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The Lost Franklin Expedition

Nyx was night, but what was night without its cover? Not long after Nyx had pulled herself into existence, Erebus followed. He was darkness. While Nyx was the divine embodiment of night and all that it entailed, Erebus was action. He was primordial, an enforcer, the executioner. The final knell of sleep and death and the champion of the night.
Molly Tullis in her book “Consort of Darkness”

By the mid 19th century, much of the world’s waters had been explored. The primary route, by sea, to Eastern Asia from Europe was to go underneath South America or Africa, as the Panama and Suez Canals were yet to be built. However, some believed that there was another, faster way, through the fabled North West Passage.

Just north of Canada is the icy and unforgiving waters of the Arctic Ocean. In the winter months, the Sun would not rise, and winds would bring temperatures as low as -40°C and sometimes even lower. Whilst easily passable with modern technology, this was not the case in 1845. But, the British were still determined to find the North West Passage to Asia.

The man assigned to command the expedition was Captain Sir John Franklin. Franklin was an experienced explorer, and had led 3 different expeditions to the Arctic previously and was very popular with his crew, who saw him as a compassionate commander who had an admiration for expedition. However, the Admiralty was hesitant. In 1819, Franklin had led a disastrous expedition in the same territory. His men eventually began to starve and got so hungry they began eating the leather from their boots, to which he gained a nickname “The man who ate his own boot”. However, Franklin was confident that he could find the Northwest passage, securing a more efficient way to trade with Asia, before he would humbly retire once the passage was explored.

Two ships were chosen for the expedition, the HMS Erebus and the HMS Terror, commanded by Captain James Fitzjames and Captain Francis Crozier respectively. At the time, they were seen as the height of naval technology. Formerly war ships in the Royal Navy, the ships had been specially modified for Polar Expeditions, with extra planking and metal plating at the bow and water line, believing this may help them break through the ice. The ship was equipped with central heating technology as well as a steam engine connected to a propellor at the rudder, which was theorised to give the ship extra strength to power through the ice.

A drawing of *HMS Erebus* and *HMS Terror*

The British also wanted to use the expedition to test many of their newest inventions. If the propellors needed fixing they would use the new invention of the diving suit to go down and break the ice with a stick. They also brought canned food onto ships, in order to cut down on contractions of scurvy, a disease brought about by lack of Vitamin C in a diet, a very common plight for sailors. In order to preserve the crew’s mental health, books, sports equipment and even costumes for theatre productions were brought aboard.

Everything seemed well enough and the mission set sail from Greenhithe in Kent on May 19th, 1845 with 134 men between the two ships. Around a month into the expedition, they stopped in Greenland, to gather more supplies, send letters home from the crew and send 5 men back who had contracted illnesses. In late July of 1845, two whaling ships spotted the Erebus and Terror entering Baffin Bay. This was the last time the crew was officially seen alive.

Two Christmases came and went and there was no sign of the ships and no word from them either. People began to get concerned, none more so that Franklin’s wife, Jane, who called upon the admiralty to launch a search party for the expedition immediately, knowing they would run out of food by September of 1848. When they refused, she appealed to the British public, with the help of her close friend, Charles Dickens, who by now had written The Pickwick Papers, Oliver Twist and A Christmas Carol. The surmounting pressure from the public eventually lead to a search being launched in 1848. The ships sailed off into the Arctic Circle, and only in August of 1850 did they begin to uncover the horrible truth.

On a beach on Beechey Island, they found 3 gravestones for 3 of the crew of the Franklin Expedition, dated throughout the winter of 1845, near the remains of a camp. It appears as though, as the winter of 1845 approached, Franklin ordered his men to take shelter in the cove of Beechey Island. There, the water froze over for the winter and would not thaw until the next year. It is assumed that during this time the three crew men died. When the ice thawed, it was believed that Franklin told the crew to leave quickly in order to make decent ground before the water froze over again.

The graves on Beechey Island. The fourth one, furthest left, is for a member of the search party

In the 1980s, it was revealed that the bodies had been nearly perfectly preserved in the ice, which I shall not be showing here for the more queasy among you. However, it is believed that, due to the high amounts of lead found in the bodies, that the cans containing the food were sealed using lead, leading to lead poisoning which would weaken the immune system as well as causing confusion and hallucinations. Not only that but many postulate that the cans were also sealed improperly, leading to cases of botulism and scurvy, due to the lack of fresh fruit and vegetables.

In 1859, they found a large pile of stones, called a cairn, on the Northern coast of King William Island, around 418 miles south from Beechey Island. Inside was a note from the expedition, which is currently the only form of contact found from the crew post 1845.

A drawing of the search party finding the cairn

H.M.S.hips Erebus and Terror Wintered in the Ice in Lat. 70°5’N Long. 98°23’W Having wintered in 1846-7 [sic] at Beechey Island in Lat 74°43’28’’N Long 91°39’15’’W

After having ascended Wellington Channel to Lat 77° and returned by the West side of Cornwallis Island. Sir John Franklin commanding the Expedition. All well. Party consisting of 2 Officers and 6 Men left the ships on Monday 24th May 1847.
Charles Frederick Des Voeux and Graham Gore (officers on the ships) May 28th, 1847

However, they found in the margins a very different message than the one claiming everything was fine a year prior.

