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British & Irish history
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Written by a man who is
both an award-winning
historian of the
Highlands and Islands and
a key figure in shaping
the region's future
development, Last of the
Free is a ground-breaking
and definitive account of
how the Highlands and
Islands of Scotland
evolved into the way they
are today. Never before
has the history of the
Highlands and Islands
been recounted so
comprehensively and in so
much fascinating, often
moving detail. But this
book is not simply the
story of humanity's
millenium-long
involvement with one of
the world's most
spectacular localities.
It is also a major
contribution to
present-day debate about
how Scotland-and Britain
should be organised.
James Hunter's central
contention is that the
Highlands and Islands
were most successful when
the region possessed a
large measure of
autonomy, which turned
places like Iona and
Kirkwall into centres of
European significance.
That autonomy was
destroyed, this book
maintains, by medieval
Scotland's monarchy, by
seventeenth-century
Scotland's Parliament and
by the British
politicians who inherited
the Scottish state's
unrelenting determination
to ensure that
inhabitants of the
Highlands and Islands had
no worthwhile control
over their own destinies.
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Far more Irishmen live
outside Ireland than
within it. This
fascinating study, by
Ireland's best known and
most controversial
contemporary historian,
reveals why this is, how
it has come about and
what the realities are
today - political,
economic, religious and
cultural - for the
populations of the 'Irish
Diaspora' and the
countries they now
inhabit. Based on
first-hand research in
America, Africa,
Australia, New Zealand
and throughout Europe
(including, of course,
the UK), this book
reveals the workings of
Irish communities
throughout the world,
some with great political
and economic power (such
as in the US, where the
Irish political tradition
has dominated politics
from the 19th century
Tammany Hall to
presidents Kennedy and
Clinton), some with
enormous moral authority
(including Irish
religious communities in
Africa) and others living
in poverty on the fringes
of society.
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We all know that the
Battle of Hastings was
fought in 1066, London's
'one big burning blaze'
tore through the capital
in 1666 and that Britain
declared war on Nazi
Germany in 1939, but
many of us remember the
most important moments in
our history by the folk
stories which are
attached to them. So we
remember Henry VIII for
his wives rather than the
Reformation and Charles
II for climbing a tree
rather than the Civil
War. But if we set aside
these stories, do we
really know what happened
when, and why it's so
important?
Which
came first, the Bronze
Age or the Stone Age? Why
did the Romans play such
a significant role in our
past? And how did a
nation as small as
Britain come to command
such a vast empire? Here,
Tim Taylor and the team
of expert historians
behind Channel 4's
Time Team, answer
these questions and many
more, cataloguing
British history in a way
that is accessible to
all. This book will give
you and your family a
clear and concise view of
what happened when, and
why.
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Join engineer,
steeplejack and beloved
storyteller Fred Dibnah,
as he takes you on a
personal tour through
industrial
Britain.
Bringing
to life landmark events
from the eighteenth to
the early twentieth
century in his typically
engaging and anecdotal
style, Fred introduces
the great inventors from
the age of steam,
describes the day-to-day
operation of railways,
mills, forges and
factories, and paints a
vivid picture of what
life was like for the
mill-hands, colliers and
engineers who laboured in
industrial Britain - the
workshop of the
world.
With a
comprehensive gazetteer,
which lists details of
over 230 places of
industrial interest -
from steam railways and
ships, to windmills and
watermills - Foundries
and Rolling Mills is
a glorious portrait of
Britain at the height of
its industrial power,
from one of our most
revered
figures.
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Join engineer,
steeplejack and beloved
storyteller Fred Dibnah,
as he takes you on a
personal tour through
industrial
Britain.
Bringing
to life landmark events
from the eighteenth to
the early twentieth
century in his typically
engaging and anecdotal
style, Fred introduces
the great inventors from
the age of steam,
describes the day-to-day
operation of railways,
mills, forges and
factories, and paints a
vivid picture of what
life was like for the
mill-hands, colliers and
engineers who laboured in
industrial Britain - the
workshop of the
world.
With a
comprehensive gazetteer,
which lists details of
over 230 places of
industrial interest -
from steam railways and
ships, to windmills and
watermills - Foundries
and Rolling Mills is
a glorious portrait of
Britain at the height of
its industrial power,
from one of our most
revered
figures.
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Highly original and
magnificent in scope,
Albion: The Origins of
the English Imagination
discovers the roots of
English cultural history
in the Anglo-Saxon
period, and traces it
through the centuries.
