On the 25th March, 1925 the American writer Flannery O’Connor was born. She spent all her life in Georgia, and her writing was inspired by the people and the culture that surrounded her. This was a Southern state with a unique reputation. It was characterised by its deep religious piety, but it also attracted notoriety for something altogether darker and unsettling.
Smalltown Georgia in the forties and fifties was not an especially tolerant place. It maintained an outward civility but it remained hostile to anyone who was perceived as different. Black people, especially young black men were subject to the worst kind of prejudice and discrimination. In the pre-civil rights era, an astonishing 531 lynchings occurred, the second highest number of extralegal executions within the entire southern United States.
O’Connor writes in an unsparing and pitiless tone about this climate of suspicion and fear, and the obstinacy displayed by the people living within it. It is a stark contrast to the wholesome and glamourised image of the south as evinced by Margaret Mitchell in her romantic novel “Gone With The Wind”. In Mitchell’s imagination this is a rich and lush landscape inhabited by a happy and harmonious set of people unscathed by slavery. O’Connor’s version of the south is bleak, and steeped in bathos. Her 1952 novella “Wise Blood” illustrates this perfectly. The narrative is nihilistic and cynical. It is purposefully stripped of any superficiality and romance to reveal the decadent underbelly.
The book uncovers the harsh reality of post-war America. It is a battle scarred nation that is wrestling with its identity. Many of the characters are solitary figures who privately struggle with afflictions of one kind or another. Empathy is entirely absent and all that emerges from the story is the sense that desperation is the most valuable commodity. This is exploited for maximum gain. It is a merciless system where the most vulnerable are manipulated and corrupted to enrich others.
However the individuals depicted are not presented as helpless victims of fate, they are painted as proud, dignified and singular in their suffering. They are the embodiment of martyrdom. They resemble Biblical figures who strive only to seek meaning in a place and time that has no real semblance of meaning, and seems just random and cruel. O’Connor herself had her own private health battles, and died aged only 39, but her legacy endures.
The 17th March is St. Patrick’s Day, the Patron Saint of Ireland. It is an annual celebration of Ireland, Irish history and culture. It is marked with festivities within Ireland and throughout the global Irish diaspora. Originally it was a solemn religious occasion. However in modern times the focus has been on the secular and cultural aspects of Ireland.
The legend of Patrick is closely entwined with Ireland and the Irish people, but he was originally from Britain. When he was just seventeen years old he was snatched from his family by Irish pirates and he was taken to Ireland where he was kept in captivity as a slave.
Fifth Century Britain was left in a vulnerable state after the collapse of the Roman Empire. The ancient Celtic Kingdom of Ireland had a distinct reputation, and it was regarded as a notorious place known for its warriors and pirates. Irish pirates frequently raided the coasts of Great Britain looking for slaves. Patrick was just one out of numerous victims of these raids, another was St. Brigid who is also revered as a sacred figure in Ireland. These incursions were more than likely opportunistic. There is no evidence to suggest that their actions were motivated by malice or that they were attempting to further humiliate or subdue an already demoralised population.
Patrick worked as a slave for six years, tending sheep on a farm and praying for his own emancipation. However after six years he received a message from God telling him to return home, and that a ship was waiting for him. He escaped to the coast and persuaded the captain and the crew of a passing ship to transport him back to Britain. However as soon as they arrived they found a wilderness. Patrick urged them all to put their faith in the Lord. The power of prayer saved them, as a herd of wild boar suddenly appeared. This miracle made Patrick an enamoured figure among the group.
Patrick spent years studying theology, in Britain and across continental Europe. He was ordained at Auxerre, and eventually progressed to the Bishopric. However he had not forgotten his early life in Ireland. Despite his difficult experience he felt a degree of affection for the culture, as his captors introduced him to the myths and legends of Ireland. It was while he was stationed back in Britain that he received another vision summoning him back to Ireland. It was a divine message imploring him to evangelise the pagan population.
When he returned to Ireland as a missionary he encountered individuals with profound and enduring attachments to the old beliefs. They remained stubbornly resistant to the Catholic creed and refused to practice the necessary rites. The worship of nature was ingrained instead, and they paid homage to other gods.
