History

The Power and the Glory tells the story of royal fleet reviews from the fifteenth century to the 2005 International Fleet Review, (read more)

The Power and the Glory tells the story of royal fleet reviews from the fifteenth century to the 2005 International Fleet Review, commemorating the 200th anniversary of Trafalgar, which was the final exhibition of that pomp and ceremony that had been an essential if irregular expression of naval strength for more than 500 years. Whether to impress or deter a foreign power, often when mobilising for war, provide reassurance for domestic consumption or celebrate a sovereign's accession, royal naval reviews were an integral part of political positioning and national pride. At these reviews, particularly during the eras of British naval dominance, potential allies or enemies were invited to marvel at British prowess, while the British public could revel in the country's naval superiority; advances in technology and ship design were showcased, often for commercial benefit, and homage paid to kings and queens at the head of their fleets.

Published:30 Jan 2021 (hide)

The story of Iraq is one of resistance. In this groundbreaking study, Johan Franzen offers a contextual modern history of the country, (read more)

The story of Iraq is one of resistance. In this groundbreaking study, Johan Franzen offers a contextual modern history of the country, its creation and its struggle for sovereignty. Iraq's contemporary history is a tale of a diverse people thrown together into a nation-state by imperialist statecraft.

From the state's inception as a League of Nations mandate in the 1920s, through wars, coups and revolutions, Iraqis have always resisted foreign domination. But the country, propelled by the quest for power, intense national pride and a zeal forsovereignty, was catapulted along a trajectory of violence. On one side stood imperialism, seeking to control Iraq for its own ends. (hide)

*** Update, 8 December 2020 - we are waiting for new stock of this item, which is being reprinted. Please note it may not reach you (read more)

*** Update, 8 December 2020 - we are waiting for new stock of this item, which is being reprinted. Please note it may not reach you by Christmas.***

It has almost been 300 years since Sir Robert Walpole arguably became the first holder of the office of Prime Minister in 1721 - an office which today is under scrutiny like never before. The Prime Ministers, edited by leading political commentator Iain Dale, brings to life all 55 of Britain's 'First Among Equals' with an essay for each office holder, written by key figures in British politics. (hide)

Slavery and the Atlantic slave trade are among the most heinous crimes against humanity committed in the modern era. Yet, to this (read more)

Slavery and the Atlantic slave trade are among the most heinous crimes against humanity committed in the modern era. Yet, to this day no former slave society in the Americas has paid reparations to former slaves or their descendants. European countries have never compensated their former colonies in the Americas, whose wealth relied on slave labor, to a greater or lesser extent.

Likewise, no African nation ever obtained any form of reparations for the Atlantic slave trade. Ana Lucia Araujo argues that these calls for reparations are not only not dead, but have a long and persevering history. She persuasively demonstrates that since the 18th century, enslaved and freed individuals started conceptualizing the idea of reparations in petitions, correspondences, pamphlets, public speeches, slave narratives, and judicial claims, written in English, French, Spanish, and Portuguese. (hide)

The fascinating story of how we have gone out to eat, from the ancient Romans in Pompeii to the luxurious Michelin-starred restaurants (read more)

The fascinating story of how we have gone out to eat, from the ancient Romans in Pompeii to the luxurious Michelin-starred restaurants of today. Tracing its earliest incarnations in the city of Pompeii, where Sitwell is stunned by the sophistication of the dining scene, this is a romp through history as we meet the characters and discover the events that shape the way we eat today.

Sitwell, restaurant critic for the Daily Telegraph and famous for his acerbic criticisms on the hit BBC show MasterChef, tackles this enormous subject with his typical wit and precision. He spies influences from an ancient traveller of the Muslim world, revels in the unintended consequences for nascent fine dining of the French Revolution, reveals in full hideous glory the post-Second World War dining scene in the UK and fathoms the birth of sensitive gastronomy in the US counterculture of the 1960s. This is a story of the ingenuity of the human race as individuals endeavour to do that most fundamental of things: to feed people.
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The story of ancient Rome is one of the great tales of human history. This richly illustrated book offers a fascinating insight into (read more)

The story of ancient Rome is one of the great tales of human history. This richly illustrated book offers a fascinating insight into the rise of Rome, which ruled almost the whole known world, from Britain in the west to North Africa and the Middle East. Over 1500 years after Rome's final decline and fall, this examination of the people, places and events of Rome's military and political empire will absorb any reader.