What does it mean to be
English? This dazzling
book demonstrates that a
quintessentially English
quality can be discovered
in all forms of English
culture, not only in
literature but also in
painting, music,
architecture, philosophy
and science. Just as
London: The Biography
guided the reader through
the capital city with a
mixture of narrative and
theme, so Albion,
employing the same
techniques, engages the
reader with stories and
surprises - From Beowulf
to King Arthur and the
Knights of the Round
Table, via Chaucer and
Shakespeare, to the
Bronte sisters, Alice
through the Looking Glass
and Lord of the
RingsWitty, provocative
and anecdotal, this is
Peter Ackroyd at his most
brilliant and exuberant.
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*In A World by
Itself, six
distinguished British
historians offer the
most definitive
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*In A World by
Itself, six
distinguished British
historians offer the
most definitive
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How long does the average
British male spend in the
shower?
What is
the worst-paid
job?
Where
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When Queen Elizabeth II
was crowned in 1953,
many proclaimed the start
of a new Elizabethan Age.
Few had any inkling,
however, of the
stupendous changes that
would take place over the
next 50 years, in
Britain and around the
world.
In Our
Times, A.N. Wilson
takes the reader on an
exhilarating journey from
that day to this. With
his acute eye not just
for the broad social and
cultural sweep but also
for the telling detail,
he brilliantly distils
half a century of
unprecedented social and
political
change.
Here are
the defining events and
characters of the modern
age, from the Suez
crisis to Vietnam, The
Beatles to Princess
Diana, the
miners
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For much of its long
history, Britain has
been bloodily ravaged by
war and internal strife:
foreign invasions have
devastated British
society, bitter battles
have been fought over
social and political
rights, and brutal
warlords have torn the
country apart in their
struggles for dominance.
In Battlefield
Britain, father and son
team Peter and Dan Snow
tell the story of eight
decisive battles that
have done much to shape
the Britain we know
today: Boudiccas revolt
against Rome (AD 601);
the Battle of Hastings
(1066); the Battle for
Wales (140010); the
Spanish Armada (1588);
the Battle of Naseby
(1645); the Battle of the
Boyne (1690); the Battle
of Culloden (1746) and
the Battle of Britain
(1940).
For the
first time,
ground-breaking computer
graphics are used to
recreate the ebb and flow
of these famous battles
in dramatic and vivid
detail. Peter Snow, as
well known for his
strategic analysis as his
swingometer, and Dan, a
young military historian,
combine their skills to
form a unique writing
team. In addition to
explaining the
battleplans of the great
military commanders they
also reveal what it was
like to be an ordinary
soldier on the front
line, where the battle
was at its fiercest.
Spanning nearly two
thousand years of British
history, Battlefield
Britain takes us into the
heat of each battle as it
unfolds to bring alive
Britains turbulent past
as never before. Chapter
breakdown: Introduction
Chapter 1 Boudiccas
Revolt - 61AD Chapter 2
Hastings 1066 Chapter 3
Shrewsbury 1403 Chapter 4
Bosworth Field 1485
Chapter 5 Naseby 1645
Chapter 6 The Boyne 1690
Chapter 7 Culloden 1746
Chapter 8 The Battle of
Britain
Epilogue
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The British Isles, it is
often believed, have not
been invaded for nearly a
thousand years. In fact,
as Norman Longmate
reveals in this highly
entertaining book (the
successor to his
acclaimed Defending the
Island), foreign
soldiers have landed on
British soil on many
occasions.In this
definitive study of a
long-neglected subject
Norman Longmate make
constant use of original
sources, including
contemporary eyewitness
accounts. These are woven
into an enthralling
narrative, packed with
fact - about weapons,
ships, armies and
fortresses - spiced with
anecdote, and ranging
over international and
political as well as
military and naval
history. The result is
above all an exciting
story, which shows how,
against all the odds,
the British people
managed to retain their
freedom from the days of
James I to those of
George VI.
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For far too long, the
County of Lancashire has
languished under the
grimy pall of smoke,
muck, mills and mines;
enveloped in outdated
condescension and
smothered by the easy
dismissals that put down
the north of England as
just 'up there' and
'grim'. Thank you very
much, George Orwell,
Monty Python and every
London cabbie.But
Lancashire is not 'up
there'. It is actually
situated in the centre of
the British Isles and,
far from being grim,
Lancs is in fact a place
of wit and wonder,
romance and surprise; a
land of exotic influence
whose people have ever
looked outward to
sophistications and
influences beyond
frontiers and seas.
Indeed, French writer
Honore de Balzac
recognised these
affinities and yearnings
in the Lancashire people
when he had one of his
characters declare that
'Lancashire is the County
where women die of love'.
Mock if you like, but
then think about it:
where is the magnificent
thoroughfare that
inspired the boulevards
of Paris? Where did they
go to film Brief
Encounter, arguably the
most romantic British
film ever? Which city
informed the great vision
of C. G. Jung? Where did
the young Shakespeare
dream and draw his
inspired imaginings?