HMShips Terror and Erebus were deserted on the 22nd April 5 leagues NNW of this having been beset since 12th Sept 1846.

The officers and crews consisting of 105 souls under the command of Captain F. R. M. Crozier landed here — in Lat. 69°37’42’’ Long. 98°41’

This paper was found by Lt. Irving under the cairn supposed to have been built by Sir James Ross in 1831 — 4 miles to the Northward — where it had been deposited by the late Commander Gore in ~~May~~ June 1847.

Sir James Ross’ pillar has not however been found and the paper has been transferred to this position which is that in which Sir J. Ross’ pillar was erected.

Sir John Franklin died on the 11th of June 1847 and the total loss by deaths in the Expedition has been to this date 9 officers and 15 men.
Francis Cozier, April 25th 1848

And start on tomorrow 26th for Backs Fish River
James Fitzjames, April 25th 1848

Due to this, it is believed that the crew had gotten trapped once more in the ice in the winter of 1847 around the Northwest Coast of King William Island, as at the time it was still speculated that it could be connected to mainland Canada.

A postulated map from the time, showing King William Island connected to the mainland (*The Terror*, HBO)

However, due to freak weather as determined by modern scientists, the ice did not thaw for years on end, even in summer. In 1847, Franklin had died alongside 24 other men and the remaining crew decided to abandon the ships and walk down 130 miles south to Backs Fish River, now called Back River, in Northern Canada, in an attempt to find civilisation. It is believed they put dinghies on large skis and put supplies in them. The ships were left abandoned and eventually sunk, not being found until the 2010s. However, in 1854, a shocking discover had been made.

Sir John Rae, an English explorer had spoken with the local Inuit population. They showed trinkets that could’ve only been found with the Franklin expedition to prove their story. They claimed that they found a camp site with 30 dead bodies, with some inside tents whilst others were scattered outside. Not only that but in the fire pit they found human remains, implying that the survivors had resorted to cannibalism to stay alive. Shocked by this revelation, many vehemently denied these claims, claiming that civilised people would not do such things.

We submit that the memory of the lost Arctic voyagers is placed, by reason and experience, high above the taint of this so easily-allowed connection; and that the noble conduct and example of such men, and of their own great leader himself, under similar endurances, belies it, and outweighs by the weight of the whole universe the chatter of a gross handful of uncivilised people, with domesticity of blood and blubber.
Charles Dickens writing in his public journal, 1854

The story was only confirmed in 1993, when archaeologists found that the remains had slices in them from knives or other sharp objects, especially around the hands, neck and feet. It appeared as through the crew had intentionally cut off the most human parts of their comrades, in order to not feel so guilty about eating them.

Ultimately, not a single member of the Franklin expedition was ever seen alive again. Whilst archaeologists are still making discoveries, even as recently as 2024 with them discovering the bones of James Fitzjames, comfort can be found in the fact that it is highly likely that the crew did find the Northwest Passage, as they would’ve seen it in their southern march. Due the search party’s efforts, the passage was truly discovered, even if the Franklin Expedition never actually did. In 1866, a unanimous vote was passed through Parliament to erect a statue in honour of the Franklin Expedition.

They Forged the Last Link with Their Lives
The words on the base of the statue

The statue of Franklin on Waterloo Place in London

The Siege of Toulon

The year was 1793. Louis XVI, the 45th King of France, was dead, beheaded by his own people. Outside of Paris, Royalist sentiment was abundant and, in an attempt to unite France behind one cause, the Revolutionary government declared war on Austria-Hungary, who believed that France’s anti-monarchist sentiment would spread across the continent. Austria called upon its allies and France was no in all out war with most major powers, including the United Kingdom, Sardinia, Spain and Prussia.

Naturally, this did not help the French cause and violent uprisings began sparking up across France. One such place these uprisings was the port city of Toulon, a highly strategic naval base in the Mediterranean. This uprising was, unsurprisingly, backed by the British, who were welcomed into the port with open arms. France had now lost the naval power of the Mediterranean without a shot being fired. France needed this port back desperately and sent 19,000 troops down to deal with the uprising. One of these forces was commanded by a then relatively unknown artillery officer, by the name of Napoleon Bonaparte.

Napoleon was from the island of Corsica, which was purchased by France from Genoa not long before Napoleon was born. The island had widespread anti-French sentiment, which Napoleon agreed with. His father, on the other hand, gladly embraced the new French rulers, leading to father and son often butting heads. He was sent to military school in France, where he was heavily bullied due to his accent and his families lack of wealth. However, he held his ground and often stood up to bullies. When he wasn’t beating up the bullies, he would often be found alone reading about the conqueror’s of old, like Julius Caesar and Alexander the Great. He wondered if it was possible if he could be as great and powerful as them.

Once he graduated, he was made Second Lieutenant in an artillery regiment. But Napoleon was not content with this. He had ambition and wanted more power. However, in pre-revolutionary France, military ranks were most often gained by nobility and nepotism, not by actual talent. Luckily for Napoleon, the Revolution occurred and the people of France were now on a more equal playing field. Whilst Napoleon was not too big on the violence and mass beheadings, he believed that, in order to rise the ranks, he must become pro-revolutionary.

