Avalon is Britain's very own Atlantis - a mystical kingdom rich in myth and lore. Legends tell how the body of King Arthur was taken to Avalon, where he would wait till his nation's hour of need -The truth is that Avalon was a very real place with a turbulent history of its own. In The Keys to Avalon, the authors use neglected ancient sources, geographical clues and modern maps to take us to the heart of this realm. They uncover a remarkable landscape steeped in evidence of a bygone age. En rout...
In 476 AD the last of Rome's emperors was deposed by a barbarian general, the son of one of Attila the Hun's henchmen, and the imperial vestments were despatched to Constantinople. The curtain fell on the Roman Empire in Western Europe, its territories divided between successor kingdoms constructed around barbarian military manpower. But if the Roman Empire was dead, the dream of restoring it refused to die. In many parts of the old Empire, real Romans still lived, holding on to their lands, the...
Dynasties Intertwined (Medieval Societies, Religions, and Cultures)
by Matt King
Dynasties Intertwined traces the turbulent relationship between the Zirids of Ifriqiya and the Normans of Sicily during the eleventh and twelfth centuries. In doing so, it reveals the complex web of economic, political, cultural, and military connections that linked the two dynasties to each other and to other polities across the medieval Mediterranean. Furthermore, despite the contemporary interfaith holy wars happening around the Zirids and Normans, their relationship was never governed by an...
Some years ago a revolution took place in Early Medieval history in Scotland. The Pictish heartland of Fortriu, previously thought to be centred on Perthshire and the Tay found itself relocated through the forensic work of Alex Woolf to the shores of the Moray Firth. The implications for our understanding of this period and for the formation of Scotland are unprecedented and still being worked through. This is the first account of this northern heartland of Pictavia for a more general audience...
Cambridgeshire at War 1939-45 (Towns & Cities in World War Two)
by Glynis Cooper
Few could believe that within twenty years of the war to end all wars being won the world was once again at war. Veterans of the Great War feared going through the same thing again and, even worse, many knew that this time their children would also be involved in the fighting. What had all the sacrifice been about? Cambridgeshire, the city of Cambridge and the University of Cambridge were badly hit by the Great War with many lives lost, families ripped apart and a way of life that had changed f...
'The Last Viking is a masterful and pulse-pounding narrative that transports the reader into the middle of the action.' Carl Gnam, Military Heritage Harald Sigurdsson burst into history as a teenaged youth in a Viking battle from which he escaped with little more than his life and a thirst for vengeance. But from these humble origins, he became one of Norway's most legendary kings. The Last Viking is a fast-moving narrative account of the life of King Harald Hardrada, as he journeyed across the...
The book is an investigation of the evidence for King Arthur based on the earliest written sources rather than later myths and legends. The evidence is laid out in a chronological order starting from Roman Britain and shows how the legend evolved and at what point concepts such as Camelot, excalibur and Merlin were added. It covers the historical records from the end of Roman Britain using contemporary sources such as they are, from 400-800, including Gallic Chronicles, Gildas and Bede. It de...
Offa and the Mercian Wars: The Rise and Fall of the First Great English Kingdom
by Chris Peers
In England in the eighth century, in the midst of the so-called Dark Ages, Offa ruled Mercia, one of the strongest Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. For over 30 years he was the dominant warlord in the territory south of the Humber and the driving force behind the expansion of Mercia's power. During that turbulent period he commanded Mercian armies in their struggle against the neighbouring kingdoms of Northumbria and Wessex and against the Welsh tribes.Yet the true story of Offa's long reign and of the ri...
The Royal Flying Corps was formed by Royal Warrant on 13 April 1912, and came into being a month later when the Air Battalion was absorbed into the Military Wing of the new Corps in May. In the days following the outbreak of war in 1914, the programme for mobilization of the RFC was, in the main, successfully carried out. The first aircraft set out across the Channel on the morning of 13 August, taking off from Dover at 06.25 hours. The first pilot to land in France was Lieutenant H.D. Harvey-K...
