The acclaimed Penguin Monarchs series: short, fresh, expert accounts of England's rulers - now in paperback Queen Victoria inherited the throne at 18 and went on to become the longest-reigning female monarch in history, in a time of intense industrial, cultural, political, scientific and military change within the United Kingdom and great imperial expansion outside of it (she was made Empress of India in 1876). Overturning the established picture of the dour old lady, this is a fresh and engaging portrait from one of our most talented royal biographers. Jane Ridley is Professor of Modern History at Buckingham University, where she teaches a course on biography. Her previous books include The Young Disraeli; a study of Edwin Lutyens, The Architect and his Wife, which won the 2003 Duff Cooper Prize; and the best-selling Bertie: A Life of Edward VII.

Many years have passed since the death of Princess Diana (31 August 1997), but this tragedy still attracts attention and hurt the hearts of people. Many authors have investigated the mysteries of this tragedy, and the secrets of ancestry of Princess Diana. Some authors claim that her bloodline (by branches of the Stuarts) comes from the mysterious Merovingian from the early Middle Ages - and the Merovingian bloodline supposedly dates back ... to a son of Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene. From a Christian perspective, it is certainly heretical hypothesis. The author of this brochure puts forward a different hypothesis, which is compatible with Christian doctrines. The study of mysticism matches of various aspects of tragedy the death of Princess Diana and analysis of what is known about Mary Magdalene - all this led the author to unexpected conclusions that confirm the origin of the Merovingian (and the bloodline of Princess Diana) of the kings of ancient Israel, David and Saul, but the author's conclusions are compatible with Christian doctrines. *** Author BORIS ROMANOV Born in 1945 in Leningrad (St.Petersburg), Ph.D (the candidate of sciences), the writer. The author of 10 books, including Zoroastrianism and Christianity (1994), The Occult Bulgakov (1995), The Apocalypse 2008-2173 (1996), Astro-Biblos (1996), Tragedy of Princess Diana (1998), Russian mags and seers (1998), The Story about Apostles, Ponty Pilat and Simon-mag (1999) and Fatal Predictions of Russia (2006) and The Emperor who knew the Fate. And Russia, which did not knew (2011). - First part of this book (The Emperor who knew the Fate) is a basis for the script of the documentary The Emperor who knew the Fate. Boris Romanov was award a prize For Best Screenplay on IFF Pokrov (Kiev, 2010).

Martin Luther, the Augustinian friar who set the Protestant Reformation in motion with his famous Ninety-Five Theses, was a man of extremes on many fronts. He was both hated and honoured, both reviled as a heretic and lauded as a kind of second Christ. He was both a quiet, solitary reader and interpreter of the Bible and the first media-star of history, using the printing press to reach many of his contemporaries and become the most-read theologian of the sixteenth century. Thomas Kaufmann's concise biography highlights the two conflicting "natures" of Martin Luther, depicting Luther's earthiness as well as his soaring theological contributions, his flaws as well as his greatness. Exploring the close correlation between Luther's Reformation theology and his historical context, A Short Life of Martin Luther serves as an ideal introduction to the life and thought of the most important figure in the Protestant Reformation.

The acclaimed Penguin Monarchs series: short, fresh, expert accounts of England's rulers - now in paperback Henry V's invasion of France, in August 1415, represented a huge gamble. As heir to the throne, he had been a failure, cast into the political wilderness amid rumours that he planned to depose his father. Despite a complete change of character as king - founding monasteries, persecuting heretics, and enforcing the law to its extremes - little had gone right since. He was insecure in his kingdom, his reputation low. On the eve of his departure for France, he uncovered a plot by some of his closest associates to remove him from power. Agincourt was a battle that Henry should not have won - but he did, and the rest is history. Within five years, he was heir to the throne of France. In this vivid new interpretation, Anne Curry explores how Henry's hyperactive efforts to expunge his past failures, and his experience of crisis - which threatened to ruin everything he had struggled to achieve - defined his kingship, and how his astonishing success at Agincourt transformed his standing in the eyes of his contemporaries, and of all generations to come.

This work was prepared in 1877 upon the announcement that a member of the Royal Family, Princess Louise, was coming to take up her abode in Canada with her husband The Right Honorable, the Marquis of Lorne, who was named to succeed the Earl of Dufferin as Governor General. In addition to the Introductory, the book includes a history of the House of Argyll, a Sketch of the Right Honorable, the Marquis of Lorne, the new Governor-General; a Sketch of H. R. H. the Princess Louise; the Political Situation in Canada; the Dominion Cabinet, 1878-1879; and a Parliamentary and Legislative Directory.

A brief history embracing the forty-one sovereigns that have ruled England from the Norman Conquest in 901 A.D. to King George V, in 1910. Each of the monarchs is identified in their order of succession, with a brief and concise description of each sovereign.