About


Welcome to Looking Back At History. My name is Amy-Lee Haynes. I studied at History at the University of the West of England and an aspiring Historian. I started LBH whilst travelling in New Zealand to keep my love for my favourite historical topics and to keep on researching.

I mainly love British and European political and cultural history from 1800 to the present day but I also love to dive into local history too. Grab yourself a cup of tea and enjoy looking back at history.

You can also find me on Twitter and Instagram at @lookingbackhist. 

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10 Weird Facts You Didn't Know About Stalin

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 ‘Stalin takes care of each of us from the Kremlin’, Viktor Govorkov, 1940, Iskusstvo (Moscow, Leningrad) via Australian National University  In today's post we're going to get close and personal with Soviet dictator, Joseph Stalin. Here are 10 weird yet wonderful facts you probably didn't know about Stalin. 1. Joseph Stalin was not his real name. He was actually called Josef Dzhugashvili, or Soso to his family. He first used his pseudonym 'Stalin' when writing for the St Petersburg based Bolshevik newspaper, Pravda, in 1912. Many historians believe that he took the name as it was similar to 'Lenin'. The meaning of 'Stalin' is steel or man of steel which I can never get out of my head when I think of the famous Superman movie, Man of Steel .  2. He came from a violent family. Given Stalin's violent nature, it probably wont surprise you that he was beaten by his father as a child.    However, his violent upbringing goes further than t...
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The History of The Old Man of Coniston

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  May is National Walking Month so I wanted to share with you the history behind a recent walk I did. The Old Man of Coniston (or Coniston Old Man) is located in the Lake District and is one of the fells in the Furness Fells . It is approximately 2632.61 ft high. The road up to the main car park for the hike was originally built to serve the slate quarry . The Coniston Old man has an extensive slate mining history dating back to 12th and 13th centuries. It was estimated that around this time slate began to be worked here and has been worked up until the present day. By the 1500s, established slate workings were present in the area. On the stony path on the way up to the summit, you can see numerous signs of the remnants of the slate industry from buildings and machinery to electrical pylons.   The summit itself is signified by a slate platform and cairn. Although this is a great spot to have lunch if the weather is good, the summit was historically used as a warning be...
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5 Interesting Facts You Didn't Know About Rasputin

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Grigori Rasputin Colorized by Marina Amaral Grigori Rasputin is well known for his connections with Tsar Nicholas II, Tsarina Alexandra and their family. Overtime, he has gained the reputation of a being mad monk with healing powers and undeniable sexual allure. But is that true? Here's 5 facts about Rasputin that you didn't know before. 1. He was a mystic healer. Well, sort of. He was of the Orthodox Christian faith and was incredibly spiritual. He claimed to have had a religious experience and travelled the country teaching faith gaining him the reputation as a wandering mystic. He came into contact with Tsar Nicholas and tried to help heal his son, Alexei, of haemophilia and it seemed to work. There is dispute over whether this was down to his mystical powers, hypnosis or simply change of medication. The Russian Royal Family During the First World War © IWM (Q 69052) 2. He did not, as the cartoon Anastasia suggests, kill Tsar Nicholas and his family. Rasputin ...
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