2 History


From the pyramids along the Nile and the royal burial ground in the Valley of the Kings to the tombs of queens such as Ramesses II’s consort Nefertari and the far larger number of private tombs of nobles like Rekhmire and Ramose, this volume is an unparalleled guide for aficionados and Egyptologists alike. Besides the paintings, reliefs and statues adorning their walls, many tombs show the breathtaking skill of ancient architects, and the fascinating autobiographical texts found in them give rare insights into Egyptian life. We read, for instance, of Harkhuf’s African explorations, when he returned with the gift of a dancing dwarf to his boy-king Pepy II, and learn about how the General Amenemheb saved his king’s life when the latter was charged by an enraged elephant. It is ancient history brought to life. 368 pages 27cm x 21cm with 402 illustrations, 28 in colour, maps, plans, cutaways, diagrams and 3-D reconstructions, notes, glossary, chronology, list of the principal cemeteries and list of abbreviations. £29.95 NOW £12


74410 ROME: The Autobiography


edited by Jon E. Lewis Subtitled ‘The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire by Those Who Saw It’ here is a welcome reprint of a book first published in 2003 under the title ‘The Mammoth Book of Eyewitness Ancient Rome’. Divided into four parts this is a superbly comprehensive guide with all the key events of Roman history


alongside social and cultural life in all its luxury and depravity. From the rise of the Republic to the fall of the Emperors, here is 1,000 years of history told by the people who were there. The history of Ancient Rome has been passed down to us through official accounts, personal letters, the annotated words of great orators and considered histories of powerful men. All are collected in this autobiography of the Roman Empire, including the writings of Caesars, slaves, generals and poets on everything from major battles, conspiracies and politics to the minutiae of everyday life. Learn about the hazards of sea travel in the Mediterranean circa AD400, Constantius II’s visit to Rome in AD357, the destruction of the temple at Jerusalem AD70 according to Josephus, Nero murders Brittanicus, Rome AD55 as recounted by Tacitus and ending with an appendix of an extract from the second speech of Cicero against Mark Antony 44BC. 453pp in paperback. £8.99 NOW £4.50


74182 HADRIAN’S EMPIRE:


When Rome Ruled the World by Danny Danziger and Nicholas Purcell


Publius Aelius Hadrianus or Hadrian became emperor in 117AD when Britain had settled into a regular Roman way of life. Hadrian’s Wall is one of the world’s best known structures and has stood for nearly 2,000 years as a tribute to its creator. Not in the usual mould of Roman emperors, Hadrian was


Spanish and had a restless, enquiring intellectual mind with a deep love of Greek culture. He travelled constantly and spent much time in cultural centres like Athens and Alexandria. Although not warlike, he was greatly loved by his soldiers and the Roman Empire was a predominant world power. His personal life was a colourful one. He was married to Sabina but was deeply in love with a young man called Antinous. He built the Pantheon in Rome, the largest dome built using pre-industrial methods, and he also constructed a sprawling 900 room villa at Tivoli, much of which still stands today. Written with a perfect combination of scholarship and intimate social history, 302pp in paperback.


£8.99 NOW £4


74189 LONDON LIGHTS by James Hamilton


Subtitled ‘The Minds that Moved the City That Shook the World’, from an electric spark to the Great Exhibition, here is how London took centre stage on the world map. In the 50 years between Nelson’s death and the Great Exhibition, London came of age. This newly sprawling metropolis may have been foul and dangerous, but it was


also a burgeoning hotbed of art, technology and science. Hamilton gallops through London’s finest years, her luck and misfortune, anger and charm, taking a fresh look. St. Martin-in-the-Fields sits at an ungainly angle to the top of Trafalgar Square. Nelson’s Column destroys the view of the National Gallery from Whitehall. The British Museum is a breathing dragon in a cage. And St. Paul’s Cathedral: ‘One of the grandest ecclesiastical edifices in Britain is hemmed in at the end of an awkward curving street of shops and offices. Nevertheless it is all, or most of it, unutterably beautiful.’ With useful map with key to where these leading lights lived from Rudolph Ackerman to J. M. W. Turner and the Duke of Wellington. 400 page paperback with photos. £10.99 NOW £5


