Human trafficking is the world’s third largest underground network, deeply entrenched in both the developed and third world. Measures to curb human trafficking are continually being revised to ensure that the aid provided to the 20 million affected by slave trade is funnelled into where it is needed most, in order to combat this $31 […]
The Battle of Peleliu, or Operation Stalemate II, was a controversial battle fought between the US and Japan from September to November 1944 on Peleliu, a volcanic island just six miles wide in present-day Palau. During the course of the battle, Japanese resistance inflicted heavy damage on the US troops. Although it resulted in literal […]
In November 2024, countries at the COP29 summit in Azerbaijan agreed on a $200bn per year increase in climate financial assistance to developing countries across the world. Western nations say a ‘massive deal was struck’ and the UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer stated that the pledges made were ‘ambitious’ from both a UK and an […]
“Reality is as thin as paper, and betrays with all its cracks its imitative character. A hundred times I had to try and test its taut skin with my hands, and had found it hopelessly botched.” These are the words of Jewish Galician writer Bruno Schulz, a globally relevant artist and painter, particularly recognised among […]
Mr Bush reviews A Doll’s House at the Royal Exchange. Professor Paul Fouracre’s book Frankish History: Studies in the Construction of Power has recently been published in Ashgate’s Variorum Collected Studies Series. Dr Yangwen Zheng edited The Chinese Chameleon Revisited: From the Jesuits to Zhang Yimou which was also published recently. Dr Pedro Ramos Pinto […]
The entirety of humanity’s relationship with nature is not a topic which lends itself to a 450 word article, with a huge diversity in attitudes to topics like sustainability throughout human history. However, in looking back at how we have perceived nature throughout the years, we can gain insight into how we have treated nature […]
The early years of the USSR were exciting and turbulent. Rapid industrialisation, education, and the rise of gender equality led to a feeling of great hope for the country’s future. Whilst women who lived in rural areas continued to wear traditional hand-sewn Russian dress, women living in urban areas of Russia began to style themselves […]
It’s always intriguing when one learns something new about one’s own country; especially when that new insight is given by one of the best historians of the generation. That’s exactly what we received when our newly-appointed Professor of Public History Michael Wood swapped the television set for the lecture theatre in the first of a […]
Newspapers contain a wealth of information that can be useful, even vital, to the work historians do. Whether you need news reports, biographical information, or contemporary opinion, newspapers will support your work. However, finding relevant articles can be a difficult task. Libraries often have paper copies of local and national newspapers, for example Manchester Central […]
“The Floating World” refers to the pleasure-seeking, urban lifestyle of the Edo period of Japan (1600-1868). This period of relative stability under Tokugawa Shogunate was one of prolific cultural output, especially in large cities such as the capital, Edo, which is now Tokyo. Haiku poetry found increased popularity during this period, propagated by master poets […]
The entirety of humanity’s relationship with nature is not a topic which lends itself to a 450 word article, with a huge diversity in attitudes to topics like sustainability throughout human history. However, in looking back at how we have perceived nature throughout the years, we can gain insight into how we have treated nature […]
Although his credentials relate to journalism, there is certainly a historian at the heart of Tim Butcher. His travel adventures chronicled in Blood River and Chasing The Devil, explore the journeys of famous characters whilst delving into the recent histories of the surrounding areas. The combination of historical research and the sense of danger that […]
Since the Arab Spring that started late in 2010, the Middle East has seen a surge towards democratization, but not without escalating conflicts and continuing tension between the regions geopolitical powers. Furthermore, as the US has found out, it is increasingly difficult to draw clear lines of allegiance between the Arab states – allies in […]
Everyone is familiar with the image of King Henry VIII in his later years; having been a lean, athletic man in his youth, by the time of his death his weight had reached staggering proportions. In the days before his death in 1547 he has been described as being ‘hideously obese’ by the historian Robert […]