'So beautiful, so haunting . . . bitingly real . . . Giles has given us a vital, glorious story: rich, rewarding, and utterly revealing of our times' Manda ScottFollowing his acclaimed Sunday Times bestseller, Lancelot, Giles Kristian's new novel returns us to the realms of Arthurian legend . . . Britain is a land riven by anarchy, slaughter, famine, filth and darkness. Its armies are destroyed, its heroes dead, or missing. Arthur and Lancelot fell in the last great battle and Merlin has not bee...
From the eighth century to the turn of the millennium, East Anglia had a variety of identities thrust upon it by authors of the period who envisioned a unified England. Although they were not regional writers in the modern sense, Bede, Felix, the annalists of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, King Alfred of Wessex, Abbo of Fleury, and AElfric of Eynsham took a keen interest in East Anglia, especially in its potential to undo English cultural cohesiveness as they imagined it. Angles on a Kingdom argue...
Ready-made high quality KS3 history lessons on Anglo-Saxon England – topic booklet perfect for a half term’s work. Give every student access to high quality KS3 History textbook content with this topic booklet on Anglo-Saxon England. Chapter 1: The Anglo SaxonsChapter 2: Anglo-Saxon RuleChapter 3: The VikingsChapter 4: Alfred the GreatChapter 5: The Anglo-Saxon Golden Age • Fits into the school timetable with ease with 5 high quality lessons, perfect for a half term...
Around 1,200 years ago the legendary voyaging Norsemen set sail to raid and trade - the Viking Age had begun. Step back in time to find out what Viking life was like, how they travelled, where they traded and their rich mythology. Come face to face with a fearsome berserker, explore inside a Viking longhouse and learn how these expert boat builders made their fleets. Bold graphic illustrations of vibrant Viking characters, incredible artefacts and stunningly detailed scenes by author-illustrator...
Maureen Duffy’s double-bill tells the story of two remarkable women. The Choice is the story of a very unsaintly saint. Hilda of Whitby, who brought Christianity to the Anglo-Saxons, was a businesswoman, teacher and adviser to kings. In A Nightingale in Bloomsbury Square, Virginia Woolf looks back on her life, uncovering the hidden stories behind her iconic novels. From the torture of depression to the scandal of her lesbian affairs, Virginia goes down fighting. As the saying goes: well-behav...
Married Life in the Middle Ages, 900-1300 (Oxford Studies in Medieval European History)
by Elisabeth Van Houts
Married Life in the Middle Ages, 900-1300 contains an analysis of the experience of married life by men and women in Christian medieval Europe, c. 900-1300. The study focusses on the social and emotional life of the married couple rather than on the institutional history of marriage, breaking it into three parts: Getting Married - the process of getting married and wedding celebrations; Married Life - the married life of lay couples and clergy, their sexuality, and any remarriage; and Alternativ...
"From the fury of the Northmen, good Lord deliver us." - Anonymous monk, Noirmoutier, France, 9th century AD Beginning in 789AD, the Vikings raided monasteries, sacked cities and invaded western Europe. They looted and enslaved their enemies. But that is only part of their story. In long boats they discovered Iceland and America (both by accident) and also sailed up the Seine to Paris (which they sacked). They settled from Newfoundland to Russia, founded Dublin and fought battles as far afield...
The Battle of Hastings is arguably the best-known and perhaps the most significant battle in English history. Its effects were deeply felt at the time, causing a lasting shift in cultural identity and national pride. In this detailed and engaging account, Jim Bradbury places the 1066 battle in its broader context and examines its far-reaching effects. He explores the full military background to the battle and investigates both our knowledge of what actually happened and the role that it plays in...
The Oxford Handbook of Later Medieval Archaeology in Britain (Oxford Handbooks)
The Middle Ages are all around us in Britain. The Tower of London and the castles of Scotland and Wales are mainstays of cultural tourism and an inspiring cross-section of later medieval finds can now be seen on display in museums across England, Scotland, and Wales. Medieval institutions from Parliament and monarchy to universities are familiar to us and we come into contact with the later Middle Ages every day when we drive through a village or town, look up at the castle on the hill, visit a...