Abstract
I look here at Macaulay’s 1828 essay on ‘History’ as introducing issues that seem to me to be of continuing historiographical interest. These importantly include history’s relationship with fiction and art – and more particularly biography and portraiture. Also considered are historians’ use of reason and imagination, and possible practical uses for history in relation to the future. Macaulay is shown to connect with Hayden White and his recent distinction between ‘historical’ and ‘practical’ pasts, as well as with contemporary advocates of future-focused histories.