Identity Politics and Popular Movements
Issues tied to gender have often been part of broad-based popular movements, like the Zetetic movement in early nineteenth-century England.
Edmund Burke and the Birth of Traditional Conservatism
Edmund Burke (1729-1797) is one of the philosophical fountainheads of modern conservatism. But he didn't start out that way.
Magic and Meaning on the Frozen Thames
London's winters used to colder—and a bit more magical, thanks to chilly conditions on the Thames River. "Frost fairs" were popular public celebrations.
Nineteenth-Century Clickbait
Online publications that offer clickbait and easy entertainment mirror some of the most popular nineteenth century British magazines.
The Spy Novelist Who Was Actually a Spy
The author John le Carré, who real name is David Cornwall, is the subject of both a recent biography and his own brand new memoir, The Pigeon Tunnel.
How A Gambling Duchess Changed British Politics
Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, won and lost fortunes, giving into a compulsion that pitted her against some of society’s most notorious ne’er-do-wells.
Did Materialism Lead to the Death of a Tudor Queen?
The very things that made Catherine Howard's time as Henry VIII's queen so pleasant became a cudgel with which to beat her.
Archiving the Inventor of the Archive
Scholarship traces the birth of the archive to natural philosophers like John Aubrey.
The Battle of Hastings and the Ongoing Fight for Britain
Nine hundred and fifty years ago, Normans sailed across the English Channel, landing on England on September 27, 1066. The Norman Conquest had begun.
Community Gardens Were All the Rage…in the 1700s
An eighteenth-century precedent for today's community gardens in Sheffield, England.