Hardened by battle, seasoned by war, four adventurers caught in the path of one of history's most enigmatic leaders. 1571. At the great naval battle of Lepanto the Ottoman Empire is finally defeated, and it seems that Europe is safe. But then Nicholas Ingoldsby is summoned to London by the Queen herself and sent on a diplomatic mission to Constantinople, the heart of the old enemy - and then onward, to a little-known but rising power called Muscovy, ruled by a deranged but cunning czar - Ivan the Terrible. The rise of Muscovy has also caught the attention of the Ottomans; and their allies, the wild Tatar horsemen of the Asiatic steppes, Russia's ancient enemy. Soon Nicholas and his fellow travellers are caught up in their most dangerous adventure yet, trapped in a doomed Muscovy with a vast army of Tatar tribesmen riding down upon them, vowed to burn the city to the ground and extinguish Russia for ever...

The siege of Malta: A brutal combat. A test of courage. A battle that will change history. Previously published as CLASH OF EMPIRES: THE GREAT SIEGE. 1565: a small island in the middle of the Mediterranean stands gatekeeper between East and West. It is about to become the scene for one of the most powerful stories of bravery, battle and bloodlust: the siege of Malta. Formed in the Holy Land in the 11th century, a small band of knights had long sought a home. Driven from their lands by Ottoman might, they came to rest in Malta from where they watched the Turks and corsairs raid the Spanish empire. As word came from Constantinople that Malta was in the sights of the Ottoman Empire, all of Europe watched a force of over 30,000 men besieged the island - peopled by 500 knights and a few thousand local soldiers. On that small rock an epic struggle will be played out - the story of individual men, warriors and slaves, but also the story of two worlds colliding.

An in-depth look at the military strategy of the first Russian ruler to invade Europe. Ivan’s campaigns against the Livonian Confederation were initially very successful. In 1558, Russian soldiers occupied Dorpat and Narva, and laid siege to Reval, creating vital trade routes over the Baltic Sea. At the Battle of Ergema, the Russians defeated the knights of the Livonian Order, fueling Ivan’s dreams of a Russian Empire. However, as Erik XIV of Sweden recaptured Reval, and the Poles joined forces with the Lithuanians, the war began to turn against Ivan. In 1571, an army of 120,000 Crimean Tatars crossed the River Ugra, crushed the Russian defenses, and burned Moscow to the ground. As Ivan became increasingly paranoid and violent, he carried out a number of terrible massacres. It is thought that more than forty thousand were killed when the Russians sacked the town of Novgorod in 1570, and many were tortured and murdered in front of Ivan and his son. This book describes the organization and equipment of the tsar’s army and the forces of his enemies, the Poles, Lithuanians, Tatars, and Livonian Knights. The narrative examines all of Russia’s military campaigns in Eastern Europe and Western Siberia during the period of 1533 to 1584—in the first specialist study of Ivan the Terrible’s military strategy to be published in English.

The acclaimed Medieval historian examines how the crusades of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries reshaped the Mediterranean and influenced the globe. In the late Middle Ages, the forces of Christianity engaged in a series of epic battles with the Ottoman Empire. Though these later crusades are often overshadowed by earlier conflicts, they hold profound historical significance. They were the bridge between the medieval and modern periods, between feudalism and colonialism. The Last Crusaders is about this period’s last great conflict between East and West. From the great naval campaigns and the ferocious struggle to dominate the North African shore, the hostility spread along trade routes, consuming nations and cultures, destroying dynasties, and spawning the first colonial empires in South America and the Indian Ocean. “Rogerson's narrative colors the conflicts of the sixteenth century with the derring-do of kings, corsair, and crusaders; this book will keep readers up long past bedtime.” —Foreword Magazine

The book presents the history of Estonia in easily readable form and with compassion for the people whose lives were affected by the events that occurred in the Baltic region. The prolonged occupation of the Baltic region by different European nations not only caused great hardships for the Estonian people, but it also integrated them into the western European cultural community. In that sense, the history of Estonia has had a happy ending. After seven centuries of domination by foreign powers, the people of Estonia are now free, they are well educated, they are creative, they are hard-working, and they are patriotic. The Republic of Estonia has earned the respect and admiration of the people of the world and deserves to be recognized as a modern and successful nation.

