Talking of Edward IV and Henry IV (see a previous post) has reminded me of Ravenspur.  A crucial harbour.  You see it was at Ravenspur that both of them - 72 years apart - landed to depose the ruling monarch and become king of England.

Henry IV landed at Ravenspur in 1399 to depose Richard II (and then have him killed, as one does in these circumstances).  Edward IV landed at Ravenspur in 1471 to depose Henry VI (for the second time; and this time, having learned his lesson, to have him duly killed in the normal manner). 

What do you mean, where's Ravenspur?  How the hell should I know.  It was somewhere in the Humber estuary but it fell into the sea ages ago and no-one now knows exactly where it was.  A victim of coastal erosion, or something.

But how have we managed without it?  Goodness knows, but somehow we seem to have done. 

I wonder if anyone did a survey 500 years ago asking which would have the greater effect on England if they were to disappear into the sea - Ravenspur or the Maldives?  ('Ooh-arh, good sir, I shouldn't like to catch maldives.  Very unpleasant it sounds, by my troth.') 

This has then prompted me to think about polar bears.  I've never met one; and I'm told they can run at 25 mph and they attack people with a view to eating them.  Looking at my diary, I'm not sure it would really cause me any great problem in the next year or so if there weren't any polar bears.

However, I am obviously wary about species becoming extinct. 

Most notably, I am very worried about the smallpox virus.  Apparently there are only a very few left, kept in test tubes, and there are long-established plans to exterminate them as a 'final solution'.  This seems very 'anti-planet' when the smallpox virus has done so much in the past to cut down an alleged source of global-warming - human beings.