Paul Lay

An English Arcadia and an enduring struggle.

What connects a Hollywood star, a physicist of genius and a recently departed historian?

An alliance of unlike minds offered hope for the future during Europe’s darkest days.

The work of the historian Norman Cohn has taken on a new resonance. We should heed his warnings.

Social media recreates the anxieties associated with early modern puritanism.

Britain received more Marshall aid than Germany, but spent much of it propping up a delusion. 

Social mobility and self-invention in the pre-digital age.

Can the collective endeavour of history still be our guide in the age of solipsism?

When it comes to rapid world-changing events, the Meiji Restoration has few equals.

How does the process of colourisation affect our understanding of history?