History Today

Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer and coelacanth, c.1938.

Discovery of a Living Fossil

The coelacanth, believed to have been extinct for 70 million years, was rediscovered by Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer on 22 December 1938.

Explorer Robert E. Peary and husky aboard the Roosevelt, c.1909.

The Cold, Cold War

Throughout the 19th century, rival nations battled to conquer the poles. One explorer set out to establish an Arctic colony – or to get rich trying.

The Battle of Barnet in the Wars of the Roses, from the frontispiece to the Ghent Manuscript, c.1471. Ghent University Library. Public Domain.

Winning the Wars of the Roses

The Wars of the Roses saw some of the bloodiest months in English history, but winning on the battlefield did not necessarily mean winning the war.

’Three Lane Traffic’, depicting striking workers being met with indifference, by Harry Gottlieb, 1937. Metropolitan Museum of Art. Public Domain.

What Have Strikes Achieved?

Withdrawing labour is an age-old response to workplace grievances. But how old are strikes, and have they ever worked?

Pietro Miliani’s paper mill in Fabriano, Italy in the mid-15th century.

Clean Sheets

The smooth whiteness of paper belies the mess and hard labour that went into its production.

The Venus de Milo at the Louvre Museum, Paris, 1964. Photo © Gamma-Keystone, France via Getty Images.

Armless Fun?

In 1820 the discovery of an ancient Greek statue with missing arms posed more questions than answers.