General and world history Books

Book SynopsisONE OF THE TIMES' BEST HISTORY BOOKS OF 2021'The tale of the Phoenix Park murders is not unfamiliar, but Kavanagh recounts it with a great sense of drama... Kavanagh's account reminds me of the very best of true crime.' The Times (Book of the Week)On a sunlit evening in l882, Lord Frederick Cavendish and Thomas Burke, Chief Secretary and Undersecretary for Ireland, were ambushed and stabbed to death while strolling through Phoenix Park in Dublin. The murders were carried out by the Invincibles, a militant faction of republicans armed with specially-made surgeon's blades. They ended what should have been a turning point in Anglo-Irish relations. A new spirit of goodwill had been burgeoning between Prime Minister William Gladstone and Ireland's leader Charles Stewart Parnell, with both men forging in secret a pact to achieve peace and independence in Ireland - with the newly appointed Cavendish, Gladstone's protégé, to play an instrumental role. The impact of the Phoenix Park murders was so cataclysmic that it destroyed the pact, almost brought down the government and set in motion repercussions that would last long into the twentieth century. In a story that spans Donegal, Dublin, London, Paris, New York, Cannes and Cape Town, Julie Kavanagh thrillingly traces the crucial events that came before and after the murders. From the adulterous affair that caused Parnell's downfall to Queen Victoria's prurient obsession with the assassinations and the investigation spearheaded by the 'Irish Sherlock Holmes', culminating in a murder on the high seas, The Irish Assassins brings us intimately into this fascinating story that shaped Irish politics and engulfed an empire. This is an unputdownable book from one of our most 'compulsively readable' (Guardian) writers.Trade ReviewJulie Kavanagh has done an adroit unpicking of the intricacies of the history, and her book is at once admirable for its scholarship and immensely enjoyable in its raciness. -- John Banville * New York Times Book Review *The tale of the Phoenix Park murders is not unfamiliar, but Kavanagh recounts it with a great sense of drama... Kavanagh's account reminds me of the very best of true crime...Kavanagh never hurries; she takes the time to describe characters and places with exquisite detail. An engaging story is rendered beautiful because of the tiny ephemera that a less sensitive author might have carelessly discarded. * The Times (Book of the Week) *What Julie Kavanagh has done here is to bring this most extraordinary of assassinations to life...one of the best researched and most enjoyable historical reads I have come across in quite some time. * Sunday Independent *The dramatic story of the Phoenix Park murders...is told with novelistic panache by Julie Kavanagh. -- Kim Bielenberg * Irish Independent *These tragic events are vividly recounted in Julie Kavanagh's lively and suspenseful The Irish Assassins...a fluent, well-researched study of Anglo-Irish relations in the Victorian era. * Wall Street Journal *A compelling blend of political history and true crime...a colourful, ambitious book...makes most other accounts of the period seem bloodless by comparison. * Sunday Business Post *this skilful, multi-faceted historical narrative...draws in the strands of the story with extraordinary dexterity -- Conor Brady * Sunday Times (Ireland) *[A] sweeping and compelling narrative of a story that more than bears retelling. -- Frank Callanan * Irish Times *You could think of this as the prequel to Patrick Radden Keefe's best seller Say Nothing...Although the events in these two books are set nearly a hundred years apart, they are linked by the push and pull in that country between Protestant and Catholic, between peace and violence, between independence and accord. * Amazon Editors' Pick *her account is gripping. But what makes her book fresh and different is her determination not just to tell a good story but to give full attention to the background and the aftermath...a fine book. -- Anne Chisholm * The Tablet *[A] page-turning history...This entertaining and richly detailed chronicle offers fresh insights into a conflict whose repercussions are still felt today. * Publishers Weekly *Kavanagh's gripping account of the murders is a stark reminder that history is a chaotic jumble of chance, circumstance, and opportunity, as much about what could have been as about what was. * Literary Hub *A cinematic, multilayered revenge tragedy centered on Ireland's fraught quest for independence. * Kirkus Reviews *Julie Kavanagh has taken a violent and sensational event, the assassination of two senior government official in Dublin in 1882, and placed it in a richly contextualised and many-layered historical setting. Using a wide range of sources and opening up new avenues of enquiry, she vividly demonstrates the convulsive reverberations of one violent act, tracing the shockwaves it sent into political salons at Westminster, cabins in County Donegal, court circles at Windsor, revolutionary cabals in Paris, the Irish leader Parnell's secret life in a London suburb, and the complex world of the transatlantic Irish diaspora. Consummately well-written and full of novel insights, this is the best kind of historical detective story. -- R.F. Foster, Emeritus Professor of Irish History, University of OxfordIn The Irish Assassins, Julie Kavanagh has brilliantly succeeded in making a complex sequence of events irresistibly accessible, providing an engrossing narrative that is violent, tragic, sometimes funny, extremely astute and remarkably well written. -- Selina HastingsThis is one of those rare books that is superbly written, tells me something I need to know and which grips the imagination from first word to last. Julie Kavanagh has produced an engrossing account of revolutionary violence, political folly and human weakness. It is a powerful work. -- Fergal Keane, BBC correspondent for IrelandA fascinating, beautifully written account of an event whose consequences reverberate even today...[It is] made of course all the more interesting by the extraordinary characters with leading roles in the drama. -- Tony BlairIn The Irish Assassins, Julie Kavanagh manages the extraordinary feat of guiding the reader through the complexities of Anglo-Irish politics while building the combined tension of an electric political thriller with a tragic love story. The people are real, the events still matter today and the impact is Shakespearean. -- Ralph FiennesEnlightening, absorbing and very exciting. -- Lady Antonia FraserTable of Contents1: The Leader 2: That Half-Mad Firebrand 3: The "Irish Soup" Thickens 4: Fire Beneath the Ice 5: Captain Moonlight 6: The Invincibles 7: Coercion-in-Cottonwool 8: Mayday 9: Falling Soft 10: Mallon's Manhunt 11: Concocting and "Peaching" 12: Who Is Number One? 13: Marwooded 14: An Abyss of Infamy 15: The Assassin's Assassin 16: Irresistible Impulse

