Historical & Political Biographies

The life of the influential Sir John Vanburgh and his role in defining the architectural landscape of England

The life story of an extraordinary man who witnessed so much. His uncompromising attitude singled him out as an exceptional individual but the five years of warfare defined him. Just how did he go from choir boy on HMS Victory to being one of the world's elite 1st SAS/SBS soldiers?

A biography of Beatrice and Sidney Webb

An enthralling portrait of Queen Catherine of Braganza, wife of Charles II, which brings her struggles vividly to life and reveals her forgotten place in British history.

The story of one man's escape from Stalin's genocide to heroism in the skies

Exploring Tom Rolt's many landscapes, and legacy, through a series of linked essays

A family-authorised biography of Pat Hughes, one of the top-scoring aces of the Battle of Britain.

A fascinating and moving biography of Colin Anson, the German refugee who became an elite British commando

The second volume in an acclaimed biography of Oliver Cromwell, from the capture of Charles I to the expulsion of the Long Parliament

The dramatic biography of a slaveship turned freedom-fighter—which brings new insights into Britain’s involvement in the end of the trade in enslaved people

An illustrated history of the SAS

The name BUGATTI is legendary in the history of the motor car. "ELITE CARS FOR THE ELITE" was his own claim.When people talk about BUGATTI they always mean ETTORE BUGATTI, the technical genius. But if we draw aside the heavy veil of the BUGATTI MYTH, the spotlight falls for the first time on his equally gifted son JEAN BUGATTI. He crated the most beautiful cars in history such as the T41 ROYALE and the T57 ATLANTIC.This historical novel reveals the difficult, indeed tragic, relationship between these two great personalities. At the same time it is a love story and a mystery story.JEAN BUGATTI only lived to be 30. Wikipedia records an accidental death: "Driving at over 200 kmph JEAN BUGATTI had to avoid a cyclist ... and crashed into a tree".This documentary novel disproves that story. It will cause outrage and denial among BUGATTISTS all over the world - or stimulate their curiosity!

The Ratana movement gains national coverage every February as politicians make the pilgrimage to its headquarters near Whanganui, yet the history and workings of the religion are less widely recognised. In this new edition of his standard biography, Keith Newman reveals the life and times of Tahupotiki Wiremu Ratana and the movement he founded in 1918, tracing its activities and influence up to the present-day community of some 50,000 followers. Extensively illustrated colour and black & white photographs.

This dual biography of Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, the thirty-ninth President and his wife, chronicles their personal and professional relationships, business and political success, and rise to national power. With a colourful cast of relatives and politicians, it is a blueprint of how they would win the presidency and govern the nation.

In the 14th and 15th centuries, the Majapahit kingdom reigned supreme in eastern Java, and its influence stretched far and wide, throughout present-day Indonesia, parts of the Malay peninsula and the island of Tumasek, now Singapore.

Hersch effectively uses his fatherâEUR(TM)s unusual story to convey the horrors of the Holocaust. A valuable addition to Holocaust literature. - Publishers WeeklyHersch's amazing tale is told for the first time by his son Jack who has retraced his footsteps for his new book. - The Daily MailIn a warm and emotionally engaging story, Jack digs deeply into both his father's life and his own, revisiting - and reflecting on - his father's time at the hands of the Nazis during the last year of the Second World War, when more than mere survival was at stake - the fate of humanity itself hung in the balance. - GoodReadsIn June 1944, the Nazis locked eighteen-year-old Dave Hersch into a railroad boxcar and shipped him from his hometown of Dej, Hungary, to Mauthausen Concentration Camp, the harshest, cruelest camp in the Reich. After ten months in the granite mines of MauthausenâEUR(TM)s nearby sub-camp, Gusen, he weighed less than 80lbs, nothing but skin and bones. Somehow surviving the relentless horrors of these two brutal camps, as Allied forces drew near Dave was forced to join a death march to Gunskirchen Concentration Camp, over thirty miles away. Soon after the start of the march, and more dead than alive, Dave summoned a burst of energy he did not know he had and escaped. Quickly recaptured, he managed to avoid being killed by the guards. Put on another death march a few days later, he achieved the impossible: he escaped again. Dave often told his story of survival and escape, and his son, Jack, thought he knew it well. But years after his fatherâEUR(TM)s death, he came across a photograph of his father on, of all places, the Mauthausen MemorialâEUR(TM)s website. It was an image he had never seen before âEUR" and it propelled him on an intensely personal journey of discovery. Using only his fatherâEUR(TM)s words for guidance, Jack takes us along as he flies to Europe to learn the secrets behind the photograph, secrets his father never told of his time in the camps. Beginning in the verdant hills of his fatherâEUR(TM)s Hungarian hometown, we travel with Jack to the foreboding rock mines of Mauthausen and Gusen concentration camps, to the dust-choked roads and intersections of the death marches, and, finally, to the makeshift hiding places of his fatherâEUR(TM)s rescuers. We accompany JackâEUR(TM)s every step as he describes the unimaginable: what his father must have seen and felt while struggling to survive in the most abominable places on earth. In a warm and emotionally engaging story, Jack digs deeply into both his fatherâEUR(TM)s life and his own, revisiting âEUR" and reflecting on âEUR" his fatherâEUR(TM)s time at the hands of the Nazis during the last year of the Second World War, when more than mere survival was at stake âEUR" the fate of humanity itself hung in the balance.

George Hudson was the greatest British railway entrepreneur of the 19th century. In 1848, he controlled over 1,000 miles of railway and, when it came to railway promotion, it seemed he could do no wrong. However, in early 1849 it came to light that some of his business methods had been less than ethical and he was forced to relinquish the chairmanship of each of his companies. His fall from grace was spectacular and his detractors, of whom there were many, were quick to denounce him as a fraudster, a charlatan and a crook. Even today, when the name George Hudson is mentioned, these same insults are often levelled at him. This new biography takes a fresh look at HudsonâEUR(TM)s extraordinary life, from his humble beginnings as a farmerâEUR(TM)s boy, to becoming Lord Mayor of York before catching the railway bug. He was MP for Sunderland between 1845 and 1859\. After his fall from grace, Hudson endured a 20-year court battle with the York and North Midland Railway (subsequently the North Eastern Railway) for outstanding debts. Hudson made many mistakes in creating his railway empire, but did he deserve all the vitriol that still accompanies his reputation? In seeking to answer this question, Matthew Wells looks at the evidence, including what was said about Hudson during his lifetime and what Hudson himself had to say about the actions he took.

Margaret More Roper may be remembered as the eldest daughter of Sir Thomas More, but she was much, much more. Well-educated, loyal, passionately pious, and a skilled writer and translator, Margaret inspired a generation and proved to Tudor England and beyond just how accomplished a woman could be. Her life provides a window into the turbulent times of the English Reformation and life at the court of King Henry VIII. In this biography, Margaret is presented in her own right and given the attention and acknowledgement she so richly deserves.

A masterful new biography of North Korea's despotic founding father and his enduring impact on his country today.

A biography of the most extraordinary woman in the Roman world

The last member of Operation Valkyrie - the daring 1944 plot to assassinate Hitler - tells his remarkable story. 'Astonishing' Daily Telegraph