History

The remarkable life of the vivacious, clever - and forgotten - Kennedy sister, who charmed the English aristocracy and was almost erased from her family history. The favourite child of...

'As page-turning as a novel' Joanna TrollopeOne summer of nearly a hundred years ago saw one of the high sunlit meadows of English history. A new king was crowned; audiences...

A magisterial history of the greatest and most terrible event in history, from one of the finest historians of the Second World War. A book which shows the impact of...

The terrible conflict that dominated the mid 19th century, the Crimean War killed at least 800,000 men and pitted Russia against a formidable coalition of Britain, France and the Ottoman...

The terrible conflict that dominated the mid 19th century, the Crimean War killed at least 800,000 men and pitted Russia against a formidable coalition of Britain, France and the Ottoman...

A magisterial history of the greatest and most terrible event in history, from one of the finest historians of the Second World War. A book which shows the impact of...

The beginning of the twentieth century saw human civilization at its most enlightened, well-educated, globalized and wealthy. What turned it into a bloodbath?Niall Ferguson re-tells the story of history's most...

Now a major motion picture called The MauritanianThe first and only diary written by a Guantanamo detainee during his imprisonment, now with previous censored material restored.Mohamedou Ould Slahi was imprisoned...

Here are the voices of London - rich and poor, native and immigrant, women and men - witnessed by Craig Taylor, an acclaimed journalist, playwright and writer, who spent five...

Most people know little more about the US President Abraham Lincoln than how he met his end - assassinated in a theatre box by a gunman. But as Thomas Keneally,...

The definitive biography of John F. Kennedy, from Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Fredrik Logevall. This is the untold story of how the rise of President Kennedy and the rise of the...

Interpreting the monuments of Athens in light of literature, R. E. Wycherley brings before us the city the ancients knew. Philosophers, statesmen, travelers, dramatists, poets, private citizens-the words of all...

In the spring of 1839, the British invaded Afghanistan for the first time. Led by lancers in scarlet cloaks and plumed shakos, nearly 20,000 British and East India Company troops...

In the spring of 1839, the British invaded Afghanistan for the first time. Led by lancers in scarlet cloaks and plumed shakos, nearly 20,000 British and East India Company troops...

Stories of plots, sham plots, and the citizen-informers who discovered them are at the center of Rachel Weil's compelling study of the turbulent decade following the Revolution of 1688. Most...

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER From bestselling historian Saul David, a riveting new history of the British airborne experience across the Second World War. The legendary 'Red Devils' were among the...

The real story of how Winston Churchill and the British mastered deception to defeat the Nazis - by conning the Kaiser, hoaxing Hitler and using brains to outwit brawn. By...

One of the greatest military feats during the Second World War was the transformation of the German force's activities in the weeks following the battles in Holland and the German...

'History as you've never seen it before.' Dan SnowDid you know that the history of the beard is connected to the Crimean War; that the history of paperclips is all...

Once vast swathes of the globe were coloured imperial red and Britannia ruled not just the waves, but the prairies of America, the plains of Asia, the jungles of Africa...

In this remarkable book, Mark Mazower aims to offer a new view of Europe's modern history. The complacent belief that Europe is the natural home of freedom and democracy is...

'A delightful compendium of the kind of facts you immediately want to share with anyone you encounter' New York Times 'An ebullient, irrepressible spirit invests this book. It is erudite...

Obedience to the Fuhrer. Obedience to the death.Hitler's elite SS bodyguards prided themselves on doing whatever it took, even if death was the price. They called themselves the "old hares",...

The world since the end of the Second World War often seems to represent the lighter half of the 20th century. Rapid recovery from the ravages of war; the rise...

A brilliantly researched, hugely entertaining study of the English by Britain's best-known broadcaster. In the light of membership of Europe, the loss of an Empire and a devolved United Kingdom,...

Immensely readable blend of historical narrative and character study. Wolfe remains a major figure in British military history. 'discerning insight and impressive narrative power' - Daily Telegraph 'evokes admiration, praise...

'I cannot think of a better biography of a spy chief'Richard Davenport-Hines, The SpectatorSir Maurice Oldfield was one of the most important British spies of the Cold War era. A...

The Hellenistic period began with the considerable expansion of the Greek world through the Macedonian conquest of the Persian empire and ended with Rome becoming the predominant political force in...

Superb, detailed reconstructions of buildings in this title provide the starting-point for a vivid exploration of these two great cities and the lives of the people who inhabited them. Peter...

This is the forgotten story of the million white Europeans, snatched from their homes and taken in chains to the great slave markets of North Africa to be sold to...

In this riveting book, Michael Burleigh sets Nazi Germany in a European context, showing how the Third Reich's abandonment of liberal democracy, decency and tolerance was widespread in the Europe...

'Written in a lively, accessible style, The Waiting Game is full of insight' Suzannah Lipscomb, Literary ReviewEvery Tudor Queen had ladies-in-waiting. They were her confidantes and her chaperones. Only the...

'Essential reading, not just for those interested in the Eastern Front, but for anyone who wants to understand Russia.' Antony Beevor, Sunday Times They died in their millions, shattered by...

Drawing together common features of society from a range of different contexts throughout Europe, from Italy and Spain to Poland and Russia, Early Modern European Society surveys the sweeping changes...

A BBC History Magazine Book of the YearA writer, soldier, politician, courtier, spy and explorer, Sir Walter Ralegh lived more lives than most in his own time, in any time....

"If you who read this can say, I am not under fire; I am not under torture; I am not on the run; if I hear a noise at six...

Cairo, 1942: If you had asked a British officer who Colonel Clarke was, they would have been able to point him out: always ready with a drink and a story,...

'Blistering' Sunday Times'Indispensable' Observer'Fascinating' The Times'Brilliant' Peter Frankopan'Revelatory' Lindsey HilsumA timely and unprecedented examination of how the modern Middle East unravelled, and why it started with the pivotal year of...

Images of WWI in the popular consciousness normally involve the bloody attrition of trench warfare, the miles of mud, the shattered earth, the tangled miles of barbed wire. However there...