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Point of impact By 1775, American colonists and the British were on a collision course. The Stamp Act, imposed in 1765 to defray the cost of defending the colonies from…
Second in a series: the first, with the introduction and the years 1801-1806, is here. 1807 Major events: Peninsular War (1807-1814) began as the French invaded Portugal, which offended Napoleon…
Prowling through my database of art recommendations past, present, and future, I noticed that quite a few of the artworks come from the first 15 years of the nineteenth century.…
From February 2017 until the end of the year, I sent 157 items to my Sunday Recommendations list. For recurring supporters, I recommended 31 more. The items in this post…
“The Bird,” by Victor Hugo Be like the bird, who Pausing in his flight On limb too slight Feels it give way beneath him Yet sings Knowing he has wings.…
King Lear opens with Lear demanding that his daughters tell him how much they love him, before he divides his kingdom between them. In this ten-foot-wide painting of that scene,…
This essay is adapted from Chapter 36 of Outdoor Monuments of Manhattan: A Historical Guide. I’ve kept cross-references to other chapters in the book. Outdoor Monuments has been "translated" into a fabulous app…
I entered college with a year of Latin, three years of French, and writing skills that earned me a National Council of Teachers of English scholarship. What to take instead…
To illustrate this post, I went yesterday to take photos of the reliefs in the lobby of the Chanin Building. From the full length of the lobby (a city block…
I'll take Mozart or Rossini over Puccini most days of the year, but (OK, husband and daughter, I admit it) I do enjoy Tosca. Alphonse Mucha, who created a poster for…
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