Crime and punishment

Wrecked buildings in Los Angeles' South Central district following 1992 riots

The 1992 LA riots

Medieval punishments

How bloody was medieval life?

Two fighting Irishmen with axes, one hitting another in the head. Illustration after the Roy manuscript, 13th century (Photo by Getty Images)

Saturday lecture: Medieval crime and violence

Painting of an auto-da-fé

Your guide to... the Spanish Inquisition

John Bellingham Who Shot the Hon. Spencer Percival Print

The assassination of prime minister Spencer Perceval: what happened and was it a popular murder?

What was a drunkard's cloak used for? This illustration shows a man wearing the archaic punishment tool designed to punish habitual drinkers. (Photo by Getty Images)

Q&A What was a drunkard’s cloak used for?

Podcast-Website-large-Jane-Ridley-5edbaf2

7 podcasts about Queen Victoria and the Victorians to listen to right now

Hillsborough Disaster floral tributes

A brief history of the Hillsborough disaster and justice campaigner Anne Williams, ahead of ITV drama Anne

Painting of Bligh and those loyal to him being cast adrift from the Bounty in a small boat

Mutiny on the Bounty: the incredible tale of how castaway captain William Bligh made it back to England

Photo of JFK in the motorcade

Who killed JFK? The case that can never be closed

great fire 4

Great Fire of London quiz – how much do you know?

The renowned poet Lord Byron has gone down in history for being “mad, bad and dangerous to know”. But his ancestors were hardly paragons of virtue. (Image by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

Adultery, elopement and incest: the scandalous sex lives of the 18th-century Byrons

The scandalous Byrons

Capone (in the plain white hat) leaves court after being found guilty in 1931. As well as receiving a prison sentence, he was also made to pay his taxes. (Image by Alamy)

Who was Al Capone and how was he convicted of tax evasion?

John Wilkes Booth leans forward to shoot President Abraham Lincoln as he watches a play at Ford's Theater in Washington, D.C, in 1865.

Q&A What play was Abraham Lincoln watching when he was shot?