Stuart

All Singing, All Dancing

Sexually explicit jigs were a major part of the attraction of the Elizabethan, Jacobean and Restoration stage, as Lucie Skeaping explains. 

Cromwell, Charles II and the Naseby: Ship of State

The fortunes of Oliver Cromwell and Charles II and the regard in which their successive regimes came to be held were mirrored in the fate of one of their mightiest naval vessels, as Patrick Little explains.

Lady Margaret Kennedy and John Maitland: The Lady and the Earl

Martin Greig reveals the intimate relationship between the powerful Earl of Lauderdale, Charles II's Secretary for Scotland in the 1660s, and a Scottish spinster who became the earl's 'Presbyterian conscience' during a tumultuous period for kirk and crown.

Open House - Georgian Style

A revolution in sociability took place among the genteel and ‘middling’ classes of 18th-century England, as visiting friends of similar social status became a leisure pursuit in itself, especially among women,writes Amanda Vickery.

The Shadow of a King? Charles II in Exile

Charles II was the only king of England for two hundred years to survive exile and return to power. Anna Keay considers how he kept up his regal appearances whilst in exile, paving the way for his return to the throne.

Why Did Charles I Fight at Naseby?

Richard Cust reassesses the thinking behind the biggest military blunder of the English Civil War, Charles I’s decision to fight the New Model Army at Naseby in June 1645.