England

Described by John Ruskin as “the most beautiful sacerdotal figure known to me in history,” the heroic bishop triumphantly upheld his office against two proud and strong-willed English sovereigns.

At the beginning of the eighteenth century, there was a clear stretch of water between Kingston Bridge and London Bridge. By 1800, despite lobbying by powerful vested interests, six new bridges spanned the river.

Steven Gunn looks at the condition of Britain at the beginning of the Tudor era, and finds a society that was increasingly cohesive, confident and cosmopolitan.

Heather Shore challenges the view that the 19th century was a pivotal period of change in the treatment of young offenders.

Esmond Wright recalls the life of the American philosopher, scientist and man of letters in his years in a street near Charing Cross.

Jennifer Loach (whose work has been edited by George Bernard and Penry Williams) goes back to the original sources to show that, despite his image as a pious sickly child, Edward VI was very much his father's son.

Barbara Yorke considers the reputation of King Alfred the Great, and the enduring cult around his life and legend.

Roger Lockyer takes a fresh look at the much-maligned James VI of Scotland, who became the first Stuart king of England.

In this edited version of a lecture given on 25 March 1999, to commemorate the anniversary of Cromwell's birth, John Morrill provides us with a series of snapshots, at different ages, of the troubled visionary who aspired to lead a new chosen people out of the bondage of Stuart tyranny.

J.S. Hamilton weighs the evidence and concludes that Edward II and his notorious favourite were more than just good friends.