History Today

Could Britain have done more in the years leading up to 1997 to ensure Hong Kong's freedoms?

History should be a guide to public life. But it can only be so if more academic historians embrace a long-term perspective.

Before discussing the possibility of Home Rule, Britain needs to get its 'House' in order, argues Naomi Lloyd-Jones.

How one company opened an entire sub-continent to economic and political development, with huge ramifications for India, Britain, and the world.

Stephen Cooper admires an article from 1967 that sought to separate historical fact from fiction in Shakespeare’s portrayal of England’s much mythologised warrior king.

Tim Hitchcock sets out on an online archival journey, seeking high-quality, free resources for researchers, especially those working on British history.

Tata is one of the world’s wealthiest conglomerates, with an especially strong presence in Britain. Zareer Masani traces its origins among the Parsis of Bombay and charts its fortunes in an independent India.

On the Restoration, Charles II pardoned the many supporters of Cromwell’s Protectorate, with the exception of those directly involved in the execution of his father. These men now found their lives to be at great risk and several fled the country, as Charles Spencer explains.

Are historians inevitably faced with a choice between academic analysis or popular narrative, or should they aim to master both skills, asks Suzannah Lipscomb.

Describing the First World War as ‘an engineers’ war’, which required ‘arms more than men’, Lloyd George acted on the urgent need to employ women in the armaments industries. Henrietta Heald explains how they in turn responded to the challenges.

Roger Hudson visits the Belfast shipyard in 1911, where the Titanic and her sister ships, Britannic and Olympic were constructed.

Alarm about moral degeneracy and ‘family values’ provoked Hollywood to instigate its own self-censorship codes in the 1920s. But much more than prudery underpinned their lasting impact, says Tim Stanley.

Alexios Alecou explains how Britain sought to police the strategically important island in the eastern Mediterranean.

During his brief lifetime, James V was a popular ruler who aimed to maintain Scotland’s independence and safeguard its place on the European stage. Linda Porter describes his reign and the fraught relationship between the young king and his English uncle, Henry VIII.

Stockings were an instant hit when they were first sold on October 27th 1939.

The artist died on October 26th, 1764.

Hanna Czarnocka, an octogenarian now living in London, recalls her part in one of the most courageous resistance actions of the Second World War.

The opening battle of the First World War was won by the Bank of England before the British had so much as fired a shot.