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The Great Exhibition
The Great Exhibition of 1851 was the world’s first international exposition of manufactured goods, inventions, works of art and artefacts from many cultures. A showcase of British manufacturing supremacy, an educational extravaganza, a lesson to foreigners and a deep source of public fascination, the Exhibition was closely connected with Queen Victoria’s consort, Prince Albert, who put much effort into having it sited in Hyde Park against stiff opposition. Protesters feared the disappearance of the park under tons of bricks and mortar, but when the great structure was eventually chosen and built, it silenced dissenters and became the most famous new building in the world. During its six months, the Exhibition’s 100,000 exhibits were seen by over 6 million people who came to celebrate Britain’s industrial ascendancy and sparked a renewed confidence in the possibilities of peaceful social progress. In The Great Exhibition, John R. Davis explores the organisation and implementation of the event, and delves into its wider significance and the historical debates surrounding it. Complete with insights into the event’s part in the construction of the modern world, this accessible history showcases the pinnacle of Victorian innovation.
The Nuclear Age
'Few historians write with Serhii Plokhy’s authority, clarity or global vision... Essential reading, and a marvellous book' Peter FrankopanFrom the bestselling author of Chernobyl comes a sweeping history of the geopolitics behind the nuclear arms race, from the first atomic bomb to todayOn 16 July 1945, the Nuclear Age began with the explosion of the first atomic bomb and the words of J. Robert Oppenheimer: 'Now I am become Death, the Destroyer of Worlds.'While the threat of mutually assured destruction kept a lid on a simmering and tense geopolitical landscape, events like the Chernobyl disaster and near-misses like the Cuban Missile Crisis showed that total destruction was only ever one malfunction, mistake, or miscommunication away. Now, as governments re-arm their nuclear arsenals, treaties designed to limit the acquisition and use of nuclear weapons fall away, and nuclear weapons come increasingly within reach of non-state actors, we are on the brink of a renaissance of the nuclear industry. In The Nuclear Age, acclaimed historian Serhii Plokhy paints an intricate picture of a world governed by fear. From the first artificial splitting of the atom in 1917 and the race to create the first atomic bomb in World War II, through the fraught arms race of the Cold War, to the imperialism, neo-colonial motivation and wars being waged today, the threat posed by nuclear weapons is as pertinent as ever. As he examines the motivations of key players, Plokhy confronts the crucial question of our age: what can we learn from the first nuclear arms race that can help us to stop the new one?
Bookbindings
'Bookbindings: An Illustrated History' is full of beautiful images of bookbindings from the beginnings of the codex right up to the present day. The volume's beauty is matched by David Pearson's encyclopaedic knowledge of the subject. - Sara J Charles, Literary ReviewBindings have been an essential – and often beautiful – component of books since the codex form was invented 2,000 years ago. They make books work, but they also provide an opportunity for binders to display their skills. Until book trade processes were industrialised in the nineteenth century, every binding was a unique handcrafted object, no matter how simple or elaborate it now looks from the outside. Bindings have been made of all kinds of materials – calfskin, parchment, vellum, ivory, even silver – and embellished using many different techniques, to satisfy the wishes of owners from students to kings. The ways in which they were produced and decorated have evolved steadily over time, and many countries have their own distinctive traditions. Bindings may testify to the taste and social status of wealthy connoisseurs, or to the economic necessities of ordinary households. Because they can often be dated and localised, they also give us information about the histories of individual volumes. This lavishly illustrated book provides a fascinating history of the development of bookbindings from Roman times to the present day. Almost all the examples are chosen from the shelves of the Bodleian Library, showcasing the outstanding collection of historic bindings to be found there.
Blood Countess
A March Indie Next Pick * A Barnes & Noble Most Anticipated Nonfiction Book of 2026 * A Barnes & Noble Reads Best Book of February 2026From the author of the national bestseller The Dark Queens, an incandescent work of true crime and feminist history about Elizabeth Bathory, the woman alleged to be the world’s most prolific female serial killer.There have long been whispers, coming from the castle; from the village square; from the dark woods. The great lady—a countess, from one of Europe''s oldest families—is a vicious killer. Some even say she bathes in the blood of her victims. When the king''s men force their way into her manor house, she has blood on her hands, caught in the act of murdering yet another of her maids. She is walled up in a tower and never seen again, except in the uppermost barred window, where she broods over the countryside, cursing all those who dared speak up against her.Told and retold in many languages, the legend of the Blood Countess has consumed cultural imaginations around the world. But despite claims that Elizabeth Bathory tortured and killed as many as 650 girls, some have wondered if the Countess was herself a victim— of one of the most successful disinformation campaigns known to history. So, was Elizabeth Bathory a monster, a victim, or a bit of both? With the breathlessness of a whodunit, drawing upon new archival evidence and questioning old assumptions, Shelley Puhak traces the Countess''s downfall, bringing to life an assertive woman leader in a world sliding into anti-scientific, reactionary darkness—a world where nothing is ever as it seems. In this exhilarating narrative, Puhak renders a vivid portrait of history’s most dangerous woman and her tumultuous time, revealing just how far we will go to destroy a woman in power.
