England

Captain Jennings Causes Chaos

Early 17th century England saw the emergence of pirates, much romanticised creatures whose lives were often nasty, brutish and short. Adrian Tinniswood examines one such career.

Making of a Martyr: William of Norwich and the Jews

The murder of a 12-year-old boy in Norwich in 1144 inspired Thomas of Monmouth, a monk from the city's cathedral, to create an anti-semitic account of the incident. His influential work reveals much about life and belief in medieval England, argues Miri Rubin.

Guns, Gales & God: Elizabeth I’s ‘Merchant Navy’

Ian Friel argues that popular ideas of the nature of Elizabethan seapower are distorted by concentration on big names and major events. Elizabethan England’s emergence on to the world stage owed much more to merchant ships and common seamen than we might think.