Both Sides the Border ; 1400 A.D.

A Tale of Hotspur and Glendower

By G. A. Henty

This is a brilliant story of the stirring times of the beginning of the Wars of the Roses, when the Scotch, under Douglas, and the Welsh, under Owen Glendower, were attacking the English. The hero of the book lived near the Scotch border, and saw many a hard fight there. Entering the service of Lord Percy, he was sent to Wales, where he was knighted, and where he was captured. Being released, he returned home, and shared in the fatal battle of Shrewsbury.

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PREFACE



THE four opening years of the fifteenth century were among
the most stirring in the history of England. Owen Glendower carried
fire and slaughter among the Welsh marches, captured most of the strong
places held by the English, and foiled three invasions led by the king himself.
The northern borders were invaded by Douglas, who, after devastating a
large portion of Northumberland, Cumberland, and Durham, was defeated and
taken prisoner at the battle of Homildon by the Earl of Northumberland and
his son Hotspur. Then followed the strange and unnatural coalition between the
Percys, Douglas of Scotland, Glendower of Wales, and Sir Edmund Mortimer a coalition
that would assuredly have overthrown the king, erected the young Earl of March as
a puppet monarch under the tutelage of the Percys, and secured the independence of Wales,
had the royal forces arrived one day later at Shrewsbury, and so allowed the
confederate armies to unite. King Henry's victory there, entailing the death of Hotspur
and the capture of Douglas, put an end to this formidable insurrection;
for although the Earl of Northumberland twice subsequently raised the banner of revolt,
these risings were easily crushed ; while Glendower's power waned, and order, never again
to be broken, was at length restored in Wales. The continual state of unrest and chronic
warfare between the inhabitants of both sides of the border was full of adventures
as stirring and romantic as that in which the hero of the story took part.

G. A. HENTY.




 

The lion of St. Mark; a story of Venice in the fourteenth century

The Lion of St. Mark; a story of Venice in the fourteenth century

By G.A. Henty

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MY DEAR LADS,

Of all the chapters of history there are few more interesting or wonderful
than that which tells the story of the rise and progress of Venice. Built upon a
few sandy islands in a shallow lagoon, and originally founded by fugitives from the
mainland, Venice became one of the greatest and most respected powers of Europe.
She was mistress of the sea ; conquered and ruled over a considerable territory bordering
on the Adriatic; checked the rising power of the Turks ; conquered Constantinople;
successfully defied all the attacks of her jealous rivals to shake her power; and carried on
a trade relatively as great as that of England in the present day. I have laid my story in the
time not of the triumphs of Venice, but of her hardest struggle for existence
when she defended herself successfully against the coalition of Hungary, Padua, and Genoa
for never at any time were the virtues of Venice, her steadfastness, her patriotism, and her
willingness to make all sacrifice for her independence more brilliantly shown. The historical portion
of the story is drawn from Hazlitt's History of the Republic of Venice, and with it I have woven
the adventures of an English boy endowed with a full share of that energy and pluck which,
more than any other qualities, have made the British empire the greatest the world ever saw.

Yours sincerely,

G. A. HENTY.



About the Winged Lion of Saint Mark

The winged lion is the symbol of St. Mark, the patron saint of Venice.
St. Mark is associated with the lion because he described the voice of
John the Baptist as sounding like a roaring lion. The lion symbol was
later depicted with wings because of a vision in which Ezekial saw four
winged creatures "And every one had four faces: the first face was the face of a cherub,
and the second face was the face of a man, and the third the face of a
lion, and the fourth the face of an eagle." Ezekiel 10:14.
These creatures came to be associated with the four evangelists
(Matthew=man, Mark=lion, Luke=ox, John=eagle).

Mark is traditionally represented by the Lion for a couple of reasons, or
these are a couple of reasons given for the representation.  The first
associated with it is that Mark starts with John the Baptist "crying out
in the wilderness" the association has been made by some between that
voice of John and the roar of the lion which cries out of the wilderness.
The wings on all of the symbols of the gospels are to symbolize their
connection to the divine, like eagles wings or angels (who were the messengers
of God) they deliver  this story and good news.Matthew is portrayed
as the man because many believe we get a picture of Jesus living with us and as
one of us in Matthew. John is portrayed as the Eagle and to read John the
reason if fairly self evident.  John is the ethereal gospel where we get
the long prayers of Jesus, and we see Jesus portrayed more in his divinity and
carrying out his divine purpose. Luke is portrayed as a bull.  Luke's
gospel, as he says in the beginning, is to put down a most orderly account.

