Politics

Human society is always surrounded by politics of some sort. Whether it is the basic negotiation of leadership and obedience of rules for clans or soldiers or, the more sophisticated set up of the modern world the relationship of control and decision making is always around. Grouped together in this strand are articles and podcasts covering the systems of the ancient world in Greece and Rome, alongside the stories of revolution in Europe, the creation of treaties and alliances and the arguments amongst political parties today.

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  • The Exclusion Crisis (1679–81)

    Article

    The Exclusion Crisis in the reign of King Charles II was a fierce struggle over the issue of whether the King’s Catholic brother James should be the heir to the throne. At the same time, circumstances promoted an outpouring of polemical pamphlets on a massive scale. Here Gregory Gifford examines...

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  • Film: Lenin and the birth of Soviet Russia

    Article

    Having changed the course of Russian society Lenin now needed to secure his Bolshevik survival. Unlike his predecessor he saw no need to continue with the Imperialist policies of a war in Europe. Territory could be sacrificed for control, but would promises and rhetoric be enough to govern among people...

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  • Film: Lenin, the 1905 Russian Revolution and WWI

    Article

    The founders of Communism, Marx and Engels, had created a set of social structures and industrial developments that were believed necessary for Communism to be achieved. Imperial Russia did not fit these conditions and yet at the start of the twentieth century Russian revolutionaries were some of the most active...

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  • Film: Lenin's early thought

    Article

    As Lenin’s own political outlook and beliefs developed so did the European movements of Socialism and Communism. Groups emerged that wanted to radically change society and social structures. Lenin positioned himself as one of the leaders and crucially one of the thinkers behind these new ideas and movements.  Dr Lara...

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  • Film: Lenin's origins

    Article

    Lenin was born Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov in 1870. This film takes us through his middle-class origins, how he was radicalised by the world he saw around him, especially following the execution of his brother, and how the future politician and revolutionary developed amongst the extremes of Imperial Russian society. In...

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  • Film: Lenin and the 1917 Revolutions

    Article

    You wait a lifetime for a revolution and then two come along at once! Such was 1917 in Russia. As the world seemed in chaos and Russia and the Russian people began to collapse, Lenin and the Bolsheviks saw their opportunity and overthrew the government to create the first communist...

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  • Film: Lenin and the Russian Civil War

    Article

    Revolution is never simple. Lenin and the Bolsheviks quickly found that not everyone in Russia or outside of it approved of their new radical agenda. Russia was plunged into a civil war of devastating circumstances. How would its new leader manage and how much were the needs of the people...

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  • Film: Lenin's legacy

    Article

    With his body was embalmed and building high statues were erected to him Lenin’s memory seemed secured for ever. Yet how did his memory and his actual legacy differ? Did he really set the course for a future better Russia, or were his ideas of revolution better on paper than...

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  • Films: Lenin – Interpretations

    31st January 2025

    (Student and corporate secondary members can view these films in our Student Zone) Two men – Trotsky and Lenin – symbolise the Russian Revolution for most people. While Trotsky came to an icy end in Mexico, Lenin remains an enduring figure in the history of Russia and the history of Communism...

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  • Films: Khrushchev – Interpretations

    9th October 2024

    (Student and corporate secondary members can view these films in our Student Zone) Khrushchev came to power in the Soviet Union at a time when the whole region was used to living on a knife's edge. He appeared to usher in a more relaxed calm era as though that had...

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  • Film: Khrushchev - After Stalin

    Article

    In this film, Dr Alexander Titov (Queen's University of Belfast), discusses the leading figures jockeying for power after Stalin died, the short period of collective leadership, growing calls for reform within the Soviet Union and how Khrushchev gradually sidelined all of his rivals on his way to becoming Premiere of...

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  • Film: Khrushchev - Background

    Article

    In this film, Dr Alexander Titov (Queen's University of Belfast), provides a profile of Khrushchev’s background and personality and how these influenced his politics and ideas. Dr Titov takes us on a journey from Khrushchev's peasant beginnings in Kursk, his rapid rise in the communist party, his role in the purges, to...

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  • Father of the Free French Navy: Thierry d’Argenlieu

    Article

    Thierry d’Argenlieu played a crucial role in the French Resistance during World War Two, but he does not fit the mould of the typical resister. Adrian Smith brings to light d’Argenlieu’s wartime experiences, and follows his career after 1945 as High Commissioner in Indo-China and member of the Carmelite order...

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  • In conversation with Mark Nicholls

    Article

    The Historian sat down with Mark Nicholls to discuss his latest book, The Rise and Fall of Treason in English History, co-authored with Allen Boyer, which charts the history of the law of treason from its origins to the present day...

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  • Films: Boris Yeltsin – Interpretations

    19th June 2024

    Borisn Yelstin was the Russian leader from the collapse of the Soviet Union through to the leadership of Vladimir Putin. A key pivotal figure of the twentieth century, he had as an important an impact on Russia and global politics as any of the Soviet leaders of the 1970s and 80s and...

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  • Films: Joseph Stalin – Interpretations

    27th March 2024

    In our new film series running over the course of 2024-2025, some of the leading historians working on Russia have contributed their expertise to build a clear understanding of the leaders of modern Russia and how they have shaped their country and the rest of the world through it. Each of the experts...

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  • Film: Stalin & the Great Terror

    Article

    Why was the Soviet Union so violent in the 1930s? In this film, Professor James Harris (University of Leeds) looks at differing interpretations of the origins of the Great Terror; was it the story of one man trying to obtain total control, was it a result of collective frustration against...

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  • Film: Stalin - The Early Soviet Economy & the preparation for war

    Article

    In this film, Professor James Harris (University of Leeds) examines how the New Economic Policy transformed the Soviet economy after the civil war, and looks at Stalin’s central role in that recovery. Key during that period was Stalin’s dispute with Nikolai Bukharin and the Great Break, and the drive to...

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  • Why White Liberals Fail: United States politics in an election year

    Article

    Paula Kitching interview with Professor Anthony J. Badger about his latest book. 2024 is an election year in the United States. For many in the UK and around the world the US political system can be confusing, with simple processes seemingly more complex than you would expect. It is not just the system...

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  • The Importance of Truth, Quality and Objectivity in the BBC German Service from 1938 to 1945

    Article

    Throughout the Second World War the BBC produced and transmitted regular broadcasts in German to Germany and other European countries occupied by the Germans. In this article Hattie Simpson evaluates the style and success of the BBC German Service. The article is based on her winning entry in the senior...

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