Table of contents for No. 55 in All About History

C.7500 BCE THE PRECURSORS OF WRITING? As agriculture developed in modern-day Iraq, simple clay tokens are made in different shapes to symbolise crops and animals, as a means of recording and sharing information. After some 4,000 years, tokens are inscribed with lines and dots to record more complex concepts. C.3400 BCE MUD MARKS In Mesopotamia, the Sumerians develop syllabic writing in the form of wedge-shaped or cuneiform marks made with reeds in soft mud, which is then baked. The system is used to records many other languages in the Middle East. C.3200 BCE HIEROGLYPHS Egypt’s ‘sacred writing’ is developed by priests as a way of recording events on the walls of temples. It was used in several different forms for some 3,600 years until 400 CE. C.2100-1700 BCE LINEAR A…

Monastic life was organised around the eight canonical offices spread across the day when members of the community came together in chapel to chant, sing and pray. In between these devotions, scribes would spend six or more hours at work in the scriptorium. The copying of ancient texts and theological works that took place here represented one of the crucial intellectual endeavours of the Medieval era. With goose quills in their hands and water clocks keeping time, the monks preserved the legacy of the past and laid the foundations for much of what followed in the Western cultural tradition. MORNING PRAYER A monastery’s precise schedule changed with the seasons. The day’s first major service, Lauds, would take place just after sunrise. Afterwards, monks would make for the cloister: a place…

Despite their influence on the English language, not a single original manuscript by either Chaucer or Shakespeare still exists WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE ENGLISH 1564-1616 Although his inclusion here might seem like a foregone conclusion, the Bard’s enormous impact on the English language is obvious not just in famous quotes like “to be or not to be”, but also in the many phrases he coined that we now consider commonplace, such as ‘lily-livered’, ‘bated breath’ and, indeed, ‘foregone conclusion’. But his influence is greater still. As the creator of an estimated 2,000 words, including ‘amazement’, ‘bedroom’, and ‘fashionable’, it’s impossible to imagine what English would be like without him. His ‘monumental’ position as a master of English is ‘secure’. GEOFFREY CHAUCER ENGLISH 1343-1400 Like Shakespeare, Chaucer is a writer whose words not…

Henry the Young King 1155-83 Crowned when Henry II still held the throne, Henry the Younger repeatedly rebelled against his father in protest over lacking any real political power or holdings. Henry II 1133-89 The first monarch of the Angevin dynasty, Henry instilled ruthless ambition in his children while keeping them on a short leash. This heavy-handed rule would cause his sons to fight him relentlessly, eventually leading to his downfall. Eleanor of Aquitaine 1122-1204 The matriarch of the Angevin family, Eleanor would spend much of her adult life imprisoned by Henry for inciting rebellion against him. She would outlive all but two of her seven children by Henry. Geoffrey, Duke of Brittany 1158-86 Having a reputation for deceit and treachery, Geoffrey would prove to be a constant thorn in…

01 Promised land William the Lion, seeing an opportunity to reclaim lands promised to Scotland, invaded England in support of Richard and Henry the Young King. After failing to take Berwick, he was captured by a large group of English knights. His journey south was humiliating as he was tied to a horse — a very undignified way for a king to travel. 02 Siege and desist The duchy of Aquitaine was home to the fortress of Taillebourg, thought to be impregnable. Richard knew that his siege engines would make little impact on the vast fortification and so lured the garrison into sallying out of the gates. Once outside, he rushed into the castle and quickly overwhelmed its defenders. This would solidify his reputation as a master of siegecraft. 03…

Adopt a pet cat. There will be a widespread outbreak of plague in 185, so keeping down the rat population near you is essential to avoid contagion. Keep a pig. Pork is extremely important to the Chinese diet — pig breeders and butchers have high social status. General He Jin comes from a family of butchers. Avoid Wan. The capital of Nanyang is currently a rebel base. There is fierce fighting there now and imperial troops will soon massacre the revolutionaries. Bring a facemask. Imperial Han troops use chariots with bellows that pump calcium oxide powder at the enemy — an early form of chemical weapon! Open a shop. State-registered merchants are considered social parasites and beneath contempt. They must wear white clothes by law so everyone can recognise them.…

