Monthly Archives: June 2022

I’ve written before about the nineteenth century use of abortifacients – in an age without reliable contraception unwanted pregnancy was a risk for women, especially unmarried women. One of the most common remedies was pennyroyal, often sold in pill form … Continue reading →

Before the pandemic I’d played about with family history  on hot days in January, but it was only with the pandemic that I started to play with it seriously, and it’s brought a number of puzzles, one of which was … Continue reading →

I have long been fascinated by the events of the Russian revolutions of 1917 in February and October of that year, but over the years I’ve come to realise that that the collapse of the Austro Hungrian Empire at the … Continue reading →