General Jean-François Carteaux, the leader of the forces at Toulon, was a court painter by trade with zero military training so was not highly skilled in leadership positions. Not only that but one of his only professional officers was seriously wounded in battle. Antoine Saliceti, a Corsican deputy of the National Convention, recommended Napoleon, who was travelling near Toulon on his way to the front lines. Despite Napoleon having almost no military experience yet, Saliceti appreciated his manner and political aspirations. Carteaux had almost no choice but to accept Napoleon to lead the Siege of Toulon.

A map of Toulon, with the Fort’s labelled

Napoleon’s plan was simple. They needed to build up significantly more guns and train the infantry to operate them. Then, they would capture the southern Fort L’Eguilette, allowing them to inflict heavy artillery casualties on the British ships, forcing them to leave, which was important as the ships were the key source of defence. The first part of this plan, however, involved the capture of Mount Caire, where British troops were stationed. After an unsuccessful assault, due to Carteaux being hesitant to send the 3,000 men required to accomplish the task, command of Toulon was handed over to General Dugommier. He stated that:

There is only one possible plan – Bonaparte’s
General Dugommier speaking on Toulon

In order to build up the fortifications of Toulon, the British built a new fort called Fort Mulgrave. The area was so fortified it was called “Little Gibraltar” by the French. An unsuccessful British counter attack followed and, in the early hours of the 18th of December, 1793, in the pouring rain and howling wind, Napoleon’s forces charged up the hill. The muskets were useless as guns due to the rain and could only be used as clubs and bayonets. The second charge came, with Napoleon in this wave. During this, his horse was killed and he was wounded in his thigh, mere inches away from a fatal stab. However, despite this, the British were driven off the Mountain after severe hand to hand combat, and French artillery now observed Toulon.

The British, not wanting to lose their ships, began evacuating the city. Citizens, who feared being executed as traitors to the Republic, attempted to board the ships. Some 14,000 were evacuated whilst the rest of the city either drowned in the chaos or were executed by firing squad in the morning. This was the first victory of Napoleon Bonaparte, a path that would lead Europe down a 21 year long path of near endless war. At the time, Napoleon was only 24 and was promoted to Brigadier General.

The Reign of Terror

The French managed to push back the Austrians into the lowlands but more countries joined the coalition against France so they were pushed back out. Realising they were losing the war, the began mass conscription. Despite the revolution fever being high in Paris, outside the city, people were very fond of the clergy and nobility, as they had not been effected too badly by the economy compared to Paris. Now these people were being conscripted to fight for a Republic that they despised. Because of this, multiple counter-revolutionary uprisings occurred across the nation. One suppression of these counter revolutions ended in violent pacifism, where Jean Baptist Carrier tied thousands of priests and civilians, including women and children tied to ship which were then sunk. Carrier was found guilty of war crimes and executed.

Eventually the British ended up occupying the city of Toulon, an important Mediterranean naval port. To deal with the occupation, France sent down a relatively unknown captain at the time, by the name of Napoleon Bonaparte. Due to his successful capture of the city, Napoleon was promoted to Brigadier General.

At the time, the government was still a majority moderate government. With the uprisings, the war effort going badly and the economy returning to it’s awful state, people began to distrust the government. Marat blamed the moderates, saying that all moderates who remained should be executed, who in turn called for Marat’s arrest. The moderates in the radicals were in heated conflict, until the radical Jacobins stormed the National Convention, arresting the remaining moderates. Robespierre and the Radicals now controlled the government.

Now we meet a woman called Charlotte Corday, who lived in Caen. Like many outside of Paris, she was upset and angered by the violence from the radicals. The one man she blamed the most was Marat. She wanted peace in France, so travelled down to Paris, telling Marat he had a list that she wanted him to publish in his paper. She was invited into his bathroom, where she stabbed him fatally in the chest, piercing an artery near his heart. He died quickly and became a martyr for the cause. Symbols of Christ in Temples of Reason were changed to Marat. Corday was executed by guillotine

Soon, Robespierre began to get paranoid, believing that there were people inside France wanting to upend the Republic. He set up a secret police and spies to watch his own citizens. He founded a new tribunal, which speed lined the process of trying traitors and having them executed. Anything that remotely criticised the Republic or praised the old monarchy would result in execution. During the Reign of Terror, commanded by Robespierre, over 40,000 people were executed by guillotine. The most famous victim of the Reign of Terror was Marie Antoinette.

She was finally put on trial after years in prison and sentenced to death via guillotine. She expected a royal carriage to bring her the gallows, like her husband. What she got was a wooden cart. Antoinette was pulled by horse through the streets of Paris in a white dress, maintaining composure despite the jeering of the crowd. He last words were her apologising for stepping on her executioner’s shoe. She was beheaded at 12:15 on October 16th, 1793. She was only 37.

A drawing of the execution of Marie Antoinette

Unfortunately, Robepierre’s strategy had worked and France was finally back on it’s feet. The food shortage was fixed and the French army had even made a successful push against the coalition. Georges Danton decided it was time to normalise the Republic, by proposing the deescalation of executions, the reestablishment of the church and suing for peace against the coalition. Because of his thoughts, Danton, one of Robespierre’s closest friends and allies who helped him found the Jacobin Club, was promptly executed. Many others who even slightly opposed Robespierre were also executed. He started another religion, in which he basically declared himself God. It’s a round this time, historians believe, that Robespierre had gone mad. Eventually, the legislative assembly had enough and, in a unanimous vote, had Robespierre put on trial. He was sentenced to death and was executed by guillotine, making him the last victim of the Reign of Terror that he started.

