Book description
From ancient times to the present day, the story of England has been
laced with drama, intrigue, courage and passion - a rich and vibrant
narrative of heroes and villains, kings and rebels, artists and
highwaymen, bishops and scientists. Now, in Great Tales of English
History, Robert Lacey captures one hundred of the most pivotal moments:
the stories and extraordinary characters who helped shape a nation. This
first volume begins in 7150 BC with the life and death of Cheddar Man
and ends in 1381with Wat Tyler and the Peasants' Revolt. We meet the
Greek navigator Pytheus, whose description of the Celts as prettanike
(the 'painted people') yielded the Latin word Britannici. We witness the
Roman victory celebrations of AD 43, where a squadron of elephants were
paraded through Colchester. And we visit the New Forest, in 1100, and
the mysterious shooting of King William Rufus. Packed with insight,
humour and fascinating detail, Robert Lacey brings the stories that made
England brilliantly to life. From Ethelred the Unready to Richard the
Lionheart, the Venerable Bede to the Black Prince, this is, quite
simply, history as history should be told. A former journalist, Robert
Lacey won international renown for his book MAJESTY in 1977. He went on
to become a full-time writer and has published numerous bestsellers
since, including THE YEAR 1000.
