Volume: 62 Issue: 8

Mike Thomas looks back to a period of economic buoyancy in the Basque region, when a special relationship flourished between the people of Biscay and Britain....

The future emperor was born on August 31st, AD 12.

Robert Colls asks what British identity is - and what it is not.

The cityscapes of the world’s most populous nation are expanding at a bewildering rate. But China’s current embrace of urban life has deep roots in its past, as...

Growing nationalism in the UK’s constituent countries threatens the study of Celtic languages and history, argues Elizabeth Boyle.

Jos Damen tells the stories of two unusual men who lived a century apart in the Dutch colony at Elmina in West Africa; a poet who became a tax inspector and a...

England has been conflated with Britain for so long that unravelling English history from that of its Celtic neighbours is a difficult task. Paul Lay considers...

The ancient Greek Olympics were just as enmeshed in international politics, national rivalries and commercial pressures as their modern counterpart, says David...

An 18th-century ménage à trois involving the King of Denmark inspired the recent film, A Royal Affair.  Stella Tillyard considers what makes it a story for...

Jerome de Groot wades through the swathes of warriors landing on his desk to give us a round-up of the best battle-laden historical fiction for this year.

The great historical shifts in energy use, from wood to coal, to oil, nuclear power and beyond, have transformed civilisation and will do so again, as Richard...

Christian apocalyptic literature and ecological predictions both anticipate the end of the world. Are they born of the same tradition, asks Jean-François Mouhot?...

Often portrayed as a paragon of Christian virtue, the real King Arthur was an embarrassment to the Church, writes Simon Andrew Stirling.

A selection of readers' correspondence with the editor, Paul Lay.

Clare Mulley takes issue with an article on Second World War resistance movements, first published in 1984.

Roger Hudson on the circumstances behind an eviction in County Clare, Ireland, photographed in July 1888.

The 'lost' city re-emerged on August 22nd, 1812

God's general was buried on August 29th, 1912.

London 2012 will be the biggest television spectacle ever. Taylor Downing reflects on the extraordinary links between the Olympics and the moving picture...

Enter our crossword and win the audiobook Whitehall: The Street that Shaped a Nation.

The modern Olympic Games are an international phenomenon, often criticised for their controlling commercialism. However, as Mihir Bose explains, they owe their...

The legacy of the Great Helmsman is the source of bitter conflict over China’s future direction, argues Tim Stanley.

A readable and reliable quick guide to the broad sweep of English history.

What was it like to attend the Olympics 2,400 years ago?

A spot of bother for the outlaw at a local hostelry...

The Oscar-winning film is re-released ahead of the Olympic Games.

Tracing the history of the London borough and host of the Olympic Games.

A new book challenges the traditional view of Krupp as simply an avaricious armourer.

‘This is London! How d'ye like it?’

Juliet Gardiner rounds up recently published books on London, in what is a very big year for the city.

With London 2012 beginning this week, we delve into the History Today archive for an Olympic history special.

The story of a part of London that typifies the myths and realities of the classic East End.

A history of the Bow Street Runners, often considered London's first professional police force.

This month we have questions on the Hundred Years War, the Lockheed Scandal and Martin Luther.

Antony Beevor's immensely readable account effectively conveys the subjective realities of the war.

The Romans' reputation as scientists needs rehabilitation, according to this revealing if intellectually demanding new book.

Martin Plaut examines the alliance between the African National Congress (ANC), the Communist Party and the major trade union movement, COSATU.