General and world history Books

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Book SynopsisOn a second wave of anti-colonial revolutions. State and Capital reign over the Age of Sorrow. We face inequality, pandemics, ethnocide, climate crisis, and mass extinction. Our desire for security and power governs us as State. Our desire for possessions governs us as Capital. Our desires imprison and rule us beings as Unbeing. Yet, from Nagaland to New Zealand, Bhutan to Bolivia, a second wave of anti-colonial revolutions has begun. Arising from assemblies of humans and other-than-humans, these revolutions replace possessive individualism with non-exploitative interdependence. Naga elders, Bhutanese herders and other indigenous communities, feminists, poets, seers, yaks, cranes, vultures, and fungi haunt this pamphlet. The original Subaltern Studies narrated how Indian peasant communities destroyed the British empire. Subaltern Studies 2.0 prophesies the multi-being demos and liberates Being from Unbeing. Re-kin, Re-nomad, Re-animate, Re-wild! The Animist Revolution has come. Table of Contentsi. Who Speaks?ii. War of Unbeing against Beingiii. A New Anti-Colonial Struggleiv. The Age of Sorrowv. The Evil Twins: Sovereignty and Propertyvi. The Subjection of Beingvii. Once When there was No State, No Capitalviii. The Monstrosity of State and Capitalix. Capital Colonizes Beingx. The Age of Deathxi. The Rise and Fall of Subaltern Studiesxii. The Failures of Global History and of Anthropologyxiii. To Arms: A New Academia for a Renewed Warxiv. Enough with Welfare-State Capitalismxv. Enough with Monstrous Abstractions!xvi. Where Marx Went Wrong!xvii. The Degeneration of Speechxviii. The Poetry of Revolutionxix. Enough of “Postmodern” Suspicion of Being! xx. The Road Back to Beingxxi. Dismantle State, Overthrow Capital!xxii. For Permanent Revolution, Permanent Community!xxiii. Enough with Atomized Individualism!xxiv. Not Universal Class, but Communities in Solidarity!xxv. Being Shines in Subaltern Consciousnessxxvi. Against Possessive Man, Being!xxvii. Difference-into-Unity!xxviii. Being a World for Othersxxix. Animals: Primal Instructors of Humansxxx. The Light of Being-Consciousnessxxxi. Once When Animals Could Speakxxxii. Animal Democracy – The World’s Oldest Politiesxxxiii. The First Imperialism: Human Colonization of Animal Politiesxxxiv. Decolonize Animal Polities!xxxv. Multi-Being Demos, Constitution to Comexxxvi. Return, Ancient Constitution – What Was, Shall Again Be!xxxvii. Fungal Organization – Being inside Beings is the Being within Mexxxviii. Fungal Democracy – Fungal Internationalismxxxix. Rooted Interdependence – Ancient Being, Return, Restore! xl. Beings in Assembly – Multi-Being Demosxli. The Vanquishing of Unbeingxlii. Beings Turn the Wheel of Lawxliii. The Constitution of the Cosmosxliv. Turn I: Rekinxlv. Turn II: Renomadxlvi. Turn III: Reanimatexlvii. Turn IV: Rewildxlviii. Being TriumphantXlix. Exhortation: Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak: The Next Steps: A Prefacel. Exhortation: Marisol de la Cadena: The Gift of the Anthropo-not-seenli. Exhortation: Thom van Dooren: Animal Lessonslii. Exhortation: Suraj Yengde: Supreme Subalterns

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Book SynopsisThe war becomes worldwide with Japan attacking the US, Britain and the Netherlands in the East.

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Book SynopsisMy involvement with the history of theatres suggested that the theme for this book should be the many theatres which have been affected in some way by the destructive force of fire. Their twice nightly entertainment of wide and varied music hall acts and even performing animals, provided a magical escape in the 1800s and 1900s from people’s arduous working conditions, which were often coupled with their poor and overcrowded housing. However, there was a danger of fire at these theatres as they were heated and lit by gas, were mainly constructed of wood, and many had inadequate emergency escapes. In all, they were unsuitable for their purpose of entertaining hundreds of people. It was obvious from my research that many of them were either totally destroyed or badly damaged by fire, on more than one occasion, often leading to the tragic loss of many lives. Thank goodness this resulted in new legislation demanding minimum standards for theatre safety.

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Book SynopsisWendake, Odanak, Wôlinak, Pointe-du-Lac, Kahnawake, Kanesatake, Akwesasne, Kitigan Zibi are communities located all along the St. Lawrence River valley and its tributaries. They have been home to descendants of the Huron-Wendat, Algonquin, Nipissing, and Iroquois nations. These First Nations have in common the fact that their ancestors were allies of the French and had converted to Christianity. Historians have ignored these nations described as 'domiciled Indians ('sauvages domiciliés') by the French administrators. Jean-Pierre Sawaya carefully studied how an alliance of such diverse 'missions' was created, developed and conducted to become The Seven Nations of Canada. How did this confederation come about? Who took part and what were their roles? The answers are mined in the massive colonial archives. Seven Fires is original research at its best, combining detailed analysis and systematic investigation, that has enabled the author to dispel the tenacious colonial myth about irrational, submissive, and fatalistic Indigenous peoples. Readers will discover forward-looking people motivated by a deep desire for independence and solidarity.Table of Contents Native Americans Iroquois; Hurons Anishinaabe Akwesasne Mohawks Kahnawake Seven Fires Seven Nations of Canada New France Fur trade

