BBC History UK
Caledonian chronicle
RAB HOUSTON has mixed feelings about an energetic but uneven romp through four centuries of Scottish political, social, cultural and economic history
4 min |
September 2022
BBC History UK
A dramatic solar storm lights up the Earth
2 SEPTEMBER 1859 | The "Carrington Event" causes auroras and telegraph chaos
2 min |
September 2022
BBC History UK
Why PMs get the push
Boris Johnson's announcement that he is set to resign as prime minister threw the British government into turmoil in July - and saw him join a small group of PMs brought down by scandal. RICHARD TOYE explores what we can learn from the demise of previous premiers
6 min |
September 2022
BBC History UK
Want to know why Henry VI's reign was such a disaster? Then look no further than his father
Henry VI fell foul of the French, his soldiers, even his own advisors. Yet, writes Lauren Johnson, his greatest enemy was the revered warrior-king who left him the throne 600 years ago
10+ min |
September 2022
BBC History UK
Stalingrad through German eyes
Iain MacGregor explores the previously unpublished testimony of a German officer on the front line | In September 1942, German lieutenant colonel Friedrich Roske declared himself "the master of the centre of Stalingrad" after his troops had smashed their way into the heart of the city. But with thousands of Soviet guardsmen poised to launch a furious counter-attack, his triumph was to be short-lived. Roske's previously unpublished testimonies reveal, in unsparing detail, the grim fate of the German troops holed up in Stalingrad as the Red Army began to tighten its grip...
10+ min |
September 2022
BBC History UK
"For too long medieval women have been written out of history. It's high time we put them back in"
Janina Ramirez introduces three trailblazers whose stories show that medieval women were far more than the wives, sisters and aunts of men
9 min |
September 2022
BBC History UK
In 1678, Catholic assassins a plot to murder hatched Charles II... or did they?
Victor Stater tells the story of the Popish Plot, an elaborate fake news story that reshaped British politics - and sent dozens of innocent people to the gallows
10+ min |
September 2022
BBC History UK
The enduring trauma of partition
In 1947, British India was split in two, sparking a wave of violence that defined the new nations for decades. On the 75th anniversary of partition, Kavita Puri looks at how subsequent generations in south Asia and the UK have come to terms with its legacy
10+ min |
September 2022
BBC History UK
Enter the dragon
It's brought its own unique brand of magic to everything from Game of Thrones to Harry Potter. But how did the modern dragon come into being? Daniel Ogden traces the six stages of the creature's evolution in the west - from ancient serpent to medieval fire breather
8 min |
September 2022
BBC History UK
THE DIG THAT CHANGED (URBAN) HISTORY
Sixty years ago, one of Britain's most important archaeology projects was launched in Hampshire. Michael Wood reviews the groundbreaking discoveries of the dig at Winchester, once the showpiece of Alfred the Great's royal dynasty
8 min |
September 2022
BBC History UK
"Henrietta Maria has been looked at far too much through the male gaze - it's time for another perspective"
Leanda De Lisle speaks to Emily Briffett about her new study of Charles I's reviled queen and reveals why she doesn't deserve her rotten reputation
10 min |
September 2022
BBC History UK
Down but not out
FERN RIDDELL applauds an honest portrait of 19th-century street life in Britain's capital, highlighting the hopes, fears and toils of real people who strove for more than just survival
4 min |
August 2022
BBC History UK
"Elizabeth I was a free woman in charge of her fate. Perhaps that's why Catherine de Medici despised her"
Estelle Paranque talks to Rhiannon Davies about her new book exploring the 30-year rivalry of two of 16th-century Europe's most powerful queens
10 min |
August 2022
BBC History UK
How soap saved the BBC
In the 1980s, the BBC devised a new weapon in its ratings battle against ITV: EastEnders. DAVID HENDY explores how a mix of masterful publicity and melodramatic plots propelled the drama to popular success
7 min |
August 2022
BBC History UK
Q&A
A selection of historical conundrums answered by experts
4 min |
August 2022
BBC History UK
How to repel a MONGOL INVASION
