History
The first Lord Dufferin: the eclipse of a most eminent Victorian
The first Marquess of Dufferin and Ava is largely forgotten today — rotten luck for the great diplomat of the…
VE day anniversary: why politics will take second place the day after the election
Will politics take second place the day after the election?
Rowleys is Did Mummy Love Me Really? food – and it’s perfect
I think Rowley’s is the perfect restaurant; but I am really a gay man. Rowley’s is at 113 Jermyn Street…
A walk through Fez is the closest thing to visiting ancient Rome
Fez is one of the seven medieval wonders of the world. An intact Islamic city defined by its circuit of…
That annoying ‘likely’ is more old-fashioned than American
What, asks Christian Major of Bromley, Kent, do I think of ‘this new, I assume American, fad for using the…
Spectator letters: Oxfam’s Ebola appeal; what Cumberbatch should have said; and why Prince Charles is right and wrong
In defence of Oxfam Sir: Mary Wakefield rightly praises Médecins sans Frontières but makes many misinformed claims about Oxfam and…
Tony Judt: a man of paradox who made perfect sense
Tony Judt was not only a great historian, he was also a great essayist and commentator on international politics. Few…
History is the art of making things up. Why pretend otherwise?
In a recent interview, the celebrity historian and Tudor expert David Starkey described Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall as a ‘deliberate…
Muriel and Nellie: two radical Christians build Jerusalem in London’s East End
This is the tale of Muriel Lester, once famous pacifist and social reformer, and Nellie Dowell, her invisible friend. Nellie…
Tom Holland’s diary: Fighting jihadism with Mohammed, and bowling the Crown Prince of Udaipur
As weather bombs brew in the north Atlantic, I’m roughing it by heading off to Rajasthan, and the literary festival…
Standing firm is the price of civilisation. Are we still ready to pay it?
Reading Memoirs of a Fox-Hunting Man, as I have recently, you cannot help but be struck by what a perfectly…
How long will it be before the climate forces us to change?
As the climate changes, will we? The story of the little ice age suggests that adaptation will take years of suffering
Revealed: five British royals who definitely slept with underage girls
Teen queens The Duke of York denied allegations in court papers that he had had sexual relations with a girl…
The Krays, Dennis Nilsen – and Chris Grayling: a conversation with Sir Ivan Lawrence QC
Sir Ivan Lawrence QC on the Krays, Dennis Nilsen – and Chris Grayling
This Winter Journey goes far beyond expectation
You can tell a lot about a book from its bibliography. It’s the non-fiction equivalent of skipping to the final…
Elizabeth is about to become Britain’s longest-reigning queen. Here’s how she’s changed monarchy
This year the Queen will become the longest-serving monarch in British history. Her rule defines our era
Bob Dylan and the illusion of modern times
Bob Dylan and the illusion of ‘your era’
When a cricket ball cost Britain an heir to the throne
A fatal shot The sad death of Australian batsman Philip Hughes was a reminder that a cricket ball can kill.…
What makes mankind behave so atrociously? Ian Buruma and Joanna Bourke investigate
The first interaction between two men recorded in the Bible involves a murder. In the earliest classic of English literature,…
Blue Note's 75 years of hot jazz
This is a big book, a monumental text with 800 illustrations, 400 of them in colour, to be contemplated more…
What went so wrong for Vaclav Havel?
The unforgettable moment a quarter of a century ago when the Berlin Wall came down was the most vivid drama…
Should ‘suicide’ mean pig-killing?
There was a marvellous man in Shakespeare’s day known as John Smyth the Sebaptist. ‘In an act so deeply shocking…
What are 16-year-olds supposed to learn by making posters?
My niece, Lara, 15, has a mind like a surgical blade. On any subject, from calculus to The X Factor,…
Bourbon from Bush, envy from Nixon... and running into Herbert Hoover: encounters with eight presidents
Encounters with leaders of the free world – as a journalist, as a friend, and as a boy running in the hallway
Napoleon's birthplace feels more Italian than French
Napoleon’s birthplace, Casa Buona-parte, in Ajaccio, Corsica’s capital, is pretty grand. It has high ceilings, generous, silk-lined rooms and a…
