Crown And Country A History Of England Through The Monarchy

An exploration of the British monarchy from the retreat of the Romans up until the modern day. This compendium volume of two earlier books is fully revised and updated.

A stunning tour de force and a remarkable achievement.- Alison Weir This is Our Island Story for the modern age. - Charles Spencer 'Not just a brilliant compendium of biographies, but the biography of an institution: a marvellous read' - Tom Holland 'This royal throne of kings, this sceptred isle' (William Shakespeare, Richard II) With 1000 years of royal history from 1066 to the present day, Domesday Book to Magna Carta the Field of Cloth of Gold to King Charles' accession, Crown & Sceptre is an unparalleled exploration of the British monarchy. From Sunday Times bestselling author and joint Chief Curator of Historic Royal Palaces Tracy Borman, comes a fresh, engaging and authoritative account of the crown's tumultuous history - including a chapter on King Charles III. Impeccably researched, Crown & Sceptre explores in gripping detail how this iconic institution has survived the storms of rebellion, revolution and war that brought most of the world's other monarchies to an abrupt and bloody end. It is a story of ruthless dynastic battles, political and social leadership, usurpation and abdication, all set against a backdrop of dazzling ceremony and pageantry. "Crown and Sceptre shows an astonishing command of a thousand years of the British monarchy, its traditions, roles and realities beyond the pageantry and romance. Beautifully crafted, insightful, and a genuine pleasure to read, it underscores the royal heritage at the heart of a nation." - Lauren Mackay "Crown and Sceptre" combines an eminently accessible narrative with a lucid scholarly lens. Tracy Borman skilfully unravels the trials and triumphs of this ever-shifting institution. By charting both the majesty and mechanics of monarchy, we get a vivid understanding of why its glittering gears shifted over time, and by whom the levers of change were pulled. A triumph.' - Owen Emmerson, Curator at Hever Castle 'Tracy Borman's passion for the British monarch and the crown is infectious and compelling!' - Estelle Paranque 'Borman embraces a huge task' - Gerard DeGroot, The Times Enlightening, gripping and skilfully composed, Tracy Borman navigates the twists and turns of the British monarchy with an expert hand. A pacy narrative that's simply bursting with colour and intrigue, Crown and Sceptre is both powerful and compulsively readable. A masterpiece. - Nicola Tallis

This book provides a boldly original account of Middle English literature from the Norman Conquest to the beginning of the sixteenth century. It argues that these centuries are, in fundamental ways, the momentous period in our literary history, for they are the long moment in which the category of literature itself emerged as English writing began to insist, for the first time, that it floated free of any social reality or function. This book also charts the complex mechanisms by which English writing acquired this power in a series of linked close readings of both canonical and more obscure texts. It encloses those readings in five compelling accounts of much broader cultural areas, describing, in particular, the productive relationship of Middle English writing to medieval technology, insurgency, statecraft and cultural place, concluding with an in depth account of the particular arguments, emphases and techniques English writers used to claim a wholly new jurisdiction for their work. Both this history and its readings are everywhere informed by the most exciting developments in recent Middle English scholarship as well as literary and cultural theory. It serves as an introduction to all these areas as well as a contribution, in its own right, to each of them.

Was the First World War really 'For King and Country'? This is the first full history of the monarchy's role.

'Monarchy' is more than the biographies of the kings and queens of England. It is an in-depth examination of what the English monarchy has meant. This is the history of ideas and ideals, as well as colourful characters, brought to life by David Starkey's unique gifts as a communicator.

For the kings and queens of England, a trumpet fanfare or crash of cymbals could be as vital a weapon as a cannon. Showcasing a monarch’s power, prestige and taste, music has been the lifeblood of many a royal dynasty. From sacred choral works to soaring symphonies, Music and Monarchy looks at how England’s character was shaped by its music. To David Starkey and Katie Greening, works like Handel’s Water Music and Tallis’s Mass for Four Voices were more than entertainment – they were pieces signalling political intent, wealth and ambition. Starkey and Greening examine England’s most iconic musical works to demonstrate how political power has been a part of musical composition for centuries. Many of our current musical motifs of nationhood, whether it’s the Last Night of the Proms or football terraces erupting in song, have their origins in the way the crown has shaped the national soundtrack. Published to coincide with a major BBC series, Music and Monarchy is not a book about music. It is a history of England written in music, from our leading royal historian.

Here is the whole of recorded British royal history, from the legendary King Alfred the Great onwards, including the monarchies of England, Scotland, Wales and the United Kingdom for over a thousand years. Fascinating portraits are expertly woven into a history of division and eventual union of the British Isles - even royals we think most familiar are revealed in a new and sometimes surprising light. This revised and shortened edition of The Mammoth Book of British Kings & Queens includes biographies of the royals of recorded British history, plus an overview of the semi-legendary figures of pre-history and the Dark Ages - an accessible source for students and general readers.