Download or read book The Interesting Bits written by Justin Pollard and published by John Murray. This book was released on 2009-08-20 with total page 261 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Did you give school history lessons your undivided attention? Even if you did, youre probably none the wiser as to how exactly Henry II of France came to have a two-foot splinter in his head or why Alexandra of Bavaria believed she had swallowed a piano. Or where terms like bunkum, maverick, John Bull and taking the mickey come from; or how the Tsarina of Russia once saved a life with a comma; or why Robert Pate hit Queen Victoria on the head with a walking stick. For some unknown reason the most interesting bits of history are kept out of lessons and away from syllabuses. Relegated to historys footnotes, they lie buried beneath the dense text like a few golden nuggets in a mountain of granite. Now The Interesting Bits rights this wrong; it is a veritable treasure trove of those surprising, eccentric, chaotic, baffling asides that dont fit neatly into historys official narrative. They are historys little-known treasures the gems that generations of teachers have excised from lessons on the grounds that they might make history too much like, well, fun.
Download or read book Off With Their Heads written by Martin Oliver and published by Michael O'Mara Books. This book was released on 2011-11-20 with total page 194 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Off With Their Heads! is the exciting history of Britain in easy to digest, bite-sized chunks, which is sure to inspire a love of history that will last a lifetime. A perfect learning companion to help all school children get to grips with British history. Contents include: 'Rules to remember the rulers of Britain', 'Become an expert on the inventions of the Industrial Revolution', 'Be wise to the bloody battles of the Hundred Years War', 'Get to grips with the gunpowder plot' and 'Learn a poem to understand the events leading up to WW1'
Download or read book History Without the Boring Bits written by Ian Crofton and published by Quercus. This book was released on 2013-09-03 with total page 475 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Conventional chronologies of world history concentrate on the reigns of kings and queens, the dates of battles and treaties, the publication dates of great books, the completion of famous buildings, the deaths of iconic figures, and the years of major discoveries. But there are other more interesting stories to tell--stories that don't usually get into the history books, but which can nevertheless bring the past vividly and excitingly to life. Imagine a history lesson that spares you the details of such seminal events as the 11th-century papal-imperial conflict, that fails to say much at all about the 1815 Congress of Vienna--and that neglects entirely to mention the world-changing moment that was the 1521 Diet of Worms. Imagine instead a book that tells you the date of the ancient Roman law that made it legal to break wind at banquets; the name of the defunct medieval pope whose putrefying corpse was subjected to the humiliation of a trial before a court of law; the identity of the priapic monarch who sired more bastards than any other king of England; and last but not least the date of the demise in London of the first goat to have circumnavigated the globe twice. Imagine a book crammed with such deliciously disposable information, and you have History without the Boring Bits. By turns bizarre, surprising, trivial, and enlightening, History without the Boring Bits offers rich pickings for the browser, and entertainment and inspiration aplenty for those who have grown weary of more conventional works of history.
Download or read book Historys Naughty Bits written by Karen Dolby and published by Michael O'Mara Books. This book was released on 2013-10-18 with total page 193 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With each new generation we all tend to think of our predecessors as 'old-fashioned', 'conservative', 'prim', 'proper' - and downright dull. The sexual revolution happened in the 1960s, right? Wrong. History's Naughty Bits is full of incredible stories that would curl the hair of the most liberal-minded and sets the record straight with true stories of debauchery and titillation from Ancient history to the twentieth century. In it, you'll find a huge range of well-known figures, from the Borgias to various kings and queens, Popes and priests, Presidents and Prime Ministers, doctors, lawyers, saints and philosophers. Quite frankly, they were all 'at it' in one way or another, and have been since time immemorial.Fascinating, funny and mind-blowing in turn, this enlightening book will turn your preconceived view of history on its head . . . if that's your thing . . .
