Stephen Davies tackles one of the biggest of big questions: How did the world we live in — the modern world — so radically and rapidly diverge from the world of our pre-modern ancestors? A review of The Great Cities in History. A look at how lice thwarted Napoleon's invasion of Russia. What historians don't study says volumes; a case in point is widespread acceptance of the thesis that slaves did not rebel during the Civil War. Tall tales from the past: Meet the "JK Rowling of history textbooks". A soap dish that changed history: Lars Brownworth on the enduring yet seldom-appreciated significance of a seventh-century emperor's bath. The first chapter from Hysteria Complicated by Ecstasy: The Case of Nanette Leroux by Jan Goldstein. A review of Ecstasies: Deciphering the Witches’ Sabbath by Carlo Ginzburg. The

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