What historical events should a UK adult know about?

[julieca]

So what do you think an adult brought up and living in the UK should know about history? I don't mean in-depth knowledge, but just very basic knowledge.
I think adults should all know about -

• Both world wars and a bit of understanding about how many countries were involved
• Transatlantic slave trade
• Reformation
• Existence of cold war
• Holocaust, Hitler and Nazi party
• Partition in India
• English Civil War
• Roman Empire and that it included England and parts of Wales
• Act of Union
• Troubles in Northern Ireland
• Suffragettes
• Feudalism
• Black Death

[julieca]

@Grumpyoldpersonwithcats so suggest some?

[CaputApriDefero]

Rather than focusing on particular "popular" events, I think it's important that we teach what happens time and again when power is unchecked. What leads to revolutions. That leaders are not immune to being pulled from their lofty spots.

Genocides, definitely. And why, what was the driving motive vs the publicised motive.

History is my subject, and although teaching students the timeline of all the monarchs of England and then Great Britain has some merit, it won't teach them anything much about how power works and how abusing it tends to end up.

It's important to understand where your strength is and where your place is as an individual in your own society, and who/what events put you there and what's keeping you there. You're never more powerless than when you don't know.

[MareofBeasttown]

Suggested reading lists: Empire, Sathnam Sanghera
The Anarchy, William Dalrymple,
The Patient Assassin, Anita Anand

[TeenMinusTests]

You've got some different streams of narrative:

• how did your part of the UK get to where it is today (so the Scottish taught narrative will be different from the one taught in Wales or England), so main historical narrative but including why immigration was encouraged or refugees taken in from certain countries at certain times, how life and influence of 'the masses' changed etc
• what impact (positive and negative) has Britain had on the world at large
• histories of other major countries / empires

[SickAndTiredAgain]

I would include some American civil rights history, Martin Luther King.
And the British empire - as you say, not in depth but an awareness of it and (some of) the countries involved.

[Grumpyoldpersonwithcats]

Could be many items - but just as one example the creation of the Kingdom of Scotland under the house of Alpin? My point is that history as taught in England is largely the history of England rather than the history of the UK.

[cuttlefishgame]

and we aren't going to gloss over the sins of Empire Quite right too, but we also need to remember that it was called the 'British Empire', not the 'English Empire'; and that other European countries had their own empires and were involved in the slave trade too.

I'd also suggest the West Berlin airlifts and the Berlin Wall.

The dictator Idi Amin, and how many Ugandan Asians came to the UK as refugees.

The Falklands War.

The Cold War and the Cuban Missile Crisis.

The Beeching Report and the subsequent closure of huge parts of the railway network.

[dashoflime]

There's a few things that still effect politics and social relations today. And a person that doesn't know about them will have some genuine difficulty in understanding contemporary British society.
I would say:

The British Empire
The Act of Union
The Slave Trade (including an honest assessment of it's contribution to UK economy)
Basic history of Irish Republicanism
The Windrush Generation
WW1 and WW2 obviously. But also something of the aftermath of WW2: setting up of the welfare state, dismantling of the British empire.

Not necessarily in depth. Just that these things happened.

[SirensofTitan]

To play devil's advocate why should anyone know about these events?

If they are interested fine but if they aren't in what way would they benefit from knowing?

I am aware of most of the ones that have been posted but I can't see that my life would be any different if I didn't. Surely most people don't know all this stuff

[julieca]

@SirensofTitan how do you understand the world you live in then? Do you think its just coincidence that England is full of ruined monasteries? Why is there an issue with a GFA and NI over a Brexit border? What is this fascism people keep mentioning? Why shouldn't I call my son Hitler? Why is there a NI and an Ireland?
I could go on. But you would have to be either spectacularly unconcerned about the world around you, or you would be permanently confused about the world around you.

[julieca]

@CaputApriDefero

Rather than focusing on particular "popular" events, I think it's important that we teach what happens time and again when power is unchecked. What leads to revolutions. That leaders are not immune to being pulled from their lofty spots.

Genocides, definitely. And why, what was the driving motive vs the publicised motive.

History is my subject, and although teaching students the timeline of all the monarchs of England and then Great Britain has some merit, it won't teach them anything much about how power works and how abusing it tends to end up.

It's important to understand where your strength is and where your place is as an individual in your own society, and who/what events put you there and what's keeping you there. You're never more powerless than when you don't know.

I do see your point. But surely this is about how history is taught? The narrative presented?

[Aroundtheworldin80moves]

@SirensofTitan because the aftermath of many of these events affect modern life still.

[LadyJaye]

@CovidPassQuestion

Highland clearances
Irish famine

Yep.

[SirensofTitan]

[quote julieca]@SirensofTitan how do you understand the world you live in then? Do you think its just coincidence that England is full of ruined monasteries? Why is there an issue with a GFA and NI over a Brexit border? What is this fascism people keep mentioning? Why shouldn't I call my son Hitler? Why is there a NI and an Ireland?
I could go on. But you would have to be either spectacularly unconcerned about the world around you, or you would be permanently confused about the world around you.[/quote]
I clearly said that i do know these things but do you really think that the majority of the population have the slighest clue about monasteries?

