Too many historians have ignored the role of women in the Jacobite Rising of 1745. This book aims to redress the balance. Damn’ Rebel Bitches takes a totally fresh approach to the history of the Jacobite Rising by telling the fascinating stories of the many women caught up in the turbulent events of 1745-46. Drawn […]
The Dark Queens by Shelley Puhak
Brunhild was a Visigothic princess, raised to be married off for the sake of alliance-building. Her sister-in-law Fredegund started out as a lowly palace slave. And yet – in sixth-century Merovingian France, where women were excluded from noble succession and royal politics was a blood sport – these two iron-willed strategists reigned over vast realms […]
Christmas reading 2021 – the best historical books
We asked eight authors to each recommend a historical book they’d love to receive for Christmas 2021, and one they would give as a Christmas gift. They include many of the best books published this year. We hope these suggestions inspire you, whether you’re looking for ideas for presents or planning to curl up in […]
The women agents behind the D-Day invasion
The Allied invasion of Normandy on 6 June, 1944 – D-Day – is one of the most recognisable events of the Second World War, thanks not just to its importance militarily but to its coverage in books and films. Less well known is the complex and secret process of planning the invasion, and the significant […]
Angelica Kauffman, artist and pioneer
This month’s guest post is by the novelist Miranda Miller, who writes about the subject of her latest book, the artist Angelica Kauffman. Angelica, Paintress of Minds was published in summer 2020, when the Royal Academy was to show a major exhibition of the artist’s works; but this, like other public events, was cancelled. Miranda […]
Where are the Women? A Guide to an Imagined Scotland by Sara Sheridan
For most of recorded history, women have been sidelined, if not silenced, by men who named the built environment after themselves. Now is the time to look unflinchingly at Scotland’s heritage and bring those women who have been ignored to light. Can you imagine a different Scotland, a Scotland where women are commemorated in statues […]
Women of Power in Anglo-Saxon England by Annie Whitehead
Many Anglo-Saxon kings are familiar. Æthelred the Unready is one, yet less is written of his wife, who was consort of two kings and championed one of her sons over the others, or his mother, who was an anointed queen and powerful regent, but was also accused of witchcraft and regicide. A royal abbess educated […]