The First Folio
The stage has a short memory, print a long one: 400 years since its first publication, Shakespeare’s First Folio is the reason we remember him.
Feature
A Life of Retirement
The Roman veterans village of Karanis in Egypt did not change the world. Its ordinariness is what makes it remarkable.
Asia and Africa Unite
In 1955, the Bandung Conference brought together post-colonial nations in the hope of forging a new solidarity. Could such disparate countries overcome their inherent differences?
Fostering the Foundlings
The governors of the London Foundling Hospital recruited an external network of nurses to care for children. For many, the bonds established endured.
The One True Emperor on Earth
As sultan, Süleyman the Magnificent was portrayed as the Shadow of God on Earth, the Caliph of Islam, the Last World Emperor, the distributor of crowns to other rulers and the purveyor of justice.
The Lost Tudor
Son of a queen and uncle to the king who founded a dynasty, history almost forgot Edward Tudor. Why?
Treason of the Clerics
For 600 years Muslims held sway over the Indian subcontinent. Then democracy and a desultory leadership did them in.
Getting Away with Murder
Found guilty of the Temple Murders in 1733, Sarah Malcolm became the most notorious woman in Britain. Did she commit the crime alone? Did she commit it at all?
Save Your Ass
The US government was happy to support the assassination of foreign officials – but not to be seen doing so.
The Land Between Rivers
All 19th-century British visitors to Mesopotamia knew that it was the birthplace of civilisation. Could steam power revive ancient greatness while also keeping Russia at bay?