LOW RISK At this temperature, it’ll be nippy out, but the human body can cope if insulated and no skin is exposed. There is a low risk of frostbite or hypothermia. INCREASED RISK Exposed skin can freeze within ten to 30 minutes. Frostbite begins with a tingling sensation, which then develops into pins and needles. This stage is known as ‘frostnip’ or ‘superficial frostbite’ because it affects top layers of skin. VERY HIGH RISK Start worrying. At this temperature, frostbite can develop rapidly — within five to ten minutes — and tissue damage becomes increasingly severe. Prolonged exposure to the elements is asking for trouble. EXTREMELY HIGH RISK Fingers, hands, noses, toes and ears are the most commonly affected body parts. Frostbite turns skin white and numb as the cold…

In 1829, the English author Mary Novello visited the ageing Maria Anna Mozart, sister of the celebrated composer. She was shocked by what she found — not only was the old woman blind, but she was living what appeared to be an impoverished life. Feeble, exhausted and barely able to speak, the lonely woman was a sad sight to behold. That same year, Maria Anna died aged 78 and was buried in her birthplace of Salzburg, Austria. However, Novello had been wrong. Looks can be deceiving: the old woman was not impoverished, she left a large fortune behind, but had chosen to live frugally. Very few people truly knew Maria Anna or the life she had led, for much of it had been in the shadow of her brother. Even…

Many of Wolfgang Mozart’s biographers have little good to say about his wife, Constanze. She is described as dim-witted, flirtatious and a bad influence on her husband. There were many who also held this belief when she was alive — most notably Leopold, and possibly even Nannerl — but this simply was not true. Constanze Weber came from a family of skilled and talented musicians and her father was not only a singing teacher but also a double bass player, copyist and prompter. Her three sisters and herself were all acclaimed, accomplished singers, and the entire family grew up in Mannheim, an important musical centre. One of the main reasons why Mozart’s family were so displeased with the union was because Constanze moved in with her husband before they were…

TROOPS 189 CANNONS 21 LIEUTENANT COLONEL WILLIAM B TRAVIS LEADER A well-educated lawyer who sought to obtain larger numbers of reinforcements to no avail. Strengths Diligent, methodical and fearless when faced with overwhelming odds. Weaknesses Moody, vain and inexperienced in field command. CROCKETT’S TENNESSEE MOUNTED VOLUNTEERS KEY UNIT Their experience on the frontier fighting Indians made them resilient soliders. Strengths They fought with extraordinary ferocity. Weaknesses As citizen-soldiers, they were sometimes prone to disobeying commands. LONG RIFLE KEY WEAPON Sharpshooters relied on its superb accuracy to pick off enemy artillerymen during the siege. Strengths A highly effective long-range rifle. Weaknesses Slower to reload than a smoothbore musket.…

Blue House Raid 21 January 1968 This was an attempt by North Korean commandos to assassinate the South Korean president, Park Chung-hee, in his residence, the Blue House in Seoul. It is thought the attack was in response to Park’s support of the US in the Vietnam War. 26 South Koreans were killed. Pueblo incident 23 January 1968 Although outside North Korean waters, USS Pueblo was seized by the North Korean Navy. All 83 crewmembers were captured and one killed, creating a diplomatic incident. The ship remains moored on Pyongyang’s Taedong River as a tourist attraction. Discovery of incursion tunnels 15 November 1974 South Korean and American forces at the DMZ were shocked to discover four tunnels crossing the zone that had been dug by North Korea. The tunnels were…

A second line of defence If your hat or bonnet didn’t give enough protection from the sun, a parasol did the trick. It was also very useful to shield you from the eyes of the lower classes and to hide telling blushes when being courted. Chin up to keep out the chill A high-collared jacket was essential to remaining poised and keeping the sea breeze from causing a chill. It also protected the arms from the sun and insects. Elaborate lace would complete the feminine touch. Under wraps from prying eyes and pests Necessary to cover the legs and the ankles from insects and gentlemen’s gazes, long skirts were often paired with a crinoline petticoat to give it shape and bustle at the rear — not easy for sitting in…