Vision of God’s Glory Departing from the Temple

St. George for England 1340 AD

St. George for England
A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers By G.A. Henty

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Mt Dear Lads,

You may be told perhaps that there ia no good to be obtained from tales
of fighting and bloodshed, that there is no moral to be drawn from many histories.
Believe it not. War has its lessons as well as Peace. You will learn from tales
like this that determination and enthusiasm can accomplish marvels, that true courage
is generally accompanied by magnanimity and gentleness, and that if not in itself
the very highest of virtues, it is the parent of almost all the others, since but few
of them can he practiced without it. The courage of our forefathers has created the
greatest empire in the world around a small and in itself insignificant island; if
this empire is ever lost, it will be by the cowardice of their descendants.
At no period of her history did England stand so high in the eyes of Europe as in
the time whose events are recorded in this volume. A chivalrous king and an even more
chivalrous prince had infected the whole people with their martial spirit, and the result
was that their armies were for a time invincible, and the most astonishing successes were
gained against numbers which would appear overwhelming. The victories of Gressy and
Poitiers may be to some extent accounted for by superior generalship and discipline on the
part of the conquerors; but this will not account for the great naval victory over
the Spanish fleet off the coast of Sussex, a victory even more surprising and won against
greater odds than was that gained in the same waters centuries later over the Spanish Armada.
The historical facta of the story are all drawn from Froissart and other contemporary
historians, as collated and compared by Mr. James in his carefully written history.
They may therefore bo relied upon as accurate in every important particular.

Yours sincerely,

G. A. HENTY.

Creation Primer Lesson VI - the glory of God is the light

When he moved he made sound. There is light. There is darkness

He defined the light. He named it Day.

He defined the darkness. He named it Night.

Evening and morning make the first day.

The light and the darkness

Sources of light

• A source of light makes its own light. The glory of God is the source of all light. The sun and other stars, fires, torches and lamps all make their own light and so are examples of sources of light.
• Remember! You must never look directly at the sun. It is so bright that it can damage your eyes very quickly.
• Some animals, such as fireflies and glow-worms, are light sources. They make their own light to attract mates.
• A mirror is not a source of light. It doesn’t make its own light, it just reflects light.
• The moon is not a source of light. It reflects light from the sun.
• You would not be able to see a reflector of light, such as a mirror, in a completely dark room.

2. Seeing objects

• We see a light source when light from the source enters our eyes.
• When light from a light source hits an object, it is reflected (bounces off) and enters our eyes. This is how we see the object.

Genesis 1

1In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

2And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

3And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.

4And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.

5And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.

Creation Primer Lesson VII - God is the heavy weight!

God created the heaven and the earth. They were created before they were. When it was dark and void God had the plan. He is the light to lighten the dark. God is the law to validate the void. He is the source of all the forces, the source from above! He is the "Heavy Weight" of all mass. He gives weight, length, and capacity to all things.

BBC has nice lessons, games and worksheets HERE.

Forces in action

1. Gravity

• The force that makes things fall to the ground on Earth is called gravity.
• Gravity also holds Earth and the other planets in their orbits around the Sun.
• The force of gravity also exists on the moon but it is not as strong as it is on the Earth (this is because the moon is much smaller than the Earth).

2. Mass and weight

• The mass of an object is how much matter it contains. It is measured in grams (g) or kilograms (kg) but is NOT a force.
• The weight of an object is the force caused by gravity pulling down on the mass of an object. It is measured in Newtons (N).
• Weight is measured using a forcemeter. The bigger the weight attached to the forcemeter, the more the spring inside the forcemeter stretches.

3. Balanced forces

• Forces are just pushes and pulls in a particular direction.
• Forces are shown by arrows in diagrams. The direction of the arrow shows the direction in which the force is acting. The bigger the arrow, the bigger the force.
• If two forces are balanced, it means the forces are the same size but are acting in opposite directions.
• If two balanced forces are acting on an object, that object will not change its motion. If it is still, it will stay still. If it is moving, it will continue moving, in the same direction and at the same speed.

