Reading Your Way Through History

215 Years Ago Today...

2009-07-17T17:06:00.003-06:00

The 16 Carmelite martyrs of Compiègne were guillotined during the French Revolution.

You can read more about them in the Catholic Encyclopedia.

Also recommended are:

The Song at the Scaffold by Gertrud Von Le Fort (Neumann Press) - approriate for high school or adult

To Quell the Terror: The Mystery of the Vocation of the Sixteen Carmelites of Compiegne Guillotined July 17, 1794 by William Bush (not yet reviewed for age-appropriateness)

40 Years Ago Today

2009-07-16T14:09:00.003-06:00

Apollo 11, the mission that culminated with the first landing on the moon, was launched.

You can watch and listen to the events in real-time + 40 years at this website:

We Choose the Moon

The NASA website also has a page commemorating the Apollo mission's 40th anniversary here:

NASA - Apollo

Also check out:

Google Moon

Saints of Asia

2008-02-06T16:22:00.001-06:00

Saints of Asia: 1500 to the Present by Vincent J. O'Malley, C.M. (Our Sunday Visitor)

Christians in China: AD 600 to 2000 by Fr. Jean Charbonnier (Ignatius Press)

Xavier: Missionary and Saint (DVD - narrated by Liam Neeson)

Picture Books and Links to accompany Mary Daly's "First Timeline"

2008-01-20T11:20:00.000-06:00

A list in progress of picture books and a few links:

5. Si Ling - The Empress and the Silkworm

19. Patrick - Patrick by Tomie de Paola

20. Pope Gregory the Great - listen to the Salve Regina here. You can learn more about the Salve Regina here.

22. Pangur Ban

27. Leif Ericson - Leif the Lucky by Ingrid and Edgar Parin D'aulaire

28. Cathedrals - Cathedral by David Macaulay
Chartres Cathedral: Dover Publications has a book of postcards of the windows from Chartres

30. Chaucer - Chanticleer and the Fox by Geoffrey Chaucer, adapted and illustrated by Barbara Cooney

31. Columbus - Columbus by Ingri and Edgar Parin D'Aulaire

32. William Shakespeare - Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare for Children by Edith Nesbit
The Bard of Avon by Diane Stanley
William Shakespeare and the Globe by Aliki

33. The Mayflower - Squanto, Friend of the Pilgrims by Clyde Robert Bulla
more to come

Anniversary of the Battle of Lepanto (1571)

2007-10-07T08:08:00.001-06:00

G.K. Chesterton wrote a very moving poem about the battle (best as a read-aloud) which you can read here.

Wikipedia has really detailed and interesting information about this battle.

Because Our Lady was implored throughout the empire by praying the Rosary, the anniversary of this decisive battle was named the feast of Our Lady of Victory, later changed to Our Lady of the Rosary.

Fifty Years Ago Yesterday

2007-10-05T07:57:00.000-06:00

Sputnik was launched.

Archaeology News - And Lots of It

2007-08-13T07:08:00.001-06:00

I just stumbled across a rather unexpected site - Fox News' Archaeology page! They have the latest archaeology news (not always VERY new!) in the following categories:

Latest News (all areas of Archaeology)
Biblical Archaeology
Classical Archaeology
East Asia, South Asia and Pacific
Egyptology
Medieval Archaeology
Pre-Columbian Archaeology
Prehistorical Archaeology
Post-Columbian Americas
Unusual Excavations.

The website can be found here

"The Nuisance Diplomat"

2007-08-02T09:07:00.000-06:00

The Washington Post has an interesting article on Peter Bergson, a Lithuanian Jew who started a lobbying group in Washington D.C. during the war to try to save Jewish lives from the Nazis. His success was not what he had hoped (but 200,000 lives is quite remarkable still!), but his story is important and is now being included in the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Read the article here

A hat-tip goes to Dawn Eden.

Presidents Quiz

2007-07-30T19:08:00.001-06:00

This is a great place to learn your presidents.

I'm not sure quite where I found this - but I think it was from the Lilting House

Hidden City Found Beneath Alexandria

2007-07-25T23:59:00.000-06:00

The legendary city of Alexandria was founded by Alexander the Great as he swept through Egypt in his quest to conquer the known world.

Now scientists have discovered hidden underwater traces of a city that existed at Alexandria at least seven centuries before Alexander the Great arrived, findings hinted at in Homer's Odyssey and that could shed light on the ancient world.

Read the entire article here

20th Anniversary of Reagan's "Tear Down this Wall"

2007-06-12T22:06:00.000-06:00

Watch a video clip here

Brandenberg Gate, Berlin, Germany

June 12, 1987

The Word in History

2007-05-16T20:13:00.000-06:00

The word revealed in history is definitive, but it is inexhaustible, and it unceasingly discloses new depths. In this sense, the Holy Spirit, as the interpreter of Christ, speaks with his word to every age and shows it that this word always has something new to say.

from Salt of the Earth by Cardinal Ratzinger

90 Years Ago this Sunday

2007-05-11T21:30:00.000-06:00

Our Lady first appeared to three small children in a small village in Portugal on May 13, 1917. Read more about the anniversary here.

Reading and viewing suggestions here.

Photo courtesy of Dr. Quimbo

400 years ago next week...

2007-05-11T05:59:00.000-06:00

The first European settlers landed at Jamestown, Virginia (May 14, 1607).

500 Years Ago Today

2007-04-24T19:31:00.001-06:00

The name "America" was coined in France.

Jackie Robinson's Major League Debut

2007-04-15T17:27:00.001-06:00

Was 60 years ago today! Read more about him here

Major Archaeological Find: Ancient Settlement near Stonehenge

2007-01-30T11:53:00.000-06:00

The settlement, located at a site called Durrington Walls, once housed hundreds of people, and dates to around 2600 BC, the scientists said at a press conference this morning. It is the largest settlement from the Neolithic time period ever found in Britain.

Read the entire article here

Unearthing the reality behind the myths surrounding the Jamestown Colony

2007-01-21T14:50:00.000-06:00

U.S. News and World Report has a fascinating overview of recent findings about Jamestown colony in Virginia.

Doubt the colonists' savvy? The siting of the fortress itself was testament to their military sense, enabling their artillery to dominate river traffic while sitting beyond the range of ship-borne guns. Question their grit? The construction of the fort in a mere 19 days amid fierce heat and sniping from local Indians was a feat unequaled even by the much better equipped builders of the set of the recent movie The New World. Think the colonists lacked entrepreneurial zeal? Artifacts indicate a rich diversity of industrial and craft ventures, ample proof that those men (and, soon, women) quickly set to work trying to make a profit for their company. Other findings fill in details about life in the first successful English colony in America, showing, for instance, even more interaction and, possibly, intermarriage with Indians than once was thought.

Read the entire article here

A Short Guide to Ancient Heresies

2007-01-18T06:39:00.000-06:00

Do you find all those heresies that you come across in your history reading - like Montanism, Arianism and Gnostism - a little confusing? Did you even know that the early Church dealt with numerous heresies that were quite serious? Kenneth Whitehead has a short piece at Ignatius Insight with some helpful answers.

Read the article here.

Ancient Roman Mosaics in Turkey

2007-01-16T08:05:00.000-06:00

PBS NOVA did a show a few years back about a rush archaelogical dig to uncover what they could of the Ancient Roman city of Zeugma in Turkey before it disappeared beneath the waters formed from a newly built dam. They uncovered an amazing series of floor mosaics that were removed and preserved in a local museum.

The related website has extensive coverage of this fascinating dig and is well-worth a look!

NOVA - Lost Roman Treasure

Icon Exhibit from Sinai - at the Getty in Los Angeles

2007-01-16T08:01:00.000-06:00

I was able to visit this exhibit last week and it's REALLY worth a visit if you're in the area...

The J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles is currently hosting an incredible collection of religious icons from the Holy Monastery of Saint Catherine "in the shadow of Mount Sinai in Egypt."

This exhibition offers an unprecedented look at some of the oldest surviving icons from the Byzantine world, and provides rare insight into monastic life, past and present, at the remote Holy Monastery of Saint Catherine.

Lying in the shadow of Mount Sinai in Egypt, the Holy Monastery of Saint Catherine is the world's oldest continuously operating Christian monastery. Since the third century, monks have resided here, at the foot of the mountain where Moses is said to have encountered God. The present church and monastery walls were commissioned by the Byzantine emperor Justinian, who ruled over most of the Mediterranean region, including the Sinai peninsula, between 527 and 565.

