The Fearless Victorian Explorer Who Refused To Let Illness Stop Her

The Fearless Victorian Explorer Who Refused To Let Illness Stop Her

Today I want to tell you about a remarkable woman of the Victorian era, Isabella Bird. In an era when many women were expected to live quiet and restricted lives, Isabella travelled across some of the most difficult and remote parts of the world completely alone.

She was born on the 15th of October 1831 in Boroughbridge, Yorkshire, into the family of a clergyman. As a child she constantly moved when her father took up different church positions around England. Isabella was intelligent, outspoken, and curious about the world, but she also struggled with poor health. She suffered from back problems, headaches, and insomnia. Doctors believed that fresh air and travel might improve her condition, and this is something that would eventually shape the rest of her life.

In 1854, she travelled to the United States. For many Victorian women, this journey would have been intimidating and maybe even improper, but Isabella appeared to have love to explore new places. She turned the letters from her travels into books, and she gradually became known for her travel writing.

She travelled across places including Hawaii, Japan, China, Korea, India, Persia, and the Rocky Mountains of North America. In Colorado she rode hundreds of miles through dangerous terrain, often dressed practically and riding in ways that shocked many in Victorian society. I do admire her determination. Travel during the nineteenth century was tiring, uncomfortable, and sometimes dangerous, especially for a woman travelling alone.

In 1880, her sister Henrietta sadly died from typhoid, a loss that affected her badly. Isabella went on to marry Dr John Bishop, but he also sadly died only a few years later. During the late 1880s, Isabella’s health suffered another serious setback when she became ill with scarlet fever. It was dangerous infectious diseases in the Victorian era, especially for someone already weak. Many people may have expected her to slow down, but remarkably she recovered and rather than hiding away from the world, she threw herself even more into her travels and also humanitarian work. In Kashmir, she helped to establish a hospital for women in memory of her late husband.

After the death of her husband, Isabella even began studying medicine so that she could help the people she met during her travels even more, her journeys seem to no longer be only about exploration but also compassion.

By the 1890s, Isabella Bird had become one of the most famous travellers in Britain. She became the first woman to be admitted as a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, this  broke barriers in a world that was dominated by men. Even in her seventies, she was still planning new journeys.

She died in Edinburgh on the 7th of October 1904 at the age of 72, only a few days before what would have been her 73rd birthday on the 15th of October. She had only just returned from Morocco. She refused to let illness, grief, or Victorian expectations control her life. I sometimes wonder how many women of her era must have secretly dreamed of the freedom that Isabella Bird managed to find.

Do you think she was seen as inspiring during her lifetime, or too unconventional for many people to fully understand?

 

The Battle of Sluys And The Medieval Struggle For Control Of The Sea

The Battle of Sluys And The Medieval Struggle For Control Of The Sea

We have been finding out a bit about medieval disasters recently, it made me think about just how dangerous warfare, particularly at sea, could be during the Middle Ages.  So I thought we could explore the Battle of Sluys, one of the most devastating naval battles of the medieval period. The battle took place on the 24th of June 1340 near the port of Sluys in what is now Belgium. It happened during the early part of the Hundred Years’ War between England and France.

Image info:

Artist: Loyset Liédet

Title: Battle of Sluys, miniture

Date: 15th century

Collection: Bibliothèque nationale de France

The battle happened because both England and France were struggling for control of the English Channel. King Edward III of England needed safe sea routes so that he could move soldiers and supplies to the continent. The French hoped to weaken the English by threatening an invasion and by cutting off English trade. Tension between the two countries had been building for years, mostly over land, power, and Edward’s claim to the French throne. A major clash at sea felt inevitable.

The French fleet gathered near Sluys and chained many of their ships together to form what they thought would be a strong defensive barrier across the harbour entrance. They had a large fleet which was made up of warships, merchant vessels, and hired Genoese ships. Thousands of sailors, knights, archers, and soldiers were on them. Medieval ships were quite often packed tightly with people of all ages. Experienced knights fought alongside teenage squires, common sailors, and young archers who may only have been in their mid to late teens. Life at sea was already dangerous before any battle even began.

