Feature

The New World of Tobacco

As Britain got hooked on tobacco in the 17th century, smoking paraphernalia became ubiquitous. These items provide an insight into the anxieties and aspirations of the early modern psyche.

Welfare Pasts and Futures

British systems of welfare and adult social care are not so different from aspects of the traditional Poor Laws.

Martin Luther and the German Reformation

A comprehensive account of the life of Martin Luther, the man who split western Christendom for good.

HMS Assistance and Pioneer searching for the lost Franklin expedition, Walter W. May, 1855. New York Public Library. Public Domain.

Terror, Erebus, and the Search for the Northwest Passage

Europeans have long sought a route through the Arctic Ocean, linking the Atlantic with the Pacific. Despite many failures, the lure of the Northwest Passage has enjoyed remarkable longevity.

The Forgotten Women of Archaeology

Behind the traditional story of archaeology, with its pith-helmeted Victorian gentlemen, are the equally important yet neglected stories of its female pioneers.

A scene in the Bac Ninh campaign, fought between France and China over northern Vietnam, 1884. Prints, Drawings and Watercolors from the Anne S.K. Brown Military Collection. Brown Digital Repository. Brown University Library. Public Domain.

Vietnam Before The War

Vietnamese identity has been forged in opposition to imperialism. But the country has long been the conqueror as well as the conquered.

Massoud at prayer, an image reproduced on a carpet for sale in Kabul’s market, 2016.

Poster Boys of Afghan History

In the post-Taliban era, Afghanistan is seeking unifying national heroes from its past. But, as David Loyn explains, agreement on who should be celebrated is hard to reach.

The battle of Culloden, etching after Heckel, c. 1797. Prints, Drawings and Watercolors from the Anne S.K. Brown Military Collection. Brown Digital Repository. Brown University Library. Public Domain.

Blades not Bullets: the Battle of Culloden

The Battle of Culloden, which vanquished Stuart claims to the British throne, is a much mythologised and misunderstood event. What really happened in April 1746?