Essays Archive

A coloured illustration of Castle Howard.

essays

The great imagination of John Vanbrugh

How did a playwright with no formal training design some of Britain’s grandest buildings?

Guy Stagg March 26, 2026

'The Last of the Mohicans.' Oil on canvas by Thomas Cole, c. 1827.

essays

The Last of the Mohicans and the American soul

Set during the drama of the French and Indian War, James Fenimore Cooper’s epic tale of survival, love and vengeance captures the many contradictions at the heart of America's nati..

Alec Marsh March 26, 2026

essays

The Iran war through Asia’s eyes

In the face of the Iran war’s impact on global oil flows, Asian capitals are reassessing energy security and the broader geopolitical map.

Christopher Harding March 25, 2026

George Kennan, the American diplomat and historian.

essays

Kennan’s realistic approach to Washington’s Africa strategy

Revisiting George Kennan’s writings offers an alternative lens for understanding Washington’s contemporary approach to great-power competition in Africa.

Sam Wilkins March 24, 2026

An American Eagle standing on guard over the Western Hemisphere. Political Cartoon from 1904.

essays

How to navigate global disorder

In the 21st century, the post-Enlightenment ‘civilisational state’ may become the ideological model for aspiring great powers.

Aaron McKeil March 23, 2026

Pro-regime Iranians gathered in Tehran's Enghelab Square in Iran on Tuesday, March 17, 2026

essays

America’s paradoxical war in Iran

Lessons from the War on Terror and the Arab Spring suggest that President Trump's siege of the Islamic Republic may ultimately weaken the Iranian regime's influence abroad while st..

Shiraz Maher March 20, 2026

A 'World Island' map by Richard Edes Harrison, showing the geopolitical positions of the Allies and Axis powers in 1943.

essays

The perils of perpetual geopolitics

In Europe, America and Russia, an unhealthy obsession with grand geopolitical schemes has often clouded the judgement of statesmen and scholars alike, a powerful reminder that stra..

Vladislav Zubok March 18, 2026

German philosopher Jürgen Habermas in the auditorium of the philosophical faculty of Frankfurt University.

essays

Jürgen Habermas’ lost world: the coffee-house and the public sphere

Jürgen Habermas' enduring work began in the coffee-houses of Georgian London. His deepest insight was, in the end, a conservative one.

Ioannes Chountis de Fabbri March 16, 2026

President Donald Trump at the Salute to America Celebration, held at the Iowa State Fairgrounds, Thursday, 3 July 2025.

essays

What drives Trump 2.0?

President Trump seeks to build a reorganised international system in which America's global security commitments are leveraged for maximum commercial advantage.

Brendan Simms March 13, 2026