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Book SynopsisAt the heart of Memphis lies Overton Park, a 342-acre public space that contains the world-class Memphis Zoo, an old-growth forest, the Memphis College of Art, an amphitheater, and the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, among other beloved amenities. Founded in 1901, the park has been at the center of both celebration and controversy. Performers like Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash have dazzled audiences there, while local children have long enjoyed its playgrounds and runners its jogging trails. During the civil rights era, desegregating the park became a major goal of local activists, and the park’s Greensward was the scene of protests against the Vietnam War. Late in the 1960s and throughout the 1970s, when the proposed route of Interstate 40 threatened the park, concerned citizens banded together to fight the plan—a struggle that reached the Supreme Court and eventually saved the park for future generations.This delightfully informative book, filled with historic photos, offers a history of the park from the perspective of those who lived it. Brooks Lamb interviewed nearly a score of Memphians—from civil rights activist Johnnie Turner to U.S. Congressman Steve Cohen, from artist Martha Kelly to retired zookeepers Kathy Fay and Richard Meek—to learn what the park has meant to them and to discover the transformations they have witnessed. The stories they tell reveal a dynamic place that remains, despite changes and challenges, a people’s park and, in the words of one resident, “the heartbeat of Memphis.”

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Book SynopsisThis is a comprehensive account of the history of the Second World War, with expert commentary on its political and economic causes, every key moment, and the impact of new technologies and military strategies. It offers moving eyewitness and contemporary accounts from survivors of the battles and conflicts, personally interviewed by the author. It covers every major battle on land, at sea and in the air, with an expert analysis of the events and descriptions of weaponry. It features a chronology of the period that helps put all specific actions of the war into a historical context. It covers 380 contemporary photographs recording incidents as they happened, plus maps and battle plans. World War II was the most immense human conflict the world has ever known. You can discover how the war took shape, from its beginnings with the rise to power of Hitler in the 1930s to its apocalyptic end in the ruined cities of Germany and Japan in 1945. It features eyewitness accounts, maps, battle plans and hundreds of contemporary photographs that bring the past to life. All the major turning points of the war are included - D-Day and the invasion of Normandy, Operation Barbarosa, the battle of Midway and many others. This authoritative and accessible military history will enable the reader to understand the war more fully than ever before.

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Book SynopsisThe first book that acknowledges cameralism as a European rather than just a German historical phenomenon. This book discusses the impact of cameralism on the practices of governance, early modern state-building and economy in seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Europe. It argues that the cameralist conception of state and economy - aform of 'science' of government dedicated to reforming society while promoting economic development, and often associated mainly with Prussia - had significant impact far beyond Germany and Austria. In fact, its influence spread into Denmark, Sweden, Russia, Portugal, Northern Italy and other parts of Europe. In this volume, an international set of experts discusses administrative practices and policies in relation to population, forestry, proto-industry,trade, mining affairs, education, police regulation, and insurance. The book will appeal to early modernists, economic historians and historians of economic thought. MARTEN SEPPEL is Associate Professor of Early ModernHistory at the University of Tartu, Estonia. He holds an MPhil from the University of Cambridge. KEITH TRIBE has a PhD from the University of Cambridge and taught at the University of Keele (UK) from 1976 to 2002, retiring as Reader in Economics. He is now working as a highly regarded professional translator and independent scholar. Forthcoming work includes a new translation of Max Weber, Economy and Society Part One (Harvard University Press, 2018). His publications include Strategies of Economic Order (CUP, 1995/2007); The Economy of the Word. Language, History, and Economics (OUP, 2015); and (edited with Pat Hudson) The Contradictions of Capital in the Twenty-First Century (Agenda, 2016). Contributors: ROGER BARTLETT, ALEXANDRE MENDES CUNHA, HANS FRAMBACH, GUILLAUME GARNER, LARS MAGNUSSON, INGRID MARKUSSEN, FRANK OBERHOLZNER, GÖRAN RYDÉN, MARTEN SEPPEL, KEITH TRIBE, PAUL WARDETrade ReviewThis erudite collection is a welcome addition to the admittedly sparse literature on the 'cameral sciences' that emerged in late-17th-century Germany. Recommended. * CHOICE *Table of ContentsIntroduction: Cameralism in Practice - Marten Seppel Comparing Cameralisms - the Case of Sweden and Prussia - Lars Magnusson Baltic Cameralism? - Keith Tribe Cameralism in Russia: Empress Catherine II and Population Policy - Roger Bartlett Cameralist Population Policy and the Problem of Serfdom, 1680-1720 - Marten Seppel Cameralist Writing in the Mirror of Practice: the Long Development of Forestry in Germany - Paul Warde Cameralist Theoretical Writings on Manufacturing and Administrative Practice in the German Principalities: Conflict and Coherence - Guillaume Garner Administrative Centralisation, Police Regulations and Mining Sciences as Channels for the Dissemination of Cameralist Ideas in the Iberian World - Alexandre Mendes Cunha Balancing the Divine with the Private. The Practices of Hushållning in Eighteenth-Century Sweden - Göran Rydén Johan Ludvig Reventlow's Master Plan at the Brahetrolleborg Estate: Cameralism in Denmark in the 1780s and 1790s - Ingrid Markussen 'Maasreguln wider die Unglücksfaelle' - Cameralism and its Influence on the Establishment of Insurance Schemes - Frank Oberholzner The Decline of Cameralism in Germany at the Turn of the Nineteenth Century - Hans Frambach Concluding Remarks - Keith Tribe Bibliography

