Latest News
How medieval chroniclers interpreted solar eclipses and other celestial events
The evolution of technology has allowed scientists to analyse celestial events in much greater detail. Medieval chroniclers didn’t have that luxury but Giles Gasper in our History department and Brian Tanner in our Physics department say that doesn’t mean there isn’t lots we can learn from the ways in which they talked about these events and understood the universe.
Modelling the Black Death and Social Connectivity in Medieval England
Research Project Grant 2024
Award Winners: Durham University's Global Curriculum Award
Massive congratulations to Professor Jonathan Saha, Dr Radha Kapuria, and Dr Chris Bahl for winning the Durham University's Global Curriculum Award 2024.
How 16th century survivors of wartime sexual violence found justice
Dr Tom Hamilton from our Department of History has discovered criminal records revealing a rare, 400-year-old legal case which successfully prosecuted a soldier for sexual crimes during Europe’s notoriously violent Wars of Religion.
Launching Environmental Histories and Futures of the North East
The Environmental Histories and Futures of the North East (EHFNE) project brings together North East academic researchers in the social sciences and humanities and community organisations to create opportunities for dialogue and collaboration. The project aims to foster future research partnerships that centre local interests and community priorities through regular seminars and community steering group meetings.
Festive traditions were once a foodie adventure
Winter celebrations such as Christmas and New Year have long been associated with feasting. But, what are now seen as festive food traditions (think mince pies and richly spiced fruit cakes) were once a bold and daring foodie adventure.
Sixty years of Kingsgate Bridge
This year marks the 60th anniversary of one of Durham’s most striking bridges.
The revival of nineteenth-century political history
In 2023, Durham University hosted a major two-day conference on nineteenth-century political history. Organise! Organise! Organise! Collective Action, Associational Culture and the Politics of Organisation in Britain and Ireland, c.1790-1914 was run by Dr Naomi Lloyd-Jones, Leverhulme Early Career Fellow in the History Department.
Photo credit: Dr Kathryn Rix
Department of History marks Black History Month 2023 with History Now! and RHS events
To mark Black History Month 2023, Dr Liam Liburd organised the History Now! event ‘Black History in the North East’, and took part in a Royal Historical Society (RHS) Roundtable ‘Black British History: Where Now, Where Next?’
Concerns over pet food and vet costs affordability are as old as pet keeping itself
Professor Julie-Marie Strange from our Department of History and Professor Jane Hamlett from the University of London explore concerns over the cost of keeping pets in the UK.
'A texture into worlds far removed from us': Radha Kapuria on music in colonial Punjab
On the launch of her book, Music in Colonial Punjab: Courtesans, Bards, and Connoisseurs, Radha Kapuria tells us how she developed an interest in this subject, and wider significance of social histories like this in understanding political events and the world beyond them.
Book Launch: Music in Colonial Punjab, Dr Radha Kapuria
Join the author, Dr Radha Kapuria (Durham, History), in conversation with Prof Laura Leante (Durham, Music), Dr Maryam Mirza (Durham, English Studies), and Dr Christopher Bahl (Durham, History).