They swept across Asia with terrifying efficiency. Yet, as 13th-century Europe quaked at the prospect of a Mongol invasion, there was an empire that, as Nicholas Morton writes, learned to beat the invaders at their own game
9 min |
August 2022
BBC History UK
Dorothy Levitt Edwardian speed queen
By breaking records, winning titles and defeating her male adversaries, one fearless racing driver became a founding mother of women's motor sports. RACHEL HARRIS-GARDINER explores how Dorothy Levitt built her legend, both with her achievements behind the wheel and as a media sensation
6 min |
August 2022
BBC History UK
On the Wall
The soldiers who garrisoned Hadrian's Wall were all men, but what of the many women of diverse backgrounds who lived on and around the frontier? Bronwen Riley selects six objects that offer precious insights into women's lives at the edge of the empire
8 min |
August 2022
BBC History UK
FRONTIER TOURISTS
Since its earliest days, the great barrier at the Roman empire's north-western edge has been a source of wonder. Rob Collins traces the history of tourism and souvenirs at Hadrian's Wall
5 min |
August 2022
BBC History UK
THE ROAD TO HADRIAN'S WALL
From Caesar's first invasion in 55 BC to the construction of the famous barrier some 175 years later, Rome engaged in multiple battles to subdue the peoples of Britain. Archaeologist Richard Hingley talks to Rob Attar about how the Romans sought to take control of this distant province
10+ min |
August 2022
BBC History UK
Britain's Century of Boom and Bust
From the 1920s to the Winter of Discontent, inflation has haunted several British governments over the past 100 years. So, asks Phil Tinline, how does the current cost of living crisis compare with previous periods of soaring prices?
8 min |
August 2022
Wallpaper
A meeting of minds
Prince Charles and Jony Ive’s Terra Carta Design Lab celebrates the work of young designers in developing high-impact, low-cost solutions to the climate crisis
8 min |
August 2022
BBC History UK
RUSSIA'S DOOMED REVOLUTION
With the world's attention fixed firmly on the invasion of Ukraine, Antony Beevor's new history of Russia's 1917 revolutions and subsequent civil war is especially timely. He explains to Rob Attar how the fall of the last tsar launched a chain of events leading to millions of deaths and one of history's most brutal dictatorships
10+ min |
July 2022
BBC History UK
Snuffers, scrapers and murder-holes
From medieval portcullises to the Regency craze for "Wellington" knockers, the evolution of the front door offers a unique entry point to British history. Rachel Hurdley looks at six ways in which doors reflect our desire to avert danger, and impress our neighbours
9 min |
July 2022
BBC History UK
NORMAN ADVENTURES IN AFRICA
Less than a century after William the Conqueror's invasion of England, his compatriots embarked on another ambitious military assault - on the southern shores of the Mediterranean. Levi Roach tells the story of the Norman kingdom of north Africa
8 min |
July 2022
BBC History UK
THE MAKING OF AN AMERICAN SCANDAL
Fifty years ago, the US government was embroiled in a conspiracy that became a constitutional crisis - eventually toppling a president. Clifford Williamson charts the fallout from the 1972 Watergate affair
10+ min |
July 2022
BBC History UK
New light on the Dark Ages
The past 40 years have witnessed a revolution in our understanding of early English history, which has inspired Michael Wood to update his landmark book In Search of the Dark Ages. Here, Michael chronicles the great leaps forward that have lit up this thrilling era
9 min |
July 2022
BBC History UK
Accessorising the past
We've added accoutrements to our outfits for centuries, from buckles to buttons - but they aren't just important for fashion's sake. Cordula van Wyhe and Susan Vincent reveal what six accessories can tell us about historical attitudes to gender, empire and more
6 min |
July 2022
BBC History UK
Into the wild
From its earliest days, the BBC set out to chronicle the natural world - an ambition that, as DAVID HENDY explores, reached new heights from the late 1970s with David Attenborough's string of wildlife blockbusters
7 min |
July 2022
BBC History UK
A yearning process
HELEN CARR applauds a timely examination of the great British obsession with venerating the past, and its impact on our understanding of the challenges we face in the present
4 min |