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Book SynopsisWhat if meeting new people were a gift, not a burden? How might we transform our lives if we set aside our fear of outsiders? When Will Buckingham's partner died, the shock of his grief told him to withdraw. Instead, he sought solace in throwing open the door to new people; travelling the world - from Birmingham to Myanmar - seeking out stories of loneliness, exile and friendship, from classical times to the modern day. Drawing from his travels, as well as insights from philosophy, anthropology, history and literature, Hello, Stranger is a powerful antidote to loneliness and xenophobia, and a heart-warming story of the power of kindness and compassion.Trade ReviewFollowing a personal tragedy, Will Buckingham propels himself out, alone, into the world, to explore what it means to be a stranger - the joys and pitfalls, the perennial truths. A glorious book, fabulously learned and funny, and filled with all manner of stirring stories * Philip Marsden, author of The Summer Isles *A treasure trove of all the possibilities strangers can be to each other. Read, learn and savour * Madeleine Bunting, author of Labours of Love: The Crisis of Care *Buckingham provides a map for others to follow, showing that when we show kindness to strangers, we may be entertaining angels unawares * John Paul Flintoff, author of How to Change the World (School of Life) *Humane and heart-warming -- Caroline Sanderson * Bookseller *A moving memoir of finding solace * Economist *Very excellent -- Reverend Richard Coles * BBC Radio 4 Saturday Live *

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Book SynopsisKnown the world over as a symbol of the United Kingdom, the Union Jack is an intricate construction based on the crosses of St George, St Andrew and St Patrick. Nick Groom traces its long and fascinating past, from the development of the Royal Standard and seventeenth-century clashes over the precise balance of the English and Scottish elements of the first Union Jack to the modern controversies over the flag as a symbol of empire and its exploitation by ultra-rightwing political groups. The Union Jack is the first history of the icon used by everyone from the royalty to the military, pop stars and celebrities.Trade ReviewEnterprising and challenging... engaging and interesting history - history as seen from a specific and highly appropriate vantage. -- Peter Ackroyd * The Times *Fascinating... works well as a potted history of Britain right back to the days when warriors carried dragon standards, and also as a pot pourri of useful trivia. -- James Delingpole * Mail on Sunday *'Masterly.' -- Julia Keay * Literary Review *Groom is an illuminating essayist in various aspects of British culture; humour and flashes of historical oddity make the book immensely readable... Groom explores this history with an unfailing inquisitiveness... Union Jack establishes itself as essential reading in the background to current debates about British identity. -- Mike Phillips * Guardian *Vivid, fascinating and carefully researched history... Groom enters a robust, positive and wholly persuasive defence of the retention of the Union Jack as a symbol of coherence and unity in a multiracial society and what has become a federal kingdom... Bravo. -- Jeffrey Richards * Times Higher Education Supplement *A pertinent contribution to the enduring conversation about what it means to be British. -- Claire Allfree * Metro *A wonderfully exuberant book... marvellously rich... Groom's scope is formidable and this, together with the acuity of his judgements and the brio of his deployment of a vast wealth of resources, makes the work a model of cultural history for our time. -- Hugh Lawson-Tancred * The Liberal *Fascinating -- Paul Callan * Daily Express *

