History Group 2 meets in the Leader’s home.

On 1 January 1909 queues of elderly people formed outside Post Offices throughout the country, wanting to claim their first old age pensions.  his event had a dual significance in that it also marked the beginning of the use of the Post Office as a local agent for the delivery of government services of all kinds.

This has a very obvious resonance with today’s events and the History Group will be marking the anniversary appropriately. Such anniversaries are often a source of historical stimulation and so also is the desire to dispel the myths that have shrouded past events. For example Magna Carta is so frequently referred to in the media that it would be worthwhile to examine whether it is the myth rather than the reality that attracts so much attention.

Historical labels should be scrutinised from time to time and their usefulness challenged. The “Renaissance” has come in for criticism recently and it would be interesting to find out what meaning is still left in this 19th Century label.  he labels attaching to imperial wars, such as the Indian Mutiny and the Boer War, have been challenged with a view to demonstrating that they were in fact wars of independence.

But our programme will begin with an inquiry into pre-history. Our understanding of the development of human society between the dawn of agriculture and the rise of the first civilisations is expanding rapidly and although this is largely science-based, historians cannot afford to remain ignorant of research in this field. This is of particular relevance to those interested in the age of discovery and imperial expansion and its associated racial conflicts.

Please see the Newsletter (available via the News page) for a list of topics to be covered.