History
A historical abomination: Firebrand reviewed
Firebrand is a period drama about Henry VIII’s sixth and final wife, Catherine Parr. It is sumptuously photographed – it’s…
The British Empire’s latest crime – to have ended the Enlightenment
Richard Whatmore sees trade and colonisation in the 19th century as the great threat to Enlightenment ideals, and British imperialism as an unremitting force of darkness
The balance of power between humans and machines
Robert Skidelsky dismisses the possibility of our annihilation by a superintelligent computer system, since ‘science tells us that we cannot create such a being’. But does it?
George Osborne’s midlife crisis
There should be a term in anthropology for what happens to a certain type of Tory male in middle age.…
Hanging offences
Calvin Po laments the pious distortions of history at two of Britain’s best-known galleries
Antisocial history
Canada’s determination to believe the worst about its past
Rumour-mongers
The ancients were as fascinated by rumour as, to judge by recent events in Russia and the BBC, we are.…
The ruling passion
Simon Kuper finds little to connect the strongmen of the past and present apart from their contempt for their own supporters
What does Russia really want?
The question of ‘why’ Russia invaded Ukraine has been forgotten amid war’s fog. Greed and malice partially explains it. History, geopolitics…
‘All these glorious things’
The case against a stripped-back coronation
Who was George Canning? (1973)
Until Liz Truss, George Canning was the shortest-serving prime minister. He needn’t be forgotten by pub quizzers, general knowledge collectors and…
What Washington was like during the Cuban Missile Crisis (2002)
On 27 October 1962, US Defense Secretary Robert McNamara stepped out of crisis meetings and looked up at the sky.…
Location, location, location
The Labour MP Rupa Huq, of Pakistani heritage, has been suspended for suggesting that Kwasi Kwarteng, of Ghanaian heritage, was…
Sex objects
The German branch of the ‘green’ organisation Peta (‘People for the ethical treatment of animals’) is demanding that, until men…
A lesson in self-publicity
The death of Her Majesty raises the question of a commemoration of her extraordinary years of service. Augustus ruled the…
One worldview has taken over the historical profession
Professor James H. Sweet is a temperate man. He seeks to avoid extremes. But he also seeks to be bold…
Food for thought
James Howells has spent years trying to persuade Newport council to allow him to spend millions digging up a rubbish…
Holding water
It is clear that the country will soon need a Water Czar. Augustus’s right-hand man Agrippa would be the one…
The unflattering truth
The battle to be PM raises the question: in a functioning democracy, how should arguments be won? Surely, by persuasion.…
The forgotten history of Poland and Ukraine
Since the outbreak of war in February there has been an overwhelming focus on the historical links between Russia and…
The play’s the thing
Last week Lloyd Evans was wondering whether it was about time audiences started booing dramatic productions of which they disapproved.…