The French Revolution

By 1756, France was considered to be one of the greatest countries on Earth. They had grand monuments, incredible military campaigns and a fantastic life. However, underneath the surface lurked a social hierarchy that threatened the stability of the nation. The nobility and the clergy were very well known for partying like there was no tomorrow, whilst the poor suffered and starved, hardly ever making enough money to buy a loaf of bread.

Meanwhile, the New World was being conquered and Britain and France were arguing over a strip of land that both of them claimed to own. Thus erupted the Seven Years War, and France lost hard. Due to the war reparations, France was in severe financial ruin. Despite this, the nobility continued to party, neglecting the people who had work their backs off to make the nobility’s life good. This was when France’s poor began to question the social hierarchy, beginning the Age of Enlightenment.

Great philosophical thinkers across the country began questioning if the greatest country on Earth was really all it was cracked up to be. During this time, Louis XVI was crowned the new King of France. Louis was notoriously weak, hardly competent enough to run a country, never mind one in severe financial debt that was questioning the establishment of the monarchy.

One of the first acts he did was to get revenge on the British by helping fund the American Revolution. Once the war was over with, America didn’t pay France back, meaning that France was now in even more debt than before. The poor envied the elite even more, because they were suffering with the effects of this financial ruin, whilst the nobility still acted like there was no problem. Most of their hate was targeted at Louis’ wife, former Archduchess of Austria, Marie Antoinette. Her high spending on her increasingly lavish lifestyle, fashion and beauty earned her the nickname “Madame Deficit”

People began ridiculing the royals, over a scandal that Louis apparently took a very long time to consummate the marriage. Graphic artwork was drawn, depicting Antoinette as a whore and the King as a weakling who wouldn’t put out. As support for the monarchy was at an all time low, the King and his advisors decided that now would be a good time to tax the poor, for basically anything you can think of, with an especially ridiculous one being on salt. Some of these were collected by private companies, who walked around with armed thugs. Resistance against these taxes often ended in violence. Meanwhile, the clergy and nobility either had to pay little or no tax at all, which angered the peasants even more. France was now on the brink of revolution, and the push they needed was a bad harvest.

A series of harsh summers and winters came and went, killing the harvest for those years. They now had no food or money, whilst the cost of bread drastically went up. Naturally, the nobility had stocks of grain and wheat so, yet again, believed nothing was wrong. This was the final push that the poor needed to riot. Bakeries were raided for their bread, whilst some bakers who were suspected of hoarding were hanged in the streets.

The revolutionaries spread propaganda saying that Marie Antoinette had been informed that the rioters were starving and responded saying “Then let them eat cake” in an effort to make her seem out of touch. In actuality, Antoinette never said this. When dealing with a crisis, Louis did what he always did was run off, and get someone else to do the work for him. Specifically, he turned to the Estates General, which was an advisory body that was rarely ever summoned, where representatives from each of the three estates, that being the clergy, the nobility and everyone else, would gather to decide important issues.

A drawing of the Estates General of 1789

Louis decided that to come to any form of conclusion, he had to set up a voting system. However, each class only got one vote. Despite making up 98% of the population, the 3rd estate would often find their proposals, which often helped the poor which would destabilise the rich, outvoted by the clergy and the nobility. They instead decided to set up their own government, the National Assembly, where the third estate controlled. Louis attempted to stop the National Assembly by locking them out of their building but they very quickly found a solution by finding a different building that wasn’t locked, that being a tennis court down the street, where they all swore the Tennis Court Oath, where they pledged to continue to meet until the King gave into their demands for economic reform.

The National Assembly included many great thinkers. Two important ones we’ll mention were Maximilien Robespierre and Georges Danton. Other members of the first two estates joined, most importantly Marquis de Lafayette, a former military officer from the American Revolution. Some of these great thinkers, including Robespierre and Danton formed a political party called the Jacobin Club. Some radicals within the party did not just campaign for economic reform but the removal of the monarchy.

Fearing his stability, Louis ordered the army to convene around Paris. Hearing of this, the third estate feared that the King was going to arrest and execute them. During this, the King dismissed popular financial advisor Jacques Neckler, who had been trying to fix the economy on his own. The people of France, who had suffered, starved and been treated like gum on a shoe had enough and decided that they had to act now. They began to revolt.

Believing that the French Military would attack, the National Assembly formed the Bourgeois Militia or National Guard. Many French soldiers began to defect. On July 14th, 1789, the revolutionaries began storming the Hôtel les Invalides, a military hospital where they secured a large number of guns. However, these guns had no ammunition. Luckily, the Bastille was only 3 miles away, a large military fort. They demanded that Governor de Launay hand the fort and gunpowder over. De Launay refused and the revolutionaries violently stormed the Bastille, killing the French troops, cutting off De Launay’s head and parading it around Paris on a pike.

A painting of the Storming of the Bastille

The National Assembly fully endorsed the act. Many historians state that the endorsement of the Storming of the Bastille paved the way for the extreme violence that followed, which the French Revolution is known for. A lot of this violence was encouraged by Jean-Paul Marat, a violent radical with a skin condition that confined him to his bath tub. He wrote a newspaper called “The Friend of the People” in which he wrote ramblings about killing the nobility.

