"Sixteen hundred years ago Britain left the Roman Empire and swiftly fell into ruin. Grand cities and luxurious villas were deserted and left to crumble--and civil society collapsed into chaos. Into this violent and unstable world came foreign invaders from across the sea, and established themselves as its new masters. The Anglo-Saxons traces the turbulent history of these people across the next six centuries. It explains how their earliest rulers...

Learn why the 10th century is often referred to as the Golden Age of the Anglo-Saxons. It produces not only vernacular literary masterpieces like Beowulf and The Battle of Maldon but inspiring sermons, monastic reform, and an artistic renaissance encompassing book production, metalwork, and needlework.

How the most powerful country in the UK was forged by invasion and conquest, and is fractured by its north-south divide. The Shortest History books deliver thousands of years of history in one riveting, fast-paced read.

England—begetter of parliaments and globe-spanning empires, star of beloved period dramas, and home of the House of Windsor—is not quite the stalwart island fortress that many of us imagine. Riven...

"A fast-paced tour of 2,000 years of English history, tracing its secret north-south divide and notorious class system"--

More than a century after the Norman Conquest, England remains a colony of foreign warlords. Prince John plans to seize his brother's crown, his barons terrorize the country, and the mysterious outlaw Robin Hood haunts the ancient greenwood. With the secret return of King Richard and the disinherited Saxon knight Ivanhoe, Scott unfurls his splendid and tumultuous romance, featuring the tournament at Ashby-de-la-Zouch and the clash of will between...

"Poetry never goes out of style. An ancient writing form found in civilizations across the world, poetry continues to inform the way we write now, whether we realize it or not--especially in social media--with its focus on brevity and creating the greatest possible impact with the fewest words. Poetry 101 is your companion to the wonderful world of meter and rhyme, and walks you through the basics of poetry. From Shakespeare and Chaucer, to Maya Angelou...

"It had always been England's curse to be just visible enough to observers across the water, to tempt the boldest to try to conquer it... -- Bloody battles, political intrigues and dynastic marriages all played a part in shaping a nascent England. Battle for the Island Kingdom is a rich history of the violent six decades when Vikings, Anglo-Saxons and ultimarely Normans vied for the English crown before the seismic Battle of Hastings determined the...

Plunge into the substance of daily life for Anglo-Saxons of all social levels, including illness and mortalility, the transition from paganism to Christianity, farming, trade, or even raiding. What is clear is that there is tremendous variation in the economic and religious experience of the population.

Meet the people who filled the vacuum left by the Romans. The Anglo-Saxons, a warrior culture responsible for King Arthur and Beowulf, invaded Britain at the beginning of the so-called Dark Ages. In addition to meeting the wealthy thanes, struggling peasants, and unfortunate slaves, you'll examine the lives of monks and nuns.