Illustration of a Medieval Scribe

Literature

Nineteenth century engraving depicting raining cats and dogs

General Early Modern

Q&AWhy do we say 'raining cats and dogs'?

Plan of the island of Utopia, from Thomas More's work of the same name depicting an ideal state

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Thomas More's Utopia – what lessons did it have for Tudor England?. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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How Shakespeare inspired terrorists. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson as Harry, Ron and Hermione on the set of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (Photo by Peter Mountain/Warner Bros. Pictures/THA)

Medieval

The real magic of Harry Potter: 15 details the wizarding world borrows from history

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Medieval manuscript makers. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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3 curious medieval ghost stories. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Sylvia Plath seated in front of a bookshelf.

20th Century

The tragic story behind Sylvia Plath’s writing

Victorian

Ira Aldridge: Shakespeare’s black Othello

Illustration of a man without a head, but with his face on his chest. This is one of many creatures Sir John Mandeville claimed to have met on his travels

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A knight's (tall) tale: why medieval traveller Sir John Mandeville was more popular than Marco Polo. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Illustration of the man in the iron mask standing by the window of his cell and guarded by two musketeers

Victorian

Unmasking the 'man in the iron mask': do we know the identity of the famous prisoner?

Dev Patel stars as Sir Gawain in The Green Knight an adaptation of the Arthurian romance Sir Gawain and The Green Knight

Medieval

“An intoxicating triumph true to the grandeur of the poem”: a historian’s review of The Green Knight

Historian Dennis Duncan guides us through singular stories from the history of the book index

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A surprising history of the index. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Dr Benjamin Pohl explores the role of monks and abbots in the Middle Ages, and asks: why did they write histories?

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Why did medieval monks write histories?. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Perceval meets the Fisher King in an illustration for Chrétien de Troyes’ 12th-century Perceval, The Story of the Grail

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How to write a medieval romance. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Moves still from Rob Roy

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How Walter Scott’s stories shaped Scotland. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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Censorship: waging war on free speech. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Walter Scott: an engraving after a painting by Sir Thomas Lawrence of the Scottish poet and novelist Sir Walter Scott

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Walter Scott: the man who invented Scotland. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

The Green Knight shows his severed – and still talking – head to King Arthur in this illustration of the beginning of the 14th century legend of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

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“A eulogy to the cult of chivalry”: what can Sir Gawain and the Green Knight tell us about Edward III and the Hundred Years’ War?. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Medieval romances were sometimes considered subversive material. This scene from the Roman de la Rose, written in the 13th century, depict two lovers. In later centuries, it was said romances “inflamed beastly and filthy desire”

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The Mills & Boon of the Middle Ages? Unpicking the mysteries of medieval romances. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A colourised portrait of Anton Chekhov, from 1901

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History heroWilliam Boyd chooses Anton Chekhov (1860–1904). This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A portrait of William Barnes. The accomplished linguist wanted to adopt a form of English purged of foreign imports

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National English: the language that would save England. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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The Enlightenment: everything you wanted to know. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Colour portrait of Jane Austen (1775–1817) drawn by her sister Cassandra. Dated 1810. (Photo by Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty Images)

Georgian

Jane Austen: a guide to her life, books and death – plus 8 fascinating facts

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Censorship, contradiction & controversy: a decade in the life of DH Lawrence. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A portrait of William Barnes. The accomplished linguist wanted to adopt a form of English purged of foreign imports

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QuizWould you be able to speak in National English?. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A scene from Perceval, one of the Arthurian romances attributed to Chretien De Troyes

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Who was Chrétien de Troyes, and why are his Arthurian romances important?. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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William Blake: “artist or genius, or mystic, or madman”. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A young girl reading a book. We recently asked our Twitter followers which historical fiction book inspired them as a child. (Photo by Terry Vine via Getty Images)

General Modern

Historical fiction recommendations for children: the best history books for kids

'Sanditon' - an adaption of Jane Austen's unfinished novel of the same name – is currently airing in the UK on ITV. Pictured: Clara Brereton (played by Lily Sacofsky), Esther Denham (Charlotte Spencer), Lady Denham (Anne Reid) and Edward Denham (Jack Fox). (Photo by RED PLANET/ITV)

Georgian

Your guide to Sanditon, Jane Austen’s last unfinished work

French actor Jean-Louis Trintignant holding the skull of Yorik

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The wisdom of Shakespeare: 5 famous quotes explained. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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