However Patrick found ingenious ways to accommodate them. He had a great insight into the Irish psyche and how magic and miracles were deeply embedded within the national consciousness. Patrick’s ministry only served to strengthen these sensibilities.
Patrick had immense strength, courage and faith even when the pagan population were determined to kill him. On one occasion when his life was in great danger, he knelt before his antagonists and prayed to God for help to convert their souls. His prayers were so fervent that when he rose to his feet the mark of his knees were still imprinted on the ground. Another time he told the villagers to draw a circle around them, and as he prayed, water instantly sprung from the ground and they were all baptised.
Superstition and mysticism was all around him. One of the most powerful myths relates to a giant serpent, believed to be situated close to the Galtee mountains. Patrick knew that the locals revered serpents as gods, but he cast this serpent into the lake and made a plea that this serpent remained chained to a rock until the Day of Judgement. Patrick was also believed to have cast all venomous creatures from the island of Ireland.
Patrick understood that the people felt awe of the natural world. The Temple of Tara in County Meath is popularly believed to be the resting place of an ancient semi-divine King. Another example of a holy mountain is situated on the west of Ireland, the centre of Patrick’s evangelical work. In pagan Ireland, pilgrims would ascend to the top of the mountain to mark the summer solstice. Fruits would be offered to the gods, a bull would be sacrificed and ritual dances and plays would be enacted.
When Patrick served in the region he learned about the mountain’s reputation and so he decided to climb to the peak to pray and fast for 40 days. He was assailed by demonic birds, but he banished them into the hollows by ringing his bell. He cleansed the mountain of evil, and released the Irish from their iniquities. The mountain is now called “Croagh Patrick” and it is devoted to Chrstian pilgrimage, rather than pagan devotions. We must remember the important legacy of St Patrick and how he shaped Ireland today.
On the 9th March 1997 the Welsh screenwriter and novelist Terry Nation died. He was remembered with fondness and affection as a stalwart of British television, and the pioneering force behind television classics like “Doctor Who” and “Blake’s 7”. He was a tour de force in British broadcasting for many decades, and his example remains unmatched. He wasn’t just respected by his contemporaries in broadcasting, he was also immensely popular with audiences.
However it is sad to reflect that imaginative, challenging television does not exist anymore, and it is less likely to be commissioned by a staid and declining art form. He was the heir to science fiction and folk horror innovators like Nigel Kneale. Kneale’s numerous films and programmes were disturbing reflections of a rapidly changing nation.
He chronicled the difficulties of living in twentieth century Britain, exploring its uneasy relationship with the rest of the globe and vice versa. He observed how tradition jarred with modernity and how superstition conflicted with reason. He had a profound insight into the sensibility of a nation wrestling with the new whilst continuously clinging to the past. He had more of an understanding than the glut of metropolitan commissioners and producers that inhabited the echelons of British broadcasting, as he came from the Isle of Man.
His output on the small screen exemplified the problems when modern, universalist notions were imposed on well established communities with enduring local traditions. Many will inevitably resist such an imposition, and cling to their old ways as these are more familiar to them. Our ancestors viewed themselves as an integral part of the natural world, as opposed to the modern belief that we are separate from it. There was no attempt to battle with the forces of nature, or to dominate and subdue them. This was simply unthinkable.
The future was unfamiliar and strange. Such an intangible notion would have seemed an artifice, yet Kneale’s characters stand on the threshold between the past and the future. They are gazing into an abyss. They are standing on the precipice looking down on an open chasm of unfamiliarity, confusion and disorientation. In “Quatermass and the Pit”, an archaeological dig at a defunct Tube station recovers the remains of a Martian spaceship. This one discovery challenges the preconceptions and prejudices surrounding what actually constitutes humanity, and even material reality itself.
It is later revealed that these Martians interbred with proto-human hominids to maintain their survival on Earth. Clearly alien and human are merely social constructs, and the distinction between them is purely arbitrary. In the final serial of “Quatermass” a new generation of Planet People yearn to escape into another cosmic dimension. Amidst the malcontent, armed street gangs tour the barricaded streets.