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Book SynopsisThe years leading to World War I were the 'Age of the Dreadnought'. The monumental battleship design, first introduced by Admiral Fisher to the Royal Navy in 1906, was quickly adopted around the world and led to a new era of naval warfare and policy. In this book, Roger Parkinson provides a re-writing of the naval history of Britain and the other leading naval powers from the 1880s to the early years of World War I. The years before 1914 were characterised by intensifying Anglo-German naval competition, with an often forgotten element beyond Europe in the form of the rapidly developing navies of the United States and Japan. Parkinson shows that, although the advent of the dreadnought was the pivotal turning-point in naval policy, in fact much of the technology that enabled the dreadnought to be launched was a continuity from the pre-dreadnought era. In the annals of the Royal Navy two names will always be linked: those of Admiral Sir John 'Jacky' Fisher and the ship he created, HMS Dreadnought. This book shows how the dreadnought enabled the Royal Navy to develop from being primarily the navy of the 'Pax Britannica' in the Victorian era to being a war-ready fighting force in the early years of the twentieth century. The ensuing era of intensifying naval competition rapidly became a full-blooded naval arms race, leading to the development of super-dreadnoughts and escalating tensions between the European powers. Providing a truly international perspective on the dreadnought phenomenon, this book will be essential reading for all naval history enthusiasts and anyone interested in World War I.Trade Review'An informative and readable book, it provides a useful summary of the subject, placing it in a wider context' Michael DuffyTable of ContentsPreface The Origins of the Pre-Dreadnought Era The Pre-Dreadnought Era in the 1890s The New Navies of the 1890s Fisher and the Dreadnought The Imperial German Navy The Politics and Diplomacy of Naval Policy From Dreadnoughts to Super-Dreadnoughts The Worldwide Dreadnought Arms Race The First World War

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Book SynopsisAn overview of the history of yachting in its social, cultural, political and economic contexts. Shortlisted for the Maritime Foundation's Mountbatten Award 2018 This book, by a leading expert in the field, is the first major history of yachting for over a quarter of a century. Setting developments within political,social and economic changes, the book tells the story of yachting from Elizabethan times to the present day: the first uses of yachts, by monarchs, especially Charles II; yacht clubs and yacht racing in the eighteenth century; the early years of the Royal Yacht Squadron at Cowes and an analysis of the America Cup challenges; the pioneering developments in Ireland and the exporting of yachting to the colonies and trading outposts of the Empire; the expansion of yachting in Victorian times; the Golden Age of Yachting in the years before the First World War, when it was the sport of the crowned heads of Europe; the invention of the dinghy and the keelboat classes and, after the Second World War, the massive numbers of home-built dinghies; the breaking of new boundaries by risk-taking single-handers from the mid-1960s; the expansion of leisure sailing that came in the 1980s with the use of moulded plastic yachts; and current trends and pressures within the sport. Well-referenced yet highly readable, this book will be of interest both to the scholar and the sailing enthusiast. MIKE BENDER is an experienced yachtsman and qualified Ocean Yachtmaster, with some forty thousand miles, mostly singlehanded, under the keel. He is an Honorary Research Fellow in History at the University of Exeter.Trade ReviewLikely to remain a standard text on yachting for years to come. * CULTURAL AND SOCIAL HISTORY *A comprehensive study..The breadth and depth of A New History of Yachting alone would convince a sceptic of the historical importance of a leisure activity which has previously been overlooked by historians. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MARITIME HISTORY A tremendously interesting and highly readable book - a marvellous addition to the bookshelf of any thinking sailor. * ROYAL CRUISING CLUB NEWSLETTER *A must-read for all sailing enthusiasts! -- JULIAN STOCKWIN, novelistTable of ContentsIntroduction Stirrings and Beginnings Restoration Yachting and its Purposes The Development of Yachting in the Eighteenth Century Part One: The Seaside Towns The Development of Yachting in the Eighteenth Century Part Two: Yachting in Boom Time London The Landed Gentry Take Up Yachting The Slow Expansion of Yaching in Britain, 1815-1865 The Development of Yachting in Ireland and the Colonies The Enthusiastic Adoption of Yachting by the Mercantile and Professional Classes after 1870 Part One: The New Men The Enthusiastic Adoption of Yachting by the Mercantile and Professional Classes after 1870 Part Two: A Philosophy of Yachting for the New Men The Golden Age of Yachting (1880-1900) Part One: The Rich The Golden Age of Yaching (1880-1900) Part Two: Small Boats and Women Sailors Between the Wars 1945-1965: Home-built Dinghies and Going Offshore Yachting's Third 'Golden Period': Of Heroes and Heroines; Of Families and Marinas (1965-1990) The Summer Before the Dark: Yachting in Post-Modern Times (1990-2007) After the Crash Epilogue: Fair Winds References

