Volume 73 Issue 9 September 2023

A white marble Roman head of Plato, 3rd century AD.

‘Plato of Athens’ by Robin Waterfield review

Well-researched and attractively written, Plato of Athens: A Life in Philosophy by Robin Waterfield grapples with a life that left few records.

Painting of Elizabeth I of England, also known as the Ermine Portrait. Elizabeth is wearing a richly decorated black dress and The Three Brothers jewel.

What Can Historical Clothing Reveal That Other Sources Cannot?

From Elizabeth I’s intimate attire to fabrics that threatened social hierarchies, clothes tell us about more than just their wearers.

George McMahon under arrest after attempting to kill Edward VIII, Constitution Hill, London, 16 July 1936.

George McMahon: Fascist Assassin or British Spy?

Mystery surrounds George McMahon who, having tried to assassinate Edward VIII, outed himself as an agent of a ‘foreign power’. Does the discovery of new Italian documents solve the puzzle or obscure it further?

A statue of Catalina Suárez Marcaida, wife of Hernán Cortés in Seville.

Did Hernán Cortés Murder His First Wife?

Within two months of arriving in New Spain, Catalina Suárez Marcaida, first wife of the conquistador Hernán Cortés, was dead. Did she meet with foul play?

Marjorie Foster after becoming the first woman to win the King’s Prize for rifle shooting at Bisley, 20 July 1930.

Shots Fired: Marjorie Foster and Women at War

After winning the biggest shooting prize in the Empire, Marjorie Foster joined the new pantheon of women making sporting headlines. On the eve of the Second World War, she had a new target in her sights: the War Office.

King Ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia and President Franklin D. Roosevelt converse on the deck of a U.S. warship in the Great Bitter Lake near Cairo after Roosevelt's attendance at the Yalta conference.

‘Wahhābism’ by Cole M. Bunzel review

Wahhābism: The History of a Militant Islamic Movement by Cole M. Bunzel is groundbreaking and deserves to reach as wide an audience as possible.

Achilles tending Patroclus wounded by an arrow, identified by inscriptions on the upper part of the vase.

‘Homer and His Iliad’ by Robin Lane Fox review

Homer and His Iliad by Robin Lane Fox is a masterly survey of the Iliad, its majesty, its pathos and its unparalleled progression from wrath to pity.

Saint Guthlac being tormented by demons, the Life of Saint Guthlac, Crowland, Lincolnshire, 1175-1215. Guthlac’s name represented a shift away from older naming conventions towards a recognisably English one. British Library. Public Domain.

Old English Names: Cæd, Bæd and Dangerous to Know

What happened in Britain after the Romans left? The names of those who remained – and those who arrived – may hold an answer.

An illustration showing the Hindu mythological figure Sita.

Nationalism in Nepal: On the Right Side of History

Adipurush, a controversial Bollywood film, has sparked anger in Nepal. For small states with big neighbours, details matter.

Alternative Histories: Plymouth Harbour, 1588

The latest in Rob Murray's series of Alternative History cartoons.