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Book SynopsisA sweeping history of Athens, telling the three-thousand-year story of the birthplace of Western civilization, from Runciman Award winner Bruce Clark 'A stunning retrospect and beautifully written overview of one of the world's greatest cities' Paul Cartledge 'Courageously grand in scale yet sensitive to the details that make Athens' extraordinary history come alive' Sofka Zinovieff 'Bruce Clark brings an eye for the quirky, human detail, a pithy turn of phrase, and an affection for his subject honed over many decades' Roderick Beaton 'Bruce Clark's enchantingly readable history revealed how little I knew' Literary Review Dominated by the pillars and pediments of the Parthenon, a temple dedicated to Athena, goddess of wisdom, the ancient Greek city of Athens is for many synonymous with civilization itself. Athens: City of Wisdom tells the tale of a city that occupies a unique place in the cultural memory of the West. Each of the book's twenty-one chapters focuses on a critical 'moment' in the city's long history, from the reforms of the lawmaker Solon in the sixth century BCE to the travails of early twenty-first-century Athens, as a rapidly expanding city struggles with the legacy of a global economic crisis. Bruce Clark has a rich and revealing sequence of stories to tell – not only of the familiar golden age of Classical Athens, of the removal from the Acropolis of the Parthenon marbles by agents of the 7th Earl of Elgin in the early nineteenth century, or of the holding of the first modern Olympic Games in 1896; but also of the less fêted later years of antiquity, when St Paul preached on the Areopagus and neo Platonists refounded the Academy that Sulla's legions had desecrated. He also delves into Athens' forgotten medieval centuries, unearthing jewels gleaming in the Byzantine twilight, and tales of Christian fortitude and erratic Turkish governance from the four centuries of Ottoman rule that followed. Few places have enjoyed a history so rich in artistic creativity and the making of ideas as Athens; or one so curiously patterned by alternating cycles of turbulence and quietness. Writing with scholarly rigour and undisguised affection, Bruce Clark brings three thousand years of Athenian history vividly to life.Trade ReviewFrom Pheidias' Parthenon to Calatrava's Olympic Stadium, Bruce Clark has pulled off a stunning retrospect and beautifully written overview of one of the world's greatest cities. Athenophiles of all ages and stripes will find in Athens a cornucopia of city-related treasures -- Paul CartledgeA magnificent tour de force, drawing on the testimony of eye-witnesses across a span of 2,500 years. Bruce Clark brings an eye for the quirky, human detail, a pithy turn of phrase, and an affection for his subject honed over many decades -- Roderick BeatonA remarkable achievement. Courageously grand in scale yet sensitive to the details that make Athens's extraordinary history come alive, right up to the present day -- Sofka ZinovieffBruce Clark's enchantingly readable history revealed how little I knew and, perhaps more importantly, how little I knew of the ways it all fits together * Literary Review *A classic journalistic and academic analysis of the ancient and the modern * Irish News *An exhaustive yet compelling history of the Greek capital... Unmissable and highly informative * Financial Times *A triumph of a book that should be read by those who already know this city's importance and charm and those who want to. It is an extraordinary achievement * Economist *A comfortable, entertaining read which glides seamlessly from one chapter to the next * Kathimerini *

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Book SynopsisThis book charts and explains how human activities have shaped and altered the development of soils in many parts of the world, taking advantage of five decades of soil analytical work in many archaeological landscapes from around the globe. The core of this volume describes and illustrates major transformations of soils and the processes involved in these that have occurred during the Holocene and how these relate to human activities as much as natural causes and trajectories of development, right up to the present day. This is done in two ways: first by examining a number of major processes and impacts on the landscape such as Holocene warming and the development of woodland, clearance and agricultural activities, and second by examining the trajectories of these changes in soil systems in different palaeo-environmental situations in several diverse parts of the world. The transformations identified are relevant to prevalent themes of today such as over-development and soil, land and environmental degradation and resilience. The studies articulated relate to Britain, southeastern Europe, the Mediterranean basin, East Africa, northern India and Peru in South America.Table of ContentsPreface Acknowledgements 1. Introduction: Geoarchaeological approaches in archaeology 1.1 Endeavour 1.2 Development of the discipline of geoarchaeology as part of archaeological investigations 1.3 Importance to archaeology 2. Methodological approaches 2.1 Approaches in the field 2.1.1 Landscape to soil-scape 2.1.2 Soils and palaeosols 2.1.3 Formulating research designs 2.2 Basic characterisation techniques 2.2.1 Field prospection and soil/sediment profile description 2.2.2 pH and water quality 2.2.3 Loss-on ignition 2.2.4 Magnetic susceptibility 2.3 More involved techniques 2.3.1 Phosphorus (or phosphate) content 2.3.2 Multi-element analysis 2.3.3 Soil nutrient and fertility status 2.3.4 Micromorphology 2.3.5FTIR, XRF, EDAX, XRD and SEM 2.4 Establishing chronologies: Radiocarbon, OSL and Bayesian statistics 2.5 Scales of resolution 2.6 Soil nomenclature and classification 3. Soil transformation trajectories in temperate European landscapes 3.1 The beginnings to woodland soil development 3.2 Disturbance and degradation of woodland soils 3.3 Agricultural soil development 3.4 Woodland to pasture soils 3.5 Acidification and podzolisation 3.6 Erosion and colluviation 3.7 Alluviation, floodplains and waterlogging 3.8 Wetland soils 3.9 Cumulative soils 4. Soil transformation trajectories in southern Mediterranean landscape systems 4.1 Brown to red Mediterranean soils 4.2 Xeric calcitic soils and soil erosion 4.3 Erosion, alluviation and wadi development 5. Soil transformation trajectories in arid/semi-arid soil systems 5.1 Aridisols 5.2 Colluvial/alluvial systems 5.2.1 The Burj-Masadpur area of the Indus valley, northern India 5.2.2 The central Rio Puerco, New Mexico 5.2.3 The lower Ica valley, southern Peru 5.2.4 The Kerio-Embobut valleys in Marakwet, north-central Kenya 5.3 Terracing and irrigation 5.3.1 Aksum, northern Ethiopia 5.3.2 Konso, southern Ethiopia, 5.3.3 Engaruka, northern Tanzania 5.3.4 Sangayaico in the upper Ica valley, southern Peru 6. Timescales and longevity of soil processes 6.1 Timescales and longevity of soil properties 6.2 Soil horizonation and structural development 6.3 Within-soil illuviation and textural changes: stability, disturbance and erosion 7. Understanding long-term resilience in transformed soils Bibliography Appendices 1. Site gazeteer

