Æthelstan

this story: Edgar Ætheling, Edward’s great-nephew. We know, of course, which one of these contenders held the crown in his possession at the end of the year. What is less certain is who was the most d

Somehow, it isn’t hard to imagine the scene of battle here, even on a sultry July morning when only the distant growl of a motorbike interrupts the crooning of collared doves. Perhaps it is the quiet.

It’s there beside the guildhall. A large grey stone surrounded by Victorian railings. Over the years, countless visitors to Kingston-upon-Thames have strolled past it, many barely registering its exis

Richmond Palace, 22 March 1603. Elizabeth I – the self-proclaimed Virgin Queen who had ruled England for 44 years, seeing off the Armada, healing religious divisions and creating a court so magnificen

How one monarch unified his nation and created a medieval superpower

R eady for your old history lessons to ...