History Today

After three years, the conflict came to an end on October 16th, 1949.

Andrew Roberts argues that Lord Salisbury, the British Prime Minister most identified with imperialism at its acme, in reality saw the Empire as a mixed blessing at best.

Brian Griffin describes the forces that arose from the ashes of the Royal Irish Constabulary to face the very different problems of policing Ireland north and south.

William Rubinstein reviews the research of 'amateur historians' on the Kennedy assassination and suggests a new motive for Lee Harvey Oswald's actions.

Barbara Yorke considers the reputation of King Alfred the Great, and the enduring cult around his life and legend.

Charles Baudelaire described Edgar Allan Poe's death, on October 7th, 1849, as 'almost a suicide, a suicide prepared for a long time'.

Daniel Snowman meets the co-founder of the University of Sussex and doyen of Victorian history.

When did the British government know of the true role of Auschwitz-Birkenau in the ‘Final Solution’?

Christopher Harvie examines Scottish cultural identity since the Act of Union, and argues that writers and intellectuals have been the real keepers of the national flame.

Clarissa Campbell Orr explains the recent revival in the history of courts, from those of the Byzantine emperors to that of Hitler.