2020 has, so far, been a rather busy year of scares. A potential outbreak of World War III, bush fires in Australia, mad flooding in England, and now a coronavirus outbreak taking hold across the globe. Meanwhile, I continue on with the eclectic posts in my own little bubble engaging in historical debates and curiosities (until the virus gets me in my study!).

The posts of 2020 have been connected to ideas that started in the classroom. These include the one about how to best cover Holocaust Memorial Day, a “what if” history as to what would happen in Richard III won at Bosworth in 1485, as well as a possible theory as to why Switzerland did not grant women the vote until the 1970s. As always, I’m grateful for the fact that every day I happen to cover historical topics in the classroom with intelligent students who are able to pose useful questions and develop insightful interpretations (which I then “steal” and write about on this blog). Furthermore, another post – the last one from February – came out of a class topic on Albert Speer and the Nazi wartime economy.

A couple of posts relate to Cornish history specifically. This includes the so-called Athelstan Settlement of 936 AD, which could be incredibly important in terms of defining the boundary of the modern Cornish region. The second is adapted from a short article I wrote many years ago about Trematon Castle, near Saltash. I’ve intended to visit Trematon again at some point, especially in relation to the research I conduct a year or so ago on the earls of Cornwall in the medieval period.

Other posts also included regular “features” on the blog. January saw the fourteenth entry in the War World Cup, focusing on the French wars of Henry VIII. In February the English Monarchs FA Cup rumbled onward, this being the sixth part of the first Round (I’m sure it will end at some point in the 2020s). Also, I returned to a bit of family history research, resulting in another post about my great grandfather Sidney Levi Wildman: the Piccolo Player.

As always, there is a bit of this and a bit of that. Upcoming posts relate to some Nazi German topics that have been recently covered in the classroom (such as the Madagascar Plan and a discussion as to why Germany declared war on the USA), as well as on reasons for the decline in political participation, and hopefully some local history pieces on little bits that I’ve stumbled upon. Meanwhile, let’s keep our eyes peeled for more coronavirus news.