[The Friend of the People began] with a severe but honest tone, that of a man who wishes to tell the truth without breaking the conventions of society. I maintained that tone for two whole months. Disappointed in finding that it did not produce the entire effect that I had expected, and indignant that the boldness of the unfaithful representatives of the people and of the lying public officials was steadily increasing, I felt that it was necessary to renounce moderation[…]. Strongly convinced of the absolute perversity of the supporters of the old regime and the enemies of liberty, I felt that nothing could be obtained from them except by force. Revolted by their attempts, by their ever-recurrent plots, I realized that no end would be put to these except by exterminating the ones guilty of them.
Marat’s writing in The Friend of the People

It quickly became one of the popular publications in Paris at the time. By August, the National Assembly, with the help of Thomas Jefferson, had written up “The Declaration of the Rights of the Man and of the Citizen” declaring equal rights for all men. Despite shortcomings in gender rights, it was considered a great document. However, the French People were still starving, and believed that the reason was because Louis didn’t see the problem himself, as he lived in Versailles, not Paris where most of the revolution and economic problems were occurring. The women of Paris decided to do something about it.

They marched on Versailles, gathering support along the way until a crowd in the tens of thousands had arrived at the Palace of Versailles, demanding to see the King. The rioters broke into the palace, intending to kill Antoinette, who had escaped through a secret passage. The rioters killed the royal guard, cut off their heads and stuck them on pikes.

The King eventually came out to the crowd, saying that he would accept working along side the revolutionary government. He moved pack to Paris with the revolutionaries along side the rest of his family. Once he moved, the government, piece by piece, began stripping his power. Fearing for his life, he had to become more friendly with the revolutionaries, even at one point wearing the revolutionary beret. Louis knew he had to get out of the country and fast. He hoped to seek sanctuary in Austria due to his wife’s ties to the Austrian Royal Family. However, they were stopped at Varennes, after postmaster Jean-Baptiste Drouet recognised him due to the stamp with his face on it on his assignat and was arrested.

The façade of revolutionary support that Louis had been putting up suddenly crumbled in the blink of an eye. Many considered him a traitor who attempted to abandon his people. The New Constitution of 1791 made Louis nothing more than a figurehead for the country. Jacobin radicals were still furious that the King hadn’t been removed outright. They organised a large protest, at which the National Guard shot at the revolutionaries. This revealed the division between the two factions of the revolution, the moderates who wanted to keep the King as a figurehead and the radicals who wanted the King deposed and killed.

Whilst nobility were leaving the country, other European superpowers with monarchies feared that France’s revolutionary ideas might spread. Fearing an attack, the newly renamed Legislative Assembly declared war on Austria, beginning the War of the First Coalition. With an alliance being made with the Prussians, France hardly stood a chance. Charles William Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick sent a letter to the revolutionaries, warning that if any harm were to come to Louis, he would burn Paris to the ground. In a surprising turn of events, this invigorated the French people to do the exact opposite, as they were angered by the threat. The riots escalated and the Palace was eventually stormed, where fighting broke out between the revolutionaries and the King’s Guard. The King ran to the Legislative Assembly, where a vote was held. The monarchy was suspended almost unanimously. Louis, no longer King of France was put in prison along side Antoinette.

On September 22nd, 1792, the Legislative Assembly, now called the National Convention declared the French Republic, where ideas of democracy and equality were thrown around. But those ideas were drowned by their thirst for blood. In order to remove any artifact of their monarchist past, they began by deporting or arresting members of the clergy and replacing Catholicism with the state sponsored, Atheist religion called the Cult of Reason. Churches and cathedrals such as Notre Dame had their Catholic relics taken or destroyed and the buildings were turned into “Temples of Reason”. The Christian Calendar was gotten rid of, replacing it with the French Republican Calendar. The lengths of minutes, hours and days were changed with an entirely new set of months. The nobility were also arrested on mass along side the clergy.

Meanwhile the Austrian lines were advancing, and thousands of men were sent away from Paris to the frontlines. This was when paranoia began to set in. People began to believe that the clergy and nobility, all clustered together in prisons, were plotting their revenge, ideas that were pushed further by Marat. Fearing an uprising, revolutionaries broke into the prisons and killed everyone. The priests, the aristocrats and even the women and children. 1,600 people were tried and executed on the spot. A journalist for the London times wondered:

Are these “the Rights of Man”? Is this the liberty of Human Nature?
The London Times, Sept 10, 1792

Meanwhile, on the front lines, Prussia and Austria told France that if they won the war, they would reinstate Louis to the throne. In response to this, a trial was held for Louis for the crime of treason. While some recommended deportation, Robespierre insisted that Louis would be executed. The execution choice won out by only 1 vote. He was to be execute using the newly invented guillotine.

On the morning of January 21st 1793, Louis was woken at 5 in the morning. He ordered his royal seal be given to his son and his wedding ring to his wife. He was transported to the Place de la Revolution. He walked up the gallows, with snare drums rolling as he went up. He requested that the drummers stop so he could deliver some final words.

Frenchmen, I die guiltless of the crime imputed to me. I forgive the authors of my death and pray God my blood fall not on France.
Louis’ last words to the people of France

The snare drums started up again, drowning out his true final words. His hair was cut and his collar was opened. His neck laid on the block and the blade came down, slicing his head clean off. The cannons fired, signifying that he was dead.