I never have a conversation with anyone about fascism, no one mentions it in my circle

Obvioulsy I know nothing about you but your post screams educated middle class, that's not representative of most of the population ime

[AosSi]

I'd add the Bengal famine, the crushing of the Mau Mau uprising, the Amritsar massacre etc to the list. It's important that the British Empire isn't glorified imo.

The slave trade and going in depth in what slaves experienced is really important imo. Even knowing that many African Americans can't trace family trees in any detail - such a simple repercussion still being felt today.

I think knowing that gay people/people with disabilities/gypsies were also persecuted by Nazi Germany is very important.

Would also add teaching about the discrimination Catholics experienced in NI to the list. I think that aspect of it isn't well known.

[julieca]

@SirensofTitan I am not educated, middle class. I come from a background more shameless than middle-class and earn below the average wage. Yes, you are right that most people will not know about the dissolution of the monasteries I guess. I like going to historical sites though, but would be very confused if I knew nothing about the dissolution of the monasteries.

I am on social media and see people all the time - not at all educated middle-class people - accusing someone of fascism. It never is fascism. But Godwins Law is common on social media. So I am not talking about an intellectual discussion, but I think it would be hard to get through life without ever hearing the word.

[SirensofTitan]

[quote Aroundtheworldin80moves]@SirensofTitan because the aftermath of many of these events affect modern life still.[/quote]
OK but why does that mean that anyone needs to know about it, the world is what it is.

I get that some people think knowing a lot of things is better than not knowing but I'm wondering for what practical or measurable reason you think someone should know

[NoDecentHandlesLeft]

Whatever they want to and what interests them. Nobody "should" know anything.
I would be very surprised if a UK adult wasn't aware of WW1 and WW2, given the increasing number of events surrounding November 11th them every year.
That's it really. Otherwise it depends what you were taught in school and what you learn about as an adult (in various ways- books, TV, film etc) Some will know very little, which is a shame.

[SirensofTitan]

[quote julieca]@SirensofTitan I am not educated, middle class. I come from a background more shameless than middle-class and earn below the average wage. Yes, you are right that most people will not know about the dissolution of the monasteries I guess. I like going to historical sites though, but would be very confused if I knew nothing about the dissolution of the monasteries.

I am on social media and see people all the time - not at all educated middle-class people - accusing someone of fascism. It never is fascism. But Godwins Law is common on social media. So I am not talking about an intellectual discussion, but I think it would be hard to get through life without ever hearing the word.[/quote]
I don't know what Godwin's Law is, I don't discuss things on social media other than here so I can't comment on that but I think that actually most people will happily get through life without hearing the word fascism. Maybe I live a totally unusual life but it never comes up in my day to day interactions with people.

I have absolutely no problem in understanding the world

[NoDecentHandlesLeft]

Oops, pressed send too soon!
If it was up to me, I would make sure all children left school with a basic knowledge of:
-Northern Ireland history and troubles (despite going to school during the 90s, I wasn't aware of NI's existence as part of the union until I was 17!)
-Basic history of conflict areas eg Palestine (I think it's so important to understand the history behind current events)

• Colonisation and it's ongoing affects
  
• Important events in British history (eg events which lead to the establishment of parliament and the monarch not having ultimate control of the state), which ties in to a basic understanding of British legal system etc.

[julieca]

Godwins Law is that it only takes four comments for someone on a controversial thread to accuse someone of fascism.
It sounds like you mix with a more intellectual crowd than me. If you didn't you would have heard and seen people talking about covid mitigations as the beginning of fascism.

[GnomeOrMistAndIceGuy]

Just to throw my two cents in. I'm a primary Headteacher currently leading history in my school. I've just re-written the history curriculum and packed it with many of the events/periods mentioned above. My children are from extremely deprived backgrounds, mostly Roma/Gypsies, live very insular lives in their community, and in theory should be wholly unconnected to history and its relevance to their lives. But they bloody LOVE it. Along with Geography, it's the subject that genuinely engages them like you would not believe. So I don't buy into the whole "people don't need to know this stuff" or "it's only relevent for middle class, educated types" because knowledge is for EVERYONE.

[julieca]

@GnomeOrMistAndIceGuy that is interesting. As I said my background is more shameless than middle class and I loved history as a child. I was desperate to understand the world around me.

[Bloodypunkrockers]

Act of Union
Highland clearances
Irish famine
Troubles
Both world wars
Industrial revolution

[SickAndTiredAgain]

OK but why does that mean that anyone needs to know about it, the world is what it is.

Yes but for example, if someone had no idea about the history of Northern Ireland, they might wonder what on earth all the brexit fuss was about around the border. Plenty of EU countries have borders with non-EU countries, why is ours causing so much trouble?
I suppose you can argue that they don’t need to know why things are the way they are, and I guess I’d agree in the sense that they’re not the ones negotiating. But if anyone is sitting around going “what is the problem?!” then an understanding of the history would help.
If they don’t give a shit then no, I suppose they don’t need to know.