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Protesters on the streets of Prague during the Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia, 1968. Of all the history books Ian Kershaw has authored down the decades, his two wide-ranging volumes on modern Europe have proved the most difficult to write. (Photo by Rolls Press/Popperfoto/Getty Images)

The Library Ian Kershaw on the trials of writing modern history

Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange after the closing bell on 29 September 2008. A record 778 points were wiped off the Dow Jones that day, as the 2008 financial crisis pushed the world's banking system to the edge of collapse. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

The credit crunch: “It’s a story of hubris followed by a fall”

When we conduct historical research, we encounter terms and concepts that are familiar to us in the present. Yet we should not assume that these concepts possessed the same meaning in the past as they do now, says Dean Blackburn. (Image by Shawshots / Alamy Stock Photo)

5 tips for historical research: from uncovering local history to plotting your family tree

Student support is key to making your time at university as positive as possible. (Image by Getty Images)

10 tips to choosing a history degree course

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The march for Catalan Independence held in Barcelona, 11 September 2014 (Photo by Jordi Elias Grassot/Alamy)

Scots and Catalans . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

The 14th-century Bodiam Castle, Sussex. “All historians and students of history have to think about how the society they are studying functions,” says Dr Alice Taylor. (Picture by Getty Images)

Study history: How looking at the past can equip you for the future

Painting depicting Cromwell at the head of his troops following the Battle of Marston Moor in 1644, by Ernest Crofts. (Photo by De Agostini Picture Library/Getty Images)

Oliver Cromwell: the secret of his military genius

An illustration of Rugby school

The Library Schools of hard knocks: Georgian and Victorian public schools

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Notre Dame de la Major church, Arles

Explore Arles, France: 'Little Rome' of Provence . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

An engraving from 'The Illustrated Police News', c1889, imagines Jack the Ripper

Your guide to Jack the Ripper

Police Constable Neil finds the body of MARY ANN NICHOLS in Buck's Row, Whitechapel Date: 31 August 1888

A big day in history: Mary Ann Nichols becomes the first victim of ‘Jack the Ripper’ (31 August 1888)

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100 women who changed the world

100 women who changed the world . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A woodcut of a woman thought to be baking bread, printed in 1497. In the Middle Ages baking was a luxury few were able to enjoy, but those who could afford a wood-burning stove would start with bread. In the 15th century Britain saw explosion of expensive spices, such as saffron, and sweetened dough became popular. (Photo by SSPL/Getty Images)

A brief history of baking

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Podcast Website large Julian Jackson

Charles de Gaulle reconsidered . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

An Aztec priest performing the sacrificial offering of a living human's heart to the war god Huitzilopochtli. (Photo by Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty images)

General ancient history

Q&A How many people did the Aztecs sacrifice?