The Tories have compiled a list of the 12 most influential Britons of all time, but for some reason they have left out Sir Winston Churchill who, in 2002, was voted the Greatest Briton of all time by the British public. Included on the list is Sir Robert Peel who created the world's first police force. To this day, British policemen are sometimes called "Bobbies", taken from the name "Bob" which is short for "Robert". Thomas Gresham, who created the world's first stockmarket, is also on the list.
Maybe one explanation why Churchill isn't included is because this great nation has produced so many great, towering figures over the centuries that it's difficult to choose who to include in a list of the greatest of them
Research also shows that despite having a glorious and long history to be proud of, many Brits are ignorant about their nation's past....
No room for Winston in Cameron's list of top Brits
By KIRSTY WALKER
25th December 2006
Isaac Newton made it into the top 10 of greatest Brits, along with the likes of Alfred the Great, Oliver Cromwell and King Henry II
Senior Tories will today call for an end to politically-correct history lessons as they unveil a list of the 12 most influential Britons of all time.
The list of distinguished men and women who have shaped the nation includes the likes of Alfred the Great, Oliver Cromwell, Henry II and Isaac Newton.
Shadow Education Secretary David Willetts has drawn up the list with the help of eminent historians and wants it to form the cornerstone of the national curriculum if the Tories win power at the next Election (2009 or 2010).
The Tories are concerned the trend towards more modern teaching methods means that thousands of youngsters are leaving school without a basic knowledge of great Britons.
Mr Willetts warned: "The loss of national memory means a loss of national identity. Britain needs to be one country - and this means that all British people must share a knowledge and understanding of the events which have made us what we are as a people.
"A country is more than an aggregation of individuals. It consists of the associations that individuals form - the institutions which bind us together in common and overlapping memberships.
"These institutions are the inheritance of every British child, and all British children should know about them."
He added: "History is always a matter of interpretation, and this list is intended as neither definitive nor exhaustive. But this list should provoke thought and debate."
Research has found that the history of the British Empire is being squeezed out of the syllabus by politically correct teachers.
Instead, youngsters are taught to understand different ethnic cultures and values.
Many history lessons in secondary schools focus on making pupils 'empathise' with ordinary people in past eras - rather than on learning key dates and facts.
All the people on the list have made significant contributions to Britain, such as the founder of the NHS Nye Bevan , the founder of the stockmarket Thomas Gresham and the founder of the modern police force Sir Robert Peel.
The only woman to make it on the list is the suffragette Millicent Fawcett, who was instrumental in women gaining the vote in 1918.
Nick Seaton, of the Campaign for Real Education, said: "It is very important that schools return to studying narrative history, and anything that helps them do so is to be welcomed.
"But there are many more than 12 people who have been vitally important to our nation's history.
"I am glad that politicians are at last taking an interest in the way that history is taught, but this approach seems rather simplistic.
"Certainly, history teaching in our schools is very bad at the moment. It needs some radical revision.
"There is no doubt that many youngsters are leaving school at the moment with no knowledge of this country's historical development whatsoever.
"There is far too much time spent on futile projects that involve empathising with people from the past - such as trying to imagine what it was like being a sailor at the battle of Trafalgar rather than studying Lord Nelson and what actually happened."
Chris McGovern, of the History Curriculum Association, added: "All these historical figures are important, but the whole approach of history teaching in schools needs to be totally reformed.
"History teaching has been totally corrupted over the last 20 years. It is now entirely taught through politically-correct social perspectives rather than as a narrative.
"So classes end up being dominated by concepts like slavery or imperialism rather than looking at the historical figures and what they did.
"It needs a fundamental overhaul, not just a few extra historical landmarks."
The list is bound to provoke controversy as Winston Churchill, who is seen by many as Britain's greatest every statesman is not included on it.
Also absent are William Caxton (the inventor of the printing press), King Harold and William the Conqueror, Florence Nightingale, William Gladstone and Benjamin Disraeli, and Queens Elizabeth I and Victoria.
Britons have become so deeply ignorant of the past that surveys have shown that one in ten thinks Adolf Hitler was not a real person.
More than half of think that Horatio Nelson, rather the Duke of Wellington, commanded the British troops at the Battle of Waterloo.
And a quarter are unsure whether the Battle of Trafalgar - where Admiral Nelson was in command - was a real event.
One in seven did not know whether the Battle of Hastings was fact or fiction, while one in five believed that Harold Wilson was prime minister during World War II.
The list was compiled from suggestions from Neil McKendrick, Emeritus Reader in History and former Master, Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge; David Starkey, author of The Monarchy of England (2006); and Michael Burleigh, author of Earthly Powers: The Conflict Between Religion & Politics from the French Revolution to the Great War (2005).
