This fascinating reference covers the weapons and armor used by warriors from the 4th to the 15th century and discusses how and why they changed over time.In the Middle Ages, the lack of standardized weapons meant that one warrior's arms were often quite different from another's, even when they were fighting on the same side. And with few major technological advances in that period, the evolution of those weapons over the centuries was incremental. But evolve they ...

The Caspian Gates is the fourth in Harry Sidebottom's captivating Warrior of Rome Series.AD262 - the Imperium is in turmoil after the struggle for the throne. Furthermore, Ephesus, Asia's metropolis, lies in ruins, shattered by a mighty earthquake. Its citizens live in fear as the mob overwhelms the city, baying for blood to avenge the gods who have punished them.Yet an even greater threat to the Empire advances from the North. The barbaric Goth tr...

The international bestseller: E. H. Gombrich’s sweeping history of the world, for the curious of all ages“All stories begin with ‘Once upon a time.’ And that’s just what this story is all about: what happened, once upon a time.” So begins A Little History of the World, an engaging and lively book written for readers both young and old. Rather than focusing on dry facts and dates, E. H. Gombrich vividly brings the full span of human experience on Earth to l...

There is much more to the Norman story than the Battle of Hastings. These descendants of the Vikings who settled in France, England, and Italy - but were not strictly French, English, or Italian - played a large role in creating the modern world. They were the success story of the Middle Ages; a footloose band of individual adventurers who transformed the face of medieval Europe. During the course of two centuries they launched a series of extraordinary conquests, carving out kingdoms from...

Bestselling historian and broadcaster Tom Holland gives a thrilling panoramic account of the birth of the new Western Europe in the year 1000'An exhilarating sweep across European history either side of the year 1000; riveting' ALLAN MASSIE, SPECTATOR'I relished the blood and thunder narrative - the work of a great storyteller at his best' DOMINIC SANDBROOK, EVENING STANDARD'A splendid, h...

Will the might of the Byzantine Empire crush the ambitions of the Warrior Brothers? Eleventh century Italy. The Byzantines rule the South, but do so in the face of constant revolt from their unwilling subjects - a strife that extends from the great trading ports to the rich agricultural lands of Apulia. The Lombards, heirs to a northern tribe, are no exception and their leader, Arduin of Fassano, brings into the conflict the fearsome mercenary brothers, the de Hautevilles, to help him in h...

The Pope has called for a crusade to free Jerusalem, and half the warriors of Europe have responded. Among them is the Norman, Count Bohemund, one-time enemy of Byzantium. In company with his warrior nephew, Tancred of Lecce, Bohemund must once more cross the Adriatic to the lands of the Byzantine Empire. His first task, pushing back the infidel Turks, calls for an uneasy alliance with old enemy Emperor Alexius. But can the Crusaders trust the wily Emperor?With ol...

Have you read everything George R.R. Martin has every written? Do you know what in Game of Thrones is based in real history?A young pretender raises an army to take the throne. Learning of his father’s death, the adolescent, dashing and charismatic and descended from the old kings of the North, vows to avenge him. He is supported in this war by his mother, who has spirited away her two younger sons to safety. Against them is the queen, passionate, proud, a...

'While the army of the Goths makes war, the Romans may live in peace.'AD 468. With the last Roman emperor of the West deposed, the Empire is in ruins - a plaything for the barbarian armies that rampage across it. This extraordinary story spans Europe, from the intrigues of Constantinople to the battlefields of the future France, North Africa and the Balkans, tracing the rise of Theoderic the Goth to a pinnacle of power and wealth.

Rattle through 1000 years of horrible history, from the fifth century to the sixteenth centuryFamine, plague and public execution – the medieval period wasn't the best time for some, but heroic rulers like Charlemagne, William the Conqueror and Henry V made sure that it was full of action. Brimming with facts, this book helps you get under the skin of the people who lived at the time, from impoverished peasants to opulent monarchs. From the Dark Ages to the Renaiss...

An engrossing chronicle of the Fourth Crusade and the fall of the Holy Roman Empire, from the bestselling author of Thermopylae .At the dawn of the thirteenth century, Constantinople stood as the bastion of Christianity in Eastern Europe. The capital city of the Byzantine Empire, it was a center of art, culture, and commerce that had commanded trading routes between Asia, Russia, and Europe for hundreds of years. But in 1204, the city suffered a de...

Alexander the Great, perhaps the most commanding leader in history, united his empire and his army by the titanic force of his will. His death at the age of thirty-two spelled the end of that unity.The story of Alexander’s conquest of the Persian empire is known to many readers, but the dramatic and consequential saga of the empire’s collapse remains virtually untold. It is a tale of loss that begins with the greatest loss of all, the death of the Macedonian king who had held the e...