Renaissance in History & Nonfiction eBooks

The Pirate Queen

Queen Elizabeth I, Her Pirate Adventurers, and the Dawn of Empire

by Susan Ronald ...

“A highly colorful, swashbuckling read, one that will give you new respect for Britain’s first Elizabeth.” —Seattle TimesAn illuminating revisionist biography about Queen Elizabeth I and her merchant-adventurers who terrorized the seas, extended the Empire, and amassed great wealth for the throne.Extravagant, whimsical, and hot-tempered, Elizabeth was the epitome of power, both feared and admired ... Read more

$11.99 CAD

“A highly colorful, swashbuckling read, one that will give you new respect for Britain’s first Elizabeth.” —Seattle TimesAn illuminating revisionist biography about Queen Elizabeth I and her merchant-adventurers who terrorized the seas, extended the Empire, and amassed great wealth for the throne.Extravagant, whimsical, and hot-tempered, Elizabeth was the epitome of power, both feared and admired
... Read more
The Prince Who Would Be King

The Life and Death of Henry Stuart

by Sarah Fraser ...

Henry Stuart’s life is the last great forgotten Jacobean tale. Shadowed by the gravity of the Thirty Years’ War and the huge changes taking place across Europe in seventeenth-century society, economy, politics and empire, his life was visually and verbally gorgeous.NOW THE SUBJECT OF BBC2 DOCUMENTARY The Best King We Never HadHenry Stuart, Prince of Wales was once the hope of Britain. Eldest son ... Read more

$26.99 CAD

Henry Stuart’s life is the last great forgotten Jacobean tale. Shadowed by the gravity of the Thirty Years’ War and the huge changes taking place across Europe in seventeenth-century society, economy, politics and empire, his life was visually and verbally gorgeous.NOW THE SUBJECT OF BBC2 DOCUMENTARY The Best King We Never HadHenry Stuart, Prince of Wales was once the hope of Britain. Eldest son
... Read more
A World Lit Only by Fire

The Medieval Mind and the Renaissance - Portrait of an Age

by William Manchester ...

An absorbing history of the Middle Ages from the acclaimed historian William Manchester, author of The Last Lion**.**From tales of chivalrous knights to the barbarity of trial by ordeal, no era has been a greater source of awe, horror, and wonder than the Middle Ages. In handsomely crafted prose, and with the grace and authority of his extraordinary gift for narrative history, William Manchester ... Read more

$12.99 CAD

An absorbing history of the Middle Ages from the acclaimed historian William Manchester, author of The Last Lion**.**From tales of chivalrous knights to the barbarity of trial by ordeal, no era has been a greater source of awe, horror, and wonder than the Middle Ages. In handsomely crafted prose, and with the grace and authority of his extraordinary gift for narrative history, William Manchester
... Read more
The Italian Wars 1494-1559

War, State and Society in Early Modern Europe

by Christine Shaw, Michael Mallett ...

Series series Modern Wars In Perspective
The Italian Wars 1494–1559 outlines the major impact that these wars had, not just on the history of Italy, but on the history of Europe as a whole. It provides the first detailed account of the entire course of the wars, covering all the campaigns and placing the military conflicts in their political, diplomatic, social and economic contexts.Throughout the book, new developments in military ... Read more

$81.30 CAD

The Italian Wars 1494–1559 outlines the major impact that these wars had, not just on the history of Italy, but on the history of Europe as a whole. It provides the first detailed account of the entire course of the wars, covering all the campaigns and placing the military conflicts in their political, diplomatic, social and economic contexts.Throughout the book, new developments in military
... Read more
Lev's Violin

An Italian Adventure

by Helena Attlee ...