Edward III sailed with a large English fleet and arrived off the coast. Chroniclers suggest the battle lasted for many hours, possibly from late morning into the evening. The English had several advantages. Their ships were more mobile, and English longbowmen proved to be devastating to the French. As the fleets closed together, arrows rained down onto the French ships. Once the vessels locked together, they were forced into brutal hand-to-hand fighting. Many men met an horrific end.

The French defensive formation actually worked against them. Because so many vessels had been tied together, it became difficult to manoeuvre or escape once the panic began to spread. The English were able to attack ship after ship in succession. Edward III fought aggressively and he inspired confidence among his men, but confusion appears to have spread through parts of the French fleet.

The loss of life was catastrophic. Medieval chroniclers often exaggerated numbers, but thousands were believed to have died. Some estimates suggest over 15,000 French sailors and soldiers may have lost their lives, although the real figure was probably lower. Many men were unable to save themselves because of the heavy armour after they had fallen into the water. English losses were far smaller but still significant. Around 190 French ships were believed to have been captured, destroyed, or sunk.

The English victory changed the course of the war. Control of the Channel gave Edward III much greater freedom to invade France and continue his campaigns overseas. It also damaged the French naval strength for many years after and it reduced the immediate threat of a French invasion of England.

Unlike battles on land, there was often no escape at sea. If your ship sank, the cold water usually became your grave.

Do you think the French defeat at Sluys was unavoidable once they chained their fleet together, or could the battle have ended very differently with another strategy?

The Navy Nurse Who Sewed Hope Inside a Japanese Prison Camp

The Navy Nurse Who Sewed Hope Inside a Japanese Prison Camp

Today I have been learning a little more about some of the nurses who served during the World Wars. Today I want to talk about Goldia O’Haver.

 

Goldia Aimee O’Haver was born on the 3rd of December 1902 in Rock Island County, Illinois. In 1929, she joined the United States Navy as a surgical nurse. Nursing was already demanding work, but the world was moving ever closer to war and many military nurses found themselves facing dangers far beyond what they had expected.

 

During the Second World War, Goldia was stationed at Cañacao Hospital near Cavite Naval Base in the Philippines. In January 1942, after Japanese forces advanced into Manila, she and eleven other Navy nurses were captured. These women later became known as the “Twelve Anchors.”

 

In 1943, the nurses were transferred to the prison camp at Los Baños. Conditions were extremely harsh. Supplies were scarce, food was limited, and illness spread really easily. She continued to help others. She used small scraps of fabric and managed to create uniforms, sheets, gowns, and clothing for the patients in the camp hospital. Even in captivity, she still found ways to bring comfort and dignity to the people around her.

 

After more than three years as a prisoner, Goldia was finally liberated in February 1945. She was weak from malnutrition and she ended up being hospitalised in San Francisco. She received both a Gold Star and a Bronze Star for her wartime service.

 

Soon after the war, she married fellow former prisoner Robert Heath Merrill. She retired from the Navy Nurse Corps in 1946 and settled in California, where she lived until her death in 1997 at the age of 94.

 

 

The Victorian Journalist Who Revealed London’s Hidden World of Poverty

Today I want to tell you about someone exposed the hidden side of Victorian Britain, Henry Mayhew. At a time when many wealthy Victorians ignored the suffering around them, Mayhew walked into the poorest streets of London and listened to the people who lived there.

Henry Mayhew was born on the 25th of November 1812 in London, he was one of seventeen children. He went Westminster School, but he struggled to settle into an ordinary life and he eventually ran away to sea as a teenager. For a while he worked with the East India Company travelling to Calcutta. He saw different worlds and different hardships.

After he returned to Britain, he briefly trained in law in Wales, but it was journalism that attracted him the most. During the 1830s he began writing and creating satirical publications. He often struggled with money problems and at one point he ran away to Paris to escape his creditors. But he continued writing and he mixed with other authors and artists. His life was unstable, but his creativity was what kept him going.