4. Unbalanced forces

• Unbalanced forces can make objects start to move, speed up, slow down, or change direction.

Genesis 1

1In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

2And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

3And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.

4And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.

5And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.

St. George of England

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Dear Lads,

It is sometimes said that there is no good to be obtained from
tales of fighting and bloodshed, that there is no moral to be drawn from
such histories. Believe it not War has its lessons as well as Peace.
You will learn from tales like this that determination and enthusiasm
can accomplish marvels, that true courage is generally accompanied by
magnanimity and gentleness, and that if not in itself the very highest
of virtues, it is the parent of almost all the others, since but few of
them can be practised without it. The courage of our forefathers has created
the greatest empire in the world around a small and in itself insignificant
island; if this empire is ever lost, it will be by the cowardice of
their descendants. At no period of her history did England stand so high in
the eyes of Europe as in the time whose events are recorded in this volume.
A chivalrous king and an even more chivalrous prince had infected the whole
people with their martial spirit, and the result was that their armies were for
a time invincible, and the most astonishing successes were gained against numbers
which would appear overwhelming. The victories of Cressy and Poitiers may be to some
extent accounted for by superior generalship and discipline on the part of the
conquerors; but this will not account for the great naval victory over the Spanish
fleet off the coast of Sussex, a victory even more surprising and won against
greater odds than was that gained, in the same waters centuries later,
over the Spanish Armada. The historical facts of the story are all drawn from
Froissart and other contemporary historians, as collated and compared by Mr. James
in his carefully written history. They may therefore be relied upon as accurate
in every important particular.

G. A. HENTY.

The Roman Army

The Roman Army
By Allison K. Halliday

Here come the Roman Legionaries,
With their fine Lorica and proud airs;
Conquered nations from shore to shore,
They brought back treasures from each war.

Here come the Roman charioteers,
With their gold Galea and gleaming spears;
Feared to be targeted by their wrath,
Countries couldn't stand in their path.

Here comes the Roman Army,
For them I feel terribly sorry;
The Great I Am governs sea and shore,
That is why Rome strives no more.

Couplet

A couplet is a pair of lines of verse. It usually consists of two lines that rhyme and have the same meter. While traditionally couplets rhyme, not all do. A poem may use white space to mark out couplets if they do not rhyme. Couplets with a meter of iambic pentameter are called heroic couplets. The Poetic epigram is also in the couplet form. Couplets can also appear in more complex rhyme schemes. For example, Shakespearean sonnets end with a couplet.

Rhyming couplets are one of the simplest rhyme schemes in poetry. Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales are written in rhyming couplets. John Dryden in the 17th century and Alexander Pope in the 18th century were both well known for their writing in heroic couplets.

Because the rhyme comes so quickly in rhyming couplets, it tends to call attention to itself. Good rhyming couplets tend to "snap" as both the rhyme and the idea come to a quick close in two lines. Here are some examples of rhyming couplets where the sense as well as the sound "rhymes":

True wit is nature to advantage dress'd;

What oft was thought, but ne'er so well express'd.

— Alexander Pope

Whether or not we find what we are seeking

is idle, biologically speaking.

— Edna St. Vincent Millay (at the end of a sonnet)

On the other hand, because rhyming couplets have such a predictable rhyme scheme, they can feel artificial and plodding. Here is a Pope parody of the predictable rhymes of his era:

Where-e'er you find "the cooling western breeze,"

In the next line, it "whispers through the trees;"

If crystal streams "with pleasing murmurs creep,"

The readers threatened (not in vain) with "sleep."

(By Wikipedia)

BBC Romans
BBC Primary History Romans

In Freedom's Cause

The LORD doth build up Jerusalem: he gathereth together the outcasts of Israel.
He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.
Psalm 147:2-3

In Freedom's Cause, A story of Wallace and Bruce.

At the end of the 13th century, the oppressed Scots rebelled against England under the leadership of William Wallace and Robert Bruce. This gripping tale of courage, loyalty, and ingenuity takes readers into heroic company with a fictional protagonist, young Archie Forbes, who fights alongside the legendary heroes.

