History Today is an illustrated history magazine. Published monthly in London since January 1951, it is the world's leading, and possibly oldest, history magazine. Its successful mission has always been to present serious and authoritative history to as wide a public as possible. It covers all periods and geographical regions and is as comfortable publishing articles of traditional narrative history as it is showcasing new research and historiography.

History

Founded by Brendan Bracken

Brendan Bracken, 1st Viscount Bracken

Brendan Randell Bracken, 1st Viscount Bracken PC was an Irish businessman and a minister in the British Conservative cabinet. Primarily, the 1st Viscount Bracken is remembered for opposing the Bank of England's co-operation with Adolf Hitler, and for subsequently supporting Winston Churchill's...

, Minister of Information

Minister of Information

The Ministry of Information , headed by the Minister of Information, was a United Kingdom government department created briefly at the end of World War I and again during World War II...

 after the Second World War, chairman of the Financial Times

Financial Times

The Financial Times is an international business newspaper. It is a morning daily newspaper published in London and printed in 24 cities around the world. Its primary rival is the Wall Street Journal, published in New York City....

and lieutenant to Sir

Sir

Sir is an honorific used as a title , or as a courtesy title to address a man without using his given or family name in many English speaking cultures...

 Winston Churchill

Winston Churchill

Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...

, the magazine has been independently owned since 1981. The founding co-editors were Peter Quennell

Peter Quennell

Sir Peter Courtney Quennell CBE was an English biographer, literary historian, editor, essayist, poet, and critic....

 (1951–79) and Alan Hodge (1951–78); subsequent editors were Michael Crowder (1979–81); Michael Trend (1981–82); Juliet Gardiner (1981–85); Gordon Marsden

Gordon Marsden

Gordon Marsden is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Blackpool South since 1997.-Early life:...

 (1985–97) and Peter Furtado (1997–2008). The current editor is Paul Lay.

The History Today website, www.historytoday.com, contains all the magazine's published content since 1980 and is a much-used resource for researchers and students.

Contributors

History Today generally commissions its articles directly from academic authors and historians, though it is does accept unsolicited essays from freelance historians and others if the article is deemed to be serious history, of wide interest or of academic worth. Its authors are often leading scholars connected to the United Kingdom's most famous universities and have included Dr. David Starkey

David Starkey

David Starkey, CBE, FSA is a British constitutional historian, and a radio and television presenter.He was born the only child of Quaker parents, and attended Kendal Grammar School before entering Cambridge through a scholarship. There he specialised in Tudor history, writing a thesis on King...

, Lord Asa Briggs and Juliet Gardiner

Juliet Gardiner

Juliet Gardiner is a British historian and a commentator on British social history from Victorian times through to the 1950s...

.

History Review

History Review is a tri-annual sister publication of History Today magazine. It is a national academic journal for history students, and focuses on many university and educational syllabuses. Writers for History Review have included Dr. Michael Broers, winner of the Prix Napoleon

Prix Napoleon

The Prix Napoleon is a prestigious academic award granted annually to the best non-Francophone historical work on the First Napoleonic Empire. It is awarded by HIH the Princess Napoléon and the Prince d'Essling and the prize usually includes around 10,000 Euros, a commemoratory plaque, a case of...

, Professor Robert A. Pearce

Robert A. Pearce

Professor Robert Alasdair Pearce is a British academic. He was the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Wales, Lampeter between 2003 and 2008....

, incumbent editor of History Review, and Matthew MacLachlan

Matthew MacLachlan

Matthew MacLachlan is a British freelance historian whose work is published in the national academic journal History Review, a sister publication of History Today magazine....

.

Awards ceremony

In conjunction with Longman

Longman

Longman was a publishing company founded in London, England in 1724. It is now an imprint of Pearson Education.-Beginnings:The Longman company was founded by Thomas Longman , the son of Ezekiel Longman , a gentleman of Bristol. Thomas was apprenticed in 1716 to John Osborn, a London bookseller, and...

, the magazine holds an annual awards ceremony to celebrate work in the field of history.