When the clock strikes midnight on 31 December in Scotland, the moment is marked by far more than a simple change of date. Hogmanay—the Scottish New Year—has deep roots, shaped by centuries of invasion, religion, hardship, and celebration. In many ways, it tells the story of Scotland itself. What Is Hogmanay? Hogmanay is the Scottish celebration of the New Year, traditionally observed with far greater enthusiasm than Christmas. For generations, it was the  most important fest

The war has dragged on so long now that I can no longer recall the sound of peace. Every tide carries whispers of battle — France, invasion, blockade — but here in Portsmouth, life for a sailor’s wife is its own kind of campaign. My husband, James, serves aboard HMS Hades , part of the Caribbean Fleet that watches the valuable trade links to the west. I haven’t seen him since last spring, when the ship sailed at dawn under a grey, weeping sky. He kissed me once, then the chil

On 21 October 1805 , the guns roared across the Atlantic swells off Cape Trafalgar. The sea boiled with smoke and flame, the air split by cannonballs and splintered oak, and at the heart of it all — one man stood calm, commanding, and utterly resolute: Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson . It’s hard, two centuries later, to truly imagine the chaos of that day. The British fleet, 27 ships strong, faced 33 French and Spanish ships — a combined enemy bent on invading Britain itself. The

Every journey has a beginning, a middle, and an end. On land, it’s usually simple enough—we know where we set off from, where we want to...

Or don’t. Unless, of course, you happen to be Julius Caesar in 44 BC, in which case—yeah, definitely beware. The Ides of March, or March...