Roman Surrey
In AD 43, the area of south-east England now known as Surrey became part of the Roman Empire. The succeeding 400 years saw the development of settlements, roads, industry and a new administrative structure, with the foundation of London providing anew and lasting focus for the people of Surrey. In this fully revised and updated second edition of Roman Surrey, Dr David Bird combines both historical and the very latest archaeological evidence with topographical studies to build a vivid picture of life at the time, from villas and coinage to the interrelation of the people who lived there, and their beliefs and customs. The changing face of Surrey’s landscape is chartered, alongside an exploration of the theories relating to the development and eventual decline of Roman Surrey.
Rosslyn Chapel Revealed
‘Like Rosslyn itself, this book is rather delicious and I would urge anyone with an interest in the Scottish religious sensibility to read it.’ - Gerard CarruthersRosslyn Chapel Revealed offers the reader an increased understanding and respect for one of Europe’s finest pre-Reformation buildings. Rosslyn Chapel, with its foundations in the world of nature, still points bravely to the heavens. That there is mystery at Rosslyn Chapel, there can be no doubt. But it is not the mystery of the esoteric Gnostic variety, available only to the initiated few. Instead, it is knowledge, accessible to all, of the dynamic intertwining of the created world with the impulse towards self-fulfilment. Rosslyn Chapel Revealed shows that the chapel is first and foremost a Christian building, constructed in the traditions of the pre-Reformation Church for the celebration in word, gesture and music of the Divine Office and of the ultimate sacrifice Jesus Christ suffered on his cross for the salvation of the human race. The stunning beauty of the chapel, its unexpected delicacy and the uninhibited humour of its stone carvings, which have drawn visitors in such avid numbers from all over the world, are a tribute to the honesty and validity of the religious experience to be found within its ancient walls, in a breathtaking setting of valley and river that is older than time. ‘This lovely book is a counter to some of the silliness of recent years … an excellent and comprehensive introduction and a super memoir for anyone who has visited.’ - Maria Western, Inspires
Roman Empire by Train with Alice Roberts
Explore the Ancient Roman Empire as you’ve never seen it before with the acclaimed anthropologist and Sunday Times bestselling author of Domination, Alice Roberts. AS SEEN ON CHANNEL 4Join Professor Alice Roberts as she travels over a thousand miles through Italy, France and Spain in search of a greater understanding of the Roman Empire and its legacy. From Naples to Pompeii, Rome to Turin, Nîmes to Narbonne and Tarragona to Cartagena, Roberts visits sites both on and off the beaten track to reveal new perspectives on one of history’s greatest civilisations. Along the way, she meets leading historians and archaeologists who bring the Roman world to life. Alice explores what life was like for ordinary citizens of the Roman Empire, as well as examining the key developments in technology, law, politics, health and education that remain to this day and how these fed into the birth, expansion and collapse of the empire. Featuring Alice’s own experiences from the journey itself, including her drawings and personal anecdotes, this book delivers more depth and context than the TV series, with up-to-date discoveries and facts about one of history’s greatest empires. Whether you want to follow Alice’s journey yourself or enjoy the ride from the comfort of your home, Roman Empire by Train with Alice Roberts is both an immersive travelogue and an accessible guide to the rise and fall of the Roman Empire.
