Feature

Springs Eternal

The image of Roman Bath was the creation of 18th- and 19th-century archaeologists. Only now are new perspectives revealing a more complex and accurate history of the city. 

Urban Encounters

Defending their homelands, Native American chiefs fought violently with European colonists. But when conducting diplomacy in the city, they drank tea, went to the theatre and dressed for the occasion.

The End of a Nation

Wedged between Russia, Prussia and Austria, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth faced extinction in the 18th century.

The Moral of the Story

Illustrated picture books in Victorian England reached new aesthetic heights. But was it always for the benefit of the children?

How Great was Alfred?

In uniting the peoples of Wessex and Mercia, the celebrated king left an ideological legacy of lasting importance.

Here be Dragomans

For wealthy tourists travelling to the Middle East in the 19th century, the services of a dragoman were an essential purchase. Yet the often difficult lives of these local agents and guides remain elusive. 

400 Years of Melancholising

Robert Burton’s encyclopedic curiosity The Anatomy of Melancholy continues to offer remarkable insights into mental health.