Online Summer Lecture Series - Lecture 1
Thursday 14th August 2025 at 7.30 pm
Blenkinsop & Murray and the Railway Revolution of 1812
Anthony Dawson
On 24 June 1812 the first commercially successful steam locomotive operated between coal pits at Middleton and coal staithes on the River Aire in Leeds. It was an event which was reported regionally, nationally and internationally, and set a train of events in motion which would change the world. Designed by John Blenkinsop and Matthew Murray, this Leeds locomotive marked the start of the use of steam power as a commercial entity. By 1815 four locomotives were in use in Leeds; two were in use near Newcastle-upon-Tyne; three (made under licence) were operating near Wigan and one was working in South Wales. In mainline Europe, two Blenkinsop & Murray type locomotives had been built in Berlin and one was built near Liege. A working model was sent to Russia.
In this talk, Anthony Dawson will describe how Blenkinsop pioneered not just locomotives but a railway system. He recognised that a railway is a transport machine of two parts: one part fixed (the track) and the other mobile. Blenkinsop did more than simply replace the horse whilst retaining the existing infrastructure; instead the entire system of operation at Middleton was mechanised, necessitating new methods of working and new infrastructure to meet demands of the locomotive. By 1825 the whole system of carrying coal from the pit to the point of sale – other than the actual mining – was done mechanically. It can be argued that the railway revolution began in Leeds in 1812.
Anthony Dawson is a graduate of the University of Bradford (BSc (Hons) Archaeology), University of Leeds (MRes History), and Leeds College of Music. He was elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland in 2025. He is a railway historian and archaeologist specialising in railway history from around 1700 to the 1850s. He has written over 20 books on early railway history, as well as two monographs on the Liverpool & Manchester Railway. He has also written several books and presented conference papers on the Crimean War. He is a member of the Newcomen Society, the Railway & Canal Historical Society and sits on the organising committee for the International Early Railways Conferences. He is also a member of a 1722 Waggonway Heritage Group which is researching and excavating the first railway in Scotland.
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Online Summer Lecture Series - Lecture 2
Thursday 21st August 2025 at 7.30 pm
The African Emperor: The Life of Septimius Severus
Dr Simon Elliott
Born in the blistering heat of a North African spring in Leptis Magna in AD 145, Severus rose up the ranks to become the first Roman emperor born in Africa. A giant of an emperor, whose career can be counted in superlatives, Severus was in power at the height of Rome's might. He led the largest army to ever campaign in Britain, comprising 50,000 men, part of a Roman military establishment which peaked at 33 legions under his rule. He finally died in York in February AD 211 in the freezing cold of a British winter.
This lecture will assess the legacy of the emperor who established the Severan dynasty. Dr Elliott will delve into the life of a man who fought in every region of the Roman Empire, almost died in battle several times and whose attitude is best reflected in his deathbed advice to his two sons: 'Be of one mind with your family, enrich the soldiers and despise the rest.'
Dr Simon Elliott, FSA, is an historian, archaeologist, author and broadcaster. After a successful career as a journalist, and in public relations (he still runs a PR company), Simon gained his PhD at the University of Kent in 2017, where he studied the military presence in Britain during the Roman occupation with a particular focus on the Classis Britannica regional fleet. He is now a prolific author, lecturer and broadcaster. His recent books include 'Vandal Heaven: Reinterpreting Post-Roman North Africa' and 'Roman Special Forces and Special Ops: Speculatores, Exploratores, Protectores and Areani in the Service of Rome'. He has books out shortly about 'The African Emperor: The Life of Septimius Severus' and 'Agricola in Scotland: The Northern Campaigns of Roman Britain’s Great Warrior Governor'. He is a former trustee of the Council for British Archaeology, and an Ambassador for Museum of London Archaeology.
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YAHS Summer Lecture Series - Lecture 3
Thursday 28th August 2025 at 7.30 pm
Bradford: Wool Capital of the World
Ian Roberts
Bradford had barely expanded beyond its medieval limits when it became the focus of the 19th-century boom in the worsted industry, resulting in Bradford becoming the fastest growing town in Britain. The demands for land saw the town centre become congested and polluted, resulting in expansion into its rural hinterland in the second half of the 19th-century. Meanwhile, from the mid-19th-century, the town centre saw a succession of changes due to the development of the railway infrastructure and the improvements implemented by Bradford Corporation. The scale of these changes eradicated much of the early town, changes which are reflected in An Historical Map of Bradford, published by the Historic Towns Trust in July 2025. The talk will provide an overview of Bradford’s development, and a selection of mini-histories from the research carried out for the production of the historical map, which illustrate aspects of Bradford’s remarkable 19th-century transition.
Ian Roberts, FSA MCIfA, was formerly the principal archaeologist for Archaeological Services WYAS, overseeing archaeological projects throughout Yorkshire and the North. More recently he has operated as a freelance archaeological consultant, independent researcher and educator. He is additionally the archaeologist for Bradford and Wakefield cathedrals, and an archaeological advisor to the Leeds Diocese DAC. Ian is a long-standing member of the Yorkshire Archaeological and Historical Society, which he has served in a number of capacities. His career has provided opportunities to publish on a wide range of subjects, including the prehistoric and Romano-British cropmark landscapes, the kingdom of Elmet, medieval Pontefract, medieval and post-medieval pottery production sites, medieval churches and, most recently, 19th-century Bradford.
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YAHS Summer Lecture Series - Lecture 4
Thursday 4th September 2025 at 7.30 pm
Nicked and ‘nicked’: The Knaresborough gold ring and a possible Viking-redeposited Iron Age hoard from eastern England
Dr Tess Machling
The Knaresborough ring is a unique find. Found in 1994 in Knaresborough, Yorkshire, the ring is made from sheet gold and displays many characteristics typical of Iron Age goldwork. However, the form of the ring is not typical of the period and corresponds most closely to Scandinavian-influenced ‘rings’ of the later 9th and early 10th centuries.
In this talk, I will suggest that the ring has a complicated biography, spanning a millennium, which started with a buried Iron Age torc hoard and ended with some Viking Great Army thievery in the late 9th century. This theory is supported by other finds from Nottinghamshire, Yorkshire and Lincolnshire which have produced apparently Viking-modified Iron Age goldwork from this period.
Dr Tess Machling is an archaeological researcher with a background in field archaeology and artefact studies. Since 2015 she has been researching Iron Age gold torcs and has published widely on the topic. This research takes a craft perspective on Iron Age gold and centres the insights of goldsmiths, silversmith and jewellers in its conclusions. The results of this research can be found on her website at www.bigbookoftorcs.com
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