Books by Jeremy Black

'Identity is found through place and experience, the two combining in the history of a country. For Britain, monarchy has played a major role in that history.At this modern turning point, as the reign of the longest-living British monarch draws to a close , it is crucial to understand the past and present of the monarchy, so that we can consider its relevancy today and in the future.'Concise and engaging, this book charts the very beginnings of British reign through to the longest serving monarch, Queen Elizabeth II - and looks ahead to the reign of King Charles III.

In 'A History of Britain in 100 Maps' Jeremy Black takes readers deep into the unparalleled collections of the British Library Map Room to tell a new story of the British Isles through acknowledged treasures and previously undiscovered and unpublished items. Presenting in detail 100 important maps Black explores major themes in British history, from settlement, environmental change, state formation and ecclesiastical development to industrialisation, urbanisation, and modern socio-political developments. In doing so he also tells the story of how a rich mapmaking tradition developed from the medieval Mappa Mundi to the work of pioneering cartographers including Matthew Paris, John Speed and Christopher Saxton and on through institutions such as the Ordnance Survey and the A-Z Company. Cartographic records of the Civil War and Great Fire, or curiosities including Emil Reich's 'Map of British Genius', are contrasted with infographic maps of recent elections and the COVID-19 epidemic. The book also considers the growing field of fine and digital artists using delineated images of Britain as their subject matter.

This innovative book analyzes the strategic dimensions of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, critiquing Napoleon's broader strategic weaknesses. The first history to look holistically at the strategies of the leading belligerents from a global perspective, it is an essential read for military professionals, students, and history buffs.

Logistics is the vital subject in waging war. This book fills a gap in war studies with logistics as a huge subject at the centre of all conflict, globally and historically.

Looking beyond the trappings of Stuart romance

Fans of Sherlock Holmes will delight to investigate Victorian England, a world where crimes large and small abound and where dark corners and well-lit drawing rooms alike hide villainy.Through the enduring eye of Sherlock Holmes, noted historian Jeremy Black traces how Holmes and his milieu evolved in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle¿s books and how Holmes continues to resonate today. Black explores the context of Doyle¿s ideas and stories and why they struck such a chord with readers in London, and ultimately the world. He portrays a complex man with eclectic interests, from soccer to spiritualism, from cricket to divorce-law reform. Standing twice for Parliament, Doyle was a committed meritocrat whose political experiences and values were expressed through his writings. Reading the Holmes stories through the lens of Doyle¿s multifaceted career, Black throws fresh light on the values expressed in them and how Holmes would have been perceived at the time. He traces the imperial strand in the Holmes stories and his treatment of America and Europe. Drawing on a masterly knowledge both of Doyle¿s era and his writings, this entertaining and wide-ranging book uses the Holmes stories to bring Victorian England to vibrant life, a world where crimes large and small abound and where dark corners and well-lit drawing rooms alike hide villainy. Holmes was a hero and an inspiration for many a character who redefined the idea of detection and the detective, a private man of great public importance. Here is his story.

A wonderfully engaging, accessible introduction to war, from ancient times to the present and into the future

A brilliantly concise history of London, with a distinctive perspective focusing on the city in its national and, more importantly, international contexts, rather than London itself. Why did London become the foremost international city, how did it sustain that position, and what is happening to it now?

Casting aside conventional narratives of The Great War, Jeremy Black returns to a vast range of original sources and investigates not only the key events of the war, but its consequences in restructuring the old order. Black also considers the struggle not only in its historical context, but also how it has been remembered and memorialised, especially as the generation who experienced it firsthand are passing away.Now in paperback, this book has been updated with a foreword and afterword to consider recent developments.

Beginning with an overview of the age of Dickens, Professor Jeremy Black guides the reader through the biography and writings of the great man to show how his work not only expressed his experience of Victorian England, but also defined it, for his contemporaries and for generations to come. In some ways for us, Victorian England simply is Dickens' England. Professor Black considers London as the centre of all but also examines Dickens' effect on concepts of gender and social structure. Then there is government - from the Circumlocution Office to Britain as the supreme imperial power. There is also a valuable account of Dickens' relationship with America. Dickens describes a culture - popular, middle and lite - and at the same time creates one. It takes a historian of Professor Black's standing to differentiate between the two and show how they inter-react.

From the Great Exhibition's showcasing of British national achievement in 1851 to the opening ceremonies of the Olympics in Stratford in 2012 and on to Brexit, an insightful exploration of the transformation of modern Britain.

A concise, accessible account of strategy and the Second World War. How the war was won . . . and lost..In 1941, the Second World War became global, when Nazi Germany attacked the Soviet Union; Japan attacked the United States at Pearl Harbor; and Germany declared war on the United States.In this timely book, which fills a real gap, Black engages with the strategic issues of the time - as they developed chronologically, and interacted - and relates these to subsequent debates about the choices made, revealing their continued political resonances.Beginning with Appeasement and the Soviet-German pact as key strategic means, Black examines the consequences of the fall of France for the strategies of all the powers. He shows how Allied strategy-making was more effective at the Anglo-American level than with the Soviet Union, not only for ideological and political reasons, but also because the Americans and British had a better grasp of the global dimension.He explores how German and Japanese strategies evolved as the war went badly for the Axis powers, and discusses the extent to which seeking to mould the post-war world informed Allied strategic choices from 1943 onwards, and the role these played in post-war politics, notably in the Cold War. Strategy was a crucial tool not only for conducting the war; it remains the key to understanding it today.

A concise look at the evolution of one of our most crucial transport and trade routes that will open your eyes to its vivid history. Jeremy Black expertly spotlights those who embarked to cross the ocean over the last 550 years and how it came to be established as the ocean for the world.

In Tank Warfare, prominent military historian Jeremy Black offers a comprehensive global account of the history of tanks and armored warfare in the 20th and 21st centuries.

';[A] scholarly overview of military technology throughout historystarting roughly in the 15th century and extending into the future . . . insightful.'Publishers Weekly In this engaging book, Jeremy Black argues that technology neither acts as an independent variable nor operates without major limitations. This includes its capacity to obtain end results, as technology's impact is far from simple and its pathways are by no means clear. After considering such key conceptual points, Black discusses important technological advances in weaponry and power projection from sailing warships to aircraft carriers, muskets to tanks, balloons to unmanned dronesin each case, taking into account what difference these advances made. He addresses not only firepower but also power projection and technologies of logistics, command, and control. Examining military technologies in their historical context and the present centered on the Revolution in Military Affairs and Military Transformation, Black then forecasts possible future trends. ';Clear, concise, and thoughtful. An eminently readable synthesis of historical literature on technology and war.'John France, author of Perilous Glory: The Rise of Western Military Power ';An interesting, thought provoking work by a major military historian . . . whose depth and wide range of knowledge across the entire sweep of world military history is without parallel.... Those who read this book closely will be richly rewarded for it is a mine of useful information and grist for discussion.'Spencer C. Tucker, author of The European Powers in the First World War ';A most useful introduction to a very complex subject, and particularly valuable for its notes and references to other works. Provocative and vigorously argued . . . Highly recommended.'Choice

A wonderfully concise and readable, yet comprehensive, history of the Mediterranean Sea, the perfect companion for any visitor, whether cruising or staying ashore.