Category Archives: Historical

Travel: A Walking Tour In Williamsburg, Virginia

4K WALK Films (May 20, 20230 – Williamsburg, a city in the U.S. state of Virginia, was capital of the Virginia Colony from 1699 to 1780 and played a significant role in the American Revolution.

It forms the “Historic Triangle” together with Jamestown and Yorktown. Its heart is Colonial Williamsburg, a historic district and living-history museum where actors in period costume depict daily Colonial life in the streets, stores and workshops. 

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Tours: Historic Gardens Of Wightwick Manor, UK

National Trust (May 10, 2023) – The gardens surrounding Wightwick Manor, cared for by the National Trust, are influenced by the Arts and Crafts Movement, which started in Britain during the late 19th century.

This means the garden design extends into the house, where visitors can see flowers such as roses used as motifs for interiors and artworks. Watch this video to discover how politics has also left its mark on the gardens that are still enjoyed by visitors today. You’ll see architectural artefacts from the Houses of Parliament and a tree planted by Clement Richard Attlee, the Labour Prime Minster who served from 1945 to 1951.

You’ll also learn about the history of the estate and its planting schemes and find out more about what the National Trust is doing to make the gardens more accessible for visitors.

Inside Russia: How Life Has Changed Since Invasion

BBC News (May 5, 2023) – Life in Ukraine is unrecognisable since Russia invaded in February 2022. But how has life in Russia changed since the invasion? The BBC’s Russia editor Steve Rosenberg, who lives in Moscow, reports on the shift he has seen in the country from day-to-day life to how Russia portrays its history to its people.

Historic Tour: Locations In ‘The Unlikely Pilgrimage Of Harold Fry’ Film (2023)

National Trust (April 27, 2023) – Based on the bestselling novel by Rachel Joyce, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry starring Jim Broadbent and Penelope Wilton is exclusively in cinemas from April 28 2023.

Recently retired, Harold Fry is an unremarkable man who is content to fade quietly into the background of life, until one day he learns that an old friend is dying. He sets off to the post office to send her a letter and decides to keep walking: all the way to her hospice, 450 miles away.

The Bath Skyline in Somerset and Minchinhampton Common in Gloucestershire were both used as locations for the film, which was shot sequentially across the UK over several weeks, mirroring Harold’s own pilgrimage through England’s many varied landscapes – from bustling cities to wild moorland.

Here Jim and Rachel tell us how being on location helped bring to life story’s themes of reconnecting with the land and embracing the unknown. Filming at National Trust places helps provide our charity with income which we use to keep those houses, gardens and landscapes in good condition for everyone to visit and enjoy.

Travel Tour: Pula, On The Istrian Peninsula, Croatia

Massimo Nalli (Uploaded April 18, 2023) – Pula is situated at the southern tip of the Istrian peninsula in Croatia. The city is best known for its many surviving ancient Roman buildings, the most famous of which is its 1st-century amphitheatre, which is among the six largest surviving Roman arenas in the world, and locally known as the Arena.

Video timeline:00:00 – VIEW OF THE PULA FROM ABOVE – 00:13 – TWIN GATE AND CITYT WALLS – 00:55 – TRIUMPHAL ARC OF THE SERGI – 02:04 – FORUM SQUARE – 04:07 – TEMPLE OF AUGUSTUS – 05:03 – ST.FRANCIS CHURCH – 06:55 – CATHEDRAL – 09:55 – ADMIRALTY BUILDING – 11:31 – CASTLE – 13:37 – CHURCH OF ST.MARY FORMOSA – 14:46 – AMPHITHEATER

During the World War II Italian fascist administration, there were attempts to dismantle the arena and move it to mainland Italy, which were quickly abandoned due to the costs involved. Two other notable and well-preserved ancient Roman structures are the 1st-century AD triumphal arch, the Arch of the Sergii and the co-eval Temple of Augustus, built in the 1st century AD built on the forum during the reign of the Roman emperor Augustus.

The Twin Gates (Porta Gemina) is one of the few remaining gates after the city walls were pulled down at the beginning of the 19th century. It dates from the mid-2nd century, replacing an earlier gate. It consists of two arches, columns, a plain architrave, and a decorated frieze. Close by are a few remains of the old city wall.

