the Romans

A Roman solution to Prince Charles’s ‘Harry problem’

29 May 2021 9:00 am

Charles, Prince of Wales, is having a little trouble with his son Harry. Romans knew about difficult offspring. They told…

Roman mosaic from the Villa of the Nile, Leptis Magna, Libya (2nd century AD)

Holy mackerel! Civilisation begins with fishing

18 November 2017 9:00 am

Fish. Slippery, mysterious creatures. They are mysterious because of where they live, in vast waters, and because they elude the…

The Vikings arrive in England during the second wave of migration (Scandinavian school, 10th century)

Civilisation’s watery superhighway

29 March 2014 9:00 am

The clue is in the title: this is not about the blue-grey-green wet stuff that covers 70 per cent of…

Roman baths didn't make you clean — and other gems from Peter Jones's Veni, Vedi, Vici

9 November 2013 9:00 am

Spectator readers need no introduction to Peter Jones. His Ancient and Modern column has instructed and delighted us for many…