The list was collated by Sean Lang, Research Fellow in History at Anglia Ruskin University and chairman of the History Practitioners' Advisory Team, set up by David Willetts to draw up proposals for the teaching of history in secondary schools.
dailymail.co.uk
Maybe one explanation why Churchill isn't included is because this great nation has produced so many great, towering figures over the centuries that it's difficult to choose who to include in a list of the greatest of them
Research also shows that despite having a glorious and long history to be proud of, many Brits are ignorant about their nation's past....
No room for Winston in Cameron's list of top Brits
By KIRSTY WALKER
25th December 2006
Senior Tories will today call for an end to politically-correct history lessons as they unveil a list of the 12 most influential Britons of all time.
The list of distinguished men and women who have shaped the nation includes the likes of Alfred the Great, Oliver Cromwell, Henry II and Isaac Newton.
Shadow Education Secretary David Willetts has drawn up the list with the help of eminent historians and wants it to form the cornerstone of the national curriculum if the Tories win power at the next Election (2009 or 2010).
The Tories are concerned the trend towards more modern teaching methods means that thousands of youngsters are leaving school without a basic knowledge of great Britons.
Mr Willetts warned: "The loss of national memory means a loss of national identity. Britain needs to be one country - and this means that all British people must share a knowledge and understanding of the events which have made us what we are as a people.
"A country is more than an aggregation of individuals. It consists of the associations that individuals form - the institutions which bind us together in common and overlapping memberships.
"These institutions are the inheritance of every British child, and all British children should know about them."
He added: "History is always a matter of interpretation, and this list is intended as neither definitive nor exhaustive. But this list should provoke thought and debate."
Research has found that the history of the British Empire is being squeezed out of the syllabus by politically correct teachers.
Instead, youngsters are taught to understand different ethnic cultures and values.
Many history lessons in secondary schools focus on making pupils 'empathise' with ordinary people in past eras - rather than on learning key dates and facts.
All the people on the list have made significant contributions to Britain, such as the founder of the NHS Nye Bevan , the founder of the stockmarket Thomas Gresham and the founder of the modern police force Sir Robert Peel.
The only woman to make it on the list is the suffragette Millicent Fawcett, who was instrumental in women gaining the vote in 1918.
Nick Seaton, of the Campaign for Real Education, said: "It is very important that schools return to studying narrative history, and anything that helps them do so is to be welcomed.
"But there are many more than 12 people who have been vitally important to our nation's history.
"I am glad that politicians are at last taking an interest in the way that history is taught, but this approach seems rather simplistic.
"Certainly, history teaching in our schools is very bad at the moment. It needs some radical revision.
"There is no doubt that many youngsters are leaving school at the moment with no knowledge of this country's historical development whatsoever.
"There is far too much time spent on futile projects that involve empathising with people from the past - such as trying to imagine what it was like being a sailor at the battle of Trafalgar rather than studying Lord Nelson and what actually happened."
Chris McGovern, of the History Curriculum Association, added: "All these historical figures are important, but the whole approach of history teaching in schools needs to be totally reformed.
"History teaching has been totally corrupted over the last 20 years. It is now entirely taught through politically-correct social perspectives rather than as a narrative.
"So classes end up being dominated by concepts like slavery or imperialism rather than looking at the historical figures and what they did.
"It needs a fundamental overhaul, not just a few extra historical landmarks."
The list is bound to provoke controversy as Winston Churchill, who is seen by many as Britain's greatest every statesman is not included on it.
Also absent are William Caxton (the inventor of the printing press), King Harold and William the Conqueror, Florence Nightingale, William Gladstone and Benjamin Disraeli, and Queens Elizabeth I and Victoria.
Britons have become so deeply ignorant of the past that surveys have shown that one in ten thinks Adolf Hitler was not a real person.
More than half of think that Horatio Nelson, rather the Duke of Wellington, commanded the British troops at the Battle of Waterloo.
And a quarter are unsure whether the Battle of Trafalgar - where Admiral Nelson was in command - was a real event.
One in seven did not know whether the Battle of Hastings was fact or fiction, while one in five believed that Harold Wilson was prime minister during World War II.
The list was compiled from suggestions from Neil McKendrick, Emeritus Reader in History and former Master, Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge; David Starkey, author of The Monarchy of England (2006); and Michael Burleigh, author of Earthly Powers: The Conflict Between Religion & Politics from the French Revolution to the Great War (2005).
The list was collated by Sean Lang, Research Fellow in History at Anglia Ruskin University and chairman of the History Practitioners' Advisory Team, set up by David Willetts to draw up proposals for the teaching of history in secondary schools.
dailymail.co.uk
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