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Book Synopsis'The events of the first and second world wars are brought to vivid, startling life thanks to Amaral's skill at colourising contemporary images' Observer The epic, harrowing and world-changing story – in words and colourized images – of global conflict from the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand to the obliteration of Hiroshima by the dropping of the first atom bomb. The World Aflame embraces not only the total conflagrations of 1914–18 and 1939–45 and the international tensions, conflicting ideologies and malign economic forces that set them in train, but also the civil wars of the interwar period in Ireland and Spain, wars in Latin America, Britain's imperial travails in such places as Ireland, Somalia and Palestine, and events on the domestic 'fronts' of the belligerent nations. Like The Colour of Time, this is a collaboration between the gifted Brazilian artist Marina Amaral, and the leading British historian Dan Jones. A fusion of amazing pictures and well-chosen and informative words, The World Aflame offers a moving – and often terrifying – perspective on the bloodiest century in human history. 'A new perspective on the bloodiest half-century in history' Daily Mail 'Immensely vivid' Sunday Times 'Brings history to life in breaktaking technicolour' Financial Times 'Revelatory' Daily Express 'The past – even its grimmest, darkest hours – was not in black and white' GuardianTrade ReviewThe events of the first and second world wars are brought to vivid, startling life thanks to Amaral's skill at colourising contemporary images * Observer *Amaral's colourised images bring history to life in breathtaking technicolour. Although, actually, Amaral's palette is far more nuanced and beautiful than that * Financial Times *Frequently stark and sometimes bleak... but this is a testament to the quality of Amaral's work, and its effect on the human eye' * Military History *The past – even its grimmest, darkest hours – was not in black and white * Guardian *A new perspective to the bloodiest half-century in history * Daily Mail *For the first time, we are seeing the scenes in colour as images from a new book show how much changes but how much stays the same as history unfolds. Covering the years between 1914-1945, The World Aflame shows the planet gripped by wars, the rise of right-wing governments and a deadly pandemic * Sunday Post *You may need a strong stomach for some of the images, but they are immensely vivid, and Jones's text is crisp * Sunday Times *While many can claim to show you Winston Churchill as he's never been seen before, this photograph is perhaps a true first * Discover Britain *To see Winston Churchill's youthful freckly face in 1911 is revelatory. In a single image, we see how far the journey was from a somewhat gadabout sea lord to Our National Saviour * Daily Express *Stunning * People's Friend *Jones's commentaries are small miracles of compression... Amaral's achievement in bringing colour as 'an emotional enhancing agent' to these photographs is extraordinary' * World of Interiors *You may feel that you have seen it all before; this book triumphantly suggests otherwise * Daily Mail *

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Book SynopsisA.W. Boardman's latest book is another triumph of careful research, insight and feel for his subject. It''s also very readable. For me, this is the best book currently available on the period.' John Simpson, BBC NewsThe Siege of London on 1214 May 1471 is a largely forgotten episode in the Wars of the Roses, but its implications were so far-reaching that the fate of the Lancastrian dynasty was sealed forever.Edward IV's gamble to reclaim the throne for the House of York was a triumph against the odds, yet even after winning two crucial battles against the Lancastrians, his position was far from assured. He might have been confident of total victory if not for Thomas Neville, the Bastard of Fauconberg, who, along with thousands of ordinary people, stormed London in a desperate attempt to free Henry VI from captivity.In The Rose, the Bastard and the Saint King, the first ever full-length study of the siege of London and its aftermath, A.W. Boardman uses contemporary evidence to uncover the truth behind the rebellion of 1471 and the death of the last Lancastrian King of England. He also reveals answers to long-awaited questions such as where the battles for London took place? Who was the Bastard of Fauconberg? Why did Henry VI continue to be revered as a saint long after his death? And was the future Richard III actually responsible for Henry's murder?

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Book SynopsisIn the twelfth-century, Pisa was a powerhouse of global trade, a city that stood at the centre of Medieval Europe. But Pisa had a problem. It was running out of coins. In the face of a looming financial crisis, the city's rulers and its moneylenders forged a deal that laid the foundations of the modern state and of present-day banking.In Money and Promises, the distinguished banker and scholar Paolo Zannoni examines the extraordinary relationship between states and banks. He draws upon seven case studies: the republic of twelfth-century Pisa, seventeenth-century Venice, the early years of the Bank of England, Imperial Spain, the Kingdom of Naples, the nascent USA during the American Revolution, and Bolshevik Russia in 191721. Spanning a multitude of countries, political systems and historical eras, Zannoni shows that at the heart of our institutions lies an intricate exchange of debt and promises that has shaped the modern world.Featuring pioneering research a

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Book SynopsisAn authoritative survey of the history of common land in Great Britain from the medieval period to present day.

