Berfrois

Turmoil in 19th Century Spain

Turmoil in 19th Century Spain

The analysis begins judiciously with the war of 1793-95 and its aftermath...

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Switzengland

Switzengland

Nowadays, the charm of a Little Switzerland is not a lofty, aesthetic ideal of Romanticism...

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The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Imperialism

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Imperialism

For many of the most successful imperialist countries, empire was just not worth the trouble...

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The French capital had around 30,000 cafes by 1900…

The French capital had around 30,000 cafes by 1900…

Parisian cafes could become cauldrons of conversation and thought...

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All, All, Cry Shame

All, All, Cry Shame

Inherent in the politics of humiliation is status competition...

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Forbidden Treasures

Forbidden Treasures

Approximately 250,000 priceless artefacts somehow escaped destruction by fire, water, moths and termite...

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The Queen of Decolonisation

The Queen of Decolonisation

The ambiguity reflects the complex relationship between the monarchy and Britain’s former empire...

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Beneath La Maddalena

Beneath La Maddalena

In 1972, the US Navy installed a nuclear submarine base in La Maddalena...

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Gorbachev’s Optimism

Gorbachev’s Optimism

Mikhail Gorbachev’s role in the collapse of the Soviet Union and in ending the Cold War on largely peaceful terms marks him as undoubtedly one of the most influential figures of the late twentieth century...

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How do nationalist-minded fascists think transnationally?

How do nationalist-minded fascists think transnationally?

Dissatisfied with Édouard Daladier’s coalition of the socialist-republican French left, tens of thousands right-wing activists gathered at the Place de la Concorde...

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St Paul’s Churchyard Invaded St Paul’s Cathedral

St Paul’s Churchyard Invaded St Paul’s Cathedral

Far from being a sea of calm and piety, the churchyard could be as cacophonous as anywhere else in the City...

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The szlachta pushed the Commonwealth in the opposite direction from absolutism…

The szlachta pushed the Commonwealth in the opposite direction from absolutism…

In this version of history, Poland and Lithuania had been briefly conquered and colonised by the Sarmatians...

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Winter Warriors

Winter Warriors

Unable to deter the Soviets, France and Britain finally raised a military relief force, too small and too late to impact the outcome...

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Why did Ukraine give up the Bomb?

Why did Ukraine give up the Bomb?

In 1991, Ukraine became an independent country and the world’s third largest nuclear power...

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