Short History Of...

From its initial creation in 1922, the Soviet Union was perhaps the most ambitious political experiment in human history. But how did this superpower come about? And in its first decades, how did its founding principles of equality transform to fit a nation that became synonymous with tragedy, poverty, suppression and terror?  This is the first in a special 2-part Short History of the Soviet Union. Written by Dan Smith...

Despite its troubled infancy and the hardship faced during World War 2, in the second half of the 20th century the USSR became one of the world’s two superpowers. How did it manage this turn-around? What did its rise mean for its people and the rest of the world? And how did the young nation that shaped so much of the 20th century’s geopolitics eventually come crashing down? This is the second in a special 2 part Short History of… the Soviet Union. Written by Dan Smith...

Built by the Khmer kings centuries ago, Angkor in modern Cambodia had a footprint bigger than present-day New York. But after it fell into ruin, much of its unique architecture and intricate carvings were swallowed by the jungle. So, who raised this vast city, and why? What caused their civilisation to fall? And how were parts of it maintained, right up to the present day?  This is a Short History Of Angkor. Written by Jo Furniss...

Thomas Edison was one of history’s greatest inventors, who gave the world not only electric light but other landmark innovations in sound recording and moving pictures. He accumulated more patents in his lifetime than any other, and filled over 4000 notebooks with his work...

The Renaissance of the 15th and 16th centuries was a time of rediscovery. With Florence as its epicentre, it saw a revival of the art, culture and philosophy of ancient Greek and Rome, triggering huge shifts in creativity and thought...

During World War Two, dozens of British-trained women were deployed as spies and saboteurs, to infiltrate behind enemy lines in Nazi-controlled France. Ranging from housewives to countesses, they were trained as secret agents, and played critical roles to aid the war effort...

While the Roman Republic was still in its infancy, the Greek city-state of Athens rose from the ruins of war with the Persians to become the most beautiful and powerful in the region. During this Golden Age, many Athenian citizens enjoyed unprecedented freedoms in the world’s first democracy. Architects and engineers designed buildings of unparalleled sophistication, while writers, philosophers and scientists created works that still resonate today...

As long as humans have observed creatures in flight, we have dreamed of taking to the skies ourselves. But Wilbur and Orville Wright were determined to be the ones to turn the dream into reality. So what did they need to learn from the early aviation pioneers who preceded them? And how did these two bicycle makers with no college education succeed where others had failed? This is a Short History of The Wright Brothers. Written by Linda Harrison...

Nineteen hundred years ago, Hadrian’s Wall was built to defend against the northern tribes, and mark the extent of the Roman empire in Britain. But it also performed functions of trade and communication. Entire communities, of people from all over the Roman Empire, lived and worked in its shadow...

Richard the Third was the last English king to die in battle. A key figure in the Wars of the Roses, he is also prime suspect in the enduring mystery of the Princes in the Tower. Shakespeare’s classic villain, he is immortalized as an anti-hero, cunning and monstrous...