The Victorian Journalist Who Revealed London’s Hidden World of Poverty

In 1841, Mayhew helped create the satirical magazine Punch alongside Mark Lemon. The magazine became famous for its humour and political cartoons. But success did not make him immediately financially secure and he was faced with bankruptcy. Which was something that must have been humiliating in Victorian society where they saw bankruptcy as failure.

In the late 1840s he began interviewing the poor of London for the Morning Chronicle. These investigations were then published as London Labour and the London Poor in 1851. Rather than simply describing poverty from a distance, Mayhew spoke directly to beggars, labourers, street sellers, prostitutes, mudlarks, and the children who were surviving on the edges of society. He described their homes, clothing, wages, fears, and daily struggles in incredible detail.

Victorian London was one of the richest cities in the world, but there were many people who were starving just streets away from all of the huge wealth. Mayhew forced readers to confront that reality. Some people were shocked and horrified by what he revealed. Other people were moved to donate money to help those he wrote about. His work also influenced later reformers and writers, including Charles Dickens, who shared his concerns for the poor.

Henry Mayhew died in London on the 25th of July 1887 at the age of 74. Today, his writing remains one of the clearest views into everyday Victorian life, especially of the people who were usually ignored by history. Without him, many of their voices may have been lost forever or maybe never even heard at all.

Do you think that Victorian society would have changed without people like Henry Mayhew who exposed the realities of the poor?

The White Ship Disaster 1120.

The White Ship Disaster 1120.

I have been talking about a few of the major disasters during the medieval period recently, and it got me thinking about how dangerous travel could be in the Middle Ages. So I started looking into some of the maritime disasters of the era. So I want to tell you about the sinking of the White Ship in 1120.

Image info:
The Sinking of the White Ship
Date: 1321

The White Ship sank in the English Channel near the coast of Barfleur in Normandy, in what is now part of northern France. King Henry I of England had been in Normandy and was preparing to return home. On the 25th of November 1120, many nobles, knights, and royal figures boarded the White Ship to return to England.

The ship was considered fast and modern for its time. It carried some of the wealthiest and most powerful people in England and Normandy, including William Adelin, the only legitimate son and heir of Henry I. There were also royal servants and young aristocrats connected to some of the most important families in England. Chroniclers later suggest that there had been heavy drinking among some of the crew and passengers but whether this is true is difficult to know.

Not long after they had set sail at night, disaster hit. The White Ship hit a submerged rock known as the Quillebœuf Rock just outside the harbour. The impact ripped apart the ship. Medieval ships had very limited safety measures and most people on board could not swim. Many of them were trapped under collapsing timber while others were thrown into the cold and icy sea.

William Adelin reportedly escaped in a small boat. But according to later accounts, when he heard the cries of his half-sister Matilda and the others calling for help, he turned back. The small boat became overwhelmed by desperate people trying to survive and it capsized. William sadly drowned alongside almost everyone else.

Only one man is believed to have survived, a butcher from Rouen named Berold, who managed to cling to some of the wreckage through the night. Around 300 people are thought to have died that night. Entire noble families lost sons, daughters, and heirs.

The disaster devastated King Henry I. Chroniclers claimed that he was never really the same afterwards. The loss of his only legitimate son created a succession crisis that eventually helped to plunge England into years of civil war known as “The Anarchy.” In many ways, that one shipwreck changed the course of English history.

Do you think the White Ship disaster changed English history or would England’s future have unfolded the same way without it?

A Nigerian Princess Who Became A Nurse In Wartime Britain

A Nigerian Princess Who Became A Nurse In Wartime Britain

I want to tell you about Princess Adenrele Ademola. She crossed cultural and social boundaries at a time when that was far from easy.

