned good read, even if you’re not a history-orientated person). Out of all the options I had, from Medieval England (covering 12th-15th centuries) up to more mordern 20th century history and all sorts globally inbetween. I plumped for the Renaissance to Reformation, Torture to Terror (1492-1789/92) & Game of Thrones: The Hundred Years War - rather more Medieval/Early Modern choices than I’d expected to make. For the second semester there are no compulsory modules, so making a decision became a damned sight harder. The two options I immediately went for involve History, Heritage & Interpretation, which is about how museums & similar institutions present & portray history, and The Material World, which covers physical historical evidence (clothing, architecture, art etc). This left me with two choices across a whole raft of choices - did I want to look at smaller communities/identities globally? America from 1763-1970? The War(s) of the Roses? I felt rather trapped making my choices, unsure which two modules to take. Picking The Tudors felt like a good choice, which left me with a single option to decide on. I thought I might choose the War(s) of the Roses, or the Black Death, maybe Hollywood & how it portrays national ideas & myths through film (as that is something that annoys me, I thought it might be fun to get rather angry about it!), but my final choice surprised me as I made it: The Mediterranean World. This last option effectively covers the Mediterranean powers from the Fall of Constatinople, the rise of trade, wealth & power amongst the Mediterranean countries and then their decline in the 18th century. Sometimes you just have to pick something that might not appeal at first but could prove to be thoroughly interesting! Regarding university in general, I’m having a fun time. Sunday was spent moving in (feel as though I had too much stuff), meeting the other chaps living in this section of the building (4 of us in our corridor, all lovely people), and an evening at the student bar, where my combination of Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy t-shirt & pipe ensured that I made many new friends over the course of the evening - sadly, I managed to get rather drunk on just 3 bottles of fruity cider and ended up having a fitful nights sleep with a horrible headache. Monday was very relaxed, introduction to the course and it’s aims/ethics, and a damp historical tour around Chichester, which is a beautiful little place jampacked with history for me to explore. Hurrah! All-in-all a cracking start. More please!

[leonhartkonigs]

A rare entry appears... University calls.

Where the past couple of months have disappeared to is beyond me. Tomorrow, Sunday, I’m moving to university to begin studies in history. It’s frankly rather scary. I know I felt this way last year at the start of the Access course (Humanities & Social Sciences) and it turned out alright, so fingers crossed university will go swimmingly well. Amazed at how little I’m taking with me compared to how much I’ve jettisoned. Aside from the ‘tat’ & ‘crap’ I’ve thrown, I’m saying goodbye to a lot of books, over 100+ physical copies of games and a whole host of clothes I never wear (and probably won’t ever again). Sad times. On the plus side I now have a whole year to build up having loads of ‘tat’ and ‘crap’ once again, lucky me!

Final day of packing & making sure everything is ready. Tally-ho.

[leonhartkonigs]

Weekend away on a stag party for a good friend of mine. Spent the day shooting arrows (and throwing axes, as well as atlatls) beneath a warm sun in Kent ‘fore retiring to a camp site for games, drink and good company. Terribly good fun, all-in-all.

[historical-nonfiction]

Mel Brooks’ movie “The Producers” was successfully released in Sweden as “Springtime for Hitler.” So Mel Brooks’ movies in Sweddish were almost all given similar titles: “Springtime for Space” (Space Balls), “Springtime for the Sheriff” (Blazing Saddles), "Springtime For World History” (History of the World, Part I), and “Springtime for Frankenstein” (Young Frankenstein). 

[leonhartkonigs]

Brilliant.

[leonhartkonigs]

BBC’s Casanova mini-series

I don’t do romantic things, when it comes to TV/films, generally it disagrees with me. However, having just rewatched the entireity of the BBC Casanova series, starring David Tennant and Peter O’Toole with Laura Fraser as Henriette, I can’t help but have my heart touched by how well portrayed the romance is between Casanova and Henriette. The brilliant interactions between Tennant and Fraser are certainly heart-warming and I found myself desparately wanting Casanova & Henriette to have a happy ending (even though I knew there wouldn’t really be one). Oh well, some romance left in this aging fellow it seems.

