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Visions of England
MICHAEL WOOD enjoys a thought-provoking exploration of English identity from the postwar period to the present day and the myths that have been told about England
Should historians interpret the past through the prism of the present?
A recent debate about whether the study of history should address contemporary concerns exposed faultlines in academic approaches
"History - like any person's story - is messy. It doesn't fit into neat boxes"
EIGHTY-NINE-YEAR-OLD JAMES MEREDITH walks into Bully’s Soul Food Restaurant, a traditional eaterie in Jackson, Mississippi
Masters of ceremonies
Henry III believed that spectacle elevated him into the sphere of the sacred. Elizabeth I used it to emphasise her Protestant credentials. And Queen Victoria turned it into a celebration of her imperial might. As King Charles III prepares for his coronation, ALICE HUNT reveals how generations of British monarchs have used pomp and pageantry to project power
Central intelligence
JONATHAN KWAN is swept along by a colourful and authoritative exploration of Europe's geographic heartland
AN APPETITE FOR POWER
Wine, song and the finest food money could buy made medieval feasts a highlight of the courtly calendar. Yet more often than not, writes Charlotte Palmer, a thirst for influence and prestige lay behind the carousing
Steppe changes
PETER HOMMEL is critical of some of the conclusions presented in a new study of the nomadic warriors of the central Eurasian steppe
In 1658, a Norfolk gentleman named Ralph Suckey thought he'd got away with murder......until he was attacked by a flock of crows
People in Tudor and Stuart England believed that, while God could not prevent humanity's greatest crimes, he could reveal their perpetrators via miraculous signs. Blessin Adams explains how bird attacks, ghostly apparitions and bleeding corpses led to convictions for murder
"The 1848 uprisings were a dissonant orchestra of ambitions and intentions"
CHRISTOPHER CLARK tells Matt Elton about the revolutions that swept Europe in the 19th century, revealing how their speed and synchronicity alarmed authorities across the continent
KALEIDOSCOPIC NATION
Amid the darkness of economic hardship and state-sponsored fear, East Germany could also be a society of opportunity and hope. Katja Hoyer profiles some of the people whose stories bring this full, complex picture to life
Q&A
A selection of historical conundrums answered by experts
How to and how not stage a coronation
What separates a crowning success from a right royal fiasco? Drawing on a thousand years of Britain's coronations, Tracy Borman offers her dos and don'ts for pulling off the ceremony without a hitch
TUDOR LONDON: A GLOBAL CITY
During the 16th century, London opened its doors to a diverse cast of newcomers, from Moroccan ambassadors to Native American chiefs. Jerry Brotton reveals how foreign visitors shaped the Tudor capital
Quest for a queen
BRONWEN RILEY is swept up by a lively if uneven exploration of the life and landscapes of the near-mythical first-century leader of the Iceni
Red dawn
RICHARD OVERY is impressed by a comprehensive history of the changing relationship between two states that became the great superpowers of Eurasia
"Climate is a factor that underpins all of human history"
Peter Frankopan talks to Rhiannon Davies about his pioneering new book exploring how humanity's complex relationship with the natural world has altered over the millennia
"Come and assist your loving mother. I am in prison for debt". "Dear mother, so am I"
Debtors' prisons inflicted untold misery on families in the 18th and 19th centuries.
William Douglas: The infamous bushranger
Hard drinker, bandit, prize-fighter and reader of skulls. MEG FOSTER unravels the myth of \"Black Douglas\", whose life of crime across 19th-century Australia made him a target of lynch mobs and the popular press
The first families of the second city
The story of modern Birmingham is dominated by two clans, whose radical views and fierce commitment to public service forged its distinctive identity.
GEORGE VI'S NAZI DILEMMA
As war raged across the globe, the king had to confront admirers of Adolf Hitler uncomfortably close to home
Hot cockles, handball and hide-and-seek
Nicholas Orme highlights some of the most popular children's pastimes in Tudor England - from ball games to blind man's buff - and explores their place in wider society
AT THE MERCY OF THE MONGOLS
They pulled off one of the most astonishing campaigns of conquest in history. But how did they treat their subject populations once the dust had settled?
Women at war
In the historical context of the First World War, entrenched traditionalism, separate spheres ideology, patriarchy and, to some extent, Imperialism all contributed to the argument against using women in wartime British intelligence,’ writes Sarah-Louise Miller.
12 February 1554 Lady Jane Grey is executed for treason
The young woman installed as a Protestant alternative to Queen Mary meets a tragic end
13 February 1858 European explorers first glimpse Lake Tanganyika
Burton and Speke seek the source of the river Nile
When art turns odd
Our podcast editor Ellie Cawthorne discusses a recent episode on the weirdest masterpieces in art history - and what they can tell us about the depth of human imagination
"Indigenous Americans who travelled across the Atlantic were horrified by inequalities in European society"
Caroline Dodds pennock talks to Ellie Cawthorne about her new book tracing the remarkable stories of Indigenous Americans who voyaged to Europe after 1492
The voice of a female golden age
The 14th century was a time of great change in England - not least for women, who enjoyed more autonomy, work opportunities and wealth. Marion Turner explains what Chaucer's outspoken Wife of Bath reveals about their lives and thoughts
The age of transmation
Those who write off the Middle Ages as an unchanging backwater are overlooking the seismic advances - in everything from scientific knowledge to self-awareness - that redefined what it meant to be human, argues lan Mortimer
Olive's role in the BBC's earliest days deserves to be remembered
WHEN WE CONSIDER THE BBC'S FIRST 100 YEARS, distinguished director generals come to mind, along with famous presenters and favourite programmes. Yet it's likely that you have never heard of the wonderfully named Olive Bottle.