This is Kneale’s bleakest vision of the future. There is no hope left in the shell of this urban wasteland, only the ghosts of a past that no-one remembers. Alien and human are disconnected, and atomised. All that remains is the overwhelming desire for annihilation, and the vain belief that they will ultimately regenerate in another manifestation in a faraway solar system.
Time travel, and alien beings were a popular combination of subjects for prime time television. It was this interesting juxtaposition of themes that inspired the work of Terry Nation. Nation was originally a comedy writer, but branched out into science fiction when he realised the immense commercial potential. In 1963 he conceived “The Daleks” for the second series of Doctor Who. These were alien creatures created after a nuclear bomb, and who survive purely on the radiation in the atmosphere. They are war like, and in constant battle with their pacifist foes the Thals. The Doctor’s nemesis is Davros, the progenitor of the Daleks.
Terry Nation continued to contribute to Doctor Who until 1979. He was also commissioned to write “Survivors” in 1975. This was a television series that imagined the last human lives on a planet devastated by a deadly plague. Three years later he was responsible for the science fiction series “Blake’s 7”. This followed a group of criminals and political prisoners escaping from the evil “Terran Federation” on a spaceship of an unknown origin.
Blakes 7 ended in 1981, and Nation sought new creative opportunities in Los Angeles. He was a scriptwriter for “Macgyver” and “A Fine Romance”. He was also the author of numerous works of fiction. Nation’s creations have left an indelible mark on generations of British people, and they have even shaped our consciousness and our very identity. It is hard to imagine what our psychology would have been like without his stellar work, and we will continue to celebrate him.
March the 1st is St David’s Day, the annual celebration of Wales’ patron saint, Wales and Welsh culture. It is an important time of celebration for the people of Wales and the Welsh diaspora.
Wales remains a vital and integral part of the United Kingdom. However it has struggled to maintain a civil relationship with its much larger and more powerful neighbour, England. This uneasiness has ebbed and flowed throughout our history. Many militant Welsh nationalists have leaped onto this feeling of disquiet and exploited it to promote the cause of independence. Their ultimate aim is the total and complete severance from the United Kingdom.
Wales has a degree of political and cultural autonomy, but it is still subservient to the parliament based in Westminster. There is a tacit acceptance amongst many Welsh people that financially at least Wales will always be reliant upon England. However this is a point of contention for other people.
Unfortunately there are always bad actors on the political stage, who thrive on division and propagate propaganda that only benefits them and their grip upon power. Their role is familiar to anyone who has witnessed how political drama has played out in the modern world. They use sophisticated tools of manipulation, and subvert facts to fit their agenda. They are experts in emotive language, and cynically and knowingly employ the most sentimental words to cement support. They are devious, revealing a kind of romantic prejudice that plays well to their chosen audience.
However, they are completely detached from reality. They only exist in a realm of artifice, a luxurious bubble which insulates them from the rigours of daily life. They do not care about the fate of ordinary people. They only want to display their supposed virtue to bolster their social status. Ordinary people are just pawns in their game. It is tactical rather than genuine. It is a gambit, and the people who use it have no sincerity.
The United Kingdom has only survived as a consequence of mutual understanding and respect. It is a sovereign state composed of a patchwork of nations, but in ancient times there was only a semblance of unity. Loyalty was strictly maintained on tribal lines. Sporadic battles broke out between competing and rival tribes. This enabled the Roman conquest, and gave them an obvious advantage in consolidating their power. A unified society would have resisted and defeated them.
The Roman centurions were impressed by the warrior spirit of the Welsh. One of these fierce and indomitable warriors was called Caradog. His indefatigability in battle was so impressive that he was awarded honorary Roman citizenship. This was a rare privilege. Ultimately the harshness of the climate, and the periodic shortage of food, especially grain defeated Roman rule in Wales. Wales remained defiantly independent, and resisted further invasion until the Normans arrived.
Normans were urbane sophisticates who were adept at civic organisation, castle construction and political diplomacy. It was an entirely new form of imperial rule. There was an element of cultural superiority, but mutual respect and admiration too. The Normans brought literacy to this island, and scribes immortalised Welsh myth and folklore for the first time. If they had not written these treasures, they would have been lost in the sands in time for good.
