A sumptuously written people’s history and a major retelling and reinterpretation of the story of the English ReformationCenturies on, what the Reformation was and what it accomplished remain deeply contentious. Peter Marshall’s sweeping new history—the first major overview for general readers in a generation—argues that sixteenth-century England was a society neither desperate for nor allergic to change, but one open to ideas of “reform” in various competing guise...

Navigating the broad “river of anarchy,” from Taoism to Situationism, from Ranters to Punk rockers, from individualists to communists, from anarcho-syndicalists to anarcha-feminists, Demanding the Impossible is an authoritative and lively study of a widely misunderstood subject. It explores the key anarchist concepts of society and the state, freedom and equality, authority and power, and investigates the successes and failure of the anarchist movements throughout the world. While...

In the late 16th century the greatest philosophers, alchemists, astronomers, painters, and mathematicians of the day flocked to Prague to work under the patronage of the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II, an emperor more interested in the great minds of his times than in the exercise of his immense power. Rarely leaving Prague Castle, he gathered around him a galaxy of famous figures: among them the painter Arcimboldo, the astronomer Tycho Brahe, the mathematician Johannes Kepler, the philosoph...

Halloween 1636: sightings of the ghost of an old woman begin to be reported in the small English coastal town of Minehead, and a royal commission is sent to investigate. December 1640: a disgraced Protestant bishop is hanged in the Irish capital, Dublin, after being convicted of an 'unspeakable' crime. In this remarkable piece of historical detective work, Peter Marshall sets out to uncover the intriguing links between these two seemingly unconnected events. The result is a compelling tale...

William Godwin has long been known for his literary connections as the husband of Mary Wollstonecraft, the father of Mary Shelley, the friend of Coleridge, Lamb, and Hazlitt, the mentor of the young Wordsworth, Southey, and Shelley, and the opponent of Malthus. Godwin has been recently recognized, however, as the most capable exponent of philosophical anarchism, an original moral thinker, a pioneer in socialist economics and progressive education, and a novelist of great skill.His ...

Centuries on, what the Reformation was and what it accomplished remain deeply contentious. Peter Marshall's sweeping new history argues that sixteenth-century England was a society neither desperate for nor allergic to change, but one open to ideas of "reform" in various competing guises. King Henry VIII wanted an orderly, uniform Reformation, but his actions opened a Pandora's Box from which pluralism and diversity flowed and rooted themselves in English life.With sensitivity to i...

A window into the rich Christian heritage of our nationDid Columbus believe that God called him west to undiscovered lands? Does American democracy owe its inception to the handful of Pilgrims that settled at Plymouth? If, indeed, there was a specific, divine call upon this nation, is it still valid today?The Light and the Glory answers these questions and many more for history buffs. As readers look at their nation's history from God's point of vi...

This is another spy thriller from former BBC journalist Peter Marshall in which the secret services of Russia and the West pit their wits against each other in the murky world of international espionage – and the events in the story also provide a now too familiar portent of current events. In "The Russian Bear's Revenge" the key operators in Russia's GUR agency have become frustrated by the successes of America's CIA and the UK's MI5/MI6, and they set out on a four-point plan of reprisals...

"Peter believed that the use of the sanctified imagination, the painting of word pictures, using the vehicle of a story, was Jesus's way of teaching. It will forever be, he believed, the most effective method."Catherine Marshall, A Man Called PeterDr. Peter Marshall (May 27, 1902 - January 26, 1949), a Scottish-born American preacher, is remembered for his powerful and timeless exploration of what makes preaching truly transformative. These five le...

'A surprising page-turner, full of humour and startling details' THE TIMES**'If I read a better history this year, I will be lucky' TOM HOLLAND'An astonishing tour de force’ SPECTATORShortlisted for the HWA Nonfiction Crown AwardLonglisted for the Highland Book PrizeFrom Peter Marshall, winner of the 2018 Wolfson Prize, Storm’s Edge is a n...

'A surprising page-turner, full of humour and startling details' THE TIMES**'If I read a better history this year, I will be lucky' TOM HOLLAND'An astonishing tour de force’ SPECTATORShortlisted for the HWA Nonfiction Crown AwardLonglisted for the Highland Book PrizeFrom Peter Marshall, winner of the 2018 Wolfson Prize, Storm’s Edge is a n...

The Reformation transformed Europe and left an indelible mark on the modern world. But what actually was the Reformation and how should it be defined? Historians have long wrangled over whether it represented a force leading to progress, liberty, and modernity, or to conflict, division, and repression. What is certain is that the relationships between Church and State, between subjects and rulers, between men and women, between parents and children, and between Europe and the rest of the w...