156 years ago, nineteen-year-old Frederick Robinson from Liverpool, was lost at sea when HMS Captain capsized and sank off the Spanish coast. Through the letters he wrote to his family whilst on board, Frederick’s letters give a personal account of naval life in the 1860s and the experiences of ordinary seamen on an ironclad ship that became one of the most significant maritime disasters of Victorian Britain. Kept by his family for generations, his letters offer a rare perspective on HMS Captain. This post shares Frederick’s lifestory, and why the loss of HMS Captain still matters in British naval history.
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Major-General Millar
From his early years as the son of a Scottish merchant, John Millar rose from cadet to Major General of the East India Company. This is a retelling of his life and experiences spanning the 19th Century.
From the Trenches
The lines of this poem were penned by a first-time poet in a dugout “Somewhere in France” in 1917. Perhaps it was written as a pledge to lost friends that they will be remembered for their sacrifice.
On ANZAC Day 2023, this poem lets us remember them.
Banished Beyond Seas
Banished beyond the seas, as a convict to Van Diemen’s Land, Jane Perry survived through years of poverty, cruelty and trauma to form a family and seek a better future for herself and her children in Australia. Hers is a story of resilience, determination and survival.
The Robinsons of Liverpool
This post follows the male lineage of the Robinsons of Liverpool, from whom I inherited my surname.
Between 1750 and 1914, Liverpool was at the centre of many historical events relating to the agricultural revolution, Atlantic slave trade and industrial revolution. These events all shaped the lives of the Robinsons of Liverpool.
Pack Up Your Troubles and Smile Boys
ANZAC Day 2022. Like many WWII servicemen and women, my Grandfather Frederick Leslie Robinson, was profoundly altered by his army experience. As war took its toll on his physical and mental health, his life was forever changed.
An Artist in the Family
How special it was to discover an artist in my family tree, and a female one at that! This is the story of my great-great-aunt, Margaret Caldom Millar (1842–1882), who was an artist and art teacher, pursuing her career in the visual arts one-hundred and fifty years ago.
In Memory of an Anzac Soldier
The story of Private John “Jack” Ivison, who was killed in action in the landing at Gallipoli on 27 April 1915, aged just 26 years old…
A Special Recipe or Two
A few recipes from my female forebears – my mother and the women before her who loved baking for their families…
Eighteen Months Hard Labour
This is a story that I stumbled across thanks to the wonders of technology. The story of my great-great-grandfather, John Lethlean, and how he came to be listed on the Victorian Register of Male Prisoners, as an inmate at Pentridge Prison.
