Adam Smith, the Prophet of Profit
The life and thought of Adam Smith, the father of modern economics, and the competing claims for his legacy.
Feature
Looking Back on Mao’s Great Leap Forward
The gradual opening of Chinese archives has revealed the appalling truth about Chairman Mao’s genocidal Great Leap Forward.
Louis Braille and the Night Writer
Louis Braille’s tactile reading system made literacy for the blind a reality, but he was indebted to an officer in Napoleon’s army.
The Somme: An Exercise in Futility?
The first day of the Somme has become synonymous with incompetent leadership and a callous disregard for human life. Gary Sheffield offers a more complex picture of the battle and the role played by General Sir Douglas Haig.
Democracy: A User's Guide
It comes in many forms and often disappoints, yet democracy has come to be regarded as the most desirable of all political systems. Paul Cartledge offers a guide to its roots in ancient Greece and reminds us of its long absence in the West.
When All Roads Led to Palmyra
The desert city of Palmyra, ravaged recently by ISIS, held a key position on the Silk Route, connecting the Chinese, Persian and Roman Empires. Raoul McLaughlin describes how a remote caravan settlement assumed a leading role in international affairs, generating enormous wealth.
Prostitution in Ireland
Life for the poor in 18th- and 19th-century Ireland was hard and, for many women, prostitution was the only option. But the bawdy houses were rife with disease and police did little to protect women from violent customers.
How Britain lost America
By the end of the Seven Years’ War in 1763 Britain had become a global power. However, the conflict’s colossal expense and the high-handed approach of British politicians led to the American Revolution.
All the World’s a Penal Colony
When the European powers began exporting convicts to other continents, they did so to create a deterrent and to establish new settlements across the world.
Hippos of the Thames
The discovery in Victorian London of the remains of ancient animals – and a fascination with their modern descendants – helped to transform people’s ideas of the deep past, as Chris Manias reveals.