A Short History of the World (28 page)

"Lars Brownworth’s The Normans is like a gallop through the Middle Ages on a fast warhorse. It is rare to find an author who takes on a subject so broad and so complex, while delivering a book that is both fast-paced and readable."

Bill Yenne, author of
Julius Caesar: Lessons in Leadership from the Great Conqueror; The White Rose of Stalingrad
and
Sitting Bull

There is much more to the Norman story than the Battle of Hastings. These descendants of the Vikings who settled in France, England, and Italy - but were not strictly French, English, or Italian - played a large role in creating the modern world. They were the success story of the Middle Ages; a footloose band of individual adventurers who transformed the face of medieval Europe. During the course of two centuries they launched a series of extraordinary conquests, carving out kingdoms from the North Sea to the North African coast.

In
The Normans
, author Lars Brownworth follows their story, from the first shock of a Viking raid on an Irish monastery to the exile of the last Norman Prince of Antioch. In the process he brings to vivid life the Norman tapestry’s rich cast of characters: figures like Rollo the Walker, William Iron-Arm, Tancred the Monkey King, and Robert Guiscard. It presents a fascinating glimpse of a time when a group of restless adventurers had the world at their fingertips.

50 REASONS TO HATE THE FRENCH!

“If the French can inspire a book as funny as this, perhaps we shouldn’t hate them after all!”

Toby Young, Spectator critic

“Deliciously irreverent and provocative!”
 

Christopher Silvester, Independent on Sunday

You winced when the
Sun
accused the French of being weasels over Iraq. You shuddered when the U.S. Congress renamed French fries. You sighed when the French rejected the European Constitution they’d written themselves. But come on, admit it: deep down there’s something in all of us that likes to take a swipe at our Gallic friends.
 

This ebook provides you with fifty painstakingly researched, wittily written reasons to back up your views. From sinking the Rainbow Warrior, portraits of leaders past and present, to Serge Gainsbourg, the Quasimodo of French pop, this book answers every question you’ve got about the French – except one: “Why only fifty?’

the thing about Islam

exposing the myths, facts and controversies

Islam in the twenty-first century is at the very heart of world affairs, including its conflicts. More than any other world religion it has sparked heated debate, its name associated with some of the greatest terrorist acts of our age. Some argue it is an intolerant faith that condones violence. Others go further, maintaining that terrorist attacks in recent times have showed Islam to have an inherently evil core. At the same time Muslims across the world have been left feeling that they have been subjected to hostility and victimisation. They themselves insist that Islam is peaceful and compassionate.
 

With such diverging opinions and heated debate, it is sometimes hard to know whom and what to believe and what is the truth of it? What does Islam actually have to say about society, human rights, the role of women, marriage, and homosexuality? How can a religion that purports to be peaceful and compassionate ever be made an excuse for the human atrocities such as those we have seen in recent times in the bombings in London and New York? What are the challenges for Islam in the modern age? And is the rift that exists between Muslim and non-Muslim something that can, in time, be made to heal? Or are just we too different?

the thing about Islam
is an engaging and intelligently written introduction to the Islamic faith and people – a must-read for anybody looking for a simple introduction to the subject.
 

A Short History of the World

Copyright © 2011 by Christopher Lascelles.

eBook ISBN 978-0-9571116-1-5

The book is also available as a paperback form Amazon.

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Notes

1.
K-T signifies Cretaceous-Tertiary, which are both names of geological periods.

2.
The little evidence we have for the evolution of man revolves around a very small number of skull and skeletal fragments found in different parts of the world.

3.
This is called the ‘Out of Africa’ theory.

4.
In all likelihood, there were other migrations between the two.

5.
Neanderthals originated in Europe while Homo Sapiens originated in Africa.

6.
We share 99.5 per cent of our DNA with Neanderthals.

7.
Earth’s history has been characterised by the coming and going of long ice ages. The Bering Strait may have been frozen just before the end of the last ice age in around 12,000 BC, allowing man to make the journey between the two continents.

8.
Neolithic means ‘New Stone Age’.

9.
The word 'Mesopotamia' comes from the Greek ‘mesos’- middle, and 'potamos' – river, i.e. land between the rivers.

10.
Indo-Europeans were a people who originated in an area between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea.

