Raider. Conqueror. King. Saint. This is the story of Olav Haraldsson, the greatest Viking who ever lived. A ruthless Viking warrior who named his most prized battle weapon after the Norse goddess of death, Olav Haraldsson and his mercenaries wrought terror and destruction from the Baltic to Galicia in the early eleventh century. Thousands were put to the sword, enslaved or ransomed. In England, Canterbury was sacked, its archbishop murdered and London Bridge pulled down. The loot amassed from years of plunder helped Olav win the throne of Norway, and a century after his death he was proclaimed 'Eternal King' and has been a national hero there ever since. Despite his bloodthirsty beginnings, Olav converted to Christianity and, in a personal vendetta against the old Norse gods, made Norway Christian too, thereby changing irrevocably the Viking world he was born into. Told with reference to Norse sagas, early chronicles and the work of modern scholars, Desmond Seward paints an intensely vivid and colourful portrait of the life and times of arguably the greatest Viking of them all.

"An Armchair Traveller's History of Apulia" is the story of the heel of Italy - Puglia - as told by past and present day travellers. It has beautiful landscapes, cave towns and frescoed grotto churches, wonderful old cities with Romanesque cathedrals, Gothic castles and a wealth of Baroque architecture. And yet, while far from inaccessible, until quite recently it was seldom visited by tourists. This portrait of Apulia concentrates on the Apulian people down the ages. Conquerors, whether Messapians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Lombards, Byzantines, Normans, Angevins, Germans or Spaniards, have all left their mark on the region in a cultural palimpsest that at first sight bewilders, but which hugely repays investigation. This title is arranged in short chapters, the narrative travels from north to south, making it an ideal companion for exploring Apulia by car. The Gazetteer, which is cross-referenced to the main text, highlights cities, churches, cathedrals, castles and sites of historical importance to the visitor. For travellers on the ground or students at their desks, this elegant, cloth-bound book will prove invaluable.

In recent years, tourists have discovered the rustic charms of Puglia, also known as Apulia, the heel stretching down from the spur of the Italian boot. The region boasts beautiful landscapes and miles of dramatic coastline, cities with Romanesque cathedrals, Gothic castles, and a tremendous wealth of Baroque architecture, as well as rupestrian churches containing Byzantine frescoes. Yet until this book, almost nothing about the region had been published in English since the days of Norman Douglas and the Sitwells. Filling that gap, "Old Puglia" is an entertaining exploration of the area and its historical influences, cultural sites, and emerging popularity. Now fashionable as the new Tuscany, Puglia is featured on radio and television; travel supplements describe its beaches and cooking; and supermarkets worldwide stock Apulian wine, olive oil, bread, and pasta. Desmond Seward and Susan Mountgarret introduce readers to the story behind the destination, as they combine in-depth writing on Puglian history with discussions of the area s contemporary culture.A fascinating look at a region whose ancient roots continue to delight modern enthusiasts, "Old Puglia" will entertain travelers, history buffs, and everyone with a taste for Italy. "

For over a hundred years England repeatedly invaded France on the pretext that her kings had a right to the French throne. France was a large, unwieldy kingdom, England was small and poor, but for the most part she dominated the war, sacking towns and castles and winning battles - including such glorious victories as Crecy, Poitiers and Agincourt, but then the English run of success began to fail, and in four short years she lost Normandy and finally her last stronghold in Guyenne. The protagonists of the Hundred Year War are among the most colourful in European history: for the English, Edward III, the Black Prince and Henry V, later immortalized by Shakespeare; for the French, the splendid but inept John II, who died a prisoner in London, Charles V, who very nearly overcame England and the enigmatic Charles VII, who did at last drive the English out. Desmond Seward's account traces the changes that led to France's final victory and brings to life all the intrigue and colour of the last chivalric combats as they gave way to a more brutal modern warfare.