Fifty-three objects have traveled from the monastery in Sinai for this exhibition. All were either commissioned by the monastery or received as gifts and have remained in the continuous care of generations of monks at Saint Catherine's.

Because of its geographic and political isolation from the Byzantine Empire, the monastery escaped the destruction of religious images that was sanctioned by Byzantine emperors during the period of Iconoclasm in the 700s and 800s. The veneration of icons continued uninterrupted at Sinai, and over the centuries the monastery both commissioned and received as gifts numerous icons, manuscripts, and liturgical objects.

Today, Saint Catherine's monastery is the world's largest repository of Byzantine icons. The works on display underscore the icon's central role in religious practice and introduce the public to the compelling history of Saint Catherine's.

View images and details on the Getty website.

Amy Welborn reports on an article regarding the exhibit.

The exhibit runs from November 14, 2006 - March 4, 2007

Excavations in Jerusalem...

2007-01-16T07:47:00.000-06:00

There's a fascinating excavation taking place in Jerusalem currently that has uncovered some ancient waterways and a bath as well as a colonnaded street from the Roman-Byzantine era.

The new archaeological find uncovers a missing link in the ancient water system, known as the "Lower Aqueduct." This system channeled water from Solomon’s Pools near Bethlehem (located several miles south of Jerusalem) directly to the national focal point of Jewish worship - the Temple Mount.

Solomon’s pools, situated just north of the modern Jewish town of Efrat, cover an area of about 7 acres and can hold three million gallons of water. A lengthy aqueduct conveyed the water from the lowest pool through Bethlehem, across the Gihon valley, along the western slope of the Tyropoeon valley, and into the cisterns underneath the Temple Mount. Today, the water from the pools reaches only Bethlehem due to the destruction of the aqueducts.
...

The plastered hewn-stone mikva (ritual bath) unearthed at the excavation is from the Second Temple period. It was originally situated in the foundation level of a private home during the time of the Second Temple. The ritual bath was damaged at a later date when the bedrock cliff opposite it was hewn into a vertical wall that rose up to a maximum height of about thirty feet.

Read the entire article here

hat-tip The Way of the Fathers (Mike has an additional link as well)

The Incarnation Fills History with Meaning

2007-01-09T08:01:00.000-06:00

The coming of the Messiah, foretold by the Prophets, is qualitatively the most important event of all history, on which it confers its ultimate and full meaning. It is not historical and political coordinates that condition God's choice, but on the contrary, the event of the Incarnation that "fills" history with value and meaning.

We, who come 2,000 years after that event, can affirm this, so to speak, also a posteriori, after having known the whole life of Jesus, until his death and Resurrection. We are witnesses at the same time of his glory and his humility, of the immense value of his coming and of God's infinite respect for us human beings and for our history.

He did not fill time by pouring himself into it from on high, but "from within", making himself a tiny seed to lead humanity to its full maturation.

from the Pope's New Year's Eve Homily

hat-tip The CIN Blog

Imperial History of the Middle East

2006-12-20T17:39:00.000-06:00

This is an amazing piece on the major empires that conquered the Middle East over the course of history. (It only takes 90 seconds to watch!)

"Imperial History of the Middle East"

hat-tip The Lilting House

Pope John Paul II (1920-2005)

2002-10-24T10:00:00.000-06:00

Picture Books:

For the Children: Words of Love and Inspiration from His Holiness Pope John Paul II (Scholastic Press)
Pope John Paul II Comic Book by Toni Pagot, illustrated by Sergio Toppi (Pauline Books & Media)

Grade School:

The Young Life of Pope John Paul II by Claire Jordan Mohan (b. 1920)

Teen/Adult:

Chapters on Pope John Paul II and the modern papacy, PF pgs. 111-118
Witness to Hope: The Biography of Pope John Paul II by George Weigel

Movies:

Pope John Paul II (1984 - Albert Finney)
Witness to Hope: The Life of Karol Wojtyla, Pope John Paul II (2002 - documentary)
Pope John Paul II (2005)

Writings on the Web:

Official Vatican Site

World War II (1939-1945)

2002-10-14T11:05:00.001-06:00

Picture Books:

The Little Ships by Louise Borden, illustrated by Michael Forman (rescue at Dunkirk, May 1940)
Across the Blue Pacific by Louise Borden, illustrated by Robert Andrew Parker (set soon after U.S. entered World War II)
The Cats in Krasinski Square by Karen Hesse, illustrated by Wendy Watson (Poland, 1943)
The Journey that saved Curious George: the true wartime escape of Margret and H A Rey by Louise Borden, illustrated by Allan Drummond
The Greatest Skating Race by Louise Borden, illustrated by Niki Daly (Netherlands)
A New Coat for Anna by Harriet Ziefert, illustrated by Anita Lobel (post-war Europe)

Favorite Read-Alouds:

The Enemy Brothers by Constance Savery
Twenty and Ten by Claire Huchet Bishop (1944)
The Winged Watchman by Hilda Van Stockum

Audio Resources:

Enemy Brothers audio drama

Grades 1-4:

The Small War of Sergeant Donkey by Maureen Daly
Snow Treasure by Marie McSwigan
Twenty and Ten by Claire Huchet Bishop (1944)
The Winged Watchman by Hilda Van Stockum

Grades 5-8:

World War II for Kids: A History with 21 Activities by Richard Panchyk
When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit by Judith Kerr
The Story of the Trapp Family Singers by Maria Augusta Trapp
Enemy Brothers: A Story of World War II by Constance Savery
The House of Sixty Fathers by Meendert de Jong
Escape from Warsaw by Ian Serralier
Number the Stars by Lois Lowry
A Place to Hide: True Stories of Holocaust Rescues by Jayne Pettit

Grades 9-12:

The Borrowed House by Hilda Van Stockum
Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl
The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Bom

Teen/Adult:

Night by Elie Wiesel
The Red Horse by Eugenio Corti
The Shadow of His Wings by Fr. Gereon Goldmann

Out of Print Favorites:

Up Periscope by Robb White

Movies:

The Assisi Underground (1985 - Ben Cross, James Mason, Maximilian Schell)

The Courageous Heart of Irena Sendler (2009 - Anna Paquin - Hallmark)

The Great Escape (1963 Steve McQueen, James Garner, Richard Attenborough, Charles Bronson, James Coburn) Note: There's also an episode of Nova in which they excavate the site of this true story.

The Sands of Iwo Jima (1949 - John Wayne)

The Scarlet and the Black (1983 - Gregory Peck, Christopher Plummer, John Gielgud)

Famous Speeches:

"We Shall Fight on the Beaches", Winston Churchill, June 4, 1940, House of Commons, London, England

"Against Nazi Euthanasia", Cardinal Clemens von Galen, August 3, 1941, Münster Cathedral, Münster, Germany

"Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation", Franklin Delano Roosevelt, December 8, 1941, Washington D.C.

On the Web:

Sergeant Darrell S. Cole, USMC (1920-1945)
U.S.S. Arizona Memorial
U.S.S. Missouri Memorial
World War II Memorial

The Great Depression (United States, 1930s)

2002-10-10T11:16:00.000-06:00

Blue Willow by Doris Gates
1940, Scholastic, 154 pages, softcover

Blue Willow is the endearing story of ten-year-old Janey Larkin, whose family is struggling to make ends meet in California's Central Valley during the Great Depression. Janey and her family have a few treasured possessions which they've dragged along with them from place to place because of the difficulties in finding work. Janey's beautiful blue willow plate is her greatest treasure, but when tough times get worse, she decides to offer it as payment for her family's rent...

This is a beautiful picture of family life in difficult times as well as offering a portrait of the Great Depression and lesser-known parts of "old" California. The story will probably be best appreciated (possibly as a read-aloud) for grades 1-4.

Reviewed by Alicia Van Hecke (10-21-03)
Available from Our Father's House

Kit: An American Girl by Valerie Tripp
A series of six historical fiction titles from the time of the Great Depression
2001, Pleasant Company Publications, 68 pages (each book), softcover

This series of six books from the American Girl collection can be enjoyed by young girls even without getting into buying the doll and all her accessories. Set in Ohio in the 1930s, this series focuses on Kit Kittredge and her family who are learning to be more frugal and caring during the tough times of the Great Depression. These are sweet stories and fairly easy for young readers (as young as six or seven years old). The stories are filled with nice little lessons about the things that really matter.

