People Who Make You Think "WOW!"

[JOZeldenrust]

Eise Eisinga built a planetarium in his attic.

[Rum]

Constantine XI Palaiologos - Last emperor of Byzantium and thus, in a way, last Roman Emperor. Died on the walls of Constantinople 1453. I find this period in history fascinating.

Just noticed this. Me too as it happens. The history of Byzantium following the decline of Rome in the West is fascinating. I read a lot about it some years ago. Amazing to think of its legacy, which arguably lasted well into the Ottoman era.

[leo-rcc]

Eise Eisinga built a planetarium in his attic.

I went to that planetarium with my grandparents once.

[Pappa]

My mate Lee...

Trigger Warning!!!1! :

...because he plays World of Warcraft sometimes.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

FDR. He saved England from a wheelchair.

[Clinton Huxley]

Constantine XI Palaiologos - Last emperor of Byzantium and thus, in a way, last Roman Emperor. Died on the walls of Constantinople 1453. I find this period in history fascinating.

Just noticed this. Me too as it happens. The history of Byzantium following the decline of Rome in the West is fascinating. I read a lot about it some years ago. Amazing to think of its legacy, which arguably lasted well into the Ottoman era.

And beyond, the Orthodox Church is a remnant of Byzantium

[Pensioner]

Annie Besant what a woman.

In June 1888, Clementina Black gave a speech on Female Labour at a Fabian Society meeting in London. Annie Besant, a member of the audience, was horrified when she heard about the pay and conditions of the women working at the Bryant & May match factory.

The next day, Annie Besant went and interviewed some of the people who worked at Bryant & May. She discovered that the women worked fourteen hours a day for a wage of less than five shillings a week. However, they did not always received their full wage because of a system of fines, ranging from three pence to one shilling, imposed by the Bryant & May management. Offences included talking, dropping matches or going to the toilet without permission. The women worked from 6.30 am in summer (8.00 in winter) to 6.00 pm. If workers were late, they were fined a half-day's pay.

Annie Besant also discovered that the health of the women had been severely affected by the phosphorous that they used to make the matches. This caused yellowing of the skin and hair loss and phossy jaw, a form of bone cancer. The whole side of the face turned green and then black, discharging foul-smelling pus and finally death. Although phosphorous was banned in Sweden and the USA, the British government had refused to follow their example, arguing that it would be a restraint of free trade.

On 23rd June 1888, Annie Besant wrote an article in her newspaper, The Link. The article, entitled White Slavery in London, complained about the way the women at Bryant & May were being treated. The company reacted by attempting to force their workers to sign a statement that they were happy with their working conditions. When a group of women refused to sign, the organisers of the group was sacked. The response was immediate; 1400 of the women at Bryant & May went on strike.

William Stead, the editor of the Pall Mall Gazette, Henry Hyde Champion of the Labour Elector and Catharine Booth of the Salvation Army joined Besant in her campaign for better working conditions in the factory. So also did Sydney Oliver, Stewart Headlam, Hubert Bland, Graham Wallas and George Bernard Shaw. However, other newspapers such as The Times, blamed Besant and other socialist agitators for the dispute.

Annie Besant, William Stead and Henry Hyde Champion used their newspapers to call for a boycott of Bryant & May matches. The women at the company also decided to form a Matchgirls' Union and Besant agreed to become its leader. After three weeks the company announced that it was willing to re-employ the dismissed women and would also bring an end to the fines system. The women accepted the terms and returned in triumph. The Bryant & May dispute was the first strike by unorganized workers to gain national publicity. It was also successful at helped to inspire the formation of unions all over the country.
Annie Besant, William Stead, Catharine Booth, William Booth and Henry Hyde Champion continued to campaign against the use of yellow phosphorous. In 1891 the Salvation Army opened its own match-factory in Old Ford, East London. Only using harmless red phosphorus, the workers were soon producing six million boxes a year. Whereas Bryant & May paid their workers just over twopence a gross, the Salvation Army paid their employees twice this amount.

William Booth organised conducted tours of MPs and journalists round this 'model' factory. He also took them to the homes of those "sweated workers" who were working eleven and twelve hours a day producing matches for companies like Bryant & May. The bad publicity that the company received forced the company to reconsider its policy. In 1901, Gilbert Bartholomew, managing director of Bryant & May, announced it had stopped used yellow phosphorus.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

Frederick Douglas.

[Clinton Huxley]

Obviously, this guy....

[Gawdzilla Sama]

Obviously, this guy....

To gay.

[Clinton Huxley]

This chap, Douglas Jardine. Rarely has one man annoyed the Australians quite so much...

[Gawdzilla Sama]

[Pensioner]

This chap, Douglas Jardine. Rarely has one man annoyed the Australians quite so much...

[Pensioner]

He was a cunt.

[Robert_S]

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