Politics and Society
Understanding the world helps us to understand our place in it. Learn about the important political and social events and people that have shaped, and are shaping, our world. Referendums and elections, democracy and dictatorships, recessions and depressions come to life when we explore the people whose power politics, passions and obsessions are unpacked.
The English Republic 1649-1660
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<p>Between 1649 and 1660 England was a Republic in which several Parliaments and Cromwell’s New Model Army contested for control of the country – both its political and religious settlement. Under the
...Lost in the Labyrinth
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<p>Follow the trail of the amazing labyrinth – a path leading back to 3000BC. Invoking the myths of Theseus and the Minotaur in Bronze Age Crete, the mysterious maze has travelled as far east as India
...Pacific Exploration
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<p>For Europeans from the 16th century on, the Pacific was a cornucopia of riches – of spices, people, and land – waiting for them to exploit, if they only had the courage and determination. But the
...<p>For Europeans from the 16th century on, the Pacific was a cornucopia of riches – of spices, people, and land – waiting for them to exploit, if they only had the courage and determination. But the
...King/Queen Makers
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<p>Kingmakers are often described as "Machiavellian" or "Svengali like", Dougie Smith is feared as a mysterious backroom "Tory Fixer"” in the UK in recent years but we hear very little about him.
...A Night in the Garden
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<p>Former President Donald Trump held an election rally at Madison Square Garden on 27th October 2024. Several commentators and news outlets commented on its similarities with the “Night at the Garden
...Time Travellers and Treasure Hunters
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<p>Archaeologists have an insatiable curiosity. They have uncovered art objects, bodies, weapons, inscriptions and remnants of buildings from earlier empires. As students of history we continue to be
...The Silk Roads
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<p>The "Silk Roads" is a term that conjures images of romance and the exotic. And it was all of that. But it was more. It joined the East and the West for over 2,000 years. It was a conduit, not just
...<p>The "Silk Roads" is a term that conjures images of romance and the exotic. And it was all of that. But it was more. It joined the East and the West for over 2,000 years. It was a conduit, not just
...France on Trial 1945-2025
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<p>France is still coming to terms with the events of 1940-1945 when the Vichy government of France led by “the hero of Verdun,” Marshal Petain, collaborated with the Nazi government of Germany.
...From Alexandria to Canton - Sailing the Monsoon Route
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<p>From early in the first millennium BCE the Incense Route wound its way from the vast groves of frankincense and myrrh in “Arabia Felix” to the shores of the Mediterranean. Following the ‘discovery’
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Discovering Juneteenth
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<p>Until recently, ‘Juneteenth’ was largely unknown outside African-American communities in the United States. It is now an official national holiday and has become known around the world. It began
...<p>Until recently, ‘Juneteenth’ was largely unknown outside African-American communities in the United States. It is now an official national holiday and has become known around the world. It began
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