The famous French author Alexandre Dumas never let fact get in the way of a good story: his ability to spin a yarn made his books instant bestsellers. But, having unravelled the stories behind two of Dumas’ most famous works, Roger Macdonald presents a startling solution as to the true identity of the Man in the Iron Mask.
William D. Rubinstein, co-author of a radical new book on Shakespeare’s true identity, reflects on some riddles of history in the light of his own discoveries.
Edward the Confessor, the last truly Anglo-Saxon king of England, became an embodiment of pacific and idealistic medieval kingship under Henry III. Why?
Mussolini casts a long shadow. R J.B. Bosworth describes how Italians of both the left and the right have used memories of his long dictatorship to underpin their own versions of history and politics.
Simon Adams investigates the political and religious options available to the Catholics of early Jacobean England, and asks why some chose to attempt the spectacular coup in November 1605.
Elizabeth Sparrow unpicks the origins of the long-standing belief that Penzance, in Cornwall, was the first place on the mainland to receive news of the victory at Trafalgar and the death of Nelson.
Tom Bowers previews the History Channel’s new series on the Crusades and finds out what is different from previous attempts to put the holy wars on screen.
Alex Butterworth looks at the parallels between the destruction wrought by Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans recently, and the devastation suffered by Pompeii in the first century AD.
An idea promoted by Pope Urban II at the end of the 11th century continues to resonate in modern politics. Jonathan Phillips traces the 800-year history of ‘Crusade’ and its power as a concept that shows no sign of diminishing.
Far from being the bogeymen of history, Geoffrey Robertson QC says that the English regicides were men of principle who established our modern freedoms.
