History

Why has human history unfolded so differently across the globe? Jared Diamond puts the case that geography and biogeography, not (read more)

Why has human history unfolded so differently across the globe? Jared Diamond puts the case that geography and biogeography, not race, moulded the contrasting fates of Europeans, Asians, Native Americans, sub-Saharan Africans, and aboriginal Australians. An ambitious synthesis of history, biology, ecology and linguistics, Guns, Germs and Steel is a ground-breaking and humane work of popular science. (hide)

The History of Ancient Israel: A Guide for the Perplexed provides the student with the perfect guide to why and how the history of (read more)

The History of Ancient Israel: A Guide for the Perplexed provides the student with the perfect guide to why and how the history of this most contested region has been studies, and why it continues to be studied today. Philip R. Davies, one of the leading scholars of Ancient Israel in recent years, begins by examining the relevance of the study of Ancient Israel, giving an overview of the sources and issues facing historians in approaching the material.

Davies then continues by looking at the various theories and hypotheses that scholars have advanced throughout the 20th century, showing how different approaches are presented and in some cases how they are both underpinned and undermined by a range of ideological perspectives. Davies also explains the rise and fall of Biblical Archaeology, the 'maximalist/minimalist' debate. After this helpful survey of past methodologies Davies introduces readers to the current trends in biblical scholarship in the present day, covering areas such as cultural memory, the impact of literary and social scientific theory, and the notion of 'invented history'. (hide)

Malcolm Walker tells the story of the UK's national meteorological service from its formation in 1854 with a staff of four to its (read more)

Malcolm Walker tells the story of the UK's national meteorological service from its formation in 1854 with a staff of four to its present position as a scientific and technological institution of national and international importance with a staff of nearly two thousand. The Met Office has long been at the forefront of research into atmospheric science and technology and is second to none in providing weather services to the general public and a wide range of customers around the world. The history of the Met Office is therefore largely a history of the development of international weather prediction research in general. (hide)

History is everywhere, and is never as complete as when it can be accessed on a part of history itself. The locomotive is one of (read more)

History is everywhere, and is never as complete as when it can be accessed on a part of history itself. The locomotive is one of the great steps in progress of civilisation that undoubtably connects us to land and history that was shaped by the machine itself. Although a basic form of railway, or rutway, did exist in Ancient Greek and Roman times - notably the ship trackway between Diolkos and the Isthmus of Corinth around 600 BC - it would take several thousand years before the first fare-paying passenger service was launched in the early nineteenth century.

Some two hundred years on, it is possible to travel by train to some of the world's most remote and remarkable destinations, and track the many wonderful legacies of the Earth's extensive history - man-made and otherwise. From prehistoric rock formations to skyscraper cities, slow steam engines to high-speed bullet trains, let A History of the World in 500 Railway Journeys be your guide. Through its beautifully illustrated pages, and 500 awe-inspiring railway journeys, you can chart your own transcontinental itinerary through time. (hide)

On 30th April 1945 Germany is in chaos - Russian troops have reached Berlin. All over the country, people are on the move - concentration (read more)

On 30th April 1945 Germany is in chaos - Russian troops have reached Berlin. All over the country, people are on the move - concentration camp survivors, Allied PoWs, escaping Nazis - and the civilian population is fast running out of food. The man who orchestrated this nightmare is in his bunker beneath the capital, saying his farewells.

Hitler's Last Day: Minute by Minute is pure chronological narrative, as seen through the eyes of those who were with Hitler in those last tumultuous hours; those fighting in the streets of Germany; and those pacing the corridors of power in Washington, London and Moscow. It was a day of endings and beginnings when ordinary people were placed in extraordinary situations. Take Sisi Wilczek, fleeing the advancing Russians with her family's vast fortune in a shoebox; President Truman, weighing up whether to use the atomic bomb that his Secretary of War calls 'the most terrible weapon ever known in human history'; German officer Claus Sellier, on a last mission across the country to deliver vital documents; or Allied aircrews, dropping food parcels to feed the starving Dutch population.

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On a sunny morning in May 1939 a phalanx of 800 women - housewives, doctors, opera singers, politicians, prostitutes - were marched (read more)

On a sunny morning in May 1939 a phalanx of 800 women - housewives, doctors, opera singers, politicians, prostitutes - were marched through the woods fifty miles north of Berlin, driven on past a shining lake, then herded through giant gates. Whipping and kicking them were scores of German women guards. Their destination was Ravensbruck, a concentration camp designed specifically for women by Heinrich Himmler, prime architect of the Nazi genocide.

For decades the story of Ravensbruck was hidden behind the Iron Curtain and today is still little known. Using testimony unearthed since the end of the Cold War, and interviews with survivors who have never spoken before, Helm has ventured into the heart of the camp, demonstrating for the reader in riveting detail how easily and quickly the unthinkable horror evolved. (hide)

This illustrated Chinese history book takes the reader on a visual journey of the most brilliant and significant segments of Chinese (read more)

This illustrated Chinese history book takes the reader on a visual journey of the most brilliant and significant segments of Chinese civilization over the course of five thousand years.
As a cradle of human civilization, China has maintained its cohesion and cultural identity for thousands of years. With China's historical evolution as a backdrop, Each section focuses on the outstanding achievements of the period it covers and clearly sets out the long-established and profound cultural development of the Chinese nation.
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At the height of the Mughal Empire's wealth and power, Jahanara Begum, a 17 year old princess, became the head of the imperial harem. (read more)

At the height of the Mughal Empire's wealth and power, Jahanara Begum, a 17 year old princess, became the head of the imperial harem. Imperial Women in Mughal India shows how this unmarried princess was able to transcend the customary and religious restrictions imposed on her gender, and make an enormous contribution to the architectural, artistic and religious inheritance of the Shah Jahan era. Here, Afshan Bokhari historically and visually annotates Jahan Begum's two biographical Sufi treatises, as well as assessing the princess' sacred and secular architectural commissions.

Published:28 Feb 2020 (hide)

01/01/2016 - Taking an ecological approach to our evolution, Clive Finlayson considers the origins of modern humans within the context (read more)

01/01/2016 - Taking an ecological approach to our evolution, Clive Finlayson considers the origins of modern humans within the context of a drying climate and changing landscapes. Finlayson argues that environmental change, particularly availability of water, played a critical role in shaping the direction of human evolution, contributing to our spread and success. He argues that our ancestors carved a niche for themselves by leaving the forest and forcing their way into a long-established community of carnivores in a tropical savannah as climate changes opened up the landscape.

They took their chance at high noon, when most other predators were asleep. Adapting to this new lifestyle by shedding their hair and developing an active sweating system to keep cool, being close to fresh water was vital. As the climate dried, our ancestors, already bipedal, became taller and slimmer, more adept at travelling farther in search of water. (hide)

In the 6th century AD, the Near East was divided between two great empires: the Persian and the Roman. A hundred years on, and one (read more)

In the 6th century AD, the Near East was divided between two great empires: the Persian and the Roman. A hundred years on, and one had vanished for ever, while the other was a dismembered, bleeding trunk. In their place, a new superpower had arisen: the empire of the Arabs.

So profound was this upheaval that it spelled, in effect, the end of the ancient world. But the changes that marked the period were more than merely political or even cultural: there was also a transformation of human society with incalculable consequences for the future. Today, over half the world's population subscribes to one of the various religions that took on something like their final form during the last centuries of antiquity. (hide)