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MY DEAR LADS, 

There are few figures in history who have individually exercised so
great an influence upon events as William Wallace and Eobert Bruce.
It was to the extraordinary personal courage,indomitable perseverance,
and immense energy of these two men that Scotland owed her freedom
from English domination. So surprising were the traditions of the feats
performed by these heroes that it was at one time the fashion to
treat them as belonging as purely to legend as the feats of St.George
or King Arthur. Careful investigation, however, has shown that so
far from this being the case, almost every deed reported to have been
performed by them is verified by contemporary historians.
Sir William Wallace had the especial bad fortune of having come
down to us principally by the writings of his bitter enemies,
and even modern historians, who should have taken a fairer view
of his life, repeated the cry of the old English writers that he was
a blood-thirsty robber. Mr. W. Burns, however, in his masterly and exhaustive
work, The Scottish War of Independence, has torn these calumnies to
shreds, and has displayed Wallace as he was, a high-minded and noble patriot.
While consulting other writers, especially those who wrote at the
time of or but shortly after the events they record, I have for the
most part followed Burns in all the historical portions of the narrative.
Throughout the story, therefore, wherein it at all relates to Wallace, Bruce, and
the other historical characters, the circumstances and events can be relied
upon as strictly accurate, save only in the earlier events of the career
of Wallace, of which the details that have come down to us are somewhat conflicting,
although the main features are now settled past question.

Yours very sincerely,

G. A. HENTY.




 

1190 A.D. Winning His Spurs: A Tale of the Crusades

Winning His Spurs: A Tale of the Crusades

Mr. Henty weaves a story of the life and times of King Richard the Lionhearted that is yet to be equalled. Cuthbert de Lance, the hero of the story, is of Norman blood on his father's side and Saxon by his mother. By timely aid to the Earl of Evesham, Cuthbert is rewarded by being allowed to go to the Crusade as his page. He gains a reputation for valor and prowess due to gallant deeds and his resourcefulness not only helps King Richard but aids Cuthbert in many a 'hairbreadth escape'.




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When King Richard the first (The Lionhearted) came to the throne he first adopted his personal arms of two lions rampant on a red field, however by the end of his life he had adopted a shield with three lions passant, on a red field. The origin of the third lion is unclear. According to one tradition, the extra lion was added to two existing Norman lions to represent the combined Anglo-Norman realm. According to another tradition the two leopards were combined with the single leopard of Aquitaine, as Henry II, the first Angevin king, had acquired the duchy of Acquitaine by marriage before inheriting the throne of England. Other heraldic authorities have claimed that at an early stage in the development of heraldry the number of Norman lions was not fixed and that it is simply a matter of design as to why England has ended up with three heraldic lions and Normandy with two. (Wikipedia)

Wulf the Saxon 1066 A.D.

Almighty Lord, Who is the beginning and the end, the Alpha and the Omega. Guide us in this hour of learning, grant us thy strength and wisdom, that we may use it to Glorify thee in all we do; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, life everlasting. Amen.


Wulf the Saxon

Wulf of Steyning is a young Saxon thane who falls into the retinue of Earl Harold. After Edward the Confessor dies, Harold becomes King of England, and Wulf joins him in heroic fighting against the invading Normans at the famous Battle of Hastings.





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My dear Lads,

Although the immediate results of the Battle of Hastings may have been of less importance to the world than were those of some other great battles, the struggle has, in the long run, had a greater influence upon the destiny of mankind than any other similar event that has ever taken place. That admixture of Saxon, Danish, and British races which had come to be known under the general name of English, was in most respects far behind the rest of Europe. The island was, as it had always been, except during the rule of two or three exceptionally strong kings, distracted by internal dissensions. Broad lines of division still separated the North from the South, and under weak Kings the powerful Earls became almost independent. The enterprise that had distinguished their Saxon and Danish ancestors seems to have died out. There was a general indisposition to change, and except in her ecclesiastical buildings, England made but little progress in civilization from the time of Alfred to that of Harold. Its insular position cut it off from taking part in that rapid advance which, beginning in Italy, was extending throughout
Europe. The arrival, however, of the impetuous Norman race, securing as it did a close connection with the Continent, quickened the intellect of the people, raised their intelligence,
was of inestimable benefit to the English, and played a most important part in raising England among the nations. Moreover, it has helped to produce the race that has peopled Northern America, Australia, and the south of Africa, holds possession of India, and stands forth as the greatest civilizer in the world. The Conquest of England by the Normans was achieved without even a shadow of right or justice. It was at the time an unmixed curse to England ; but now we can recognize the enormous benefits that accrued when in his turn the Englishman conquered the Norman, and the foreign invaders became an integral portion of the people they had overcome. For the historical details of the story, I have only had to go to Freeman's magnificent History of the Norman Conquest of England which I hope will be perused by all my older readers should they be able to obtain it.