Where do you think
Britain's only
bullfighter, the doughty
El Ingles, is from?
Where will the new Las
Vegas be? Join Charles
Nevin, Fleet Street
journalist and humorist,
as he returns to his
roots and reveals all
this and more in Where
Women Die of Love.
Discover the true Camelot
and the beauty that is
Rugby League. Ponder over
Cotton and Gandhi and
Engels, and mull over
the reason why Britain's
greatest comics, from
Laurel to Coogan........
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This history of Britain
begins with the Roman
invasion in 55 BC and
ends with Queen
Victoria's death in 1901.
Written to accompany the
award-winning BBC Radio 4
series, the work brings
to life the events and
personalities that have
shaped our nation. It
tells of wars,
bloodshed, murder and
revenge, and of the
tremendous social changes
which the people of these
islands have witnessed
over the centuries.
Weaving his text with
accounts from
contemporary chronicles
and diaries, and
extracts from Winston
Churchill's ''A History
of the English-Speaking
Peoples'', Christopher
Lee describes the
evolution of Britain's
great institutions, the
powers of its kings and
queens, and charts its
political and economic
development.
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The Pocket Book of
Patriotism proved
that George Courtauld had
a real gift for making
Availability: In Stock
£9.20
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-
The Pocket Book of
Patriotism proved
that George Courtauld had
a real gift for making
Availability: In Stock
£9.00
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Lloyd George once spoke
of 'a very powerful
combination - in its way
the most powerful in the
country'. Its proceedings
were invariably conducted
at Cliveden, the country
estate of the fabulously
wealthy Nancy and Waldorf
Astor. Collectively
dubbed 'God's Truth Ltd',
the group included
leading politicians,
academics, writers and
newspaper editors. Its
pedigree impeccable, its
social standing beyond
reproach, its persuasive
powers permeated the
clubs and institutions of
London, the senior
common rooms of Oxbridge
colleges, the quality
press and the great
country houses of
England. Suddenly, in
the late 1930s, the
'Cliveden Set' was
catapulted into
uncalled-for notoriety.
It had been identified as
a cabal that sought to
manipulate, even
determine, British
foreign policy in order
to uphold its narrow
class interests. It would
use any means, however
devious - even negotiate
a humiliating,
dishonourable settlement
with Nazi Germany - to
maintain its privileges,
those of a decaying
ruling class. But was the
'Cliveden Set' a
traitorous cabal,
challenging 'the
constitutional structures
of British democracy',
or simply an unstructured
think-tank of harmless
do-gooders? Norman Rose
discerningly probes this
fascinating tale,
brilliantly disentangling
fact from fiction, and
setting this privileged
clique in the wider
perspective of its times.
Availability: In Stock
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-
Lloyd George once spoke
of 'a very powerful
combination - in its way
the most powerful in the
country'. Its proceedings
were invariably conducted
at Cliveden, the country
estate of the fabulously
wealthy Nancy and Waldorf
Astor. Collectively
dubbed 'God's Truth Ltd',
the group included
leading politicians,
academics, writers and
newspaper editors. Its
pedigree impeccable, its
social standing beyond
reproach, its persuasive
powers permeated the
clubs and institutions of
London, the senior
common rooms of Oxbridge
colleges, the quality
press and the great
country houses of
England. Suddenly, in
the late 1930s, the
'Cliveden Set' was
catapulted into
uncalled-for notoriety.
It had been identified as
a cabal that sought to
manipulate, even
determine, British
foreign policy in order
to uphold its narrow
class interests. It would
use any means, however
devious - even negotiate
a humiliating,
dishonourable settlement
with Nazi Germany - to
maintain its privileges,
those of a decaying
ruling class. But was the
'Cliveden Set' a
traitorous cabal,
challenging 'the
constitutional structures
of British democracy',
or simply an unstructured
think-tank of harmless
do-gooders? Norman Rose
discerningly probes this
fascinating tale,
brilliantly disentangling
fact from fiction, and
setting this privileged
clique in the wider
perspective of its times.
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In the 19th century the
Irish population was
halved. This masterly
book traces the three
causes of this depletion;
first the manine, second
the Irish diaspora and
the emigrations to places
such as America and
Canada and thridly the
transportations of
political activists to
Australia. It is a quest
for Keneally's Irish
ancestors. Based on
unique research among
little-used sources, the
characters and their
stories come brilliantly
to life; this is an
important book in which
the main political themes
are fascinatingly
explored. It also
contains a remarkable
collection of photographs
and documents.
