Britain

‘Bedlam’ has become a by-word for a wild and crazy place, but what is the historical reality behind a distinguished London institution? 

Despite Britain’s commitment to appeasement, the 1939 Agreement of Mutual Assistance with Poland led London into the Second World War. What changed?

Blair has a hard act to follow, according to Robert Pearce's assessment of the architect of the previous Labour landslide in 1945.

M. Naeem Qureshi on a remnant of empire which has moved beyond being a mere repository of the Raj.

Partha Mitter looks at how tensions and cultural interchange between Indians and Britons are conveyed in the imagery of the colonial period.

John Plowright reconsiders a lost leader and the battle he won to maintain public order.  

A cabinet of curiosities or a medium for enlightening the general public? Patricia Fara looks at how debate over democratising scientific knowledge crystalised in the development of the newly-formed British Museum.

Richard Cavendish charts the life and work of Edmund Burke, who died on July 9th, 1797.

Richard Cavendish remembers the events of May 15th, 1847.

Simon Thurley sniffs the air in William III's Privy Garden at Hampton Court.