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Ben Kane
Ben Kane: In Conversation
Ben Kane is a bestselling author of historical fiction, who has wowed readers with unforgettable characters, intriguing storylines, immense battles and impressive research that has taken him out of the archives and into the wilds of living history. Recently, though, he has left his Roman roots behind to consider the life of a king from a different…
Book Reviews
The Pathfinders
The Pathfinders, Will Iredale
Will Iredale’s 'The Pathfinders: The Elite RAF Force that Turned the Tide of WWII' tells the thrilling story of the secret air force that turned Bomber Command from a damp squib into a deadly weapon that could strike fear into the heart of the enemy. Following the experiences of just a few of these 20,000 remarkable men, and the people who…
News
Paul Lay
Paul Lay: In Conversation
Paul Lay is the editor of History Today and a founder of BBC History Magazine. He is also a specialist in early modern history and, in 2020, published a book on the Cromwellian Protectorate, Providence Lost. We caught up with him at the Chalke Valley History Festival to talk to him about it.
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CVHF map
A Ray of Sunshine: Chalke Valley History Festival 2021
Chalke Valley History Festival has always been about making history accessible and this year it really went the extra mile. After 18 months of bleakness and uncertainty, it really has given us a much-needed ray of sunshine.
Book Reviews
Marc Morris Anglo-Saxons
The Anglo-Saxons, Marc Morris
For his latest book, Marc Morris has gone grander and earlier than anything he's done before. 'The Anglo-Saxons: A History of the Beginnings of England' covers the history of England from just before the fall of the Roman Empire through to the coming of the Normans 700 years later.

Latest Articles

Women in the Age of Sail
Jane Tar: Women and the Royal Navy in the Age of Sail
There can be few historical milieus as thrilling and iconic as the lives of men at sea in the glorious Age of Sail. Yet there is always something in these images that is notable for its absence – the…
Read more
Elizabeth I
The End of an Era: The Death of Queen Elizabeth I
In the early hours of 24 March 1603 Queen Elizabeth I died quietly in her palace at Richmond. But for those living through those hours of her final decline, it was a time of fear as well as of hope:…
Read more
Mary Shelley
Ten Facts You Might Not Know about Mary Shelley
Mary Shelley is famous as the wife of the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, and as the author of the classic novel Frankenstein. But these two facts, interesting as they are, belie the depth of character…
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Latest Quizzes

Girl on crocodile
Quiz: Weird Pets in History
Many people own pets, from dogs and cats to the more exotic, but how much do you know about pets in history? Take our quiz to find out!
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Moon landings
The first Moon landing - 50th anniversary quiz
How much do you really know about the Moon landing in 1969? Try the GetHistory.co.uk 50th anniversary quiz and find out!
Read more
Name the historical character from their on screen depiction
Name the historical character from their on screen depiction
Can you match the following film and TV characters to the real historical character? See if you can get over 70%!
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Latest News

Ben Kane
Ben Kane: In Conversation
Ben Kane is a bestselling author of historical fiction, who has wowed readers with unforgettable characters, intriguing storylines, immense battles and impressive research that has taken him out of…
Read more
Paul Lay
Paul Lay: In Conversation
Paul Lay is the editor of History Today and a founder of BBC History Magazine. He is also a specialist in early modern history and, in 2020, published a book on the Cromwellian Protectorate, …
Read more
CVHF map
A Ray of Sunshine: Chalke Valley History Festival 2021
Chalke Valley History Festival has always been about making history accessible and this year it really went the extra mile. After 18 months of bleakness and uncertainty, it really has given us a much…
Read more

Latest Reviews

The Pathfinders
The Pathfinders, Will Iredale
Will Iredale’s 'The Pathfinders: The Elite RAF Force that Turned the Tide of WWII' tells the thrilling story of the secret air force that turned Bomber Command from a damp squib into a…
Read more
Marc Morris Anglo-Saxons
The Anglo-Saxons, Marc Morris
For his latest book, Marc Morris has gone grander and earlier than anything he's done before. 'The Anglo-Saxons: A History of the Beginnings of England' covers the history of England…
Read more
Ludlow Castle
Ludlow Castle, Shropshire
Ludlow Castle, snuggled beside a bend in the River Teme as it winds its ways through south Shropshire, is at the western edge of the pretty town of Ludlow. Although this small market town that was…
Read more

Fact of the Day

Alcohol is from the Arabic word 'al-kuhl', which means 'the essence of things'.

Quote of the Day

"History is a set of lies agreed upon. "
~ Napoleon

On This Day

306 Roman emperor Constantius died while on campaign at York, and his son, Constantine, was proclaimed emperor by the troops. He would eventually become known as Constantine the Great.
1137 Eleanor of Aquitaine, future wife of Henry II, married Louis (VII), the heir to the French throne. The marriage was annulled 15 years later due to consanguinity.
1261 The city of Constantinople was recaptured by Nicaean forces following its fall to Latin crusaders during the Fourth Crusade, and thus the Byzantine Empire was re-established.
1554 Mary I married Philip II of Spain. Much of England was not happy with the match, which sparked the ill-fated Wyatt Rebellion, but nor particularly was Philip: although he knew it was a good idea politically, his bride was 10 years his senior.
1593 In order to secure his crown, the Protestant Henry IV of France converted to Catholicism, allegedly saying 'Paris is well worth a mass'.
1603 James I was crowned king of England at Westminster Abbey.
1792 The Duke of Brunswick, commander of the coalition forces against revolutionary France, issued the Brunswick Manifesto. Promising vengeance if Louis XVI was harmed, it was designed to scare France into submission. It had the opposite effect, as it linked Louis even more with conservative, anti-revolutionary thought.
1834 Samuel Taylor Coleridge, poet, critic, philosopher, and theologian, died in London from heart failure, compounded by a lung disorder and probably not helped by his addiction to opium. He was 61 years old.
1865 Renowned Victorian doctor and pioneering surgeon James Barry died. It was only afterwards that his secret was discovered: he was actually female, making him the first medically qualified British woman/transgender person.
1909 Frenchman Louis Blériot made the first successful flight across the English Channel in a monoplane.
1934 The Austrian chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss was assassinated during a failed Nazi coup.
1943 Italian fascist dictator Benito Mussolini was removed from office and arrested.
1978 Louise Brown, the world's first 'test tube baby', was born in Oldham.
2000 Air France flight 4590, on Concorde, ran over some debris on the runway during take off and crashed into a hotel two minutes later. All crew (nine) and passengers (one hundred) aboard died, along with four people in the hotel.
2009 Harry Patch, briefly Europe's oldest person and the last living person from any country to have fought in the First World War, died aged 111.