Reviewed by Alicia Van Hecke (10-21-03)

Survival in the Storm: The Dust Bowl Diary of Grace Edwards by Katelan Janke
2002, Scholastic, 186 pages, hardcover

My ten year old daughter has been enjoying the Dear America series from Scholastic. I believe that they've had a positive effect on her character (particular in the "complaint" department) as the stories focus on girls about her age living in difficult times. As they're written by a number of different authors, please don't take this review as an endorsement of all of the titles.

Survival in the Storm is the fictional story (in the format of a diary) of twelve-year old Grace Edwards who lives in Dalhart, Texas - a city near the center of the five-state area hardest hit by the infamous droughts and dust storms that plagued the Southwest for nearly a decade during the Great Depression.

The story provides a nice balance of family stability amidst hardships that give children today a fair look at the challenges of life in that time period. Grace volunteers at a hospital alongside her mother where the reader learns of the terrible illnesses associated with the dust storms. Families band together to help each other when hard times come and many leave for the "promised land" of California, only to be stuck in migrant camps where conditions are no better than at home. Throughout the story, virtues of perseverance and kindness are shown to be the things that "get people through" tough times.

Reviewed by Alicia Van Hecke (10-13-03)

Lou Gehrig (1903-1941)

2002-10-09T22:50:00.000-06:00

Lou Gehrig played for the New York Yankees from 1925-1939

Picture Books:

Lou Gehrig: The Luckiest Man by David Adler, illustrated by Terry Widener

Movies:

Pride of the Yankees (1942 - Gary Cooper, Teresa Wright)

Famous Speeches:

"Farewell to Baseball Address" by Lou Gehrig, July 4, 1939, Yankee Stadium, New York

Mary McLeod Bethune (1875-1955)

2002-10-09T08:53:00.000-06:00

"What Does American Democracy Mean to Me?", Mary McLeod Bethune, November 23, 1939, New York City

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

2002-10-09T08:45:00.000-06:00

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
1959, Warner Books (and other editions), 288 pages, softcover

This modern classic, set in the segregated South of the 1930s, is the story of two young children who learn about life and the great character of their father, Atticus Finch, as he struggles with a difficult case in which he must defend a black man wrongfully accused of raping a white woman.

The story is told through the eyes of the younger child, a nine year old girl. This charming perspective, related in an authentic Southern dialect, makes for a surprisingly innocent way of tackling some rather tough topics. Catholic parents of today, who are forced to explain difficult topics such as abortion to their young children, will likely sympathize with this father and be impressed with how well he handles the situation.

Atticus, an aging lawyer and widowed father of two, is a man who spends his free time reading. His children find him somewhat boring and wish he could be more like their classmates' fathers who are young and athletic. As the story develops, the children begin to learn why their father is respected by those neighbors and friends whose opinions really count.

The story culminates in a court battle in which Atticus is assigned to defend an innocent black man in a hopelessly biased rape case. He is reluctant to take the case because he knows he has no chance of winning and is concerned about the emotional persecution his children will suffer in a community where racial tensions run high. Nevertheless, he knows he must do the right thing and proceeds with the case. The case itself and the man involved turn out tragically and the family goes through many difficult and even frightening things, but the book proves to be a great classic because of the great character development, the moral considerations the story addresses and the growth of the children as they suffer through the case with their father. It should provide a wealth of literary, historical and moral themes for teens or adults.

While the book could be studied as early as eighth grade, it would probably be understood more deeply a few years later, in mid-to-upper high school.

Read complete review on love2learn.net

Click here to view our study questions for this book.

Reviewed by Alicia Van Hecke (12-1-01)
Available from By Way of the Family

My Heart Lies South: The Story of My Mexican Marriage by Elizabeth Borton de Trevino

2002-10-09T08:38:00.000-06:00

My Heart Lies South: The Story of My Mexican Marriage (Young People's Edition) by Elizabeth Borton de Trevino
1953, Bethlehem Books, 228 pages, softcover, Catholic

Elizabeth Borton de Trevino is best known as the author of children's stories, especially I, Juan de Pareja which won the Newbery Award in 1966). Long before all that, in the 1930s, she was simply Elizabeth Borton, a modern American lady, living in Boston and working as a journalist, when she was given an assignment in Monterrey, Mexico. There she met, was courted by and eventually married a native by the name of Luis Trevino. In this book she recounts the adventures her courtship and marriage and most particularly her adjustments to life in a completely different culture from her own. She paints a charming pictures of Mexican culture and faith and some of the stories about her mistakes and embarassments are hysterically funny. In moving to Mexico not only does she give up her old way of life (modern America of the 1930s was a significant contrast to life in Mexico), but she wholeheartedly embraced the Catholic faith and learned to truly love the hallmark of Mexican culture - the strength of the family and the essential role of mothers in the home and family.

This story is delightful for its own sake, but also gives tidbits of history (Mexican and Spanish), religion, and culture. It is also the sort of book that is useful and delightful for teenage girls to read as they begin to consider their future roles as mothers, wives and influences on their community. (The humorous incidents will probably keep it interesting enough for the guys as well.) There are some references to dating and courtship, the consequences of drinking too much and other subjects which would not be suitable for young children (although they are handled in a reasonable manner). Don't be turned off by the word "seduction" that shows up in the first few pages. It comes up in a fairly harmless context and is not an indication of shocking material to come.

I also found her discussions of parenting interesting because she was raising her children at a time when American doctors advocated bottle feeding and a sort of detached parenting . When she wrote the story, however, the doctors had begun to come around to a healthier and more natural parenting philosophy and the author expresses some of her regrets and frustrations at following the conventional wisdom which really went against her instincts.

Her arguments in favor of the Mexican view of the role of women are quite compelling. The Mexican role is, in many ways, very Catholic. Women are not inferior or subservient (as in the "Leave it to Beaver" American model of the 1950s) nor do they feel the need to fight for "equality" as in the American feminist model of today. The Mexican women have (or perhaps had) a very strong and dominant role within the family which was the center of society. They liked to make their husbands feel manly by allowing them to help them because it made them better husbands and companions. Although the author does not fully embrace every particular of the Mexican customs in this regard, she sees them generally as the women's way of cunningly "allowing" the men to feel superior in order to keep them happy while almost always having the final word.

Reviewed by Alicia Van Hecke (10-04-2000)
Available from Adoremus Books, Aquinas and More, By Way of the Family and Stella Maris Books

Blessed Miguel Pro (1891-1923)

2002-10-07T23:12:00.000-06:00

Jose Finds the King: A Blessed Miguel Pro Story by Ann Ball (1923)

Blessed Miguel Pro by Ann Ball

Miguel Pro (1891-1927) was a young priest in Mexico during the persecution of the Church in the 1920s. He used interesting disguises to slip past authorities in order to celebrate Mass in secret and otherwise minister to his people. He fearlessly continued such dangerous missions despite health problems and eventually was arrested and martyred for his faith.The reader will learn a lot about the politics, culture and religion of his time. Also included in the book are a number of black and white photos of Blessed Miguel Pro - including several of him in disguise and those taken at his execution and his funeral. The government allowed photographers to be present at the execution in order to make an example of the martyr, but later tried to prevent their release. The appendix includes prayers and poems written by Blessed Miguel Pro, a novena and chaplet composed in his honor, and ideas for a celebration for his Feast Day, November 23.

Reviewed by Alicia Van Hecke
Available from Aquinas and More and the St. John Fisher Forum

Our Lady of Fatima (Portugal, 1917)

2002-10-07T22:49:00.000-06:00

Grade School:

The Children of Fatima by Mary Fabyan Windeatt
Our Lady Came to Fatima by Ruth Fox Hume

Teen/Adult:

Our Lady of Fatima by William Thomas Walsh

Movies:

Apparitions at Fatima
The Miracle of Our Lady of Fatima (1952)

On the Web:

EWTN's Fatima Page

The Christmas Truce of World War I

2002-10-06T22:45:00.001-06:00

I was reminded of The Christmas Truce of 1914 a few weeks ago, when I came across this article on the passing of the last witness to this unique event.

This has sparked my interest in finding other resources about this event. Really, someone ought to write a picture book about it.

As Sara mentioned in the comments from my post on Studeo, The Singing Tree by Kate Seredy does include the Christmas truce in part of the story, although I believe this is a different one on the Russian front (and possibly a different year)...

