MICHAEL WOOD ON… THOMAS MANN AND THE THREAT OF UNREASON

WELCOME

NOVEMBER 2022

THIS ISSUE’S CONTRIBUTORS

Rob Blackmore “Historical facts are slippery things. Our

History news

The ghost village of Aceredo in Galicia, north-western

ANNIVERSARIES

HELEN CARR highlights events that took place in November in history

HIDDEN HISTORIES

KAVITA PURI explores lesser-known stories from our past

THE HISTORIANS’ VERDICT

Cold War hero or failed idealist?

LETTERS

Margaret of Anjou was one of England’s most

Q & A

A selection of historical conundrums answered by experts

NEXT MONTH

December issue on sale 27 October 2022

A typical medieval peasant? There’s no such thing

If modern film and TV depictions are anything to go by, ordinary people in the Middle Ages either enjoyed lives of rural bliss or unrelenting drudgery. Yet, writes Duncan Hardy, the truth is far more complex (and fascinating) than that

“The reality of Colditz is much more interesting than the black-and-white moral fable”

For his new book, bestselling author Ben Macintyre has set his sights on the most infamous PoW camp of the Second World War. He reveals how the legendar y escape attempts are only part of a complex, darker history

A fiery priest and polymath

PAMELA ROBERTS charts the career of a brilliant Antiguan-born scholar who – whether he was blazing a trail at Oxford University, crossing swords with clergymen in Kent, or winning a debating prize at a top American college – rarely failed to ruffle establishment feathers

Why we need to get our facts straight

It’s impossible to attain the full truth of what occurred in the past. But, as history continues to be twisted for political gain, it’s critically important that we try

WHAT DOOMED THE MARY ROSE?

DidFrench guns, bad weather or human error sink Henry VIII’s favourite warship in 1545? Forty years after the Mary Rose was raised from the seabed, Emily Briffett weighs up the evidence

THE BITTER END

The final months of the Second World War witnessed the slow strangulation of the Third Reich, as Hitler’s increasing detachment from reality condemned millions of his compatriots to death. Richard J Evans charts the bloody collapse of Nazi Germany

In the eye of the storm

The past two decades have seen the BBC rocked by a series of scandals that raised questions about its culture and practices – and tested its relationship with politicians and the public alike. DAVID HENDY charts the revelations and their aftermath

“Agatha Christie’s mysterious disappearance in 1926 was the central injustice of her life”

LUCY WORSLEY speaks to Rhiannon Davies about her new biography of the doyen of detective novels, Agatha Christie, and what her life and work reveals about the 20th century

REVIEWS

ROGER MOORHOUSE applauds a masterful analysis of the

DIARY

Viola Davis stars as General Nanisca, tasked with

PODCAST

Is it time to rethink how we display mummies?

EXPLORE

EXPLORE… BROUGHAM CASTLE, CUMBRIA

TRAVEL

TRAVEL TO… ANKARA, TURKEY

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ICON

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