Joining the Fellowship of the Royal Historical Society: a brief guide if you’re considering an application
Fellowship is one of several ways to join and belong to the Royal Historical Society. Fellows are elected to this position by the Society in recognition of their work for the historical discipline and profession. There are many different routes to Fellowship, just as there are different kinds of contributions and careers within the discipline of history. Today’s RHS Fellows are history practitioners from a very wide range of backgrounds (within and beyond higher education) who have contributed to historical understanding and knowledge through a body of work. These contributions take many forms: from academic publications of different formats, to editorial and curatorial work, history programming and public history. This post addresses common questions asked by those considering applying to join the Fellowship of the Royal Historical Society. If you are interested in making an application, we hope this helps.
A Collector Collected: the Journals of William Upcott, 1803-1823
In this post Mark Philp, Aysuda Aykan and Curtis Leung introduce their new volume in the Royal Historical Society’s Camden Series, ‘A Collector Collected: The Journals of William Upcott, 1803-1823’, published in November 2025. William Upcott (1779–1845) rose from humble origins to become a major collector of coins, prints, drawings, and, above all, autographs. His journals offer a detailed, non-elite account of a London life, interspersed with forays into the provinces to visit relatives in Oxfordshire and Northamptonshire, and to pursue his trade as a cataloguer and organiser of people’s collections. His later ‘Tour of the Peak’ in 1823, evidences his growing expertise and his open acceptance by his fellow enthusiasts. Upcott’s diaries are lively and engaging narratives of his life and activities in a world that he increasingly made his own, overcoming his deficiencies to become an accomplished bibliophile and collector.
Forging Fraternity in Late Medieval Society
In this post, Rachael Harkes introduces her new book — ‘Forging Fraternity in Late Medieval Society. The Palmers’ Guild of Ludlow’ — which is published in the Society’s ‘New Historical Perspectives’ series with University of London Press. Using the Palmers’ Guild of Ludlow as a prism, Rachael considers the almost ubiquitous membership of religious guilds in both urban and rural society on the eve of the Reformation. With more than 18,000 members recorded in the guild’s massive extant archive, drawn from across the social spectrum and spread throughout Wales, England, Iberia, Ireland and France, the Palmers offer a unique opportunity to investigate the interplay between institutions and individuals in the Middle Ages. ‘Forging Fraternity in Late Medieval Society’ is the 25th title in the Society’s New Historical Perspectives series for early career historians. Rachael’s book, and all other titles in the series are published free, Open Access, and in paperback print.
Atlantic Isles: Travel and Identity in the British and Irish West, 1880–1940
In this post, Gareth Roddy introduces his new book — ‘Atlantic Isles: Travel and Identity in the British and Irish West, 1880-1940’ — which is published in the Society’s ‘New Historical Perspectives’ series with University of London Press. From Cornish cliffs and Welsh mountains to Hebridean islands and the Connemara highlands, the west was an imagined geography that transcended the national territories of these isles. The significance of western landscapes for national identities is well known but — as ‘Atlantic Isles’ shows — the west was also central to debates about Britishness and to the bold attempt to construct a narrative of multinational union that claimed deep historical roots at a time when Home Rule dominated political debate. ‘Atlantic Isles’ is the 24th title in the Society’s New Historical Perspectives series for early career historians. Gareth’s book, and other titles in the series are published free, Open Access, and in paperback print.
The value and provision of history and the humanities: it’s time for a political response
This week the government’s Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, announced the return of maintenance grants for students in greatest need. While we welcome recognition of the financial pressures and impediments many student face, it’s clear that this is a policy with nothing for the arts and humanities, including history. However, as Lucy Noakes, President of the Royal Historical Society, explains here, these pressures are equally acute for students in the arts and humanities. Moreover, as a new British Academy report on ‘Cold Spots’ shows, choice—in subjects including history—is being further eroded for many as the provision of higher education contorts to the financial crisis facing UK higher education. If the government is serious about choice, social mobility and access to education it needs to appreciate that provision of many degree subjects is now at considerable risk in a growing number of regions across the UK. For students to have greater choice and access we need the environments in which choices are made to be fair, balanced and accurate. For this we require political leadership to help us address structural failings and false narratives.