“The certain air of respect that he had enjoyed was eroded by the release of a series of tape recordings” On 8 August 1974, Richard Nixon became the first president of the United States to resign under threat of impeachment after the discovery of his links to the Watergate scandal. To this day, it remains one of the most pivotal moments in the history of American politics — but what would have happened if he’d never been caught? Nixon resigned less than two years after he was re-elected in a landslide victory in 1972. While his first term had seen him act as a relatively liberal and progressive Republican, some experts have speculated the emboldened president might have become more right-wing if his second term hadn’t been beleaguered by Senate…

Author Fabien Nury Artist Thierry Robin Publisher Titan Price £22.99 Released Out now It isn’t hard to see why Armando Iannucci is bringing a version of this graphic novel to the big screen. There’s the same vein of cynical political humour here that’s to be found in his TV shows The Thick Of It and Veep. The irony is that the absurdities in The Death Of Stalin have their basis in historical fact and, while outlandish, they are all too horribly believable. The action takes place mostly in the Kuntsevo Dacha, Stalin’s country residence, during the two days after he keeled over from a catastrophic and ultimately fatal stroke in March 1953. The principal members of the governing Central Committee of the Communist Party assemble while the great leader hovers…

Author Graham Allison Price £18.99 Publisher Scribe In Destined For War, Harvard scholar Graham Allison makes the case that the US and China are headed for war. Allison’s arguments hinge on what’s known as Thucydides’s Trap, a deadly pattern that unfolds when a rising pattern challenges a ruling one. The scenario has played out 16 times in 500 years and resulted in war more often than not, starting with Athens’ clash with Sparta in a little thing we call the Peloponnesian War. Through uncanny historical parallels and war scenarios, Allison shows how close we are to the unthinkable. Crucially, he also reveals how competing powers have kept the peace in the past — and what painful steps the US and China must take to avoid disaster today.…

Certificate: 12A Director: Terry George Cast: Oscar Isaac, Christian Bale, Jean Reno, Charlotte Le Bon Released: 29 August (Digital Download); 4 September (Blu-ray, DVD) Terry George’s admirably mounted but turgid melodrama weds together a grand love story against the early days of the Armenian genocide. The Promise boasts handsome production values and handsomer stars in Oscar Isaac, Charlotte Le Bon and Christian Bale, but it never brings its twin concerns to vivid life, instead relying on cheesy plotting, corny dialogue and soap opera dynamics. There can be no doubt of Terry George’s good intentions, and the subject raises vital awareness of hugely controversial actions by the Ottoman government (Turkey still refuses to recognise its treatment of the Armenians as genocide), but it’s simply riddled with too many Hollywood clichés. Mikael…

1498 A cardinal resigns Cesare Borgia, illegitimate son of Pope Alexander VI, is the first person ever to resign as a cardinal. His elder brother has been assassinated in mysterious circumstances and Cesare wants to take his place. 1549 Battle of Sampford Courtenay The Prayer Book Rebellion in Devon and Cornwall, protesting against the introduction of the English language liturgy in church, comes to an end. 1,300 rebels are killed in a heavy gun battle with government forces. 1807 First steamboat The North River Steamboat begins its service on the Hudson River between New York City and Albany. It is the first commercial steam-powered boat in operation and travels at 6.5kph. 1908 First animated film Emile Cohl releases Fantasmagorie, the first animated cartoon. It is 80 seconds long and shows…

EMPIRE OF THE SUN KING How Louis XIV ruled over a golden age from his Versailles garden GRAFFITI THROUGH THE AGES The evolution of street art from ancient Pompeii to present day LAWMEN OF THE FRONTIER How the Wild West was tamed by Texan Rangers, Pinkertons and more PLUS: Suleiman the Magnificent, Dan Jones busts Templar myths, What if China discovered America first, History’s worst plagues, Renaissance Florence explored…

