Period

Our composite image shows Henry II framed by an Arabic arch. Henry claimed he

King Henry II: the Muslim monarch of medieval England?

Ramsay MacDonald, the first British Labour prime minister, pictured after the general election of 1931

A brief history of the Labour Party

Tomb of Richard the Lionheart

Q&A How did Richard the Lionheart die? And where is he buried?

Britons watch Queen Elizabeth II’s Christmas message in 1958. (© Topfoto)

A brief history of the Christmas Speech

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The best Tudor podcasts to listen to right now. (Photo by Alamy)

The Tudors, everything you wanted to know . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Photo of sand dunes

Why the American Wild West was a “hotbed of scientific discovery”

Postcard of a group of men wearing identical clothing boarding a boat for a stag party, c1914. (Photo via Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images).

Stag nights and hen dos: a brief history of bachelor and bachelorette parties

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Viking women.(Illustration by Laura Grace Haines)

Viking women . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

The figure Mulan on a silk print, c19th century

General ancient history

Mulan: the history of the Chinese legend behind the film

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Illustration of Boudica, victorious over the Romans

What if… Boudica had defeated the Romans? . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A portrait of Florence Nightingale

Nursing by numbers: how Florence Nightingale campaigned for better conditions

An oil portrait of Charlemagne (c747–814), King of the Franks, by 15th/16th-century artist Albrecht Durer. (Photo by Archive Photos/Getty Images)

The legacy of Charlemagne: how the king of the Franks continues to cast a shadow over Europe

c1656: A plague doctor in protective clothing. The beak mask held spices thought to purify air, while the wand was used to avoid touching patients. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

Q&A Why did 17th-century plague doctors wear peculiar beaked masks?

Steve McQueen stars in the 1963 film that turned the 'Great Escape' into a symbol of Allied pluck and ingenuity. (Image by Alamy)

The not-so Great Escape

Frances Griffiths poses with the fairies

Fairies, rabbit births and an ‘ancient’ tiara: what are the greatest historical hoaxes?