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Victorian

The Victorian era takes its name from Queen Victoria, who ruled between 1837-1901. There were nine British prime ministers during the Victorian era. The Victorians are popularised by famed author Charles Dickens; the technological and social change caused by the industrial revolution; serial killer Jack the Ripper; and the engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Find out everything you need to know about the Victorians here…

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America's anti-Chinese laws: a forgotten history. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Close-up of an open Egyptian sarcophagus displaying a wrapped mummy model inside next to its ornate, gilded lid

Victorian

Would you eat an Egyptian mummy? Here's why the Victorians did exactly that

Vintage black-and-white studio portrait of a seated aristocrat wearing an ornate theatrical costume with a winged headdress

Edwardian

Is Madfabulous based on a true story? The real history of ‘Dancing Marquess’ Henry Cyril Paget

1858 Punch satirical cartoon titled 'The Silent Highwayman,' showing the Grim Reaper rowing on a polluted River Thames in front of London landmarks

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Victorian London's poop explosion: why even Queen Victoria couldn't escape the stench. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Collage of 19th-century crime illustrations tinted pink, showing figures fighting, a man firing a pistol, and a woman lying on the floor.

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"She was mad with the acrid lust of blood": 6 murders that shocked Victorian Britain. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Historic image of a cyclist in early riding attire standing with a bicycle, set against a collage of world maps suggesting travel and adventure.

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In 1895, a Chicago housewife left her family to cycle around the world. But was it all a hoax?. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Western and Chinese ships gather off the Chinese coast during the 19th-century Opium Wars.

Victorian

Was the British Empire really built on drugs? The unlikely rise of an imperial superpower

Europe map

20th Century

What is ‘Europe’, anyway?. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

CS Lewis

20th Century

Christianity, conflict and catastrophe: the life of CS Lewis. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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Was Napoleon III the world's first populist leader?. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle sit together in an open carriage, smiling and waving to crowds following their wedding at Windsor Castle in May 2018. Harry wears military uniform, while Meghan wears a white wedding dress and veil.

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From Nell Gwyn to Meghan Markle: 9 romances between actors and royals. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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How bullies shaped 19th-century America. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Three Tudor-era children sit at a table within an ornate architectural frame, dressed in elaborate period clothing, with small round objects laid out before them.

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Royal rivalries10 of the most famous sibling relationships. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

In December 1929, investigator and ghost hunter Harry Price demonstrates an electric control device he designed to monitor a medium’s movements during séances. (Photo by Alamy)

Victorian

A Victorian ghost hunter investigated Britain’s most haunted house. This is what he found

Queen Victoria in a blue dress and white lace veil superimposed over a dim cobblestone alley, where a shadowy figure walks beneath glowing streetlights. The composition appears on an aged photograph lying among worn papers

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Episode 1Was Jack the Ripper Queen Victoria's grandson?. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

An illustration of a hand drawing a flowering plant with a fountain pen on a sheet of paper. The sketched plant rises off the page as a lifelike stem with green leaves, pink blossoms, and a butterfly perched on one leaf. Books sit stacked on the wooden table, and a soft countryside scene with a stone house, gate, rolling hills, and palm trees stretches into the background under a partly cloudy sky.

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"He plugged into the electric current of history": why Rudyard Kipling still matters in 2026. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A black‑and‑white collage places a woman in ornate formal clothing and a fur stole at the front. Behind her are images of snow‑covered mountain peaks, roped climbers, and a smaller figure holding a newspaper with the headline “Votes for Women.”

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"She saw off bandits with her revolver": the unbelievable adventures of Fanny Bullock Workman. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A small group of people in historical-style clothing gather outdoors around a campfire. One person plays a violin while others clap, dance, or sit watching. A simple canvas tent stands behind them in a grassy, wooded setting.

Victorian

Go west! Is Little House on the Prairie a true story? Here’s the real history behind the frontier drama reboot

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The captain's wife who took command. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Two circular portraits overlap against a blue background. The left shows an older sepia‑toned photograph of a person with curly hair in a high‑collared dark garment. The right shows a modern colour photograph of a light‑haired person wearing a dark jacket and a necklace. The circles intersect to create a small blended area between them.

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"If she had been a man there would be a statue of her": the amazing life of an unsung Victorian scientist. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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Charlotte Brontë's life through clothes. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Andrew Carnegie (1835–1919), the Scottish-American industrialist who built a steel empire in the late 19th century, speaks with colleagues in this photograph. Renowned for both his business success and later philanthropy, Carnegie championed education, libraries, and scientific advancement as part of his belief in the philanthropy. (Photo by Getty Images)

Victorian

Meet the tiny titan who was (briefly) the richest man alive

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The real history behind your favourite William Morris designs. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Portrait photograph of Grigori Rasputin with long hair and beard, staring intensely toward the camera while casting a shadow on the wall behind him.

Victorian

A peasant with an axe haunted her dreams. Then Rasputin arrived

Gold funerary mask from the Asante kingdom, shown against a black background, with visible damage and intricate facial detailing.

Victorian

The Victorians looted these precious treasures. What happens next is still uncertain

A gold funerary mask shaped into a human face, with almond‑shaped eyes, a prominent nose, and a closed mouth. The surface is worn and cracked, with some sections missing.

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Blood and plunder: the looted African gold – and the fight to get it back. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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A short history of running. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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Episode 5Queen Victoria: a symbol of empire. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A collage combines several portraits and illustrations of rulers and notable figures, including people in regal robes, armour, and elaborate crowns, alongside a muscular figure drawn in a black‑and‑white engraving style.

Medieval

16 of the worst monarchs in history

Late 19th and early 20th-century 'lock-up mugshots' show style-conscious villains staring down the camera

Victorian

Who were the real Peaky Blinders?

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