*A RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK*'Utterly enthralling - a beautifully-written voyage of discovery that takes us deep into the heart of music-making' Deborah MoggachFrom the moment she hears Lev's violin for the first time, Helena Attlee is captivated. She is told that it is an Italian instrument, named after its former Russian owner. Eager to discover all she can about its ancestry and the stories ... Read more

$10.99 CAD

*A RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK*'Utterly enthralling - a beautifully-written voyage of discovery that takes us deep into the heart of music-making' Deborah MoggachFrom the moment she hears Lev's violin for the first time, Helena Attlee is captivated. She is told that it is an Italian instrument, named after its former Russian owner. Eager to discover all she can about its ancestry and the stories
... Read more
The Plantagenets

The Kings Who Made England

by Dan Jones ...

Eight generations of the greatest and worst kings and queens that this country has ever seen – from the White Ship to the Lionheart, bad King John to the Black Prince and John of Gaunt – this is the dynasty that invented England as we still know it today – great history to appeal to readers of Ken Follet, Bernard Cornwell, Tom HollandEngland’s greatest royal dynasty, the Plantagenets, ruled over ... Read more

$11.99 CAD

Eight generations of the greatest and worst kings and queens that this country has ever seen – from the White Ship to the Lionheart, bad King John to the Black Prince and John of Gaunt – this is the dynasty that invented England as we still know it today – great history to appeal to readers of Ken Follet, Bernard Cornwell, Tom HollandEngland’s greatest royal dynasty, the Plantagenets, ruled over
... Read more
Pepyss London: Everyday Life in London 1650-1703

Everyday Life in London 1650-1703

by Stephen Porter ...

Samuel Pepyss London was a turbulent, boisterous city, enduring the strains caused by foreign wars, the Great Plague and the Great Fire, yet growing and prospering. The Restoration in 1660 brought the reopening of the theatres, with women appearing on the stage for the first time, and the period saw the development of English opera and the first public concerts. Pepys lived through a time of ... Read more

$11.24 CAD

Samuel Pepyss London was a turbulent, boisterous city, enduring the strains caused by foreign wars, the Great Plague and the Great Fire, yet growing and prospering. The Restoration in 1660 brought the reopening of the theatres, with women appearing on the stage for the first time, and the period saw the development of English opera and the first public concerts. Pepys lived through a time of
... Read more
Elizabeth I and Her Circle

by Susan Doran ...

This is the inside story of Elizabeth I's inner circle and the crucial human relationships which lay at the heart of her personal and political life. Using a wide range of original sources -- including private letters, portraits, verse, drama, and state papers -- Susan Doran provides a vivid and often dramatic account of political life in Elizabethan England and the queen at its centre, offering a ... Read more

$16.10 CAD

This is the inside story of Elizabeth I's inner circle and the crucial human relationships which lay at the heart of her personal and political life. Using a wide range of original sources -- including private letters, portraits, verse, drama, and state papers -- Susan Doran provides a vivid and often dramatic account of political life in Elizabethan England and the queen at its centre, offering a
... Read more
Machiavelli

The Art of Teaching People What to Fear

by Patrick Boucheron ...

Translated by Willard Wood ...

**A NEW YORK TIMES EDITORS’ CHOICEIn a series of poignant vignettes, a preeminent historian makes a compelling case for Machiavelli as an unjustly maligned figure with valuable political insights that resonate as strongly today as they did in his time.**Whenever a tempestuous period in history begins, Machiavelli is summoned, because he is known as one for philosophizing in dark times. In fact, ... Read more

$11.51 CAD

**A NEW YORK TIMES EDITORS’ CHOICEIn a series of poignant vignettes, a preeminent historian makes a compelling case for Machiavelli as an unjustly maligned figure with valuable political insights that resonate as strongly today as they did in his time.**Whenever a tempestuous period in history begins, Machiavelli is summoned, because he is known as one for philosophizing in dark times. In fact,
... Read more
Men-of-War

Life in Nelson’s Navy

by Patrick O’Brian ...

