The name Attila the Hun has become a byword for barbarism, savagery and violence. His is a truly household name, but what do we really know about the man himself, his position in history and the world in which he lived? This riveting biography reveals the man behind the myth.
In the years 434-454AD the fate of Europe hung upon the actions of one man, Attila, king of the Huns. The decaying Roman Empire still stood astride the Western World from its twin capitals of Rome and Constantinople, but it was threatened by a new force, the much-feared Babarian horde. It was Attila who united the...

China's Great Wall north of Beijing is one of the world's most famous sights. Millions every year climb the line of stone snaking over mountains. We all feel we know the Wall. But we are wrong. It is too big, too varied, too complex to be captured by a few images or a day-trip.
Myths surround it. Many believe that the stone barrier marches across all China, that it has been in existence for over 2,000 years, and that it is the only man-made structure visible from the Moon. In fact, most of it is made of earth, and much of it is not there at all. It cannot even be seen from earth orbit,...

In 1450, all Europe's books were handcopied and amounted to only a few thousand. By 1500, they were printed and numbered in their millions. The invention of Johann Gutenberg had caused a revolution: printing by movable type. Born in 1400 in Mainz, Germany, Gutenberg struggled against a background of plague and religious upheaval to bring his remarkable invention to light. His story is full of paradoxes: his ambition was to reunite all Christendom, but his invention shattered it; he aimed to make a fortune, but was cruelly denied the fruits of his life's work. Yet history remembers him as a...

The creator of the world s greatest empire is one of history s immortals. He is also at the heart of one of the greatest mysteries -- how and where was he buried? Its solution might, conceivably, reveal a treasure on a scale not seen since the discovery of Tutankhamen s tomb.

"From the Hardcover edition.""

The authoritative biography of the great Mongol ruler, by the author of Genghis Khan and Attila.
"In Xanadu did Kubla Khan
A stately pleasure dome decree"
Kublai Khan lives on in the popular imagination thanks to these two lines of poetry by Coleridge. But the true story behind this legend is even more fantastic than the poem would have us believe.
Kublai Khan inherited the second largest land empire in history from his grandfather, Genghis Khan, and which he extended further, creating the biggest empire the world has ever seen; from China to Iraq, from Siberia to Afghanistan....

What would Genghis have done? Lessons in leadership from history's most successful (and ruthless) conqueror.
Genghis Khan has a very strong claim to be the greatest leader the world has ever seen. As a teenager he was an outcast, fleeing enemies on a mountain in northern Mongolia, an exile, a nobody. Yet it took only twenty years for Genghis to build the largest land empire in history: four times the size of Alexander's, twice the size of Rome's. How did he do it? What lessons does his life reveal about the nature of leadership? What is "greatness" in leadership? What traits did Genghis...

The Terracotta Army is one of the greatest archaeological discoveries of all time. 8000 life-size figures of warriors and horses were interred in the mausoleum of the First Emperor of China. They are thought to represent real members of the First Emperor's army. This is the remarkable story of their creation.

From Kurosawa's epic "Seven Samurai" to the figure of Darth Vader in "Star Wars", to Manga comics and video games, the figure of the fighting samurai inspires us. This book lets us discover the truth behind the legend.

The untold story of the world's greatest empire and the creation of modern China.
Genghis Khan is one of history's immortals: a leader of genius, driven by an inspiring vision for peaceful world rule. Believing he was divinely protected, Genghis united warring clans to create a nation and then an empire that ran across much of Asia. Under his grandson, Kublai Khan, the vision evolved into a more complex religious ideology, justifying further expansion. Kublai doubled the empire's size until, in the late 13th century, he and the rest of Genghis's 'Golden Family' controlled one fifth...

Saladin remains one of the most iconic figures of his age. As the man who united the Arabs and saved Islam from Christian crusaders in the 12th century, he is the Islamic world's preeminent hero. Charting his rise to power, his struggle to unify the warring factions of his faith, this book explores the enduring legacy of this champion of Islam.