History Today

Europe

Smith, Kant and de Gaulle

The relationship between France, Germany and Britain is at the heart of the European story.

Stuart Sweeney
Henry VI

The Madness of King Henry VI

Faced with extreme pressures, the ruler of England suffered a complete breakdown. But beware modern diagnoses of medieval mental health.

Lauren Johnson
Miscellanies

The Elusive Byzantine Empire

The history of the Eastern Roman Empire is one of war, plague, architectural triumphs and fear of God's wrath.

Dionysios Stathakopoulos
Historian’s Cookbook

A Short History of Sushi

The Japanese dish of humble origins that conquered the world.

Alexander Lee

Today's Featured Articles

Mikhail Gorbachev and Kazakh president Nursultan Nazarbayev.

Kazakhstan’s Bloody December

Mikhail Gorbachev’s Perestroika triggered an outpouring of resentment across the USSR. In 1986, young Kazakhs made their voices heard, but the Soviet regime was not ready to listen.

Joanna Lillis

Miscellanies

Dracula Beats the Communists

Bram Stoker’s novel was a mixed blessing for Romania. It attracted tourists, but the legend was at odds with communist ideals and made a villain of a national hero.

Duncan Light

Revolting: members of the CRS throw grenades during student riots in Paris, 1968.

History Matters

The Riot Police who Revolt France

France’s elite police unit is being compared to the SS – not for the first time.

Gavin Mortimer

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Most Recent

Travels Through Time Aanchal Malhotra Remnants of a Separation

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Travels Through Time #7 – Aanchal Malhotra, 1947

In this episode we travel to the summer of 1947 to witness the chaotic, catastrophic sequence of events surrounding Indian independence and the subsequent Partition.

‘Constantine’s Dream’ by Piero della Francesca, from the fresco cycle, the History of the True Cross, 1459-66, Basilica di San Francesco, Arezzo, Italy.

Foundations

The Dream of Constantine

A mythical turning point in the history of Europe.

Head to Head

Do all revolutions end badly?

Four historians consider the desirability of profound political change and the methods used to attain it.

Giant’s Causeway, Antrim. According to the Fenian Cycle, Fionn mac Cumhaill, an Irish giant, was challenged to a fight by his Scottish rival Benandonner. Accepting the challenge, he built the causeway so that they could meet.

Feature

Go Tell It On The Mountain

Mythical tales of giants are rooted in geological realities.

Boniface VIII presiding over the college of cardinals, Italian manuscript, 14th century.

Feature

Men of Music, Art, Letters and Law

The late-medieval papal chapel was a powerful jewel in the papal tiara.

General de Gaulle on 18 June 1940 in the recording studio of the BBC at Broadcasting House, London.

History Matters

Smith, Kant and de Gaulle

The relationship between France, Germany and Britain is at the heart of the European story. Three historical figures embody it.

Mosaic from Hagia Sofia depicting Constantine I with a representation of the city of Constantinople

Miscellanies

Though the beginnings of the Byzantine Empire are unclear, its demise is not. The history of the Eastern Roman Empire, from its foundation in 324 to its conquest in 1453, is one of war, plague, architectural triumphs and fear of God's wrath.