By the great Agnes C. Poirier in Engelsberg Ideas engelsbergideas.com/notebook/a-pae… A paean to the Paris Métro - Engelsberg ideas

Before the emperors reclaimed power, the Tokugawa shoguns ruled Japan from this very spot. Power, tradition, and transformation lie behind these moats.

Very stimulating talks Fichus TAKAHAGI Tomoya Ioannes Chountis de Fabbri hirokiUE Shigeyuki Aoki 小谷英生　Hideo Kotani Yuchen Sun Haimo Li Huahui Zhu among others not on here

I love my neighbourhood 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

Bliss

I am not sure WHY academics from other disciplines get quite so irate when they learn that in the humanities we read carefully-crafted papers aloud, but I have to presume it's the usual academic impulse for one-upmanship. Different disciplines, different conventions, OK?

Old England

I feared this day for so long. The BBC’s single best programme.

A great review of Capel Lofft book by Max Skjönsberg for Engelsberg Ideas If you are curious about the origins of Whigs and Tories, this book will clarify all mysteries.

How did horse racing influence politics in the 18th century? Delve into how the Marquess of Rockingham of the Jockey Club turned the turf in Newmarket and Ascot into politics, shaping his 1765 ministry in unexpected ways. My blog for History Of Parliament historyofparliament.com/2025/09/04/fro…

In Nice, Garibaldi gazes defiantly from his square. A short walk away, in Le Negresco, Louis XVI’s portrait hangs beneath gilded ceilings, a Bourbon world clinging to memory. On the Riviera, history still murmurs like a scene from Visconti’s Leopard.

For some time, I had wanted to write about the cinematic art of Luchino Visconti. Today in Engelsberg Ideas , I explore his cinema as a form of history writing on old Europe — a world he himself had lived and known.

Thrilled to review Alexandra Wilson brilliant new book on Britain’s love–hate relationship with opera for Engelsberg Ideas . A sharp look at national identity, taste, and the timeless rows about snobbery and elitism.

A brilliant kodachrome of London’s Piccadilly Circus in 1953. Zoom in on the beautiful details.

Glorious architecture

Britain’s elite needs a history lesson | Alastair Benn engelsbergideas.com/notebook/brita…

Count Luchino Visconti, born on this day in 1906. The last chronicler of Old Europe. engelsbergideas.com/essays/luchino…

The writing of history and philosophy was a natural extension of public life. Not anymore though, laments Ioannes de Fabbri - Chountis thecritic.co.uk/what-happened-…

Once, writing was a natural extension of public life, writes Ioannes de Fabbri - Chountis. What happened? thecritic.co.uk/what-happened-…