Other Welshmen signed up to the Anglo-Norman Army and played a vital role as combatants during the many battles with the French. They were credited with the invention of the longbow, a weapon which was indispensable on the battlefield. However this glorious medieval period drew to a close as a series of civil wars threatened to tear the Kingdom apart once more. Ostensibly these were between warring Royal dynasties, and became known as the “Wars of the Roses”. The House of York was defeated, and the victory was handed to the Tudors. This was a defining moment. The new King, Henry VII was the grandson of Sir Owen Tudor, a prominent figure in the Welsh court. His ascendance ensured that the English and Welsh crowns were finally united.
In 1487, the King issued a final coup de grace to the vanquished Yorkists, and commissioned the Crown Imperial. He planned to wear it on the Feast of Epiphany. This was a traditional custom that was held every year, when the monarch re-enacted the part of the Three Kings delivering gifts to the Christ child. The new crown was ornate, made of gold and encrusted with precious stones including rubies, diamonds, sapphires and pearls. It was seven pounds in weight. This was symbolic, and heralded a new direction for the Kingdom, in which Wales played a central part.
The Tudor age shaped and reimagined a “Merrie Land” which inspired others in the centuries since. However in the twenty-first century, there is a tendency to deride history. The Welsh nationalists are either ignorant of the past or do not care about it, but their cynicism must be condemned as divisive. We must remember our long, proud history of unity and harmony.
On February 19th, 1917 the American author Carson McCullers was born. She was a shy and diffident child, and by her own admission an outsider. She spent her childhood in a deeply conservative town that, in her mind, valued conformity above everything else. It seemed to her that imagination, creativity and the pursuit of meaning were of little or no concern to the majority of people who lived in this environment.
However this formative experience was tremendously useful. Her solitary childhood inspired her greatest fiction. It enabled her to write perceptively about the struggles of lonely people living in stifling environments who long to liberate themselves. All her characters yearn to express their own individuality without fear of censure, their difference is never celebrated, it is only feared. They are not embraced by the community, they are exiled to the fringes.
Her portraits are tremendously powerful and moving. She paints each character in painstaking detail. She illuminates their inner lives, giving them the dignity to tell their own stories. They are allowed some credence denied to them by others. They are not ostracised to the darker recesses, they are brought back into the light. Their importance is crucial to the narrative, there is no pretence or artifice. They are both seen and heard by the reader, instead of being relegated to the shadows and silenced.
McCullers endured her own struggles. She was frequently ill, and spent protracted periods convalescing at home. Spending so much time away from her peers at school set her apart. Her closest friendships were forged with her family’s household staff, and her extended family. She grew especially close to her aunts and her grandmothers. This was an education in itself, she developed empathy, maturity and wisdom that belied her youth.
When she was just five years old her father bought her a piano and a typewriter, and for many years she felt conflicted in her ambitions. She was not sure whether she wanted to be a musician or a writer. She remembered her cultural awakening. When she read a biography of Isadora Duncan, her example gave her hope that another life was possible, a life of personal expression and artistic fulfillment.
She yearned to escape from her small town, and make her mark in the wider world. At seventeen she made her first attempt. She moved to New York with a powerful ambition to acquire a place at the prestigious music college, the Julliard School. When she realised that the fees were too steep, she decided to take part-time work and attend night classes in writing.
One of her first stories was an early draft of what would eventually become the novel “The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter”. This was a profound insight into the inner life of a profoundly deaf man called John Singer. Singer is detached from the community. His closest friend, another profoundly deaf man called Spiros Antonapoulous loses his mind and is sent to an asylum. He later dies at this institution. Isolated and alone, Singer takes his own life. His tragic death leaves a void in the town and the other characters are forced to contemplate their own moral failures.
It is extraordinary to consider that McCullers was just 23 when this novel was published. Her precocious literary talent was admired and feted by luminaries like Tennessee Williams who encouraged her to adapt her work for the stage. Tragically her health declined in the intervening years. At the age of just 50 she succumbed to a fatal brain haemorrhage. However her legacy as a writer and champion for the marginalised continues to resonate today.
On the 17th February, Christians all around the globe will observe Shrove Tuesday. It is an occasion of great significance, as it is the day before Ash Wednesday and the tradition of the Lenten fast. In many cultures, Shrove Tuesday is traditionally a day of feasting marked by communal indulgence and celebration. Pancakes are made with the richest ingredients. Families participate in the cooking and games like pancake racing are all part and parcel of community celebration.
