Often referred to as the ‘Hungry Decade’, the 1840s was characterised by social unrest, military losses and economic hardship ...

On 8th May 1945 the day had finally come, a day of celebration, commemoration and most importantly, victory. For this reason it became known as V.E. Day (Victory in Europe), finally bringing the ...

Not far from Solihull town centre, there is a small group of trees that most people tend to ignore. Its name is Cut Throat Coppice. The trees are mostly oak, interspersed with silver birch, and ...

In the crime-ridden underworld of Victorian London, dominated by violent men, a group of women were able to carve out a space for themselves; specialising in shoplifting, they soon became so prolific ...

England held its breath as the mighty Spanish Armada sailed up the English Channel. Invasion appeared imminent. Then Queen Elizabeth I is reputed to have made a rousing speech to her troops as they ...

In a 2002 poll by the BBC, Isambard Kingdom Brunel was voted the second greatest Briton of all time, after Winston Churchill. This prolific and gifted engineer designed railways (Great Western Railway ...

The Grand Tour was the utlimate Georgian / Victorian gap year experience. Expensive and glamourous, this was a rite of passage for rich aristocratic young men (and later, women) who travelled Europe, ...

Arguably one of Britain’s most successful queen consorts, King George II’s wife, Queen Caroline of Brandenburg-Ansbach (1683–1737) was a pioneer of intellectual enlightenment, a champion of modernity, ...

Dating from the Georgian era, gentlemen’s clubs were reserved exclusively for the aristocracy and the elite, to meet, drink, socialise and gamble. They were also the unofficial stomping grounds of ...

Northumbria was one of the great seven Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England, alongside East Anglia (East Angles), Essex (East Saxons), Kent, Mercia, Sussex (South Saxons) and Wessex (West Saxons).

In the turmoil of the Second World War, Simon Fraser, 15th Lord Lovat, stood out as a remarkable figure. Described by Hitler as a “dangerous terrorist,” he was perceived as a feared threat. Winston ...

After the outbreak of civil war in August 1642, soldiers’ uniforms on the battlefield became windows into their hearts; in this divisive era, even hairstyles provoked fierce arguments. As a result, an ...