Download or read book Defenders of the Norman Crown written by Sharon Bennett Connolly and published by Pen and Sword History. This book was released on 2021-07-07 with total page 376 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A history of one of medieval England’s most powerful families, from its origins in Normandy to its demise during the reign of Edward III. In the reign of Edward I, when asked Quo Warranto—by what warrant he held his lands—John de Warenne, the 6th earl of Surrey, is said to have drawn a rusty sword, claiming “My ancestors came with William the Bastard, and conquered their lands with the sword, and I will defend them with the sword against anyone wishing to seize them.” John’s ancestor, William de Warenne, 1st Earl of Surrey, fought for William the Conqueror at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. He was rewarded with enough land to make him one of the richest men of all time. In his search for a royal bride, the 2nd earl kidnapped the wife of a fellow baron. The 3rd earl died on crusade, fighting for his royal cousin, Louis VII of France . . . For three centuries, the Warennes were at the heart of English politics at the highest level, until one unhappy marriage brought an end to the dynasty. The family moved in the highest circles, married into royalty and were not immune to scandal. Defenders of the Norman Crown tells the fascinating story of the Warenne dynasty, of the successes and failures of one of the most powerful families in England, from its origins in Normandy, through the Conquest, Magna Carta, the wars and marriages that led to its ultimate demise in the reign of Edward III. Praise for Defenders of the Norman Crown “In this book Sharon not only provides the reader with a deep insight into the whole Warenne dynasty, but also opens a window into a turbulent period of English history.” —Aspects of History “A riveting insight into the rise and fall of the most influential family you’d otherwise never have heard of. . . . 5/5.” —HistoriaMag “Sharon Bennett Connolly’s detailed, meticulous research brings together a wealth of sources to give the reader a fascinating view of one of the powerful families on which the Crown depended for centuries. Politics and power, Marriages and mistresses, Lordship and land, Defenders of the Norman Crown has it all. [Connolly] has written a very fine book indeed—I loved it.” —Elizabeth Chadwick, bestselling author of historical fiction “A vivid portrayal of a powerful aristocratic family. . . . A highly readable and well-illustrated survey.” —Michael Jones, author of The Black Prince
Download or read book Blown to Bits written by Harold Abelson and published by Addison-Wesley Professional. This book was released on 2008 with total page 389 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'Blown to Bits' is about how the digital explosion is changing everything. The text explains the technology, why it creates so many surprises and why things often don't work the way we expect them to. It is also about things the information explosion is destroying: old assumptions about who is really in control of our lives.
Download or read book Now I Know written by Dan Lewis and published by Adams Media. This book was released on 2013-10-18 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Praise for the Webby Award-winning newsletter: "I eagerly read 'Now I Know' every day. It's always fresh, always a surprise, and always interesting!" --Jimmy Wales, founder of Wikipedia and Wikia Did you know that there are actually 27 letters in the alphabet, or that the U.S. had a plan to invade Canada? And what actually happened to the flags left on the moon? Even if you think you have a handle on all things trivia, you're guaranteed a big surprise with Now I Know. From uncovering what happens to lost luggage to New York City's plan to crack down on crime by banning pinball, this book will challenge your knowledge of the fascinating stories behind the world's greatest facts. Covering 100 outrageous topics, Now I Know is the ultimate challenge for any know-it-all who thinks they have nothing left to learn.
Download or read book Silk and the Sword written by Sharon Bennett Connolly and published by Amberley Publishing Limited. This book was released on 2018-11-15 with total page 400 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A study of the women, on all sides, who had major parts to play in the momentous year of 1066.
Download or read book The Stuff of Bits written by Paul Dourish and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2022-11-01 with total page 257 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An argument that the material arrangements of information—how it is represented and interpreted—matter significantly for our experience of information and information systems. Virtual entities that populate our digital experience, like e-books, virtual worlds, and online stores, are backed by the large-scale physical infrastructures of server farms, fiber optic cables, power plants, and microwave links. But another domain of material constraints also shapes digital living: the digital representations sketched on whiteboards, encoded into software, stored in databases, loaded into computer memory, and transmitted on networks. These digital representations encode aspects of our everyday world and make them available for digital processing. The limits and capacities of those representations carry significant consequences for digital society. In The Stuff of Bits, Paul Dourish examines the specific materialities that certain digital objects exhibit. He presents four case studies: emulation, the creation of a “virtual” computer inside another; digital spreadsheets and their role in organizational practice; relational databases and the issue of “the databaseable”; and the evolution of digital networking and the representational entailments of network protocols. These case studies demonstrate how a materialist account can offer an entry point to broader concerns—questions of power, policy, and polity in the realm of the digital.