Yours sincerely,

G. A. Henty,

The Dragon and the Raven 870 A.D.

The Dragon and the Raven:
In a time of chaos and Viking onslaught, Alfred the untested Saxon king, must fight to save his ravished land. The tale unfurls through the eyes of a young thane, Edmond, who becomes Alfred's friend and mightiest warrior. When Danes over run the land and the Saxons capitulate, this young knight trains and leads a devoted corps of pike-men to recapture the kingdom.
On his adventures Edmond is captured by the Pagan Danes, raises the siege of Paris, meets the Pope and still finds time to fall in love. Henty successfully weaves this plot of intrigue and suspense into the fabric of true history.

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Dear Lads 

Dear Lads 

Living in the present days of peace and tranquility it is difficult to picture the life of our ancestors in the days of King Alfred, when the whole country was for years overrun by hordes of pagan barbarians, who slaughtered, plundered, and destroyed at will.  You may gain, perhaps, a fair conception of the state of things if you imagine that at the time of the great mutiny the English population of India approached that of the natives, and that the mutiny was everywhere triumphant. The wholesale massacres and outrages which would in such a case have been inflicted upon the conquered whites could be no worse than those suffered by the Saxons at the hands of the Danes. From this terrible state of subjection and suffering the Saxons were rescued by the prudence, the patience, the valour and wisdom of King Alfred.  In all subsequent ages England has produced no single man who united in himself so many great qualities as did this the first of great Englishmen. He was learned, wise, brave, prudent, and pious; devoted to his people, clement to his conquered enemies. He was as great in peace as in war; and yet few English boys know more than a faint outline of the events of Alfred's reign events which have exercised an influence upon the whole future of the English people. School histories pass briefly over them ; and the incident of the burned cake is that which is, of all the actions of a great and glorious reign, the most prominent in boys' minds.  In this story I have tried to supply the deficiency. Fortunately in the Saxon Chronicles and in the life of King Alfred written by his friend and counselor Asser, we have a trustworthy account of the events and battles which first laid Wessex prostrate beneath the foot of the Danes, and finally freed England for many years from the invaders. These histories I have faithfully followed. The account of the siege of Paris is taken from a very full and detailed history of that event by the Abbe' D'Abbon, who was a witness of the scenes he described.

G. A. HENTY. 

For the Temple A.D. 70

For the Temple:
MY DEAR LADS,
In all history there is no drama of more terrible interest than that which terminated with the total destruction of Jerusalem. Had the whole Jewish
nation joined in the desperate resistance made by a section of it to the overwhelming strength of Home, the world would have had no record of truer patriotism than that displayed by this small people in their resistance to the forces of the mistress of the world. Unhappily the reverse of this was the case. Except in the defense of Jotapata and Gamala, it can scarcely be said that the Jewish people as a body offered any serious resistance to the arms of Rome. The defenders of Jerusalem were a mere fraction of its population, a fraction composed almost entirely of turbulent characters and robber bands, who fought with the fury of desperation, after having placed themselves beyond the pale of forgiveness or mercy by the deeds of unutterable cruelty with which they had desolated the city before its siege by the Romans. They fought, it is true, with unflinching courage, a courage never surpassed in history, but it was the courage of despair, and its result was to bring destruction upon the whole population as well as upon themselves. Fortunately the narrative of Josephus, an eye-witness of the events which he describes, has come down to us; and it is the store- house from which all subsequent histories of the events have been drawn. It is no doubt tinged throughout by his desire to stand well with his patrons Vespasian and Titus, but there is no reason to doubt the accuracy of his descriptions. I have endeavored to present you with as vivid a picture as possible of the events of the war without encumbering the story with details, and except as regards the exploits of John of Gamala, of whom Josephus says nothing, have strictly followed in every particular the narrative of the historian.
Yours sincerely,
G. A. HENTY.