"We crept out into the snow, countless silent dark shapes against the whiteness, and ran to the sunken road which lay between our lines and the mountainside where the Russian trenches were. Shells screamed overhead and burst behind us, drowning out all noise we might have made, and when we reached the road, whispered orders from the Captain scurried down the line like mice: 'Advance along the road. Don't dare make a sound or strike a light.'

"We tramped in knee-deep snow, skirting the friendly hillside that sheltered us from the fire, stealing toward the Russians. And then, just ahead of me I saw a boy kneel i the snow before a wayside crucifix and light a candle. It flickered in the still air, casting a feeble light on the image of Christ above it. 'Oh, Lord,' the man next to me sighed, reaching into his knapsack for a candle. Others had seen the glowing light, and as I looked around I saw that more and more candles were lighted all around. A whisper spread, like the order from the Captain from mouth to mouth, only this was not an order from the Captain. 'Light a candle for Christmas Eve,' men whispered and their very words seemed to turn into tiny stars as dozens and dozens, then hundreds of candles came forth from the knapsacks to be lighted and stuck in the snow. The hillside now was one glow of light and the crucifix was bright with an unearthly brightness. We were a target for the Russian guns, but we never gave it a thought. For a little while we were lost in prayer, until one of the men cried: 'They have stopped firing. Look!'

"Across the valley, on the hillside where the Russians were entrenched, a few small flames began to tremble, then more and more. Candles, hundreds of them, thousands, one for every gun that was now silent. Around me men began to sing 'Holy Night, Silent Night,' and from across the valley the song came back to us a thousandfold. Behind the lines so facing each other, the guns had ceased to roar and no more shells were screaming between men and the stars. Perhaps the Christ Child had walked between the lines and while He walked, peace had stayed the guns."

More information on this remarkable event...

An Illustrated History of the First World War by John Keegan has this little tidbit in a photo caption of some soldiers from both sides smiling and smoking together:

"The Christmas Truce, 1914, Early on the morning of Christmas Day, the Germans in the line opposite the British, between Ypres ad Messines, began to sing Christmas carols and display Christmas trees on their parapet. Germans then came forward into no-man's-land and proposed a break in the fighting. Parties from both sides began to mingle, to exchange tobacco and drinks, to sing together and, in one place, to organise a football match. They also agreed to allow burial of the dead in no-man's land. The truce persisted the following day and in places for some days afterwards but the high command on both sides disapproved and took measures to stop the fraternisation. There was none on the French front. In this photograph Private turner, of the London Rifle Brigade, a recently arrived Territorial regiment, stands behind two German officers, one of whom wears the ribbon of the Iron Cross."

Online:

"The Christmas Truce" by Simon Rees
Snopes - Urban Legends Page (this one does pan out as "True"!)
"The Christmas Truce" adopted from the book Christmas Truce by Malcolm Brown and Shirley Seaton

More related links

World War I (1914-1918)

2002-10-06T22:42:00.000-06:00

The Good Master (prequel) and The Singing Tree by Kate Seredy
Rilla of Ingleside by L.M. Montgomery (from the Anne of Green Gables series)
Rascal by Sterling North

Out of Print Favorites:

Flying Aces of World War I by Gene Gurney (published by Scholastic)

Movies:

Sergeant York (1941 - Gary Cooper)

On the Web:

World War I - Trenches on the Web

1920s

2002-10-04T22:52:00.002-06:00

Chariots of Fire (DVD - Ben Cross) - The story of several athletes in the 1924 Olympic Games.

Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh (the book is suitable for older teens and adults, viewer discretion advised on the movie starring Jeremy Irons and Anthony Andrews).

1906 Earthquake, San Francisco

2002-10-02T10:34:00.000-06:00

Links relating to the quake:

http://quake.wr.usgs.gov/info/1906/
http://quake.wr.usgs.gov/info/1906/othereqs.html
http://www.sfmuseum.org/1906/06.html
http://www.eas.slu.edu/Earthquake_Center/1906EQ/
http://1906centennial.org/
http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/sfeq.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1906_San_Francisco_earthquake
http://london.sonoma.edu/Writings/Journalism/sfearthquake.html
http://www.learncalifornia.org/doc.asp?id=1481

General San Francisco History:

http://www.sanfranciscomemories.com/

Mary Cassatt (United States, 1844-1926)

2002-09-28T22:53:00.000-06:00

WebMuseum Entry on Mary Cassatt

The Boating Party
1893-94 (130 Kb); Oil on canvas, 90.2 x 117.5 cm (35 1/2 x 46 1/4 in); National Gallery of Art, Washington (courtesy of WebMuseum)

The Wind Blows Free by Loula Grace Erdman

2002-09-28T19:32:00.000-06:00

1952/2006, Bethlehem Books, 271 pages, softcover

After Papa's store burns down in East Texas, the Pierce family decides to take up farming and moves to the wilds of the Texas Panhandle where life is challenging and money is tight. Papa has built a "dugout" cabin and the family makes do with circumstances far different from those to which they are accustomed.

The Panhandle in the 1890s is quite barren - just a few ranchers and cowboys about and hardly a tree to be found. It's a tough land to survive in, especially for farming families like the Pierces. They grow accustomed to things they would never have dreamed of in the past - like collecting old cattle bones to sell, burning "cow chips" for fuel and living with a dirt floor. But somehow they learn to appreciate their homemade Christmas, the dependability of the cowboys and "the wind that blows free."

15 year old Melinda is the particular heroine of the story. She is reluctant to leave her grandmother, her school and her close friends. The new life is hard and strange and some days she just can't seem to get anything right.

This is a delightful family story with plenty of adventure and just a bit of romance. I really didn't want it to end (and not many books have that effect on me). My daughter and I especially enjoyed the balance between living simply and appreciating education. The "homemade Christmas" was a particular favorite - quite inspiring actually!

Reviewed by Alicia Van Hecke (12-06)
Available from All Catholic Books and Emmanuel Books

Laura Ingalls Wilder (1867-1957)

2002-09-24T10:19:00.000-06:00

The Little House on the Prairie Series by Laura Ingalls Wilder

Little House in the Big Woods

Little House on the Prairie

On the Banks of Plum Creek

By the Shores of Silver Lake

The Long Winter

Little Town on the Prairie

These Happy Golden Years

The First Four Years

Note: Laura also wrote Farmer Boy, about her husband, Almanzo Wilder's childhood on a prosperous farm in upstate New York.

Fr. Pierre De Smet (1838-1875)

2002-09-20T19:15:00.000-06:00

Grades 5-8:

Giant of the Western Trail, The Life of Fr. de Smet by Fr. Michael McHugh

Websites:

Catholic Encyclopedia

Note: De Smet, South Dakota, the home of Laura Ingalls Wilder (and the setting of her later books, including The Long Winter and These Happy Golden Years, was named after this beloved missionary.

Our Lady of Lourdes (France, 1858)

2002-09-17T09:47:00.000-06:00

Grades 5-8:

Bernadette and the Lady by Hertha Pauli

Teen/Adult:

The Song of Bernadette by Franz Werfel

Movies:

Bernadette: Princess of Lourdes (CCC Animated Video)

The Song of Bernadette (1943 - Vincent Price - won four Academy Awards in 1944)

Civil War, U.S. (1861-1865)

2002-09-17T09:17:00.000-06:00

Picture Books:

Pink and Say by Patricia Polacco

Grade School:

Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink (1864)
Caddie Woodlawn's Family by Carol Ryrie Brink (a.k.a. Magical Melons 1863-1865)
Willie Finds Victory: A Blessed Francis Seelos Story by Joan Stromberg (1819-1867)
Rifles for Watie by Harold Keith
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt
Gettysburg by Makinlay Kantor (1863)

Teen/Adult:
Killer Angels by Michael Shaara (Gettysburg 1863)

Famous Speeches:

"Gettysburg Address", Abraham Lincoln, November 19, 1863, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

Movies:

Gettysburg (1993 - Martin Sheen, Jeff Daniels)

Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe

2002-09-15T19:35:00.000-06:00

Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
1852, Penguin/Signet Classics, 496 pages, softcover (many editions available)

The story is about slavery in America. It follows the lives of two slaves in detail, Eliza and Uncle Tom, and introduces us to a great many more slaves and masters and their stories. The two belong to the same master in Kentucky. When the master falls on hard times (from his own inability to manage his estate) he ends up making a deal to sell these two - despite the fact that both of them are rather dear to him and his family. Getting wind of this Eliza decides to run for safety with her son while Uncle Tom allows himself to be taken away from his wife and young children. Eliza risks her life to save her child - running across the ice floes of a partially frozen Ohio river to escape - then finds her way along an underground network. (I won't tell you how her story comes out.) Uncle Tom is sold and resold. He is steadfast in his faith throughout - though not unchanging. Moreover, he affects those who he meets along the way.

