Millions of Scots have left their homeland during the last 400 years. Until now, they have been written about in general terms. ...

What would the world be like without the phone, the fax or television? How would it have developed without effective steam power or the oil industry? Could you survive without penicillin or antiseptic surgery? d? There is no simple answer. SCOTTISH FIRSTS, originally produced From Napier's bones to Dolly the sheep, Scottish Firsts celebrates the remarkable achievements of a small country whose influence has helped to shape the modern world. It tells the engrossing stories of Scotland's heroes from William Murdoch, inventor of gas lighting, who went to his first job interview wearing a wooden top hat, to Ian Donald, whose prototype of the pregnancy scanner included a contraceptive sheath. Scottish Firsts also explores some of the lesser-known achievements of Scots both at home & abroad, from the Buick car to the Thomson steamer; the first branded fruit cordial to the Cona T coffee percolator. It lists everything from sporting firsts to some of the world's most extreme environments that have been named after Scots. This absorbing compendium of facts is an essential reference companion as well as an intriguing read for proud Scots everywhere. ...

In this, the follow-up to the critically acclaimed first volume of"ations about our national sport, Kenny Mac Donald delves once more into Scotland's sweaty, smelly football dressing-rooms & emerges with a batch of statements which are profond, amusing, acerbic & sometimes plain bizarre. ...

Right across the world there are people who think of themselves as Scottish Highlanders, people who, though they may be separated from Scotland's hills & glens by many thousands of miles & several generations, still identify with this unique locality on the western edge of Europe. Examining their roots, their contribution to Scotland's evolution, their dispersal across the globe & the myths surrounding them, James Hunter sets out to explore & explain the passions & emotions surrounding the Scottish Highlanders. ...

In the 1490s, with Florence at the height of its Renaissance glories, the most remarkable man in the city, paradoxically, was not an artist but 'a lowly little friar' called Savonarola, a charismatic preacher & the talk of all Italy. Foreign ambassadors in Florence kept a close watch on him, reports of his doings flowed into the papal court & he was accused of heading an illegal political party. Yet many young men from leading Florentine families joined him as friars. His message of a rapturous devotion to Christ moved women to rebel against the worldly ways of their men. Intellectuals rallied to his side, & great processions of boys took to the streets in his cause. In mute fascination, Machiavelli attended some of his sermons. Artists, including Michelangelo & Botticelli, were awed by him.

Scourge & Fire is the story of the Friar

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When the King of France invaded Italy in 1494, princely states would fall, sending tremors up & down the peninsula. The Medici fled from Florence; the republic sprang back to life; & the French army, occupying the Renaissance city for ten terrifying days, stood on the verge of sacking it. A 'little friar' from Ferrara, Savonarola was alone in knowing how to comfort citizens with his sermons & in urging the King to get out of Florence.

Although the French left a city riven by political factions, the Friar's popular 'party' swiftly prevailed. With Florence at the height of its Renaissance glories, his voice rose above those of all other men. Claiming to be a messenger from God, he attacked evils on all sides
- a mercenary Church, the despotism of the Medici, vile political elites, & Pope Alexander VI, Rodrigo Borgia, whose name itself was a byword for brazen corruption. Savonarola foretold a universal 'scourging', but made pleas, above all, for the renewal of Christianity & for the political voice of the people. His struggle turned into a battle for the 'soul' of Florence.

Excommunicated & silenced, Savonarola spurned Rome & began to preach again, retaining the strong support of the city republic. As the Pope & Medicean conspirators closed in on him, five prominent Florentines were beheaded for plotting against the state, further inflaming the passions already rife in the city. After an abortive trial by fire to shame & discredit him, his enemies set siege to his convent, leading to his arrest & trial on trumped-up charges of heresy.

Savonarola mingled the fervour of religion with the ardour of republican politics. Scourge & Fire is the story of his impact on Florence & of the city's spell over him.






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'[ Contains] the best & most useful skills you should have learned but never got around to, or once knew but have now forgotten... This is the outdoor handbook brought to you by the people who wrote the rules.' BEAR GRYLLS, CHIEF SCOUT

Do you know how to build an altar fire? Read a compass or navigate by the stars? Could you construct & steer a raft across a river? Tie a reef knot
- or send a message using Morse code? All these & many, many more are included in this incredibly detailed guide to everything you could ever need to know about outdoor adventure. Whether you


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