Walpole and his Critics
During his many years of administration, writes H.T. Dickinson, Walpole was highly unpopular with large sections of the community.
Sir Robert Walpole
The Duel
Robert Halsband describes how, in 1731, the Leader of the Opposition and a supporter of Sir Robert Walpole fought a celebrated duel in Green Park, London.
A London Merchant: Sir William Baker
P.W. Kingsford describes how, for many years, Sir William Baker became Walpole’s chief ally in the eighteenth-century City.
Prohibition in Britain
Lord Kinross describes how, during the first half of the eighteenth century, gin-drinking became a serious social evil.
The South Sea Bubble, 1720
Peter Dickson pores over the wreckage of 18th century England's most infamous financial scandal.
The Politics of Wine in 18th-century England
After the upheavals of 1688, England’s shifting social order needed new ways to define itself. A taste for fine claret became one such marker of wealth and power, as Charles Ludington explains.
Benjamin Hoadly
H.T. Dickinson introduces a Bishop who held many liberal views, and was much disliked by his brethren.
British Prime Ministers: Sir Robert Walpole
J.H. Plumb analyses the career of the man recognised as Britain's first prime minister.
Prime Ministerial Firsts
Margaret Thatcher became Britain's first female Prime Minister on May 4th, 1979. Some other firsts claimed by those occupying the country's highest office.