Political

Robert Hole examines the often misunderstood careers of Lorenzo the Magnificent and his brother Giuliano, whose power in Renaissance Florence was wielded with great subtlety and skill.

Ronald Kowalski and Dilwyn Porter place a famous series of football matches into the context of sports history, politics and international relations.

In reviewing the career of one of the key figures in modern Russian history, Michael Lynch rejects the notion that Trotsky would have been a more humane leader than Stalin.

Richard Cavendish remembers the events of March 5th, 1849

It is often said that the 'ifs of history' are fascinating but fruitless. Here, Rob Stradling shows that a counter-factual consideration of what might have happened allows us new insights into the significance of what did happen.

Richard Cavendish recreates the scene of the famous Victorian Tory leader's accession, on February 22nd 1849.

J.E. Spence considers the interface between ideological and geopolitical factors in the struggle for supremacy in Southern Africa.

From the recognition of East Germany to the banishment of Taiwan and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, diplomatic disputes dogged the Olympics throughout the Cold War.

Tsar Alexander II oversaw a set of reforms which held out the prospect of modernising Russia but whose failure paved the way for revolution.

In examining British politics from 1940 to 1945, Kevin Jefferys explains why the man who was widely perceived as winning the war lost the 1945 election.