[i]This is my War. My War for Civilization. My War for Freedom. My Life. My Race. My Place. My Honour. My Home. Stranded in the battlefields of the Holy Land during the Great War, a battalion of West Indian volunteers fight for the Empire, the King and the Motherland. Their long search for identity and honour falls apart as the fragile hopes of young lives, both black and white, explode and shatter as reality, betrayal and race take their toll. At the Gates of Gaza is a highly charged, emotional and gripping look at a world in the midst of change.
‘Seventy percent of my constituents are white, Karen. I have to be a politician, who “happens” to be black. Not a black man who “happens” to be a politician.’ Karen loves politics. She’s a rising star but on the eve of a general election she risks her career and reputation in a bitter and contentious fight over whether to allow short lists for black Parliamentary candidates. Deselected by her party, and betrayed by the men she loves, Karen must embark on a relentless road to power and political redemption. Provocative and raw, Upper Cut unravels the fight for diversity and black representation through today’s coalition politics, the hope and rebirth of New Labour and delves into the troubled heart of a Labour party struggling under the might of Thatcher’s Tory revolution. Upper Cut is inspired by true political events.
Inspired during a trip to Rome to write a work that would come to define a large portion of his life, Gibbon proceeded to write one of the most ambitious histories in the English language. «The History» is an epic narrative, comprised of six volumes, that covers thirteen centuries of Roman history. Beginning after Marcus Aurelius in 180 and concluding in 1453, Gibbon provides both the broad pattern and the illuminating details of this time period, covering an enormous number of characters and topics with insightful precision. The general objective of this history is to mark the gradual fall of the Roman Empire, stating many reasons for Rome's decay, from political decisions to religious behavior. Published between 1776 and 1788, «The History» has all of the detached irony and objective quality of eighteenth century prose, and it is additionally praised for its extensive and accurate use of reference materials. Gibbon's use of citations became the precursor to today's footnotes, providing entertaining commentary on both ancient Rome and the Great Britain of his own time. Now called the 'modern historian of ancient Rome,' Gibbon's bold work has become the model of most modern historians. Contained here is volume V of VI, representing chapters XLIX through LVIII and is extensively annotated by H. H. Milman.
Written in the 2nd century by the Greek historian Polybius, «The Histories» is a multi-volume work detailing many of the events, people, and ideas of the Hellenistic Period. While his focus is the space of time in which ancient Rome became a world power from 220 to 167 BC, Polybius also discusses his role as a 'pragmatic historian', a discourse on fate (called tyche), and the superiority of the mixed constitution. Though all forty volumes have not survived to the present day, the complete books extant today cover the affairs of all the important nations of the time, including Egypt, Greece, and Spain, as well as the first and second Punic Wars. Polybius speaks at length on the government of the Romans, citing it as the reason for Rome's success as a force of the world. Though it includes a couple of digressions concerning lesser issues of the time, «The Histories» has proven and continues to be a valuable text when studying the Hellenistic time period and manner of writing.
Commonly acknowledged as one of the earliest written accounts of history, this classic work of Thucydides chronicles the war between Athens and Sparta during the fifth century B.C. While dispassionately and accurately reporting the events of this ancient Greek war in a strict chronology, Thucydides includes the causes of the conflict, descriptions of battlefield strategy, political opinions, and all other aspects of the war in brilliant detail with the tactful insights of an intellectual and observant eyewitness. Himself an Athenian general who served in the war, Thucydides relates the invasions, treacheries, plagues, amazing speeches, ambitions, virtues, and emotions of the conflict between two of Greece's most dominant city-states in a work that has the feel of a tragic drama. Though in part an analysis of war policy, «The History» is also a dramatic account of the rise and fall of Athens by an Athenian man. As such, it has the ring of historical warning that has sounded over two thousand years, continuing for modern military, politics, and international relations an ageless admonition.
