Political

The Second World War formally ended on May 8th, 1945. Here, Adam Tooze examines the events in Germany that ignited the Second World War. Did Hitler intend to provoke a general war over Poland in September 1939?

Paul Preston remembers the journalist and Basque sympathizer who broke the news of the bombing of Guernica on April 26th, 1937.

Alex von Tunzelmann reassesses a two-part article on the troubled relationship between the United States and Cuba, published in History Today 50 years ago in the wake of the Bay of Pigs invasion.

The events leading up to the Mexican dictator’s fall from power on 25 May 1911.

The historical roots of the dispute between China and Japan over control of the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands reveal a great deal about the two countries’ current global standing, says Joyman Lee.

As the Coalition government marks its first anniversary Martin Pugh sees its blend of Liberal and Conservative policies mirrored in the long and chequered career of the most famous of all 20th-century prime ministers.

One of the last popes to play a major role in international affairs, Innocent XI defied Louis XIV, the Sun King, and played a decisive part in the defence of Christianity against the spread of Islam under the auspices of the Ottoman empire, as Graham Darby explains.

Perhaps the US-backed invasion of Fidel Castro's Cuba was inevitable, but its failure bucked the trend.

Ruth Henig reassesses the importance of the League of Nations.