Publisher's Synopsis
Your Country Needs You! Edward the Abdicator and Peace for our Time - the latest volume of GREAT TALES FROM ENGLISH HISTORY enters the twentieth century with a flourish. Starting in 1690, in the reign of William III and Queen Mary, this crackling collection of freshly researched stories recounts the modern history of England.
Robert Lacey's gift for marrying great events with extraordinary individuals illustrates familiar tales from new, often quirky and always entertaining angles. The origin of the Luddite name is explained; the mutiny on the BOUNTY is attributed to fruit; the showdown on Culloden Moor ends the Scottish challenge to the English throne and gives rise to the world's first national anthem. These centuries also see the passing of milestones in social history, from the championing of the Rights of Man to the long struggle for equal rights for women; but, perhaps most significantly, these tales also trace extraordinary advances in science and technology, right up to the revolution in genetics.
This is history with pace, punch and personality. Robert Lacey's pinpoint accuracy in research is matched by his unerring instinct for the stories behind the headlines of history.