In more devout communities, Lent is a time of complete abstinence. During this period a plain vegan diet is adopted and eggs, butter and sugar are totally forbidden. However Shrove Tuesday is a day when these strict dietary rules are ignored, in fact the direct opposite is true. Pancakes are topped with jam, chocolate and sweetened lemon. It is a day dedicated to fun, and family celebration before the austere ceremonies of Lent begin. Lent is not just about fasting, it is a time of atonement and reflection on past sins and dishonourable behaviours.
Our ancestors understood the significance of events like these, and the profound meaning embedded within every ceremony and spectacle. They were more aware of occasions when food was scarce, and were eternally grateful when there was a surfeit. The connection between honourable behaviour and heavenly reward was inextricable. They literally believed that this was true. Human wickedness may have material rewards in the mortal realm, but the punishment in the hereafter was guaranteed. “Shrove” is a now obsolete English word meaning absolution. Derivations of this word include “shriven” and “to shrift”. Also the phrase “short shrift” is still in common parlance, albeit with a slightly different meaning and connotation.
In everyday conversation, “short shrift” is only understood as receiving unsympathetic treatment, but originally it referred to the quick method of absolution granted to a condemned prisoner destined for the gallows. The religious aspect to this term has vanished, along with the religious nature of Shrove Tuesday itself.
However in Shakespeare’s time, religion was integral to the discourse. His audience would have been god fearing and devout. He utilised these sensibilities for his own dramatic purposes, creating dastardly caricatures who meet misfortune as a consequence of their behaviours.
His play “Richard III” was effectively Tudor propaganda. The last Plantagenet King is presented as a grotesque, the personification of evil. The brutality of his character is exaggerated for theatrical effect. His scheming and callous disregard for human life is all laid bare.
The King’s cold condemnation of Lord Hastings, who he believes is plotting against him is revealed. He sentences Hastings to death, and on the day of his execution these same ominous words are uttered by Richard’s closest aides Sir Richard Ratcliffe, and are appended rather chillingly with “the King longs to see your head”. However the King’s underhand tactics were destined to end badly, in a humiliating defeat at the Battle of Bosworth.
The history plays of Shakespeare, and the intricate poetry, inspired by Biblical truth continue to resonate. Throughout the festivities, it is apt to recall the poignancy and piquancy of these lost words and phrases as a distillation of a simpler time.
On the 6th February, 1685, King Charles II died. He is chiefly remembered as the King who returned from enforced exile to restore the Monarchy. As the newly restored Monarch he helped to rehabilitate the divided nations after years of Civil War, and his influence shaped the culture and identity of what would eventually become the United Kingdom.
However at the time of his Restoration, the nations were neither united nor cohesive, and the Kingdom itself was a distant memory. His own father had been executed, and in the interregnum tyranny had not disappeared, it was reanimated, albeit in a different form. The King knew that his father had lost the trust of many of his subjects. They believed that he had failed them and even abrogated his duty.
King Charles I left a painful legacy where the remnants of his Kingdom had been torn asunder. The responsibilities of his successor were unambiguous but onerous. His main task was to unify the divided entities of his realm. The political experiment of the Republic, or “Commonwealth” tested the concept of a united sovereign state without a sovereign. In theory, it was a worthy experiment but it was worthless in practice.
Fundamentally, such an entity could not work as Kings ruled the state and the Church, and Scotland along with England. King Charles II was conflicted between these two nations. The Scottish leaders demanded that he must accept the Presbyterian tradition. They also stipulated that this must be imposed in England, and also Ireland, nations that had very different religious traditions.
Charles found these demands offensive and insensitive. He felt personally affronted, but he was caught in an almost impossible bind between the various factions, all of whom believed that they had legitimate grievances. The bloody years of the Civil War had not been forgotten, the wounds were still fresh metaphorically speaking.
The seventeenth century was an era of great turbulence, when religious fervour dominated the landscape and impacted the lives of everyone on these islands. The struggle to survive was not merely material, it was spiritual. The King felt this more keenly, as he had inherited the role of Defender of the Faith. It was a weighty inheritance, and a burden. Eventually, he gave a tacit acceptance of the Scots’ demands, but there were other religious forces that he had to quell.
