Historic places
The incredible history of the Titanic's little sister – from ferrying millionaires to their doom to wartime minesweeping and Charlie Chaplin
The SS Nomadic carried film stars, millionaires and Olympians - and ferried some to their doom
749 US soldiers died on this English beach weeks before D-Day. This is the tragic lesser-told story
Top 10 historic stays waiting to be discovered – from royal water towers to pigsties, mines and hospitals
Take a self-catered journey into the past with Dixe Wills’ pick of the Landmark Trust’s most remarkable properties...
null
undefined
Shipwrecked for decades off the Kent coast, this war vessel still contains 1,400 tonnes of explosives
The SS Richard Montgomery was a liberty ship used to transport munitions during WW2. Stuffed with explosives, it made the journey from the US to Kent, before a storm led its to its permanent, premature resting place.
Wimbledon as a pig farm? Wembley an evacuation centre? 11 iconic sports venues that transformed during the Second World War
From prisoner-of-war camps to barrage balloon sites, our stadiums and sports grounds militarised during WW2
What islands are still owned by the British today? Inside some of Britain's far-flung territories and their tumultuous histories
From Caribbean paradise to volcanic outposts and frozen tundra – Britain still governs islands across every major ocean. They're remnants of an empire that remain strategically, politically, and culturally significant today.
Archaeologists discover remarkable Neolithic structure that's older than Stonehenge
Poisoned then abandoned: Discover the story behind Scotland's Anthrax isle of death
In an attempt to turn the tide against the Nazis in World War II, Winston Churchill commissioned a top-secret MoD project on Gruinard. But what really happened here? And why was the island shut down for 48 years?
Inside 10 haunting ghost villages abandoned centuries ago
They were filled with life centuries ago, but now lay rest to wreck and ruin. Here are 10 deserted villages to visit in the UK
Are these Britain's wonkiest houses? These 5 bewildering British buildings defy the laws of gravity
Would you dare enter these crooked buildings?
Discover Doggerland: The sunken land that once connected the UK to Europe
Did you know that before we had the North Sea, a prehistoric land bridge linked Britain to the mainland? Here's how a whole kingdom was lost to the rising seas
![Image from page 181 of 'The Country and Church of the Cheeryble Brothers [i.e. Ramsbottom in Lancashire, the home of William and Daniel Grant, the Cherryble Brothers of Dickens' Nicholas Nickleby]' by0037.](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/47/2026/04/what-was-the-Chatterton-Massacre-scaled.jpg?w=1200&webp=1 "Image from page 181 of ‘The Country and Church of the Cheeryble Brothers [i.e. Ramsbottom in Lancashire, the home of William and Daniel Grant, the Cherryble Brothers of Dickens’ Nicholas Nickleby]’ by0037.")
What was the Chatterton Massacre? Setting the record straight on the fateful riot-turned-massacre
Desperate weavers, starvation, and a fight against extreme poverty turned deadly. Here's what happened during the misreported revolts at Chatterton
Why do some stones sing? The curious phenomenon of ringing rocks
From the Cairngorms to the Hebrides, discover the strange natural “lithophones” that chime when struck – and the surprising science behind them
Hidden in plain sight: The ingenious deception of World War One's stealth trees
Hidden among desolate, war-ridden landscapes, the lifeless trunks of 'stealth trees' concealed a daring secret. Inside them, silent watchers risked everything in an attempt to turn the tide of the most devastating war Europe had ever seen.
Castles turned into theme parks, 1000-year-old strongholds, picturesque ruins, and ancient royal fortifications – these are Britain's oldest castles
From Roman ruins to towering medieval strongholds, telling a story over a millennium. This list will transport you back centuries...
Unravelling the enigma of the Admiral von Tromp: What really happened to the wayward trawler?
Discover the story behind the modern and frankly mind-boggling mystery that still remains unsolved today
Hidden in plain sight: The English landscapes where D-Day took shape
Over 80 years ago, the Allies launched Operation Overlord from UK shores. Julian Humphrys reveals the best D-Day sites to visit in Britain...
Discover Europe’s most enchanting historic spa towns, boasting natural hot springs and mineral cures fit for royalty
Here's where you can still to this day take the waters in some of the most restorative and healing locations in Europe
A vast relic of naval history lies just off Scottish shores, and it has a story to tell
This remarkably intact 175m-long German dreadnought can still be glimpsed off Orkney's coast, if you know where to look
Prison ships, German submarines and shallow graves: the terrible tale of Britain's own Dead Man's Island
Pirates? Prison ships? Or something worse? The rotten hulls of old ships on the Medway tell their own tale
Inside Britain's plague churches: the haunting truth behind our loneliest sanctuaries
Many British isolated rural churches are often linked to the Black Death. But were they really abandoned by plague – or is the story more complicated?
Attacked by clans, split in two by lightening, scorched by fire. This 500-year-old castle has a brutal past
The incisor-like mountains and deep, raven waters of Loch Assynt create the perfect atmosphere for one of Scotland's darkest ruins.
This strange-looking hill is riddled with miles of secret tunnels. It's peaceful now – but it wasn't always that way
Explore a dramatic and almost otherworldly landscape, shaped by industry and reclaimed by nature.
Almost 2,000 years old, 73 miles long and once taller than an elephant – this colossal Roman structure spans an entire country
It took 15,000 soldiers around 6 years to build Hadrian's Wall in England. We explore who built this iconic landmark and why – and the best ways to experience it today.
