Italy

Brothers in arms Louis IX on his way to the Seventh Crusade, 1248. The French king kept his three brothers onside – preventing any potential family infighting – by providing them with huge lordships. (Photo by Leemage/Corbis via Getty Images)

Bonds of blood: survival secrets of medieval royal families

The original ‘Big Three’ at Livadia Palace in Yalta: Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin. None of them came away from the summit with everything they had hoped for. (Photo by PhotoQuest/Getty Images)

Second World War

Your guide to... the Yalta and Potsdam conferences, 1945

'The last Day of Pompeii', 1833. Briullov, Karl Pavlovich (1799-1852). Found in the collection of the State Russian Museum, St. Petersburg. (Photo by Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty Images)

Pompeii: a remarkable window into ancient Roman life

Pompeii,Italy

What was life like in ancient Pompeii? Mary Beard shares an A-Z guide

A fresco from the Villa of the Vettii in Pompeii. Painted before the catastrophic eruption of Versuvius, these frescoes were uncovered from beneath layers of volcanic ash and pumice. (Photo by In Pictures Ltd./Corbis via Getty Images)

A brief guide to Pompeii, plus 8 fascinating facts about the ancient Roman city

Marble bust of Nero

Emperor Nero: the tyrant of Rome

HistoryExtra’s top 15 most listened to podcast episodes

Portrait of Isabella d'Este in Red by Pieter Paul Rubens (1577-1640). (Photo by Getty Images)

Rethinking the Renaissance

British nurse Florence Nightingale (1820–1910), aka the 'Lady with the lamp', makes her rounds during the Crimean War. (Photo by Illustrated London News/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

Why Florence Nightingale was so much more than the ‘Lady with the Lamp’

Postcards from the past competition

Postcards from the past: Aged between 6–13? Enter our exciting lockdown competition

B-17 bombers make their way to England to aid the British in WW2, April 1942. (Photo by Getty Images)

Second World War

WW2 podcasts: 9 top episodes about the Second World War

Spartacus is now associated with political upheaval, as in the 1919 Spartacist uprising.

Who were the gladiators of ancient Rome? Plus Spartacus, Crixus and 8 more fighters you should know

A silhouette of troops of the 1st Australian Division during the First World War.

First World War

First World War quiz: how much do you know about WW1?

Da Vinci's sketch 'The Vitruvian Man'. Da Vinci's talents ranged from anatomy to military engineering, and many of his innovations were not explored further for several centuries. (Photo by: Photo12/UIG via Getty Images)

Leonardo da Vinci’s genius: 7 of his visions for the future

Engraving of emperor Commodus's death

Cheese, angry gods and shoddy surgeons: the unlikely deaths of Roman emperors