This book is written in a very foreign style. - at least to the modern reader. Chronologically Mrs. Stowe's style fits somewhere between that of the crafters of the Constitution and that of Mark Twain. But it is not so easy to put it into any other category. Her own narration is a bit archaic, overtly Christian, sometimes sarcastic, sometimes patronizing, and yet very broad minded. She calls you "gentle reader". She says "now don't you think that is fair?" when she expects you to come to the opposite conclusion. And yet she sees clearly through all the haze of the issue - i.e. the "shades of grey" everyone loves to talk about when they can't bear to say right vs. wrong. And she does more - she presents us with characters who take various positions on the slavery issue. Not just "it's right" and "it's wrong" - but a wide variety of views. She allows them ample voice and reason to discourse their whole argument; she does not make them straw men; she does not mitigate or twist their ideas; she lays out the best cases for and against - and from several different angles. In the midst of this she demonstrates the effects on the PEOPLE who are subjected to the system - those who are the masters as well as those who are the slaves. It is incredibly revealing to have the whole gamut - the entire conversation - all in one accessable story. And it is incredibly convincing!!! Which is why, as legend has it, Abe Lincoln, when introduced to her for the first time declared, "So you're the little lady responsible for this big war."

Age level: High School Freshman +/- a year. Kleenex required.

Reviewed by John Van Hecke (7-29-04)
Available from Adoremus Books and Our Father's House,

Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather

2002-09-15T19:33:00.000-06:00

Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather

This is a beautiful classic, appropriate for high school about Father Jean Marie Latour and his work in New Mexico beginning in 1851.

The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne

2002-09-15T19:22:00.000-06:00

The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne (published 1851)

Saint John Bosco (Italy, 1815-1888)

2002-09-14T10:32:00.000-06:00

Picture Books:

Saint John Bosco: The Friend of Children and Young People by Carol Monmarche (Pauline Books & Media)

Grade School:

St. John Bosco and St. Dominic Savio by Catherine Beebe (1815-1888)

Primary Sources:

Letter from Don Bosco

On the Web:

The Secret of Saint John Bosco by Henri Gheon

Saint John Vianney (1786-1859)

2002-09-12T09:38:00.000-06:00

The Cure of Ars: The Priest Who Out-talked the Devil by Milton Lomask

The Cure of Ars: The Story of St John Vianney by Mary Fabyan Windeatt

The Man Who Fought the Devil: The Cure of Ars by Eva K. Betz

The Cure D'Ars: St. Jean-Marie-Baptiste Vianney by Francis Trochu

Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)

2002-09-09T09:15:00.000-06:00

Abraham Lincoln by Ingri and Edgar Parin D'Aulaire (1809-1865)

Abe Lincoln: Log Cabin to White House by Sterling North

The Lincoln-Douglas Debates, 1858

"Justice for Ireland" speech by Daniel O'Connell (1836)

2002-09-07T19:27:00.000-06:00

"Justice for Ireland", Daniel O'Connell, February 4, 1836, House of Commons

St. Catherine Laboure (France, 1806-1876)

2002-09-07T19:24:00.000-06:00

Our Lady appeared to St. Catherine in 1830 and gave her the Miraculous Medal

St. Catherine Laboure and the Miraculous Medal by Alma Power-Waters

The Miraculous Medal: The Story of Our Lady's Apparitions to St. Catherine Laboure by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (1830)

The Miracle of Bordeaux (France, 1822)

2002-09-06T19:28:00.000-06:00

"The Miracle of Bordeaux, France", Eucharistic Miracles, pgs. 171-178 (1822)

Hokusai (Japan, 1760-1849)

2002-09-06T19:20:00.000-06:00

Hokusai: The Man Who Painted a Mountain by Deborah Kogan Ray (Hokusai, Japan, 1760-1849)

The War of 1812

2002-09-04T19:30:00.000-06:00

Cleared for Action by Stephen Meader

Charlotte Tucker (Laura Ingalls' Grandmother, born in 1809)

2002-09-04T09:20:00.000-06:00

Little House by Boston Bay by Melissa Wiley
On Tide Mill Lane by Melissa Wiley
The Road from Roxbury by Melissa Wiley
Across the Puddingstone Dam by Melissa Wiley

The full-length books are sadly on their way out-of-print (snatch them up if you can find them!). They are being replaced with considerably shorter abridged editions.

Additional resources from the author can be found here

Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821)

2002-09-02T09:02:00.000-06:00

Napoleonic Wars: (approximately 1799-1815)

The Midshipman Quinn Collection by Showell Styles (1803-1805)
The Flying Ensign by Showell Styles (1809)

Imprisonment of Popes Pius VI and Pius VII:

Pope Pius VI from the Catholic Encyclopedia
Pope Pius VII from Patron Saints Index
Napoleon Bonaparte from Catholic Encyclopedia (see especially the sections: "The Campaign in Italy" and "The Great Victories; Occupation of Rome; Imprisonment of Pius VII (1805-09)")

Ludwig van Beethoven (Germany, 1770-1827)

2002-09-01T19:30:00.000-06:00

"Beethoven's Triumph", The Moral Compass pgs. 336-339

French Revolution (1787-1799)

2002-08-22T17:59:00.000-06:00

The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baronness Orczy (read the entire series online)

The Song at the Scaffold by Gertrud Von Le Fort (d. July 17, 1794)

To Quell the Terror: The True Story of the Carmelite Martyrs of Compiegne by William Bush

A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

The Guillotine and the Cross by Warren Carroll

American Revolution (1785-1783)

2002-08-22T15:32:00.000-06:00

Picture Books:

The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

And Then What Happened, Paul Revere? by Jean Fritz
Sam the Minuteman by Nathaniel Benchley (1776)
George the Drummer Boy by Nathaniel Benchley (1776)

Boston Tea Party: Rebellion in the Colonies by James E. Knight

Grade School:

Amos Fortune: Free Man by Elizabeth Yates (d. 1801)
Flaming Arrrows by William O. Steele
The Reb and the Redcoats by Constance Savery (1780s)
Guns for General Washington by Seymour Reit
Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes (1774)
Shhh! We're Writing the Constitution by Jean Fritz (1787)

Out of Print Favorites:

Silver for General Washington by Enid Lamonte Meadowcroft
Swamp Fox of the Revolution by Stewart Holbrook (Landmark Series)

Primary Sources:

Patrick Henrys' Speech: "Give Me Liberty Or Give Me Death!", March 23, 1775

On the Web:

The American Revolution

Harriet Tubman (1820-1913)

2002-08-17T19:37:00.000-06:00

Wanted Dead or Alive: The True Story of Harriet Tubman by Ann McGovern

Founding Fathers, U.S.

2002-08-15T15:29:00.000-06:00

Picture Books:

Benjamin Franklin by Ingri and Edgar Parin D'Aulaire (1706-1790)
George Washington by Ingri and Edgar Parin D'Aulaire (1732-1799)

Grades 1-4:

Benjamin Franklin: Young Printer by Augusta Stevenson (Childhood of Famous Americans)
George Washington: Young Leader by Augusta Stevenson, illustrated by E. Joseph Dreany (Childhood of Famous Americans)
Thomas Jefferson: Third President of the United States by Helen Albee Monsell, illustrated by Kenneth Wagner

Famous Speeches:

"On the Constitution", Benjamin Franklin, 1787

Blessed Junipero Serra (1713-1783)

2002-08-14T15:42:00.000-06:00

"Always Go Forward, and Never Turn Back: Blessed Junipero Serra", Reading Comprehension: Stories of the Saints, Volume 3 pgs. 81-103 (Catholic Heritage Curricula)

The Man Who Founded California: Blessed Junipero Serra by M.N. Couve de Murville

Art:

Saints of the California Missions: Mission Paintings of the Spanish and Mexican Eras by Norman Neuerberg (Bellerophon Books)

Out of Print Favorites:

The First Californian: The Story of Fray Junipero Serra by Donald Demarest (Credo Books)

Act of Settlement - 1701

2002-08-03T08:33:00.001-06:00

This act banned Catholics (or anyone married to a Catholic) from ruling Great Britain.