Procopius, from Palaestina Prima, or modern day Israel, is an important first hand source for the history of the 6th century, especially concerning the Emperor Justinian. Procopius was an incredibly learned man, having received a classical education, possibly from the famed School of Gaza. He would become a legal adviser for Belisarius, Justinian's chief military commander and accompany him to the war front, an experience he would document in his «Wars of Justinian.» The ancient scholar's most famous work however is «The Secret History,» which tells a more intimate and revealing history of Emperor Justinian and his wife, Empress Theodora, as well as Belisarius, and his wife Antonina. This fascinating document of imperialism is brutal in its honesty, often portraying its subjects in an unflattering light. «The Secret History» mentioned in the «Suda,» a tenth century Byzantine encyclopedia, had been lost to history until it was rediscovered in the 17th century in the Vatican library. Scholars and history buffs alike will find Procopius' «The Secret History» an invaluable historical work from a man who is referred to as the last major historian of the ancient world.
One of the most important historical records from classical antiquity, «The Annals of Imperial Rome» chronicles the history of the Roman Empire from the reign of Tiberius beginning in 14 A.D. to the reign of Nero ending in 66 A.D. Written by Cornelius Tacitus, Roman Senator during the second century A.D., «The Annals of Imperial Rome» is a detailed first-hand account of the early Roman Empire. Presented in this volume is the classic translation of Alfred John Church and William Jackson Brodribb.
Inspired during a trip to Rome to write a work that would come to define a large portion of his life, Gibbon proceeded to write one of the most ambitious histories in the English language. «The History» is an epic narrative, comprised of six volumes, that covers thirteen centuries of Roman history. Beginning after Marcus Aurelius in 180 and concluding in 1453, Gibbon provides both the broad pattern and the illuminating details of this time period, covering an enormous number of characters and topics with insightful precision. The general objective of this history is to mark the gradual fall of the Roman Empire, stating many reasons for Rome's decay, from political decisions to religious behavior. Published between 1776 and 1788, «The History» has all of the detached irony and objective quality of eighteenth century prose, and it is additionally praised for its extensive and accurate use of reference materials. Gibbon's use of citations became the precursor to today's footnotes, providing entertaining commentary on both ancient Rome and the Great Britain of his own time. Now called the 'modern historian of ancient Rome,' Gibbon's bold work has become the model of most modern historians. Contained here is volume III of VI, representing chapters XXVII through XXXVIII and is extensively annotated by H. H. Milman.
A Roman historian of Greek descent, Appian was born in Alexandria (c. 95), received a formal education and later moved to Rome to serve as a barrister (c. 120). He was eventually presented with the title of procurator under Antoninus Pius, which allowed him to spend time on his «Historia Romana». The collection totaled 24 books written in Greek dialect, of which, unfortunately, only about half have survived, either complete or in large fragments. Beginning with Appian's own preface, the work chronicles nine centuries of Roman history, including the Spanish, Hannibalic, Punic, Illyrian, Syrian, and Mithridatic wars, and most significantly in the second volume, the Civil Wars. Although Appian's contributions were based on his limited knowledge of Republic institutions, he spent considerable time compiling, organizing and reducing material from such Greek and Latin authors such as Hieronymus of Cardia, Polybius, Gaius Asinius Pollio, Caesar, and Augustus. «The Roman History» is today an invaluable record of military history. Here in this edition we have the first of two volumes in which Appian's history of Rome's foreign wars are detailed.
Widely referred to as the “Father of History”, Greek Historian Herodotus lived during the 5th century BC and “The Histories” is generally accepted as the first work of historical literature in Western Civilization. Departing from the ancient Homeric tradition of treating historical subjects as epically romantic figures, Herodotus instead approached his subjects with a systematic method of investigation. “The Histories” of Herodotus describe the important wars of the fifth century BC. This work conveys the careful research and deliberate documentation of martial battles between the Greek city-states and the Persian Empire. The reasons for his efforts, as explained by Herodotus, were to preserve the memory and glory of human achievements and deeds, as well as to record why the Greco-Persian Wars took place. Organized in nine books, which are named after the Muses, he unfolds the various battles while making a comparison of the widely differing governments of the antagonists. In undertaking his “Histories,” Herodotus unfolds a holistic view of the classical world with considerable narrative skill and charisma. This edition follows the translation of George Rawlinson, includes an introduction by George Swayne, and a preface by H. L. Havell.