Many Italian cities look back with pride to the days when they were independent republics: Naples, on the contrary, remembers its days as a royal capital, the brilliant administrative and political centre of The Kingdom of The Two Sicilies, ruled over successively by the house of Anjou, Aragon and Bourbon. Once 'the third city of Europe', today it is one of the least visited of the continent's great cities. The same bustling lively atmosphere and magnificent buildings that one finds in Paris or London exist here. This book is a topographical anthology which recreates for today's tourist the drama, the history and the life of a city in buildings and locations that still exist today. An indispensable companion, it brings the past of Naples vividly to life for the traveller of the present. Extracts from chronicles, memoirs, biographies, letters and novels refer to the most important and beautiful buildings in and around Naples, as well as the lives of travellers to and residents of this famous city. This is a guide to the vanished glories of royal Naples: the departure of the Borbone King Francis II in 1860 as the Risorgimento movement brought about unification of Italy. It records the turbulent and bloodstained days of the Angevin Queens Giovanna I and II, and the revolt led by the young fisherman Masaniello; the artistic life of the city that Petrarch knew, where Caravaggio, Ribera and Giordano painted, and which attracted such diverse visitors as Nelson and Lady Hamilton, Casanova, Goethe, Mozart, John Evelyn and Angelica Kauffman among countless others. The dazzling world of the royalty - their palaces overlooking the legendarily beautiful Bay of Naples, their court balls and ceremonies - is described as well as the pulsing, overcrowded slums of the Spanish quarter and the seafront with its tarantella-dancers, iced-melon vendors, pickpockets and throbbing Neopolitan songs. Naples is still, as it always has been, a city of challenging contrasts: sunlight and squalor, grandeur and decay, gaiety and despair. Its slums and its crime-rate have deterred many, but those who persist will discover, through this illuminating guide, the hidden glories of this famous city.

A brilliant new interpretation of one of the most dramatic periods of British history. The Wars of the Roses didn't end at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485. Despite the death of Richard III and Henry VII's victory, it continued underground into the following century with plots, pretenders and subterfuge by the ousted white rose faction. In a brand new interpretation of this turning point in history, well known historian Desmond Seward reviews the story of the Tudors' seizure of the throne and shows that for many years they were far from secure. He challenges the way we look at the reigns of Henry VII and Henry VIII, explaining why there were so many Yorkist pretenders and conspiracies, and why the new dynasty had such difficulty establishing itself. King Richard's nephews, the Earl of Warwick and the little known de la Pole brothers, all had the support of dangerous enemies overseas, while England was split when the lowly Perkin Warbeck skilfully impersonated one of the princes in the tower in order to claim the right to the throne. Warwick's surviving sister Margaret also became the desperate focus of hopes that the White Rose would be reborn. The book also offers a new perspective on why Henry VIII, constantly threatened by treachery, real or imagined, and desperate to secure his power with a male heir, became a tyrant. Praise for Desmond Seward's A Brief History of the War of the Roses: 'It is hard to imagine a historian more in command of his subject... The result is history as compelling as any novel' Independent 'This is a splendidly and vividly written book.' Evening Standard A Brief History of the Hundred Years Wars: 'A well-written narrative, beautifully illustrated, and which takes into account most recent scholarship. It is also a good read.' Richard Cobb, New Statesman

During the fifteenth century England was split in a bloody conflict between the Houses of York and Lancaster over who should claim the crown. The civil wars consumed the whole nation in a series of battles that eventually saw the Tudor dynasty take power. In A Brief History of the Wars of the Roses, Desmond Seward tells the story of this complex and dangerous period of history through the lives of five men and women who experienced the conflict first hand. In a gripping narrative the personal trials of the principal characters interweave with the major events and personalities of one of the most significant turning points in British history.

From 1337 to 1453 England repeatedly invaded France on the pretext that her kings had a right to the French throne. Though it was a small, poor country, England for most of those "hundred years" won the battles, sacked the towns and castles, and dominated the war. The protagonists of the Hundred Years War are among the most colorful in European history: Edward III, the Black Prince; Henry V, who was later immortalized by Shakespeare; the splendid but inept John II, who died a prisoner in London; Charles V, who very nearly overcame England; and the enigmatic Charles VII, who at last drove the English out. Desmond Seward's critically-acclaimed account of the Hundred Years War brings to life all of the intrigue, beauty, and royal to-the-death-fighting of that legendary century-long conflict.