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Book SynopsisIf you''ve ever been curious about the rich culture and vibrant history of Ancient Greece, dive into this whirlwind tour and discover the highlights of this epic civilizationAlthough they lived over 2,000 years ago, the echoes of the Ancient Greeks can still be heard, loud and clear, today. From warfare and politics, to art, culture and everyday life, uncover their history with this fascinating little book, in which you will find the following and much more:- A whistle-stop tour of the Ancient Greek timeline, from the Mycenaean civilization to the Roman conquest.- Profiles of some of the most influential figures in politics, art, and culture, from Homer to Pericles to Sappho.- An insight into the daily life of an Ancient Greek citizen. - The influence of Ancient Greece on the modern day, from democracy to the Olympics.In this pocket-sized window into the past, discover the key events, people and trivia you need to know to understand this remarkable period of history.

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Book SynopsisBy the outbreak of World War II, Germany had done much to replace the Kaiser''s High Seas Fleet, which was scuttled following their surrender at the end of World War I. Forced to build anew, the Kriegsmarine possessed some of the most technically advanced warships in existence. Although the heavy units of the fleet were too small in number to pose much of a threat, Germany was particularly well served by her Navy''s smaller vessels, in particular the U-Boats and the S-Boats. Known to the allies as the E-Boats (''Enemy''), they performed sterling duties in the Black Sea and English Channel, where they became a particular scourge.

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Book SynopsisThe deeds and personalities of famous pirates have received significant attention in recent years: however, no detailed depiction of their vessels has ever been produced. This title redresses the imbalance, conducting a detailed exploration of the wide variety of pirate vessels that sailed the high seas during the ''golden age'' of piracy (16901730), from gun-bristling warships to smaller craft such as sloops, brigantines and early schooners. It incorporates the latest archaeological evidence to produce a fascinating account of these vessels, detailing their origins, development and tactical engagement. Packed with contemporary illustrations and superbly detailed colour artwork, the ships of the ''golden age'' are brought vividly to life.

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Book SynopsisOn 8 March, 1965, 3,500 United States Marines of the 9th Marine Expeditionary Brigade made an amphibious landing at Da Nang on the south central coast of South Vietnam, marking the beginning of a conflict that would haunt American politics and society for many years, even after the signing of the Paris Peace Accords in January 1973. For the people of North Vietnam it was just another in a long line of foreign invaders. For two thousand years they had struggled for self-determination, coming into conflict during that time with the Chinese, the Mongols, the European colonial powers, the Japanese and the French. Now it was the turn of the United States, a far-away nation reluctant to go to war but determined to prevent Vietnam from falling into Communist hands. A Short History of the Vietnam War explains how the United States became involved in its longest war, a conflict that, from the outset, many claimed it could never win. It details the escalation of American involvement from the provision of military advisors and equipment to the threatened South Vietnamese, to an all-out shooting war involving American soldiers, airmen and sailors, of whom around 58,000 would die and more than 300,000 would be wounded. Their struggle was against an indomitable enemy, able to absorb huge losses in terms of life and infrastructure. The politics of the war are examined and the decisions and ambitions of five US presidents are addressed in the light of what many have described as a defeat for American might. The book also explores the relationship of the Vietnam War to the Cold War politics of the time.

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Book SynopsisIn this scintillating book, Ian Buruma peels away the myths that surround Japanese culture. With piercing analysis of cinema, theatre, television, art and legend, he shows the Japanese both 'as they imagine themselves to be, and as they would like themselves to be.'A Japanese Mirror examines samurai and gangsters, transvestites and goddesses to paint an eloquent picture of life in Japan. This is a country long shrouded in enigma and in his compelling book, Buruma reveals a culture rich in with poetry, beauty and wonder.

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Book SynopsisThe German Tiger heavy tank was a monster of a machine that dominated the battlefields of Europe. One of the most feared weapons of World War II, the Tiger gained an aura of invincibility that was only shattered by the introduction of the Sherman Firefly during the summer of 1944. Specifically designed by the British to combat the Tiger, the Sherman Firefly was based on the standard American M4A4 Sherman medium tank, but was fitted with a powerful 17-pounder gun which made it a deadly opponent for the Tiger.This book describes the design and development of these two fierce opponents, analyzing their strengths and weaknesses and assessing their tactics, weaponry and training. Innovative gun-sight artwork puts the reader inside the tanks during famous real-life battle scenarios, including the infamous Panzer ace Michael Wittman leading four Tigers into battle against eight Fireflies, a clash of steel that was a victory not only for superior Allied numbers, but also for Allied

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Book SynopsisThe first full-length book on these charismatic and unique vessels.

