History Today

Tony Aldous on the recent work of the Norfolk Archaeological Unit

Why did the visit of a Buddhist holy man to Lhasa at the turn of the century throw the British Foreign Office into a state of paranoia? Helen Hundley explores the life and times of Agvan Dorjiev and the part he played in the Asian rivalry of Britain and Russia.

John Black considers how the Victorians got away from privatising prisons.

Brian Brivati looks at the last time 'modernising' the Labour Party and its union links caused controversy.

Klaus Larres evaluates the track record of previous attempts at a 'New World Order.'

Richard Cavendish looks at the Bayeux Tapestry in Reading's newly refurbished museum.

Richard Cavendish visits the society dedicated to the tragic Great War poet.

Rachel Braverman on a shocking American realist.

The elaborate funeral portraits of Poland's 17th-century nobility are a window on their self-image and lifestyle, as Bozena Grabowska discusses here. (Translated from the Polish by George Lambor).

Tom August explores the imperial assumptions - and the hints of independence from Britannia - to be found in the paintings and artists on show in the Palace of Arts at the British Empire Exhibition.