British History

Hans Holbein's portrait of Anne of Cleves convinced Henry VIII of his bride-to-be's charms

Historian’s New Novel Raises Controversial Theory: Henry VIII Divorced Anne of Cleves Because She’d Already Given Birth

Alison Weir acknowledges the claim, which pulls on previously unexplored evidence, is "inconclusive and speculative" but says it might make readers think

Trove of English Court Records Reveal Stories of Murder, Witchcraft, Cheese Theft

Archivists are cataloging documents from the Assizes court in the Isle of Ely, which tried serious crimes

An activist holds up a rainbow flag inside Botswana's High Court to celebrate Tuesday's landmark ruling.

In Landmark Ruling, Botswana Strikes Down Colonial-Era Law Criminalizing Homosexuality

‘A democratic society is one that embraces tolerance, diversity and open-mindedness,’ Justice Michael Leburu said of the ruling

The warder is the first of five missing pieces to materialize since the remaining chessmen’s discovery in 1831

A Medieval Chess Piece Potentially Worth $1.2 Million Languished in a Drawer for Decades

The Lewis warder, part of a larger trove of 12th-century ivory chessmen, was purchased for £5 in 1964

The Oldest Film of a Solar Eclipse Has Been Restored and Released Online

In 1900, magician, astronomer and filmmaker Nevil Maskelyne used a special adapter to film the astronomical event in North Carolina

Watch Rare Footage of a Smiling, Sunglass-Wearing Queen Victoria

The remarkably clear 1900 film was found in the MoMA archives

Stereoscopic portraits of Queen Victoria. Dated 1854.

Two Unseen Photographs of Queen Victoria Released in Honor of Her 200th Birthday

Victoria and her husband, Prince Albert, were early and eager adopters of new photographic technologies and commissioned many personal family portraits

All four chicks are growing quickly, quadrupling in size from around 8 centimeters tall at birth to more than 30 centimeters last week

Tower of London Welcomes Baby Ravens for the First Time in 30 Years

The four chicks eat at least once every two hours, feasting on a diet of quail, mice and rats

Structures unearthed at Achtriochtan may be linked with the bloody massacre

Archaeologists Are Excavating Site of Scottish Massacre That Inspired the ‘Game of Thrones’ Red Wedding

In 1692, members of the Campbell clan turned on their MacDonald hosts, killing at least 38 men and sending women and children fleeing into the hills

The board was likely used in the bath house at Vindolanda, one of 14 forts along Hadrian's Wall, but was repurposed as a floor stone in the adjacent building after it was broken.

Archaeologists Uncover an Ancient Roman Game Board at Hadrian's Wall

The cracked stone board was likely used to play ludus latrunculorum, Rome's favorite game

Historians Are Looking for Images of the HMS Beagle's Anchors

Researchers are hoping to confirm that they have discovered an anchor from the ship that carried Darwin stuck in the mud of an Australian river

Elizabeth and Edward IV married in secret, attracting the ire of the king's advisors and most of the court

Did Elizabeth Woodville, England’s ‘White Queen,’ Die of the Plague?

A 500-year-old letter recently found in the National Archives suggests the queen was buried quickly and without ceremony due to fear of contagion

'A Clockwork Orange' Follow-Up Found in Burgess Archives

'The Clockwork Condition' was intended to be a philosophical examination of themes raised in his most popular and problematic novel

Wainright watches over Livingstone's body on the trip back to Britain.

Diary of Livingstone's Intrepid African Attendant Jacob Wainwright Digitized

He traveled with the Scottish missionary and explorer searching for the source of the Nile, and he's responsible for bringing his remains to Britain

Ring Containing Charlotte Brontë's Hair Discovered in Attic

The piece of mourning jewelry includes an inscription and a little door covering a plaited lock of the <i>Jane Eyre</i> author's hair

A Neolithic woman was buried with her arms bound behind her head and her amputated feet placed on either side of her body

U.K. Construction Finds Neolithic Skeletons That May Have Been Victims of Human Sacrifice

Archaeologists have recovered 26 sets of human remains, as well as artifacts including pottery and a decorative comb

Avebury stands some 25 miles north of Stonehenge and is large enough to fit two Stonehenge-sized circles.

Stone Circles at Avebury May Have Surrounded House for Neolithic ‘One Percent’

Researchers theorize that the monument, near Stonehenge, was erected to commemorate the site of later generations' ancestral home

Experts believe the Neolithic dog is the first canine to undergo forensic facial reconstruction

Thanks to Facial Reconstruction, You Can Now Look Into the Eyes of a Neolithic Dog

The collie-sized canine was buried in a cavernous tomb on Scotland’s Orkney Islands around 2,500 B.C.

Computer Analysis Says 'Beowulf' Is the Work of a Single Author

Academics have argued about the origins of the Old English epic for two centuries

Adam Smith and William Shakespeare

How the Invisible Hand of William Shakespeare Influenced Adam Smith

Born more than 150 years apart, the two British luminaries each encountered rough receptions for their radical ideas

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