Ancient Griffin-lion relief

Myths and legends

Greek soldier Pheidippides arrives in Athens with news of the Greek victory over the Persians at Marathon, only to die on the spot

Pheidippides: is the ancient Greek marathon runner remembered for the wrong run?

The Green Knight shows his severed – and still talking – head to King Arthur in this illustration of the beginning of the 14th century legend of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight: what’s the story?

Perceval meets the Fisher King in an illustration for Chrétien de Troyes’ 12th-century Perceval, The Story of the Grail

How to write a medieval romance. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A stone bust of the Greek god Dionysius

The gods and their whims: your guide to ancient Greek religion

A stone statue of Achilles

Q&AWhy do we say ‘Achilles Heel’?

The Green Knight shows his severed – and still talking – head to King Arthur in this illustration of the beginning of the 14th century legend of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

“A eulogy to the cult of chivalry”: what can Sir Gawain and the Green Knight tell us about Edward III and the Hundred Years’ War?. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Dev Patel stars as Sir Gawain in The Green Knight an adaptation of the Arthurian romance Sir Gawain and The Green Knight

The Green Knight on screen: what can we expect from the retelling of an Arthurian epic?

Medieval romances were sometimes considered subversive material. This scene from the Roman de la Rose, written in the 13th century, depict two lovers. In later centuries, it was said romances “inflamed beastly and filthy desire”

The Mills & Boon of the Middle Ages? Unpicking the mysteries of medieval romances. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Kissing the Blarney Stone: a women hangs over the precipice with the aid of a friend as she attempts the feat at Blarney Castle in 1935

What is the Blarney Stone, where did it come from and why do people kiss it?

Actor Errol Flynn as Robin Hood in the film 'The Adventures of Robin Hood', 1938. (Photo by Silver Screen Collection/Getty Images)

What's the most accurate Robin Hood film?

Knights, dragons and beasts: the strange world of medieval romances. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

The ‘Eye of Providence’, a symbol linked to the Illuminati, stares out from the reverse side of all US one-dollar bills

The Illuminati: 13 questions about the clandestine secret society answered

Basilisks, manticores and more: medieval fantastic beasts (and where to find them)

Henry the Young King is crowned in 1170. (Wikimedia Commons)

The real King Arthur and his Lancelot? Henry the Young King's remarkable friendship with William Marshal

A depiction of Robin Hood, the heroic archer in English folklore who supposedly robbed the rich and gave to the poor. (Photo by Culture Club/Getty Images)

Robin Hood: 7 myths about the legendary outlaw of Sherwood Forest

A guide to the Norse gods. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Werewolves of the ancient world. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Vahalla is depicted as a round-topped building in this funerary stone from 8th-century Sweden

Valhalla: fighting and feasting in the Viking warrior afterlife

A helmet from a chieftain's grave in 10th-century Norway. (Images by Getty)

Inside the Viking mind: the view of the Vikings' world from 5 perspectives. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

The ‘lost’ city of Atlantis. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Ancient Babylon: everything you wanted to know. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

The Trojan Horse – seen in the 2004 film Troy

How much of the legend of Troy is real?

King Arthur triumphs over the Saxons at the battle of Mount Badon

How much of the story of King Arthur is true?

The Knights of the Round Table are that the heart of many Arthurian legends

Who were the Knights of the Round Table in Arthurian legend, and where does the Holy Grail fit in?

King Arthur and a hand holding the sword Excalibur.

The legends of King Arthur: everything you wanted to know. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A 16th-century painting of the Tower of Babel

General ancient history

Your guide to...the ancient city of Babylon

An 18th-century marble relief depicting Julius Caesar invading Britain by John Deare, a British neo-classical sculptor. (Photo by: Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty Images)

Geoffrey of Monmouth: the lost voice of ancient Britain

An aerial view of Tintagel Castle, Cornwall. (Photo by David Goddard/Getty Images)

ExploreTintagel Castle and the legend of King Arthur. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

An illustration depicting King Arthur fighting the Saxons, from the Rochefoucauld Grail. The absence of a clear and present origin for King Arthur has created a ‘void’ which many are keen to fill, says Miles Russell. (Photo by Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty Images)

The real King Arthur: why are we so obsessed with trying to solve the mystery?

The front facade of the prehistoric chambered tomb of Wayland's Smithy

BlogMedieval(ish) matters #6: Viking military mind games, Anglo-Saxon mind maps, and embroidery before the Bayeux Tapestry