British Historical History

Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany, was the most intelligent of Queen Victoria's four sons. He was the youngest, a strong-willed, likeable character with an immense thirst for life who faced two overwhelming handicaps. One was haemophilia, then barely understood, which might have killed him at any moment, and in any case subjected him to recurring pain and disability. The other was his mother's determination to keep complete control over his life.

In 2016, while working as a journalist in Yangon, Clare Hammond discovered an obscure map that showed a web of new railways spanning the length and breadth of the country - railways not shown on any other publicly available maps. She was determined to uncover the railways' origins, purpose, and most of all, the silence that surrounded them. She would spend three months travelling on these mysterious railways, and the next five years piecing their story together.

Oliver Cromwell's death in 1658 sparked a period of unrivaled turmoil and confusion in English history. In less than two years, there were close to ten changes of government; rival armies of Englishmen faced each other across the Scottish border; and the Long Parliament was finally dissolved after two decades. Why was this period so turbulent, and why did the republic, backed by a formidable standing army, come crashing down in such spectacular fashion?

Magnus has disappeared, and the truth about my bloodline still eludes me. I’m preparing for our marriage, so the timing is not perfect when I’m called away to help at a difficult birth. When I return, Magnus is gone. Soon after, I’m ordered before Dublin’s King. We’ve been refugees here since the winter. The woman I helped has died. I will have to leave Dublin. The daughter of the king takes me to a seer who can help bring forth the powers I was supposed to inherit from my mother. We travel together back to England to look for my sister, not for Magnus. You can guess who we find. ...

1491. Henry VII’s eldest son, Arthur Tudor, Prince of Wales, has been betrothed since childhood to the Spanish princess Katherine of Aragon. Their marriage will cement the alliance Henry Tudor craves to secure his country. But when Arthur’s sudden death leaves an 11-year-old boy heir to the kingdom, Henry Tudor must choose whether to send Katherine back to Spain or to marry her himself. Katherine has no son from her brief marriage to secure her future; her substantial dowry and his powerful contract are at stake.

1075 and Dowager Queen Edith has died. Her niece Gunnhild longs to leave Wilton Abbey, but is her suitor, Breton knight Count Alain of Richmond, interested in her inheritance as the daughter of King Harold and Edith Swan-Neck, or does he love her for herself? Is her own love for Count Alain an enduring love, or has she made a terrible mistake? The Swan Daughter is woven around a true 11th-century tale of elopement, love and courage.

Wondering how British place-names came into existence? Discover the meanings behind the names of England's towns and villages from the author of the bestselling ‘What’s in your Surname?’ After spending decades researching and writing about the history of names, William Lewis turns his attention to English place-names, offering a comprehensive guide to the fascinating origins of such names as Birdoswald, Jodrell Bank, California (Norfolk), Westward Ho! and Giggleswick - and many, many more. In this engaging and entertaining volume, you will discover: • the origins of place-names from...

Gambling captures as nothing else the drama of the "long eighteenth century" between the age of religious wars and the age of revolutions. The society that was confronted with games of chance pursued as commercial ventures also came to grips with unprecedented social mobility, floated by new wealth from new sources created fortunes from trade in sugar, cotton, ivory, silk, tea, or enslaved human beings. The Gambling Century focuses like no previous work on those who enabled, facilitated, and profited from gambling, as well as on efforts to regulate or outlaw it.

If you want to discover the captivating history of England, then pay attention...There are few places that entice the imagination quite like England. Just a little island off the western coast of continental Europe, it boasts a rich history that stretches all the way back to the first modern humans. From the fearsome Celtic warriors of prehistory to the clever inventors and statesmen of the modern era, England’s story is one bursting with magnificent castles, complex kings and queens, rebellious peasants, and horrifying plagues.

Los Angeles, California, August 1964…Hilarious whodunit with quirky characters for fans of the Beatles, Golden Girls and Murder She Wrote. A clean, fun read. Beatles abound! The Cozy Beatles Mystery series is definitely a page turner! Paul held the phone away from his mouth and yelled to George and John, “Helen and her parents are going to a place where girls dance …get this, lads…wearing fringed skirts.“ I heard the phone change hands and then John came on, “Name of the place, Melon. I want it now. Out with it.“ “It’s called the Whisky a Go Go.“ “Address? Never mind, ...

