History & Politics
Explore past civilizations, major events, leaders, revolutions, and how societies are governed.
Some of the stories included
Simonides and the Memory PalaceA poet stepped out of a banquet at Crannon, the stone roof fell on everyone inside, and the memory palace was born.
The Origin of the Bank HolidayHow one Victorian banker's 1871 Act gave an overworked nation a break by inventing the bank holiday.
The Black PrinceThe eldest son of King Edward III, Edward of Woodstock was a famed commander at Crécy and Poitiers who died before he could inherit the throne.
The History of Formula 1How Formula 1 grew from its first world championship race at Silverstone in 1950 into a global sport, through safety campaigns, ground-effect cars, TV deals, hybrid engines and Liberty Media's takeover.
Maimonides: Sage of CairoExiled as a child, Maimonides became a physician to sultans and the most influential Jewish thinker of the Middle Ages.
The American RevolutionThe American Revolution from the First Continental Congress in 1774, through the Declaration of Independence and the French alliance, to Yorktown, the Treaty of Paris and Washington's resignation.
The Fall of the Berlin WallHow a chain of events in 1989, from the Pan-European Picnic and the Leipzig marches to a confused press conference, led to the Berlin Wall opening on 9 November.
The Six-Day WarIn June 1967, Israel's preemptive strike defeated three Arab armies in six days, more than quadrupling the territory under its control.
Doctor Gladys WestGladys West, the mathematician whose model of the Earth's true shape made GPS accurate, and who went unrecognised for decades.
The HolocaustThe systematic, state-sponsored persecution and murder of six million Jews by the Nazi regime between 1933 and 1945.
The Story of ChocolateHow a bitter Aztec drink, made from beans that doubled as money, became the sweet, solid chocolate bar over 350 years of European tinkering.
The Zimmermann TelegramHow a secret 1917 German offer to Mexico, promising the return of Texas, New Mexico and Arizona, was intercepted by British codebreakers and helped bring the United States into World War I.
The Reign of Queen VictoriaThe story of Queen Victoria's 63-year reign, which defined an era of empire, industry, and immense social change for Britain.
Julius CaesarThe assassination of Julius Caesar on the Ides of March, 44 BC, and how it led to the end of the Roman Republic he was accused of destroying.
Martin Guerre: The Impostor HusbandIn 1556 a peasant named Arnaud du Tilh lived three years as Martin Guerre until the real Martin returned with a wooden leg.
Peary vs Cook: Who Reached the North Pole?Peary and Cook each claimed the North Pole in 1909, and a 1988 review found Peary likely missed it by 30 to 60 miles.
The ColosseumDiscover how the Colosseum was built with war spoils, engineered to empty in minutes, and what the thumbs-down gesture really meant.
The Architecture of ApartheidHow South Africa's government used laws like the 1950 Group Areas Act to systematically enforce racial segregation.
The Black DeathThe Black Death reached Europe in 1347, killing a third to a half of the population and remaking the medieval world.
Smallpox: The Disease We ErasedHow smallpox, a virus that killed 300 million people in the 20th century alone, became the only human disease ever eradicated.
Benjamin Franklin: Lightning, Liberty, and ContradictionFrom runaway apprentice to revered diplomat, Benjamin Franklin's life saw him tame lightning and champion liberty, even while owning slaves.
The Irish FamineThe Great Hunger began in 1845, triggered by a potato blight, but over a million died while Ireland remained a net exporter of food.
The Cuban Missile CrisisThe October 1962 standoff over Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba, from the U-2 photographs and naval quarantine to Black Saturday and the secret deal that ended it.
The Lombards Enter ItalyIn 568, King Alboin led the Lombards into Italy in the last great Germanic migration, dividing the peninsula for centuries.
The Theremin's Strange LifeInventor Leon Theremin created a touchless instrument, spied for the Soviets in New York, and designed a bug hidden in the US Great Seal.