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Book SynopsisFrom minding your Ps and Qs to wondering why X should mark the spot, Alphabetical is a book for everyone who loves words and language. Whether it's how letters are arranged on keyboards or Viking runes, textspeak or zip codes, this book will change the way you think about letters for ever. How on Earth did we fix upon our twenty-six letters, what do they really mean, and how did we come to write them down in the first place? Michael Rosen takes you on an unforgettable adventure through the history of the alphabet in twenty-six vivid chapters, fizzing with personal anecdotes and fascinating facts. Starting with the mysterious Phoenicians and how sounds first came to be written down, he races on to show how nonsense poems work, pins down the strange story of OK, traces our seven lost letters and tackles the tyranny of spelling, among many, many other things. His heroes of the alphabet range from Edward Lear to Phyllis Pearsall (the inventor of the A-Z), and from the two scribes of Beowulf to rappers. Each chapter takes on a different subject - codes, umlauts or the writing of dictionaries. Rosen's enthusiasm for letters positively leaps off the page, whether it's the story of his life told through the typewriters he's owned or a chapter on jokes written in a string of gags and word games. So if you ever wondered why Hawaiian only has a thirteen-letter alphabet or how exactly to write down the sound of a wild raspberry, read on . . .Trade Review[Michael Rosen's] beguiling journey through the alphabet will entrance anyone interested in the quirks of language and its history . . . Rosen has written a charming and thought-provoking book about what written language represents, how we use it, and the joys and mysteries therein. His humor and obvious love for his subject are winning elements * Publishers Weekly *Enjoyable history of the alphabet * The Times *Substantial and engaging * Guardian *Forget party crackers - when you settle down to the turkey and trimmings this year simply make sure you have this book to hand. There's even a chapter devoted to family friendly alphabet games: perfect for playing after the Queen's been on. That letters can and should be fun, not just functional, is one of the main messages of this book * Sunday Telegraph *The perfect book for anyone who relishes the intricacies of language and letters . . . [Rosen] reveals a gift for seamlessly meshing hard information, personal anecdote, jokes and puzzles with educational, cultural and linguistic questions and wry, pointed, observations . . . There are delights in this book for all ages * Australian *[Michael Rosen] gives each letter a neat CV . . . enjoyable * The Times *

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Book SynopsisThe abuse of power, genocide, the destruction of total war, unimaginable cruelty and the suffering of millions were all central features of Hitler''s Nazi regime. Yet the Nazis were also highly successful in manipulating images and information: they mobilized and engaged vast numbers of people, caught the imagination of the young and appeared remarkably modern to many contemporary observers.Was the Third Reich a throwback to a mythical past or a brutally modern and technologically advanced state? Was Hitler a strong dictator who achieved his clear goals, or was his chaotic style of government symptomatic of a weak dictator, unable to control the complex and contradictory forces that he had unleashed? Was the Third Reich ruled by terror, or largely supported by a compliant German population? Was the genocide against the Jews a peculiarly German phenomenon, or a uniquely German expression of a terrible wider trend?Whittock explores these and other key questions, interr

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Book SynopsisThe high point of medieval Islamic expansion was the 700-year presence of the ''Moors'' in Spain and Portugal. The Arab and Berber conquest was followed by the establishment of a richly distinct culture in Andalusia, where for a while Muslim and Christian co-operated as often as they fought. The rise and fall of successive Islamic dynasties brought new invaders, fragmentation and disunity; and the growing Christian kingdoms to the north eventually doomed the amirate of Granada, the last Moorish bastion, which fell to the Castilians in 1492. The colourful armies of Western Islam are described and illustrated here in fascinating detail.

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Book SynopsisIn this work, the author presents the precise spots where the battle at Gallipoli took place with a range of contemporary photographs. It provides a link between past and present; from one century to the next; that the deeds of those whose bones lie buried in a foreign field shall not be forgotten.

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Book SynopsisNOW UPDATED AND IN COLOUR. From the Belgian coast, across the fields of Flanders, over the valley of the Somme and down the line to the Argonne: all the major battlefields of the First World War -- Ypres, Arras, Cambrai, Amiens, St Quentin, Mons, Le Cateau, Reims, Verdun and St Mihiel -- are criss-crossed in this book over more than thirty different routes, each clearly shown on a Michelin map. Every significant feature is described in detail. Indispensable for anyone contemplating a tour of the battlefields in Belgium and France, this book combines the years of knowledge, travel and research of its author, Rose Coombs, who worked at the Imperial War Museum in London for nearly forty years. Since her death in 1991, After the Battle's Editor, Karel Margry, has travelled every route, checking and revising the text where necessary, as well as re-photographing every -memorial. Many new ones are included, yet we have striven to keep true to the flavour of Rose's original concept ...before endeavours fade.Table of ContentsIntroduction by the Author; About this book; The Commonwealth War Graves Commission; Demarcation Stones; The Poppy Legend; Battlefield Debris; CALAIS-YPRES Route I via Bergues; CALAIS-YPRES Route II via Cassel; CALAIS-YPRES Route III via St Omer; ZEEBRUGGE-YPRES The Yser Battlefield - Battles of the Ypres Salient 1914-1918. Summary; YPRES; YPRES YPRES SALIENT BATTLEFIELD TOUR; Route I The Northern Sector; Route II The North-eastern Sector; Route III The Eastern Sector; Route IV The South-eastern Sector; Route V The Rear Areas; THE ROAD SOUTH; ARRAS THE BATTLES OF THE SOMME ARRAS-CAMBRAI; Route I via Monchy-le-Preux ARRAS-CAMBRAI; Route II via Bullecourt; FIVE ROUTES TO MONS; MONS; MONS MONS BATTLEFIELD TOUR; MONS TO LE CATEAU; LE CATEAU LE CATEAU TO AMIENS; AMIENS TO CALAIS; Route I via Abbeville; AMIENS TO CALAIS; Route II via St Pol-sur-Ternoise; ST QUENTIN TO REIMS; The Chemin des Dames and the Champagne Battlefields; REIMS TO VERDUN; The Argonne Battlefield; VERDUN; VERDUN BATTLEFIELD TOUR; THE ST MIHIEL SALIENT; REIMS TO COMPIEGNE; THE BATTLE OF FROMELLES; INDEX.