It was a time of extreme piety, and bigotry. It was almost impossible to find a compromise between implacable religious sects. Any sensible discussion was insoluble because reason was so limited. Self-righteousness obscured perceptions of others, and tribal loyalties were entrenched. This prevented a common understanding.
The most extraordinary religious sect that emerged during this period was the Fifth Monarchists. They interpreted the fall of King Charles I as the end of the Fourth Monarchy, a Biblical prophecy from the Book of Daniel. Their prime belief was that the Restoration of the House of Stuart was an obstacle in the coming of the Fifth. Many followers were prepared to use violence in the name of the cause.
However the sect foundered when their most prominent follower, Thomas Venner staged an insurrection in London. He was arrested and put to death. His zeal was undimmed, as he proclaimed from the gallows, “if they had been deceived, the Lord himself was their deceiver”. Venner’s martyrdom did not help the fortunes of this dwindling sect, and they vanished.
The new Stuart King regarded religious extremism distasteful. One of his first interventions was the Declaration of Breda. This was his manifesto for his newly restored kingdom. It declared that, “we do Declare a Liberty to tender consciences; and that no Man shall be disquieted or called in question for differences of Opinion in matter of Religion, which do not disturb the Peace of the Kingdom”.
The austere years of Cromwell had ended, and he was eager to reform and reconstitute his kingdom again. A dark chapter had closed.
The contrast between his reign and the dictatorships that preceded him were stark. Suddenly his subjects were allowed to have fun, and laugh again with the advent of “Restoration drama”. One dramatist, Thomas Shadwell, met the approval of the King with his satire “The Virtuoso”. This featured a notorious character called Sir Nicholas Gimcrack, from which we derive the word “gimmick”. Gimcrack is pompous, arrogant and devoid of any imagination. The play ridicules his lack of humour, his earnestness and pedantry. He embodies all of the worst characteristics of narcissists and tyrants, as he seems impervious to notions of moderation and disagreement.
Gimcrack is a figure of ridicule, instantly recognisable and familiar to the King. Shadwell’s satire was appreciated by him. This was noted by the diarist Samuel Pepys. Pepys recorded a meeting with the King in which he regaled him with scenes from the play and spent hours laughing about it. The culture of the Restoration, including the extravagance of the fashions has left an important legacy. It is a vital part of our identity, and we must never forget its importance.
On the 27th January, 1945 Red Army troops liberated Auschwitz concentration camp. The Second World War was drawing to a close, and as Nazi forces were on the verge of defeat, they tried to conceal their crimes. They evacuated the remaining prisoners, destroyed the gas chambers and crematoriums and dismantled the warehouses where those who had died from starvation and disease were corralled. Despite their vain attempts to erase it, the Soviets still managed to reveal to the rest of the world the brutal and inhumane realities of the Nazi project.
The Auschwitz liberation helped to uncover the worst atrocity of the twentieth century. Since then, the world has paused to remember the Holocaust at every anniversary. It is vital that we continue to do this, we owe it to the six million Jews who were murdered. We must always keep them in our memories. We must never forget, because it negates our collective humanity if we simply banish their existence as a mere footnote in history.
Dehumanisation was a central tenet of Nazi ideology. The Jews, in their twisted minds, were not human beings. They did not even consider them to be as lowly as animals, they actually believed that they were a disease. In the propaganda materials they portrayed them as a virus that was infecting European civilisation, and eradicating them was the only cure. It is horrific that such views were countenanced, it is even worse realising that their genocidal plans were enacted.
This sickening act of mass murder is forever emblazoned upon our memories, footage of the concentration camps was captured on news reels and broadcast to the British population after the end of the war. We were convinced that the years of privation were worth it, if it meant securing a victory of good over evil.
When British troops liberated the camps of Bergen Belsen, it left an indelible impression. Many of the young men who saw such levels of degradation and inhumanity were haunted for decades afterwards and could never speak about something, which by its own definition is unspeakable. One of them who did eventually speak was the actor Dirk Bogarde, who wrote extensively in his autobiography about his wartime experience.