74192 MASTERS OF THE WORD: How Media Shaped History from the Alphabet to the Internet


by William Bernstein Readers may find the rationale of this book rather disturbing. It is that, at the most basic level, the words ‘politics’ and ‘communication’ are nearly synonymous. In this enlightening book, starting with the birth of writing thousands of years


ago in Mesopotamia, the author chronicles the technology of human communication. This revolutionary tool allowed rulers to extend their control far and wide, giving rise to the world’s first empires. When Phoenician traders took their alphabet to Greece, literacy’s first


boom led to the birth of drama and democracy. But it is not just new technologies that have changed the world, it is access to them. Medieval scriptoria and vernacular bibles may have given rise to religious dissent, but it was only when the combination of cheaper paper and Gutenberg’s printing press drove down the cost of books by some 97% that the fuse of the Reformation was lit. The Industrial Revolution allowed information to move faster and farther than ever before. With the late 20th century rise of carbon duplicates and photocopying, and the boom of the Internet and cell phones in the 21st century, access to technology has again spread, and the world is both more connected and more free than ever before. This captivating volume may well change the way in which you look at technology, human history and power. 420 pages, illustrations and photos in b/w and diagrams. £25 NOW £7


74356 BRIEF HISTORY OF


THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR by Helen Nicholson


The revised edition of a book first published in 2001 which reflects the quantity of scholarship on the historical Military Orders since the first appearance of the book. The account of the Templars is based on what the surviving historical evidence tells us about the Order of the Temple and includes myths


about the Templars written during the 12th, 13th and early 14th centuries. Away from the frontiers, the Order in Europe concentrated on raising money for the war against the Muslims. Written for the general reader, this comprehensive introduction gives a full account of the Knights of the Order of the Temple of Solomon. Founded in the 12th century in Jerusalem, at the height of the Crusades it was a formidable fighting force which became powerful throughout Europe, eventually so rich and influential that it challenged the might of kings. In a terrible wave of violence the Order was persecuted into extinction. Since then numerous theories have emerged from the tales of the Holy Grail to Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code and other novels. Putting the name of the myth to rest, Nicholson’s vibrant history of the Stormtroopers of the papacy prove even more revelatory than the legend. 351pp in paperback with 16 pages of photos. £8.99 NOW £4


74362 CIVILIZATIONS OF THE ANCIENT WORLD: A Visual Sourcebook by


Professor Dominic Rathbone Throughout this superb visual guide to the history of the great civilisations of the ancient world which explores all the key aspects of their cultures and daily lives, the beautiful reproductions of classic


engravings, in full colour and monotone, bring those very civilisations to life. An expert and authoritative narrative describes and compares each culture’s approach to such themes as government and society, religion, architecture, warfare, work, technology, trade, leisure, food and costume, creating at once a vivid celebration of ancient cultures and an invaluable reference for all those who love early history. The main section of the book focuses on Egypt, Mesopotamia, Greece and Rome, offering a detailed exposition of each in turn. A supplementary section features timelines, maps and overviews of the other key civilisations that were flourishing throughout the world at the same time and helps to place each of the empires in the context of its neighbours, allies and enemies. This broad, contextual panorama helps to clarify much that may, in the past, have been wrongly interpreted. 320 softback pages 24cm x 20.5cm with over 1,000 colour and b/w illustrations, maps, timelines and glossary. £19.95 NOW £8


74372 ENEMIES OF ROME: From Hannibal to Attila the


Hun by Philip Matyszak If the author is correct, then Rome was not quite as instrumental in spreading the torch of civilisation as we tend to believe, and if the Romans had not trampled over the rival powers so completely, there might never have been a Dark Age. Peoples such as the Celts would have gone on to develop


and thrive, rather than being crushed under Roman rule and forced to accept Roman ways. When Rome finally collapsed, there was no other major civilisation ready to take over. Here are some of the people who dared to take on the challenge, people such as Hannibal, Boudicca, Arminius, Cleopatra and Spartacus, their stories excitingly told. What would have happened if they had succeeded in wrecking that mighty force? ‘The Roman Empire in the West ended in AD 476. It finished not with a bang, but a whimper.’ 296pp. Paperback with 72 b/w illus. £12.95 NOW £6


