Danny Bird You open your book by recounting a chance visit to an old mosque in Cyprus. What was so significant about that moment? Tharik Hussain Nothing changed for me on the day itself, because I kne

“America is lost! Must we fall beneath the blow? Or have we resources that may repair the mischiefs?” These are the opening words of a memo in the hand of George III in the wake of the 1783 Peace of P

A vibrant celebration of one of Britain’s most influential fashion designers opens at the Holburne Museum, Bath this month. Running from 24 January until 10 May, Zandra Rhodes: A Life in Print brings

In his new book, Edmond Smith addresses a question that has occupied generations of historians: why was Britain the first country to industrialise, thus securing its global dominance in the 19th centu

Our gardens have difficult histories. As a historian of empire, writing a book re-telling the stories of America’s plants, I spend swathes of my day reckoning with them. Most of the plants we grow wer

It was the summer of 1066 and two powerful leaders were rallying their supporters behind them and preparing for war. Their clash would result in political chaos, the spilling of much blood, and one of