This section offers articles that were considered "historical" by their Victorian readership (as opposed to articles about the Victorian period itself that we would consider "historical" today -- you'll find those in the Victorian Life section). It also covers Victorian archaeology; Victorians were passionate archaeologists and many publications reported on digs, finds, and local antiquities.

General History

Girls' Own Paper - 1880 (Vol. 1)

A Canadian Heroine

About a young women who helped rescue a Canadian outpost from an American attack.

Courage of Women, by Lambton Young, Late Secretary of the Royal Humane Society

Primarily about women who have rescued others from drowning.

Fashionable Costumes of Long Ago

Female Heroism, by Sylvia Thorne

A look at some heroic ladies, including Grace Darling, Florence Nightingale, Catherine Douglas, and others.

The Learned Ladies of Bologna

A look at a university that has accepted women since the 12th century.

When I Was a Girl

A great deal about the treasures to be found on a rainy day in cupboards and window seats, with lots of charming illustrations of "older" costumes.

Girls' Own Paper - 1880-1881 (Vol. 2)

A Brave Woman

The story of a rescue at Bibber's Rock in West Virginia.

Mother Shipton and her Prophecies

Yorkshire's own 15th-century prophet (and quite a fascinating lady). For more information on Mother Shipton, visit Mother Shipton: England's Nostradamus, on TimeTravel-Britain.com.

President Garfield's Mother

This article follows the assassination of President Garfield in 1881.

Rachel Wriothesley, Lady Russell

A GOP prize-winning reader essay about a 17th-century lady. (Here's an interesting aside: around 1696, she had surgery for cataracts.)

Girls' Own Paper - 1881-1882

An Istria Wedding, by Fairleigh Owen

Wedding ceremonies 100 years ago in "the wild out-of-the-way mountains, forests, and fertile plains of Istria, in the southern portion of the Austrian Empire."

May Day Celebrations, by Annie Kemm

Old Court Customs, by the Hon. Mrs. Armitage (4-part article)

Valentines, by Ardern Holt

When I Was a Girl, by Fairleigh Owen

The author reflects on a day without matches or policemen, "no gas, no cabs, no late shops open to make cheerful and bright the suburban sidewalks..." With so much progress since her own girlhood, she speculates that one day, perhaps, "You may be conversing with friends by word of mouth across the Atlantic."

Women of Intellect: Jane Austen

Girls' Own Paper - 1882-1883

Curiosities of Court Receptions, by the Hon. Mrs. Armytage

A Female Crusoe; Another Female Crusoe

The second of these two articles will be familiar to anyone who has read Scott O'dell's The Island of the Blue Dolphins, as it is the actual news account that inspired the novel.

The Foundling of Kempten, by the Baroness van Gilta

A Girl's Own Paper Three Hundred and Sixty Years Ago

An account of an Aztec mother's advice to her daughter.

About Gloves and Their Significance, by Henry Frith

Girls' Own Paper - 1886-1887

The Builders of the Bridge, by Mrs. G. Linnaeus Banks

The building of Swarkstone Bridge in the age of Henry III.

Domestic Life in Classic Times: The Women of Greece

Domestic Life in Classic Times: The Women of Rome

Domestic Changes of the Last 50 Years

Heraldry, Historically and Practically Considered

The History of Home, by Nanette Mason

Or, "Domestic Ways Since the Times of Henry VIII"

A Daughter of Sorrows

A history of Marie Antoinette

A "Princess of Thule" in the 16th Century, by Rev. Thomas Willson

The story of Grana Uaile (aka Grace O'Maley)

Girls' Own Paper - 1888-1889

Eyam and its Memorable Woe, by H. W. Brewer

The fate of a British village during the Black Death (loads of pictures).

The Ladies of the Olden Times, by Sophia Caulfield

The Strand - 1891

Smugglers' Devices

From hollow legs to hollow coals, smugglers found a host of ingenious ways to bring their wares onto British soil.

"How It's Made"

Girls' Own Paper - 1880 (Vol. 1)

Bookbinding in Olden Times

Girls' Own Paper - 1886-1887

How Buttons Are Made

Lace-Making in the Erzgebirge, by Emma Brewer

The Thimble and Thimblemakers

Girls' Own Paper - 1888-1889

The Silk Industry in Ireland and America, by Dora de Blaquiere

Violins and Mittenwald, by Emma Brewer

How violins are made, but also the story of the German town of Mittenwald, with loads of local color and folklore.

The Strand - 1891

Up a Shot Tower

How lead shot is made.

Archaeology

Girls' Own Paper - 1881-1882

The Temple of Diana at Ephesus, by J.T. Wood

Gentleman's Magazine 1859

The Roman City of Uriconium [Wroxeter]

This extensive report on excavations at the city of Wroxeter, near Shrewsbury, is archived on my "TimeTravel-Britain.com" site, where you can also read a modern article (with photos) on the Roman ruins of that city.

Military History

The Strand - 1891

The Charge of the Light Brigade

First-hand account by Private James Lamb, Late 13th Hussars, "One of the Six Hundred."

A Regiment on Wheels

The British cycling corps (the author was quite certain bicycles represented the future of combat!).

Stories of the Victoria Cross

Told by "those who have won it," including Private Henry Hook of Zulu fame.

Young Tommy Atkins: A Personal Experience

An account of the experiences of a young recruit ("Tommy Atkins" is a generic name for the British soldier).