I, Wandering Jew
Combining history, detective story, and memoir, a surprising and revealing account of the antisemitic myth of “the Wandering Jew”The story behind the mythical figure of “the Wandering Jew” is one of the most fascinating tales in European history. In I, Wandering Jew, National Jewish Book Award–winning historian Yair Mintzker traces the tale back to its source, follows its many metamorphoses through five centuries, and relates it to the fraught present moment. According to a mysterious pamphlet published in 1602, the Wandering Jew was a real person, named Ahasversus, who was cursed by Jesus to eternal wandering after refusing to help him as he was led to his crucifixion. For more than four hundred years, many otherwise reliable witnesses have claimed to have seen the Wandering Jew. Moving in reverse chronological order, I, Wandering Jew explores crucial episodes in the story of this figure. We meet an unforgettable, Wandering Jew–like character who appeared out of nowhere in Israel in the 1950s; a nineteenth-century novelist who was the first Jew to favorably describe the Wandering Jew; an eighteenth-century German scholar who saw the Wandering Jew emerging from a devastating fire; and the man who likely inspired the 1602 pamphlet. A work of history that reads like a detective story, I, Wandering Jew is also part memoir. As Mintzker discovers affinities between his own story and that of the Wandering Jew, the surprising history of an old antisemitic trope and its meanings becomes a profound meditation on home and exile, Judaism and Christianity, poetry and truth, the deep past and the present.
Korea at War
An engaging history covering a century of conflict on the Korean PeninsulaKorea at War recounts how two separate nations emerged on the Korean peninsula as the result of devastating conflicts involving provocative personalities and superpower intrigues. The topics covered in this fascinating book include:The brutal years of Japanese colonial rule which began with Japan's annexation of Korea and ended with its defeat in World War II—and which still dominate Japanese-Korean relations todayThe division of the country into a totalitarian North and a prosperous, democratic SouthNorth Korea's invasion of the South, motivated by Stalin, which led to the bloody Korean War—a conflict that is still not settled to this dayThe irascible General Douglas MacArthur, who was relieved of his command by President Truman when he disobeyed a direct order and attempted to expand the war into ChinaThe rise of the Kim regime in North Korea and the continuing threat of nuclear war todayHistorian Michael J. Seth explores these and other themes including the complete story of North Korea—a nation and a people who for three generations have lived under the world's most repressive regime. He also discusses how South Korea has made the incredible leap from one of the world's poorest nations to one its richest and most dynamic. Korea at War is the story of two nations with a shared past that could hardly be more different today. With over 50 color photographs and maps, this book is a must-read for anyone wanting to understand contemporary Asian politics and current affairs.
Archaeology
This entertaining Very Short Introduction reflects the enduring popularity of archaeology - a subject which appeals as a pastime, career, and academic discipline, encompasses the whole globe, and surveys 2.5 million years. From deserts to jungles, from deep caves to mountain tops, from pebble tools to satellite photographs, from excavation to abstract theory, archaeology interacts with nearly every other discipline in its attempts to reconstruct the past.In this new edition, Paul Bahn brings the text up to date, including information about new discoveries and interpretations in the field, and highlighting the impact of developments such as the potential use of DNA and stable isotopes in teeth, as well the effect technology and science are having on archaeological exploration. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
Birthing Romans
How Romans coped with the anxieties and risks of childbirthAcross the vast expanse of the Roman Empire, anxieties about childbirth tied individuals to one another, to the highest levels of imperial politics, even to the movements of the stars. Birthing Romans sheds critical light on the diverse ways pregnancy and childbirth were understood, experienced, and managed in ancient Rome during the first three centuries of the Common Era. In this beautifully written book, Anna Bonnell Freidin asks how inhabitants of the Roman Empire—especially women and girls—understood their bodies and constructed communities of care to mitigate and make sense of the risks of pregnancy and childbirth. Drawing on medical texts, legal documents, poetry, amulets, funerary art, and more, she shows how these communities were deeply human yet never just human. Freidin demonstrates how patients and caregivers took their place alongside divine and material agencies to guard against the risks inherent to childbearing. She vividly illustrates how these efforts and vital networks offer a new window onto Romans’ anxieties about order, hierarchy, and the individual’s place in the empire and cosmos. Unearthing a risky world that is both familiar and not our own, Birthing Romans reveals how mistakes, misfortunes, and interventions in childbearing were seen to have far-reaching consequences, reverberating across generations and altering the course of people’s lives, their family histories, and even the fate of an empire.
Red Valkyries
Red Valkyries explores the history of socialist feminism in Eastern Europe, following the lives and careers of five prominent women active in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries: the aristocratic Bolshevik Alexandra Kollontai; the radical pedagogue Nadezhda Krupskaya; the polyamorous firebrand Inessa Armand; the deadly sniper Lyudmila Pavlichenko; and the partisan turned scientist turned global women's activist Elena Lagadinova. In brief conversational chapters, Kristen Ghodsee renders the big ideas of socialist feminism accessible to those newly inspired by the emancipatory politics of insurgent left feminist movements around the globe.