Benedict Arnold’s Betrayal, the Southern Campaign and the End of the War

Still currently in charge of Philadelphia, Benedict Arnold had moved into Penn Mansion, which Clinton had used as his headquarters, and partied in the city with the Philadelphia Elite. He even married Peggy Shippen, a member of the Elite. However, this upper class in Philadelphia had also had parties with the British when they occupied the city. The city turned against Arnold, viewing him as a traitor. The state governor sent a letter to Washington, informing Arnold of his treasonous behaviour. Washington, who had originally saw Arnold as a “fighting general” and had supported him, denounced his behaviour. It was around this time Arnold planned to defect.

He requested that Washington put him in charge of West Point, where he would contact the British, offering the plans to the fort in exchange for a Brigadier General position in the British Army and a decent sum of cash. By the time the plans were discovered by the Americans, Arnold had already defected and set up base in the British occupied New York.

Benedict Arnold handing over the plans to the British

By 1780, the British were losing support for the war. Despite having taken parts of Massachusetts, the North had largely come to a stalemate. The British decided to switch up and focus more of their efforts on the largely British supporting South. They captured Savannah, Georgia and when the Americans and French tried to fight back, they were repelled and the British advanced to Augusta. They then captured Charleston, taking many prisoners. Now occupying the majority of Georgia and South Carolina, the pro-British Americans in the region against the people who had been harassing them for being pro-British.

In order to deal with the Southern offensive, James Madison sent down Horatio Gates, who they believed was the one responsible for the successful offensive at Saratoga, to Camden. Gates got in one battle at Camden and was absolutely annihilated. Washington then sent down the much more capable Nathaniel Greene. He split his army into two, distracting General Tarleton, and defeating them with ease. He then pulled up Cornwallis’ men through North Carolina, straining their supply line. Greene then crossed the Virginia border, gathered reinforcements and faced down the British at Guilford Courthouse, who were tired from having to slug around their heavy equipment. Eventually, the two sides clashed in close-quarters combat. Fearing loss, Cornwallis fired cannons into the struggle, many of which cut down his own men. The American forces retreated but the British, just like Bunker Hill, sustained significantly more losses.

Eventually, both sides were becoming tired of the war. With mutinies occurring in the American Army and the British running out of money, the French arrival was the fresh air that they needed to end the war. Cornwallis decided to consolidate his men in Yorktown, with the intention to take Virginia, which was the American’s main supply hub. Meanwhile, Clinton’s forces in New York received intercepted messages saying that Washington intended to do a frontal assault of New York. However, Washington and the French, Commanded by Rochambeau, were secretly moving their troops down to Yorktown. The French navy made quick work of the British ships in the area whilst the ground troops tightened their grip on the city, firing artillery at Cornwallis’ men. Cornwallis asked Clinton for assistance but it never came. After holding out for a month, Cornwallis surrendered, with 7,000 British troops captured.

Parliament had enough of the war. Whilst Britain still did hold New York, Charleston and Savannah, they decided that they must sue for peace. The Treaty of Paris was signed, which dictated that British troops must leave the 13 colonies, recognise US independence and give them territory up to the Mississippi River, whilst America agreed to pay any debts to Britain and stop discrimination against any American Royalists. The Spanish took Florida.

Washington retired, wishing his men a farewell, saying:

With a heart full of love and gratitude, I now take leave of you. I most devoutly wish that your latter days may be as prosperous and happy, as your former ones have been glorious and honorable.
Washington speaking to his officers, 1783

A painting of Washington bidding farewell to his officers

Eventually, the ever modest Washington was forced by the other founding fathers to take the role of leader of the country, deciding to name the office the humble title of President. Ultimately, Washington could have made the office into anything he wanted, whether it be a fascist dictatorship or an absolute monarchy. He instead decided to make the office a fairly elected, with a cabinet of advisors, as he knew that one man could not know everything. He would give annual speeches, talking about the state of the Nation. He claimed that the US should remain neutral in foreign politics and resigned the office after two 4 year long terms, knowing someone else had to eventually take the rains. Due to Washington’s carefulness, he made the office of President of the United States one of the most respected in the world.

Crossing the Delaware & French Assistance

Winter had fallen upon the war. Due to the severe losses, troop morale was low, so low that many ended up abandoning the army. British forces had spread throughout the New Jersey area and, while they partied, hired some German mercenaries to guard the Delaware River. However, due to their defences being low, Washington decided that now was the time to strike.

On Christmas, 1776, Washington made a dangerous crossing across the icy Delaware River. It was considered of upmost importance that the river be crossed so every soldier was armed, including officers and musicians who were given muskets. He marched down to Trenton the next morning and took out the mercenaries with ease. This victory sent a message of American power and that the war was far from lost for the Colonies.

British forces were sent south to deal with the armies but were quickly taken care of by Washington’s army, forcing Britain to back out of Southern New Jersey. The Americans set up camp in Morristown and waited out the winter.

The British had managed to capture the northern naval base of New Port, Rhode Island, and attempted to capturing Charleston, South Carolina. Because of this, Congress sent Benjamin Franklin to Paris, to convince the French to join the fight. Whilst the French were deciding, Franklin allegedly starting getting in casual relationships with Parisian women.

