Head to Head

When we ask historians which genre of history they like least, the most common answer is ‘economic’. Is the field unjustly maligned?

In an age when nationalism is on the rise, the role of the historian becomes ever more valuable – and controversial.

There has been no shortage of historical events put forward to explain Britain’s current political crisis, but do any of them seriously inform debate?

How important is the study of the powerful, epoch-defining individual?

What did the violence in the bloodiest conflict in US history yield in the postwar era?

Empires have been part of human history for millennia. Are they, of necessity, a bad thing?

The worst kind of government – apart from all the others – faces increasingly tough challenges. Four leading historians consider its future.

Leading historians discuss one of the burning questions of the day.

Four historians consider the desirability of profound political change and the methods used to attain it.

Four historians consider one of the most contentious questions facing the West’s museums and galleries.