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London Under is a
wonderful, atmospheric,
imaginative, oozing
short study of everything
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Edgehill, 1642:
Surveying the
disastrous scene in the
aftermath of the first
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From Fleet Street to the
world of medicine, from
the City of London to the
corridors of power in
Whitehall, Scots have
exerted a determining
influence on key areas of
British life since the
Union of the Parliaments
in 1707. Now that Scots
dominate Westminster and
run their own parliament
in Edinburgh, is the
tartan takeover complete?
Through revealing
interviews with some of
the most successful Scots
in London, including
Kirsty Wark, Sheena
Macdonald, Tam Dalyell,
Norman Lamont and William
Dalrymple, On the Make
shows how citizens of the
poorest part of the
United Kingdom have
gained unprecedented
influence over British
politics, the media and
commerce. But success has
not always led to
popularity. While
ambitious Celts have
always encountered
resentment from the
English, Scots at home
also often view their
successful brothers and
sisters down south as
selfish careerists who
have abandoned their
country for the lure of
English gold. With
English commentators
beginning to question the
power of the Scots as
never before, this
hard-hitting book takes a
challenging look at
exactly how much power
lies in Scottish hands in
today's devolved United
Kingdom.
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Few cities in the world
abound with so many
extraordinary stories as
Glasgow. The city has
been the silent witness
to some of the most
significant events of the
past century, from major
triumphs to cataclysmic
calamities, and the best
of these anecdotes are
compiled here to form
this unique
collection.
Amongst the notable
events revisited are the
launching of the Queen
Mary, which captivated
the city
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'While Britain was losing
an empire, it was
finding itself...' The
compelling opening words
to this volume, The
Fate of the Empire,
set the tone and agenda
for the final stage of
Simon Schama's epic
voyage around Britain,
her people and her past.
Spanning two centuries,
crossing the breadth of
the empire and covering a
vast expanse of topics -
from the birth of
feminism to the fate of
freedom - he explores the
forces that shaped
British culture and
character from 1776 to
2000.
The story
opens on the eve of a
bloody revolution, but
not a British one. The
French Revolution's
spirit of fiery defiance
and Romantic idealism
sparked off a round of
radical revolts and
reforms that gathered
momentum over the coming
century - from the Irish
Rebellion to the Chartist
Petition. How could the
world's first industrial
society come through its
growing pains without
falling apart in social
and political conflict?
Would the machine age
destroy or strengthen the
institutions that held
Britain together? And if
the British Empire helped
to make Britain stable
and rich, did it live up
to its promise to help
the ruled as well as the
rulers? Amidst the
military and economic
shocks and traumas of the
20th century, and
through the voices of
Churchill, Orwell and H.
G. Wells, The Fate of
the Empire asks the
question that is still
with us - is the immense
weight of our history a
blessing or a curse, a
gift or a millstone
around the neck of our
future?
It is a
vast, compelling epic,
made more so by the
lively storytelling and
big, bold characters at
the heart of the action.
Schama also exposes the
grand illusions that cost
untold lives when India's
viceroys let millions of
starving Indians die.
Why? What went wrong with
the liberal dream? The
answers emerge in The
Fate of Empire,
which reveals the living
ideals of Britain's long
history, 'a history that
tied together social
justice with
bloody-minded
liberty'.
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-
'Great Britain? What was
that?' asks Simon Schama
at the start of this,
the second book of his
epic three-volume journey
into Britain's past. This
volume, The British
Wars, is a
compelling chronicle of
the changes that
transformed every strand
and stratum of British
life, faith and thought
from 1603 to 1776.
Travelling up and down
the country and across
three continents, Schama
explores the forces that
tore Britain apart during
two centuries of dynamic
change - transforming
outlooks, allegiances
and boundaries.
From the beginning of the
British wars in July
1637, for 200 years
battles raged on - both
at home and abroad, on
sea and on land, up and
down the length of
burgeoning Britain,
across Europe, America
and India. Most would be
wars of faith - waged on
wide-ranging grounds of
political or religious
conviction. But as wars
of religious passions
gave way to campaigns for
profit, the British
people did come together
in the imperial
enterprise of 'Britannia
Incorporated'.
The story of that great
alteration is a story of
revolution and reaction,
inspiration and
disenchantment, of
progress and catastrophe,
and Schama's evocative
narrative brings it
vividly to
life.
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Written by award-winning
Scottish historian James
Hunter, this
groundbreaking and
definitive account
reveals how the Highlands
and Islands of Scotland
have evolved from a
centre of European
significance to a
Scottish outpost. Never
before has the history of
the region been recounted
so comprehensively and in
so much fascinating,
often moving, detail.