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The story weaves an admirable and attractive story from the record of Josephus. The troubles in the district of Tiberias, the march of the legions, the sieges of Jotapata, of Gamala, and of Jerusalem, for the impressive and carefully studied historic setting to the figure of the lad who passes from the vineyard to the service of Josephus, becomes the leader of a guerrilla band of patriots, fights bravely for the Temple, and after a brief term of slavery at Alexandria, returns to his Galilean home with the favor of Titus.

Date: 70 A.D.
Location: Asia, Palestine
Main Event: Roman-Jewish War

• Siege of Jerusalem
• Temple Mount
  

• A.D. 70 and Christian eschatology: "Those who claim that Jesus Christ's Second Advent, and the final resurrection and judgment of the just and unjust occurred in A. D. 70, assault the Bible and the Faith. Acts 1:11 tells us that Jesus will return just as he ascended — bodily and visibly, with his disciples gazing at him, and we know that this has not yet happened in history. He is to come "[i]n flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ" (2 Thes. 1:8). Likewise, 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 declares:

  For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

  This teaches that the final physical resurrection of the redeemed will occur when Christ returns, with great royal fanfare: "a shout and voice of the archangel, and the trump of God." This is the announcement of the King's return to his earthly jurisdiction. It is a physical coming creating momentous physical consequences: resurrection of bodies, and the equipment of the redeemed for the eternal state and the unredeemed for eternal perdition. It concludes human history."

Roman England

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_conquest_of_Britain
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_Britain




http://www.timetraveltours.net/Documents/Roman_Tour.pdf

Creation Primer Lesson V - God sings a song!

Gen 1:2

And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness [was] upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

Have you ever wondered how God created sound? He moved. Movement is necessary in order to create vibration. vibration travels and this is sound! God is the creator and the conductor!

Here is a great activity on sound:

AD 61 Beric the Briton: A Story of the Roman Invasion

Beric the Briton:

MY DEAR LADS,

My series of stories dealing with the wars of England would be altogether incomplete did it not include the period when the Romans were the masters of the country. The valor with which the natives of this island defended themselves was acknowledged by the Roman historians, and it was only the superior discipline of the invaders that enabled them finally to triumph over the bravery and the superior physical strength of the Britons. The Roman conquest for the time was undoubtedly of immense advantage to the people--who had previously wasted their energies in perpetual tribal wars-- as it introduced among them the civilization of Rome. In the end, however, it proved disastrous to the islanders, who lost all their military virtues. Having been defended from the savages of the north by the soldiers of Rome, the Britons were, when the legions were recalled, unable to offer any effectual resistance to the Saxons, who, coming under the guise of friendship, speedily became their masters, imposing a yoke infinitely more burdensome than that of Rome, and erasing almost every sign of the civilization that had been engrafted upon them. How far the British population disappeared under the subsequent invasion and the still more oppressive yoke of the Danes is uncertain; but as the invaders would naturally desire to retain the people to cultivate the land for them, it is probable that the great mass of the Britons were not exterminated. It is at any rate pleasant to believe that with the Saxon, Danish, and Norman blood in our veins, there is still a large admixture of that of the valiant warriors who fought so bravely against Caesar, and who rose under Boadicea in a desperate effort to shake off the oppressive rule of Rome.

Yours truly,

G. A. Henty

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The invasion of Britain by the Roman legionaries is the setting for this story. Beric, a boy-chief of a British tribe, takes a prominent part in the insurrection against Rome under Boadicea. These efforts are useless against the mighty Roman army. For a short time, Beric and his companions continue the fight but are ultimately defeated and taken prisoners to Rome.
Through the eyes of Beric, the reader will learn of life in Rome, the gladiatorial schools, the great fire and life in Nero’s court. This classic work by the masterful hand of G. A. Henty will shed light upon an event much neglected in history today.

Date: 61 A.D.
Location: Britain
Main Event: Roman Conquest

Additional review of GA Henty's Beric the Briton

Creation Primer Lesson IV - God starts the clock!

When did "Time " start? When God moved of course!

Click on the Creation Primer worksheets to enlarge.