That all and every person and persons, who shall or may take or inherit the said Crown, by virtue of the limitation of this present act, and is, are or shall be reconciled to, or shall hold communion with, the See or Church of Rome, or shall profess the popish religion, or shall marry a papist, shall be subject to such incapacities.

Catch the details here

18th Century AD

2002-08-01T15:26:00.000-06:00

Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe (inspired by true story 1704-1709)
The Courage of Sarah Noble by Alice D'Algliesh (1707)
St. Louis de Montfort: The Story of Our Lady's Slave by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (1673-1716)
Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson (1751)
With Pipe, Paddle and Song by Elizabeth Yates (1750s)
Calico Captive by Elizabeth George Speare (1754)
"The Miracle of Paterno, Italy", EM 169-170) (1772)
Priest on Horseback by Eva K. Betz
Kat Finds a Friend: A St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Story by Joan Stromberg
The Martha Years Books (Little House Series) by Melissa Wiley (mostly 1790s)
Mother Seton and the Sisters of Charity by Alma Power-Waters (1774-1821)

Primary Sources:

George Washington's Farewell Address: September 19, 1796

Picture Books about the 17th Century

2002-07-15T15:35:00.000-06:00

The Pied Piper of Peru: A Story of Saint Martin de Porres by Ann Tompert

Pocahontas by Ingri and Edgar Parin D'Aulaire (1595-1617)

Artists of the 17th Century

2002-07-02T15:18:00.000-06:00

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, Italy, 1573-1610
Catholic Encyclopedia Entry
WebMuseum Entry

Peter Paul Rubens, Flanders, 1577-1640
Catholic Encyclopedia Entry
WebMuseum Entry

Francisco de Zurbarán, Spain, 1598-1664
Catholic Encyclopedia Entry
WebMuseum Entry

Rembrandt Van Rijn, Holland, 1606-1669
WebMuseum Entry
Virtual tour of Rembrandt's House

Jan Vermeer, Holland, 1632-1675
WebMuseum Entry

17th Century AD

2002-07-01T15:25:00.000-06:00

The Gunpowder Plot by Hugh Ross Williamson (1604)
"The Miracle of Faverney, France", EM 162-168 (1608)
St. Francis Solano: Wonder Worker of the New World and Apostle of Argentina and Peru by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (d. 1610)
Henry Hudson by Ruth Manning (approximately 1565-1611)
St. Rose of Lima: The Story of the First Canonized Saint of the Americas by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (1586-1617)
Jamestown: New World Adventure by James Knight
"The Landing of the Pilgrim Fathers" by Felicia Hemans, BV 790-791
Squanto: Friend of the Pilgrims by Clyde Robert Bulla (d. 1622)
The Outlaws of Ravenhurst by Sister M. Imelda Wallace (17th Century)
Nacar: The White Deer, A Story of Old Mexico by Elizabeth Borton de Trevino
St. Martin de Porres by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (1579-1639)
Come Rack! Come Rope! by Msgr. Robert Hugh Benson
St. John Masias: Marvelous Dominican Gatekeeper of Lima, Peru by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (1585-1645)
St. Isaac and the Indians by Milton Lomask (d. 1646)
Saint Among Savages: The Life of St. Isaac Jogues by Francis Talbot S.J.
Vincent de Paul: Saint of Charity by Margaret Ann Hubbard (1581-1660)
St. Vincent de Paul by F.A. Forbes
"On Galileo", PF 178-189
Saint Margaret Mary by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (1647-1690)
The Mystery of the Periodic Table by Benjamin Wiker (Bethlehem Books)
I, Juan de Parejaby Elizabeth Borton de Trevino (1610-1670)
Blessed Marie of New France: The Story of the First Missionary Sisters in Canada by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (1671)
Fr. Marquette and the Great Rivers by August Derleth (1637-1675)
Kateri Tekakwitha: Mohawk Maid by Evelyn Braun (1656-1680)
The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare (1687)
Madeleine Takes Command by Ethel Brill (1692)

Architecture:
St. Peter's Basilica, Rome, Italy (construction 1506-1667) more photos

The Five Franciscan Martyrs of Georgia

2002-06-29T07:59:00.000-06:00

Death came to the five Franciscan Martyrs in September, 1597, after a baptized Guale named Juanillo, living in one of the missions, took a second wife. Juanillo was the nephew of the principal tribal chief and a leading contender to succeed him. Given his importance, if he persisted in his marital infidelity, the moral life of the whole mission would be in jeopardy. It fell to Fray Pedro at the mission at Tolomato to admonish Juanillo to live the Christian faith in which he was baptized, and to warn him that the friars would not support his political aspirations should he persist in bigamy. In this he was seconded by Fray Blas in the nearby mission at Tupiquí...

From the Georgia Martyrs website

hat-tip Karen Edmisten

William Shakespeare (1564-1616)

2002-06-21T11:12:00.000-06:00

Picture Books:
William Shakespeare and the Globe by Aliki
The Bard of Avon by Diane Stanley

Grade School:
Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare for Children by Edith Nesbit
Shakespeare for Kids: His Life and times, 21 Activities by Colleen Aagesen and Margie Blumberg

Primary Sources:
The Complete Works of William Shakespeare

On the Web:
William Shakespeare Collection at Bartleby
Tales from Shakespeare by Charles and Mary Lamb

Saint Edmund Campion (1540-1581)

2002-06-20T11:18:00.000-06:00

Grade School:

Edmund Campion: Hero of God's Underground by Harold Gardiner, S.J.

Teen/Adult:

Edmund Campion by Evelyn Waugh
Tyborne and the Gem of Christendom by Mother Mary Magdalen Taylor
The Martyrdom of Father Campion and His Companions by William Cardinal Allen

Primary Sources:

Challenge to the Privy Council by Edmund Campion

Old St. Peter's and the Sistine Chapel

2002-06-12T15:31:00.000-06:00

With help from The Map Guy

Above is a drawing of the Old St. Peter's Basilica in Rome - built by Constantine in the 4th Century AD. It was built at the place where St. Peter died, which was a Roman circus, where chariot races and gladiator fights took place. Around 1450, the pope decided tear it down because it was in a state of disrepair. From 1475-1483 they built a famous chapel and when it was completed, the pope hired Botticelli, Ghirlandaio, Rosselli, and Perugino to paint the walls on the sides of the chapel. They painted the ceiling blue with stars. In 1508, another pope hired Michelangelo to paint frescoes of the twelve apostles on the ceiling. After he started the work, Michelangelo decided that he didn't like them and came up with a different idea that we can see today. He finished the frescoes in 1512.

The groundbreaking for the new St. Peter's Basilica was in 1506 and it was consecrated in 1626.

Saint Thomas More (1478-1535)

2002-06-10T11:47:00.000-06:00

St. Thomas More of London by Elizabeth Ince

The King's Good Servant but God's First by James Monti

Sir Thomas More attributed to William Shakespeare

Primary Sources:

Utopia by Saint Thomas More

The Sadness of Christ by Saint Thomas More

On the Web:

Center for Thomas More Studies

Movies:

A Man for All Seasons (1966 - Paul Scofield, Wendy Hiller, Orson Welles)

Our Lady of Guadalupe (Mexico, 1531)

2002-06-09T15:08:00.000-06:00

Our Lady of Guadalupe appeared to St. Juan Diego in Mexico several times between December 9 and December 12, 1531. Our Lady of Guadalupe is the patroness of the Americas and the unborn.