Win a museum getaway To top off our look at John Franklin’s doomed Arctic expedition, you can win a private tour of an exhibition on the subject and an overnight stay in Greenwich. Remember the Alamo Find out how Davy Crockett’s forces were overwhelmed but inspired the Texas Revolution with our detailed battle map of the iconic siege. Discover lost treasure Featuring Nazi gold, sunken Spanish galleons and King John’s crown jewels, discover history’s greatest lost treasures and, just possibly, where to find them.…

Calligraphy has long been held in high esteem in Japan. It’s written in kanji, an alphabet that was adopted in the 4th century after the arrival of Buddhism. Emperors and aristocrats took up the art of calligraphy that the Buddhist monks used to write holy scripture. Over time, they began to put their own spin on the art form. Japanese Zen Buddhist monks practiced a style known as ‘shodo’ — ‘sho’ translates to ‘handwriting’ and ‘do’ to ‘the way’. They believed calligraphy had a spiritual significance, allowing you to transmit your ki, or inner spirit, through the brush onto paper if you could become clear of thoughts. WHAT YOU’LL NEED… Clear your mind To practice shodo, your mind needs to be ‘mushin’ — free from any distracting thoughts and emotions…

AT A GLANCE The ancient Egyptians used this amazing writing system to tell stories, write history and communicate with one another. Hieroglyphs use an alphabet of symbols that are put together to form words, though the Egyptians had no punctuation or vowels. There were also two different scripts developed — hieratic, a formal style like we find inside pyramids, and demotic, which simplified the glyphs for swifter writing. 01 The oldest alphabet The first Egyptian hieroglyphs appear on pottery from circa 3200 BCE. The writing was developed to convey the language using two types of glyphs: phonograms, to denote sounds, and ideograms, to show ideas. Hieroglyphics read using both types of symbols either on their own or coupled with others. 02 Reading the symbols Hieroglyphs can be read left to…

The chivalric code was at the heart of ‘gentlemanly’ warfare, and knights were expected to protect the weak and innocent and show mercy to fallen foes. While these ideals worked in theory and on the tourney grounds, the realities of war usually saw them left on the sidelines. Warfare was not about single combats or pitched battles featuring heroic charges — it was a brutal game of cat and mouse. Rather than risk your entire force in an all-or-nothing pitched battle, raids on enemy supply lines, skirmishes and sieges were the order of the day. Richard I is often held up as a chivalrous figure, stemming from his seemingly heroic actions in the Third Crusade, but he was also a brilliant commander who knew how to achieve victory on the…

Craniofacial reconstruction is where art and forensics meet. Only ever intended as an approximation of an individual, never for positive identification, forensic artist Diana Trepkov worked on several facial reconstructions using oil-based clay, frontal and lateral radiographs, skulls and a collection of bones taken from the memorial cairn on the south shore of Erebus Bay, southwest of King William Island. She described the process as “75 to 80 per cent science and 20 to 25 per cent artistic ability.” The skulls, in good condition, were identified as belonging to Caucasian and European men aged 18-40. One of the jaws was missing its lower mandible, so a replacement was used. Unlike missing persons or murder victims, whose remains undergo craniofacial reconstruction, the artists working on the Franklin expedition skulls had no…

The rumours over the years are many and varied: bodyguards-turned-assassins, army generals starting coups and fratricidal in-fighting in the clan. But they have largely been just that — rumours. Immediately after the cessation of hostilities in 1953, Kim Il-sung showed that he had learned from Stalin by holding a show trial for a dozen party officials accused of aiding the Japanese and plotting to replace him as leader. All 12 were found guilty and executed. Whether there was any truth to their collaboration with the Japanese is questionable. A year later the former leader of the Korean Communist Party in the South moved to the DPRK. He was deemed a possible challenger. A Moscow-style show trial was staged and he, too, was executed. Rumours have continued to swirl. In the…

