The Victorians

The Victorians lived when England was

really strong. The Victorian era took place during the 19th century and is named after Queen Victoria, who ruled a good deal of the time. The British navy ruled the seas, and the empire used its ships to gain more land, called colonies.  Britain ruled about a fifth of the globe and a quarter of its population.They said the sun never set on the British empire. That was because Britain had colonies all round the world and the sun was always shining on at least one. No nation was stronger. 

At home, factories were built in cities. It was called the industrial revolution. Lots of people left the country to work in the factories. The cities were crowded. Many people were poor, like in the stories I read by Charles Dickens, like David Copperfield.  The Victorian era end did 1901.

About Queen Victoria

Queen Victoria was born in 1891.In 1840 she first married her first cousin Prince Albert. They had 9 children. She was called the "Grandmother of Europe." That was because many of her children married into some of Europe's royal families. Among her grandchildren were the future German Emperor Wilhelm II and the future Queen Sophie of Greece, and the future czarina of Russia, Alexandra. After Albert's death in 1861, Victoria was so sad that she avoided going out in public. 

Archimedes - The Great Mathematician

Archimedes - The Great Mathematician 

Archimedes lived a very long time ago in ancient Greece. He was born more than 2,000 years ago in 287 B.C. in Syracuse, Sicily (then a part of Greece). 

When he was 18, Archimedes traveled to Alexandria in Egypt to study at the great library there.

Archimedes loved mathematics. From this, he came up with several theories and proofs. For example, he came up with a way to describe very large numbers. 

Archimedes is probably best remembered for his discovery of the principle of buoyancy. Legend has it that Archimedes was taking a bath, when he noticed the more his body was in the tub, the more water spilled out of the tub. 

Archimedes was also an inventor. He thought up the Archimedes' screw. This is still used in crop irrigation and sewage treatment plants today. This video shows how it works.