Volume 57 Issue 2 February 2007

Peter Marshall explains how a chance reference in an old local history book led him to reconstruct the story of a 17th-century church scandal, and its afterlife in literature, culture and politics.

Richard Cavendish marks the anniversary of the events of February 15th, 1957.

The courthouse, built on the site of Newgate Prison, was formally opened on February 27th, 1907.

Thomas Jefferson's former vice-president was held on February 19th, 1807.

Larry Gragg digs beneath the glitzy surface of America’s ‘sin city’ to find out how this extravagant home of gambling and glamour came into being.

The Berlin Wall was a tangible symbol of the suppression of human rights under communism. Was it more convenient to the West than their rhetoric suggested?

Alastair Bonnett argues that radical nostalgia has played a larger role in the formation of English socialism than Marxist historians – and New Labour – allow.

Nick Cullather explains how the scientific discovery of the calorie meant food values could be quantified – and the US could make food an instrument of foreign policy.

The Combined Cadet Force is coming back into fashion, says Ronan Thomas, who believes its wider take-up would help reduce gun and knife crime in Britain’s cities.

Patrick Little asks why Parliament offered the infamous regicide the crown of England, to what extent he was tempted to take it – and why he finally turned it down.