The Media’s First Moral Panic
Goethe’s novel, The Sorrows of Young Werther, was blamed for a spate of suicides during the ‘reading fever’ of the 1700s. It set a trend for manufactured outrage that is with us still.
History Today
In the Court of Haile Selassie
Three very different writers – Evelyn Waugh, Wilfred Thesiger, and Ryszard Kapuscinski – reported on the court of Haile Selassie during his reign, producing contrasting accounts of Ethiopia’s emperor.
Death of Thomas Fitzalan, Earl of Arundel
The English noble and a major figure during the reign of Henry IV died on October 13th 1415.
A Landmark Witch Trial
In 1615 Katharina, mother of the great scientist Johannes Kepler, was accused of witchcraft. Ulinka Rublack asks what her landmark trial tells us about early-modern attitudes towards science, nature and the family.
Is it British to Weep?
The reputation of Britons as a people who tightly control their emotions in the face of adversity is not necessarily a deserved one, argues Thomas Dixon.
The Story of Ogham
The ancient rune-like writing system is carved into stones across Ireland.
Witness From On High
New discoveries about Winchester Cathedral provide insights into the relationships between a prominent churchman and his Tudor kings.
Britain’s First Female Doctor
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson passed her medical exams on 28 September 1865.
Churchill and the Reality of Politics in Wartime Britain
Mihir Bose challenges the perception of Winston Churchill as a demi-god who was essential to Britain's war effort.
German Intellectual History
Peter Schröder highlights key publications on Germany’s contribution to the history of ideas from the Enlightenment to the present day.