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Book SynopsisCurating empire explores the diverse roles played by museums and their curators in moulding and representing the British imperial experience. This collection demonstrates how individuals, their curatorial practices, and intellectual and political agendas influenced the development of a variety of museums across the globe. Taken together, these contributions suggest that museums are not just sites for accessing history but need to be considered as historical sites of significance in themselves. Individual essays examine the work of curators in museums in Britain and the colonies, the historical display and interpretation of empire in Britain, and the establishment of 'museum networks' in the British imperial context. Curating empire sheds new light on the relationship between museums, as repositories for objects and cultural institutions for conveying knowledge, and the politics of culture and the formation of identities throughout the British Empire.Table of ContentsGeneral editor’s introductionIntroduction: Curating empire: Museums and the British imperial experience – Sarah Longair and John McAleer1. The case of Thomas Baines, curator-explorer extraordinaire, and the display of Africa in nineteenth-century Norfolk – John McAleer 2. Visiting the Empire at the provincial museum, 1900–50 – Claire Wintle 3. Carving out a place in the Better Britain of the South Pacific: Maori in New Zealand museums and exhibitions – Conal McCarthy4. Curiosities or science in the National Museum of Victoria: Procurement networks and the purpose of a museum – Gareth Knapman5. Narrative as history, image as memory: Exhibiting the Great War in Australia, 1917–41–Jennifer Wellington 6. ‘The lady curator’s style’: Negotiating curatorial challenges in the Zanzibar Museum –Sarah Longair 7. A Museum for Sierra Leone? Amateur enthusiasms and colonial museum policy in British West Africa – Paul Basu 8. Edgar Thurston at the Madras Museum (1885–1909): The multiple careers of a colonial museum curator – Savithri Preetha Nair 9. Sir William Gregory and the origins and foundation of the Colombo Museum – Philip McEvansoneya 10. Tipu’s Tiger and images of India in British museums, 1799–2009 – Sadiah Qureshi Afterword: Objects, empire and museums – Sarah Longair and John McAleer Index

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Book SynopsisIntroduction by Neal AschersonIn our globalised but increasingly polarised age, Kapuscinski shows how the Other remains one of the most compelling ideas of our times.In this reflection on a lifetime of travel, the renown travel writer takes a fresh look at the Western idea of the Other: the non-European or non-American. Looking at this concept through the lens of his own encounters in Africa, Asia and Latin America, Kapuscinski traces how the West has understood the Other from classical times to colonialism, from the Age of Enlightenment to the postmodern global village.Trade Review' He has given the truest, least partial, most comprehensive and vivid account of what life is like on our planet . . .A great imaginative writer, he goes way beyond the material he is processing. -- Geoff Dyer * Guardian *Kapuscinski trascends the limitations of journalism and writes with the narrative power of a Conrad or Kipling or Orwell -- Blake MorrisonThe 20th century's most telling spokesman for the millions of ordinary people who are trapped in the vagaries of authoritarian regimes * Independent *The true master of journalism -- Gabriel Garcia MarquezKapuscinski saw more, and more clearly, if not always perfectly, than nearly any writer one can think to name. Few have written more beautifully of unspeakable things. Few have had his courage, almost none his talent. His books changed the way many of us think about nonfiction -- Tom Bissel * New York Times Book Review *In this short, simple, extraordinarily intelligent book, Kapuscinksi explores what it is to be European, to be non-European, to be colonised, to be the coloniser, to have or to impose an identity. -- Jason Burke * Observer *Intelligently written. * Guardian *A powerful, quasi-religious, meditation on the power of humbling oneself in the face of the unknown. * Independent *

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Book SynopsisThis book is a pioneering comparison of Wales with another small people, the Slovenes, over the formative period for national development in modern Europe. Language, religion and social conflict figured in both countries, but the determinant issue for national mobilisation was language equality for Slovene speakers, and religious equality for Welsh Nonconformists. Both options reflected their respective state contexts: the Habsburg empire’s acceptance of public multilingualism, and the religious pluralism long crucial in the British isles. British economic power, shown in the dramatic industrialisation of south Wales, strengthened a Welsh profile; relative Habsburg weakness detracted from Slovene language progress. The wartime premiership of a Welsh-speaking Nonconformist, Lloyd George, was no fluke – language-orientated East European scepticism about Welsh nationhood overlooks this context. The Welsh process was indeed more diffuse than the Slovene, involving the dual assimilation of immigrant workers to Welsh nationality, but also, less completely, Welsh language loss. The stories of Wales and Slovenia fascinate in themselves. They suggest, too, that alongside the ‘hard power’ of larger units, the ‘soft power’ of smaller communities’ traditions, linguistic, religious or other, is also a vital historical factor.Table of ContentsPreface Chapter 1 – Wales and the Slovene Lands: The Background Chapter 2 – Awakenings, c. 1750-1815 Chapter 3 – Towards a Turning Point, Wales and Slovenia c. 1815-1847 Chapter 4 – The Parting of the Ways:1847-48 Chapter 5 – The Picture Takes Shape, 1848-c. 1880 Chapter 6 – The National Movements Mature: Success and Shortfall Chapter 7 – Culture, Consciousness and Challenge, 1880-1914 Chapter 8 – New Directions and Denoument Conclusion