But this book
is not simply the story
of humanity
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-
'While Britain was losing
an empire, it was
finding itself...' The
compelling opening words
to this volume, The
Fate of the Empire,
set the tone and agenda
for the final stage of
Simon Schama's epic
voyage around Britain,
her people and her past.
Spanning two centuries,
crossing the breadth of
the empire and covering a
vast expanse of topics -
from the birth of
feminism to the fate of
freedom - he explores the
forces that shaped
British culture and
character from 1776 to
2000.
The story
opens on the eve of a
bloody revolution, but
not a British one. The
French Revolution's
spirit of fiery defiance
and Romantic idealism
sparked off a round of
radical revolts and
reforms that gathered
momentum over the coming
century - from the Irish
Rebellion to the Chartist
Petition. How could the
world's first industrial
society come through its
growing pains without
falling apart in social
and political conflict?
Would the machine age
destroy or strengthen the
institutions that held
Britain together? And if
the British Empire helped
to make Britain stable
and rich, did it live up
to its promise to help
the ruled as well as the
rulers? Amidst the
military and economic
shocks and traumas of the
20th century, and
through the voices of
Churchill, Orwell and H.
G. Wells, The Fate of
the Empire asks the
question that is still
with us - is the immense
weight of our history a
blessing or a curse, a
gift or a millstone
around the neck of our
future?
It is a
vast, compelling epic,
made more so by the
lively storytelling and
big, bold characters at
the heart of the action.
Schama also exposes the
grand illusions that cost
untold lives when India's
viceroys let millions of
starving Indians die.
Why? What went wrong with
the liberal dream? The
answers emerge in The
Fate of Empire,
which reveals the living
ideals of Britain's long
history, 'a history that
tied together social
justice with
bloody-minded
liberty'.
Availability: In Stock
£22.50
Available
-
The historic City of
Durham is now over 1, 000
years old. With its
magnificent Norman
Cathedral and Castle it
has become a world famous
tourist attraction, the
outstanding importance of
which was recognised in
1987 when it was
designated by UNESCO as a
World Heritage
site.Martin Dufferveil's
book is a celebration of
this unique City and of
the Country that has
grown up around it, from
the day in AD 995 when a
group of monks carrying
the coffin of St Cuthbert
settled on what was then
known as the 'Dunholm' to
the present time. From
the original site on the
high wooded rock, a
settlement began to take
shape. It was one which
would be swelled by
pilgrims and made wealthy
by their offerings, and
which would eventually
become one of the most
important sites of
religious pilgrimage and
military power in
England. Many events and
people have, throughout
the last millennium, lit
up the long story of
Durham, in both fact and
fable. This book recalls
some of them. Wars,
saints, kings and
mythical beasts are all
included in this tale of
over 1, 000 years as are
surveyors, locomotive
engineers and miners. It
is all here from the long
sagas of the Wars of the
Roses and the English
Civil War, to the
legendary Lampton Worm;
from Canute the Great,
Viking Emperor, to
murder most foul at Gutty
Throat Farm; and from the
ravages of William the
Conqueror, to the
bizarre plan to turn
Durham City into a port.
Steam locomotives for the
Tsar of Russia and
Dixieland in the USA both
had their origins here in
Durham, and both feature
in this book.
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Roots of Stone is a
passionate tapestry,
weaving the story of
Scotland with the lives
of ordinary and
extraordinary people.
This fascinating sweep
over two thousand years
of Scotland's past blends
with a true family story
stretching back over
these same two millennia
in a spellbinding fusion
of history and memoir.
This is an exploration of
the Scottish identity
through actual tales of
the author's forebears -
tales drawn from royal
bloodline and from
crofting hearth, tales
of high drama and of
quiet everyday
satisfactions. Mackays
and MacDonalds tread most
heavily across these
pages, but they are far
from alone. Munros,
MacDougalls, Murrays and
dozens of other clans and
families also feature.
Kenneth MacAlpin,
Macbeth, Robert the
Bruce and Alexander 'Wolf
of Badenoch' all have a
place in the tapestry.
The dreadful deeds of the
Wicked Earls of Orkney
are laid bare, but
counterbalanced by the
work of those famous
healers, the Beatons.
Stepping closer to the
present day, the human
tragedy of the Clearances
becomes all-consuming.
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A People's History of
Britain tells the story -
from the Romans to the
present day - of the
small northern islands
off the coast of Europe
which became the world's
biggest empire. Rebecca
Fraser's dramatic
portrayal of the
larger-than-life
characters who forged
Britain's national
institutions is an
enjoyable introduction to
British history, and a
useful chronology of the
past. Just as much as
kings, queens, battles
and conquest, Britain's
great themes have been
the liberty of the
individual, the rule of
law, and the
parliamentary democracy
invented to protect them.