What was happening in early history around the world? Investigate the early history Africa, learn about Russia during the Middle Ages, and discover the Byzantine Empire, the Vikings, and the Crusaders.

The 20th century's most protracted conflict, the Cold War, also provided the longest and most stable peace in the history of the modern world--a fragile peace that came at the price of national freedom for many people. With the demise of the Cold War, new nearly-unknown countries, long ignored or suppressed, came to the attention of the world, as ethnic and national conflicts, rooted in the multi-ethnic populations of the newly independent states, emerged. From Bosnia-Herzegovina and Macedonia to Eritrea and Uzbekistan, Miniature Empires provides an essential guide to the states recognized since 1989 and the "nations" that dwell within their borders. Miniature Empires is the first reference book to address the post-Cold War nationalist resurgence by focusing on the nations within the new nation-states--both the core nationalities and the national minorities. Each article highlights the historical, political, social, and economic evolution of the new nations. Outstanding Academic Book

Collection of documents from a section of the World Council of Churches Archives, dealing with Germany and fifteen other countries during the period 1932-1957. Documents include: newspapers, press clippings, press releases, telegrams, correspondence, minutes, manuscripts and personal notes. The collection also includes reports on the situation of the Jews in several European countries, as well as correspondence and personal letters of such notable individuals as Dietrich Bonhoeffer, George Bell, Hans Schönfeld, Karl Barth, James McDonald, Georges Casalis, Adolf Freudenberg, Martin Niemöller, Otto Dibelius, Gerhart Riegner, Marc Boegner, and Willem Adolf Visser 't Hooft. The archives document not only the issues and events of the War, but also the beginning years of the World Council of Churches.

This ground-breaking 5-volume reference is a comprehensive print and electronic resource covering the history of warfare from ancient times to the present day, across the entire globe. Arranged in A-Z format, the Encyclopedia provides an overview of the most important events, people, and terms associated with warfare - from the Punic Wars to the Mongol conquest of China, and the War on Terror; from the Ottoman Sultan, Suleiman ‘the Magnificent’, to the Soviet Military Commander, Georgi Konstantinovich Zhukov; and from the crossbow to chemical warfare. Individual entries range from 1,000 to 6,000 words with the longer, essay-style contributions giving a detailed analysis of key developments and ideas. Drawing on an experienced and internationally diverse editorial board, the Encyclopedia is the first to offer readers at all levels an extensive reference work based on the best and most recent scholarly research. The online platform further provides interactive cross-referencing links and powerful searching and browsing capabilities within the work and across Wiley-Blackwell’s comprehensive online reference collection. Learn more at www.encyclopediaofwar.com. Selected by Choice as a 2013 Outstanding Academic Title Recipient of a 2012 PROSE Award honorable mention

The Crusades and the Expansion of Catholic Christendom, 1000-1714 is a fascinating and accessible survey that places the medieval Crusades in their European context, and examines, for the first time, their impact on European expansion. Taking a unique approach that focuses on the motivation behind the Crusades, John France chronologically examines the whole crusading movement, from the development of a ‘crusading impulse’ in the eleventh century through to an examination of the relationship between the Crusades and the imperialist imperatives of the early modern period. France provides a detailed examination of the first Crusade, the expansion and climax of crusading during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries and the failure and fragmentation of such practices in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. Concluding with an assessment of the influence of the Crusades across history, and replete with illustrations, maps, timelines, guides for further reading, and a detailed list of rulers across Europe and the Muslim world, this study provides students with an essential guide to a central aspect of medieval history.