Neptune to the Common-wealth of England (1652): the republican Britannia and the continuity of interests

In the seventeenth century, John Kerrigan reminds us, “models of empire did not always turn on monarchy”. In this essay, I trace a vision of “Neptune’s empire” shared by royalists and republicans, binding English national interest to British overseas expansion. I take as my text a poem entitled “Neptune to the Common-wealth of England”, prefixed to Marchamont Nedham’s 1652 English translation of Mare Clausum (1635), John Selden’s response to Mare Liberum (1609) by Hugo Grotius. This minor work is read alongside some equally obscure and more familiar texts in order to point up the ways in which it speaks to persistent cultural and political interests. I trace the afterlife of this verse, its critical reception and its unique status as a fragment that exemplifies the crossover between colonial republic and imperial monarchy at a crucial moment in British history, a moment that, with Brexit, remains resonant

Spanish Flu: The First Modern Case of Viral Humour?

This chapter focuses on exploring the link between the Spanish flu, a pandemic that was rampant between 1918-19, and humour through cartoons and newspapers. To circumvent the traditional challenges of historiographical research I adopted a triangulation-based approach of three different countries, that underwent different trajectories, Italy, the UK and Russia in order to merge these national narratives and observe the phenomenon from different angles. A reflection on humour as a moral occurrence, expanding on the works of Christie Davies as well as applying recent findings on the behavioural immune system on historical data, can offer new insights on overlooked cultural and humour-based aspects of these societies during the Spanish flu. An unorthodox take on the evolution of cultural items pioneered by Antonio Gramsci in his Notes on Machiavelli, should also enrich the understanding of the analysed material through the addition of an informational-psychological layer to the traditional historical material one. This theoretical and methodological \u201cconvergence\u201d hopefully will constitute a viable \u201ccollection of strategies\u201d for practitioners and the wider public alike. Archives were consulted in all three countries; translations are provided by the author to unlock how the Spanish flu, and other diseases, affected humour as a tool to explore the social world in conditions of heightened disgust and wide-spread political instability. The age-old question of whether humour has a significant effect on societal changes can be examined through significant case studies to \u201cpush the boundaries\u201d on what human beings do throughout history when tragedy knocks on the door

The Numismatic chronicle.

List of members in each volume beginning with new ser., v. 1 (except new ser., v. 3).Proceedings of the society are included in each volume, beginning with v. 5 (except v. 10, 19, and new ser., v. 4).With v. 1 is bound; Horta, de, chevalier. Catalogue d'une partie de la collection de médailles. Londres, J. Wertheimer."Charter, bye-laws and regulations of the Royal Numismatic Society" bound with 4th ser., v. 4.Editors: 18 -1857/58, J.Y. Akerman; 1856/57-1885, W.S.W. Vaux; 1861-1907, Sir J. Evans; 1861-68, F.W. Madden; 1869-1910, B.V. Head; 1885-1912, H.A. Grueber; 1898-1910, E.J. Rapson; 1911- Oliver Codrington; 1912-G.F. Hill; 1913- G.C. Brooke.Title varies slightly."Journal of the Numismatic Society."List of members in each volume beginning with new ser., v. 1 (except new ser., v. 3).Proceedings of the society are included in each volume, beginning with v. 5 (except v. 10, 19, and new ser., v. 4).With v. 1 is bound; Horta, de, chevalier. Catalogue d'une partie de la collection de médailles. Londres, J. Wertheimer."Charter, bye-laws and regulations of the Royal Numismatic Society" bound with 4th ser., v. 4.Mode of access: Internet.Vol. 1-10, in v. 11; vol. 1-20, in v. 20; new ser., v. 1-10, in v. 10; New ser., v. 11-20, in v. 20; 3d ser., v. 1-10, in v. 10; 3d sr., v. 11-20, in v. 20; 4th ser., v. 1-10, in v. 10; 4th ser., v. 11-20, in v. 20