How the Qin forged a great power from the fragments of the Warring States

After a years-long battle to secure her inheritance as heiress of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, Maria Theresia (pictured above) arrived in Prague, the capital of what was then Bohemia, clutching the

Edward VII swept away the cobwebs of mid-Victorian style, Queen Mary had passion for all things small and the Queen Mother bought rather avant-garde art. In a forthcoming talk, Tim Knox, director of the Royal Collection, charts a century of regal taste

Three people who have declared themselves to be a “lost African tribe” have set up home in woodlands near Jedburgh in the Scottish Borders, proclaimed it to be the “kingdom of Kubala”, and changed the

I n 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue. That, at least, is what the famous rhyme tells us. Memorising such dates is a common experience of being taught history – a cliché superbly lampooned by the w

Q Who has had the shortest reign as UK prime minister? A That title lies with Liz Truss, the Conservative MP who was prime minister for just 49 days. She stood down after criticism of her economic pol