Feature

The Wilton Diptych on display at the National Gallery. Sailko (CC BY 3.0).

Richard II: King of the White Hart

When Richard II succeeded his grandfather, Edward III, he turned to alchemy to create a more pious ideal of kingship. His reign left us one of medieval England’s most enduring and complex images.

The British soldiers at the front in France receive their Christmas mail. Nationaal Archief. Public Domain.

Christmas 1914, and After

The outrage that Christmas was tarnished by the ugliness of the First World War was felt by both British and German soldiers. In some cases, it led to a brief moment of truce.

’Triumphant Entry of Constantine into Rome’ by Peter Paul Rubens, c. 1621. Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields. The Clowes Collection. Public Domain.

Constantine, Christianity and the Battle of Verona

The Battle of Milvian Bridge is remembered as the moment when Constantine I secured the future of Christianity. The real turning point took place a few months earlier.

Terracotta Panathenaic prize amphora showing a race, c. 530 BC. Metropolitan Museum of Art. Public Domain.

National Rivalries at the Ancient Olympics

The ancient Greek Olympics were just as enmeshed in international politics, national rivalries and commercial pressures as their modern counterpart.

How Oil Became King

The great historical shifts in energy use, from wood to coal, to oil, nuclear power and beyond, have transformed civilisation and will do so again, as Richard Rhodes explains.

A group of Iraqi soldiers on the street, 1958. Museum of African Art (Belgrade). Public Domain.

Iraq’s Revolution: Bastille Day in Baghdad

The chain of events that led to the rule of Saddam Hussein began with the murder of the 23-year-old King Faisal during the 14 July Revolution.

London's Olympics: Political Games

David Runciman compares the 2012 games with the London Olympics of 1908 and 1948 to see what they reveal about the changing relationship between politics and sport over the last century.

Still Sacred? The Coronation Rite

Ian Bradley looks at the fundamentally religious nature of monarchy and the persistence of its spiritual aspects in a secular age.

Four cloth-dresses – or croppers – smoothing a sheet of wool, Yorkshire, by George Walker, 1 September 1813. Wellcome Collection. Public Domain.

Yorkshire’s Luddites: At War with the Future

In 1811 skilled textile workers in Britain attacked factories and factory owners to defend their livelihoods. By the time the Luddite cause hit Yorkshire in 1812, it had become a genuine mass movement.