[leonhartkonigs]

Things be a-happenin’

It’s been quite a while since I ‘blogged’ anything, I’m really rather terrible at this! Whenever I get the urge to write something for it I am, of course, not by my computer. Exciting month & a half so far: I’ve been offered an unconditional placement at university (hurrah!), I attended the 370th anniversary reenactment of the Battle of Naseby (huzzah!), I hit 31 years of age... ‘hurroo’, to quote the Prince in Blackadder. It’s not all bad, however. Spent yesterday, Saturday 11th July, at HYPER Japan in London. I’m not normally one for Japanese things, as none of it really interests me (besides some of the fantastic street fashion). This year it was held at the O2 in London, originally the Millenium Dome or, according to the comedian Mark Steel, an upside-down wok. Apparently in previous years HYPER Japan was held at Earl’s Court, but due to Earl’s Court being/due to be torn down, they had to have a different venue. Let me start off by saying the O2 is horrible. It’s a pile of rubbish. The people behind the Millenium Dome should be forced to pay back the exchequer for the huge waste of money it was. It’s just ghastly - vile, repulsive, nauseatingly horrible. At present it’s decked throughout with tarmacadam, which gives it a car park feel, whilst it’s filled with expensive restaurants, eateries & bars. Apparently there is a cinema & an arena in the centre, but I did not see them as HYPER Japan was set up in the outer sections - which was peculiar. After entering the O2 we had to walk counter-clockwise where we encoutered the first area, a barricaded off section containing lots of Nintendo stuff, stalls selling dolls/models, art stalls, sword/katana stalls. Further on stood the main area, barriered off with 6′ high fencing and dirty white tarpauling all the way round - looked absolutely vile. Found within were clothing stands, sweet stalls, obligatory Japan tourism standthing, an area where judo, I believe it was, was being displayed to the public. There was also the event stage. After queuing for almost an hour to get into the damned place, we roamed from one area to another, seeing what was around. The people I went with, two couples who have an interest in Japan, Japanese culture/food/stuff, were keenly looking at the various things but to my uneducated self I wasn’t sure what was what. It was certainly interesting to see all of these new things but it all failed to really grab my interest. Except, that is, for the clothing. I personally attended in some of my Steampunk kit, although due to my knowing how damned hot & humid it would be I did not bother with neckerchief, weskit, coat, sticking to just my shirt, hat and trews (with gaiters & boots). Whilst I tend to abhor the association of goggles with Steampunk, I wore mine ‘bout my neck to indicate I was there as a SP rather than from some anime-thing - plus they were dueced handy in the queue outside as they double as sunglasses. Why have something like that if it’s not practical? I only really dressed up because my friend’s wife went as a human version of Lumpy Space Princess from Adventure Time, so I was giving a form of support by also dressing up a bit*. However my efforts, as I had known, were nothing compared to the outfits others wore - poor devils, dressed up to the nines in that humidity and heat. There were cosplays, people dressed in traditional Japanese vestments, other Steampunks and of course an army of Lolita-dressed ladies. I personally love the Lolita look - my first girlfriend, many years ago, was a ‘Goth Lolita’ and it was she who introduced me to the fashion. I think it looks great, by and large, and the ladies who braved the temperatures & humidity yesterday looked fantastic, whether they’d dressed lightly in view of the weather or had gone to town with their outfit.

Whilst let down by the O2 itself and the lack of things going on (I was informed there had been much more going on in previous years), I had an entertaining birthday trip, seeing lots of things that were new to me, was stung horribly by food prices in a restaurant, enjoyed the cosplay parade on the stage** and had fun with my friends. A marvelous day out, when all is considered.

Goodness knows when I will post next but I’ll try and write a detailed one for the Naseby 370th event, which was absolutely marvellous and worthy of a write-up.

*However, between my friends, there is a consensus that I don’t ‘dress up’ when I wear my Steampunk or reenactment kit, I’m just accessing another part of my normal wardrobe.

**There was very little applause from the crowd, sadly. Whilst quite a number were taking photographs there were people sat or stood just watching, not bothered to clap the people who had obviously put so much time & effort into their outfit and had the bravery to wear that outfit in public.

[leonhartkonigs]

Worries, worries, worries.

Two assignments submitted, one to go. So I’m no longer worried about getting them finished and handed in. Instead I am now worried about how well I did with them, with the added joy of worrying about finishing the third assignment. Happy days!

[leonhartkonigs]

Something I came across the other day. Ah, back when I was a young man (aged 20). Oh so ‘goth’. Taken at the club night my ex-lady friend organised. For comparison a picture of me aged 28.

[leonhartkonigs]

Marching stolidly on to the end...

