January 2016

Articles from the January 2016 issue of BBC History Magazine

Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson. When Edward became king in January 1936, he was the darling of the nation. Yet when he abdicated in December 1936, few believed he was making the wrong decision. (Photo by Getty Images)

Love before duty: the story of Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson

An illustration of Edward II. (Photo by Culture Club/Getty Images)

The big debate: was Edward II really murdered?

Medieval punishments, Toulouse, 14th century. (Photo by Photo12/UIG via Getty Images)

How bloody was medieval life?

Portrait of Anne Boleyn, the second wife of Henry VIII, who was born in around 1501 in Norfolk and executed by decapitation at Tower Green on 19 May 1536. (Photo by The Print Collector/Alamy Stock Photo)

The New Year’s resolutions Anne Boleyn, Elizabeth I and Josef Stalin should have made…

Aquatic Centre Ferry Dock, Vancouver, Canada. (Photo by Getty Images)

My favourite place: Vancouver, Canada

The Beatles perform onstage at the Cavern Club, Liverpool in February 1961. (Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

History explorer: the swinging sixties

A coffin containing the skeleton of King Richard III sitting in repose inside Leicester Cathedral. (Photo by Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images)

Are we blinded by our love of history?

A portrait of the author Leo Tolstoy on his 80th birthday. (Photo by Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty Images)

A brief history of War and Peace

Mario Lanza c1950. (Photo by Silver Screen Collection/Getty Images)

My history hero: Mario Lanza (1921-59)

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In pictures: Queen Elizabeth II through the decades

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My favourite place: York Membery