What began as the religious mission of one man became one of modern China’s most pivotal historical events. The Taiping Rebellion (1850-64) destabilised the Manchu Qing Dynasty, devastated the southern regions of China, saw the death of around 20,000,000 and would later act as inspiration for revolutionaries such as Sun Yat-Sen and Chairman Mao, shaping Continue Reading
Halloween: A History
‘[Halloween] is thought to be a night when witches, devils, and other mischief-making beings…hold a grand anniversary.’ Robert Burns, Halloween, 1785 Although the entomology behind the word ‘Halloween’ is Christian – derivative of All Hallow Even, or the eve of All Saint’s Day – Halloween’s roots go back to the Gaelic festival of Samhain. Continue Reading
The Sacking of Constantinople in 1204
In 1198, Pope Innocent III was elected to the papal throne. After the devastating loss of Jerusalem in 1187 to Saladin’s forces, Innocent made the recapture of the Holy City his primary concern and issued the call for a fourth Crusade. Christians saw Egypt as being the key to the recapture of Jerusalem because of Continue Reading
Revolution in Hong Kong?
As most people will know, Hong Kong is going through unprecedented political turbulence at the moment – the main roads and the subway system in Central, Hong Kong’s financial district, is currently occupied by three movements: The Occupy Central movement, HKFS and Scholarism (the latter two being student bodies). In fact, the ‘Umbrella protests’ – Continue Reading
History Society Update
Hi from the History Society committee! We hope everything is going well for everyone as we come to the middle of semester one. The pub quiz that happened on Tuesday 14th October at 256 was a massive success! It was the perfect opportunity for everyone to get to know each other better – staff Continue Reading