Ever since Caractacus and
Boudicca surprised the
Romans with the bravery
of their opposition,
Britain stood out as the
home of freedom. From
Stephen Langton to Thomas
More, from John Hampden
to William Wilberforce,
from Gladstone to
Churchill, British
history is studded with
heroic figures. They have
resisted tyranny in all
its guises whether it be
the Stuart kings' belief
in Divine Right, the
institution of slavery,
or the ambitions of
Napoleon and Hitler. This
highly readable account
of the men and women who
created turning points in
history is packed with
anecdotes about British
scientists, explorers,
soldiers, traders,
writers and artists.
Rebecca Fraser's
sparkling narrative has
the sweep and pace of an
epic.
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It is Rebecca Fraser's
aim to write a dramatic -
indeed passionate -
narrative which will form
a lively and refreshing
introduction to
traditional history. One
of her main themes about
British history is
freedom. Every since
Caractacus and Boudicca
surprised the Romans with
the bravery of their
opposition, Britain has
been the home of liberty.
From Alfred the Great to
Churchill, from Thomas
Moore to Nelson, from
Wilberforce to Florence
Nightingale, British
history is studded with
heroic figures who have
stood against tyranny in
all its guises, be it
the ambitions of Napoleon
or Hitler, or the
institution of slavery.
Packed with anecdotes
about the men and women
who created turning
points in history, about
British scientists,
explorers, writers and
artists, this sparkling
narrative has the sweep
and pace of an epic.
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-
Did you know that most
tartans date only from
1822? Or that the kilt
was invented by a factory
manager? Know that a Scot
landed in America almost
a century before
Columbus? Or that
Scotland had electric
lighting 70 years before
Watt patented the light
bulb? Probably not.
Because Scotland has two
secret histories. The
image of the Scots as
whisky-drinking,
tartan-sporting,
tight-fisted kilt wearers
is famous throughout the
world. That image is
manufactured. Yet
Scotland's reputation for
producing inventors,
thinkers and explorers -
people who have changed
the course of world
history - is nowhere as
prevalent. The scale of
Scottish influence has
been totally
under-estimated.
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Courtier, poet,
soldier, diplomat -
Philip Sidney was one of
the most promising young
men of his age. Son of
Elizabeth I's deputy in
Ireland, nephew and heir
to her favourite,
Leicester, he was tipped
for high office - and
even to inherit the
throne. But Sidney soon
found himself caught up
in the intricate politics
of Elizabeth's court and
forced to become as
Machiavellian as everyone
around him if he was to
achieve his ambitions.
Against a backdrop of
Elizabethan intrigue and
the battle between
Protestant and Catholic
for predominance in
Europe, Alan Stewart
tells the riveting story
of Philip Sidney's
struggle to suceed.
Seeing that his
continental allies had a
greater sense of his
importance that his
English contamporaries,
Philip turned his
attention to Europe. He
was made a French baron
at seventeen,
corresponded with leading
foreign scholars,
considered marriage
proposals from two
princesses and, at the
time of his tragically
early death, was being
openly spoken of as the
next ruler of the
Netherlands.
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-
When Queen Elizabeth II
was crowned in 1953,
many proclaimed the start
of a new Elizabethan Age.
Few had any inkling,
however, of the
stupendous changes that
would take place over the
next 50 years, in
Britain and around the
world.
In Our
Times, A.N. Wilson
takes the reader on an
exhilarating journey from
that day to this. With
his acute eye not just
for the broad social and
cultural sweep but also
for the telling detail,
he brilliantly distils
half a century of
unprecedented social and
political
change.
Here are
the defining events and
characters of the modern
age, from the Suez
crisis to Vietnam, The
Beatles to Princess
Diana, the
miners
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-
Great Britain and Ireland
are home to some of the
most famous
archaeological sites in
the world. Stonehenge,
Hadrian's Wall and
Ironbridge are familiar
to us all and each year
thousands flock to
witness their spectacular
beauty. But what can
these fascinating sites
tell us about the lives
and times of our
ancestors?
Now,
Channel 4's perennially
popular Time Team take us
on an archaeological
sight-seeing tour of
Britain and Ireland.
Region by region, they
select the most
interesting and important
sites which are open to
visitors, some familiar
to all, others
relatively unknown. Each
is treated with the
inimitable no-nonsense
Time Team style. This
book is like having Tony,
Mick, Geo-Phys and the
gang in the back seat of
your car - sharing their
specialist knowledge and
fascinating historical
insights wherever you
travel in the British
Isles...
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-
Channel 4's perennially
popular Time Team take us
on an archaeological
sight-seeing tour of
Britain and Ireland.
