Historical people

The entry of Prince Charles Edward, 'Bonnie Prince Charlie', into Edinburgh in Scotland in 1745. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

Bonnie Prince Charlie and the Forty-five rebellion: why did it fail?

Tomb of Cyrus the Great, Shiraz, Iran

From conqueror to youth icon: who was Cyrus the Great?

Christ appearing to Mary Magdalene

Mary Magdalene: why do people want to believe she was a sinner and prostitute?

Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin. (Photo by Getty Images)

Yuri Gagarin: 8 things you (probably) didn’t know about the first man in space

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

King Henry II: the Muslim monarch of medieval England?

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A woman in riding gear breaks out in a grin in the c1860s.

Smiling Victorians: why it’s a myth that our ancestors didn’t smile for pictures . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

'Self Portrait' by Vincent van Gogh, autumn 1887 (Photo by Marc DEVILLE/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

Why did Vincent van Gogh cut off his ear?

Viking Berserker figures. The one on the left is wearing a helmet with horns. His companion wears the mask of a wolf or bear. Sweden, 6th century. (Photo by Werner Forman/Universal Images Group/Getty Images)

The truth about Viking berserkers

Portrait of Madam CJ Walker, America's first female millionaire. (Photo courtesy of Madam Walker Family Archives/A'Lelia Bundles)

Self Made: the real story of Madam CJ Walker, America’s first black female millionaire

A group of men stand at a booth whose banner reads 'Headquarters National Association Opposed to Woman Suffrage,' early 1910s. (Photo by Stock Montage/Getty Images)

Anti-suffrage: the women who didn’t want the vote

Christine de Pizan. (Photo by Getty Images)

Doctors, playwrights and feminists: meet 6 trailblazing medieval women

A 19th-century depiction of Maharaja Ranjit Singh

Who was Maharaja Ranjit Singh?

Who is the greatest leader in world history?

Who is the greatest leader in world history?

Did medieval people take baths? This 15th-century illustration would suggest so – and shows a man climbing out of a tub. Medieval doctors prescribed bathing as a cure for conditions ranging from bladder stones to melancholy. (Photo by Bridgeman)

The (not so) stinky Middle Ages: why medieval people were cleaner than we think

Once he gained control of the entire Roman Empire, Constantine set about an ambitious programme of reform. (Photo by Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty Images)

Constantine the Great: the emperor who created Europe