Say Nephew
A profound and illuminating exploration of the mythology of gay uncles and the meaning of queer bonds across generationsIn Say Nephew, Steven Pfau blends memoir and criticism to celebrate the gay uncles who shape our sense of queer identity, culture, and history. The most influential figure in Pfau’s gay boyhood—the mentor who set the standard for all his future mentors—was his uncle Bruce.A charismatic storyteller with a Burt Reynolds–esque bravado (and a mustache, leather jacket, and pair of cowboy boots to match), Bruce came out in 1950s Memphis and lived in New York City through many of the defining events of the gay liberation era. Bruce was both a unique fixture in his nephew’s upbringing and a link in a long lineage of uncles, literal and figurative, who have offered various forms of queer tutelage to younger men.But what role is the nephew supposed to play in these relationships? And who does he become once his uncles are no longer there to guide him? Both a coming-of-age story and a wide-ranging study, Say Nephew is a wholly original and expansive consideration of queer mentorship.
Out of One, Many
A sweeping new account of ancient Greek culture and its remarkable diversityCovering the whole of the ancient Greek experience from its beginnings late in the third millennium BCE to the Roman conquest in 30 BCE, Out of One, Many is an accessible and lively introduction to the Greeks and their ways of living and thinking. In this fresh and witty exploration of the thought, culture, society, and history of the Greeks, Jennifer Roberts traces not only the common values that united them across the seas and the centuries, but also the enormous diversity in their ideas and beliefs. Examining the huge importance to the Greeks of religion, mythology, the Homeric epics, tragic and comic drama, philosophy, and the city-state, the book offers shifting perspectives on an extraordinary and astonishingly creative people. Century after century, in one medium after another, the Greeks addressed big questions, many of which are still very much with us, from whether gods exist and what happens after we die to what political system is best and how we can know what is real. Yet for all their virtues, Greek men set themselves apart from women and foreigners and profited from the unpaid labor of enslaved workers, and the book also looks at the mixed legacy of the ancient Greeks today. The result is a rich, wide-ranging, and compelling history of a fascinating and profoundly influential culture in all its complexity—and the myriad ways, good and bad, it continues to shape us today.
Inventing the Renaissance
The Renaissance is one of the most studied and celebrated eras of history. Spanning the end of the Middle Ages to the beginning of modernity, it has come to symbolise the transformative rebirth of knowledge, art, culture and political thought in Europe. And for the last two hundred years, historians have struggled to describe what makes this famous golden age unique. In Inventing the Renaissance, acclaimed historian Ada Palmer provides a fresh perspective on what makes this epoch so captivating. Her witty and irreverent journey through the fantasies historians have constructed about the period show how its legend derives more from later centuries’ mythmaking than from the often grim reality of the period itself. She examines its defining figures and movements: the enduring legacy of Niccolo Machiavelli, the rediscovery of the classics, the rise of the Medici and fall of the Borgias, the astonishing artistic achievements of Michelangelo, Leonardo, and Cellini, the impact of the Inquisition and the expansion of secular Humanism. Palmer also explores the ties between culture and money: books, for example, could cost as much as grand houses, so the period’s innovative thinkers could only thrive with the help of the super-rich. She offers fifteen provocative and entertaining character portraits of Renaissance men and women, some famous, some obscure, whose intersecting lives show how the real Renaissance was more unexpected, more international and, above all, more desperate than its golden reputation suggests. Drawing on her popular blogs and writing with her characteristic energy and wit, Palmer presents the Renaissance as we have never seen it before. Colloquial, funny and brilliant, you would never expect a work of deep scholarship to make you alternately laugh and cry.
Roman Britain and Celtic Ireland in Greek and Roman Sources (AD 60–500)
Dr Raoul McLaughlin presents ancient sources for the Atlantic Celts, providing new, annotated translations of Roman texts. These describe contact and conflict between Rome and the Celtic peoples of Britain and Ireland. This book is a valuable resource for anyone interested in the Celtic peoples of northern Europe, or the military and economic development of the Roman frontiers. Roman forces conquered southern Britain in AD 43, establishing a seaboard province facing Gaul and the militarised Rhine frontier. But external threats and mass revolts revealed how easily this condensed province could be eradicated by warfare. Further expansion followed, but the Roman Empire struggled to locate and establish secure northern and western limits to Britannia. Despite large-scale military and political efforts, the Romans never conquered or fully subjugated the Celtic territories on the Atlantic edge of EuropeThis book contains ancient sources ranging from AD 60 and the Boudiccan Revolt, to the disintegration of imperial rule in the AD 400s. Chapters cover ancient Ireland, the Flavian expansion of Roman Britain, the planned Irish conquest and the first Caledonian campaign (AD 77-83). Further ancient evidence reveals the withdrawal and consolidation of imperial frontiers behind barriers such as Hadrian’s Wall, while later texts outline the threat posed by the Picts and ancient Irish. The final chapters cover the Germanic migrations that led to the collapse of Roman Britain and the ethnogenesis of the Anglo-Saxons.
