Today’s featured articles
The kings of medieval France were fascinated by the Mongols, who they saw as great empire builders. Eager to learn more, they amassed a huge archive of knowledge about them
Joan of Arc was put on trial twice, once before and once after her death. The records made at these trials are often used as evidence of Joan’s own words – but whose voice was really recorded?
Before the British Empire and the Atlantic slave trade, Africans lived freely in Tudor England.
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On the Spot: Phiroze Vasunia
‘Which moment would I most like to go back to? The Achaemenid Persian court when Alexander the Great took over in the 330s BC.’
The Trials of Joan of Arc
Joan of Arc was put on trial twice, once before and once after her death. The records made at these trials are often used as evidence of Joan’s own words – but whose voice was really recorded?
The Public Versus the River Polluters
In the fight against rising river pollution by big corporations, legal cases have had to get creative.
Black Voices from the Archive
The testimonies of formerly enslaved people, collected in the 1930s by the Federal Writers’ Project, provide a unique archive for historians.
Massacre at Glencoe
On 13 February 1692 the Macdonalds of Glencoe were put to the sword by troops loyal to William III. Nobody was held to account.
‘Runes’ by Tom Birkett review
Runes: A Concise History by Tom Birkett looks beyond the mythical baggage to find a writing system no less remarkable and mysterious.
The Coffee Poets of 16th-Century Islam
The early modern Islamic world was embroiled in a bitter controversy over coffee. Much ink was spilt by poets on both sides.
‘Folklore’ by Owen Davies and Ceri Houlbrook review
Rather than a catalogue of a fanciful past, Folklore: A Journey Through the Past and Present by Owen Davies and Ceri Houlbrook is a field guide to a constantly changing Britain.
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In the February 2026 issue:
Refugees in the Thirty Years War, the Trojan myths of medieval Wales, Russia in the 1990s, the godless students of London University, brothels of the British Empire, and more.
Plus: reviews, opinion, crossword and much more!
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