Region by region, they
select the most
interesting and important
sites which are open to
public visitors, some
familiar to all, others
relatively unknown. Each
is treated with the
inimitable no-nonsense
Time Team style. This
book is like having Tony,
Mick, Carenza and the
gang in the back seat of
your car
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-
* 'Great Britain? What
was that?' asks Simon
Schama at the start of
this, the second book of
his epic three-volume
journey into Britain's
past. This volume,
The British Wars,
is a compelling chronicle
of the changes that
transformed every strand
and stratum of British
life, faith and thought
from 1603 to 1776.
Travelling up and down
the country and across
three continents,
Schama explores the
forces that tore Britain
apart during two
centuries of dynamic
change - transforming
outlooks, allegiances
and boundaries.
*
From the beginning of the
British wars in July
1637, for 200 years
battles raged on -
both at home and abroad,
on sea and on land, up
and down the length of
burgeoning Britain,
across Europe, America
and India. Most would be
wars of faith - waged on
wide-ranging grounds of
political or religious
conviction. But as wars
of religious passions
gave way to campaigns for
profit, the British
people did come together
in the imperial
enterprise of 'Britannia
Incorporated'.
*
The story of that great
alteration is a story of
revolution and reaction,
inspiration and
disenchantment, of
progress and catastrophe,
and Schama's evocative
narrative brings it
vividly to
life.
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-
'History clings tight but
it also kicks loose, '
writes Simon Schama at
the outset of At
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-
There may be a civil war,
starting in the
Midlands. The Birmingham
garrison have
rough-sharpened their
swords and barricades
have gone up in the town.
Wellington is trying to
form a government without
a majority. The Duke says
'The English people are
usually quiet; if not,
there are ways of making
them.' These are the Days
of May, High Summer of
English Reform. The new
Whig government has
staggered everyone with a
reform bill more drastic
than all expectations,
one to wipe out rotten
boroughs and enfranchise
industrial towns. It has
passed the Commons, been
thrown out by the Lords,
then, in an election,
is massively endorsed.
Now in May 1832, the
Lords are again blocking
it. Political unions
formed to promote reform
are denounced for
Jacobinism and
revolution. One Tory,
John Croker, hopes that
'the coming revolutionary
regime' will let Princess
Victoria 'live quietly as
Miss Guelph'. King
William IV, influenced
by the Court and Queen
Adelaide, refuses to
make new peers; stalemate
may turn into street
fighting. The struggle is
recorded here. The
players, painted
vividly, speak in their
own voices from
170-year-old Hansards:
the radicals, Cobbett
and Hunt; the Ultras,
Wetherell and Eldon,
resisting all reform;
Lord Chancellor Brougham,
drunk and brilliant in a
great speech; Lord
Alport, who manages the
nightmare legislative
struggle, tempted by
suicide; a mad
backbencher demanding a
day of fasting and
penitence. Here too are
the riots and the quiet
politics of British
constitutional reform.
The outcome - the 1832
Act - is the most
important event in the
last 300 years of
parliamentary history.
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-
Did the Romans have
rakes? Did the monks get
muddy? Did the potato
seem really, really
weird when it arrived on
our shores? This lively
'potted' history of
gardening in Britain
takes us on a garden tour
from the thorn hedges
around prehistoric
settlements to the rage
for decking and
ornamental grasses today.
It tracks down the
ordinary folk who worked
the earth - the
apprentice boys and
weeding women, the
florists and nursery
gardeners - as well as
aristocrats and grand
designers and famous
plant-hunters. Coloured
by Jenny Uglow's own love
for plants, and brought
to life in the many vivid
illustrations, it deals
not only with
flowery-meads, grottoes
and vistas, landscapes
and ha-has, parks and
allotments, but tells
you, for example, how
the Tudors made their
curious knots; how
housewives used herbs to
stop freckles; how the
suburbs dug for victory
in World War II. With a
brief guide to particular
historic or evocative
gardens open to the
public, this is a book
to put in your pocket
when planning a summer
day out - but also to
read in your deckchair
with a glass of cold
wine, when dead-heading
is simply too much.
Availability: In Stock
£15.29
Available
-
There may be a civil war,
starting in the
Midlands. The Birmingham
garrison have
rough-sharpened their
swords and barricades
have gone up in the town.
Wellington is trying to
form a government without
a majority. The Duke says
'The English people are
usually quiet; if not,
there are ways of making
them.' These are the Days
of May, High Summer of
English Reform. The new
Whig government has
staggered everyone with a
reform bill more drastic
than all expectations,
one to wipe out rotten
boroughs and enfranchise
industrial towns. It has
passed the Commons, been
thrown out by the Lords,
then, in an election,
is massively endorsed.