DECEMBER 1770 Dr AF Shafonskiy, chief physician at the Moscow General Hospital, identifies a case of bubonic plague. However, the head of the city’s public health ignores him. FEBRUARY 1771 An outbreak of plague among cloth mill workers spreads the disease throughout the city, forcing doctors to acknowledge the dangerous contagion. 31 MARCH 1771 Catherine II sends doctors, troops and a senator in an effort to fight the plague. They set up hospitals and carry out medical inspections. 20 AUGUST 1771 The rising death toll convinces Catherine to enact an emergency programme, isolating Moscow so that nobody can enter or leave. 5 SEPTEMBER 1771 Catherine’s man in Moscow, Eropkin, request the end of the quarantine and freedom of movement to try and defuse the growing tension. Catherine refuses. 15 SEPTEMBER…

• Tapes burned Before the White House tapes can be requested, Nixon burns them, destroying any evidence linking him to Watergate. 18 July 1973 • Aides jailed Although some of Nixon’s aides are jailed, the president himself emerges from the Watergate scandal largely unscathed. August 1973 • EPA scrapped Nixon axes the EPA three years after its formation, due to fears that it is becoming too powerful. February 1974 • US re-enters Vietnam Attempts by the North Vietnamese to expand into the South are met with swift air resistance ordered by President Nixon. December 1974 • No Spring Offensive With a resurgent US, there is no Spring Offensive in Vietnam. The South never falls and the country remains divided. April 1975 • Carter fails Jimmy Carter loses his presidential election…

Byzantium offered a unique blend of fusion cuisine. It combined Roman cooking with traditions from Greece and the eastern Mediterranean, while the city’s position on the Bosphorus Strait meant it sampled many distant spices as merchants travelled back and forth between Asia and Europe. Ingredients No doubt the Byzantine Empire’s shifting borders over a millennium further added to its cooking pot of exotic textures, flavours and aromas. These, coupled with imported sugar from southeast Asia, helped the people of Byzantium — which later became Constantinople and then Istanbul — to develop exquisite desserts. Rice pudding has its beginnings in Persia, where a dish called sheer berenj — meaning ‘milk rice’ — is still eaten today. The Byzantine version is very similar, with the addition of…

Author Josh Ireland Publisher John Murray Price £20 Released Out now The crime of treason in the UK seems archaic today, but even though it’s been somewhat muted since the late 20th century, it’s still a punishable offence. In the last decade it’s a charge that’s been considered for radical Muslim clerics and British jihadi fighters. During wartime Britain and that no-man’s land between the two world wars, patriotism was the bedrock of good character and treason was unforgivable — nay, unthinkable — to the common man. But there were at least four decidedly uncommon men who apparently overcame this cultural instinct, even fighting for the Third Reich at the time of Britain’s greatest need. These are the four different species of traitor that historian Josh Ireland has hand-picked in…

Author Chantal Montellier, Renaud Huynh Artist Chantal Montellier Publisher Europe Comics Price £6.49 Released Out now The achievements of Marie Curie are remarkable. Not only did she twice win a Nobel prize, but she was the first female professor at the Sorbonne and pioneered the use of radiography in medicine. She also stalwartly withstood critics who accused her of claiming credit for her husband’s work — she, in fact, was by far the better scientist of the two — and racists who objected to a Polish Jew pushing her way to the forefront of the Parisian intelligentsia. She deserves to be celebrated. Not, however, in a graphic novel as trite as this. Over the course of 22 pages, Chantal Montellier’s Marie Curie: The Radium Fairy reduces its subject’s life to…

INSPIRATION WHAT IS PROSE WITHOUT A MARVELLOUS IDEA? Queen Victoria’s reign saw huge population growth, improvements in technology and changing worldviews, along with great poverty. There were also fascinations with death and macabre themes as well as romantic, modern fairy tales — plenty of inspiration abounded for the canny author. SERIAL STORIES GIVE THE PEOPLE WHAT THEY WANT Novels were often published in three parts to maximise profits and also make reading more affordable for people. There were also popular series that featured in papers and periodicals, making writing a very time-consuming occupation as authors needed to meet demand. AN UPPER-CLASS VOCATION IN A QUEST TO BECOME AN AUTHOR, FIRST LEARN TO WRITE Literacy rates were on the rise during the Victorian period. People could commonly read — giving the…

