Martinalia

Welcome to Martinalia. An academic career generates material which for one reason or another does not get into print. There are public lectures and keynote addresses. Some are never intended for publication. Others are commissioned for projects which never get off the ground. There is material prepared for teaching, which may be useful to colleagues and students involved in similar courses. Some projects seem worth sharing with interested readers even though they remain unfinished, lacking the final polish needed for conventional academic publication. Since 2014 I have used Martinalia to publish essays and research reports.

The term “Martinalia” was coined by my friend Jim Sturgis.

How Queen Victoria named British Columbia -- and Queensland

"The Naming of British Columbia" has a special place in my affections, as I recall in an Afterword. The original article was published in 1979, in Albion, the journal associated with the Conference on British Studies in the United States (x, 257-263) It appears here in a slightly revised form that takes account of material that has become available over the past forty years.

Alexander Campbell (1822-1892): his career to 1864

Four draft chapters on the Canadian politician Alexander Campbell (1822-1892), tracing his career to 1864.

How to spell "bureaucracy"

This poster offers a memory trick for spelling "bureaucracy".

The Terling thesis: an agenda for the reconsideration of the work of Wrightson and Levine (review essay)

In 1979, Keith Wrightson and David Levine published Poverty and Piety in an English Village: Terling 1525-1700, a study of social change in Essex

Terling images: towards a reconsideration of the 'Terling thesis'

This file forms part of preparation for a re-consideration of the 'Terling thesis', the findings in Poverty and Piety in an English Village [PPEV], a study of the Essex parish of Terling from 1525 to 1700 by Keith Wrightson and David Levine. This preliminary study seeks to explore and reconstruct the Terling of c.1600. It argues that a distinction should be drawn between the wider parish and the actual village. It also emphasises that the latter was dominated by a very large mansion belonging to one of the county's leading families, and that an active (in some cases, over-active) inn, the Angel, stood at its centre. An alternative explanation for campaigns against social disorder in the early seventeenth century, one that stresses gentry control, is advanced in "The Terling thesis: an agenda for the reconsideration of the work of Wrightson and Levine" https://www.gedmartin.net/martinalia-mainmenu-3/345-the-terling-thesis.

"He is plausible even when most in error": Gladstone as parliamentarian, 1838

This sketch of Gladstone as a parliamentary performer by James Grant in 1838 provides evidence of his emerging reputation in public life, although it is also noteworthy for its small misunderstandings and omissions.

A New Zealand lighthouse keeper on Sweden-Norway relations, 1905

For journalists around the world, the Norwegian national plebiscite of 13 August 1905 offered a striking news item.

Rainham, Wennington, South Hornchurch and Elm Park: some glimpses of the past

These short articles on the history of southern Havering appeared in the Romford Recorder between 2012 and 2020.

Magdalene College Cambridge Notes: James Stearn, the Head Porter who died of grief

This note, on the death of James Stearn in 1918, forms a tailpiece to "Magdalene College Cambridge and the First World War" (https://www.gedmartin.net/martinalia-mainmenu-3/196-magdalene-college-cambridge-and-the-first-world-war).

Age at death of British monarchs: a neglected element in historical understanding?

This essay is an exercise in counterfactual history. It asks what would have happened had some British monarchs lived longer (or, in some long-lived cases, died sooner).

Martinalia

How Queen Victoria named British Columbia -- and Queensland

Alexander Campbell (1822-1892): his career to 1864

How to spell "bureaucracy"

The Terling thesis: an agenda for the reconsideration of the work of Wrightson and Levine (review essay)

Terling images: towards a reconsideration of the 'Terling thesis'

"He is plausible even when most in error": Gladstone as parliamentarian, 1838

A New Zealand lighthouse keeper on Sweden-Norway relations, 1905

Rainham, Wennington, South Hornchurch and Elm Park: some glimpses of the past

Magdalene College Cambridge Notes: James Stearn, the Head Porter who died of grief

Age at death of British monarchs: a neglected element in historical understanding?

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