Out of print for many years, this is a brand new edition of the definitive companion to the acclaimed Aubrey-Maturin series of novels, written by the author himself.What was daily life in Nelson's navy really like, for everyone from the captain down to the rawest recruit? What did they eat? What songs did they sing? What was the schedule of watches? How were the officers and crew paid, and what ... Read more

$19.99 CAD

Out of print for many years, this is a brand new edition of the definitive companion to the acclaimed Aubrey-Maturin series of novels, written by the author himself.What was daily life in Nelson's navy really like, for everyone from the captain down to the rawest recruit? What did they eat? What songs did they sing? What was the schedule of watches? How were the officers and crew paid, and what
... Read more
The Time Traveller's Guide to Elizabethan England

by Ian Mortimer ...

Series series Ian Mortimer’s Time Traveller’s Guides
The past is a foreign country - this is your guide.We think of Queen Elizabeth I's reign (1558-1603) as a golden age. But what was it actually like to live in Elizabethan England? If you could travel to the past and walk the streets of London in the 1590s, where would you stay? What would you eat? What would you wear? Would you really have a sense of it being a glorious age? And if so, how would ... Read more

$12.99 CAD

The past is a foreign country - this is your guide.We think of Queen Elizabeth I's reign (1558-1603) as a golden age. But what was it actually like to live in Elizabethan England? If you could travel to the past and walk the streets of London in the 1590s, where would you stay? What would you eat? What would you wear? Would you really have a sense of it being a glorious age? And if so, how would
... Read more
The Gunpowder Plot: History in an Hour

by Sinead Fitzgibbon ...

Love history? Know your stuff with History in an Hour.‘Remember, remember, the fifth of November’. The gunpowder plot is a famed tale of treachery that continues to fascinate and capture the imagination four hundred years on.The Gunpowder Plot in an Hour reveals the elaborate background to the infamous plot to blow up the Houses of Parliament and James I, the ultimate act of treason. This ... Read more

$2.99 CAD or Free with Kobo Plus

Love history? Know your stuff with History in an Hour.‘Remember, remember, the fifth of November’. The gunpowder plot is a famed tale of treachery that continues to fascinate and capture the imagination four hundred years on.The Gunpowder Plot in an Hour reveals the elaborate background to the infamous plot to blow up the Houses of Parliament and James I, the ultimate act of treason. This
... Read more
Manners, Customs, And Dress During The Middle Ages, And During The Renaissance Period (Mobi Classics)

by Paul Lacroix ...

Illustrated with Nineteen Chromolithographic Prints by F. Kellerhoven and upwards of Four Hundred Engravings on Wood."The several successive editions of "The Arts of the Middle Ages and Period of the Renaissance" sufficiently testify to its appreciation by the public. The object of that work was to introduce the reader to a branch of learning to which access had hitherto appeared only permitted to ... Read more

$1.11 CAD or Free with Kobo Plus

Illustrated with Nineteen Chromolithographic Prints by F. Kellerhoven and upwards of Four Hundred Engravings on Wood."The several successive editions of "The Arts of the Middle Ages and Period of the Renaissance" sufficiently testify to its appreciation by the public. The object of that work was to introduce the reader to a branch of learning to which access had hitherto appeared only permitted to
... Read more
The History of England

by Hugh Trevor-Roper, Thomas Macaulay ...

One of the greatest figures of his age, Thomas Babington Macaulay (1800-59) was widely admired throughout his life for his prose, poetry, political acumen and oratorical skills. Among the most successful and enthralling histories ever written, his History of England won instantaneous success following the publication of its first volumes in 1849, and was rapidly translated into most European ... Read more

$12.99 CAD

One of the greatest figures of his age, Thomas Babington Macaulay (1800-59) was widely admired throughout his life for his prose, poetry, political acumen and oratorical skills. Among the most successful and enthralling histories ever written, his History of England won instantaneous success following the publication of its first volumes in 1849, and was rapidly translated into most European
... Read more
The Borgias

The Hidden History

by G. J. Meyer ...