Views: A Tour Of Monk’s House, Sussex In Virginia Woolf’s Literary Words

National Trust (April 18, 2023) – To this day, Virginia Woolf is still known for her novel ‘Mrs Dalloway’ and for her early involvement in the Bloomsbury Group, which was established in the early 1900s in London.

Monk’s House in Sussex was once the place she and her husband Leopold called home, and it’s now being cared for by the National Trust. In this video from the National Trust, you can experience what life was like at Monk’s House first hand. For more than 20 years, Virginia Woolf transformed Monk’s House into a place of beauty, art, creativity and contentment.

Virginia Woolf - IMDb
Virginia Woolf

From reciting lines in her bathtub to writing books in the tool shed, let this literary pioneer tell you in her own words how she finally found ‘a room of one’s own’. Throughout much of her life, Virginia Woolf experienced bouts of mental illness, and Monk’s House was used as a writing retreat by Virginia and Leopold.

The Sussex landscape captured her imagination, and this came through in much of her writing. She was also engaged in the conservation of the land – a legacy that lives on through the work that National Trust staff and volunteers do to care for this place of history.

Travel: Walking Tour Of Galata Tower In Istanbul

March 21, 2023 Upload: Considered among the oldest towers in the world and one of the symbols of Istanbul, Galata Tower (Galata Kulesi) was included in the UNESCO World Heritage Temporary List in 2013. Galata Tower, one of the most important structures that make up the silhouette of Istanbul, was used as a long-term fire watchtower and was named Galata Fire Tower.

Video timeline: 00:00 INTRO 01:35 BUYUK HENDEK STREET (AROUND GALATA TOWER) 07:40 GALATA TOWER SQUARE 10:40 GALIP DEDE STREET 14:40 ISTIKLAL STREET ISTANBUL 38:10 TASIM SQUARE ISTANBUL

Galata Tower was first built by the Byzantine Emperor Justinianos in 507-508 AD. The ancient Tower of Galata “Megalos Pyrgos”, which means Great Tower stood on the north side of the Golden Horn in Istanbul, located in the citadel of Galata. The tower then marked the northern end of the great chain, which was expanded across the mouth of the Golden Horn to prevent enemy ships from entering the harbor. The tower contained a mechanism for raising and lowering the chain. This tower should not be confused with the present time Galata Tower, which is still standing and located at the northernmost and highest point of the citadel of Galata.

Filmed and edited by: Walking Tour With Araz

Travel: The Historic Trans-Bhutan Trail Is Reopened

BBC News (March 14, 2023) – Once the lifeline of Bhutan, the 403km Trans-Bhutan Trail connected the affluent western districts of Haa to the remote far eastern Trashigang. The trail dates back to the 16th Century, and was used by monarchs, traders, pilgrims and messengers for hundreds of years, but fell into disuse soon after Bhutan developed its highway in the 1960s. Now, more than 60 years later, the historic trail has reopened.

Trans Bhutan Trail
A local walks in a field in Paro; 70 percent of the kingdom is covered with greenery.

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Taiwan Views: Democracy And The Digital World

DW Documentary (January 20, 2023) – For Taiwanese Minister of Digital Affairs Audrey Tang, democracy is itself a technology. This film shines a light on Taiwan’s political history, as well as the country’s contemporary experience of democracy. Taiwan deployed innovative technologies in the battle against Covid-19.

Minister of Digital Affairs Audrey Tang worked with the tech community and civil society to successfully stem the spread of the virus. This was partly due to citizens’ direct involvement in the solving of political problems. Taiwan is rethinking democracy. Digital applications and new technologies are having a democratizing impact.

A look back at Taiwan’s recent history makes it clear how the World Wide Web plays a crucial role in the fight for democracy. The documentary also focuses on Taiwan’s desire for national sovereignty and civil rights. It also considers the threat posed by China, which views the democratic island of Taiwan as part of the People’s Republic and is pursuing plans to annex the territory.

Architectural Views: The Bundeswehr Museum Of Military History, Dresden

Smithsonian Channel – In 2001, Daniel Libeskind was hired to design a tasteful extension to the Bundeswehr Museum of Military History, in Dresden. His vision was an ingenious feat of architecture that managed to be both modern and respectful of the city’s tragic past.

The Military History Museum in Dresden, Saxony is one of very few museums in Germany that has German war equipment from both World Wars. Some of the most famous large items in the museum include a V2 flying bomb and Germany’s first submarine. The museum aims to explain how the military, armies and war influenced politics and society, and vice versa.