Hannibal

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

Hannibal, son of Hamilcar Barca
248–183 or 182 BC
A marble bust, reputedly of Hannibal, originally found at the ancient city-state of Capua in Italy. Some historians doubt the authenticity of the portrait.[1][2][3][4][5]
Allegiance	Carthaginian Empire
Rank	General, commander-in-chief of the Carthaginian armies
Battles/wars	Second Punic War: Battle of Lake Trasimene, Battle of Trebia, Battle of Cannae, Battle of Zama

Hannibal, son of Hamilcar Barca,^{[n 1]} (248–183 or 182 BC^{[n 2]}), commonly known as Hannibal (in Punic: Annobal,^{[dubious – discuss]} meaning "Ba'al's grace/help/blessing")^{[7][8][9][10]} was a Carthaginian military commander and tactician who is popularly credited as one of the most talented commanders in history. His father Hamilcar Barca was the leading Carthaginian commander during the First Punic War, his younger brothers were Mago and Hasdrubal, and he was brother-in-law to Hasdrubal the Fair.

Hannibal lived during a period of tension in the Mediterranean, when Rome (then the Roman Republic) established its supremacy over other great powers such as Carthage, and the Hellenistic kingdoms of Macedon, Syracuse, and the Seleucid empire. One of his most famous achievements was at the outbreak of the Second Punic War, when he marched an army, which included war elephants, from Iberia over the Pyrenees and the Alps into northern Italy. In his first few years in Italy, he won three dramatic victories Trebia, Trasimene and Cannae and won over several Roman allies. Hannibal occupied much of Italy for 15 years, however a Roman counter-invasion of North Africa forced Hannibal to return to Carthage, where he was decisively defeated by Scipio Africanus at the Battle of Zama. Scipio studied Hannibal's tactics and brilliantly devised some of his own, and finally defeated Rome's nemesis at Zama having previously driven Hasdrubal, Hannibal's brother, out of Spain.

After the war Hannibal successfully ran for the office of suffete. He enacted political and financial reforms to enable the payment of the war indemnity imposed by Rome. However, Hannibal's reforms were unpopular with members of the Carthaginian aristocracy and Rome, and he fled into voluntary exile. During his exile, he lived at the Seleucid court, where he acted as military advisor to Antiochus III in his war against Rome. After Antiochus met defeat and was forced to accept Rome's terms, Hannibal fled again, making a stop in Armenia. His flight ended in the court of Bithynia, where he achieved an outstanding naval victory against a fleet from Pergamum. He was afterwards betrayed to the Romans.

Often regarded as the greatest military tactician and strategist in history, Hannibal would later be considered as one of the greatest generals of antiquity, together with Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Scipio, and Pyrrhus of Epirus. Plutarch gives that, when questioned by Scipio as to who was the greatest general, Hannibal is said to have replied either Alexander, Pyrrhus, then himself,^[11] or, according to another version of the event, Pyrrhus, Scipio, then himself.^[12] Military historian Theodore Ayrault Dodge once famously called Hannibal the "father of strategy",^[13] because his greatest enemy, Rome, came to adopt elements of his military tactics in its own strategic arsenal. This praise has earned him a strong reputation in the modern world and he was regarded as a "gifted strategist" by men like Napoleon Bonaparte and the Duke of Wellington. His life has been the basis for a number of films and documentaries.

He has been attributed with the famous quotation, "We will either find a way, or make one."^{[dubious – discuss]}

BBC Hannibal:

Born in 247 BC, Hannibal became commander of the Carthaginian forces in Spain, in succession to his father Hamilcar in 221 BC. At the time, Rome and Carthage were moving towards the outbreak of the second of the three so-called Punic wars (264-241 BC, 218-201 BC, and 149-146 BC) through which their conflict over the control of the western Mediterranean was eventually decided.

Hannibal took the war to Rome, and in May 218 BC conquered northern Spain before crossing the Alps in the autumn with 50,000 infantry, 9,000 cavalry and, famously, 37 elephants. In Italy he fought a protracted campaign, winning three huge victories over the Roman armies sent against him: at Trebbia in December 218 BC, Late Trasimene in 217 BC (where 15,000 Romans were killed and another 10,000 captured) and, greatest of all, at Cannae in 216 BC.

Here, Hannibal showed the mastery of the combined use of infantry and cavalry for which he was famous to surround and annihilate a huge Roman army. Of perhaps 70,000 Romans, only 14,500 survived to be taken prisoner at the end of the day. It is the greatest number of casualties suffered in a single battle by any western army before or since.

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