Generative AI, History and Historians, a reading guide
There are few bigger, and more pressing, topics today than the current and future impact of Generative AI. Nowhere is this more evident than in Higher Education. The opportunities and challenges of GenAI are relevant to all those engaged in teaching and research. But each discipline also has distinctive questions and concerns relating to the latest iterations of AI. What, therefore, are the possible implications for the teaching, study, research and communication of history? In this post, we offer a rolling guide to recent articles on GenAI, the humanities and history (last updated September 2025).
Five things we can learn about current English ‘flag wars’ from Germany in the 1920s and 1930s
History Matters: This is the first in a new occasional series of articles on the RHS blog which show how history can help us to understand our present times. In this first article, Nadine Rossol (University of Essex) explores the power of flags as political symbols in Weimar Germany. As Nadine argues, contests over the use and display of flags have long histories and are significant. Flag conflicts are about emotions, agency and identity. They are typically blunt and intense, going to the heart of citizen politics. Historical examples, as in the case of 1920s Germany, provide us with context for and perspective on present-day manifestations.
Teaching Medieval Heritage Trails as a Creative Health Intervention
In this post, Karen Smyth shares her recent experience of introducing medieval heritage trails to students on a Medical Humanities MA pathway. In moving beyond the traditional discipline of History, what are the challenges and opportunities in teaching not only a cross-disciplinary but also a cross-sector cohort of students? How might the Creative Health agenda, now emerging in the heritage sector, enable medieval history to play a central role in the discipline of Medical Humanities? Karen shares her teaching experiences which were made possible with the recent award, by the Society, of a Jinty Nelson Teaching Fellowship. RHS Teaching Fellowships support the development of new teaching practices in History in Higher Education.
‘Madness’, Emotion and the Archive in Early Modern England
In this post, Jonathan Willis introduces his new article, ‘“your poore distressed suppliant”: ‘Madness’, Emotion and the Archive in Early Modern England’, recently published in ‘Transactions of the Royal Historical Society’. The article focusses on the British Library’s MS Lansdowne 99, a collection of letters written to the government of Elizabethan England and annotated at several points in their history to describe their authors or contents as ‘crazy’, ‘mad’, ‘frantic’, and ‘insane’. The article explores the relationships between archives, letters and emotion in early modern England. Jonathan argues that understanding their distress not only brings us closer to marginalised people in the past, but grants us a richer knowledge of past societies and the experience of being human in them. The article is now available Open Access.
Peter J. Marshall and the Royal Historical Society: an appreciation
The Society was very sorry to learn of the death, in July, of the historian Peter J. Marshall (1933-2025). Peter’s association with the Royal Historical Society spanned more than 50 years. Elected a Fellow in 1969, Peter served as a member of the Society’s Council between 1983 to 1987, thereafter becoming Vice President until November 1991. He returned to the Council in November 1996 as President and held this position for four years. In this post, Peter Mandler, who served on the RHS Council with Peter from 1998, remembers Peter Marshall’s extensive and very considerable contribution to the Royal Historical Society both during and after his term in office.
Waterscapes: Reservoirs, Environment and Identity in Modern England and Wales
The building of reservoirs in England and Wales was key to urban growth across the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries. In this post, Andrew McTominey introduces his new book—’Waterscapes: Reservoirs, Environment and Identity in Modern England and Wales’—which is published in the Society’s ‘New Historical Perspectives’ series with University of London Press. Drawing on methods from environmental history, cultural history and historical geography, Andrew’s book explores the multiple and long-term impacts of reservoir construction and management in rural England and Wales from the mid-nineteenth to the mid-twentieth century. ‘Waterscapes’ is the 23rd title in the Society’s New Historical Perspectives series for early career historians. Andrew’s book, and other titles in the series are published free, Open Access, and in paperback print.
Oral history and the built environment: using personal testimonies to understand spatial experiences and urban change
In this post, Eve Pennington describes the use and value of oral history in her study of the Lancashire new town of Skelmersdale. As Eve argues, oral history offers creative approaches to urban history, helping us better appreciate the motivations, expectations and actions of residents. The result is a narrative of urban development that is often at odds with those found in the official reports of planners and councils. In 2024-25, Eve held a Royal Historical Society Centenary PhD Fellowship. She has recently submitted her doctorate for which she studied at the University of Manchester.
