Notebooks

notebook

Ancients abroad

The idea of 'the holiday' is a recent phenomenon – did the Ancient Greeks and Romans travel for pleasure?

Armand D'Angour August 22, 2023

notebook

The limits of dictatorship

Despite the challenges facing liberal democracies, it is authoritarian regimes that remain most precarious.

Samuel Mace August 18, 2023

notebook

The politician’s swift route to mockery

When Prime Minister Rishi Sunak declared his love for the music of Taylor Swift, he was opening himself up to a peculiarly British form of criticism. He is not the first senior pol..

Alexander Larman August 18, 2023

notebook

Marion Dönhoff: the very best of Germany

One of West Germany's foremost public intellectuals, Marion Dönhoff confronted the complex subject of how to sustain an economically dynamic liberal democracy while ensuring nobody..

Elisabeth Braw August 17, 2023

notebook

The first prime minister

A push for ideological purity can prove tempting for politicians in periods of upheaval, as they offer the possibility of complete victory. But they can also lead to crushing defea..

Eloise Davies August 16, 2023

notebook

The mythical Burma of Maurice Collis

Like George Orwell, Maurice Collis served as a colonial policeman in interwar Burma. Unlike Orwell, he is now little known, but his conservative critique of empire – and his curiou..

James Snell August 15, 2023

notebook

Robbie Robertson: presiding genius of the New Americana

Guitarist and lead songwriter of The Band died this week at the age of eighty, his greatness assured.

Bryan Appleyard August 11, 2023

notebook

The timely return of Henry Clay

With the collapse of the post-Reagan consensus, US politics is finding renewed inspiration in the Hamiltonian, interventionist creed of the ‘American System’.

David Cowan August 10, 2023

notebook

Armenia, Azerbaijan on the brink – again

Conflict in the South Caucasus could break out for the third time in as many decades. But a compromise may still be possible.

Thomas de Waal August 9, 2023