The only historical dictionary that focuses on sixteenth-century England, this reference work offers nearly 300 articles on the age of the English Tudors. The England of Shakespeare, Henry VIII, and Elizabeth I is one of the most popular periods of British history. Ronald H. Fritze and his associate editors have identified the political, military, religious, social, and economic issues that were crucial to the era, and have compiled articles, a chronology and suggestions for further reading on each topic.

Sixty Tudor England specialists contributed to the nearly 300 entries, each of which includes an appendix with a chronology and a selected bibliography for further reading. The entries, ranging from 250-2000 words each, discuss people, events, laws, institutions and special topics such as exploration. They are written to be understood by the educated non-specialist. The primary focus is on England, but a number of articles on Scottish and Irish history have been included when they relate to England. This work is valuable to students, scholars and anyone interested in sixteenth century England, English Renaissance literature, or history.

Fully annotated and completely updated—the most comprehensive guide to reference books in the field of history. Reference Sources in History catalogs atlases, encyclopedias, dictionaries, handbooks, sourcebooks, bibliographies, and chronologies and makes sense of it all. Its broad scope and systematic organization make it an accessible, reliable resource for experienced and inexperienced researchers alike. Fully annotated and updated, the new edition summarizes hundreds of reference works on every conceivable subject in history—from ancient to modern, from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe. This edition also reflects the dramatic impact of the digital revolution on historical research by integrating a wide range of Internet and CD-ROM sources. Reference Sources in History is a time-saving alternative to searching the reference stacks or getting lost in an online thicket of dubious historical websites.

A ready reference for general readers, undergraduate and graduate students, teachers, and scholars, this volume contains 320 entries by 80 experts, covering a broad range of topics, plus a lengthy chronology and extensive bibliography. The entries are based on current scholarship and are followed by pertinent references. Among the items included are biographies of kings and queens, ministers, opposition leaders, ecclesiastics, and literary figures; entries on the army, navy, courts, and other institutions; local government and officials; important court cases and documents, such as the Great Contract, Petition of Right, and Bill of Rights; and controversial examples of the Royal prerogative, such as the dispensing and suspending of powers. The volume also covers the Civil Wars, Glorious Revolution, and other rebellions; the Dutch, French, and Spanish Wars; and diplomatic events. Anglicanism, Puritanism, and other religious topics are included as well as political groups, such as the Cavaliers and Roundheads, and radicals like the Diggers and Fifth Monarchists. Social and economic topics include agriculture, mercantilism, poor laws, population, and taxation. The dictionary also covers cultural topics, conceptual topics such as divine right, and topics on women. Although the book focuses on England, it also includes entries on Ireland, Scotland, and Wales and topics relating to those areas.

People have been attracted to the lure of distant, exotic places throughout the ages, and over the centuries a vast store of legends and lore relating to travel have grown up. This encyclopedia represents a complilation of travel legends and lore of civilizations throughout the world.

Providing the chronological setting for many of Shakespeare's plays, various swashbuckling novels from Sir Walter Scott's to Robert Louis Stevenson's, and such Hollywood films as "Braveheart," late Medieval England is superficially well known. Yet its true complexity remains elusive, locked in the covers of specialized monographs and journal articles. In over 300 entries written by 80 scholars, this book makes the factual information and historical interpretations of the era readily available. Covering political, military, religious, and constitutional subjects as well as social and economic topics, the volume is easy to use, comprehensive, and authoritative. It provides a useful resource for undergraduate and graduate students, scholars, and educated laymen.

Rightly characterized as an age of crisis, the 14th century saw the Hundred Years War, the Black Death, the Peasants' Revolt of 1381, the Avignon Papacy, and the Great Schism of the Western Church. All placed great stresses on English society, aggravating old problems and creating new ones. In the late Middle Ages, parliament became an important element in English government; Cambridge and Oxford universities attained European-wide reputations; and general literacy increased. The Church remained a paramount religious, political, and social institution, but its independence and intellectual monopoly slipped. The entries in this book synthesize recent scholarship on these and other historical events. While emphasizing political, religious, constitutional and military topics, the book also provides brief introductions to social, economic, cultural, and intellectual topics. It is a valuable guide for those wishing to understand this complex, tumultuous, and until recently, poorly understood era.

This cogent exploration of the murky world of pseudo-history, now available in paperback, reveals the proven fact, the informed speculation and the pure fiction behind lost continents, ancient super-civilizations and conspiratorial cover-ups - as well as the revisionist historical foundations behind religions such as the Nation of Islam and the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-day Saints. Drawing on the best scholarship available, Ronald H. Fritze shows that in spite of strong, mainstream historical evidence to the contrary, many of these ideas have proved durable and gained widespread acceptance. As the examples in Invented Knowledge reveal, pseudo-historians capitalize on and exploit anomalies in evidence to support their claims, rather than examining the preponderance of research as a whole. From Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull to 10,000 BC, the sensationalist topics of pseudo-history captivate audiences and permeate popular culture. Invented Knowledge offers many entertaining and enthralling examples of spurious narratives, artificial chronologies and ersatz theories in a book guaranteed to intrigue, inform and provoke both skeptics and believers alike.

"Invented Knowledge" is an exploration of the murky world of fake science and pseudo-history: fields that generally rely on lost continents, ancient super-civilizations, conspiratorial cover-ups, preternaturally daring and undocumented discoveries, and even vast Satan-inspired plots to offer an alternative version of the past. At once lively and authoritative, Ronald H. Fritze illuminates the phenomenon of false history by telling the story of a select group of pseudo-historical ideas. He explores legends such as the lost continent of Atlantis, and the original settlement of the Americas by a European people, who established a glorious civilization only to be supplanted by the invading 'Red Indian', and whose only remains are the many mounds scattered across the eastern United States. He also discusses the beliefs of more recent religious groups, such as the Nation of Islam and Christian Identity. Fritze shows that in spite of, or perhaps because of, the strongest rejections of mainstream historians, and the lack of scientific evidence, some of these ideas have proved very durable, and gained widespread acceptance in the public mind. Such ideas can also be deadly - the Nazis, for example, believed in a false version of European history in which the German people were a superior race destined to conquer the world. With many diverting examples of spurious narrative, artificial chronology and ersatz theory, "Invented Knowledge" also unravels the disputes and debates surrounding controversial books such as 1421: The Year China Discovered America, Black Athena, The Holy Blood and The Holy Grail and The Da Vinci Code.

Now available in paperback, Egyptomania takes us on a historical journey to unearth the Egypt of the imagination, a land of strange gods, mysterious magic, secret knowledge, monumental pyramids, enigmatic sphinxes and immense wealth. Egypt has always exerted a powerful attraction on the Western mind, and an array of figures have been drawn to the idea of Egypt. Even the practical-minded Napoleon dreamed of Egyptian glory and helped open the antique land to explorers. Ronald H. Fritze goes beyond art and architecture to reveal Egyptomania's impact on religion, philosophy, historical study, literature, travel, science and popular culture. All those who remain captivated by the ongoing phenomenon of Egyptomania will revel in the mysteries uncovered in this book.