ONO NO MICHIKAZE 894-966, JAPAN Known as one of the ‘Three Brush Traces’, Ono no Michikaze was one of the key calligraphers that added distinctly Japanese elements to the medium. He is known as the greatest of his time for square, cursive and semi-cursive scripts. FUJIWARA NO SUKEMASA 944-98, JAPAN The second of the Three Brush Traces, Fujiwara no Sukemasa became the leading calligrapher after Michikaze. He became official brush writer for Emperor Enyu at the age of just 27, and his fame spread far and wide. FUJIWARA NO YUKINARI 972-1027, JAPAN The son of a courtier, Fujiwara no Yukinari was a refined calligrapher and skilled poet — many of his beautiful calligraphy poems are still on display today. His work showed an elegant blend of cursive and semi-cursive forms.…

The Royal Arms of England, better know as the three lions, were the royal arms of the Plantagenet kings. They are now synonymous with English sporting pride and repeated world cup hopes, but where did they originate from? Lions have long been symbols of royal and divine power dating as far back as the Achaemenid Empire, possibly because they could be found roaming in the Mediterranean basin and in parts of the Middle East until the Middle Ages. The early Plantagenet king Henry I, known as the ‘Lion of Justice’, would solidify the animal’s use as a royal crest with a single lion rampant. This could have stemmed from his love of exotic creatures like lions, leopards, lynxes and camels that he kept in a menagerie at Woodstock Palace. This…

China has been ruled by the Han dynasty for almost 400 years but the golden age is over. In the capital of Luoyang, the central government is weak and corrupt. Emperor Ling has been on the throne for 16 years but would rather spend time with his concubines than run the country — instead, the palace eunuchs plot against the bureaucrats and sell government positions to enrich themselves. Two years of drought followed by one of flooding have led to widespread famine. Many see this as a sign that the emperor has lost his ‘Mandate from Heaven’. Meanwhile, in the northeast of the country, a Daoist faith healer called Zhang Jue is leading a rebellion. His followers wear yellow headscarves, or turbans, to signify that the ‘Blue Age’ of the…

DECEMBER 1844 At the instigation of Sir John Barrow, second secretary to the Admiralty until 1845, a new expedition is mounted to map the Northwest Passage once and for all. JANUARY 1845 Despite Admiralty misgivings regarding Franklin’s age, he is given the commission to lead the search for the Northwest Passage after Captain James Ross declines the offer. MAY 1845 Days before setting sail, Franklin, recovering from a bout of flu, remonstrates with his wife for placing an embroidered silk Union Jack over his body while in bed. He declared it a bad omen. 19 MAY 1845 HMS Erebus and HMS Terror set off from Greenhithe, Kent. They sail for the Orkney Islands taking the North Sea route. Franklin is well regarded as a captain by the officers and crew…

Anyone who reads the news knows that conspiracy theorists — or just plain unjustified revisionists — are plentiful on the ground. They were in the 18th century, too; you don’t have to dig particularly deep to find all the evidentially-unsupported arguments about Wolfgang Mozart’s premature death on 5 December 1791, which claim that he was poisoned by the Masons for revealing their secrets in The Magic Flute or killed out of jealousy by Italian composer Antonio Salieri. One more recent theory has it that Wolfgang’s older sister Nannerl may have composed some short works in a musical notebook that belonged to the family and that was used to teach the young Wolfgang how to play the keyboard. In this way, she may therefore have played some role, or had some…

TROOPS 6,000 CANNONS 21 ANTONIO LóPEZ DE SANTA ANNA LEADER A shrewd politician and bold commander steeped in the Napoleonic tradition who excelled at administrative planning and logistics. Strengths Knew the value of a rapid march and surprise. Weakness Used terror as a weapon to intimidate the enemy. PERMANENTES (REGULARS) KEY UNIT They possessed an esprit de corps that was an essential quality for assault troops. Strengths Line troops of various types, including light troops, grenadiers and sappers. Weakness Lacked skill and proficiency with their rifles. INDIA PATTERN ENFIELD MUSKET KEY WEAPON The .75 calibre Brown Bess had good range and accuracy for a smoothbore musket. Strengths A robust, durable firearm that could perform well in harsh environments. Weakness The Mexicans used low-quality gunpowder that compromised the gun’s performance.…

