New Orleans: The Big Uneasy
Thomas Ruys Smith looks at the impact of Hurricane Katrina in the light of the city’s historic troubles.
History Today
Syria: Coup Proof?
Syria was among the most unstable states in the Middle East until Hafez al-Assad came to power in 1970. Can his son, Bashar, maintain the regime’s iron rule?
Greek Economics: Drachmas, debt and Dionysius
The poor economic record of Greece goes back a very long way, says Matthew Lynn.
The National Museum of Scotland: Great Scots!
The story of a country that has long punched above its weight is told in Scotland’s refurbished National Museum, says David Forsyth.
Medieval Desire: Poise and Passion in the Middle Ages
Courtly love, celebrated in numerous songs and poems, was the romantic ideal of western Europe in the Middle Ages. Yet, human nature being what it is, the realities of sexual desire and the complications it brings were never far away, says Julie Peakman.
Goya's Wellington: The Duke Disappears
James Whitfield on why the theft of a Spanish master’s portrait of a British military hero led to a change in the law.
All the King’s Fools
The fools of the early Tudor court were likely to have been people with learning disabilities as a new project demonstrates, says Suzannah Lipscomb.
Royal Ascot’s First Day
Queen Anne ordered a racecourse to be built on Ascot Heath in 1711. It was officially opened on August 11th.
The Mona Lisa is stolen from the Louvre
The theft of the most famous painting in the world on 21 August 1911 created a media sensation.
Mary, Queen of Scots leaves France for Scotland
Mary Queen of Scots left Calais for Scotland on August 14th, 1561, aged 18 years old.