Period

An illustration of a king dressed in a green and orange robe. He is wearing a crown and holding a sceptre

King Æthelstan: England's colossus.

Studio portrait of a man dressed as British detective Sherlock Holmes with a plaid cap, a pipe, and a magnifying glass. His silhouette is visible in the background

9 things you might not know about Sherlock Holmes

A black and white photograph shows two men standing with their faces very close together. They both have serious expressions on their faces and are staring down the lens of the camera. Across the bottom are the words KING & CONQUEROR

The wrong moustache in the Battle of Hastings.

A black and white photograph shows a group of Japanese military men on a train, while some young women prepare to get on the carriage. A young woman looks back over her shoulder

Kavita Puri on VJ Day: "We don't talk about the war in Asia – which was a messy, complicated conflict".

How did the Vikings shape Russia and Ukraine?.

This 19th-century facsimile shows the Duke of Salisbury, John Montacute, arriving at Conwy Castle from Ireland — a scene from Le Prinse et mort du Roy Richart. Just a year later, in 1400, Owain Glyndŵr would launch his rebellion, with castles like Conwy becoming key flashpoints in the Welsh fight against English rule.

It’s one of the most famous revolts in medieval history – but has the Glyndŵr rebellion been misnamed?

William the Conqueror: life of the week.

Why the Maginot Line couldn't save France in WW2.

Illustration of Emma of Normandy and two of her children

King and Conqueror’s most gruesome death should never have happened and would be “totally out of character”

Crime fiction history: everything you wanted to know.

This 13th-century illustration from the Chronique d’Outremer shows the departure of the Templars. While rooted in the eastern Crusades, such imagery also echoed in the Northern Crusades, where the Teutonic Knights led campaigns to Christianise the pagan Baltic. expanding the crusading ideal far beyond Jerusalem.

The clever medieval trick that destroyed the last stand of stubborn paganism in Europe

James Monroe served as the fifth president of the United States (1817–1825). His name is most famously linked to the Monroe Doctrine, asserting US opposition to European interference in the Americas, a cornerstone of 19th-century foreign policy.

Is this the secret to understanding US foreign policy? How a powerful doctrine from 1823 reshaped America

How Christianity came to dominate the Roman world.

This 1877 painting by Oscar Wergeland depicts Norwegian settlers arriving in Iceland in 872. Fleeing the unification of Norway under Harald Fairhair, these early migrants laid the foundations of a unique Norse society on the island’s volcanic shores.

Could you survive on the Vikings’ furthest frontier? Here’s the dark reality of Norse life on the edge

A drawing of a king holding a crown on his head, against a black and white image of a church

Far away from England, the mystery of Harold Godwinson's lost crown might have just been solved

A man wearing a blue jumper and black trousers stands in front on a large mural of an airport

Kavita Puri's hidden histories: "A UK museum that tells the long, rich history of migration is long overdue".

The spy next door: Moscow's century-long plot to infiltrate the west.

This illustrated map traces the route of Venetian merchant Marco Polo along the Silk Road to China in the 13th century. His travels opened up new vistas of Asia to Europe and became one of the most influential accounts of the medieval world.

Step onto the medieval Silk Road and you'll witness its intense wonders – and its hidden horror

What if Harold died at Stamford Bridge, not Hastings?.

Edward the Confessor: life of the week.

A man in a grey T shirt and blue jeans sits with his arms crossed, facing the camera. He has dark curly hair and wears glasses

Jonathan Healey: “A connection was made between the rarefied world of the royal court and the politics of the street”.

Britain and the Caribbean: from slavery to Black Lives Matter.

A woman in a grey cloak holds a swaddled infant to her shoulder

Edith the Fair: the life of Harold Godwinson’s first wife

Luther Ford as Tostig Godwinson in BBC drama King and Conqueror

How Tostig Godwinson’s brotherly betrayal hastened the fall of the Anglo-Saxons

Juliet Stevenson as Emma of Normandy in BBC drama King and Conqueror (Photo via BBC)

Emma of Normandy: not just a two-time queen consort of England

Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as William the Conqueror in BBC Norman Conquest drama King and Conqueror

How historically accurate is King and Conqueror? Here’s the real history that should have happened

This posthumous portrait of William I, known as the Conqueror, was painted c.1590–1610 and is held by the National Portrait Gallery, London. Though created centuries after his death, it reflects early modern interest in the legacy of England’s first Norman monarch. (Photo by Getty Images)

Meet the real William the Conqueror, the Duke of Normandy who reshaped England

Illustrations of Harold Godwinson and William the Conqueror

How well did Harold Godwinson and William the Conqueror know each other prior to the battle of Hastings?

A collage of four images, depicting four different kings against a blue background

1066: who was the rightful king?.

Shakespeare didn't do the Norman Conquest, but the Bayeux Tapestry did, so where does that leave the BBC's King and Conqueror?.