History Today

The First Svengali

Svengali appeared as a character in Trilby, released as a book in the US on 8 September 1894.

Abbots Ascendant

William Chester Jordan’s study of one of medieval Europe’s great monastic rivalries suggests that social mobility may have been more common in the Middle Ages than historians previously thought.

Escape from Vesuvius

In October 1943 the Allies liberated the area around the infamous volcano in the Bay of Naples. Its sudden eruption in March 1944, as war in Italy raged, stretched the resources of the combined services to the limit. What followed was an exemplary emergency operation.

Calvin’s Legacy

Kathryn Hadley examines the life and enduring influence of the French theologian 500 years after his birth.

The Lives of Others

To imagine the beliefs and desires of our fellow beings is fundamental to the pursuit of history. Such empathy is needed now more than ever.