Feature

When the aurora borealis appeared in the skies of 18th-century Europe, Enlightenment scientists first turned to history to understand it.

Since 1708 there has been vicious competition over the Spanish treasure galleon San José, its cargo, and, now, its sunken remains.

The Raj’s control of India’s princely states was never absolute, as the British-appointed tutor to the last maharajah of Travancore discovered.

The English saint Oswald of Northumbria proved incredibly popular in the medieval German-speaking world. How did he get there?

During the Cold War successive British governments did all they could to maintain a friendship with Tito’s Yugoslavia. Why was the communist strongman so important to Westminster?

In exile, Hortense Mancini captivated 17th-century Europe – and king Charles II – with her beauty and charm. But her path to freedom was mired in scandal.

How can historians of Tibet – a region whose history is tightly controlled by the Chinese authorities – gain access to its recent past? Comparing newspapers from either side of the Himalayas might offer a way in.

The colony of New South Wales did not have its own parliament until 1856, but it did have a tradition of public dinners and politically charged toasts.

Henry VIII’s break with Rome was a watershed moment for England and for Christendom. Did the papacy have itself to blame?