Books published by Amberley Publishing

Road tankers come in many forms, with certain goods very often dictating the type and shape. The transport industry has adapted many innovations over the years and a wide variety of examples have travelled on our roads over the years - powder tanks, tanks for liquids, and even specialised tanks for the carriage of a plethora of goods from live eels to animal feed, cement, plastic pellets and more. All of the images in this book were captured by the author over a number of years. They document an important part of our transport history and will delight enthusiasts and modellers alike.

This historical investigation into the real John the Baptist brings to light one of the most influential figures in Christianity and western civilization, who is also a revered figure in Islam and other religions. Two thousand years later his life and example are still an influence for millions. John the Baptist's importance is such that he appears in all four Gospels, together with the writings of Josephus, and is inextricably linked to the life of Jesus. John was a friend, inspiration and forerunner for Jesus and a respected figure in his own lifetime yet the historical facts of his life are unknown to most. Josephine Wilkinson assembles the evidence to show us the man whose views led him to be sentenced to death and beheaded by Herod. Based on the ancient sources, the author gets as close as it is possible to get to a biography of John, including an account of his relationship with Jesus.

Secret Royal Leamington Spa explores the lesser-known history of the town of Leamington Spa through a fascinating selection of stories, unusual facts and attractive photographs.

Secret Redcar, Marske and Saltburn explores the lesser-known history of the town of Redcar and resorts of Marske and Saltburn through a fascinating selection of stories, unusual facts and attractive photographs.

An accessible history of Rotherham from its beginnings to the present day highlighting the city's significant events and people.

Jeremy Black charts the story of Britain's rise to naval supremacy across the long eighteenth century.

A fascinating exploration of Edinburgh's historic churches will be of interest to all those who live in or are visiting Scotland's capital city.

Explore the rich history of central London's North Bank in this guided tour through its most fascinating historic and modern buildings.

Documenting the wide variety of traffic on the busy section of the Eastleigh and Southampton railways.

With previously unpublished images documenting the variety of wagons on railways in the Peak District.

An accessible history of Lichfield from prehistory to the present day highlighting the city's significant events and people.

A fascinating collection of previously unpublished photographs exploring the history of Glasgow iconic EMUs.

A wonderful photographic record, with many previously unpublished images, of the nation's rail scene.

With rare and previously unpublished photographs of this interesting part of the Scottish rail scene.

Explore these rare and previously unpublished photographs showcasing the city's bus scene since deregulation.

An engaging celebration of Kent's culinary heritage, its county delicacies, producers and food-themed events.

A spine-chilling collection of stories of hauntings, apparitions and paranormal activity from Northumberland.

A story of chivalry and vanity, loyalty and betrayal. The most brilliant servant of the royal Stuarts was betrayed by them.

With a wealth of illustrations, John Evans tells the story of Rochdale Canal's history and its revival.

Looking at the famous operator, Stagecoach South West, with previously unpublished images documenting the company's buses.

Henry II became King of England in 1154 after twenty years of civil war. He was the first Plantagenet king, the founder of England's most successful and longest-ruling dynasty. But Henry did not come to the throne alone. He had married Eleanor of Aquitaine, a feisty, formidable and powerful woman ten years his senior. Eleanor had spent fifteen years married to Louis VII of France before he divorced her, only to be angered when she married his young rival. Together, they were a medieval power couple who soon added the ultimate rank of king and queen consort to their list of titles. With them, the Angevin Empire was born. Over the decades, a wedge was driven between the king, fiercely protective of his empire, and Eleanor, who felt restrained in her husband's shadow. Henry imprisoned his wife, fought his elder sons and pinned his hopes on his youngest, whose betrayal was the last straw. This book charts the early lives of Henry and Eleanor before they became a European power couple and examines the impact of their union on contemporaries and European politics. It explores the birth of the Angevin Empire that spread from Northumberland to the Mediterranean, and the causes of the disintegration of that vast territory, as well as the troublesome relationships between Henry and his sons, who dragged their father to the battlefield to defend his lands from their ambitious intriguing.

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.

In 1976 a Jersey-based air taxi operator purchased two elderly Dakota aircraft for cargo charters as Air Atlantique. Thus began the saga of an airline that would eventually operate one of the largest fleets of Dakotas in the world, acquire four-engined vintage propliners, diversify into passenger charters and pleasure flying and oil-spill response work, and take over the lease on its Coventry Airport base. From here a fleet of historic aircraft sallied forth to participate in air shows around the UK. The impending retirement of the airline's founder Mike Collett brought about changes, but the freight charters and pleasure flying continued until new regulations brought passenger flying in the Dakotas to an end. Undaunted, Air Atlantique went on to open an aviation museum and visitor centre at Coventry. This is the story of a unique and much-loved British airline.

Following the deregulation of bus services in 1986, West Yorkshire became flooded by small independent operators, some of whom survived while others were swallowed up by larger companies. Only a small handful remain today. The wide variety of liveries and vehicle types will bring memories flooding back, and the wealth of previously unpublished photographs give this book a wide appeal.

