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Open History Society

A society for everyone
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Some interesting and useful resources around the globe

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Membership and entry to all talks for £27 only! Why not join us?

Our Next Talk

April 24, 2026

programme of talks 26/27

Some Testimonials

By any reckoning OHS today is one of the most dynamic, welcoming and reputable organisations devoted to the public dissemination of History in Scotland. This is clearly evidenced by the significant number of people who regularly attend its series of talks, the varied range of exciting subjects across time and space on offer and the continuous high quality of speakers.I personally take great pride in my Life Membership of this remarkable Society.
Sir Tom Devine
Sir Tom DevineKt OBE FRSE HonMRIA MAE FBA Sir William Fraser Professor Emeritus of Scottish History and Palaeography,University of Edinburgh.
The best value for money around!
Stuart Kilgour
Stuart KilgourMember
Every year or so, I am lucky enough to visit my friend Dr David White, based in Galashiels. If I am really lucky I can go with him to Edinburgh and enjoy one of the monthly Meetings of the Open History Society. I attended one such meeting a year or so ago and was thrilled by the quality of the meeting, the member group and the invited speaker. I personally love all aspects of history enormously and feel that the OHS of Edinburgh has both a welcoming and an erudite atmosphere that hits all the right notess.
Geoff Smith
Geoff SmithCaptain of the England Blind Cricket national team and advisor to the government on disability welfare provision.
Explore

Members' Articles

Access articles and past talks on a great variety of topics; some by guest speakers and some by society members.

All Articles

NEW ARTICLE

An analysis of The Great War in England in 1897 by William Le Queux (1894)

How warfare was predicted and visualised in the late 19th Century.

This novel by William Le Queux was a part of the genre of fiction known as Invasion
Literature which was popular in Britain between 1871 and 1914. The Riddle of the Sands by
Erskine Childers is the best known among these, and was made into a film in 1979. Published
in 1903, Childers’ story centres around a planned invasion of Britain by Germany.

Read

 

 

Lesser Known Quotations

“When the rich rob the poor, you can be certain it is business.”
Mark Twain (1835-1910)
Mark Twain (1835-1910) Author
“Don’t ever take a fence down until you know the reason why it was put up“
John F.Kennedy (1917-63)
John F.Kennedy (1917-63)President of the USA
“Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people.”
Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962)
Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962)FLOTUS

 

 

See them all

History Re-written by caption

Milton Friedman is presented with the award for Best Ideological Contrick from the Federation of Snake Oil Salesmen by previous winner George W.M.D. Bush
German fans file away quietly and respectfully in Warsaw after losing 2-1 to Italy at the 2012 European Championships
Notre Dame 1804: “It’s just a temporary measure. We’ll be back to liberty, equality and all that stuff in no time at all…”
See them all

 

 

Speakers have included eminent academics, published authors, documentary producers, historical novelists, postgraduate researchers and Open History Society members. The subject matter may be anything from the Falklands War to medieval women, from Hugh MacDiarmid to Eamon De Valera, from Nazi feature films to Sicilian cultural history, from Bannockburn to Verdun.

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