Have you ever wondered where your surname comes from? Or when people start using surnames (last names) and why? In England, surnames are also commonly known as last names due to the practice of ...

Penwith is where Britain ends. It is the final strip of land before the sea, stretching out a small finger into the ocean as though reaching forlornly for the sunset. Britain’s ancient inhabitants ...

Great Britain – three very different countries, England, Scotland and Wales, each with a rich and varied history and culture. Perhaps this explains the diversity of its culinary traditions. The ...

Was the Black Death really such a disaster? The brutality of the Black Death was matched only by the speed of its rampage across medieval Europe. One third of the English population was wiped out. The ...

The Industrial Revolution took place from the eighteenth century up until the mid-nineteenth century, marking a process of increased manufacturing and production which boosted industry and encouraged ...

The ancient seaport of Whitby, Yorkshire is a beautiful and picturesque natural harbour situated on England’s North East Coast. It is essentially a town of two parts divided by the River Esk, and ...

Over the years we have received many requests from schools, media companies and historic venues for details of re-enactors, in order to help to bring alive the various period events that they wished ...

Owned by: The Armstrong family. Opening times: October-February weekends only, 11.00 – 16.30 (last admission 15.30). February-November open daily 10.00 – 17.00 (last admission 16.00) Public access: ...

Britain is blessed with many castles, often in stunning locations, all full of history. Many of these national treasures now offer accommodation, from bed and breakfast to fully fledged hotels… some ...

Throughout the centuries smuggling has been considered by the British people to be a very profitable way of life! “Something for nothing” has always had an attraction and during the 17th and 18th ...

Welcome to Historic UK’s Living History Events Diary! One of the most enjoyable ways to experience history first hand is to attend one of the many Living History re-enactments taking place this year.

In the mid-eighteenth century the effects of gin-drinking on English society makes the use of drugs today seem almost benign. Gin started out as a medicine – it was thought it could be a cure for gout ...