Now in May 1832, the
Lords are again blocking
it. Political unions
formed to promote reform
are denounced for
Jacobinism and
revolution. One Tory,
John Croker, hopes that
'the coming revolutionary
regime' will let Princess
Victoria 'live quietly as
Miss Guelph'. King
William IV, influenced
by the Court and Queen
Adelaide, refuses to
make new peers; stalemate
may turn into street
fighting. The struggle is
recorded here. The
players, painted
vividly, speak in their
own voices from
170-year-old Hansards:
the radicals, Cobbett
and Hunt; the Ultras,
Wetherell and Eldon,
resisting all reform;
Lord Chancellor Brougham,
drunk and brilliant in a
great speech; Lord
Alport, who manages the
nightmare legislative
struggle, tempted by
suicide; a mad
backbencher demanding a
day of fasting and
penitence. Here too are
the riots and the quiet
politics of British
constitutional reform.
The outcome - the 1832
Act - is the most
important event in the
last 300 years of
parliamentary history.
Availability: In Stock
£11.69
Available
-
'History clings tight but
it also kicks loose, '
writes Simon Schama at
the outset of At
Availability: In Stock
£13.49
Available
-
Atheism is one of the
most important movements
in modern Western
culture. For the last two
hundred years, it seemed
to be on the verge of
eliminating religion as
an outmoded and dangerous
superstition. Recent
years, however, have
witnessed the decline of
disbelief and a rise in
religious/spiritual
devotion throughout the
world. In this highly
readable book, the
distinguished historian
and theologian, Alister
McGrath examines what
went wrong with the
atheist dream and
explains why religion and
faith are destined to
play a central role in
the twenty-first century.
A former atheist
who is now one of
Christianity
Availability: In Stock
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-
Did the Romans have
rakes? Did the monks get
muddy? Did the potato
seem really, really
weird when it arrived on
our shores?
This
lively 'potted' history
of gardening in Britain
takes us on a garden tour
from the thorn hedges
around prehistoric
settlements to the rage
for decking and
ornamental grasses today.
It tracks down the
ordinary folk who worked
the earth - the
apprentice boys and
weeding women, the
florists and nursery
gardeners - as well as
aristocrats and grand
designers and famous
plant-hunters. Coloured
by Jenny Uglow's own love
for plants, and brought
to life in the many vivid
illustrations, it deals
not only with flowery
meads, grottoes and
vistas, landscapes and
ha-has, parks and
allotments, but tells
you, for example, how
the Tudors made their
curious knots; how
housewives used herbs to
stop freckles; how the
suburbs dug for victory
in World War II.
With a brief guide to
particular historic or
evocative gardens open to
the public, this is a
book to put in your
pocket when planning a
summer day out - but also
to read in your deckchair
with a glass of cold
wine, when dead-heading
is simply too
much.
Availability: In Stock
£11.69
Available
-
Essential British words
and deeds, dates and
phrases, songs,
speeches and commandments
from Stonehenge to the
present day in one simple
book. No judgement, no
padding, just the bare
bones of our glorious
history, brought to life
by
soul-stirring"ations
that still echo down the
ages. Presenting complex
information in the form
of simple time-lines,
setting key events in
British history alongside
those of world history,
this book allows readers
to view history in an
astonishingly simple way.
Courtauld reveals
fascinating parallels: as
Britain perfects the long
bow, gunpowder reaches
Europe; as Henry VIII
celebrates his marriage
to Anne Boleyn, the Inca
Empire collapses. With
over 100 full colour
photographs, this
winning book will delight
anyone who is intrigued
by the history of our
isles and would like to
know a little more.
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-
From Fleet Street to the
world of medicine, from
the City of London to the
corridors of power in
Whitehall, Scots have
exerted a determining
influence on key areas of
British life since the
Union of the Parliaments.
Now that Scots dominate
Westminster and run their
own parliament in
Edinburgh, is the tartan
takeover complete? In
this controversial new
book, the writer and BBC
journalist David
Stenhouse asks whether
the Scots have enacted
nothing less than a
Caledonian capture of the
British State. Through
revealing interviews with
some of the most
successful Scots in
London - including Jim
Naughtie, Tam Dalyell,
Sheena McDonald, Kirsty
Wark, William Dalrymple
and Katie Muir - On the
Make shows how citizens
of the poorest part of
the United Kingdom have
gained unprecedented
influence over British
politics, the media the
church and commerce But
success has not always
led to popularity. While
ambitious Celts have
always encountered
resentment from the
English, Scots at home
also often view their
successful brothers and
sisters down south as
selfish careerists who
have abandoned their
country for the lure of
English gold
Availability: In Stock
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