Received from Suzanne Cloves (Manchester Metropolitan University) How can we best use sound to support access to heritage? A public discussion with panellists, presented by Manchester Centre for Public History and Heritage, in collaboration with Leverhulme Unit for the Design of Cities of the Future. Join our speakers to help generate ideas that will encourage thoughtful use of sound to support access to heritage: Luke Beesley (Researcher at University of Liverpool, Archive Lead at Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People) David Govier (Sound Archivist at Manchester Archives+) Steve Graby (Access and Inclusion Worker at Disabled People’s Archive, Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People) Olivia Hewkin (Museum, Galleries and Heritage Programme Manager at VocalEyes) Mariana López (Professor in Sound Production and Post Production, University of York) Then sit back and soak up a DJ set by Artilect, who will showcase sampling as a form of music heritage. We’ll finish with refreshments and time to chat. The event will be at 3-6pm on Wednesday 6th December 2023 in the Manchester Poetry Library, which is in the Grosvenor East Building, Manchester Metropolitan University, M15 6BG. Entry is free but please book (here) to avoid disappointment. You’re welcome to turn up without booking, but […]

by Prof. Catherine Fletcher (Manchester Metropolitan University) Asked to draw up a list of important early modern technologies, few historians would ignore guns and gunpowder. Yet the detail of firearms’ impact on sixteenth-century Europe is less well-known than it might be. This is all the more surprising given the parallels between the debates of the sixteenth century about how to handle this problematic new technology, and those of today. Writers of the period knew that while handguns might be in demand for self-defence, in reality they were a poor defensive weapon. Local authorities realised that concealed carry was a challenge to social order. Political thinkers argued that gun proliferation required an international solution. Aspects of which I explore in my article “Firearms and the State in Sixteenth-Century Italy: Gun Proliferation and Gun Control” in Past & Present No. 260 (August 2023). From the earliest days of gunpowder technology there was deep ambivalence in Europe about its use. Firearms were the devil’s work (one manuscript illumination of the Resurrection shows demons firing at the risen Christ); they were unmanly and ungallant, and in more lethal ways than previous technologies. On the other hand, they were becoming a vital military technology, and […]

from the Royal Historical Society The Royal Historical Society is delighted to award Masters’ Scholarships to the following six students. Each student is now beginning a Masters’ degree in History for the academic year 2023-24: Roqibat Adebimpe, to study at the University of Sheffield Matthew Dickinson, to study at the University of Manchester Baryana Ivanova, to study of the University of Cambridge Nawajesh Khan, to study at Cardiff University Marielle Masolo, to study at the University of Oxford Charlotte Willis, to study at Cardiff University The Masters’ Scholarship programme provides financial support to students from groups currently underrepresented in academic History. Each Scholarship is worth £5000. The scheme, established in 2022, seeks to actively address underrepresentation and encourage Black and Asian students to consider academic research in History. By supporting Masters’ students the programme focuses on a key early stage in the academic training of future researchers. With these Scholarships, the Society seeks to support students who are without the financial means to study for a Masters’ in History. By doing so, we hope to improve the educational experience of early career historians engaged in a further degree. The Society is very grateful to the Thriplow Charitable Trust and the Past & Present Society who each […]