Our Island Story

A history of Britain in twenty lessons, following H.E. Marshall's beloved book — with a memory palace to hold it all

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Some people think this is only a fairy tale. But however that may be, the little island is still sometimes called Albion, although it is nearly always called Britain. In this book you will find the story of the people of Britain. — H.E. Marshall, Our Island Story, Chapter I

Your British History Memory Palace — 20 Rooms

1Ancient Britain 2Romans Arrive 3Roman Britain 4Saxon Shore 5Arthur 6Alfred 7Danes 81066 9Magna Carta 10Wales & Scotland 11100 Years War 12Roses 13Henry VIII 14Elizabeth I 15Civil War 16Restoration 17Georgian 18Nelson 19Victorian 20Modern

The Sweep of British History

Ancient
Roman
Saxon
Viking
Medieval
Tudor
Stuart
Georgian
Victorian
Modern

c. 8000 BC — Britain becomes an island   •   55 BC — Caesar   •   1066 — Hastings   •   1588 — Armada   •   1945 — VE Day   •   Present

The Twenty Lessons

Room 1
Lesson I

The Stories of Albion & Brutus

Ancient Britain — Myth to 55 BC Room 2
Lesson II

The Romans Come

55 BC – 61 AD Room 3
Lesson III

Roman Britain

43 – 410 AD Room 4
Lesson IV

The Saxon Shore

410 – 600 AD Room 5
Lesson V

Arthur & the Dark Ages

c. 450 – 700 AD Room 6
Lesson VI

Alfred the Great

849 – 899 AD Room 7
Lesson VII

The Danes & the Last Saxon Kings

899 – 1066 AD Room 8
Lesson VIII

1066: The Norman Conquest

1066 – 1087 AD Room 9
Lesson IX

The Plantagenets & Magna Carta

1154 – 1215 AD Room 10
Lesson X

Edward I, Wales & Scotland

1272 – 1327 AD Room 11
Lesson XI

The Hundred Years' War & Black Death

1337 – 1453 AD Room 12
Lesson XII

The Wars of the Roses

1455 – 1485 AD Room 13
Lesson XIII

Henry VIII & the Reformation

1509 – 1547 AD Room 14
Lesson XIV

Elizabeth I & the Armada

1558 – 1603 AD Room 15
Lesson XV

The Stuarts & the Civil War

1603 – 1649 AD Room 16
Lesson XVI

Cromwell, Restoration & Glorious Revolution

1649 – 1689 AD Room 17
Lesson XVII

The Georgian Age & Empire

1714 – 1783 AD Room 18
Lesson XVIII

Nelson, Wellington & the Industrial Age

1783 – 1837 AD Room 19
Lesson XIX

The Victorian Age

1837 – 1901 AD Room 20
Lesson XX

The Modern Age

1901 – Present
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60 Key Dates Across 20 Rooms

c. 8000 BCIsland formed
c. 3000 BCStonehenge
55 BCCaesar lands
43 ADClaudius invades
61 ADBoadicea
122 ADHadrian's Wall
410 ADRomans leave
449 ADSaxons arrive
c. 500 ADBadon Hill
597 ADAugustine
563 ADIona founded
635 ADLindisfarne
871 ADAlfred crowned
878 ADEdington
1016Canute reigns
1066Hastings
1086Domesday
1170Becket killed
1215Magna Carta
1282Wales conquered
1314Bannockburn
1346Crécy
1348Black Death
1415Agincourt
1455Roses begin
1485Bosworth
1534Supremacy Act
1558Elizabeth I
1588Armada
1605Gunpowder Plot
1649Charles I dies
1666Great Fire
1688Glorious Rev.
1707Act of Union
1776US Independence
1805Trafalgar
1815Waterloo
1837Victoria
1851Great Exhibition
1914WWI begins
1940The Blitz
1948NHS founded

How This Course Works

Each lesson follows a seven-part structure: Review (what you remember) → Marshall's Story (the history, told through her prose) → The Deeper Truth (what we now know) → Key Dates (encode with your PAO system) → Memory Palace (place images in your room) → Your Turn (reflect and discuss) → Final Review (lock it in).

Content returns at +3, +7, and +14 lesson intervals through spaced repetition in the Review tabs.

About Our Island Story

H.E. Marshall published Our Island Story: A History of England for Boys and Girls in 1905. It tells the story of Britain from Neptune's myth to Queen Victoria in prose so beautiful it reads like a novel. Marshall wrote for children, but her gift was making history unforgettable. We use her words as our narrative voice — and where she was wrong (as all writers of any age must sometimes be), a historian's note gently sets the record straight.

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"In this book you will find the story of the people of Britain." — H.E. Marshall