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Book SynopsisAlready in Greek and Roman antiquity a vibrant series of exchange relationships existed between the Mediterranean regions and China, including the Indian subcontinent, along well-defined routes we call the Silk Roads. Among the many goods that found their way from East to West and vice versa were glass, wine spices, metals and precious stones as well as textile raw materials and fabrics of wool and silk, a precious fibre that was highly appreciated in many of the cultures along the roads that were named after it by modern scholars.These collected papers bring together current historical, philological and archaeological research from different areas and disciplines in order highlight the use, circulation and meaning of silk as a commodity, gift, tribute , booty, and status symbol in varying cultural and chronological contexts between East and West, including technological aspects of silk production. Rome and China in antiquity provide the geographical and chronological frame for this volume (c. from the third century BCE to the fifth century CE), but also earlier and later epochs and cultures in between these empires are considered in order to build and intercultural and diachronic understanding of long-distance relations that involved silk.Trade Review“There is much here to engage the expert but we might hope that others may also learn more about a subject which was far more conspicuous in antiquity than most that occupy archaeologists, and therefore perhaps a more valuable guide to our understanding of people, places and motives.” * Ancient West & East *This volume will appeal to the specialist focused on ancient textiles, but there is more on offer here. The lines of communication and extent of knowledge about and between the cultures at the eastern and western limits of the Silk Road and in the many regions that acted as intermediaries are topics that will have wider significance to scholars and students. * Ancient Near Eastern Studies *

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Book SynopsisObjects of adornment have been a subject of archaeological, historical, and ethnographic study for well over a century. Within archaeology, personal ornaments have traditionally been viewed as decorative embellishments associated with status and wealth, materializations of power relations and social strategies, or markers of underlying social categories such as those related to gender, class, and ethnic affiliation. Personal Adornment and the Construction of Identity seeks to understand these artefacts not as signals of steady, pre-existing cultural units and relations, but as important components in the active and contingent constitution of identities. Drawing on contemporary scholarship on materiality and relationality in archaeological and social theory, this book uses one genre of material culture - items of bodily adornment - to illustrate how humans and objects construct one another.Providing case studies spanning 10 countries, three continents, and more than 9,000 years of human history, the authors demonstrate the myriad and dynamic ways personal ornaments were intertwined with embodied practice and identity performativity, the creation and remaking of social memories, and relational collections of persons, materials, and practices in the past. The authors’ careful analyses of production methods and composition, curation/heirlooming and reworking, decorative attributes and iconography, position within assemblages, and depositional context illuminate the varied material and relational axes along which objects of adornment contained social value and meaning. When paired with the broad temporal and geographic scope collectively represented by these studies, we gain a deeper appreciation for the subtle but vital roles these items played in human lives.Trade ReviewHaving read this book, you will have a clear and up to date overview of the deep possibilities jewellery research has to offer: not just for archaeological pieces, but for any type of personal adornment. * Bedouin Silver *Table of Contents 1. Personal adornment and identity construction in archaeology: An introduction Hannah V. Mattson 2. Continuity in ornament traditions: What details can tell us. Perforated shell from the Mesolithic-Neolithic transition at Franchthi Cave (Greece) Catherine Perlès 3. Costume and identity in Pacific Nicaragua Geoffrey McCafferty and Sharisse McCafferty 4. Performing place-based identity: Dress, language and acculturation strategies in the Nahua world Justyna Olko 5. Forging identity: The social and symbolic significance of torques in the Iron Age Castro Culture Nadya H. Prociuk 6. Disc-on-bow and penannular brooches: Exploring aesthetics, traditions and political change in the Early Viking Age Zanette Glørstad 7. Itineraries and networks of the Mission San Joseph de Sapala beads Elliot H. Blair, Richard W. Jefferies, and Christopher R. Moore 8. Material histories of African beads: The role of personal ornaments in cultural change Carla Klehm 9. The dynamism of dress items in the Period IVb mortuary assemblages at Hasanlu, Iran Megan Cifarelli 10. A relational perspective on ornaments in pre-Hispanic ritual deposits in the northern U.S. Southwest Hannah V. Mattson 11. Assembling ornament and assembling identity Julian Thomas

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Book SynopsisUncovers the remarkable role of emigration, particularly of indentured labourers, in forging independent India's foreign relations.

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Book SynopsisCharts the emergence and development of capitalism across the world from a variety of perspectives, providing a deep understanding of how capitalism came to be the dominant economic force.