Picture Books:

The Lady of Guadalupe by Tomie de Paola (1531)

Grade School:

Saint Juan Diego and Our Lady of Guadalupe by Josephine Nobisso (Pauline Books & Media)

Teen/Adult:

A Handbook on Guadalupe edited by Brother Francis Mary, F.I.
Our Lady of Guadalupe and the Conquest of Darkness by Warren Carroll

Saint Francis Xavier (1506-1552)

2002-06-07T16:31:00.000-06:00

Grade School:

St. Francis of the Seven Seas by Albert Nevins

College/Adult:

Set All Afire: A Novel on St. Francis Xavier by Louis de Wohl

Saint Ignatius Loyola (1491-1556)

2002-06-05T15:48:00.000-06:00

Grade School:

St. Ignatius and the Company of Jesus by August Derleth (1491-1556)

High School/Adult:

St. Ignatius of Loyola by Francis Thompson
St. Ignatius of Loyola by James Broderick, S.J.
The Golden Thread: A Novel about St. Ignatius by Louis de Wohl

16th Century AD

2002-06-01T16:36:00.000-06:00

The Evangelization of the New World by James Leek
He Went with Vasco da Gama by Louise Andrews Kent (1460-1524)
Saint Angela Merici: Leading People to God by Sr. Maryellen Keefe, OSU (Pauline Books & Media)
How the Reformation Happened by Hilaire Belloc (1517-1648)
The Beginning of the English Reformation by Hugh Ross Williamson
Characters of the Reformation by Hilaire Belloc
The King's Achievement by Msgr. Robert Hugh Benson (Henry VIII 1491-1547)
"The Miracle of Morrovalle, Italy", EM 153-157 (1560)
Lepanto by G.K. Chesterton (October 7, 1571)
Red Hugh, Prince of Donegal by Robert T. Reilly (1580s)
St. Philip of the Joyous Heart by Francis X. Connolly (1515-1595)
St. Martin de Porres: The Story of the Little Doctor of Lima by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (1579-1639)
"The Miracle of Alcala de Henares, Spain", EM 158-161 (1597)

Artists of the 16th Century

2002-06-01T11:16:00.000-06:00

Sandro Botticelli, Italy, (1445-1510)
WebMuseum Entry

Leonardo da Vinci, Italy, 1452-1519
Leonardo da Vinci for Kids: His Life and Ideas 21 Activities by Janis Herbert
Catholic Encyclopedia Entry
WebMuseum Entry

Raphael Sanzio, Italy, 1483-1520
Catholic Encyclopedia Entry
WebMuseum Entry

Albrecht Dürer, Germany, 1471-1528
Catholic Encyclopedia Entry
WebMuseum Entry

Michelangelo Buonarroti , Italy, 1475 - 1564
Michelangelo by Diane Stanley
Catholic Encyclopedia Entry
WebMuseum Entry
Movie: The Agony and the Ecstasy (1965 - Charlton Heston, Rex Harrison)

Pieter Bruegel the Elder, Flanders, 1525-1569
WebMuseum Entry

Saint Peter's Basilica (constructed 1450-1626)

2002-05-15T15:28:00.000-06:00

History of St. Peter's Basilica from Catholic Encyclopedia
Tour of St. Peter's Basilica (this one has pictures)
Old St. Peter's Basilica (circa 300 AD - 1450 AD)
Building Big - St. Peter's Basilica
Pictures from St. Peter's Basilica
Vatican Museums Online - The Sistine Chapel

Saint Joan of Arc (1412-1431)

2002-05-08T14:16:00.000-06:00

Grade School:

Saint Joan: The Girl Soldier by Louis de Wohl
Boy Knight of Reims by Eloise Lownsbery

High School:

Joan of Arc by Mark Twain
Joan of Arc by Hilaire Belloc

Artists of the 15th Century

2002-05-02T14:21:00.000-06:00

Jan van Eyck, Flanders, approximately 1395-1441
Catholic Encyclopedia Entry

Fra Angelico, Italy, 1387 - 1455
Catholic Encyclopedia Entry
Patron Saints Index: Fra Angelico
WebMuseum Entry

Domenico Ghirlandaio, Italy, 1449-1494
WebMuseum Entry

15th Century AD

2002-05-01T14:19:00.000-06:00

Marguerite Makes a Book by Bruce Robertson, illustrated by Kathryn Hewitt (Getty Trust Publications)

"The Miracle of Dijon, France", Eucharistic Miracles 140-141 (before 1433)

"The Miracle of Avignon, France", Eucharistic Miracles 142-144 (1433)

"The Miracle of Turin, Italy", Eucharistic Miracles 145-152 (1453)

Richard the Third by Paul Murray Kendall (1452-1485)

The Trumpeter of Krakow by Eric Kelly (1461)

Isabella of Spain by William Thomas Walsh (1451-1504)

Characters of the Inquisition by William Thomas Walsh (1478)

Leonardo da Vinci by Diane Stanley (1452-1519)

"For Want of a Horseshoe Nail", BV 198-200 (1485 AD)

Columbus by Ingri and Edgar Parin D'Aulaire (1451-1506)

He went with Christopher Columbus by Louise Andrews Kent (1492)

"Sail on! Sail on!" by Joaquin Miller, BV 565-566

Adam of the Road by Elizabeth Janet Grey

Out of Print Favorites:

The Cargo of the Madalena by Cynthia Harnett (1482)
The Merchant's Mark by Cynthia Harnett (1490s)

14th Century AD

2002-04-01T14:14:00.000-06:00

"William Tell" BV pgs. 480-481 (early 14th Century)
"Bruce and the Spider" by Bernard Barton, BV 553-555
"The Miracle of Hasselt, Belgium", EM 84-85 (1317)
"The Two Miracles of Siena, Italy", EM 86-97 (1330)
"The Miracle of Blanot, France", EM 98-105 (1331)
Patron Saint of First Communicants: The Story of Bl. Imelda Lambertini by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (1333)
"The Miracle of Amsterdam, the Netherlands", EM 106-108 (1345)
"The Miracle of Macerata, Italy", EM 109-111 (1356)
"The Miracle of Brussels, Belgium", EM 112-122 (1370)
"The Miracle of Middleburg-Louvain, Belgium", EM 123-129 (1374)
St. Catherine of Siena: The Story of the Girl Who Saw Saints in the Sky by Mary Fabyan Windeatt
St. Catherine of Siena by F.A. Forbes (1347-1380)
Lay Siege to Heaven: A Novel on St. Catherine of Siena by Louis de Wohl
"The Miracle of Seefeld, Austria", EM 130-139 (1384)
"Our Lady's Juggler" by Anatole France, BV 782-787 (under King Louis)
The Door in the Wall by Marguerite de Angeli
Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
Henry V by William Shakespeare (1387-1422)

Architecture:

Alhambra, Granada, Spain (construction 1333-1391)

Artists:

Giotto di Bondone, Italy, 1267-1337
The Art of Giotto
Catholic Encyclopedia Entry
Giotto Gallery at Christus Rex
WebMuseum Entry

Saint Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)

2002-03-20T14:43:00.000-06:00

Grade School:

St. Thomas Aquinas: The Story of the Dumb Ox by Mary Fabyan Windeatt
Saint Thomas Aquinas and the Preaching Beggars by Brendan Larnen, O.P. and Milton Lomask

Teen/Adult:

St. Thomas Aquinas by G.K. Chesterton
excerpts from the Summa Theologiae TC pgs. 247-298
The Catechetical Instructions of St. Thomas Aquinas
The Quiet Light: A Novel About St. Thomas Aquinas by Louis de Wohl

Cathedral at Rheims (consecrated in 1241)

2002-03-12T23:08:00.000-06:00

The Cathedral at Rheims (north east of Paris, in the province of Champagne) was built between 1210 and 1241 AD. The kings of France were once crowned there and you'll hear something of it in the story of St. Joan of Arc.

The Web Gallery of Art has some information on the Cathedral as well as some great photos of statuary.

Rheims Cathedral was seriously damaged by the Germans in 1914. Here is a 1937 TIME magazine article about its restoration.