Bogarde states that, “when we opened up Belsen Camp, which was the first concentration camp any of us had seen, we didn’t even know what they were, we’d heard vague rumours that they were…The gates were opened and then I realised that I was looking at Dante’s Inferno…I still haven’t seen anything as dreadful. And never will. And a girl came up who spoke English, because she recognised one of the badges…and her breasts were like empty purses, she had no top on, and a pair of pyjamas, and no hair…She gave me a big kiss, which was very moving”.
Shortly after this encounter, the girl died.
Sadly, the Holocaust is dwindling in importance year after year and increasingly relegated as yet another part of history. My generation has grown up understanding that this is more than history, because our grandparents endured the war years. They were our only living connection to this dark episode in human history. Younger generations have no such connection, and it often appears meaningless to them.
Tragically the Holocaust is considered simply a far off event, rather like the Boer war would have appeared to my peers. A distinction needs to be made though, between other wars in history and the Holocaust. The Holocaust was in fact, the culmination of modernity, where society had chosen to forget that we are all one human race.
Society had chosen to forget this, because selfishness had triumphed. Amidst the horrors that unfolded during the war, Pope Pius XII pleaded to those bewitched by Hitler to heed the words of the Bible. He referred to the Book of Genesis which proclaimed that all humanity has a common origin, and all of the people on Earth had a duty to be charitable to one another. His pleas were eventually drowned out by the persuasively manipulative campaign of the Nazis.
Another pitifully modern development is the increasing trivialisation of the Holocaust. This is something which has been utilised by malign political forces. It is a perverse method of moral inversion, and subversion. The most egregious examples occurred in the aftermath of the October 7th attacks when Hamas terrorists committed a pogrom in Israel.
When Israel valiantly defended itself, the efforts to eliminate a racist, genocidal threat to its very existence were undermined. They were even accused of committing genocide themselves. These accusations are deeply hurtful, and belittle the memory of those who were the victims of an actual genocide.
The Holocaust was an industrial level murder machine. It was a deliberate and intentional act, aimed at an entire people. It is true that there have been conflicts and atrocities in various parts of the world since 1945, but nothing of this level in western Europe since, so it is outrageous that words like “Nazi” and “fascist” are flung about whenever difficult political issues are contested. These words have been diluted, and their original meaning has been lost.
It is a bitter irony that the individuals who use these words as insults have more resemblance to Nazis and fascists. These individuals attend marches denigrating the world’s only Jewish state, and argue that alternative political voices should be silenced. It is clear now more than ever that we understand what actually happened in history, to honour the memory of those who suffered and died.
On the 20th January, 1936 King George V died. He was seventy years old. However he had spent years in poor health, originating from an accident in 1915. He was thrown from his horse while inspecting the troops on the French frontline. His injuries were compounded by his smoking addiction and he was later diagnosed with chronic bronchitis.
Ten years later, on his doctors’ advice, he took an extended break to the Mediterranean coast as they believed that the sea air would improve his breathing. In 1928 his health declined further when he developed septicaemia. His health never truly recovered and as a consequence, he was forced to delegate many of his official duties to his son, the future King Edward VIII.
Duty was always paramount to George. Unlike other Monarchs, he believed this was much more important than his ceremonial role. Compared to other Monarchs, he was not as enamoured by the fawning and frivolities associated with pageants or other superficial displays of Monarchical power. His sober and sombre attitude was a stark contrast to the excesses and appetites of his father, King Edward VII. In fact, he was the polar opposite, slightly built and shy.
He did not enjoy public attention, he only participated in his duties because he understood that these things were essential. He did not adjust as well to the role as Edward did, for him it felt normal. However, George was awkward. His diffidence, ironically, was an attribute that ultimately saved him and the future of the Monarchy.
His work ethic was admirable, in spite of his illness he made sure to attend official engagements whenever and wherever possible. It was at often great cost to his already ailing health. He was reluctant to rest and relinquish his duties. However his health took a grave turn during the winter of 1929. He was recovering from lung surgery and was forced to take another rest cure. He was sent to the seaside town of Bognor to convalesce. The civic leaders of the town were honoured to have such an illustrious guest, and consequently the suffix “Regis” was added to the name to reflect the King’s association.