The towns and villages west of Birmingham, around Dudley, Wolverhampton, Sandwell and Wallsall, became known as the Black Country during the Industrial Revolution due to the intense industrialisation of the area, particularly coal mining and ironworking. The towns soon became one continuously built-up area, which developed its own distinctive character. Secret Black Country explores the lesser-known episodes and characters in the history of the area through the years, from Dudley Castle and royal connections with Lady Jane Grey and Queen Elizabeth I, visits by Charles I and Charles II in the English Civil War and visits by the future Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson to Himley Hall, which became a Red Cross hospital for patients with severe facial injuries during the Second World War, to the evidence of Charlie Chaplin's birthplace on Black Patch Park in Smethwick. Entries include the massive cavern beneath Dudley Zoo used for storage during the Second World War, the stories behind the gruesome nineteenth-century robbery and murder that caused Fir Tree Hill to be renamed and the tragic death of Dorothy Beaumont, wife of the Deputy Commander of Dudley Castle, while under siege in the Civil War, who is said to still haunt the ruins. Fully illustrated throughout, this book will reveal the hidden heritage of this historic area.

Great Railway Journeys: London to Oxford and London to Cambridge is the fourth in Roger Mason's Great Railway Journeys series. It is a fascinating record of things that can be seen from trains running from London to the two great university cities. The London to Oxford line includes Brunel's wonderful bridge over the Thames at Maidenhead and the Didcot Railway Centre, which is a living museum of the Great Western Railway. Included here is the story of how the author of a world famous book left the manuscript in a caf at Reading Station. He had not kept a copy so he went home and wrote it again. The London to Cambridge line includes Mountfitchet Castle, a fabulous copy of the one that stood on the site shortly after the reign of William the Conqueror. There is also the Eleanor Cross at Waltham Cross, erected by Edward I in the 1290s as a tribute to his late wife, Eleanor of Castile.

When the expansion of the RAF began in 1934, Air Commodore Tedder observed that the established order of school training not only failed to produce operational competence, but left so much to be done by the operational squadrons that they could only attain passable military efficiency after an uphill struggle. He proposed to raise the standards of school instruction so that pilots would leave the facility as operationally competent pilots, although it would mean lengthening the period of instruction as well as revising the syllabus. It was against this somewhat sorry background of training and logistical problems, as well as having the clouds of war firmly visible on the horizon, that the decision was taken to form a new RAF Training Command on 1 May 1936; an organisation derived from the ashes of the former RAF Inland Area. This book will tell the story - in words and pictures - of RAF Training Command from 1 May 1936 until it was separated into Flying Training Command and Technical Training Command on 27 May 1940. Both commands were then transferred into the newly re-established RAF Training Command on 1 June 1968, until it was then absorbed into RAF Support Command on 13 June 1977.

Sussex is a fascinating county, saturated with history, legends and mysteries. Everywhere there are remains of these stories: a curious relic preserved in a church, an unusual grave outside, some ruinous building down the road, or a bizarre artefact in the local museum. Author Christopher Horlock has been travelling around Sussex for many years, photographing these remains and researching the stories behind them. Myths, legends and folklore further enrich the tales and reveal the mindset of Sussex people of the past. Ruins, Remains and Relics: Sussex delves into the unusual, the offbeat and the decidedly quirky, ranging from a ruined castle to a simple, single spoon. This fascinating exploration of the history, legends and stories of Sussex will interest all those who know the county well in addition to those who wish to know more about its history.

The churches of Hampshire are as varied as the landscapes they occupy. Remote rural churches that have changed little in 900 years are so far removed from those found in medieval market towns or bustling seaports that one might imagine that they have little in common. Yet the building materials of natural flint, imported stone from Normandy or the Isle of Wight and, later, local brick hold these diverse buildings together. As an early regional capital Winchester attracted powerful individuals whose influence spread through the county. Monastic houses flourished and have left us grand churches. Courtiers and courtesans have left their marks across the county, as have eighteenth- and nineteenth-century industrialists, many of whom rebuilt or restored churches. This book looks at fifty Hampshire churches from the Saxon gems of Breamore and Titchfield through Romsey Abbey to isolated churches in the folds of the Downs at Idsworth and Wield to nineteenth- and twentieth-century churches that rank amongst England's finest. Together with their rich memorials and furnishings there is something for everyone, and Churches of Hampshire will encourage all those who live in the county or are visiting to discover the history on their doorsteps.

Launched in 2001, the second generation Mini, produced by BMW, was an instant success. Based on a design brief that stated that it could only be a Mini, the new car remained faithful to its heritage while offering numerous benefits, including increased size, engine power and performance. It also set new standards in refinement. In this readable book motoring expert James Taylor takes a multi-perspective look at the BMW Mini to give the reader a complete view of the many aspects of design, development, engineering and marketing that went into producing a highly successful range of new models under the Mini brand. The book explores how BMW has always been careful to retain the heritage of the original Mini and its variants as it continued to introduce subtle but significant changes to the three-door hatch while expanding its range of models to include the SUV Countryman and the Paceman. The book also covers the introduction of new engines and fuel options, including hydrogen and electric. Designed by an American for a German motor company but largely still built in Oxford, England, this is a complete picture of one of the world's most successful cars.