The Alcatraz EscapeThe June 1962 escape from Alcatraz by Frank Morris and John and Clarence Anglin, who left dummy heads in their beds, paddled off on a raincoat raft, and were never found.
Flight MH370: The Plane That VanishedFlight MH370 carried 239 people toward Beijing, then turned back and slipped off military radar at 2:22 AM.
Archibald McIndoe and the Guinea Pig ClubSurgeon Archibald McIndoe rebuilt burned pilots' faces, and 39 founding members started the Guinea Pig Club in 1941.
Khalid ibn al-Walid: The Sword of GodThe story of Khalid ibn al-Walid, the 7th-century Arab general who defeated the Byzantines at the decisive Battle of Yarmouk in 636.
HiroshimaOn August 6, 1945, the US dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan, instantly killing tens of thousands and changing warfare forever.
The Great Hanoi Rat HuntIn 1902 Hanoi paid for rat tails, 20,114 arrived in one day, then inspectors found farms breeding rats for the bounty.
The Gunpowder PlotThe 1605 plot by English Catholics to blow up the House of Lords and kill James I, how an anonymous letter exposed it, and how it became Bonfire Night.
The Twelve ApostlesWho the twelve apostles of Jesus were according to the Gospels and Acts, and what the New Testament and later church traditions say became of Peter, James, Thomas and Matthias.
The Boer WarThe Second Boer War of 1899 to 1902 set Britain against two Boer republics. This story covers Black Week, the Khaki Election, scorched earth, the camps and the Peace of Vereeniging.
Theranos: The Blood Test That Never WorkedThe story of Theranos, the startup that reached a $9 billion valuation before its blood-testing technology was exposed as a massive fraud.
The Death Match: Football Under OccupationIn August 1942 a Kyiv bakery team beat a German air force side 5-3, but the legend of their doom was written later.
Christopher ColumbusThe life of Christopher Columbus, from his 1492 contract with Spain's monarchs and first Atlantic crossing to his arrest in chains and death still believing he had reached Asia.
Al-Andalus: Muslim SpainThe nine-century history of al-Andalus, from the 711 conquest to the final expulsion of the Moriscos in 1614.
Joan of ArcA peasant girl who heard voices, Joan of Arc was given an army and broke the siege of Orléans in 1429 before being tried and executed.
Rabbit-Proof Fence: Three Girls Walk HomeThree girls fled a government settlement in 1931 and followed a rabbit-proof fence on a 1,600 km walk home.
The Silk Road: A Journey Across ContinentsThe Silk Road, the network of trade routes that linked China to the Mediterranean and carried silk, paper, religions and ideas for 1,500 years.
The War of 1812The strange war between the US and Britain that saw the White House burned and a national anthem written as a result of the fighting.
The Hundred Years' WarThe 116-year struggle between England and France, a war of shifting tactics from longbows at Crécy to cannons at Castillon.
The Rise of SaladinHow a Kurdish officer united the Muslim world, retook Jerusalem in 1187, and negotiated a truce with Richard the Lionheart.
The Pyramids of GizaHow the Great Pyramid of Giza was built around 2580 BC: the architect, an inspector's surviving diary, and the paid workers' city beside it.
The Troubles in Northern IrelandThe 30-year conflict in Northern Ireland, from the 1968 civil rights marches to the 1998 Good Friday Agreement.
The 2008 Financial CrisisHow cheap credit, subprime mortgages and complex securities led to the 2008 financial crisis, from the fall of Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers to the AIG rescue, the bank bailout and the Great Recession.
The Korean WarAfter a hasty division at the 38th parallel, the 1950 invasion of South Korea began a brutal war that left the peninsula divided and without a peace treaty.
The Nuremberg TrialsThe landmark trials where, for the first time, Nazi leaders were held individually accountable for Crimes Against Humanity.
The Wall Street Crash of 1929A stock boom sextupled the market on borrowed money before a record crash wiped out nearly a war's worth of wealth.
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