An unprecedented portrait of the Renaissance-era Borgia family and their storied milieu, from the New York Times bestselling author of The Tudors“A vivid and at times startling reappraisal of one of the most notorious dynasties in history . . . If you thought you knew the Borgias, this book will surprise you.”—Tracy Borman, author of Queen of the Conqueror and Elizabeth’s Women“Fascinating . . . a ... Read more

$13.99 CAD

An unprecedented portrait of the Renaissance-era Borgia family and their storied milieu, from the New York Times bestselling author of The Tudors“A vivid and at times startling reappraisal of one of the most notorious dynasties in history . . . If you thought you knew the Borgias, this book will surprise you.”—Tracy Borman, author of Queen of the Conqueror and Elizabeth’s Women“Fascinating . . . a
... Read more
Florence

A Traveller's Reader

by Edward Chaney ...

'The best conceivable guide to the city' - an essential cultural history for all visitors of FlorenceThe rich and glorious past of one of the best loved cities in the world, Florence, is brought vividly to life for today's visitor in this collection which draws on letters, diaries and memoirs of travellers to Florence and the Florentines themselves.Of all Italian cities, Florence has always had ... Read more

$10.99 CAD

'The best conceivable guide to the city' - an essential cultural history for all visitors of FlorenceThe rich and glorious past of one of the best loved cities in the world, Florence, is brought vividly to life for today's visitor in this collection which draws on letters, diaries and memoirs of travellers to Florence and the Florentines themselves.Of all Italian cities, Florence has always had
... Read more
Heretics and Heroes

How Renaissance Artists and Reformation Priests Created Our World

by Thomas Cahill ...

Series series The Hinges of History
The New York Times bestselling author of How the Irish Saved Civilization reveals how the innovations of the Renaissance and the Reformation changed the Western world. • “Cahill is our king of popular historians.” —The Dallas Morning NewsThis was an age in which whole continents and peoples were discovered. It was an era of sublime artistic and scientific adventure, but also of newly powerful ... Read more

$15.99 CAD

The New York Times bestselling author of How the Irish Saved Civilization reveals how the innovations of the Renaissance and the Reformation changed the Western world. • “Cahill is our king of popular historians.” —The Dallas Morning NewsThis was an age in which whole continents and peoples were discovered. It was an era of sublime artistic and scientific adventure, but also of newly powerful
... Read more
Prince Eugene of Savoy

A Genius for War Against Louis XIV and the Ottoman Empire

by James Falkner ...

Prince Eugene of Savoy-Carignan (1663-1736), French born of an Italian mother, was destined for the church, but fled France as a young man and chose the life of a soldier. He entered the service of the Habsburg Emperor Leopold I in 1683 and rose rapidly to become one of the greatest military commanders of the age, playing a leading role in the wars against both the Ottoman Turks and the French. ... Read more

$18.62 CAD or Free with Kobo Plus

Prince Eugene of Savoy-Carignan (1663-1736), French born of an Italian mother, was destined for the church, but fled France as a young man and chose the life of a soldier. He entered the service of the Habsburg Emperor Leopold I in 1683 and rose rapidly to become one of the greatest military commanders of the age, playing a leading role in the wars against both the Ottoman Turks and the French.
... Read more
Montaigne

by Stefan Zweig ...

Translated by Will Stone ...

Series series Pushkin Collection
**“One of my favorite books.” —Ryan Holiday, *New York Times-*bestselling author and podcaster of The Daily StoicThis classic biography of Michel de Montaigne—the Renaissance philosopher and a founding father of humanism—is a heartfelt argument for the importance of intellectual freedom and tolerance.**Written by one of the 20th century’s most popular authors during WWII, Montaigne is a passionate ... Read more

$15.83 CAD

**“One of my favorite books.” —Ryan Holiday, *New York Times-*bestselling author and podcaster of The Daily StoicThis classic biography of Michel de Montaigne—the Renaissance philosopher and a founding father of humanism—is a heartfelt argument for the importance of intellectual freedom and tolerance.**Written by one of the 20th century’s most popular authors during WWII, Montaigne is a passionate
... Read more
Inventing the Renaissance

The Myth of a Golden Age

by Ada Palmer ...

