History Today

Doctor Chamberlen’s Forceps

Childbirth in the early modern period was a battleground between midwives and surgeons. The Chamberlen family of surgeons sought to reform the system with a revolutionary new tool: the forceps.

Written in the Stars: How Old is China?

Chinese astronomers and the European Jesuits who worked alongside them found evidence of China’s antiquity in the heavens. Others were sceptical: how old was China really?

On the Spot: Mary Beth Norton

‘What historical topic have I changed my mind on? That the Indian war then occurring to the north of Salem was crucial to the expansion and perpetuation of the witchcraft crisis.’

Zoroastrians in the Great Game

In the early 1900s the small but influential Zoroastrian community in India contemplated establishing a colony in Iran. Could the Parsis rely on British support?