The Society’s ‘Pitch my Project’ reached its final at an event on Friday 20 March. This initiative — a partnership between the Society, Institute of Historical Research (IHR) and Chalke History Festival — invited early career researchers to pitch a proposal for a session at the 2026 Chalke Festival.

We received 40 proposals in the first round and, on 20 March, seven finalists met at the IHR to present their pitches in front of an invited audience and judging panel. The quality of the talks was extremely high and wide ranging.

We are delighted to announce that the winner of this year’s competition is Dr Charlotte Gauthier for her talk on ‘The Cardinal’s Spies Cardinal Wolsey, Henry VIII, and the Race to Save Christendom, 1526–27’. Charlotte, who is currently a research assistant at Royal Holloway, University of London, received her PhD in 2024 for a thesis entitled ‘Crusading Diplomacy and the English Kings, 1461–1529’.

Charlotte will present a longer version of her talk in the ‘Chalke Introduces’ session of this year’s Chalke History Festival, 22-28 June. As part of her prize, she will also receive mentoring on presenting and communicating her work to a general public audience.

‘Pitch my Project’ is one in a series of current activities, from the Royal Historical Society and IHR, which promote the application of history scholarship to audiences and professions beyond higher education.

These programmes demonstrate that much of the history that so many of us enjoy — as podcasts, TV programmes and films, festivals and trade books — originates from the training and expertise of historians in universities, archives, museums and galleries.

Our thanks to the judges, the audience, and especially to all our finalists who took part in this inaugural ‘Pitch my Project’.