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Why British Empire was a good thing… according to contemporary newspapers

A recent study showed that 44% of people in Britain people think that “we should be proud of British colonialism”. Considering the Empire’s sketchy past of violence and massacres, this was a shock result. Subscribe for just £12.95 –> At the time, as today, people were mainly supportive of British rule overseas, though it would be fair to assume they didn’t know the full extent of the chaos it wrought. For some, the empire’s steady decline after World War 2 would have been

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How to live to 100 : History’s centenarians reveal their secrets

And so, as with every New Year, we welcome the quinoa-packed saucepans, virtuous jars of coconut oil and the herbal remedies which, we hope, will push out the carbs and caffeine binges of last year. The supermarket queue displays a thousand promises of health, wealth and well-being from slim, smiling models. But in a world where a simple glass of red wine can have a thousand conflicting effects from self-declared health experts, what’s the real secret to longevity? Well, why not take a look

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The story of the 1914 Christmas Truce, as reported by WW1 newspapers

After watching Sainsbury’s Christmas advert, Kate Cole was inspired to research the real story behind WW1’s Christmas Truce. She used The British Newspaper Archive to unearth the experiences of soldiers on the Western Front in 1914.   **************   In December 1914, during first year of World War One, a remarkable event known as the Christmas Day Truce occurred in small pockets along the Western Front. 100 years later, one of Britain’s largest grocery shops has released a Christmas advert re-enacting

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The start of WW1: Austria-Hungary declares war

World War One officially started on 28 July 1914 when Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. There are currently 25 newspapers from 28 July 1914 available to view online at The British Newspaper Archive. You’ll find clippings from some of these newspapers below, showing how the start of the war was reported.   Explore newspapers from 1914   Austria-Hungary’s declaration of war starts WW1 The Serbian Prime Minister received a telegram at 12.30pm on 28 July 1914. It stated that ‘Austria-Hungary…

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Hull City play Arsenal in the 1930 FA Cup semi-final

The FA Cup final on Saturday 17 May 2014 will see a showdown between Arsenal and Hull City. This is the first time Hull have reached the final. Hull City’s greatest achievement in cup competitions up to this point was in 1930, when they reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup. Rather strangely, they also faced Arsenal in that match. The British Newspaper Archive is a great place to research football history as you’ll find original match reports and reactions

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