In the spring of 1767, Robert Clive, then a “writer” for the East India Company (EIC) planned to return to England, having earned a sizable fortune in legitimate trade of spices and textiles. Several Bengali nobles, including asked him to remain in Bengal and offered him £1 million and the EIC another £1 million if …
Continue reading “Read the Fine Print, Keep your Powder Dry, and be Cautious of Turncoats”
One of the very first Indian words to enter the English language was LOOT, the Hindu word for plunder. To understand how this word became a common term across the British Empire in the 18th Century, take a look at the holdings of Powys Castle in Wales. Stored in great heaps in what could pass …
The Fugio Penny, also known as the Franklin cent, was the first coin ever minted by the United States under the new US Constitution. The coin does not say “In God We Trust” or “E Pluribus Unum” on its front face. Instead, it reads “Mind Your Business.” The coin was designed by Benjamin Franklin, who most …
In 1771, numerous American newspapers ran this excerpt of a “Letter from a Gentleman in India”: On our arrival here, we found a river full of dead human carcasses floating up and down, and the streets crowded with the dead and dying, without anyone attempting to give them relief; so horribly has the famine raged …
When reenacting or acting as a historical interpreter, its good to have a few historical dates and stories to share. This series will publish a few. April 20, 1775 Williamsburg Gunpowder Incident. On the night of April 20, Royal Navy sailors went to the Williamsburg powder magazine, loaded fifteen half barrels of powder into the …
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Robert Clive, the 1st Baron Clive is also known as Clive of India and is widely credited for laying the foundation of the British East India Company (EIC) rule in Bengal after winning the Battle of Plassey in 1757. When Clive left India in January 1767, he had a fortune of £180,000 (equivalent to £25,700,000 today). On 22 November 1774 …
Continue reading “Clive of India: Literally a Robber Baron of the 18th Century”
Let’s start this article out with an absolute disclaimer. THIS IS NOT A COLONIAL BEVERAGE, it’s a very modern 21st Century invention but still fun. You won’t see the Regimental Brewmeister serving this or making it at demonstrations but sometimes we drink this at home. Most of us associate hops with beer, and unfortunately beer …
April 16 — 11am to 4pmFort Mifflin Come to Fort Mifflin on Sunday as we attempt to build field tables for our new portable bar wagon. This project is really coming together. We still need painters and artists who want to help us make this somber wagon into a festive bar. We also need people …
Come Study a Truly Astronomical Event and Its Effects with the Colonial Scientist Fort Mifflin — April 8, 202411am – 5:30 pm The total solar eclipse of June 24, 1778 was the first to be carefully observed in the newly founded United States. David Rittenhouse, witnessed the eclipse from Philadelphia. Thomas Jefferson also tried to see …
April 16 at 10:30 at Fort Mifflin! We are moving forward with our plans to build a bar wagon. Our second work day is March 12 and we plan to make big changes to the appearance of the wagon so that it transforms from an expression of Amish religious values to a bar that celebrates …
Continue reading “Come Help Us Create a Unique Portable Bar at Fort Mifflin”
