How Angels Found their Wings
In the Bible, angels do not have wings. How did they come to take the form we know today?
Recently published
An Eggless Christmas on the Home Front
The Ministry of Food was founded to help people survive rationing and to bolster morale during the Second World War. This became particularly important at Christmas.
Khans of Crimea
The Crimean Khanate was the last surviving heir of Chinggis Khan’s dynasty. Respected, feared and reviled, it found itself caught between the Russian and Ottoman empires.
The Finnish Club War
The Cudgel War broke out on 25 November 1596, in Kyrö, South Ostrobothnia.
Books of the Year 2022
Our year in reading covers the year’s major anniversaries such as Partition, Stalingrad and the March on Rome as well as space travel, English law and, of course, the Tudors.
Death of Thomas Tallis
One of the first – and greatest – composers of English Protestant church music died on 23 November 1585.
Are ‘Dark Ages’ Inevitable?
We know less about some periods than others, but the meaning of ‘Dark Age’ is multifarious and often loaded.
Irish Independence and Ulster’s ‘Lost Counties’
In December 1922 a proclamation established the Irish Free State. Among loyalists in three border counties of Ulster, partitioned and cut adrift from unionist jurisdiction, the sense of betrayal was acute.
Chaucer on Trial
Geoffrey Chaucer may have been accused of rape 600 years ago. Do newly discovered documents exonerate him?
Age of Doubt: Saints and Sceptics
The medieval period was a golden age of saints and miracles, but they were met with a healthy dose of scepticism.