If I were to say the Kraken, The Flying Dutchman, the Sirens or mermaids you would be forgiven for mistaking this for a Pirates of the Caribbean article! However, history is full of various sea myths and monsters many of which are still popular today. This article sets out to explore exactly what these stories […]
Pablo Emilio Escobar Gaviria was the infamous Colombian drug lord who’s violent power dominated the cocaine industry for two decades, making him billions of dollars and leading to the murder of hundreds of people. Pablo Escobar was born in the city of Envigado, Colombia in 1949 and his criminal inclinations can be seen from his […]
Marathons are one of the most physically demanding sporting events and over 36,000 people compete annually in the London Marathon alone. Yet legend has it the marathon began with a single runner and an important piece of news. In the summer of 490 BC, in the east of Greece, the first Persian invasion of Greece […]
Magdalene asylums, also known as ‘Magdalene laundries’, emerged in the late 18th century to house “fallen women”. Originally this meant women who worked in prostitution, but this term gradually expanded to include women classed as sexually promiscuous, unmarried mothers, women considered too tempting to men, and women who were considered a family burden. They were […]
Mary Wollstonecraft is often regarded as the catalyst for Western Feminism, hence her nickname as its ‘mother’. Her revolutionary book ‘Vindication of the Rights of Women’ altered the future of women in the West. Not only did it attack the existing patriarchy, but it pushed for a more equal society and encouraged the recognition of […]
We have retold the stories of the Second World War without pause since it drew to a close in 1945. Films are an increasingly important way in which we remember the Second World War. But yet, these films, while engrossing in character and wildly popular, do not always reflect how the Second World War actually […]
As you sit at a desk trying to recall a mountain of information learnt in three hours each week for the last few months, it’s tempting to dream about pastures sunny. In this issue, we’ve provided you with the perfect fodder for those forgetful exam moments, though we’d recommend saving it for after you’ve walked […]
The increasing reliance upon ‘online teaching’ has caused contention among some students who feel they are not getting enough for their money, with such little contact hours and an emphasis on self-study. The launch of Blackboard 9 has enabled the creation of the History Student Portal (HSP), a set of pages that give all History […]
There are a number of unwritten rules that surface during an American Presidential Election with alarming alacrity. A small town in New Hampshire will be the first to declare its results after the 34 voters have cast their ballots, no Republican wins without taking Ohio’s 18 Electoral College votes, and the calamitous inevitability of something […]
The Manchester Historian is the University of Manchester History Department’s magazine, established and produced by students for students. The magazine provides a range of exciting opportunities for students interested in journalism, marketing, advertising, or just with a passion for writing. We aim to produce publications that broaden readers’ historical knowledge and interest. We are always […]
Samuel Alexander’s major presence at the University of Manchester gave shape to his lasting legacy. This was permanently instated in 2007, when the arts building, once known as Lime Grove, was renamed the Samuel Alexander Building. Born in Sydney in 1859, he excelled in his academic life in Melbourne and consequently was granted a scholarship […]
Issue 41 – Gender and Identity In Britain, the women’s liberation movement brought women’s history from the margins into the mainstream of historical thinking, seeking to trace both inequality and oppression through the past and to rediscover female experiences left out by traditional historiography. As the field developed, a gendered approach to history has provided […]
Galileo Galilei is credited with taking the first historical landmark in space exploration; his first telescopic observation of the night sky discovered the moons of Jupiter and the phases of Venus. These discoveries and Galilei’s involvement in the scientific revolution of the seventeenth century saw the progress of space exploration catalyse rapidly. Galilei’s discoveries would […]
In the nineteenth century, Britain developed a reputation within Europe for religious tolerance. In the last quarter of the century, antisemitism in Western Europe saw a transformation from being rooted in religion to being a question of race. The advent of racial antisemitism as the primary current of anti-Jewish hate was brought on by the […]
