England, 1154. As Henry II seizes the throne after years of turmoil, a new dynasty is poised to haul this hitherto turbulent nation out from the Dark Ages and transform it into the nation state we recognize today. Featuring some of England's greatest but also most notorious kings, the house of Plantagenet would reign for over 300 blood-soaked, yet foundational, years.
The dynasty provides some of the most evocative names in our history: from the brave yet rash Richard the Lionheart, his treacherous brother John, the hapless Richard II, and the hero of Agincourt Henry V, through to the...

The English Reformation was a unique turning point in English history. Derek Wilson retells the story of how the Tudor monarchs transformed the English religion, explaining why it still matters today.

Women have made crucial contributions to the life of the Church from New Testament times onwards, but the Reformation saw an explosion in their involvement. Having benefited alongside their brothers from the Renaissance's emphasis on learning, and with the increasing casting aside of the belief that they were intellectually inferior, women learned to read in ever increasing numbers--and most of them wanted to read the Bible. As a result, many started to interpret Scripture for themselves, putting them on a collision course with the Church.

The Queen and the Heretic is a dual biography of two remarkable women - Catherine Parr and Anne Askew. The first was the last queen of Henry VIII, the second a countrywoman from Lincolnshire. They were joined together in their love of the Protestant faith and in the threat this posed to both their lives. Both Catherine and Anne wrote about their beliefs, and their writings are still with us. Powerful men at court sought to bring Catherine down, and used Anne Askew's notoriety as a weapon in that battle. Queen Catherine Parr survived, while Anne Askew, the only woman to be racked, was burned...

The Queen and the Heretic is a dual biography of two remarkable women - Catherine Parr and Anne Askew. The first was the last queen of Henry VIII, the second a countrywoman from Lincolnshire. They were joined together in their love of the Protestant faith and in the threat this posed to both their lives. Both Catherine and Anne wrote about their beliefs, and their writings are still with us. Powerful men at court sought to bring Catherine down, and used Anne Askew's notoriety as a weapon in that battle. Queen Catherine Parr survived, while Anne Askew, the only woman to be racked, was burned...

'A dazzling chronicle, a bracing challenge to modernity's smug assumptions' - Bryce Christensen, Booklist 'O what a world of profit and delight Of power, of honour and omnipotence Is promised to the studious artisan.' Christopher Marlowe, Dr Faustus Between the Renaissance and the Enlightenment, Europe changed out of all recognition. Particularly transformative was the ardent quest for knowledge and the astounding discoveries and inventions which resulted from it. The movement of blood round the body; the movement of the earth round the sun; the velocity of falling objects (and,...