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Book SynopsisThis book is a biographical study of the geographer/explorer and banker Francis Rodd, the second Lord Rennell of Rodd (1895-1978). Rodd’s life is interesting for the way it connected the worlds of geography, international finance, politics, espionage, and wartime military administration. He was famous in the 1920s for his journeys to the Sahara and his study of the Tuareg, People of the Veil (1926). A career in banking included a stint at the Bank of England, before he became a Partner in the merchant bank Morgan Grenfell—where remained for most of his working life (1933-1961). During the war he worked for the Ministry of Economic Warfare (1939=40), before getting closely involved in the sphere of military government (civil affairs). In 1942, he was War Office’s Chief Political Officer in East Africa. He was then appointed head of the first Allied Military Government in occupied Europe (Chief Civil Affairs Officer of AMGOT). In civil affairs, he was drawn to the principles of indirect rule. A generalist in an age of growing specialisation, he was also a mixture of traditionalist and moderniser. A product of Eton and Balliol College, Oxford, and elevated to the peerage in 1941, he was well-connected socially, and his life is a window onto British society at a time of great change.Trade Review“Francis Rodd lived a life shaped by war and with an enduring pragmatic commitment to the service of the state and to geographical thinking, whether about the Tuareg, international banking, Sicily during WWII or post-war African administration. This deeply researched biography – both a faithful tribute and an intelligent historical commentary – will interest many.” — Professor Charles W J Withers, Professor Emeritus of Historical Geography, University of Edinburgh, UK‘Who better than his grandson to tell the intriguing story of Francis Rodd, explorer, banker, intelligence officer and military administrator in Africa and Italy? This is an immaculately researched and written study which significantly adds to our understanding of the nature of the later British Empire’.” — Saul Kelly, Reader at the Defence Studies Department, King’s College London“Using the lens of biography, Philip Boobbyer shines a much-needed light on the activities of Francis Rodd who worked in and on a number of crucial activities in two world wars. This highly original contribution demonstrates how travel, intelligence gathering, diplomacy and allied liaison work intersected in the life of one man who was at the sharp end of British policy-making for almost 40 years.” — Dr Kent Fedorowich, Reader in British Imperial and Commonwealth History, University of the West of England, Bristol"The twenty-first century has taught us that the governance of conquered territory is difficult. Philip Boobbyer's The Life and World of Francis Rodd expertly illuminates the twentieth century's master of the art." — Simon Ball, Professor of International History and Politics, University of Leeds"Boobbyer’s biography finally gives full credit to Major General Lord Rennell’s remarkably diverse career. From bold explorer to international banker to hammer of the Mafia, his service to his country and the wider world was extensive and ingenious – a great British hero rediscovered." — Tim Newark, https://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/thinking-man/lord-rennell-unsung-british-hero-took-mafia/#:~:text=When%2048%2Dyear%2Dold%20Francis,them%20with%20local%20Mafia%20bosses, 26 February, 2021"Table of ContentsList of Figures; List of Abbreviations; A Note on Names; Acknowledgements; A Personal Note; Introduction; Chapter One Family and Youth; Chapter Two The First World War; Chapter Three Into the Sahara; Chapter Four International Banker; Chapter Five Negotiating with Italy; Chapter Six West Africa, 1940; Chapter Seven East Africa in Transition; Chapter Eight AMGOT (Allied Military Government of Occupied Territories); Chapter Nine ‘Jack of Many Trades’; Conclusion; Sources and Bibliography; Index.

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Book SynopsisThe so-called 'Templar of Tyre' is the third and longest section of an important 14th-century chronicle known as the Gestes des Chiprois. Written by a Cypriot knight who served the Templar Master William of Beaujeu as an Arabic translator and a member of his immediate retinue, the 'Templar of Tyre' provides precious contemporary insights, often drawn from the author's personal experience, into events beginning in the early 1230s and ending in 1309 in the East and 1314 in the West. Notably, it covers the last days of the mainland Crusader states and the fall of Acre in 1291 (providing our only eyewitness chronicle of this disaster), as well as providing information on the period following 1291. The author also reports various events in the West, including the wars of the Hohenstaufen in Italy, the rise and fall of Simon de Montfort in England, the trial and dissolution of the Templars in France, and the interminable wars of Genoa and Venice across the Mediterranean. This is the first complete translation of the 'Templar of Tyre' into English.Trade Review'... exemplary annotated translation... The text is a lively and sometimes moving account of the last years of Outremer written by a man who lived through the tumultuous events and witnessed many of them at first hand. His is the only eye-witness account of the fall of Acre in 1291 and his description of this last desperate engagement is one of the most vivid portrayals of battle in medieval literature.... This work makes a worthy addition to the Ashgate series of Crusader texts in translation which is proving so useful to teachers and students alike...' English Historical ReviewTable of ContentsContents: Introduction; The 'Templar of Tyre'; Glossary; Bibliography; Index.

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Book SynopsisThe island of Betio in the Tarawa Atoll was defended by the elite troops of the Special Naval Landing Force, whose commander, Admiral Shibasaki, boasted that "the Americans could not take Tarawa with a million men in a hundred years". In a pioneering amphibious invasion, the Marines of the 2nd Division set out to prove him wrong, overcoming serious planning errors to fight a 76-hour battle of unprecedented savagery. The cost would be more than 3000 Marine casualties at the hands of a garrison of some 3700. The lessons learned would dispel forever any illusions that Americans had about the fighting quality of the Japanese.Table of ContentsOverview - the Pacific War from Pearl Harbor to November 1944; opposing commanders; opposing armies; the battle for Tarawa; aftermath; the battlefield today; wargaming Tarawa.

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Book SynopsisThe three Punic Wars lasted over 100 years, between 264 BC and 146 BC. They represented a struggle for supremacy in the Mediterranean between the bludgeoning land power of Rome, bent on imperial conquest, and the great maritime power of Carthage with its colonies and trading posts spread around the Mediterranean. This book reveals how the dramas and tragedies of the Punic Wars exemplify many political and military lessons which are as relevant today as when Hannibal and Scipio Africanus fought to determine the course of history in the Mediterranean.

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Book SynopsisWhen war broke out in 1939, only three true battlecruisers remained in the Royal Navy including HMS ''Hood'', the world''s largest and fastest capital ship for much of her life, which would be destroyed in action against the German battleship ''Bismarck''. Out of the remaining two battlecruisers (''Repulse'' and ''Renown'') one was sunk by Japanese aircraft off Singapore, whilst the other served with distinction until the end of the war. This book traces the pre-war development of these spectacular warships, then describes their wartime exploits, using this to demonstrate their operational and mechanical performance. It examines what life was like on these wartime battlecruisers when they sailed into action.

