Battle of Britain: Roll of Honour

“These pages catalogue the official reports of the most important event in Royal Air Force history, the Battle fought over Britain between the 10th July and 31st October 1940. For the first time, the complete Fighter Command Operational Diaries for the period have been published in full, day by day over the whole period the Battle. Supporting this official text are a series of pages detailing such facets of the Battle as the Commanders, the Aircraft and the changes in Tactics on both sides as the situation developed. Although some of the Fighter Command claims of the time (I.e. numbers of German aircraft shot down etc.) have since been provd to be greatly exagerated on some days, it nevertheless does give a unique insight into the RAF’s perspective of the Battle of Britain.” Visit site.

BBC History Magazine

“BBC History Magazine is essential reading for anyone with a keen interest in all things historical. Helping bring Britain and the world’s rich past to life, each issue provides you with accessible and informative features from leading academic historians.

BBC History Magazine was established to publish authoritative history in an accessible and attractive format. But we give you much more than that: our contributors are the leading experts in their fields, and so whether we’re exploring Ancient Egypt, Tudor England or the Second World War, we guarantee you’ll be reading the latest, most thought-provoking historical research. BBC History Magazine is first and foremost simply an enjoyable read for anyone who’s interested in the past.

FEATURES – Entertaining and informative features written by leading historians.

OUT & ABOUT – Our guide to:

• historic places to visit
• the latest exhibitions and events
• holidays in history

NEWS & ANALYSIS – Gain a new perspective on current affairs as we explore the background to world events.

REVIEWS – Our pick of the best new books, plus history on TV and the radio.”

History.com

More targeted at the American market, History.com is a very visual, games-focused site. I particularly like ‘This day in history‘ – always find it interesting to see what is focused on, and what that says about the person who’s chosen it, rather than any kind of ‘fact’ in history!

Wow, students, take note, they even tell you how to cite the site!

Best of British: Past and Present

One for the nostalgics… interesting to see how history is reconstructed, especially in a magazine which is popular overseas! “The UK’s best-read nostalgia monthly: Founded in 1995, Best of British celebrates our glorious past – and all that’s best about Britain today. The blend of cherished memories from yesteryear with features celebrating the people and the places that make Britain so special as established Best of British as a firm favourite with folks all around the world.”

History Today

“History Today is a unique cultural institution, bringing the best in historical writing and research to a wide audience. The magazine created the concept of popular history, mixing styles, genres and periods to achieve a fusion of intellectual excitement and readability.

As the world’s premier, and probably oldest, history magazine, we have been published monthly in London since January 1951. Our founder was the enigmatic Brendan Bracken, Minister of Information during the Second World War, publisher of the Financial Times and faithful lieutenant of Winston Churchill. We have been independently owned since 1980.

History Today publishes essays on all periods, regions and themes of history, many of them by the world’s leading scholars. All are carefully edited and illustrated to make the magazine a pleasurable, as well as an informative, read. The depth of our archives can be explored via the search option at the top of each page.”

One of those journals that spans the gulf between academic and popular, maybe getting an article in here is not so well regarded as that of an “truly academic”, but inspiring others to be interested in understanding who they are and how they got here (historical/cultural understanding) – I regard that as key. I have fun following History Today on Twitter!

Propaganda Critic

It is great to see that the site ‘propagandacritic.com‘ is still alive and well, as I found it’s material drawn from The Institute of Propaganda Analysis very helpful. Here’s a taster of the infromation on the site:

“This site is inspired by the pioneering work of the Institute for Propaganda Analysis (IPA). In 1937, the IPA was created to educate the American public about the widespread nature of political propaganda. Composed of social scientists and journalists, the IPA published a series of books, including:

• The Fine Art of Propaganda
• Propaganda Analysis
• Group Leader’s Guide to Propaganda Analysis
• Propaganda: How To Recognize and Deal With It

The IPA is best-known for identifying the seven basic propaganda devices: Name-Calling, Glittering Generality, Transfer, Testimonial, Plain Folks, Card Stacking, and Band Wagon. According to the authors of a recent book on propaganda, “these seven devices have been repeated so frequently in lectures, articles, and textbooks ever since that they have become virtually synonymous with the practice and analysis of propaganda in all of its aspects.” (Combs and Nimmo, 1993)”

Euphemism

“When propagandists use glittering generalities and name-calling symbols, they are attempting to arouse their audience with vivid, emotionally suggestive words. In certain situations, however, the propagandist attempts to pacify the audience in order to make an unpleasant reality more palatable. This is accomplished by using words that are bland and euphemistic.

Since war is particularly unpleasant, military discourse is full of euphemisms. In the 1940′s, America changed the name of the War Department to the Department of Defense. Under the Reagan Administration, the MX-Missile was renamed “The Peacekeeper.” During war-time, civilian casualties are referred to as “collateral damage,” and the word “liquidation” is used as a synonym for “murder.”

The comedian George Carlin notes that, in the wake of the first world war, traumatized veterans were said to be suffering from “shell shock.” The short, vivid phrase conveys the horrors of battle — one can practically hear the shells exploding overhead. After the second world war, people began to use the term “combat fatigue” to characterize the same condition. The phrase is a bit more pleasant, but it still acknowledges combat as the source of discomfort. In the wake of the Vietnam War, people referred to “post-traumatic stress disorder”: a phrase that is completely disconnected from the reality of war altogether.”

BBC History Website

As usual from the BBC, there’s a good mix of general history, including an interactive timeline (alongside other interactive options), links to the most recent BBC history programmes still available on iPlayer, and a number of themed stories, including a great collection of memories collected from “The People’s War“.

History World

Historyworld’s aim is to make world history more easily accessible through interactive narratives and timelines. Written by Bamber Gascoigne, it consists of about 300 narratives ( the alphabetical list runs from Aegean Civilization to Zoroastrianism) and some 10,000 events on searchable timelines, including the Second World War.