Teaching
History Online
Number
80: 6th April, 2003
Introduction
1.
Chemical
Weapons in Vietnam
2.
History
Web Guide
3.
The
Death of Lord Darnley
4.
Daily
Past
5.
World
War Remembered
6.
The
Social Movements Group
7. Fifth
Battalion Operations & History Site
8. Radical
Philosophy Obituaries
9. Elizabeth
& Mary
Introduction
Spartacus Educational
publishes Teaching
History Online every week. The newsletter includes news, reviews
of websites and articles on using ICT in the history classroom. Members
of the mailing list are
invited to submit information for inclusion in future editions of
Teaching
History Online. In this way we hope to create a community
of people involved in using the Internet to teach history. Currently
there are 27,260 subscribers to the newsletter.
John Simkin
spartacus@pavilion.co.uk
Chemical
Weapons in Vietnam: There has been a lot of talk recently about
the use of chemical weapons in Iraq. Less is said about the chemical
weapons used by the United States in Vietnam. During the war about
10% of Vietnam was intensively sprayed with 72 million litres of chemicals,
of which 66% was Agent Orange. Some of this landed on their own troops
and soon after the war ended veterans began complaining about serious
health problems. The veterans sued the defoliant manufacturers and
this was settled out of court in 1984 by the payment of $180 million.
According to a recent report published by the Vietnamese Red Cross,
650,000 people in Vietnam are still suffering from chronic conditions
as a result of the chemicals dropped on the country during the war.
It is estimated that 500,000 people in Vietnam have died from the
numerous health problems created by these chemical weapons. In Vietnam
the dioxide used in Agent Orange remains in the soil and is now damaging
the health of the grandchildren of the war's victims.
History
Web Guide: Created
by Education Unlimited, this web guide contains recommended links
to hundreds of websites for teachers, parents and students. The websites
are organized under the following categories: Britain 1066-1500, Britain
1500-1750, Britain 1750-1930, Britain since 1930, Ancient civilisations,
Romans, Anglo-Saxons, Vikings, Tudors, Victorian Britain, European
history before 1914, Second World War, World History before 1900,
World History after 1900, First World War, Museums, Medicine Through
Time, The American West and Black People of the Americas.
The
Death of Lord Darnley: In 1565 Mary Queen of Scots married Lord
Darnley, a Catholic, and great-grandson of Henry VIII. Darnley soon
made himself very unpopular among the Scottish nobles and Mary soon
grew to hate his bullying ways. She began to spend most of her time
with David Riccio, her secretary, instead and this stirred the jealousy
of Darnley. On 9 March 1566 Mary was having supper with Riccio when
her husband burst in. Riccio was dragged from the room and killed
before her. Early the following year Mary managed to persuaded Darnley
stay with her at Kirk-O-Field House in Edinburgh. On the night of
10 February, Mary left to attend a wedding party while Darnley stayed
at home. At about 2 am a massive explosion reduced Kirk-O-Field House
to rubble. Darnley was killed but not by the explosion. This activity
produced by the Public Record Office examines the death of Lord Darnley.
Daily Past: This website attempts
to combine both history and news. Events from world history are presented
in the style of an on-line newspaper or news site. There are currently
articles about The Rise of Thatcher, Dunkirk, Normandy Landings, 1906
San Francisco Earthquake, The Ozone Hole Discovery, Vikings in America,
First World Cup, Spanish Armada, Indian Independence, Oil Crisis of
1973 among others. Most articles are accompanied by materials for
educators which can be used in the classroom. These include work on
vocabulary, reading comprehension questions, in-depth questions to
get students thinking more deeply about the issue raised in articles
and finally, links to other sites and books where users can deepen
their knowledge of a particular area. Also on the site is a forum
and a section devoted to the best in history books.
World
War Remembered: On this site produced by Andrew Moore and the
East Riding of Yorkshire Council you will find personal accounts,
memoirs and records from the Second World War and other conflicts
of the last century. This includes civilian accounts from North Ferriby,
Dewsbury, Welton and pilot training from Brough. The World War Remembered
gallery contains links to images and sounds of the wars of the twentieth
century.
The
Social Movements Group was founded in September 2000 as a cross-departmental
and multi-disciplinary research group, based at Edge Hill College
of Higher Education in North-West England but drawing upon the energies
of activists and academics from around the globe. The group study
social movements past and present; the theories which have been developed
to understand and explain social movements; and the ideas (political
ideologies, social and cultural thought, structures of feeling) which
have animated social movements. Currently members range across sociology,
history, womens studies, politics and cultural studies but we would
welcome the participation from those with other disciplinary ‘homes’
and from those with none.
Fifth
Battalion Operations & History Site: The site is an historical
and factual account of an Australian infantry battalions' involvement
in the Vietnam War covering two tours. It is one of the most comprehensive
sites about a military unit on the Internet. This site is further
enhanced by contributions from ex-members which reveals the human
side to the 'Tiger Battalion.' For those wanting a better understanding
of the Vietnam War from an Australian infantryman's point of view
you will find it here.
Radical
Philosophy Obituaries: Radical Philosophy is a British philosophical
journal founded in 1972. It probably has a larger active readership
than any other philosophical journal in Britain. It circulates throughout
the English-speaking world and in many other countries. The journal
also organises a regular programme of conferences and meetings. Some
past articles can be found on its website. It also has a very good
collection of obituaries including those of Raphael Samuel, Ralph
Milband, E. P. Thompson, George Rudé and Henri Lefebvre.
Book
Section
Elizabeth
& Mary: This book deals with the relationship between Elizabeth
I and Mary Queen of Scots. It was the defining relationship of their
lives and marked the intersection of the great Tudor and Stuart dynasties.
The distinguished biographer Jane Dunn reveals an extraordinary story
of two queens ruling in one isle, both embodying opposing qualities
of character; ideals of womanliness and divinely ordained kingship.
Theirs is a drama of sex and power, recklessness, ambition and political
intrigue, with a rivalry that could only be resolved by death. (Jane
Dunn, HarperCollins, ISBN 0 00 257150 1, £20)
.
Available from Amazon Books
(order below)