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Book SynopsisAfrica. The cradle of civilisation. From the dawn of human time in prehistoric Africa right through to the so-called 'Arab Spring' of 2011, Gordon Kerr offers a comprehensive introduction to the sprawling history of this enormous continent. He begins with the origins of the human race and the development of stone age technology, through ancient and medieval times and the significance of the Arab presence, the Muslim states and the trans-Saharan trade. Kerr continues with the rise and fall of nation states and kingdoms prior to the arrival of Europeans , Ghana, the Kingdoms of the Forest and Savanna, Yoruba, Oyo, Benin, Asante, Luba, Lunda, Lozi and many others, on to the beginning of the slave trade, and the European conquest and colonization of sub-Saharan Africa, the 'Scramble for Africa'. Finally moving onto the often bitter struggles for independence from that period of colonization and exploitation, Kerr concludes with an assessment of Africa in the 21st century.

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Book SynopsisA study of prophetic traditions in early modern England, their influence and popularity. The influence of the non-Biblical vernacular prophetic traditions in early modern England was considerable; they had both a mass appeal, and a specific relevance to the conduct of politics by elites. Focussing particularly on Mother Shipton, the Cheshire prophet Nixon, and Merlin, this book considers the origins of these prophetic traditions, their growth and means of transmission, and the way various groups in society responded to them and in turn tried to control them. Dr Thornton also sheds light on areas where popular culture and politics were uneasily interlinked: the powerful political influence of those outside elite groups; the variations in political culture across the country; and the considerable continuing power of mystical, supernatural, and 'non-rational' ideas in British social and political life into the nineteenth century. Dr TIM THORNTON teaches at the University of Huddersfield where he is head of department, History, English, Languages and Media.Trade ReviewThe quality of scholarship is exemplary. * PARERGON *Represents solid scholarship and interacts with various opinions regarding ancient prophecy. * CHURCH HISTORY JOURNAL *A highly reliable report on the decline of magic and the effect of that on politics in the minds of the non-elite. * CHRONIQUE *Lively and informative. * JOURNAL OF ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY *A mine of ideas and source material. ARTHURIANA A broad-ranging, well-researched and thought provoking book. * ENGLISH HISTORICAL REVIEW *

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Book SynopsisIn Spite of Oceans: Migrant Voices explores the individual journeys of generations in transition from the South Asian subcontinent to England. Poignantly written, and based on real events and interviews, what emerges is the story of lives between cultures, of families reconciling customs and traditions away from their ancestral roots, and of the tensions this necessarily creates. We hear from the young bride from Bangladesh, married to a stranger, who comes to England to navigate life with a man she cannot love; from an Indian father who struggles to come to terms with his son’s mental illness and hides it from people he knows; about how a mother and daughter’s relationship was shattered in the clash over the Pakistani traditions her daughter chooses not to follow. Each narrative describes a journey that is both literal and deeply emotional, exploring the hold an inherited culture can have on the decisions and choices we make. At times heart-breaking, at times inspirational, In Spite of Oceans brings to life the pull of the past and the push of the future, and the evolving nature of what we understand as home.

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Book SynopsisWinner of the 2010 W.J.M. Mackenzie Prize for Best Political Science Book of the Year 2010The relentless rise of Communism was the most momentous political development of the first half of the twentieth century. No political change has been more fundamental than its demise in Europe and its decline elsewhere. In this hugely acclaimed book Archie Brown provides an indispensable history that examines the origins of the ideology, its development in different countries, its collapse in many states following the Soviet perestroika, and its current incarnations around the globe.The Rise and Fall of Communism explains how and why Communists came to power; how they were able, in a variety of countries on different continents to hold on to power for so long; and what brought about the downfall of so many Communist systems. A groundbreaking work from an internationally renowned specialist, this is the definitive study of the most remarkable political and human story of our times.Trade ReviewSuperb...a hugely readable book -- Simon Heffer * Daily Telegraph *At its peak, communism controlled one third of the human race...Brown's scholarly, well-paced and critical overview contributes brilliantly to a reasoned reassessment * Sunday Times *To understand one of the central stories of the 20th century - read Brown's book * Independent *The breadth of his scholarship and research is hugely impressive... Brown offers clever insights, as well as some fascinating new revelations * Evening Standard *This book is the crowning achievement of Archie Brown's career... This volume will remain a definitive study of communism... Thank you, Archie Brown -- Oleg Gordievsky * Literary Review *

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Book SynopsisWith the outbreak of World War II, Britain''s Royal Navy was at the forefront of her defence with her fleet of battleships as her main striking force. However, ten battleships of this fleet were already over 20 years old, venerable veterans of the first world conflict. As such, in the 1930s two new classes were commissioned - modern battleships which were designed to replace the ageing battle fleet although only one would see active service. Together with the older battleships, which were increasingly modified in the decade preceding the war and during the conflict itself, these vessels held their own against their German and Italian counterparts. This title offers a comprehensive review of the seven battleships of the Nelson and King George V classes from their initial commissioning to their peacetime modifications and wartime service. Detailed descriptions of the main armament of each ship will offer further analysis of individual battleship''s effectiveness, discussing ho

