During the reign of Tsar Alexander I (1801–25), Russia repulsed the Napoleonic invasion, defeated the Grand Armée and achieved the height of its influence in Europe. Napoleon’s crown passed to the Ru...

In the middle of the nineteenth century, Paris underwent an enormous rebuilding programme, which involved the demolition of the medieval neighbourhoods. A network of new parks, squares and wide avenu...

The disparities between the realities of life and the attempts of the Academy of Arts to idealise it simmered for a number of decades before bursting into the open revolt of a group of students in 18...