Edward VI crowned King of England in 1547
The male heir Henry VIII caused so much trouble to sire (see 11th Feb); he was only nine years old and no-one could have expected him to throw himself into the Reformation with quite so much gusto. His fierce Protestant reforms teed up the religious conflict between his step-sisters Mary and Elizabeth perfectly. Can’t blame the lad I suppose, surrounded as he was by unscrupulous, opportunistic bastards, but it would’ve been better if he hadn’t been born.
I'd rather celebrate the birth in 1757 of...
He wasn’t mad, he was eccentric, although he was buried in a pyramid-shaped tomb, which is a bit mad.
Jack spent considerable sums on the arts, science and making the landscape look interesting. He was the kind of person we should all aspire to be – a philanthropist.
I think I would rather be known as a philanthropist than anything else (not that I’ve done nothing to deserve the title) except, maybe, “a man of letters”. There was a time when BBC radio programmes were full of philanthropists and men of letters but almost since the advent of television, they’ve disappeared. Here is a rare tv glimpse of one - it's not J.F. MacDonald, it's Bertrand Russell:
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