JANUARY 2015
CONTENTS
Features
Every month
Find out what Britons were eating during wartime, on page 28
WORLD WAR TWO SPECIAL
22 The race for Berlin Antony Beevor reveals how Churchill and Britain were increasingly sidelined in the nal defeat of Nazi Germany
28 Life in the shadow of victory Maggie Andrews analyses the hopes and fears of ordinary Britons in the months leading up to VE Day
34 Auschwitz remembered Laurence Rees explains why it took half a century for the Holocaust to be properly memorialised
40 Waking up with Plato Greg Jenner examines Roman toilet brushes and Egyptian underpants in his history of our morning routine
42 The forgotten king and his Lancelot Thomas Asbridge describes the remarkable friendship of a medieval monarch and the ‘greatest knight’
47 Wolf Hall: fact and ction Hilary Mantel discusses her acclaimed novels in the company of Thomas Cromwell expert Diarmaid MacCulloch
54 Charles II: too randy to rule? Don Jordan and Michael Walsh highlight the troubling extent of the merrie monarch’s obsession with sex
6 ANNIVERSARIES 11 HISTORY NOW 1 1 The latest history news
14 Backgrounder: wages 17 Past notes
18 LETTERS 21 MICHAEL WOOD’S VIEW 60 OUR FIRST WORLD WAR 63 BOOKS Experts review new releases,
plus John Guy discusses his new book on Henry VIII
77 TV & RADIO The pick of this month’s history programmes
80 OUT & ABOUT 80 History explorer:
Stephen and Matilda 84 Ten things to do in January 86 My favourite place: Sicily
93 MISCELLANY 93 Q&A and quiz 95 Sam’s recipe corner 96 Prize crossword
98 MY HISTORY HERO KateMossechoosesEdithCavell
52 SUBSCRIBE Save 27% when you subscribe* to the digital edition
Cover story
A soldier of the 2nd British Army pictured during the operation to capture Bremen, 26 April 1945. Though the British successfully subdued the city, by now they were playing a bit-part role in the conquest of Germany
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COVER STORY
THE RACE FOR BERLIN
BBC History Magazine
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Soviet tanks cross the river Oder in their advance towards the Soviet capital as part of their offensive on 16 April. Stalin was determined to seize Berlin before the western Allies got there
During the opening months of 1945 the Allies were engaged in a bitter dash to seize German territory. Yet, says Antony Beevor, as US and Soviet forces advanced on the capital, Britain found itself increasingly sidelined
BBC History Magazine
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42 “Marshal bested 500 warriors in these years and accrued a signi cant fortune”
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BBC History Magazine