WINNER OF THE HUGO AWARDA New Yorker Best Book of 2025An irreverent new take on the Renaissance, which reveals it as anything but Europe’s golden age.From the darkness of a plagued and war-torn Middle Ages, the Renaissance (we’re told) heralds the dawning of a new world—a halcyon age of art, prosperity, and rebirth. Hogwash! or so says award-winning novelist and historian A... ... Read more

$9.89 CAD

WINNER OF THE HUGO AWARDA New Yorker Best Book of 2025An irreverent new take on the Renaissance, which reveals it as anything but Europe’s golden age.From the darkness of a plagued and war-torn Middle Ages, the Renaissance (we’re told) heralds the dawning of a new world—a halcyon age of art, prosperity, and rebirth. Hogwash! or so says award-winning novelist and historian A...
... Read more
Bestial Oblivion

War, Humanism, and Ecology in Early Modern England

by Benjamin Bertram ...

Series series Perspectives on the Non-Human in Literature and Culture
Although war is a heterogeneous assemblage of the human and nonhuman, it nevertheless builds the illusion of human autonomy and singularity. Focusing on war and ecology, a neglected topic in early modern ecocriticism, Bestial Oblivion: War, Humanism, and Ecology in Early Modern England shows how warfare unsettles ideas of the human, yet ultimately contributes to, and is then perpetuated by, ... Read more

$89.93 CAD

Although war is a heterogeneous assemblage of the human and nonhuman, it nevertheless builds the illusion of human autonomy and singularity. Focusing on war and ecology, a neglected topic in early modern ecocriticism, Bestial Oblivion: War, Humanism, and Ecology in Early Modern England shows how warfare unsettles ideas of the human, yet ultimately contributes to, and is then perpetuated by,
... Read more
The Tudors

A Very Short Introduction

by John Guy ...

Series series Very Short Introductions
The monarchs of the Tudor period are among some of the most well-known figures in British history. John Guy presents a compelling and fascinating exploration of the Tudors in the new edition of this Very Short Introduction. Looking at all aspects of the period, from beginning to end, he considers Tudor politics, religion, and economics, as well as issues relating to gender and minority rule, and ... Read more

$6.47 CAD

The monarchs of the Tudor period are among some of the most well-known figures in British history. John Guy presents a compelling and fascinating exploration of the Tudors in the new edition of this Very Short Introduction. Looking at all aspects of the period, from beginning to end, he considers Tudor politics, religion, and economics, as well as issues relating to gender and minority rule, and
... Read more
The Printing Press as an Agent of Change

by Elizabeth L. Eisenstein ...

Originally published in two volumes in 1980, The Printing Press as an Agent of Change is now issued in a paperback edition containing both volumes. The work is a full-scale historical treatment of the advent of printing and its importance as an agent of change. Professor Eisenstein begins by examining the general implications of the shift from script to print, and goes on to examine its part in ... Read more

$45.35 CAD

Originally published in two volumes in 1980, The Printing Press as an Agent of Change is now issued in a paperback edition containing both volumes. The work is a full-scale historical treatment of the advent of printing and its importance as an agent of change. Professor Eisenstein begins by examining the general implications of the shift from script to print, and goes on to examine its part in
... Read more
Nuns and Nunneries in Renaissance Florence

by Sharon T. Strocchia ...

An analysis of Renaissance Florentine convents and their influence on the city's social, economic, and political history.The 15th century was a time of dramatic and decisive change for nuns and nunneries in Florence. That century saw the city's convents evolve from small, semiautonomous communities to large civic institutions. By 1552, roughly one in eight Florentine women lived in a religious ... Read more

$15.83 CAD or Free with Kobo Plus

An analysis of Renaissance Florentine convents and their influence on the city's social, economic, and political history.The 15th century was a time of dramatic and decisive change for nuns and nunneries in Florence. That century saw the city's convents evolve from small, semiautonomous communities to large civic institutions. By 1552, roughly one in eight Florentine women lived in a religious
... Read more

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