The autumnal equinox occurs in September each year, and in the northern hemisphere the date marks the end of summer and beginning of autumn. The Earth is tilted on its axis. This means that the Sun ...

Make the most of your trip with our picks of the best things to see and do in Greenwich London Greenwich is a truly special day out in London, combining world class attractions with a charming village ...

Justice, like life, was short, brutal and spectacular for pirates. Seamen and their families were very aware of the penalty for piracy. The publicity surrounding the trials and executions of pirates ...

Who were the real pirates of the Caribbean? While Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean films are entirely fictional, there is no doubting that the Caribbean was the centre of piracy in the ‘Golden Age of ...

The Spice Islands (Malaku, or the Moluccas) are a small group of islands to the north-east of Indonesia, between Celebes and New Guinea. They include Halmahera (the largest), Seram, Buru, Ambon, ...

Crew agreements for British-registered merchant ships, crew lists or muster-rolls and official ships' logs are of particular interest to genealogists and people tracing family history, and to anyone ...

Do you know your Spanish farthingale from your Drum? Or your English hood from your French? Types of Tudor fashion evolved throughout the period. Our knowledge of how the Tudors dressed comes largely ...

The ‘standard’ nautical mile is taken as 6080 feet (1.151 statute miles or 1853 metres) and is the unit of length used in sea and air navigation. A mile on land is equal to 5280 feet (1609.3 metres), ...

From Viking longships and 14th century carracks to 18th century battleships, the way ships were built evolved greatly between 800 and 1800. For thousands of years, people used boats and ships to fish, ...

The ‘Vikings’ were seafaring raiders and traders from Scandinavia. The period known as the Viking Age lasted from AD 700 until 1100. ‘Viking’ was the name given to the seafarers from Norway, Denmark, ...

Oliver Cromwell was best known for being Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England Scotland and Ireland after the defeat of King Charles I in the Civil War. He was one of the main signatories on ...

Space, art, astronomy and exhibitions – get information about Astronomy Photographer of the Year and Royal Museums Greenwich delivered straight to your inbox ...