A timber-framed Tardis

Incongruously sandwiched between shops and pubs in a Norfolk market town stands a Tudor building crammed with stories spanning more than two millennia of local history. PRIYA ATWAL explores Ancient House Museum of Thetford Life

Emily Soldene - Actress, writer, rebel

As the darling of London’s opera scene, and then as a journalist printing scandalous revelations about the cream of society, Emily Soldene thrived in the limelight. HELEN BATTEN explains why this trendsetting, rule-breaking, genre-hopping Victorian celebrity deserves to take centre stage once more

Fight for a Nation

Costas Douzinas on a study of the revolution by which Greece freed itself from the Ottoman empire and was transformed into a self-ruling nation-state

Queen of Spies

Victoria controlled an extensive network of intelligence sources that fed explosive revelations to the British government - or direct to her. Rory Cormac and Richard J Aldrich investigate her adventures in espionage

Looting history

DAVID OLUSOGA praises a stark exploration of the bloodsoaked British raid that plundered the treasures of Benin

A KING OF FIRE AND LIGHT

French ruler Louis IX was a Catholic hero and a vicious anti-Semite, a patron of exquisite art and a fervent burner of books. Matthew Gabriele and David M Perry consider the tangled legacy of a man who embodies both the horrors and beauty of medieval Europe

The worlds first superhero

When Alexander the Great died at the age of 32, his transformation into multicultural icon was only just beginning. Edmund Richardson chronicles the Macedonian king’s remarkable afterlife as the original global A-lister

America's Fall Guy

King George III has long been cast as the crazed despot who squandered America. Yet, argues Andrew Roberts, this grim characterisation is the result not of hard facts but a historical stitch-up

Windows Onto History

From the glittering stained glass in medieval cathedrals to modernist high-rises, windows have illuminated our buildings for centuries. But, argues Rachel Hurdley, the presenter of a new BBC Radio 4 documentary on the history of windows, they can also shed light on the past

Instability Is A Problem That Has Recurred Throughout The History Of Afghanistan

In August, Taliban forces regained control of Afghanistan as US forces withdrew after two decades in the country. How can history help make sense of this seismic moment? We asked a panel of experts INTERVIEW BY MATT ELTON

MEDIEVAL DUELS

In 1386, two Frenchmen fought a duel in a field outside Paris, each seeking to bury his blade in the other's body. One combatant had been accused of raping the other's wife, a charge he denied vehemently. After an initial verdict of innocence was returned, the accuser demanded a trial by combat. The judgment was now God's alone... ...who would be chosen to die?

ROYAL The duke of duplicity

SARAH GRISTWOOD on a new profile of Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson that casts them in a distinctly unflattering light

FIVE BIG QUESTIONS ABOUT...Going to church in the Middle Ages

From social interaction to confessing your sins, Nicholas Orme reveals why the church HistoryExtra played such a central role in medieval life PODCAST INTERVIEW BY DAVID MUSGROVE

Dark forces

MARION GIBSON praises a retelling of a 17th-century witchcraft trial that never loses sight of the women at its heart, nor the social and economic factors that contributed to their plight

The (Surprisingly) Modern Middle Ages

From devastating climate change to deadly pandemics, the challenges that kept our medieval ancestors awake at night weren’t so different from those preoccupying us today, says Dan Jones

The Kings And Queens Of Hearts

Sarah Gristwood reveals how the Tudor monarchs exploited the medieval obsession with courtly love – a romantic creed inspired by the idea of valiant knights risking their lives to woo fair ladies – to further their own agendas

The end of empires

RICHARD J EVANS lauds an innovative work that re-examines the Second World War in the context of global imperial ambitions

Let's cherish this shining light of the great Bronze Age civilisations

THE TAMILS’ GLITTERING CULTURAL UNIVERSE

War between friends

CORMAC O GRADA commends an ambitious attempt to objectively examine the conflict that pitted Irish people against each other in the wake of the bloody War of Independence

Prejudice on the pitch

The racist abuse experienced by some of England’s black footballers after the team’s defeat in the Euro 2020 championship final in July thrust the issue of racism in the sport back into the spotlight. MATTHEW TAYLOR charts the causes and consequences of more than a century of discrimination

HIDDEN HISTORIES

EMMA DABIRI explores lesser-known stories from our past

INTERVIEW: HELEN CARR & SUZANNAH LIPSCOMB

A new book edited by Helen Carr and Suzannah Lipscomb marks the 60th anniversary of EH Carr's What Is History? by asking that question a new for the 21st century

How George V won the war

The First World War ushered many European monarchies to extinction. But not in Britain. Heather Jones reveals how – through canny PR and genuine compassion for the troops – the royal family emerged from the conflict stronger than ever.

Golden girls

SIAN EVANS recommends an entertaining introduction to the adventures of independently wealthy women in Britain over the past four centuries

Marriage of misery

FERN RIDDELL recommends a vivid biography of a women’s rights campaigner who shook off the shackles of married life

Redrawing the battleground

MICHAEL WOOD gives his verdict on an ambitious book that attempts to finally provide a definitive location for one of the most famous battles in Anglo-Saxon history

Class dismissed

News that some UK universities are to cut their history degrees in favour of more “vocational” courses sparked a strong online reaction. ANNA WHITELOCK charted Twitter’s response

Mary Wortley Montagu The scourge of smallpox

That humanity won its battle with smallpox is in no small part down to the resilience of a woman who pioneered inoculation in 18th-century Britain, in the teeth of tremendous resistance. JO WILLETT reveals how Mary Wortley Montagu changed the course of medical history

Best and brightest?

PETER MANDLER considers a sweeping analysis of meritocracy’s role in shaping the western world and debates the effectiveness of attempts to usher in equality

Scheming and slaughter

NIGEL JONES appraises an extensive survey of assassinations throughout history, from the blood-soaked stabbings of ancient Rome to the drone strikes of modern warfare