Adenrele Ademola was born in Nigeria on the 2nd of January 1916. She was the daughter of Oba Ladapo Ademola II, the Alake of Abeokuta, meaning she grew up as part of a royal family. In 1935, while still very young, she travelled to Britain and stayed at the West African Students’ Union hostel in Camden Town. It must have been a huge adjustment arriving in such a different country during the tense years before the Second World War.

After studying in Somerset, she began nurse training at Guy’s Hospital in London in 1938. By 1941 she had qualified as a registered nurse and went on to train in midwifery. During the war years she continued caring for patients in London hospitals, including Queen Charlotte’s Maternity Hospital and New End Hospital. Patients reportedly nicknamed her “Fairy” because of her kindness.

During the war she also appeared in the film Nurse Ademola, produced for audiences across West Africa. The film is now sadly lost, but it was created to show her work as a nurse and inspire support for the war effort. Sadly, very little is known about her later life.

Sarah Forbes Bonetta: The Young African Girl Who Entered Queen Victoria’s Court

Sarah Forbes Bonetta: The Young African Girl Who Entered Queen Victoria’s Court

Today I want to step away briefly from life in the Victorian and Edwardian era, to tell you a little about Sarah Forbes Bonetta. Her story began in tragedy but somehow led her all the way to the heart of Queen Victoria’s court.

Image info:

Artist: Camille Silvy

Princess Sara Forbes Bonetta

Collection: National Portrait Gallery

Sarah was originally born as Aina around 1843 in Oke-Odan in Yorubaland, in what is now called Nigeria. At the time, parts of West Africa were being torn apart by war and slave raids. When she was still only a very young child, her village was attacked during a war involving the Kingdom of Dahomey. Her parents were tragically killed and many other people from the area were either captured or forced into slavery. It is difficult not to imagine the fear she must have felt as a child, losing everything and being torn away from everything familiar to her.

Aina eventually ended up in the court of King Ghezo of Dahomey. According to later accounts, she was being kept for royal purposes and may even have faced the threat of sacrifice, but that is unclear. In 1850, a British naval officer named Captain Frederick Forbes arrived in Dahomey during a diplomatic mission. The mission was to try and discourage the slave trade. During his visit he met the young girl and intervened on her behalf. The king offered her the small girl, and refusing the king’s offer may have placed her life in danger, so Forbes accepted her and brought her to England on HMS Bonetta.

He renamed her Sarah Forbes Bonetta, combining his own surname with the name of the ship. She was introduced to Queen Victoria. The Queen was said to be very impressed by Sarah’s intelligence and her character. Victoria became her godmother and took a personal interest in her education and wellbeing. Entering the British court must have felt overwhelming and surreal.

Although many people imagine Sarah living permanently with the royal family, her life was actually more complicated. Queen Victoria arranged for her to be cared for by guardians and teachers rather than raised at court full time. She spent periods living with families connected to the church and education, including Reverend James Schön and his wife in Kent.

Sarah’s life was never really easy. The British climate badly affected her health and she developed a chronic cough, she possibly had tuberculosis. Because of this, she spent some time studying in Sierra Leone. She was well educated, multilingual, and respected in Victorian society, although sadly she still lived in a world of prejudice and rigid social expectations.

In 1862, Sarah married James Pinson Labulo Davies, a wealthy Yoruba businessman, in Brighton. Queen Victoria took such an interest in the marriage that she even helped to oversee some of it. They returned to West Africa and had three children together. Their first daughter was named Victoria after the Queen, who became the child’s godmother.

Image info:

James Pinson Labulo Davies and Sarah Forbes Bonetta

Artist: Camille Silvy

Sadly, Sarah’s health declined over the years, and she died from tuberculosis in 1880 at only around thirty-seven years old while staying on the island of Madeira. Some of you may already recognise Sarah from the ITV series Victoria, where her connection to Queen Victoria was shown. The series helped introduce more people to her story and her unusual place within the Victorian court.

I think her story raises so many questions about identity, survival, and belonging. Do you think Sarah Forbes Bonetta ever truly felt at home in Britain or Africa after everything she had been forced to experience?