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Book SynopsisShowcasing IWM's extensive collection, this book includes works from the major artists of the time such as John and Paul Nash, Orpen, Spencer and Singer Sargent as well as other artists who are less familiar to us today. With an introductory essay by the late Roger Tolson, former Head of Art at Imperial War Museums, this book offers an insight into the huge range and power of wartime art during the First World War.

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Book SynopsisA feisty, entertaining and historical account of Anglo Saxon cooking and eating, with reconstructed recipes of the period circa 400 to 1066. Emma Kay believes that the modern world has a huge amount to learn from ancient times. We are now interested in the preservation of original species and plants to nourish the human race. Her book gives us evidence based information from historical artefacts and museum articles, to show us what our ancestors had at their disposal for survival. It discusses the nature of culinary transitions in terms of Roman and Scandinavian influences, as well as providing a social and political backdrop to the Anglo Saxon communities, 400 to 1066 BCE, the time of the Norman invasions, the early Medieval era.

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Book SynopsisThis book sheds light on a neglected aspect of India's Cold War diplomacy, starting with the role of Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and his Congress government in organising the first Asian-African Conference in Bandung in April 1955. Andrea Benvenuti shows how, in the early Cold War, Nehru seized the opportunity accorded by the conference to transcend growing international tensions and pursue an alternative vision: a neutralised Asian area of peace', underpinned by a code of conduct based on the five principles of peaceful coexistence.Relying on Indian, Western and Chinese archival sources, Nehru's Bandung focuses on the policy concerns and calculations, as well as the international factors, that drove a sceptical Nehru to support Indonesia's diplomatic push for such a gathering. It reveals how, in Nehru's estimation, Bandung also served a further important purposesecuring China's commitment to peaceful coexistence, without which stability in Asia would

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Book SynopsisCelebrating some of the history we were not taught in schools. From black Tudors to black Romans to black soldiers...Black History is All our History.

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Book SynopsisBuffalo, New York, 2022. Ten black people murdered. The killer, 18-year-old Payton Gendron, says he was driven by ''Great Replacement'' - the conspiracy theory that a Jewish-led elite is replacing white people with black and brown people. This, and a spate of similar hate crimes, begs the question: what are the origins of such behaviour? Gavin Evans traces the historical roots of white supremacy. He begins in the 19th century with Charles Darwin and his cousin Francis Galton''s race-based theories before looking at the spread of eugenics ideas throughout the UK, Europe and the United States, their Holocaust-prompted decline after the Second World War, and their revival in a different guise through the promotion of race science from the late 20th century. Evans also examines the hatching of ''Great Replacement'' conspiratorial ideas in the 21st century - and their expression via alt-right forums to the minds of troubled young men with access to assault rifles. White Supremacy breaks n

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Book SynopsisWhat was achieved by the Free State during the Irish Civil War was remarkable. Within a period of less than a year they raised and equipped a standing National Army of nearly 60,000 soldiers, defeating the anti-Treaty elements of the IRA. Using the counterinsurgency framework of Clear-Hold-Build, the author examines, analyzes and explains how the Free State managed to attain this remarkable achievement.Outnumbered at the start of the fighting, the Free State overcame an IRA insurgency by utilizing a number of key concepts that will be explained throughout this thesis. These concepts include the combination of kinetic clearance operations and ?Good Governance? stability actions. They also include; the use of locally recruited soldiers combined with experienced Irish veterans from World War I; the ability to generate, train and equip a new standing National Army to counter and gain combat power over the IRA; the capacity to become an adaptive learning organization, to reform, reorganize and reconsolidate against IRA tactical gains; and finally the ability to foster trust with the local population, enhancing the information sharing nexus and undermining the IRA cause. All of these concepts will be explained and examined through analyzing the successful counterinsurgency campaign executed by the Free State during the Irish Civil War.

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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Book SynopsisFirst Across the Continent, by Noah Brooks, is an enthralling historical narrative of the extraordinary trip of the United States' first transcontinental railroad. Brooks takes readers on an enthralling journey through the challenges, achievements, and personal tales that shaped this massive project. The book digs into the bold idea of uniting the United States' East and West coastlines via a single continuous railroad line. Brooks eloquently depicts the visionaries, engineers, laborers, and financiers who helped to make this huge endeavor a reality. He highlights the enormous physical challenges faced, such as dangerous terrain, adverse weather conditions, and the vast distance that had to be overcome. Brooks mixes personal histories of those involved among the technical intricacies of construction, providing insight into the lives of the people who worked relentlessly to make the dream of a transcontinental train a reality.

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