End of my college course at least. This past week saw my final class on Tuesday afternoon (followed by the class hastily beating the retreat to the pub), with my three projects due on Monday (History on Tuesday). This week has mostly been spent working on those projects. Fortunately my Sociology project is in the bag, as it were, whilst my Psychology project is not far off. History still requires the most work but I’ll have Sunday & Monday to work on it. Tomorrow, Saturday that is, I get a break for a day. Travelling off to glorious (!) Southampton in Hampshire for the naming ceremony of the daughter of two very good friends of mine. Hopefully the sun will be shining although I will be dressed in a suit which may not be the wisest course of action. Next weekend is lining up to be terribly exciting. I’m off to Naseby for the 370th celebration of the battle, which culminated in Charles I surrendering to the Scots who turned the King over to the forces of Parliament. Should be a very good event as we, and other Cittie of Londone regiments, will be portraying the firelock company defending the baggage train, which will be assaulted by Royalist cavalry. After we’ve shown them off (*shakes fist*) we’ll then join the rest of the Armie of Parliament to give the Royalist army a bit of a kicking. Huzzah!

[leonhartkonigs]

Humming away in the kitchen when this one popped into my head. Rather a nostalgic song for me as we used to have it on a tape with quite a number of other songs when I was very young. Whenever I had a nightmare as a young child, my mother would put on this song (at my request) and it calmed me down. As such I have rather a soft spot for it. EDIT: I should point out that the version we had all those years ago was not sung by Julie Andrews, I just rather liked this version.

[leonhartkonigs]

In 1948, as T.S. Eliot was departing for Stockholm to accept the Nobel Prize, a reporter asked which of his books had occasioned the honor.

Eliot: I believe it’s given for the entire corpus.

The reporter: And when did you publish that?

Eliot later commented: It really might make a good title for a mystery — The Entire Corpus.

[history-museum]

Soldier and cat, 1940, [499x312] history-museum.tumblr.com

[leonhartkonigs]

What’s in a voice?

Excuse me whilst I descend into musing but... It’s terribly bizzare to compare how you sound in your head to when you hear yourself in a recording. What’s quite odd as well is how other people hear you. I should, by rights, have a Brightonian accent. My father is from Brighton, my mother from Hampshire, yet I’ve ended up with, what was termed by a colleague yesterday, as a ‘posh voice’. It appears my accent counts as ‘Received Pronunciation’ or what has been termed, to me, as a ‘Radio 4′ accent - I was even informed that I should be reading books aloud late at night on the radio. I’m not sure about the ‘late at night’ part, oo-err, but still a nice compliment to receive. Why do I bring this up? This evening I stumbled across a video from summer 2014 on YouTube. The video is nothing overly exciting to the average person, just something related to an online gaming thing, where I did quite a lot of speaking. Just funny to listen to my voice, how it moderates depending on the situation and worst of all... that damned laugh of mine.

[book-historia]

I recently wrote a post for the University of Edinburgh’s Rare Books Blog about this lovely incunable, a Koberger Bible printed in Berlin in 1483, and how it serves as an interesting intersection between manuscript and print. Give it a read!

I just wanted to share a few pictures here that didn’t make the final cut for the post- check out the plague of locusts and the Armageddon scene!

[historyfan]

A wonderfully written piece by my wife for the University of Edinburgh’s Centre for Research Collections Rare Books Blog. Check it out!

[leonhartkonigs]

Tower Hamlets Trayned Bandes on Monday, 4th May, 2015 in Newark’s market square, preparing to march off after the grand parade held to commemorate the opening of the Civil War Centre. Easily identified by my blue singlet beneath my red souldiers coate, I was having a whale of a time in the musket block (’sleeve of shotte’). I’m dressed in my full kit, something I never do for battles (as things get broken!). I do still lack some equipment, such as a water bottle & I need my own ‘collar of boxes’, the bandolier with the pots hanging from it as well as a powder flask, but after 2 seasons reenacting, I’m pretty much there with my kit. The whole weekend was a cracking one - on the Saturday we were ordered to occupy Newark’s pubs in order to inhabit the place with C17 AD ECW soldiers, whilst on Sunday we displayed an early siege of Newark. On the Monday we paraded as above before our afternoon battle which involved the third siege of Newark, which lasted until Charles Stuart surrendered to the Scots & news reached the forces at Newark. Next on the list is Naseby in June, the 370th anniversay. I know it will come round quickly but I can not wait for it.

[titam]

Madame de la Sabliere by Pierre Mignard

[leonhartkonigs]

Oh goodness...

Ages since I last posted but goodness knows if anyone reads what I have to say. Anyhow, it’s ‘crunch’ time. 3 major assignments to do in 4 weeks; experiment for Psychology, questionnaire for Sociology (fortunately the survey has been completed) and an essay for History. Then there’s a 1,000 word essay on reviewing my future (woo...), preparation for a Sociology exam I missed in the first term due to illness/surgery and to make sure everything else is tied up for when I finish. Getting horribly close to the finishing line - just 4 1/2 weeks to go and then that’ll be it, the end of my year on this Access course and hopefully off to university in September.

Fingers crossed it’ll be fine...