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Book SynopsisShortlisted for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year AwardIn 1704 a bankrupt English merchant sent home the colt he had bought from Bedouin tribesmen near the ruins of Palmyra. Thomas Darley hoped this horse might be the ticket to a new life back in Yorkshire. But he turned out to be far more than that: and although Mr Darley's Arabian never ran a race, 95% of all thoroughbreds in the world today are descended from him. In this book, for the first time, award-winning racing writer Christopher McGrath traces this extraordinary bloodline through twenty-five generations to our greatest modern racehorse, Frankel.The story of racing is about man's relationship with horses, and Mr Darley's Arabian also celebrates the men and women who owned, trained and traded the stallions that extended the dynasty. The great Eclipse, for instance, was bred by the Duke who foiled Bonnie Prince Charlie's invasion (with militia gathered from Wakefield races) and went on to lead the Jockey Club. But he only became a success once bought and raced by a card-sharp and brothel-keeper - the racecourse has always brought high and low life together. McGrath expertly guides us through three centuries of scandals, adventures and fortunes won and lost: our sporting life offers a fascinating view into our history. With a canvas that extends from the diamond mines of South Africa to the trenches of the Great War, and a cast ranging from Smithfield meat salesmen to the inspiration for Mr Toad, and from legendary jockeys to not one, but two disreputable Princes of Wales (and a very unamused Queen Victoria), Mr Darley's Arabian shows us the many faces of the sport of kings.Trade ReviewAn excellent history . . . McGrath is one of the finest sportswriters of this generation . . . Brilliant -- David Walsh * SUNDAY TIMES *A racing book like no other - a book of remarkable scope -- Robin Oakley * THE SPECTATOR *Erudite, wry and astute . . . extraordinary horses and a rich seam of cultural history woven into a fascinating book -- Melanie Reid * THE TIMES, Book of the Week *A vivid, sweeping history of impressive scope. McGrath's eye for a story and eloquent turns of phrase will delight -- Nick Pulford * RACING POST *The introduction made my arms tingle as McGrath recalls Frankels's win at the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket in 2011... Racing life, social life and equine life are all neatly pulled together and expertly rendered into a compelling story. each chapter is a satisfying vignette of a Darley descendent, the jockeys, trainers, rakes and rank who were involved. Chance and Fortune, deals and dodging -- it's like Derby Day on the page -- Alexandra Henton * THE FIELD *A racy gallop . . . a teeming, colourful survey [with] a great deal to inform and entertain -- Nicholas Clee * OBSERVER *A dark horse contender * EVENING STANDARD *Did I think I'd end up missing the whole of the Euro 2016 final in order to finish Chris McGrath's Mr Darley's Arabian? By no means, but I guess it's just that kind of book... Packed with the result of thousands of hours of painstaking research (the bibliography, in itself, is worth a read), the book never gets bogged down in any one horse or race and travels along at a pace that almost forces the turn of the next page. It also includes a quite ridiculous amount of sex, disgrace and utter debauchery. And unlike so many of the great betting coups related throughout, many of which quite spectacularly fail to deliver, it's an investment well worth making -- Will Hayler * SPORTING LIFE *Meticulous research and engaging writing... a book to be savoured, Mr Darley's Arabian is a triumph -- Richard Fahey * RACING POST *A good story . . . from an award-winning journalist . . . [McGrath is] at his best when he is conveying his love of racing -- Patrick Scrivenor * LITERARY REVIEW *Truly gripping...a finely crafted tome that insists on your uninterrupted attention from the start...A fascinating tale of horses and those who owned, trained and traded them. the story is peppered with enough scandal and adventure to fill the trashiest novel. Fortunately, Mr Darley's Arabian is very well written, its narrative racing along effortlessly - as you might expect of a thoroughbred author -- Pete Sharkey * BIRMINGHAM POST, Sports Book of the Month *A high-quality history of our sport, drawing on a cast that takes in aristocrats and nouveaux riches, playboy industrialists, Smithfield meat salemen and the rulers of Dubai * GUARDIAN *A colourful and engaging tale of scandals, adventures and fortunes lost and won * HORSE MAGAZINE *A real thoroughbred.. a three century gallop through 25 generations of champions * IRISH MAIL *Entertaining and informative... a remarkable journey through three centuries, many countries and most of all 25 horses to trace the history of horse racing... [written with] a wonderful light touch. -- Bill Spence * RYEDALE GAZETTE & HERALD *The thoroughbred among new writers * OXFORD TIMES *A sprawling, colourful read, McGrath is an excellent writer and this is an ambitious and well-researched project... [Its readers] are on to a winner * SPORT *A brilliant read... excellent...if you have any interest in horse racing at all, this book is a must read * BOOKBAG *Brilliant...Mr Darley's Arabian has rightly received rave reviews -- Lee Mottershead * RACING POST *Extraordinary * WILTSHIRE VIEW *To the sound of pounding hooves, royalty and aristocrats, obsessive jockeys and trainers jostle with rogues and rascals. The author's understanding of breeding, racing and human foibles is thorough, his prose elegant. * SUNDAY TIMES, BOOKS OF THE YEAR *An enthralling cultural history of humans as much as horses * THE TIMES, BOOKS OF THE YEAR *A picaresque chronicle of horse racing . . . ingenious storytelling... a pleasure * GUARDIAN, BOOKS OF THE YEAR *A sporty stunner... great * COACH *McGrath is an excellent writer and this is an ambitious and well-researched project * Sport *The most comprehensive and entertaining history of racing * DAILY TELEGRAPH *Brilliantly realised . . . The depth of the research McGrath has undertaken is evident on every page but the difficult balance between being definitive and keeping the reader entertained is cleverly maintained . . . There could be no better way for a newcomer to racing to absorb its rich history or a devotee to discover fresh depths * Observor, 'The Sports Books that Made Our Writers' Year' *McGrath's book is erudite, his style wry and his descriptions astute * The Times *Excellent history of thorough-bred racing . . . immense attention to detail * Sunday Times *I galloped through Mr Darley's Arabian, Christopher McGrath's brilliantly colourful romp through the extraordinary horses and scandalous characters who make up the history of British horse racing * Observer, Best Holiday Reads *