74373 ENGLAND: A Concise


History by F. E. Halliday For all those who want to refer to the events in English history in a broad context and to learn the chronology of our island story, here is an easy-to-read and informative book. Widely praised when it first appeared, it is a lavishly illustrated volume which presents the history


of England in a form short enough to be grasped as a whole. The author emphasises the achievements and constructive features of each age, stressing the evolution of democratic institutions and the creation of a social order strengthened by increases in liberty, tolerance and freedom of speech. His central theme is clearly identified: the successful reconciliation of order with liberty. Here are the key events: the construction of Stonehenge, the Norman Conquest and its aftermath, the signing of Magna Carta by the tyrant King John, the


resolution of the Wars of the Roses, the defeat by Drake of the Spanish Armada, the Civil Wars, the Crimean War, as well as the personalities that shaped those events: Nelson, Disraeli, Churchill, Thatcher, Harold Wilson, brought together in the perfect introduction to a fascinating subject. 240 paperback pages 23cm x 18cm with 230 illustrations in b/w. £9.95 NOW £5


74443 UNDERWATER ARCHAEOLOGY: Exploring


the World Beneath the Sea by Jean-Yves Blot translated by Alexandra Campbell With stunning illustrations and thrilling text, this pocket sized volume highlights not only the danger and excitement but also the painstaking research involved in exploring our unique under-water heritage. Since the invention of the


aqualung in the 1940s, archaeologists have developed new techniques to excavate and preserve their finds, providing valuable information about our ancestors, their everyday life, their trade and their art. Today, sophisticated equipment enables archaeological work to be carried out at previously unimaginable depths. This informative book includes many enthralling articles by people who have made exciting finds under the sea, like the oldest known shipwreck that yielded a Bronze Age Cargo, the first Greco-Italic amphorae bearing the name of the potter, the Byzantine wreck at Yassi Ada and incredible finds from the Titanic. 175 paperback pages absolutely packed with maps, photos in colour, sepia/w and b/w, and with many documents. £7.95 NOW £4


72537 ONE IN THE EYE FOR HAROLD: Why Everything You Thought You Knew about History is Wrong by Phil Mason


Once and for all, King Harold was not killed by an arrow in the eye - he was in fact beheaded, disembowelled and emasculated on the battlefield by four Norman knights. Neanderthals, Philistines and Vikings have been badly


misrepresented. Here Phil Mason thrillingly romps through the centuries, expertly debunking fictions which have coloured our view of religion, politics, war and society for aeons. 251pp paperback. £9.99 NOW £4


72548 BUTLER’S GUIDE TO RUNNING THE HOME AND OTHER GRACES


by Stanley Ager and Fiona St. Aubyn This nostalgic and informative glimpse of the past is packed with fascinating details about life downstairs and protocol upstairs. If you want the lowdown on how to select and pour wine, polish silver to a mirror finish, fold napkins precisely in six different ways, or stage an ‘impromptu’ romantic picnic, then Ager is your man. A charming journey into the past. 208 pages, line drawings.


£14.99 NOW £4


72550 THE LAST GUNFIGHT by Jeff Guinn Sheriffs and outlaws, cattle rustlers, frontier prostitutes, renegade Apaches - this is the Wild West as it really was. Drawing on letters and Wyatt Earp’s own hand drawn sketch of the shoot-out’s conclusion, here is the definitive work on the Wild West’s greatest shoot out. On the afternoon of 26th October 1881, in a vacant lot on Tombstone, Arizona, a confrontation between eight armed men erupted into a deadly shoot out. The gunfight at the OK Corral shaped how future generations came to view the old West and Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday and the Clantons became the stuff of legends. But the truth of its circumstances is even better. Photos and map, 392pp in paperback. £12.99 NOW £5


72661 THE NILE AND ITS PEOPLE: 7000


Years of Egyptian History by Charlotte Booth Here is the complex history of Egypt, from 5000 BC to the modern day, with the river Nile as a guide. Egypt and her civilisation are relatively young in the history of the Nile. It was formed 160,000,000 years ago, when the tectonic plates shifted. From then until the present day, its compelling story is unearthed, from its changing role as ‘a river without a soul’ through a period when it was regarded as ‘the crossroads of the whole world’ and ‘a receptacle of the rains of heaven’ to its present status as an exotic holiday location. 191 pages, colour and b/ w, maps.