11.
In all likelihood, the Egyptians built their early pyramids with only copper and stone utensils, which makes the pyramids an even greater achievement than we might at first think, notwithstanding the untold misery of the workers that must have been involved in the process.

12.
Greece, Crete and even Italy have all been suggested as their place of origin.

13.
As related in the biblical Book of Samuel.

14.
Mycenae
 
was an early civilisation in present-day Greece which disappeared around the time of the Sea Peoples in circa 1200 BC.

15.
The Olympic Games.

16.
Since this time, ‘marathon’ has entered the language as a long and arduous undertaking, including a long run.

17.
Buddhism is not centred around a god – hence the arguments about whether it is a religion or not – but rather around the importance of the teaching, or the Dharma. To its adherents, Buddhism goes beyond religion and is more of a philosophy or way of life.

18.
Around 200 BC, Eratosthenes, a Greek living in Alexandria, deduced that the world was a sphere and even calculated its diameter with an accuracy that would not be surpassed for nearly 2,000 years. Another Greek, Aristarchus, claimed that the earth circled the sun between 1700 and 1800 years before Copernicus concluded the same.

19.
Other emperors would build the wall further.

20.
The Han Dynasty fell in AD 220. China would be united again only in AD 581.

21.
The month of August would be named after Emperor Augustus, who also declared himself a god.

22.
As quoted by the Roman Historian, Suetonius.

23.
The Gospel of Luke 5:21: ‘Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemy?
 

Who can forgive sins but God alone?’

24.
For many years, the numbering system of years was referred to as BC (Before Christ) and AD (Anno Domini), but many people now refer to the same period as BCE (Before the Common Era) and CE (the Common Era). They refer to the same dates.

25.
It is believed that the apostles Peter and Paul were killed during this time.

26.
After a defeat, it was customary for Rome’s enemies to supply labour and food, and give a number of young men for service in the Roman army.

27.
Alaric initially threatened to sack Rome in AD 408 and the city was saved only when it promised to pay 4,000 pounds of gold. When it refused to pay, the Goths sacked the city.

28.
Located in present-day Senegal and Mauritania, not in present-day Ghana, as the name might suggest.

29.
A Splendid Exchange,
by William Bernstein, Atlantic Books Ltd, 2008.

30.
The House of Wisdom
, by Jonathan Lyons, Bloomsbury edition.

31.
The House of Wisdom
, by Jonathan Lyons, Bloomsbury edition.

32.
Worlds at War,
by Anthony Pagden, Oxford Press.

33.
King Alfred was the only English king to earn the epithet ’the Great’.

34.
The Seljuk leader was awarded the title of Sultan from the Abbasid Caliph, becoming the first Muslim ruler to use the title.

35.
The Seljuks also conquered Syria and Palestine from the Shiite Fatimids.

36.
The Fatimid Dynasty came to an end under Saladin.

37.
Richard’s bravery on the Third Crusade earned him the epithet of ‘Lionheart’.

38.
John’s unpopular rule after Richard’s death in 1199 eventually forced upon him the signing of the Magna Carta in 1215. The Magna Carta was a document, signed by the king, agreeing that his will was not arbitrary. It became the basis for citizens rights.

39.
Ironically, it was the Ayyubids who had originally brought many of the Mamluks to Egypt.

40.
Ultimately, they fell before the onslaught of another Turkish force, the Ottomans, in 1517.

41.
The House of Wisdom
, by Jonathan Lyons, Bloomsbury edition.

42.
Worlds at War
, by Anthony Pagden, Oxford Press.

43.
The Seljuk Turks became vassals of the Mongols and, by the 14th century, their power was extinguished.

44.
The Chagatai Khanate grew steadily until the rise of Tamerlane, which destroyed its power. After Tamerlane's death, the Khanate remained as a minor state until the Qing Dynasty of China annexed it in the 18th century. The Il-Khanate of Persia, founded by Hulegu in 1260, survived for only a short time and collapsed into various successor states, with its Mongol ruling class eventually embracing Islam and being absorbed into the native populations of Persia and Iraq.