How Britain lost America
After declaring independence, the United States still had to survive a brutal conflict. In the third episode of HistoryExtra's four-part series on the American Revolutionary War, Elinor Evans and Adam...
4 Jul 35min
A history of the US in 100 unexpected objects
As the United States marks the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, Americans are taking a fresh look at their nation's past. But what if the story of the US isn't best told through p...
2 Jul 38min
An A-Z history of the English alphabet
Which letter of the English alphabet did Benjamin Franklin think we'd be better off without? Why must the letter U (almost) always follow the letter Q? And what is the point of silent letters? From th...
30 Jun 47min
Abigail Adams: life of the week
As the wife of a founding figure in early American history, Abigail Adams was able to push beyond the restrictions of many of her sex in the 18th century, influencing policy and advocating for those i...
29 Jun 39min
The astonishing laws of medieval Wales
From divorce settlements and cattle disputes to surprisingly modern ideas about gender and compensation, the laws of Hywel Dda shed unique light on how society functioned, in a turbulent age of rival ...
28 Jun 45min
Inside the Declaration of Independence
It’s 250 years since the Declaration of Independence brought a new nation into formal existence. But what did it actually say – and who did it leave out? In the second episode of HistoryExtra’s series...
27 Jun 32min
Cannibalism, heartbreak and Madame Guillotine: George Forster's extraordinary life
He sailed to Antarctica with Captain Cook, rubbed shoulders with Benjamin Franklin and helped found a revolutionary republic. It’s little wonder, then, that Andrea Wulf describes George Forster – the ...
25 Jun 43min
Charlotte Brontë's life through clothes
We might picture Charlotte Brontë's life as an isolated one, separated from much of the world and its fashions as she whiled away the hours in her father's Haworth parsonage. But the truth, as Eleanor...
23 Jun 36min