Furious that the Colonies had not been crushed, the British came up with a plan, to meet up Burgoyne’s army in Canada with Howe’s army in New York, splitting the Colonies in half down the Hudson Valley. Burgoyne managed to make it to Bennington but Howe had not joined the fight. He had instead gone down to Philadelphia, capturing the capital and forcing Congress to move to York. This left Burgoyne to deal with the ever increasing American force at Saratoga.

Once again, we encounter Benedict Arnold. He was in a dispute with Horatio Gates. Gates wanted to set up defensive positions and push back from there. Arnold wanted to lead an offensive charge against the British. Gates eventually vetoed the plan but Arnold went against his orders and sent a large force against the British, pushing them back to Canada. Horatio took all the credit and Arnold did not get a single mention.

Burgoyne and Howe were both pulled out of the country, leaving General Henry Clinton in New Jersey. In addition, the victory at Saratoga meant the French could finally join the war against the British. Despite this ally, American forces were once again beginning to lose hope in Washington’s leadership, as winter had once again set in. Soon, a Prussian General called Friedrich Stueben came along and fixed everything, properly training the American army in shooting, marching and other such things that the army desperately needed. Those who did not comply would be punished. After the winter of 1778, Washington was ready to take back the capital. But before he could, Clinton was ordered to move all his forces to New Jersey, due to the new threat from France, and allowed Philadelphia to fall back into American hands. Washington assigned Arnold to hold down Philadelphia and chased the British all the way back to New York.

The Declaration of Independence & The British Return

After forcing the British troops out of Boston, Washington decided to move his troops down the New York, believing that if the British were to return, they would come for there. Meanwhile, Thomas Paine, a political philosopher, wrote a pamphlet called “Common Sense”, wherein he advocated for independence from Britain. It spread across the nation and became one of the best selling American titles. This pamphlet brought the idea of independence into the mainstream, meaning that congress began considering it seriously. Thomas Jefferson wrote an official Declaration of Independence. On July 2nd, Congress voted unanimously in favour of independence, with the independence taking effect on July 4th. The United States of America was born.

A painting of the signing of the Declaration of Indpendence

Due to viewing this declaration of independence as treason, King George sent 130 warships down to New York with 25,000 soldiers for a ground invasion. They set up camp on Staten Island whilst the Americans set up on Brooklyn Heights. However, the British did not attack, instead allowing the American’s nerves to wear down. After an artillery barrage, the British hit hard, having one half of their army attack Washington’s men from the front, while the other half looped from the back and flanked them. The American forces ended up being pushed back to the East River.

Between a rock and a hard place, Americans began to believe that the war was already lost. However, the British decided to entrench themselves around the Continental Army as a thick fog set in, allowing the Americans to cross the river undetected. However, they were chased by the British, suffering defeat after defeat. Washington’s leadership began being called into question as they were pushed all the way back the the New Jersey-Pennsylvania border. Never in human history was an army so badly beat but yet was still around to fight another day.

The Beginning of the Revolutionary War & the Siege of Boston

Once someone shot first at Lexington, the much more powerful British army pushed the Americans back to Concord. However, reinforcements arrived for the Americans and, despite being one of the most heavily trained armies on Earth, they were pushed back to Boston, being ambushed by the inexperienced militia forces. Once the British troops were in Boston, the Americans surrounded the position.

Eventually the founding fathers realised that militia forces would not be enough to crush the British so had to organise an army, assigning George Washington to command. George headed north from Philadelphia whilst the British attempted to break the siege, planning to attack the northernly Bunker Hill. Spies warned the newly formed Continental Army of their plans so fortified Bunker Hill and the neighbouring Breeds Hill. The British began the offensive and, after two unsuccessful attempts, the Americans ran out of ammunition and were forced to retreat. The Battle of Bunker Hill was technically a British victory, despite having almost 3 times the casualties of the Continental Army.

A painting of the British charge up Bunker Hill.

However, many Americans were still not decided on what they were fighting for. Some radicals began throwing around independence, whilst others wanted to maintain relations with the British. The latter camp sent a letter to London, requesting the removal of the taxes and an ally ship. George III denied the request. Britain burnt down the towns of Falmouth, MA and Norfolk, VA, which the Americans used to show how brutal the British were. France and Spain, seeing this, sent supplies over to the colonies.

Meanwhile, we meet a man called Benedict Arnold. Arnold conducted a plan to take the British fort, Fort Ticonderoga, which had a lot of weapons and ammunition that he believed could be useful for the colony’s war effort. He set off to Ticonderoga by himself, wanting to recruit soldiers along the way. He eventually met the Green Mountain Boys, led by Ethan Allen, who had the same idea as Arnold. After a dispute of who should lead the capture of Ticonderoga, Allen was assigned to lead. Whilst the British were asleep, they took the British by supplies and managed to capture the fort and take the ammunition with little resistance. However, Allen took all the credit of the capture for himself, not even mentioning Arnold. He then attempted to stage an invasion of Canada. The Continental Army had managed to capture Montreal but were pushed back at Quebec, all the way to Fort Ticonderoga.

Henry Knox had an idea of what to do with all the guns and ammo they seized from the British at Ticonderoga. He grabbed some bison and got them to pull the guns and ammo through the harsh winter to Washington’s army in Boston, who very much needed the morale boost. Washington believed that a frontal assault would be necessary to end the siege, but junior officers believed that it would be too risky as they believed the British would be heavily fortified in their position. Thankfully, Washington listened and set up cannons on Dorchester Heights, overlooking the city overnight. Once morning came, the British knew they had no choice but to abandon the city, pulling 9000 soldiers out of the city. Washington had his first victory of the war.

