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Foreign Office and Cabinet Office file release: May 2013

Gill Bennett, formerly Chief Historian at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office, introduces highlights of new files from the Permanent Under-Secretary’s Department (FO 1093), the government department responsible for liaison with the UK’s intelligence agencies, and the Cabinet Secretary’s archive (CAB ...
Australia in War and Peace, 1914-19

The ‘Australia in War and Peace, 1914-19′ research project is a major collaborative research project between the Menzies Centre for Australian Studies (MCAS), King’s College London and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) in Canberra, Australia. The ultimate ...
The Journey’s End Battalion: The 9th East Surrey and R C Sherriff in the Great War

‘Journey’s End’ is a well-known play about the Great War. The author, R C Sherriff, saw all his front line service with 9th Battalion East Surrey Regiment. The podcast explores in particular Sherriff’s experiences with the battalion and his reactions ...
The Children of Henry VIII

John Guy tells the story of the family drama of England’s wealthiest and most powerful king. It is a tale of jealousy, mutual distrust and often bitter sibling rivalry, simmering beneath the magnificent pageantry and stormy politics of the Tudor ...
Hillsborough: the tangled web

As a member of the Hillsborough Independent Panel, Christine Gifford led the Panel on the discovery and disclosure of the information subsequently put in the public domain in support of the Report of the Panel in September 2012. In this ...
An introduction to the fifth tranche of colonial administration records released at The National Archives

The National Archives is working with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) to transfer and release colonial administration records, referred to as the ‘migrated archives’ between April 2012 and November 2013, in accordance with the published timeline on the FCO website. ...
A momentous question: decorating the Victorian home

The rise of an increasingly affluent Victorian middle class and the availability of mass manufactured goods, including furniture and textiles, contributed to an intense interest in the concept of ‘home’ and questions of taste. Magazines and books giving advice on ...
A system of spies and informers: intelligence gathering in the period 1780-1830

The years 1780 to 1830 were a tumultuous time in British history with parliamentary reform societies, food riots, Luddite disturbances, Captain Swing and Cato Street. Using the records of the Home Office, this podcast focuses on just how the government ...
Hearth Tax: an introduction

The hearth tax was levied on householders in England and Wales between 1662 and 1689. Records of the assessments, returns and exemptions are a fruitful source for family, local and social historians, as they provide a remarkable insight into wealth, ...
The post-Restoration army: 1660-1714

We follow the history of the army from its inception as a standing force after the overthrow of the English republic and the restoration of the House of Stuart, through its increasing professionalisation during the War of the Spanish Succession ...
Authority, Legitimacy and Orthodoxy: the Accession of Henry V in 1413

Henry V has been described as ‘the greatest man that ever ruled England’, yet the circumstances of his accession 600 years ago in March 1413 did not hint at his future successes. Disputes over foreign policy and a strained relationship ...
Stalingrad and Berlin: researching the reality of war

Antony Beevor is an author whose books include ‘Stalingrad’ (Samuel Johnson, Wolfson and Hawthornden Prizes); ‘Berlin The Downfall’; ‘The Battle for Spain’ (Premio La Vanguardia); ‘D-Day – The Battle for Normandy’ (RUSI Westminster Medal and Prix Henry Malherbe), and most ...
An Embarrassing Question: Opium, Britain and China 1856-1860

The war between Britain and China from 1856 to 1860 became widely known as the Second Opium War, but what part did opium play in the conflict? Using a variety of records in The National Archives, online resources and published ...
The policy agenda of the British Government, 1945-2008

Peter John talks about his research mapping the policies the British government has been concentrating on since 1945. Using the Queen’s Speech, laws and budgets he shows how the attention of government has shifted, taking into account the crisis in ...
Challenges facing The National Archives – Part 3

Podcast of a third interview between Dr Andrew Foster from the Historical Association and member of The National Archives’ Strategic Academic Stakeholder Forum and Oliver Morley, Chief Executive and Keeper, The National Archives, which took place on 11 February 2013. ...