‘Liberal Worlds’ by H.S. Jones review
Liberal Worlds: James Bryce and the Democratic Intellect by H.S. Jones explores the lost world and writing of a formerly eminent Victorian.
History Today
The First Tour de France
On 1 July 1903 a publicity stunt for a sporting paper cycled into history as the first Tour de France.
How Did the English Arrive in Britain?
Bede wrote that the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes invaded Britain en masse in the fifth century. Does the evidence agree?
The Meadows of Medieval Summer
Chaucer’s meadows are romantic landscapes of leisurely frolicking. But for medieval haymakers July meant a month of hard graft.
‘Blood Dawn’ by Hans van de Ven review
Blood Dawn: World War II and the Making of Modern Asia by Hans van de Ven finds Japanese grievance and ambition in the eye of the storm.
End of the Gin Craze
The Gin Act of 25 June 1751 finally succeeded where previous legislation had failed and banished ‘Madam Genever’ from Georgian London.
How Sacrifice Shaped Early Christian Identity
Today sacrifice is seen as a barbaric, pagan practice, but it was central to the formation of early Christian identity.
The Crusade of Hormuz
Looking for a new route to Jerusalem, medieval crusaders turned to the Strait of Hormuz.
How England Learnt Old English
In the 16th and 17th centuries, as scholars first started to translate and study Old English, they struggled to reconcile England’s past with its present.