In 1942 the young soldier Arthur Dodd was taken prisoner by the German Army and transported to Oswiecim in Polish Upper Silesia. The Germans gave it another name, now synonymous with mankind’s darkest hours. They called it Auschwitz. Forced to do hard labour, starved and savagely beaten, Arthur thought his life would end in Auschwitz. Determined to go down fighting, he sabotaged Nazi industrial work, risked his life to alleviate the suffering of the Jewish prisoners and aided a partisan group planning a mass breakout.

A historical fiction novel set in the Five Towns of England during the late 19th century, Three Penny Sunday offers an engaging journey into the life of an intriguing character, Edward Henry Walker, born in 1867. Tracing his trajectory from a modest upbringing in Bursley to prominence, the novel weaves a rich tableau of the era's local pottery industry often referred to as "potbanks", and the tight-knit, gossip-ridden community that shapes the town's social and political landscape. Henry's Course Initially an ordinary boy, Henry secures a surprise scholarship at twelve, albeit through ...

A psychological murder mystery set in Edwardian England during the early 1900s. "The Baron's Burden" transports readers to the crumbling manors and imposing estates of aristocratic England, where the veneer of noble life conceals dark secrets and complex intrigues. When Old Lord Windsom unexpectedly inherits his family's decaying estate, he also inherits a legacy of debts and duties. His marriage to the ambitious actress Erin Carson, adds further complications, igniting a series of scandals that ripple through high society. As Erin Carson's schemes to secure her status unfold, a series of ...

The History of England from Henry IV to Charles I, by a partial, prejudiced, and ignorant historian. N.B. There will be very few dates in this History! Jane Austen wrote The History of England in 1791, at the age of just 15, as a satirical parody of 18th-century historical textbooks. It pokes fun at the apparent impartiality of contemporary historians and contains more opinions about the monarchs’ relative characters than any facts or dates. The History of England was not published until 1922, more than a century after Austen’s death.

Have you ever thought about your own surname? Wondered about the stories behind them, especially if they are unusual?This Amazon NUMBER 1 BESTSELLING BOOK (Genealogy) tells the engaging story of when our surnames first came into use, why they were necessary and how people acquired them. After spending decades writing and researching the history of names, William Lewis presents in ‘What’s in your Surname?’ a journey through the quite diverse origins of English surnames citing hundreds of examples along the way. On this engaging journey you will discover the origin of last names, from ...

George III, Britain's longest-reigning king, has gone down in history as 'the cruellest tyrant of this age' (Thomas Paine, 18th century), 'a sovereign who inflicted more profound and enduring injuries upon this country than any other modern English king' (WEH Lecky, 19th century), 'one of England's most disastrous kings' (JH Plumb, 20th century) and as the pompous, camp and sinister monarch of the musical Hamilton (21st century). Andrew Roberts' magnificent new biography takes entirely the opposite view.

No one is to be trusted and Donland is to use every trick available to him to succeed. The forces arrayed against him are powerful as well as influential. He must deceive and evade those who attempt to stop him from reaching a wreck on an island in the Indian Ocean. The Admiralty and The Honorable East India Company give him the authority to command any vessel he boards. He uses that authority no matter the objections of the captains of the merchantmen or the naval ships he boards. Having journey from the Mediterranean, across Egyptian deserts then marooned on an island, he finds himself ...

In 1605, Guy Fawkes was one of over a dozen conspirators in the famous Gunpowder Plot, an attempt to assassinate England's King James I. When the plot was discovered on the 5th of November, Fawkes and other conspirators were quickly convicted and executed, and the King asked his subjects to remember the 5th November as "the joyful day of deliverance".

We follow in the footsteps of the intrepid British traveller as they explore the world both at home and abroad, told entirely in the words of those who were there. In two volumes: The Traveller at Home Gazette and The Traveller Abroad Gazette. Performed by an outstanding company of award-winning actors including Dame Eileen Atkins, Cheryl Campbell, Nigel Davenport, Alex Jennings, Richard Johnson OBE, Hugh Laurie CBE, Michael Maloney, Geoffrey Palmer OBE, Michael Pennington, Prunella Scales CBE, Samuel West, John Wood CBE and full supporting cast.

With the end of the war, the victorious Germans now occupy a defeated Great Britain. In London, decorated detective John Henry Rossett, now reporting to the Nazi victors, lies in a hospital bed recovering from gunshot wounds. Desperate to avoid blame over the events that led to the shooting, his boss, Ernst Kohler, covers up the incident. But when Koehler's wife and daughter are kidnapped by American spies, the terrified German turns to the only man he trusts to help him.