From the Great Exhibition to the Credit Crunch
- the transformation of Britain from the worlds greatest nation to the present day.
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Henry VIII changed the course of English life more completely than any monarch since the Conquest. In the portraits of Holbein Henry Tudor stands proud as one of the most powerful figures in renaissance Europe. But is the portrait just a bluff? In his new book Derek Wilson explores the myths behind the image of the Tudor Lion. He was the monarch that delivered the Reformation to England yet Luther called him A fool a liar & a damnable rotten worm. As a young man he gained a reputation as an intellectual & fair prince yet he ruled the nation like a tyrant. He treated his subjects as cruelly as he treated his wives. Based on a wealth of new material & a life times knowledge of the subject Derek Wilson exposes a new portrait of a much misunderstood King. Praise for Derek Wilsons previous works: The Uncrowned Kings of England": Stimulating & authorative
- John Guy. Masterly. [ Wilson] has a deep understanding of...characters reaching out accross the centuries
- " Sunday Times". " Hans Holbein: Portrait of an Unknown Man": Fascinating
- Sarah Bradford " Daily Telegraph". Highly readable... The most accurate & vivid portrayal to date
- Alison Weir."



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Space is big. Really big. You just wont believe how vastly hugely mind-bogglingly big it is. I mean you may think its a long way down the street to the chemist but thats just peanuts to space.
- Douglas Adams Hitch-hikers Guide to the Galaxy". We human beings have trouble with infinity
- yet infinity is a surprisingly human subject. Philosophers & mathematicians have gone mad contemplating its nature & complexity
- yet it is a concept routinely used by schoolchildren. Exploring the infinite is a journey into paradox. Here is a quantity that turns arithmetic on its head making it feasible that 1 = 0. Here is a concept that enables us to cram as many extra guests as we like into an already full hotel. Most bizarrely of all it is quite easy to show that there must be something bigger than infinity
- when it surely should be the biggest thing that could possibly be. Brian Clegg takes us on a fascinating tour of that borderland between the extremely large & the ultimate that takes us from Archimedes counting the grains of sand that would fill the universe to the latest theories on the physical reality of the infinite. Full of unexpected delights whether St Augustine contemplating the nature of creation Newton & Leibniz battling over ownership of calculus or Cantor struggling to publicise his vision of the transfinite infinitys fascination is in the way it brings together the everyday & the extraordinary prosaic daily life & the esoteric. Whether your interest in infinity is mathematical philosophical spiritual or just plain curious this accessible book offers a stimulating & entertaining read."



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Who was the real King Arthur? What do the historical documents tell us about the Knight of the Round Temple? It is just a chivalric fantasy? The story of Arthur has been handed down to us by Medieval poets & legends
- but what if he actually existed & was in fact a great king in the early years of Britains story. Mike Ashley visits the source material & uncovers unexpected new insights into the legend: there is clear evidence that the Arthurian legends arose from the exploits of not just one man but at least three originating in Wales Scotland & Brittany. The true historical Arthur really existed & is distantly related to the present royal family.
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Starting AD 400 (around the time of their invasion of England) & running through to the 1100s (the Aftermath) historian Geoffrey Hindley shows the Anglo-Saxons as formative in the history not only of England but also of Europe. The society inspired by the warrior world of the Old English poem Beowulf" saw England become the worlds first nation state & Europes first country to conduct affairs in its own language & Bede & Boniface of Wessex establish the dating convention we still use today. Including all the latest research this is a fascinating assessment of a vital historical period." ...

Religion politics & fear: how England was transformed by the Tudors. The English Reformation was a unique turning point in English history. Derek Wilson retells the story of how the Tudor monarchs transformed English religion & why it still matters today. Recent scholarly research has undermined the traditional view of the Reformation as an event that occurred solely amongst the elite. Wilson now shows that although the transformation was political & had a huge impact on English identity on Englands relationships with its European neighbours & on the foundations of its empire it was essentially a revolution from the ground up. By 1600 in just eighty years England had become a radically different nation in which family work & politics as well as religion were dramatically altered. Praise for Derek Wilson: Stimulating & authoritative." (John Guy). " Masterly. [ Wilson] has a deep understanding of.. .characters reaching out across the centuries." (" Sunday Times")." ...

For over a hundred years England repeatedly invaded France on the pretext that her kings had a right to the French throne. France was a large unwieldy kingdom England was small & poor but for the most part she dominated the war sacking towns & castles & winning battles
- including such glorious victories as Crecy Poitiers & Agincourt but then the English run of success began to fail & in four short years she lost Normandy & finally her last stronghold in Guyenne. The protagonists of the Hundred Year War are among the most colourful in European history: for the English Edward III the Black Prince & Henry V later immortalized by Shakespeare; for the French the splendid but inept John II who died a prisoner in London Charles V who very nearly overcame England & the enigmatic Charles VII who did at last drive the English out. Desmond Sewards account traces the changes that led to Frances final victory & brings to life all the intrigue & colour of the last chivalric combats as they gave way to a more brutal modern warfare.
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Much has been written about the Knights Templar in recent years. A leading specialist in the history of this legendary medieval order now writes a full account of the Knights of the Order of the Temple of Solomon to give them their full title bringing the latest findings to a general audience. Putting many of the myths finally to rest Nicholson recounts a new history of these storm troopers of the papacy founded during the crusades but who got so rich & influential that they challenged the power of kings. ...

In 1215 the Barons of England forced King John to sign a revolutionary document which would change the political landscape of Britain & beyond for the next 800 years. Magna Carta was the forerunner of the Constitution that limited the powers of the crown & its echoes can be found in the seventeenth century Civil Wars the struggles for American Independence the work of Thomas Paine & in the bedrock of all contemporary liberal nations. As civil liberties & the rule of law are increasingly under question as part of the War on Terror it has never been more essential to return to the original document signed at Runnymede in June 1215. Leading medieval historian Geoffrey Hindley retells the story of events leading up to the conference & looks at the document itself showing how it has resonated over centuries & throughout the world. ...

From a leading expert in Japanese history this is one of the first full histories of the art & culture of the Samurai warrior. The Samurai emerged as a warrior caste in Medieval Japan & would have a powerful influence on the history & culture of the country from the next 500 years. Clements also looks at the Samurai wars that tore Japan apart in the 17th & 18th centuries & how the caste was finally demolished in the advent of the mechanized world. ...