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60th anniversary of Martin Luther King's ‘I have a dream’ speech
5th September 2023
At the end of last month (August) it was the 60th anniversary of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr’s famous ‘I have a dream’ speech, made during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom held on 28 August 1963. The racism in the US at the time included segregation...
60th anniversary of Martin Luther King's ‘I have a dream’ speech
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Write Your Own Historical Fiction Competition 2025
The Historical Association Historical Fiction Prize
Each year we are so impressed by the ever increasing number and standard of entries we receive around such a wide range of historical periods and settings. You can take a look at some of last year’s winning entries here.
Unleash the creativity of your pupils through the Write Your Own...
Write Your Own Historical Fiction Competition 2025
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The Historian 139: The Anglo-Saxons
The magazine of the Historical Association
4 Reviews
5 Editorial (Read article)
6 New light on Rendlesham: lordship and landscape in East Anglia, 400-800 – Christopher Scull and Tom Williamson (Read article)
12 The Venerable Bede: recent research – Conor O’Brien (Read article)
16 Alfred versus the Viking Great Army – Caitlin Ellis (Read article)
23 The President’s Column...
The Historian 139: The Anglo-Saxons
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Secondary Committee biographies
Information
Find out more about the HA's committees here
Sally Burnham (committee chair)
Sally is a history teacher in a school in Lincolnshire and also works one day a week at the University of Nottingham on the History PGCE. Sally has been a Head of Department and is now a Lead...
Secondary Committee biographies
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Establishing a University-based HA Branch
Article
The following case study is based on my own experience of establishing the City of Lincoln HA branch, which is based at Bishop Grosseteste University in Lincoln, where I am a Senior Lecturer in History. The branch launched at the university on Wednesday 19th February 2014.
Members of the BGU...
Establishing a University-based HA Branch
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HA Awards Evening 2023 round-up
14th July 2023
It was a joy to bring together so many people to celebrate the study of history at our annual ‘Medlicotts’ awards evening on 12 July.
Originally formed around awarding the Medlicott Medal for History to that year’s recipient it is now also an opportunity to celebrate all the awards, honours...
HA Awards Evening 2023 round-up
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HA Honorary Fellows 2023
5th July 2023
Each year the Historical Association awards a small number of Honorary Fellowships. These awards are to recognise and celebrate outstanding services to history and to the Historical Association. The awards cover services to the Historical Association Branches (of which there are over 45 across the country); our committees; the work...
HA Honorary Fellows 2023
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‘Its ultimate pattern was greater than its parts’
Teaching History journal article
Identifying the challenges his students faced both with recall and analysis of the content they had learned for their GCSE course, Ed Durbin devised a solution which focused not on exam skills and revision lessons, but on using Key Stage 3 to build the ‘hinterland’ of contextual knowledge and causal...
‘Its ultimate pattern was greater than its parts’
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Windrush 75
6th June 2023
The ship the HMT Empire Windrush arrived into the UK on 22 June 1948. It carried 592 passengers from the Caribbean who were answering the UK Government’s call to fill jobs in Britain’s post-war economy. Between 1948–1971 many more Empire and Commonwealth citizens from the Caribbean islands would arrive in...
Windrush 75
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Volunteers’ Week, 1-7 June
1st June 2023
It is Volunteers’ Week and so we want to take this opportunity to say thank you to all our volunteers.
The HA is a membership body and while we have professional staff based at our Kennington HQ, we can only produce the huge amount of work and activities that we...
Volunteers’ Week, 1-7 June
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Course: Becoming an effective primary history subject leader
Immersive online course for new, experienced and aspiring history leaders
Book Now
(Registration is via Cademy which opens in a new window. Please read the HA CPD terms and conditions before registering)
Spring 2025 cohort
Start date: Wednesday 22 January 2025, 4pm–5.30pm
What does this course cover?
This is an online course for developing history leadership in primary teaching. This term,...
Course: Becoming an effective primary history subject leader
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Christopher Hill: Marxism and Methodism
Historian article
Christopher Hill, the eminent historian of seventeenth century England, was a convinced Marxist throughout most of his long and productive life (1912-2003). He embraced this secular world-view when he was a young History student at Oxford in the polemical 1930s and never lost his ideological commitment, even though he resigned...
