• About us
• Education
• Records
• Information management
• Archives sector
• Shop online

• Medieval 1066 - 1485

  • A Medieval Mystery
    Can you decode the dark secrets of this cartoon?
    Key stage 3 - 4
  • Domesday Book
    What can we learn about England in the 11th century?
    Key stage 2 - 3
  • Chertsey
    What was Chertsey like in the Middle Ages?
    Key stage 2 - 3

• Early Modern 1485 - 1750

  • The Great Plague of 1665-6
    How did London respond to it?
    Key stage 3
  • Native North Americans
    What was early contact like between Europeans and Natives?
    Key stage 3
  • William Shakespeare
    What can we find out about his life?
    Key stage 3
  • • God Blew and They Were Scattered
      Did God really help the English defeat the Spanish Armada?
      Key stage 3
    • The King, the Crown and the Colonel
      How did Thomas Blood try to steal the crown jewels in 1671?
      Key stage 3
    • Elizabethan Propaganda
      How did England try to show Spain planned to invade in 1588?
      Key stage 2 - 3
    • The Royal Seal
      What can it tell us?
      Key stage 2 - 3
    • Henry VIII Court Rules
      How did Henry VIII get up in the morning?
      Key stage 2 - 4
    • Fire of London
      What happened?
      Key stage 1 - 3
    • Gunpowder Plot
      Can you uncover the plans of the plotters?
      Key stage 2 - 3
    • Kirk o' Field
      What happened in 1567?
      Key stage 2 - 3

    Show/hide more items

• Empire & Industry 1750 - 1850

  • Rebecca Riots
    What happened during them?
    Key stage 3 - 5
  • The French Revolution
    How did the British react to July 1789?
    Key stage 3
  • Captain Cook in Hawaii
    What happened on his final voyage?
    Key stage 3
  • • Helyntion Beca (Welsh)
      Beth a ddigwyddodd yn ystod
      Key stage 3 - 5
    • 1834 Poor Law
      What did people think of the New Poor Law?
      Key stage 2 - 3
    • Bussa's Rebellion
      How did the enslaved Africans of Barbados rebel in 1816?
      Key stage 3 - 4
    • 1833 Factory Act
      Did it solve the problems of children in factories?
      Key stage 2 - 3
    • Slavery
      How did the Abolition Acts of 1807 and 1833 affect the slave trade?
      Key stage 3 - 4

    Show/hide more items

• Victorians 1850 - 1901

  • 19th Century People
    What can we tell from this photograph?
    Key stage 2 - 3
  • Trimdon
    What was it like living in a late 19th century mining town?
    Key stage 2 - 3
  • Say "Cheese"
    What can Queen Victoria's family photographs tell us?
    Key stage 2 - 3
  • • Victorian Homes
      Was there much difference between rich and poor homes?
      Key stage 2 - 3
    • Past Pleasures
      How did the Victorians have fun?
      Key stage 2 - 3
    • Victorian Children in trouble with the law
      Did the punishment fit the crime?
      Key stage 2 - 3
    • 19th Century Mining Disaster
      What happened at the Trimdon Grange Mining Disaster?
      Key stage 2 - 3
    • A Victorian Prison
      Why were Victorian Prisons so tough?
      Key stage 3 - 4

    Show/hide more items

• Early 20th Century 1901 - 1918

  • General Haig
    Butcher of the Somme or hero of Amiens?
    Key stage 3 - 4
  • School Dinners
    Why were school dinners brought in?
    Key stage 3 - 4
  • The Zeppelin Raids
    How did Great War Zeppelin raids affect British civilians?
    Key stage 3 - 4
  • • A Great War Soldier's Record
      What can we find out?
      Key stage 3 - 4
    • Jutland: Death at Sea
      Were lives wasted when the Indefatigable sank?
      Key stage 3 - 4
    • The Sinking of the Titanic
      Who was on board?
      Key stage 3 - 4
    • How We Were Taught
      What was school like 100 years ago?
      Key stage 2 - 3

    Show/hide more items

• Interwar 1918 - 1939

  • Eden's Last Stand
    Why did Anthony Eden resign in 1938?
    Key stage 3 - 4
  • The German Occupation of the Rhineland
    What should Britain do about it?
    Key stage 3 - 4
  • Chamberlain and Hitler 1938
    What was Chamberlain trying to do?
    Key stage 3 - 4

• World War Two 1939 - 1945

  • Adolf Hitler
    Was Hitler a 'passionate lunatic'?
    Key stage 3 - 4
  • Government Posters
    How did Britain encourage people at home to help win the war?
    Key stage 2 - 3
  • Convincing the Colonies
    How did Britain try to keep the support of West Africans?
    Key stage 3 - 4
  • • The Home Front
      How did people prepare for the war at home?
      Key stage 2 - 3
    • Hitler Assassination Plan
      How did the British plan to kill Hitler?
      Key stage 3 - 4
    • Belsen Concentration Camp 1945
      What did the British find when they entered?
      Key stage 3 - 4
    • Evacuation to Canada
      How much care was really taken?
      Key stage 2 - 3

    Show/hide more items

• Postwar 1945 - present

  • World Cup 1966
    Did England rig the result?
    Key stage 3 - 4
  • Bound for Britain
    Experiences of immigration to the UK
    Key stage 3 - 4

Show/hide right panel

For teachers

• KS1 KS2 KS3 KS4 KS5
• Types of session
• When you can book
• Making a booking
• Reusing our content
• Archives and the classroom
• More for teachers

For students

• Revising for exams
• Study skills
• Understanding the Archives
• Activities and games
• Using primary sources
• How to use this site
• More for students

The National Archives, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 4DU. Tel: +44 (0) 20 8876 3444. Contact us