In October there were two well-attended Sixth Form history
expeditions: one to London led by Miss Davies and Miss
Geoffroy, and another to Portsmouth led by Mr Scanlan. In
London, the many sites visited in connection with Tudor and
Stuart history included the National Portrait Gallery, the National
Gallery, the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Banqueting House
in Whitehall, Cromwell's statue at the Houses of Parliament,
and the British Museum. The boat trip from Westminster to the
Tower of London was a good way to end the day - and a fitting
reminder that many of those historical figures being studied at A
Level had ended their days on the same spot.
The trip to Portsmouth was a perfect opportunity for pupils to
understand the overwhelming naval supremacy achieved after
Trafalgar, which contributed to
the rise of the 19th century British
Empire. After touring the newly
completed Mary Rose exhibition,
the group visited Nelson's flagship,
HMS Victory, followed by HMS
Warrior, the iron ship built about
100 years later in the 1860s. The
contrast between sail and steam
was clear for all to see. But it
was also apparent how much the
builders of the later ship owed to
those of the earlier one.
In March, two pupils, Ed Keeling
and Sam Underdown, visited
Auschwitz in Poland for one
day under the auspices of the
Holocaust Education Trust. This
was an extraordinary experience
for them both, and they also
met a Holocaust survivor, Ziggy
Shipper, who was to visit King's
later in the year to address the
Sixth Form about his experiences. Ed and Sam returned with
many memories of their experience, and together they gave a
moving talk about it to the Keegan History Society.
2014 saw the beginning of the commemorations marking the
First World War. The history department and the school Archives
have particular plans for projects to bring alive the events of
100 years ago to the pupils, as well as remembering the part
played by King's pupils in that War. These include a trip to the
Battlefields of the Western Front and a 'Book of Remembrance'
which will provide full details, and in some cases photographs, of
the 82 OAs who died.
History
By Patrick Scanlan
Academic
Annabell Hall, Alicia Mileham and Meiling Daniell-Greenhalgh pictured at
Portsmouth Historic Dockyard
Modern Historians (6.1) visited HMS Victory at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard
Early Modern Historians (6.1) visited historic sites in London (such as Whitehall)
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