Christopher Hill: Marxism and Methodism
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The Historian 138: Hidden stories of a centenary
The magazine of the Historical Association
Contents
4 Reviews
5 Editorial (Read article)
6 Britain’s Jews and the First World War - Paula Kitching (Read article)
13 The President’s Column
14 Journeys Home: Indian forces and the First World War – Kiran Sahota and Paula Kitching (Read article)
20 We will remember them: well, most of...
The Historian 138: Hidden stories of a centenary
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Writing books for young children about the First World War
Article
It is hardly surprising that there are very few books for young children which tackle such a difficult subject as the First World War. In considering our approach, we knew we had to balance two distinct considerations – being absolutely true to the facts, yet, being sensitive to the effect of...
Writing books for young children about the First World War
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Using museum and heritage sites to promote higher-level learning at KS2
Primary History article
The Key Stage 2 Primary History Curriculum sets ambitious challenges for pupils: "…They should regularly address and sometimes devise historically valid questions about change, cause, similarity and difference, and significance. They should construct informed responses that involve thoughtful selection and organisation of relevant historical information. They should understand how our knowledge...
Using museum and heritage sites to promote higher-level learning at KS2
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How significant is the tragic story of the SS Mendi?
Primary History article
Historical anniversaries and events are often in the news, commemorated locally and nationally. I have found that getting the children involved in topics relating to these can really help them feel the importance of their learning, help them to appreciate the past and feel a sense of responsibility – a...
How significant is the tragic story of the SS Mendi?
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The Medlicott Medal 2023
3rd April 2023
We are pleased to announce that Professor Diarmaid MacCulloch is to be awarded the Medlicott Medal for outstanding services and current contributions to history.
The award seeks to recognise individuals from a diversity of backgrounds in their service to history. Professor MacCulloch has an extensive academic CV, some of which is included at...
The Medlicott Medal 2023
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Pupil Voice Survey: Views of history – within and beyond school
21st March 2023
The Historical Association (HA) in conjunction with the University of Oxford Education Department are looking for schools to help carry out two very short questionnaires:
(1) with any students willing to share their views of the subject including, where relevant, their decision about whether or not to choose the subject...
Pupil Voice Survey: Views of history – within and beyond school
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History 352
The Journal of the Historical Association
All HA members have access to all History journal articles (Wiley Online Library site). To access History content:
1. Sign in to the HA website (top right of any page)2. Then click this link to allow access to History content on the Wiley site.
NB all links below go to the Wiley Online Library site and open in a new window or tab.
Access the full edition online
Clerical...
History 352
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History-specific support – for every career stage
Information
Register for the HA's SLT newsletter for more
Our biannual SLT newsletter will give you up-to-date information and support on managing history including updates on current issues, priorities and policy issues. Register here
Subject-specific support is an essential investment in your teaching staff, equipping them with the knowledge and...
History-specific support – for every career stage
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Free primary curriculum guidance on offer
HA Annual Conference 2023
A message from HA Assistant Vice-President Mike Maddison:
At the HA Annual Conference 2023 I will be leading a primary session entitled ‘How case studies will help you to review, refresh and renew the history curriculum’ (in-person and virtual).
The aim is to provide guidance on how you might improve your...
Free primary curriculum guidance on offer
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The great Liberal landslide: the 1906 General Election in perspective
Historian article
On 1 May 1997 the Conservative party suffered an electoral defeat so overwhelming that political commentators were left rummaging through the statistics of the previous two centuries to find anything similar. The Times concluded on 3 May that it was the party's worst performance since 1832, though 'The disaster suffered...
The great Liberal landslide: the 1906 General Election in perspective
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Good Evening Sweetheart
Historian article
The talk given by Sue and Pete Mowforth to the Glasgow Branch, reading from a selection of their parents’ war-time letters, resulted in a flurry of media interest from the national press and radio, including an appearance on the BBC’s The One Show in February 2017.
Olga and Cyril Mowforth married in June...
Good Evening Sweetheart
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All Quiet on the Western Front
2nd February 2023
The new film version of the German classic All Quiet on the Western Front has reopened the debate around the futility of war once more.
The film is based on the German writer Erich Maria Remarque’s book, which draws on his experiences of serving in the German forces during the...
All Quiet on the Western Front
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‘The story of her own wretchedness’: heritage and homelessness
Historian article
David Howell uses eighteenth-century beggars at Tintern Abbey as a starting point for his research into the use of heritage sites by the homeless.
In 1782, the Reverend William Gilpin published his Observations on the River Wye, a notable contribution to the emerging picturesque movement. A key element of his work is a commentary on Tintern Abbey....
‘The story of her own wretchedness’: heritage and homelessness