Magnificent photographs, specially commissioned illustrations, family trees, maps, battle plans and timecharts build up a panoramic picture of the political strength of the Roman Empire and its policy of ruthless conquest. (hide)

The inspiration behind the BBC drama the Crimson Field. 'On the face of it,' writes Lyn Macdonald, 'no one could have been less equipped (read more)

The inspiration behind the BBC drama the Crimson Field. 'On the face of it,' writes Lyn Macdonald, 'no one could have been less equipped for the job than these gently nurtured girls who walked straight out of Edwardian drawing rooms into the manifest horrors of the First World War...' Yet the volunteer nurses rose magnificently to the occasion. In leaking tents and draughty huts they fought another war, a war against agony and death, as men lay suffering from the pain of unimaginable wounds or diseases we can now cure almost instantly.

It was here that young doctors frantically forged new medical techniques - of blood transfusion, dentistry, psychiatry and plastic surgery - in the attempt to save soldiers shattered in body or spirit. And it was here that women achieved a quiet but permanent revolution, by proving beyond question they could do anything. All this is superbly captured in The Roses of No Man's Land, a panorama of hardship, disillusion and despair, yet also of endurance and supreme courage.
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The Rowntree family, especially Henry and the younger Joseph Rowntree are, along with the Fry's, Cadbury's, Mars and Terry's, synonymous (read more)

The Rowntree family, especially Henry and the younger Joseph Rowntree are, along with the Fry's, Cadbury's, Mars and Terry's, synonymous with the birth and growth of the chocolate industry in Britain. Between them, they were the chocolate industry in Britain. This book charts the fascinating story behind the birth and development of the chocolate empire that was Rowntrees.

Background information to this astonishing business comes by way of chapters on the early history of the Rowntrees, contemporary York, the relationship between Quakers and chocolate, and the Tuke family - without whom there would have been no Rowntrees, and no Kit Kats. Henry, it is usually forgotten, was the founder of Rowntree's - he made the momentous decision to sign the deal with the Tukes and we join him in those very early days of the fledgling company and watch how he helped it through some very dark, and sometimes humorous, times in what was then a very shambolic set up - cash strapped and making it up as the company lurched from crisis to crisis. (hide)

From the mud of the Somme to the raid on Zeebrugge, the Royal Marines fought in almost every element of the Great War on the Western (read more)

From the mud of the Somme to the raid on Zeebrugge, the Royal Marines fought in almost every element of the Great War on the Western Front. Today they are known world-wide as an elite commando fighting force, but that has only been their role since 1940, a fraction of their period in existence. Until 1923 they existed as two corps - the Royal Marine Light Infantry and the Royal Marine Artillery - and both served with distinction along the western front in the great war.

Published:30 Jan 2021 (hide)

The incredible story of the radar wars - Britain's most secret battleIn the winter of 1941 an alien-seeming object was captured in (read more)

The incredible story of the radar wars - Britain's most secret battleIn the winter of 1941 an alien-seeming object was captured in a death-defying dash by an RAF reconnaissance pilot flying a lone unarmed Spitfire across the French coast. Balanced upon the cliffs near Le Havre was what appeared to be a giant convex dish, directed across the Channel at the war-torn British coastline. With Britain's cities being pounded by fearsome bombing raids, teams of experts studied the photograph worriedly.

Might the dish constitute a highly-secret form of radar - one that had the capacity to tip the balance of the war decisively in the enemy's favour? If so, Nazi Germany would have leapfrogged British technology many-fold. A top-secret mission was devised to steal what had become known as the 'Wurzburg Dish,' after Enigma intercepts of coded German messages. Appropriately christened Operation Biting, this was to be the first-ever Allied raid using airborne forces. (hide)