Download or read book Stuff You Should Know written by Josh Clark and published by Flatiron Books. This book was released on 2020-11-24 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the duo behind the massively successful and award-winning podcast Stuff You Should Know comes an unexpected look at things you thought you knew. Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant started the podcast Stuff You Should Know back in 2008 because they were curious—curious about the world around them, curious about what they might have missed in their formal educations, and curious to dig deeper on stuff they thought they understood. As it turns out, they aren't the only curious ones. They've since amassed a rabid fan base, making Stuff You Should Know one of the most popular podcasts in the world. Armed with their inquisitive natures and a passion for sharing, they uncover the weird, fascinating, delightful, or unexpected elements of a wide variety of topics. The pair have now taken their near-boundless "whys" and "hows" from your earbuds to the pages of a book for the first time—featuring a completely new array of subjects that they’ve long wondered about and wanted to explore. Each chapter is further embellished with snappy visual material to allow for rabbit-hole tangents and digressions—including charts, illustrations, sidebars, and footnotes. Follow along as the two dig into the underlying stories of everything from the origin of Murphy beds, to the history of facial hair, to the psychology of being lost. Have you ever wondered about the world around you, and wished to see the magic in everyday things? Come get curious with Stuff You Should Know. With Josh and Chuck as your guide, there’s something interesting about everything (...except maybe jackhammers).
Download or read book Ladies of Magna Carta written by Sharon Bennett Connolly and published by Pen and Sword History. This book was released on 2020-05-30 with total page 330 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An innovative take on Magna Carta history that examines the impact and influence of women. 39. No man shall be taken, imprisoned, outlawed, banished or in any way destroyed, nor will we proceed against or prosecute him, except by the lawful judgment of his peers or by the law of the land. This clause in Magna Carta was in response to the appalling imprisonment and starvation of Matilda de Braose, the wife of one of King John’s barons. Matilda was not the only woman who influenced, or was influenced by, the 1215 Charter of Liberties, now known as Magna Carta. Women from many of the great families of England were affected by the far-reaching legacy of Magna Carta, from their experiences in the civil war and as hostages, to calling on its use to protect their property and rights as widows. Ladies of Magna Carta looks into the relationships—through marriage and blood—of the various noble families and how they were affected by the Barons’ Wars, Magna Carta, and its aftermath—the bonds that were formed and those that were broken. Including the royal families of England and Scotland, the Marshals, the Warennes, the Braoses, and more, Ladies of Magna Carta focuses on the roles played by the women of the great families whose influences and experiences have reached far beyond the thirteenth century.
Download or read book Heroines of the Medieval World written by Sharon Bennett Connolly and published by Amberley Publishing Limited. This book was released on 2017-09-15 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The stories of women, famous, infamous and unknown, who shaped the course of medieval history.
Download or read book Charge written by Justin Pollard and published by Hachette UK. This book was released on 2009-08-06 with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: War brings out the very best and worst in people although, frankly, its usually the latter. But for all our thousands of years of practice at this most dangerous art there is precious little evidence that we're either outgrowing it or getting any good at it. It is an occupation filled with heroism, genius, hubris, idiocy and blind panic all bought on at least in part by large measures of astonishingly good and bad luck - and they're all here in Charge! This is not a book filled with battle diagrams swarming with arrows or 100,000 word descriptions of the tactical basis for the Pastry War. It is a book about the smaller tragedies and triumphs that actually go to make up the big picture - toilets that sink U-boats, unsporting attacks on Christmas day, armies that stop for tea, bombs on renegade balloons, drunk generals, blind kings, blind drunk generals, circular warships, and all the joy and misery that such things bring with them. And an interesting bit about the Pastry War.
