All About History

SCAN TO GET OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER I’ve probably mentioned this in a previous editorial at some point, but in my own personal study of history I tend to avoid delving too deeply into the ‘great men’ who appear to have controlled events. Firstly, I fin

At the Odeon cinema in Leicester Square, London, Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone premiered. Featuring young actors Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson alongside a star-studded cast of British acting royalty, the first Harry Potter

The Abbasids overthrow the last Umayyad Caliph, Marwan II, and Abu’lAbbas al-Saffah is proclaimed as the first Abbasid Caliph. Under their rule, the Islamic Empire starts to expand eastwards and the development of arts and sciences thrives. Epitomisi

Still standing in Baghdad, Iraq, the Mustansiriya Madrasah is one of the oldest universities in the world. It was established by Caliph Al-Mustansir, of the Abbasid Dynasty, in 1227 and took six years to be completed, opening its doors to students on

The Islamic Golden Age is known for its advancements in many fields, including science, mathematics, philosophy and of course, the arts. Crafts known to have flourished during this period include ceramics, woodwork and manuscript illumination. The Se

Also known as Geber, Jabir ibn Hayyan is considered the father of Islamic chemistry and was a noted alchemist. According to the Library of Congress he was known for his ability to translate complex ideas into simple language so that they could be enj

With its sweeping white courtyard and towering minarets, the Al-Azhar Mosque in Cairo is truly a sight to behold. The mosque was founded in 970 in the wake of the Fatimid conquest of Egypt by a general named Jawhar al-Siqilli. It was intended to be t

"Is he lucky?” Napoleon would often ask when appointing a new general. He knew from his own life and career what that meant. He believed there was a lucky star guiding his destiny, and it shone on him from the moment of his birth. If he had been born

When Napoleon crowned himself king of Italy on 26 May 1805, he placed the Iron Crown of Lombardy on his own head and declared, “God gave it to me, beware whoever touches it.” The crown is one of the oldest royal insignias in Christendom. This circlet

When we talk about the Roman Empire in the 5th century CE, we usually find ourselves using words like ‘decline’ and ‘fall’ an awful lot. Traditional narratives focus away from the city of Rome and make it appear as degraded and powerless and finally

Like Hastings, Waterloo and Trafalgar, the Battle of Agincourt has a large and venerated place in military history. Considered to be one of the greatest English military victories, the recently crowned Henry V led his numerically smaller force to an

Bayard Rustin was an outsider, recognised as a brilliant organiser, strategist, and thinker whose vision and activism was the foundation for modern movements for Peace, Civil Rights and Gay Liberation. Rustin opposed nuclear arms testing in Africa an

Cinderella; Snow White; Beauty And The Beast. Before Disney got their hands on these stories and turned them into animated film classics to be enjoyed by children around the world, they Cwere some of the first stories to be written down and ascribed

From Alexandre Dumas’s 1850 adventure The Man In The Iron Mask to Patricia Highsmith’s The Talented Mr Ripley, tales of imposters and devious doubles have thrilled us for centuries. But sometimes fact is far stranger than fiction. In the mid-19th cen

At 2am on 24 October 1917, Austro-German forces unleashed a devastating artillery attack against Italian troops defending land they’d captured in a long series of brutal and costly offensives. It was the opening salvo in a battle that would lead to o

Grigori Rasputin was a mystic who entered the Russian court when he claimed to heal the Tsar’s young son. However, in 1916 he met his end at the hands of assassins. Rasputin’s bizarre death only served to further the impression of him as an almost su

When considering the Victorian period in England, it is hard not to think of a dismal time characterised by hard labour, poverty, stuffy societal rules, dreary landscapes covered by smog and a grief-stricken Queen in mourning. However, it was during

Cert: 15 Director: Roger Ross Williams Cast: Gael García Bernal, Roberta Colindrez, Perla De La Rosa Released: Out now Saúl Armendáriz (played by Gael García Bernal) changed the world of Mexico’s Lucha Libre (Freestyle Wrestling). An inherently flamb

Price: £95 Released: Out now In the years immediately following the end of World War II, numerous Eastern European countries fell under the control of the Soviet Union. On 5 March 1946, Winston Churchill gave his famous speech in Fulton, Missouri whe

Director: Charles Frend Starring: John Mills, Derek Bond, Harold Warrender Country: United Kingdom Year: 1948 01 The film tells the story of Captain Scott’s (John Mills) doomed 1911-1912 expedition to reach the South Pole before Norwegian explorer Ro

According to the legend, Napoleon liked this dish so much that it became his lucky meal. Check out THE ULTIMATE HISTORY COOKBOOK available now • 1 whole chicken, filleted • 1 can of chopped tomatoes • 150ml olive oil • 1 large onion • 1 red pepper •