The epic story of Julius Caesar. Born in 100 BC, Caesar eventually became one of the most influential leaders in history. After a bloody civil war, where, famously, he crossed the Rubicon with his army, he defeated Pompey and the Republicans and was appointed as dictator of Rome, preparing the path for the Imperial might […]
Cleopatra Queen of Egypt by Lindsay Powell
Cleopatra had the rare distinction of connecting three great cultures. She was born of an ancient Greek dynasty that stretched back to the time of Alexander the Great, and as the last Pharaoh of Egypt she ruled before the once mighty kingdom became a vassal state under the all-powerful Roman Empire in the first century […]
The hazards of being a biographer
Writing a biography, especially of someone who isn’t already the subject of a published book, can mean searching for living relatives who may have documents or stories that shed light on their life, as Jane Dismore explains. Then, once you find them, you have to persuade them to let you have those stories — or […]
Tangled Souls by Jane Dismore
Outrageously handsome, witty and clever, Harry Cust was reputed to be one of the great womanisers of the late Victorian era. In 1893, while a Member of Parliament, he caused public scandal by his affair with artist and poet Nina Welby-Gregory. When she revealed she was pregnant, horror swept through their circle known as ‘the […]
The 2026 HWA Crown Awards longlists
The Historical Writers’ Association (HWA) is delighted to announce the Crown Awards longlists for 2026, celebrating the best in historical writing, fiction and non-fiction, published during 2025–2026. There are three awards categories: HWA Gold Crown, HWA Non-fiction Crown, and HWA Debut Crown, and 12 books in each category. Read on to find out about all […]
Jane Seymour: Patronage, Material Culture and Image Crafting by Elizabeth Norton
Jane Seymour, the third wife of Henry VIII, was queen of England for only 17 months, something which has accounted for the little interest shown in her by historians. In her lifetime, however, she was a significant political figure, while her legacy and memorialization extended beyond her early death following childbirth in October 1537. This […]
Marcus Agrippa: The True Story by Lindsay Powell
Marcus Agrippa was a remarkable man in his own day and, 2,000 years later, his achievement is undiminished. As the foremost deputy of Emperor Augustus, for three decades he waged wars, befriended kings and potentates, pacified provinces, and beautified Rome. Most people who recognise his name today likely know it through novels, films, and television. […]
Bede: the man who invented England by Edoardo Albert
What is England, and who are the English? The man who first posed and answered these questions lived 1,200 years ago in Northumberland. The Venerable Bede spent almost his whole life in two monasteries looking over the North Sea, far from the centres of civilisation. Yet he became the foremost scholar of the first millennium, […]