Travel may broaden the mind but it reveals the leaky patches in the National Story.But England is not alone.
Ask any Frenchman why the terminus of the Channel tunnel is named Waterloo or who Wellington or Nelson were.
The Battle of Trafalgar isn't in French history books but the Royal Navy sinking the French fleet in Toulon is not in ours either.
I had an excruciating breakfast with the grandson of a survivor.
Don't go to Dublin and mention Cromwell who did murder most foul there and they haven't forgotten - but do we know what he did - no we don't!
The only defeat the British claim is that of Dunkirk and the day was only saved from being an outright massacre by the Panzers not having enough fuel to reach the coast before this "island race" swarmed out to France in anything that would float to scoop the Tommies off the beaches.
When Margaret Thatcher "defeated" the Miners, their leader, Arthur Scargill vanished from history.
Why is Bush,Blair and Brown so concerned with Democracy in Myanmar - the answer is only too obvious - Burma's Oil.
During WW1, Churchill converted the navy from coal to oilfired engines keeping them at sea much longer than the German fleet and WW2 Operations in the Far East were for control of the Burmese oil fields but that's not in the history books either!
