When Societies Put Animals on Trial
Animal trials were of two kinds: (1) secular suits against individual creatures; and (2) ecclesiastic cases against groups of vermin.
How the Nazis Created the Myth of Stalingrad
The battle of Stalingrad was the first major defeat of the Nazis in World War II, and presented the Nazis with a propaganda quandary.
Cheng I Sao, Female Pirate Extraordinaire
Learn more about Cheng I Sao, a female pirate who dominated the coast of the Kwangtung Province between 1795-1810.
London Has Always Been Multicultural
The conventional story is that "black Britain" came about after World War II, but London has been a multicultural capital for centuries.
Victorian England Had a Problem With Cloth Piracy
Calico took the newly industrial world by storm. But battles over bolts of fabric shook Britain during the nineteenth century.
The Fantastic Disaster of the Arabia Felix Expedition
The Danish expedition to the Arabian Peninsula of 1761-1767 was a bungle of mismatched egos and wretched conditions. There was only a single survivor.
The Ugly Origins of America’s Involvement in the Philippines
The American use of torture, then called the “water cure,” in the Philippines during the war of 1899–1902 shocked some Americans of the day.
Sophie Scholl and the Legacy of Resistance
Sophie Scholl has become the face of resistance to Nazism. That took decades, as the legacy of resistance itself was resisted.
The Turkish Origins of the “Deep State”
The "deep state" idea of a shadowy parallel government, heard much in the news now, seems to be a concept borrowed from the Turkish experience.
Is Scotland a Nation?
What is Scotland, a country and/or nation, or just a region within Great Britain, a piece of the United Kingdom? Let's explore Scots nationalism.