A painting of the cannons being set up at Dorchester Heights

Background Behind The American War of Independence

In 1492, Christopher Columbus, unknowingly, discovered the New World. This New World was rather notorious for having a lot of gold, leading many European countries to set up shop. After many years of waring with each other and the natives, the European powers had gained quite a decent amount of land.

A small strip between Britain and France’s land in the region was disputed by the two sides, until the British sent up-and-comer, George Washington to the region to sort things out. This eventually lead to the Seven Years War between Britain and France.

Britain came out as the victor but at a great monetary cost. In order to get their money back, they decided to tax the American colonies to hell and back. Think of any random every day object and there was probably a tax for it. Stamps? Paper? Sugar? Tea? All taxed

Not only this but the colonies had no representatives in Parliament, despite them being taxed. This is called “Taxation without Representation”, which was drilled into my brain by my Year 11 History teacher.

The Americans ended up boycotting all British goods, meaning Britain was still poor. Eventually, King George had to concede and removed all taxes except for the one on tea and sent 1000 British troops to Boston, forcing the colonists to pay.

On March 5th, 1770, a large group of Colonists came to protest against the soldiers. As back-up arrived for the soldiers, more Colonists arrived and began to throw things at the soldiers, from snowballs to rocks. Eventually, the soldiers had enough, took aim and fired.

5 civilians were killed in the massacre. Many Colonial newspapers claimed this was a brutal attack against the colonists and a war crime.

The people were incredibly angered and the violence escalated. Schooners that ran aground would be raided, pro-British politicians would have their houses burnt down and on December 16th, 1773, a group of colonists would disguise themselves as Native Americans, jump onto a shipment of tea and pour it all into the Boston Harbour.

In response, the British dissolved their assembly, revoked their charter and sent 3000 more troops to Boston. Boston was now a directly British Occupied City. And the people were angry. Fearing they may be next, other colonies gathered to discuss what to do next

The First Continental Congress. George Washington is depicted central and Benjamin Franklin is in the brown jacket on the left

They decided to politely ask Britain to stop and after they (obviously) said no, they decided to set up groups of soldiers across the 13 colonies, to be ready at a minute’s notice. Hearing this, the British sent out 700 troops into the American Occupied Massachusetts. After setting off to concord in the middle of the night, many Americans were heard to be in the streets yelling “The British are Coming!” The two sides encountered in Lexington. After minutes of yelling, one side shot first. This is considered to be the start of the Revolutionary War.

The Great Fire of London

On the 2nd of September, 1666, at around 1 in the morning the Farriner Family had all gone to bed. All except the 23 year old daughter of the family, who went downstairs to grab a candle. When Thomas, the patriarch, testified to authorities later on, he claimed that nothing was out of the ordinary and that the fire in the oven of the bakery he owned. However, modern historians doubt this claim, and they suspect that a stray ember had ignited some twigs that were being stored nearby.

Thomas Jr woke up and noticed that the ground floor was on fire and quickly alerted his family but it was too late. The Farriners were trapped on the second floor by the billowing smoke, forcing them to escape via an upstairs window and onto a neighbour’s roof, raising the alarm that a fire had broken out.

A similar looking house to the architecture of Farriner Bakery on fire in the present day

Soon the fire spread upstairs, claiming the Farriner maid as the first victim of the fire, and sparks flew to other houses on the street. Due to the architecture of 17th Century London, Houses were tightly packed, which allowed for more space in homes but also fore the fire to spread more quickly. Not only that but the old Tudor style of building houses out of Wattle and Daub, essentially tightly woven stick panels glued with a mud like mixture, increased the spreadability of the fire. Despite the mud providing a fire proof cover for the wood, the poorer areas of London, where the fire started, were very decrepit, leaving the wood exposed.

One of the main documenters of the fire was Samuel Pepys, a diarist and naval administrator. His account showed that the fire did not bother that many Londoners in the slightest.

Some of our [maids] sitting up late last night to get things ready against our feast to-day, Jane called us up about three in the morning, to tell us of a great fire they saw in the City. So I rose and slipped on my [nightgown], and went to her window, and thought it to be on the backside of Marke-lane at the farthest; but, being unused to such fires as followed, I thought it far enough off; and so went to bed again and to sleep.
Samuel Pepys diary entry, September 2nd, 1666

Pepys’ experience was apparently the experience of many others too, who did not think the fire was that serious. Over the next week, they would soon be proven wrong. Mayor of London, Thomas Bludworth was, according to many historians, incompetent, and his inaction against the fire when it could’ve easily been stopped lead to the destruction of most of the city.

By morning, London descended into chaos, with every man, woman and child focusing more on themselves rather than the extinguishing of the fire. Due to a dry summer and strong winds, the fire spread rapidly, thankfully being stopped to spreading to the whole city by the River Thames. By the time the fire was extinguished, on the 6th of September, 80% of London had been damaged. Whilst, at the time, the Great Fire on London was viewed as a tragedy, it helped build the modern London we know today, and helped to introduce a proper, effective fire service but not just in London but across the country.