BOOKS OF 2020

WELCOME JANUARY 2021

The Civil Wars of the 17th century turned life upside

YOUR ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO THE CIVIL WARS

The Civil Wars of the 17th century tore the British

EVERYTHING YOU WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT THE CIVIL WARS

Professor Mark Stoyle answers key questions about the 17th-century conflict that tore the nation apart

A NATION DIVIDED

The bloody battles and political struggles that tore families apart – and left a monarch with his head on the block

WHY DID WAR BREAK OUT IN 1642?

Struggles over power, money and religion paved the way to seismic divisions between Parliament and King

CHARLES I 19 NOVEMBER 1600 – 30 JANUARY 1649

The second son of James VI and I of Scotland, England and Ireland, Charles I was never supposed to become king. His reign would split the nation apart and give him the unwanted distinction of becoming the only English monarch to be executed

OLIVER CROMWELL 25 APRIL 1599 - 3 SEPTEMBER 1658

A talented commander in the parliamentarian forces, Oliver Cromwell would climb the ranks to become the de facto ruler of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland – a king in all but name

10 KEY BATTLES OF THE CIVIL WARS

We explore some of the most significant battles of the Civil Wars – pitting the King against Parliament, and splitting the nation apart

THE NEW MODEL ARMY

As Parliament continued to suffer losses, a new strategy was needed – and with it, a brand new national army

READY FOR BATTLE

How did royalist and parliamentarian armies fight?

WARRIOR WOMEN

The Civil Wars were not an exclusively male domain – women from all social spheres had a role to play

WAR OF WORDS

The Civil Wars were a propagandist’s dream, made all the easier by a breakdown in print censorship

KILLING THE KING

To bring peace to the realm, Parliament made the once unthinkable decision to send Charles I to the block

WHAT CAME NEXT...

England was now a republic, but the bloodshed continued

RICHARD THE LIONHEART

Given a nickname ‘Lionheart’ for his legendary courage and fearlessness in battle, Richard I’s military tactics were brutal and unforgiving, writes Nige Tassell. As King of England, he led the Third Crusade in an attempt to wrestle the Holy Land from Muslim control

CHARLES SOBHRAJ THIEF, FRAUDSTER, KILLER

From Bangkok to Bombay, Charles Sobhraj left a trail of destruction wherever he ventured. Nige Tassell reveals the story of the brazen career criminal who graduated from petty theft to cold-blooded murder

TOP 10 ENTREPRENEURS WHO CHANGED THE WORLD

From cars to coffee, the entrepreneurial spirit of these 10 figures would go on to change the lives of generations of people all around the globe

WHAT IF... THE SOVIETS WON THE RACE TO THE MOON?

Jonny Wilkes talks to Dr Thomas Ellis about how the US would have reacted to losing the Space Race, and which Soviet cosmonaut would have made the one giant leap

Snapshots

To celebrate the French premiere of Disney’s One Hundred and

THINGS WE LEARNED THIS MONTH....

RECENT HISTORY HEADLINES THAT CAUGHT OUR EYE

Maritime Archaeologist

I grew up as far from the sea as you

Nellie Bly successfully completes her round-the-world race in 72 days

When investigative journalist Nellie Bly arrived in New Jersey on

The Children’s Crusade

The Children’s Crusade is said to have been a failed

Q&A YOU ASK, WE ANSWER

HISTORY’S GREATEST CONUNDRUMS AND MYSTERIES SOLVED

FOUR THINGS YOU (PROBABLY) DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT VIKING LIFE

Neil Price, Distinguished Professor of Archaeology at the University of Uppsala, explores four lesser-known facets of the Viking mindset in this excerpt from a recent episode of the HistoryExtra podcast. He was speaking to our content director, David Musgrove

TV, FILM & RADIO

THE LATEST DOCUMENTARIES, BLOCKBUSTERS AND PERIOD DRAMAS

EVENTS & EXHIBITIONS

WHAT TO SEE AND WHERE TO VISIT IN THE WIDER WORLD OF HISTORY

BOOKS & PODCASTS

THIS MONTH’S BEST HISTORICAL READS AND LISTENS

HISTORICAL FICTION....

During the chaotic early 17th century in England, Nat Davy

LETTERS

I enjoyed reading the essential guide to the World War

LA CASTIGLIONE c1863

Virginia Oldoini, the Countess of Castiglione, was an Italian aristocrat