£16.99 NOW £4


72743 THE GREAT PHARAOHS by T. G. H. James, Valeria


Manferto De Fabianis and Laura Accomazzo A breathtakingly beautiful volume. Into it are integrated two exceptional books written by the famous Egyptologist T. G. H. James and illustrated with photos and reconstructive drawings that bring to life the pomp and drama of the most dynamic and magnificent periods of Ancient Egypt’s history, from 1334 to 1325 BC and from 1279 to 1212 BC. Here is the story of two men. The first was Tutankhamun, a hapless boy-king crushed by his responsibilities. The second was Ramesses II the Great, who was vigorous and long-lived, and created a monument to his country that was destined to last for millennia. The Boy Pharaoh and the Conqueror - they left behind artefacts, paintings, drawings and sculptures that, millennia later, continue to leave their viewers dumb-struck. 640 pages long, 30cm x 21.5cm, brilliant colour photos. £25 NOW £11


72789 STORY OF ENGLAND: A Village and its People Through the Whole of English History by Michael Wood


For an island country of modest dimensions situated on the fringes of Europe, England’s influence on world history, culture, literature and politics has been disproportionately great. Broadcaster Michael Wood


explores the national narrative from Roman times to the present day through the eyes of one place - Kibworth, a village in Leicestershire. What swung it for Wood though was the astonishing treasure trove of documents from the village held at Merton College, Oxford for the medieval period. An absolutely compelling tale of England in miniature with departing Romans, Viking and Saxon immigrants, Norman conquerors, the Black Death and famine, religious and political conflict, the Industrial Revolution, the Empire and two World Wars. 440pp, b/ w photos.


£20 NOW £9.50


73058 A RENEGADE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES: From the Founding Fathers


to the Present Day by Thaddeus Russell Tells the story of ‘bad’ Americans - drunkards, prostitutes, ‘shiftless’ slaves and white slackers, criminals, juvenile delinquents, brazen homosexuals and others who operated beneath American society - and shows how they shaped our world, created new pleasures and expanded our freedoms. The book spends as much time in the street, the bedroom, the movie theatre and the saloon as it does listening to speeches. Readers will see inside brothels and gay nightclubs and the secret parties held by slaves, which explain why so many refused to leave the plantation when they were freed. In a highly provocative new perspective, convention is turned on its head. Without organized crime, there would be no Hollywood, Las Vegas, labour unions, legal alcohol, birth control or gay rights. This controversial book will leave everyone arguing until dawn! 382 pages. £20 NOW £7


73123 A BRIEF HISTORY OF FRANCE: People,


History and Culture by Cecil Jenkins France boasts some of the world’s best prehistoric sites and is well-stocked with remains from the Roman occupation (c.125BC-AD470, over 200 years longer than Britain). The Dark Ages for France were not nearly as shrouded in mystery as in Britain, featuring such noteworthy characters as Charlemagne. Jenkins gives a particularly good account of post-Renaissance France to the Revolution and from thence to Napoleon and WWI, and “Defeat from Victory”, the inter-war period. Post- 1939, we examine the two extremes of collaboration and the Resistance, the Fourth Republic in the Cold War, de Gaulle “Golden Decade” and on to the present. 330pp paperback.


£8.99 NOW £4.50 25247 HISTORIES


by Herodotus, introduced by Tom Griffiths Herodotus (c480 - c425 B.C.) is the Father of History and his Histories are the first piece of western historical writing. They are also the most entertaining. Why did Pheidippides run the 26 mile and 385 yards from Marathon to Athens? And what did he do when he got there? Was the Battle of Salamis fought between sausage sellers? Which is the oldest language in the world? And what is the best way to kill a crocodile? Answers as well as many fascinating insights into the Ancient World. 734pp in paperback. ONLY £4


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