Frontline Medic & SOE Agent
At the outbreak of the Second World War, a young Scottish professional athlete competing in the Highland Games circuit enlisted in the Army. As he was able to drive a truck, Bill Gillanders was assigned to a blood transfusion unit in the Royal Army Medical Corps. He was taught how to give a transfusion and, in time, sent on a solo journey to deliver blood and plasma to a Casualty Clearing Station in Dieppe, France. War became horrifyingly real for Bill as German Panzer divisions unleashed Hitler’s Blitzkrieg and swept through northern France. His fraught journey home ended in a dramatic escape under fire and his return to Britain aboard a Royal Navy destroyer. Bill’s war had, however, only just begun. When the tide turned against the Axis in North Africa, Bill was unexpectedly recruited by the Special Operations Executive, or SOE, for a clandestine mission in the Balkans. Having undergone a period of intensive training, with the rank of Sergeant he was then parachuted into Yugoslavia as part of a team led by Major Dr Lindsay Rogers, a New Zealand surgeon he had served alongside in the desert. In this rough and brutal environment, as part of Mission Dafoe Lindsay’s SOE team infiltrated enemy-occupied territory to support Tito’s Partisans. In makeshift hospitals in the mountains, with minimal supplies, his small unit treat the wounded, while political tensions simmered beneath the surface. Bill recounts many dramatic and now historically fascinating incidents he witnessed, such as a massive air assault by the Germans to destroy Tito. With their hospital bombed mid-surgery, undeterred they pushed into besieged Drvar to try to help wounded partisans and British SOE operatives. For his actions in these events, Bill was awarded the Military Medal. As Bill reveals in this book, he also led a group of around 100 downed American airmen on a 100-mile winter trek through German-controlled territory to a hidden airfield for evacuation to Italy. This is not just a soldier’s account of his war, or a riveting adventure story – it is both.
Tracing Your House History on the Internet
While Gill Blanchard's previous book, Tracing your House History, serves as an indispensable resource for house history enthusiasts of all dwellings, this new and comprehensive guide seamlessly blends those traditional research methods with the vast expanse of online resources. Whether your home is a grand manor, a cosy cottage, or a Victorian terrace, this book equips you with the tools and knowledge to navigate the ever-growing digital archives and databases with ease. From deciphering historical documents to unraveling the lives of past inhabitants, every chapter is filled with invaluable insights and practical advice. Join the author on an enlightening journey as she demystifies the complexities of online research, making the process not only accessible but also enjoyable. Whether you're a seasoned researcher or a novice explorer, this blend of traditional and digital research will guide you to illuminate the history of your beloved home and its previous inhabitants.
Churches of Newcastle and North Tyneside
The city of Newcastle upon Tyne and the towns and villages of North Tyneside, including Wallsend, North Shields, Killingworth, Tynemouth and Whitley Bay, were important settlements in the mediaeval era but the shipping trade and growing industrialisation in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries saw the population in the area increase rapidly. Alongside the ancient churches, many more churches were built to support those communities and today, the churches of both boroughs act as significant historic records of the architecture, cycle of life, and the growth of Christian faith in the region. The churches have become recognized as a part of the landscape. In addition, many visitors are drawn today to the pilgrimage routes that pass through this area, some centred on Newcastle Cathedral.This fascinating picture of an important part of the history of Newcastle and North Tyneside over the centuries will be of interest to all those who live in or are visiting this part of the country.
V kategórii populárno - náučné encyklopédie nájdete široký výber kníh, ktoré vám poskytnú poznatky z rôznych oblastí zaujímavým a zrozumiteľným spôsobom. Encyklopédie vám pomôžu získať komplexný prehľad o rôznych témach, ako ľudské telo a človek, príroda, vesmír, veda a technika a história.
Naša ponuka encyklopédií populárno-náučného charakteru vám umožní objaviť fascinujúci svet poznania a rozšíriť svoje vedomosti o rôznych témach.



























