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BBC History UK Magazine - July 2025

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In this issue

How the Luftwaffe lost the Battle of Britain Victoria Taylor explains how the relentless pressure of fighting ‘the Few’ shattered the morale of German pilots in the Second World War Elizabeth I’s forbidden love In 1579, the English queen seemed set to marry a French prince – which sparked outrage among her people, says Elizabeth Tunstall Suing for equality Clive Webb and Tom Adam Davies shine a light on Sarah Mae Flemming’s contribution to the civil rights struggle

Fatal floods rage through central Europe

Surging floodwaters sweep away entire villages across German-speaking lands

3 mins

Pétain goes on trial for treason

The ‘Lion of Verdun’ finds himself in the dock in Paris, faced with accusations of Nazi collaboration

1 mins

"The pope doesn't have to be a great theologian - but he has to be in tune with the zeitgeist"

In May, the new Pope Leo XIV was chosen by the conclave, a secretive gathering of cardinals with a history stretching back many centuries. Matt Elton spoke to REBECCA RIST about the politics, controversies and far-reaching impacts of past papal elections

6 mins

"Freedom and democracy are not to be taken for granted"

To celebrate the 80th anniversary of VE Day, on 5 May prime minister SIR KEIR STARMER hosted a tea party in Downing Street for Second World War veterans, schoolchildren and people with links to the armed forces. Following the event, he spoke to our correspondent York Membery about why marking the anniversary is so important - and the resonances with the current war in Ukraine

4 mins

Place names are signposts to the past. And how revealing they are

I WAS RECENTLY BACK IN DEVON. LONG AGO, ON childhood holidays from the industrial north, this seemed to me the ‘real’ England.

3 mins

You can book a one-on-one encounter with an Egyptian shoe

MUSEUMS ARE MAGICAL PLACES. THEY ARE the keepers of so many histories and stories from near and far.

2 mins

CHANNEL SICKNESS

When the Battle of Britain erupted, many Luftwaffe pilots anticipated a swift victory. Yet soon that confidence had been replaced by chronic fatigue and a crippling fear of drowning in “dirty water”. Victoria Taylor charts the mental disintegration of Hitler's flyers

10+ mins

ELIZABETH I'S FORBIDDEN LOVE

In 1579, the queen embarked on a romance with a French duke she affectionately dubbed her “frog”. The pair seemed destined for marriage. Yet, writes Elizabeth Tunstall, the people of England had other ideas...

8 mins

Sarah Mae Flemming Segregation-busting bus commuter

The year before the arrest of Rosa Parks sparked the Montgomery bus boycott, another black American woman started a legal fight against segregation on public transport. CLIVE WEBB and TOM ADAM DAVIES highlight her role in the civil rights battle

6 mins

CAESAR'S FUNERAL DRAMA

The assassination of Julius Caesar in 44 BC drove tensions sky-high in ancient Rome. As Jessica Clarke reveals, plays staged at his funeral were carefully chosen to inflame anger and incite revenge on his killers

8 mins

FIVE THINGS YOU (PROBABLY) DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT. . .the First World War

Alex Churchill reveals some little-known facts about one of history's deadliest conflicts

3 mins

Swings and Roundabouts

We all have childhood memories of playgrounds. But what does the evolution of outdoor play in Britain tell us about the experience of being young over the past 200 years? Jon Winder serves up a history of sandpits, bombsites and battles with cars

9 mins

"Edward III perpetrated one of the most brutal acts of war committed during the Middle Ages"

HELEN CARR speaks to Emily Briffett about the royal power struggles, bloody wars and horrific diseases that ruptured the structure of English society in the 14th century.

10+ mins

Britain goes global

LAUREN WORKING applauds a kaleidoscopic exploration of how James VI & I fuelled Britain's global ambitions, paving the way for the future empire

4 mins

Beach warriors

SAUL DAVID is enthralled by a detailed account of the Allied assault on Sword beach during the pivotal landings of June 1944

2 mins

Clash of tastes

SUZANNE FAGENCE COOPER enjoys an account of the clash between Victorian art’s chief critic and its enfant terrible

2 mins

Shaping Shakespear

ANDY KESSON welcomes a bold look at an early English playhouse and its crucial role in moulding the playwright's dramatic imagination

2 mins

Nation-building

This provocative book challenges established interpretations, conceptualisations and evaluations surrounding the birth of the modern Greek nation-state in 1830.

1 mins

Mother tongue

The title of Laura Spinney's lively, well-illustrated book refers to Proto-Indo-European (PIE).

1 mins

Ancient olive relish

ELEANOR BARNETT explores the long culinary history and cultural impact of the toothsome fruit of the ‘queen of all trees’

2 mins

Rock of ages

Dartmoor's granite tors aren't just adventure playgrounds for hikers and climbers - the stone they produced built major landmarks and supported local livelihoods. CLARE HARGREAVES climbs the most famous outcrop

2 mins

Sydney in five places

Australia's largest and oldest city was founded on land used for tens of millennia by indigenous peoples. LAILA ELLMOOS explores five sites revealing its long history

3 mins

Billie Holiday 1915-59

When did you first hear about Holiday?

2 mins

Read all Stories from BBC History UK

BBC History UK Magazine Description:

Publisher: Immediate-Media

Category: Education

Language: English

Frequency: Monthly

BBC History Magazine is Britain’s bestselling history magazine devoted to history enthusiasts of all levels of knowledge and interest. Published 13 times a year, BBC History Magazine brings history to life with informative, lively and entertaining features written by the world’s leading historians and journalists. Whether it is the history of our politics and institutions, or the fascinating stories of our private lives through the ages, BBC History Magazine sheds new light on the past and helps make more sense of today’s world.Covering the latest new developments in history and archaeology from Britain and around the world, the latest, most thought provoking historical research and strong links with TV and radio programming maximizing use of BBC’s existing expertise in the genre.