History Today

Columbus - Hero or Villain?

Felipe Fernandez-Armesto weighs up the case for and against the Genovese explorer, finding a Columbus for all seasons.

What Columbus Knew

Master mariner or dedicated amateur? Helen Wallis examines the state of geographical knowledge when Columbus set sail, and outlines his use of it.

Taboo Talk

Steve Humphries unlocks the taboo histories of the disabled and handicapped.

The Warwick Vase

David Buttery considers the Warwick Vase, its origins, wanderings and greenhouse home.

The Degenerating Genius

Daniel Pick looks at change, melodrama and decay in the creative work of the artists of the Fin de Siècle 1890s period.

The Freud Revolution

Si Fullinwider analyses how the nineteenth-century values of sexless 'respectability' were challenged by the ambiguities stirred up by Freud's delving into the unconcious.