European history

From the author of Twitter's Medieval Death Bot comes Unfortunate Ends: On Murder and Misadventure in Medieval England, an illuminating collection of in-depth looks at the most interesting cases from medieval coroners' rolls.Thomas, son of Henry...

An illuminating exploration of the surprisingly familiar sex lives of ordinary medieval people.The medieval humoral system of medicine suggested that it was possible to die from having too much - or too little - sex, while the Roman Catholic Church...

According to legend, the English landscape - so calm on the surface - is really the Devil's work. Cloven Country tells of rocks hurled into place and valleys carved out by infernal labour. The Devil's hideous strength laid down great...

In The Middle Ages and the Movies, eminent historian Robert Bartlett takes a fresh, cogent look at how our view of medieval history has been shaped by eight significant films of the twentieth century. The book ranges from the concoction of sex and...

A new interpretation of Tycho Brahe's pivotal role in the emergence of empirical science.The Danish aristocrat and astronomer Tycho Brahe personified the inventive vitality of Renaissance life in the sixteenth century. Brahe lost his nose in a student...

This book provides a remarkable overview of significant themes in Russian history and culture, in each case starting well before the eighteenth century, while frequently following them up into the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Robin...

Heroes and Marvels of the Middle Ages is a history like no other: it is a history of the imagination, presented through two celebrated groups of the period. One group consists of heroes: Charlemagne, El Cid, King Arthur, Orlando, Pope Joan, Melusine,...

A beautifully illustrated monograph on the innovative and at times controversial sculptor Donatello.The Italian sculptor known as Donatello helped to forge a new kind of art - one that defines the Renaissance. His work was progressive, innovative,...

Thirty years ago Prague was a closed book to most Westerners. Today it is the continent's fifth most-visited city, surpassed only by London, Paris, Istanbul and Rome. With a stunning natural location on the Vltava river and a spectacular potpourri of...

Dr Bhimrao R. Ambedkar (1891-1956) was one of India's greatest intellectuals and social reformers; his political ideas continue to inspire and mobilise some of the world's poorest and most socially disadvantaged, in India and the global...

The Tyne Bridge, opened in 1928 by King George V, is one of Britain's most iconic structures, a Grade II* listed building. Linking Newcastle and Gateshead, this symbol of Tyneside and the region is also a monument to the Tyne's industrial past. Paul...

The imposition of Communist ideology was a misfortune for millions in Eastern Europe, but never for Dennis Deletant. Instead, it drew him to Romania. The renowned historian's association with the country and its people dates back to 1965, when...

The untold story of a great English county and its people, from The Vikings to Brexit.Lincolnshire is England's second-largest county - and one of the least well-known. Yet its understated chronicles, unfashionable towns and undervalued...

Winner of The High Plains Book Award for Non-FictionA vivid biography of an African Edwardian chronicler of London, in a time of social upheaval.In a world dominated by the British Empire, and at a time when many Europeans considered black people...

In this volume, Michael Llewellyn-Smith sets the Greek occupation of Smyrna and the war in Anatolia against the background of Greece's 'Great Idea' and of great power rivalries in the Near East.Michael Llewellyn-Smith sets the...

From the Venerable Bede and the prince-bishops of Durham to Viz and Geordie Shore, this vital new history reveals a part of England with an uncertain future, but whose people remain as remarkable as ever.The Northumbrians have been overlooked by British...

With only 1.3 million inhabitants, Estonia is one of Europe's least populous nations -- yet it boasts one of the continent's fastest growing economies. In the first serious English-language history of this small Baltic state, Neil Taylor charts Estonia's...

This refreshing account looks at the dramatic end of British rule in India through Anglo-Indian eyes, a perspective that is neither colonial apologia nor nationalist polemic. The standard image of the Raj is of an aloof, pampered and prejudiced British...

Marseille is a thoroughly ambiguous place. France's second city and its major sea-port, its impact on the national imagination is unparalleled. Yet it is also a frontier city, arguably capital of the Mediterranean, and with a traditionally suspect...

The Northumbrians have been overlooked by British and global history, but they've made astonishing contributions to both. Dan Jackson sets out to recover this lost history, exploring the deep roots of Northumbrian culture-hard work and heavy drinking,...