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Book SynopsisPresidents, Prime Ministers and Secretary Generals of totalitarian states in the twentieth century have been highly conscious of the need to present a national image suited to the new political culture they sought to inculcate. In these regimes, state-sanctioned art performed a key function, giving visual dimension to an abstract political ideology. There is a striking similarity between the idealized images from these countries. This book presents about fifty postcards from the Soviet Union, Germany, Italy, Spain, and China, between 1920 and the 1960s. While some of the images are of a high aesthetic calibre, others are simply intended to portray a vernacular socialist realism or to cultivate the cult of the leader. Taken together, they form a fascinating look at the art of power and its expression at a time of political upheaval and experiment.

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Book SynopsisThe punctuation marks, mathematical symbols and glyphs which haunt the edges of our keyboards have evolved over many hundreds of years. They shape our understanding of texts, calculations and online interactions. Without these symbols all texts would run in endless unbroken lines of letters and numbers. Many hands and minds have created, refined and promulgated the symbols which give form to our written communication. Through individual entries discussing the story behind each example, 'Hyphens & Hashtags' reveals the long road many of these special characters have taken on their way into general use. In the digital age of communication, some symbols have gained an additional meaning or a new lease of life – the colon now doubles up as the eyes of a smiling face emoticon and the hashtag has travelled from obscurity to an essential component of social media. Alongside historical roots, this book also considers ever-evolving modern usage and uncovers those symbols which have now fallen out of fashion. 'Hyphens & Hashtags' casts a well-deserved spot-light on these stalwarts of typography whose handy knack for summing up a command or concept in simple shorthand marshals our sentences, clarifies a calculation or adds some much-needed emotion to our online interactions.Table of ContentsContents introduction 1 punctuation 5 Full stop 12 Comma 17 Colon 21 Semicolon 26 Apostrophe 30 Question mark 34 Exclamation mark 38 Ellipsis 43 Quotation marks 47 Brackets 52 Hyphen 56 glyphs 61 Hash sign 66 At sign 70 Ampersand 73 Asterisk 77 Slash 81 Pound sign 85 Dollar sign 89 Euro sign 94 Copyright symbol 97 Emoticons & emoji 101 mathematical symbols 107 Zero 112 Plus sign 117 Minus sign 121 Multiply symbol 125 Divide symbol 129 Equals sign 132 Greater than & Less than 135 Per cent 138 Degree symbol 141 Pi 144 Infinity 147 endangered & extinct symbols 151 Tironian et 156 Interrobang 159 Tilde 162 Hedera 165 Pilcrow 167 Manicule 171 further reading 177 index 179

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Book SynopsisThe capture of Jerusalem by the First Crusade in 1099 signalled the beginning of an armed struggle in Palestine and throughout the Eastern Mediterranean which lasted until the 15th century. It was a war dominated by the building, securing and besieging of castles rather than by pitched battles. Kristian Molin covers the military history of the crusades on a wider geographical scale than previous historians, taking in Armenia, Cyprus and Greece as well as the Holy Land. He also shows the role of castles as administrative, judicial and social centres in times of peace as well as in war. "Unknown Crusader Castles" provides a fresh perspective on the history of the crusades.

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Book SynopsisFollowing the demise of the Carolingian dynasty in 987 the French lords chose Hugh Capet as their king. He was the founder of a dynasty that lasted until 1328. Although for much of this time, the French kings were weak, and the kingdom of France was much smaller than it later became, the Capetians nevertheless had considerable achievements and also produced outstanding rulers, including Philip Augustus and St Louis. This wide-ranging book throws fascinating light on the history of Medieval France and the development of European monarchy.Trade Review"Bradbury's text is a delightful read ... Bradbury has a wonderful sense of humour ... The text is complete. It fleshes out the important, or lack thereof, of each Capetian." Richard CusimanoReviewed 27/07/07 -- Times Higher Education Supplement * TES *Table of ContentsPreface; List of Illustrations; 1. Carolingian Francia; 2. The Rise of the Robertians; 3. The New Principalities, 800-1000; 4. The First Capetian Kings, 987-1108; 5. Successful Failures, 1031-1108; 6. The Fat and the Young, 1108-80; 7. Philip the Great; 8. King and Saint, Louis IX, 1226-70; 9. The Bold and the Fair, 1270-1314; 10. The End of the Line, 1314-1328; 11. Achievements and Legacy.

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Book SynopsisDeals with British social history and commonwealth history.

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Book SynopsisThe Armada Portrait is perhaps the most immediately recognisable depiction of Elizabeth I and, arguably, of any British monarch. It captures both the drama of a pivotal moment in Britain's history - the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588 - and the majesty of the Tudor monarchy. But while the image it presents is one of assuredness, success and might, the portrait both overstates English power and downplays the real dangers the Armada presented to England and its queen. By understanding the portrait and its symbolism, the history of the Armada and the turbulent Elizabethan age come to life.

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