Also see "The Bombardment of Rheims"

Saint Francis of Assisi (1181-1226)

2002-03-08T14:47:00.000-06:00

Picture Books:
Francis: The Poor Man of Assisi by Tomie de Paola

Grade School:
Francis and Clare: Saints of Assisi by Helen Walker Homan

Teen/Adult:
St. Francis of Assisi by G.K. Chesterton
The Joyful Beggar: A Novel about St. Francis of Assisi by Louis de Wohl

Primary Sources:
The Sermon to the Birds The Book of Virtues 761-762
Writings of St. Francis of Assisi TC pgs. 201-233

13th Century AD

2002-03-01T14:46:00.000-06:00

The Lost Baron by Allen French (1200)
The Adventures of Robin Hood by Roger Lancelyn Green (King John 1167-1216)
Big John's Secret by Eleanore Jewett (The 5th Crusade, 1218)
Saint Dominic: Preacher of the Rosary and Founder of the Dominican Order by Mary Fabyan Windeatt
Saint Dominic and the Rosary by Catherine Beebe (1170-1221)
"The Miracle of Alatri, Italy", EM pgs 30-37 (1228)
"The Miracle of Santarem, Portugal", EM 38-46 (early 13th century)
"The Two Miracles of Florence, Italy", EM 47-49 (1230)
Saint Elizabeth's Three Crowns by Blanche Thompson (1207-1231)
Saint Anthony and the Christ Child by Helen Walker Homan (1195-1231)
"The Miracle of Daroca, Spain", EM 50-52 (1239)
"The Miracle of Olmutz, Czechoslovakia", EM 53-55 (1242)
Cathedral: The Story of Its Construction by David Macaulay
St. Hyacinth of Poland: The Story of the Apostle of the North by Mary Fabyan Windeatt
"The Miracle of Regensburg, Germany", EM 56-58 (1257)
"The Two Miracles of Paris, France", EM 63-65 (1274 and 1290)
He Went with Marco Polo by Louise Andrews Kent (1271-1295)
"The Miracle of Slavonice, Czechoslovakia", EM 66-69 (1280)
"The Miracle of Offida, Italy", EM 70-83 (1280)
Castle by David Macaulay (1283)
Women in the Days of the Cathedrals by Régine Pernoud

Architecture:

Chartres Cathedral, Chartres, France (construction 1195-1220)

Saint Thomas Becket (d. 1170)

2002-02-20T14:54:00.000-06:00

Grades 5-8:

If All the Swords in England by Barbara Willard (or read-aloud to younger children)

Grades 9-12:

Murder in the Cathedral by T.S. Eliot

Movies:

Becket (1964 - Richard Burton, Peter O'Toole, John Gielgud) - teen/adult - recommend previewing by parents first

On the Web:

Eyewitness to History

Images from Canterbury Cathedral

12th Century AD

2002-02-01T14:09:00.000-06:00

The Red Falcons of Tremoine by Hendry Peart (1100s)
"The Miracle of Braine, France", EM pgs 19-21 (1153)
The Red Keep by Allen French (1165)
The Hidden Treasure of Glaston by Eleanore Jewett (1171)
"The Miracle of Ferrara, Italy", EM pgs 22-27 (1171)
"The King and His Hawk", BV (Genghis Kahn)
Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott, England
"The Miracle of Augsburg, Germany", EM 28-29 (1194)
The Great Heresies by Hilaire Belloc

Composers:

Hildegard Von Bingen (1098-1197)
On Audio CD: An Introduction to Early Music (Naxos)

The Sword of Clontarf by Charles A. Brady

2002-01-04T22:40:00.000-06:00

1960/2006, 251 pp, Hillside Education, Softcover

After his father is murdered, Niall is forced to leave the only home he has ever known under the cloak of darkness. Fearing for his life, he flees Iceland in search of a grandfather he has never met in far off Ireland. Unbelievably, his grandfather turns out to be none other than King Mael Seachlinn. But Niall is also charged with an important task, to give Brian Boru a prized relic of the Norsemen, Thor’s ring. Will he be able to accomplish his goal?

Already in the first port that his ship lays anchor, he finds out that his father’s wicked murderer has followed him there and is plotting to kill him too. Narrowly escaping, he makes it to Ireland where he must travel on foot alone in a country that is beset with political strife among discontented Kings. The treacherous Queen Gormflaith’s hooded soldiers seems to be everywhere on their powerful steeds performing evil deeds.

On his dangerous journey, he learns of the Norse kings plotting to seize Brian Boru’s throne. As the Norse kings gather more support from surrounding, rival thrones, the odds appear overwhelming for King Brian. Will Niall be able to help save Ireland from the pagan North?

The story includes a colorful cast of realistic characters from poets to kings. More than an entertaining story, the reader also learns about Ireland’s history and culture.

There are Catholic references sprinkled throughout the story, reminding the reader of Ireland’s conversion to the Catholic faith. The Catholic characters will at times greet one another with a sign of their Catholic faith. “Then the monk signed Niall Arenson with the Sign of Three. ‘Christ with you,’ he said. ‘We shall meet again, my son.’ ‘And Mary His Mother and all the saints,’ said Niall Arenson.”

Travel back to ancient Ireland and the time of High King Brian Boru in the Sword of Clontarf, where drama and excitement await you.

Reviewed by Elizabeth Yank (12-18-06)
Available from All Catholic Books

Bayeux Tapestry - 11th century, Britain

2002-01-02T18:33:00.002-06:00

The Vikings

2002-01-02T13:46:00.000-06:00

Picture Books:

Leif the Lucky by Ingri and Edgar Parin D'Aulaire (Leif Ericson 1000 AD)

Upper Grade School/High School:

The Story of Rolf and the Viking Bow by Allen French (Bethelehem Books )

Audio Resources:

The Story of Rolf and the Viking Bow (dramatization - Northern Rain Productions/Bethlehem Books)

11th Century AD

2002-01-01T14:05:00.000-06:00

Saint Malachy O Mortair, Celtic Heritage Saints 47-49
Saint Margaret of Scotland, Celtic Heritage Saints 57-59
William the Conqueror by Hilaire Belloc (1066)
"King Canute on the Seashore", The Book of Virtues 67-68
"St. George and the Dragon", The Book of Virtues 192-195
The Crusades by Hilaire Belloc (1095-1291)

Architecture:

Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain (construction begun - exterior is much more recent)

The Tower of London, London, England (construction 1078-1097)

Out of Print Favorites:

The Blue Gonfalon by Margaret Ann Hubbard (The 1st Crusade - 1095)

10th Century AD

2001-12-15T13:45:00.000-06:00

The Little Duke by Charlotte Yonge (943)

9th Century AD

2001-09-01T21:19:00.000-06:00

Beorn the Proud by Madeleine Polland (800s)
Myths about the Middle Ages, PF 163-177
King Alfred and the Cakes, BV 196-198
The Ballad of the White Horse by G.K. Chesterton (878)

Out of Print Favorites:

Alfred of Wessex: The King Who Saved His Country by Frank Morriss (Catholic Treasury Books)
Charlemagne by T.N. Dupy (Credo Books - 800 AD)

8th Century A.D.

2001-08-01T14:42:00.000-06:00

Picture Books:

The Silk Route: 7,000 Miles of History by John S. Major, illustrated by Stephen Fieser (concentrates on a journey in 700 AD)

Grade School:

"The Miracle of Lanciano, Italy" EM pgs 3-18 (700 AD)
Son of Charlemagne by Barbara Willard (Charlemagne 768-814)

Architecture:

Temple at Borobudur, Java, Indonesia (constructed in the 8th or 9th century)

Caedmon, First English Poet (circa 670)

2001-07-15T16:11:00.000-06:00

Caedmon's Song by Ruth Ashby, illustrated by Bill Slavin
2006, Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 30 pages

A charmingly illustrated children's picture book about the English monk Caedmon who became the first poet of the English language. (grades 1-4)

Also see:

A Little History of Literature and the Poet Caedmon

7th Century Irish Saints

2001-07-01T14:40:00.000-06:00

Saint Kilian, Apostle of Franconia, Celtic Heritage Saints pgs. 25-27
Saint Hilda of Whitby, Celtic Heritage Saints pgs. 51-54 (614-671 AD)
Saint Carthage of Lismore, Celtic Heritage Saints pgs. 55-56
Saint Dympna of Gheel, Celtic Heritage Saints pgs. 61-63

Saint Augustine of Canterbury (England, died 605)

2001-06-27T11:13:00.000-06:00

Augustine Came to Kent by Barbara Willard
1963, Bethlehem Books, Sewn softcover, 179 pages, Catholic

Historical fiction account of the mission of St. Augustine of Canterbury to bring Christianity to England in 597, as seen through the eyes of a young boy accompanying the monks on the journey. While not as fast-paced as other Bethlehem Books titles, the story really brings the era to life and is a very good tale besides - full of little insights into human nature, Christian ideas and heroism.

Reviewed by Alicia Van Hecke (11-6-99)
Available from Adoremus Books, All Catholic Books, Aquinas and More, By Way of the Family, Emmanuel Books, Our Father's House, and Stella Maris Books

Hagia Sophia (Istanbul Turkey, completed in 537)

2001-06-11T13:41:00.000-06:00

Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, Turkey (constructed 532-537 AD)

Saint Benedict (Italy, 480-547)

2001-06-05T11:10:00.000-06:00

The Holy Twins: Benedict and Scholastica by Kathleen Norris (illustrated by Tomie de Paola)

Saint Benedict: Hero of the Hills by Mary Fabyan Windeatt

Citadel of God: A Novel about Saint Benedict by Louis de Wohl