October 5, 2021
7:45 PM - 9:00 PM
Zoom
In 1915, Britain began systematically breaking American codes and reading the most secret American communications. Yet rather than being used to help Britain manipulate the Americans, British political leaders weaponised this intelligence in their fights against each other and this great secret was nearly betrayed to the Americans in the process. Daniel Larsen shares exciting new findings showing how this intelligence was mis-used in a grave battle within the British leadership over allowing the Americans to pursue a negotiated settlement and end the war in 1916.
October 12, 2021
7:45 PM - 9:00 PM
Zoom
In 2015–16 Sam Wilson directed archaeological fieldwork searching for the 1471 battlefield of Barnet as part of a University of Huddersfield team alongside Dr Glenn Foard and Dr Tracy Partida. The results of the project will be discussed alongside evidence from other Wars of the Roses sites including Bosworth, Charlton and St Albans.
October 19, 2021
7:45 PM - 9:00 PM
Zoom
Recent research has started to transform what we understand about the more distant past, and the transition period from Iron Age to Roman is no exception. It is now evident, for instance, that disposal of the dead was much more complex and varied than we imagined. Dr Isobel Thompson will outline recent discoveries and ongoing work in Hertfordshire and well beyond, with a look at what these practices may be telling us about the meanings and mindsets behind them.
October 21, 2021
2:30 PM - 4:00 PM
Zoom
Although St Albans and the bulk of Hertfordshire was pro Parliament and no battles were fought in the county, this did not mean the town escaped unscathed, far from it. Led by John Morewood, the seminar will look at the information available to us to assess the impact on the town and its people and the meeting in the abbey church which led ultimately to the execution of Charles I.
October 26, 2021
11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
A second guided visit to the Welwyn Roman Baths has been arranged for a maximum of 20 members, family and friends. This visit will take place at 11am on Tuesday 26 October 2021; members will be responsible for their own travel arrangements. The cost is £9 per head. Please book as soon as possible.
November 9, 2021
7:45 PM - 9:00 PM
Zoom
St Albans has ten street memorials to those lost in the Great War from the Abbey parish. These memorials are unique in that they remember the dead from the very streets where these plaques are situated. Tony Berk and Ann Dean introduce the memorials, discuss some of the men lost and their personal details and describe the environment in St Albans at the time and on the battlefields where these men fought in the War to End all Wars.
November 16, 2021
7:45 PM - 9:00 PM
Zoom
Andrew Daws is an architect with broad professional experience and a world-wide knowledge of architecture and design. In collaboration with a former pupil, Andrew established a practice in India (Daws and Kahlon) to inform designs for new cities in India. He will provide an overview of his work in the UK and India, illustrating some of the best and worst aspects.
November 18, 2021
2:30 PM - 4:00 PM
Zoom
College Street only came into existence when Thomas Telford built Verulam Road. Led by Robert Pankhurst, the seminar will look at its origins in relation to Georgian St Albans and follow it through Victorian and Edwardian times into the early twentieth century. Simple research based initially on census records highlights some of the more intriguing residents and their occupations as local industries came and went.
November 23, 2021
7:45 PM - 9:00 PM
Zoom
A panel of eminent archaeologists (Sue Hamilton, Professor Thomas Higham and Jane Sidell) will each share their personal perspective on archaeology in the past, present and future. This will be followed by a chance for debate and audience participation.
December 7, 2021
7:45 PM - 9:00 PM
Zoom
The Horde is the great Imperial organisation the nomads built in the lower Volga after the Mongol conquest of the 13th century. As Marie Favereau will demonstrate, the Horde is also a world-shaping phenomenon that integrated Eurasia along east-west and north-south axis, generating long-distance trade and making the Mongol moment a precursor of the better-known Colombian Exchange.
