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Sunday, December 16, 2012

Carousing will catch up with you

The Huns were a nomadic people who are though to have originated in Central Asia.  By 370 AD they had migrated into Europe.  They formed a unified empire for the first time under the rule of a single King in 447.  That King's name is still synonomous with brutality today - Attila the Hun.

Attila ruled from 433 until his death in 453.  Orginally his brother Bleda ruled half the tribe and Atilla the other, until Bleda's death in 447 when Atilla became the sole King.

(Public domain image sourced from Wikipedia)


Attila was known as Flagellum Dei by the Romans (Scourge of God).  He spent much of his reign waging war across Europe, burning and pillaging in his wake.  His actions are partially behind the fall of the Roman Empire.  At its height Attila's empire stretched from the Ural river to the Rhine.

However it's Attila's death which is of interest today.

Monday, December 10, 2012

A bridge too far

Your correspondent recently went on a journey to the land of the long white cloud.  During that sojourn she observed the following historic bridge and heard a story about a nurse named Edith Cavell.


What does a nurse have to do with a bridge? Read on..