His tireless sense of duty was something that was acknowledged by representatives of the Government. George had set a new standard of behaviour for Monarchs; his conscientious character distinguished him from the leisurely antics of his father. Edward always looked the epitome of the country squire, often clad in tweeds and either engaged in a hunting party or watching the races. In contrast, George was always in the same suit, and was indifferent to the whims of fashion. He took his role as King extremely seriously and endeavoured to serve his people to the best of his ability.
His diligence and humility set him apart from the figureheads of other European countries. The continent was in crisis, and struggling to maintain a sense of homogeneity and unity. It was actually a loosely connected entity that was fracturing from within. The United Kingdom was not immune to these effects either, the culture and society was changing rapidly.
It was frightening that the old order was no longer considered a certainty or an inevitability anymore. During the early part of his reign nascent political movements like socialism, communism and fascism emerged. These were populist revolts against an established social order. The Liberal government, fearing possible insurrection, introduced social welfare policies to dampen down this growing threat. Meanwhile in Europe militarism continued almost unabated, culminating with the outbreak of the First World War. The King found himself in a difficult and dangerous position. However he chose to put his own people first, before making any personal considerations or decisions.
He anglicised the Royal Family, severing them from centuries of German history and culture. He was now head of the “House of Windsor” and his relations were no longer the Battenbergs, they were the Mountbattens. This was a swift and deliberate response to the feelings of antipathy towards Germans that were widespread across the Kingdom.
He also reformed and democratised the honours system, establishing the Companions of Honour. These were awarded to people in public service, the first recipients of these medals were the leaders of the Metal Workers, the Railwaymen and the Transport Unions. It helped appease those who sought socialist revolution, and even regicide. George re-established the charitable role of the Monarchy and exercised noblesse oblige. His subjects were thankful for it, and for his impeccable morality.
In 1935 the King celebrated his Silver Jubilee. The nation united in a spirit of warmth and familiarity, a glorious and harmonious picture totally divorced from the dark totalitarianism that had enveloped Germany and Italy. The serenity was broken six months later when his death was announced. The calm dignity he exuded throughout his reign was crucial in securing the continuity of the Monarchy, and cementing our national identity.
On the 7th January, 1891 the African-American writer, anthropologist, folklorist and filmmaker Zora Neale Hurston was born. She grew up in Eatonville, Florida, one of the first autonomous black principalities in the United States. Her father was the Mayor, and a Baptist minister in the town.
She was educated at a Baptist boarding school in Jacksonville but was forced to leave after her father failed to pay her tuition fees. She worked as a maid and attended night school, before leaving for University in Washington. While on the course she grew fascinated by anthropology and folklore.
It opened up her mind to other cultures, which seemed so remote and distinct from the earthy humour and superstition of her hometown. However, as her upbringing was so detached from the experience of white Americans, it gave her a much greater sense of appreciation for the wisdom that she acquired growing up in an all black neighbourhood. She realised that her memories of the stories, traditions and rituals had a profound significance. She decided to continue to pursue anthropology as an academic subject, and she also composed short stories and satirical pieces.
In 1925 she was granted a scholarship at Columbia University, and three years later she received her B.A in anthropology. Her literary and scholarly talents were recognised by the philanthropist and literary patron Charlotte Osgood Mason. She provided Hurston with a stipend of $200 a month to help further her research into folklore. In 1935 she published her first literary anthology on African-American folklore called “Mules and Men”. This was swiftly followed by the novels “Their Eyes Were Watching God” and “Moses, Man of the Mountain”. Her extensive research work took her to the Southern states of America and also the Caribbean, where she collected stories and testimonies from the African diaspora.
In 1938, another collection of folklore was published. It was called “Tell My Horse” and it details the syncretic beliefs of the post-colonial world. Hurston’s work was overlooked in her lifetime, as she was overshadowed by literary titans like Richard Wright and Langston Hughes. Both Wright and Hughes were overtly partisan in their political beliefs, and this inevitably gave them more gravitas culturally. Hurston only reflected her experiences, and did not perceive herself as a propagandist for the cause of racial equality. Her objectivity, and obvious affection for the community of Eatonville resonates in her writing.
Ponderings 