Kings and queens

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Stained glass in Exeter Cathedral depicting King Æthelstan. (Dreamstime)

Video Michael Wood on the astonishing Æthelstan . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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Pod Philip Murphy WL

Writing the history of the modern monarchy . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Princess Diana's 1995 interview with Martin Bashir.

The Crown S5 E8 real history: Diana’s Panorama interview causes fireworks

Queen Elizabeth II sends her first Tweet during a visit to the 'Information Age' Exhibition at the Science Museum on October 24, 2014 in London, England. (Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

How did the world change during Queen Elizabeth II’s reign?

King Henry V (left) in a late-16th- or early 17th-century portrait by an unknown artist; and his son Henry VI (right) in a c1500s portrait (Photos by Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty Images)

Why Henry VI’s reign was such a disaster

Statue of Ramesses II, at Luxor Temple. He ruled Egypt for 66 years, and left more statues than any other pharaoh (Photo by Michelle McMahon / Getty Images)

5 of the most powerful pharaohs to rule ancient Egypt

The queen – dressed in dark clothing – stands up from a table to deliver a speech

Annus Horribilis What happened in the Queen’s horrible year?

A copy of a wall painting shows Sety I (r1294-1279 BC) opening the door for Osiris, lord of the dead

Egyptian pharaohs: your essential guide to Egypt’s ancient rulers

Dominic West as Prince Charles and Elizabeth Debicki as Diana in season 5 of The Crown

Opinion “If scholars can’t write accurate histories of the Queen’s reign, drama is what we’ll continue to rely on”

Ramesses I

Timeline The age of the pharaohs

Tutankhamun’s golden funeral mask

Your guide to Tutankhamun, plus 8 fascinating facts

Charles (Josh O'Connor) and Diana (Emma Corrin) in 'The Crown', left; and the real royal couple dancing in Sydney

Netflix’s The Crown: the real history behind the royal drama

Harry Lloyd (Richard III) and Sally Hawkins (Philippa Langley) in The Lost King

The Lost King The difficult art of turning a true story into a movie

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Pod Robert Harris WL

Robert Harris on the manhunt for Charles I’s killers . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Elisabeth von Wittelsbach, c1860, (left) and actor Devrim Lingnau as Elisabeth in Netflix drama The Empress.

Sisi: the tragic life of the lost and lonely Empress Elisabeth of Austria