From sandcastles to fish and chips, promenades to pleasure piers, many of the things best associated with a trip to the British seaside have their roots in the Victorian summer holiday. However, while we take these seaside attractions for granted now — even looking back on them as old fashioned — many of them were considered revolutionary at the time, some even an affront to common decency. This led to some puritanical restrictions, but not even Victorian morality could hold back the tide of change that was rolling in. “Coastal towns offered a welcome break from the choking pollution” Peacocking on the prom Trips to the seaside were nothing new at the beginning of the Victorian era, at least for the upper classes. In fact, ‘taking the waters’ for your…

The promenade A combination of exercise and showing off, ‘promenading’ was a chance to take in the sea air, meet friends and make a fashion statement. Unattached or unmarried young ladies and girls were chaperoned at first, but it was later common for groups of both working class men and women on organised trips to use a stroll along ‘the prom’ to meet and flirt. Punch and Judy While this slapstick puppet show about an anarchic clown and his family is from 16th-century Italy, it became a British seaside attraction in the early 1800s. This was partly thanks to new mobile booths that the operator could quickly dismantle to search for new audiences. To suit Victorian tastes, Punch’s old adversary, the devil, was replaced with a crocodile and his mistress,…

“Domination meant only one nation could win, and a clash was inevitable” Dysentery was a rather unceremonious way for the hero of countless sea skirmishes to die. Aged 55, Sir Francis Drake was still relentlessly pursuing his lifelong enemy but the aging privateer succumbed to the grisly disease anchored off the coast of Panama. To the English, his death was the loss of a hero, a beacon of English adventuring spirit who had vanquished enemies and helped expand an empire. But the Spanish breathed a sigh of relief — ‘El Draque’, scourge of the seas, was finally gone. Drake’s beginnings did not indicate that he would become such a monumental figure. Born circa 1540, he was the oldest of 12 children. At the age of about 12 he became an…

 Authors William Dalrymple and Anita Anand Publisher Bloomsbury Price £16.99 Released Out now “To this day, no attempt has been made by the British government to return the Koh-I-Noor to India” It might seem excessive to write some 300 pages about a diamond but, as this biography reveals, the Koh-I-Noor is so much more than a lump of pressurised carbon. It has taken on various significances throughout its centuries-long history as a symbol of religion and power, a spoil of love and war, and, of course, a token of colonialism. In 1848, the ten-year-old Maharajah of the Punjab was forced to hand over the jewel, along with his country, to Queen Victoria. It was later set into the consort’s crown, last worn by the Queen Mother at Elizabeth II’s coronation.…

Author Robert Wainwright Publisher Allen & Unwin Price £18.99 Released Out now “I have been in the midst of a seething mob before, and I am ready to give up my life,” declared Muriel Matters in 1908 when she was faced by jeering protesters who violently opposed her demand for votes for women. She was on the campaign trail with a fellow suffragette, travelling through southern England in a bright green gypsy wagon pulled by a horse named Asquith — an ironic reference to the politician’s opposition to her cause. It was a typically courageous response from a woman who was to become one of the brightest stars of the suffrage movement, yet who has unaccountably managed to slip from the public consciousness. Muriel Matters honed her oratorical skills in…

Author John Julius Norwich Publisher John Murray Price £9.99 Released Out now The allure of kings and queens of old is probably in part their opulence — the exquisite clothes, elaborate feasts and handsome palaces — and few shone more brightly than the four great monarchs that take centre stage in John Julius Norwich’s latest book. Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, Henry VIII of England, Francis I of France and Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent were sometimes friends, more often enemies and always rivals possessing “elements of greatness”, but they were all prone to making disastrous decisions. After introducing us to the four — pious Charles, conqueror Suleiman, charming ladies’ man Francis and popular (at least with his subjects) Henry — Norwich delves into their reigns through key themes such…