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The term ‘Special Relationship’ was first coined by Winston Churchill in 1944, following Anglo-American cooperation in the Second World War. The term stuck, having defined relations between the two countries ever since. Contrary to popular belief, Anglo-American relations haven't always been so amicable, in fact, for the first forty years following the United States’ inception, Britain acted as a prominent antagonist, forcing the two nations into a conflict that would come to

Throughout its impressive longevity, the Byzantine Empire has had its fair share of terrible emperors who plunged Byzantium into chaos and ruin. While many of these candidates, such as Alexios IV Angelos and Phokas, are deserving of the moniker of ‘worst emperor’, one emperor has seemingly gone under the radar as being one of the, if not the worst, Byzantine emperors. This was Constantine IX Monomachos. He was arguably responsible for the major Byzantine collapse during the e

In 2024, the relationship between Israel and Palestine is arguably at its lowest point. The humanitarian crisis in Gaza has led to a media and political environment where scepticism about the viability of a two-state solution is overwhelming. In 1993, when the Oslo Accords were signed, there was widespread optimism. Bill Clinton referred to it as the “peace of the brave.” By the end of the 1990s, however, progress had significantly stalled, setting the stage for the current s

Winston Churchill once remarked that he thought history would be kind to him, ‘especially as I propose to write that history myself.’ He certainly did everything in his power to make this true, churning out millions of words about his life, including his incredibly popular autobiographical account of the Second World War. But what happens when other people take up a pen? The historical narrative becomes much harder for one individual to control. The list of biographies about

When I decided to run a children’s local history scheme over the school summer holidays at my town’s library, I had visions of becoming a modern-day amalgamation of Terry Deary and Raphael Samuel. A history wizard who would ward off the scourge of the terrible Horrible Histories reboot today’s children have been subjected to and inspire them to become the historians of tomorrow. I could already see the mention of my name after they won a Royal Historical Society prize, the th

The post-war consensus was a period in the history of modern Britain during which the Labour and Conservative parties, in various governments, adhered to a set of principles and policies that blurred their traditional political lines. This piece will investigate the post-war consensus and its impact on the party lines held by Labour and the Conservatives. The post-war consensus originated from the policies pursued by the Labour Party under Clement Attlee following the concl

One of the most well-known aspects of the Salem Witch Trials is the seemingly random accusations of witchcraft and the supposed readiness of neighbours to turn against each other. However, these accusations were more than mere acts of finger-pointing. They arose from fears that one group in Salem Village had turned against the other. This article examines the patterns within these accusations and the divisions that caused them, using evidence from historians Boyer, Nissenbaum

The American Dream can be described as an ideology rooted in a Puritan belief system, tracing back as far as the American Declaration of Independence in 1776. It represents the ultimate meritocracy, where anyone, regardless of class, cultural, or ethnic background, can achieve upward social mobility through hard work within a capitalist system. The term ‘American Dream’ originated later, in 1931, from the works of author and former investment banker James Truslow Adams. Thus,

Modern international relationships are largely informed by the market. Debates over Brexit, NAFTA, and the formation of military alliances like NATO were intended to defend global economic flows. Though the economy has always influenced policy, today's dominance of an intricate market system has not always been in place. So, how did we get here? Markets arise when two parties, one or both of whom have a surplus, want to exchange products. As early as ancient Sumer, the rela

Bananas are a miraculous fruit. Unable to grow outside the tropics, their prevalence in European supermarkets today is thanks to the United Fruit Company’s (UFCO) monopoly over the banana trade, forged through its corruption of Latin American governments and collaboration with right-wing paramilitaries. The story of UFCO’s brutality continued long after the company dissolved and rebranded as Chiquita, using the same ruthless tactics to sell bananas. Before the Fruit United

Name a country that colonised the New World. Immediately, I’m sure you’ll think of the Spanish and their conquistadors: Hernán Cortés or Francisco Pizarro, laying waste to an entire continent in the name of plunder, glory, and God. Perhaps you’ll name the Portuguese, those other Iberian trailblazers whose efforts created the modern state of Brazil. There are, of course, the English, who held onto Canada long after every other European power had been thrown off the continent

The suffering of An Gorta Mór, or the Great Famine, marked a demographic tragedy for Ireland. Over one million people died, and another million emigrated, leading to a nearly 25% population decline in just seven years. The crisis began with a fungal disease that devastated Ireland's principal food and economic resource—the potato—resulting in widespread starvation and disease in the years that followed. While the blight's arrival in 1845 was a natural disaster, the British go

If you visit Warwick Castle, you will find countless placards and performances chronicling its history – chief among them, its significance in the Wars of the Roses. Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, also known as the ‘Kingmaker’, even has his own exhibition. Yet, on my visits, one figure has struck me as markedly absent from the Castle’s narrative: Anne Neville, daughter of the Kingmaker, wife to Edward, Prince of Wales, then King Richard III, and Queen of England from June

Recent elections have brought identity to the core of politics: nationalism worldwide threatens to undermine efforts toward global cooperation and social justice and replace it with scepticism and damaging culture wars. Therefore, it becomes crucial to delve into the nature of identity and how nationalism has morphed over time. British civilisation can be traced back millennia, with prehistoric monuments serving as reminders of long-lost people standing tall still over us

This year, Paris hosted the Olympic Games, featuring 32 sports, 329 events, and 10,500 athletes over 16 days of competition. Paris became the second city, after London, to host the Summer Olympics three times. Behind this organisational feat lay a history that long predated the French capital’s successful 2015 bid; this was an event that had been not just years, but millennia in the making. The first written evidence of the Olympics dates back to 776 BC. Originally a religi

There was much fear and anxiety during the reign of Elizabeth I over what would happen when her reign came to an end. Perhaps surprisingly then, when Elizabeth died in 1603, power was peacefully transferred to James I of England. The peaceful crowning of James was certainly not guaranteed, and many factors contributed to this relatively unproblematic transferral of power. There were actions performed by both Elizabeth and James which ensured that the country remained stable a

This piece was originally written in December 2022 and featured in The Looking Glass, an academic publication of Watford Boys’ Grammar School. It has since been edited by the author for this publication. Introduction When we hear the words “North Korea”, what comes to mind? A country with a strict communist regime? A country run by a brutal dictator with a cult of personality? A country whose frequent missile launches we should be afraid of? Academics and North Korean def

The lives of Mary Read and her fellow female pirate Anne Bonny were immortalised in Captain Charles Johnson’s A General History of the Robberies and Murders of the Most Notorious Pyrates (1721), which chronicled the histories and crimes of many infamous pirates from the Golden Age of Piracy. Despite being published under a pseudonym, it remains one of the most authoritative accounts on the lives of pirates, including Mary Read and Anne Bonny, the only women featured in it. Th

In modern media, many journalists have attempted to identify the European equivalent of Donald Trump. The names often mentioned include Boris Johnson, Viktor Orbán, Alexander Lukashenko, and even Giorgia Meloni. Say what you will about these individuals, but none of them are truly like Donald Trump. Instead, I propose that the closest comparison to Trump in European history is Martin Luther. At first glance, this might seem surprising and out of left field. Reflecting on my

Bombing public spaces, endangering innocent people, and violent vandalism do not describe heroes or nationally celebrated martyrs. Most of the population will find it uneasy to criticise or find flaws in the histories of those we deem national heroes. The larger population, only aware of their protests, petticoats, and placards, may not realise that the fight towards equality was not as peaceful as it may seem. Some historians such as Dr Fern Riddell, argue that their militan