Download or read book Bits of me are falling apart written by William Leith and published by A&C Black. This book was released on 2013-08-22 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'Very funny. He writes in a sort of whimsical stream of consciousness ... even his more random disquisitions contain glorious nuggets' - Observer With his trademark darkly humorous mix of personal story and social commentary, Leith attempts to answer the question: is everything really as bad as it seems? 'You'll read this book in a weekend ... Leith is, after all, a very good writer: succinct except when he's repeating himself for effect; amusing except when he's predicting the end of the world; perceptive except when he's pretending he can't remember who actually sang Pink Floyd's Time, or which Dutch explorer discovered Easter Island ... Leith's brain is sharper than most, and he deftly weaves solipsistic woe into more pressing concerns about the housing market and the failure of Western capitalism. This is a potentially important book for our times' Andrew Collins, Mail on Sunday
Download or read book Secret Britain written by Justin Pollard and published by John Murray. This book was released on 2010-11-11 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Some of our most intriguing history is missing. Perhaps there has been a conspiracy, a cover-up? Or maybe some stories have been lost, forgotten or were just too embarrassing to talk about at the time? But now they are back, revealed in all their glory: secret passages, events, societies, loves, identities and even dark secrets of the grave. After much sleuthing, Justin Pollard takes us into undisclosed historical waters to discover why the city of Burlington isn't on the map; how 'Agent Pickle' saved the lost treasure of Bonnie Prince Charlie; what Sir Thomas Overbury knew in 1613 that got him murdered with a poisoned enema and how Virginia Woolf sweet-talked her way aboard HMS Dreadnought dressed as Abyssinian Prince. Secret Britain also reveals the tragic love story behind the Rolls Royce mascot; how agent Garbo managed to get an MBE and an Iron Cross; the sinister properties of the Hand of Glory; the lost smuggling ship Peggy; the Mystery Runner of Nos Galan; the extraordinary history of the Fairy Flag of Dunvegan; London's only Nazi war memorial and the secrets of the WWII Monopoly board.
Download or read book Godblight written by Guy Haley and published by Games Workshop. This book was released on 2022-08-30 with total page 448 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Book 3 in the Dark Imperium series. The paths of Roboute Guilliman and his fallen brother Mortarion bring them inexorably together on Iax. Once a jewel of the Imperium, the garden world is dying, as the plans of the Lord of Death to use it as a fulcrum to drag the stellar realm of Ultramar into the warp come to deadly fruition. While Guilliman attempts to prevent the destruction of his kingdom, Mortarion schemes to bring his brother low with the Godblight, a disease created in the Cauldron of Nurgle itself, made with the power to destroy a son of the Emperor. Primarchs clash on the ravaged landscapes of Iax. The gods go to war, and the wider galaxy balances on a knife-edge of destruction. As something powerful stirs in the sea of souls, only one thing is certain – no matter who wins the last great clash of the Plague War, the repercussions of victory will echo through eternity…
Download or read book The Wild West On 5 Bits a Day written by Joan Tapper and published by National Geographic Books. This book was released on 2010-06-01 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Board a stagecoach, meet Wyatt Earp, and raise the roof in a cow-town saloon—your guide to traveling, eating, drinking, and surviving in frontier America. Enjoy time-travel through the Old West . . . and enter a world of cowboys, Indians, and cavalry officers, legendary lawmen and gunslingers, gamblers, working girls with hearts of gold, and pioneers building a life on the frontier. The time is 1880. Railroad travel to California is relatively easy, and you can ride a spur line to towns like Santa Fe, but getting to many places in the mountains and plains calls for a sense of adventure. Cowboys drive huge herds of cattle from Texas ranches to raucous Kansas railheads. The Earps and Doc Holliday are in Tombstone; Jesse James and Billy the Kid are still at large. Booming Leadville has just opened its famous opera house, while Virginia City reigns as Queen of the Comstock. This rollicking guide to the Wild West draws on contemporary newspapers, memoirs, diaries, dime novels, and guidebooks as it invites you to . . . explore on horseback, by stagecoach, and in locomotives; visit Dodge City, Deadwood, Fort Laramie, and other “must-see” locales; witness gunfights and cattle roundups; don a special “Yosemite suit” and ride out to marvel at the giant redwoods and dazzling rock formations. Complete with practical advice on where to stay, what to wear, and what to safely eat, here is the perfect introduction to the exciting days before the West was tamed.
