Oxford Archives

A Brief History of the JCR: How the Common Room Became Common

On June 26, 2021 By Emmanuel Campion-Dye In Foundation Myths, New

Emmanuel Campion-Dye discusses the history of the JCR, looking at the progression from private club to political institution.

Should undergraduate historians be forced to take British history papers?

On May 5, 2021 By Nathan Land In New, Opinion

“No matter what country you’re learning about, you’ll probably bump into Britain.” Nathan Land argues against compulsory British history papers.

The Oxford Bulldogs: Bark Worse than their Bite?

On March 25, 2021 By Charlotte Kutz In Foundation Myths, New

Did Oxford University’s bowler hatted police force have any real power? And what does its existence say about the wider university?

“Et in Arcadia Ego”: Brideshead Revisited and Oxford’s 1920s Gay Scene

On March 15, 2021 By Charlie West In Foundation Myths, OHR

Brideshead Revisited: Set in Oxford during the 1920s, it is Waugh’s personal reflection on the aristocratic gay scene of the era. But how accurate is it?

Charting Oxford’s History Through its Pubs

On February 19, 2021 By Joe Hyland Deeson In Foundation Myths, OHR

Joe Hyland Deeson charts Oxford’s history through its pubs, examining the riots, rules and revelry that are imbibed in the city’s watering holes.

A Town vs Gown Showdown

On February 14, 2021 By Lily Sheldon In Foundation Myths, OHR

When this argument occurred, it was not just about wine but rather symbolised a broader conundrum: the town vs gown tension in Oxford.

The British Isles in Oxford – comforting in its familiarity, or repetitive and limiting?

On January 11, 2021 By Lucy Fletcher In OHR, Opinion

Lucy Fletcher discusses Oxford’s “frankly old fashioned” approach to the history of the British Isles and its inherent inequalities.

10 Libraries you should visit at least once while in Oxford

On September 23, 2020 By Lucy Fletcher In OHR, Opinion

“…a totally subjective and opinionated review of the 10 Oxford libraries and reading spaces which made the most significant impression.”

History and Women

On August 8, 2020 By Elizabeth Down In Opinion

Elizabeth Down discusses the representation of women in the EWH1 module, and why historians still aren’t getting it right on gender.

Oxford: the Museum, the City, the University

On August 2, 2020 By Luke Bateman In OHR, Student Voices

As a child, I had a recurring fantasy of London’s Natural History Museum at night. Their work complete and the sun now down, I saw the curators gathering beneath the museum’s vaulted roof to lay …