No country on earth has a higher concentration of churches and castles than Wales. The most famous date from the late 1200s and are rightly associated with Edward I of England who commissioned the construction of what is now often known as the 'Iron Ring' to act as a sign of dominance over the Kingdom of Gwynedd. Assisting Edward was his master mason, James of St George, probably of Crusader pedigree judging by the castles' appearance. It was in 1277 that Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, Prince of Gwynedd, met with Edward I in Aberconwy to finalise a treaty that would change the fate of both nations. His hand forced by Edward's invasion earlier that year, the acceptance of the terms confirmed not only short-term peace, but also that the rule of Wales would pass to Edward on Llywelyn's death. Both before and simultaneous to William the Conqueror's establishment of timber and stone fortresses in the south and borderlands, a process continued by many of his descendants, native structures also existed. Though often more palatial than protective, such constructions proved decisive to the ongoing wars, and were often chosen as sites for future castles. Many had begun as Roman forts whereas others date from more modern times and many now are romantic ruins, and others cherished family homes, hotels or museums. From blood-soaked heroes to long-lost legends, violent pirates to despotic Marcher lords, the book offers a fresh investigation into 69 castles and an extra Best of the Rest chapter covering another 30 with a paragraph or two each and a further 16 where gatehouses and ruins remain. 246pp, 16 pages of archive photos.
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On 30 January 1933, Adolf Hitler was appointed the German Chancellor of a coalition government by President Hindenburg. Within a few months he had installed a dictatorship, jailing and killing his leftwing opponents, terrorising the rest of the population and driving Jews out of public life. He embarked on a crash programme on militaristic Keynesianism, reviving the economy and achieving full employment through massive public works, vast armaments spending and the cancellations of foreign debts. After the grim years of the Great Depression, Germany seemed to have been reborn as a brutal and determined European power. Over the course of the years from 1933 to 1939, Hitler won over most of the population to his vision of a renewed Reich. In these years of domestic triumph, cunning manoeuvres, pitting neighbouring powers against each other and biding his time, we see Hitler preparing for the moment that would realise his ambition. But what drove Hitler's success was also to be the fatal flaw of his regime: a relentless belief in war as the motor of greatness, a dream of vast conquests in Eastern Europe and an astonishingly fanatical racism. Oxford scholar Frank McDonough charts the rise and fall of the Third Reich under Hitler's hand "like a thrilling Scorsese-directed gangster movie." It takes you through all of the major events of those years; the night of the long knives, the death of Hindenburg, the 1936 Olympics, Kristalllnacht, talks with Neville Chamberlain, and more, as Europe marched, again, into war. The first volume, Triumph, ends after Germany's comprehensive military defeat of Poland in 1939. Lavishly illus, and fine design. 'What makes this volume really stand out is its stylish design and more than 80 coloured photographs' - Military History. 488 pages.

Goering, Goebbels, Himmler, Heydrich, Bormann, Hess - names synonymous with power and influence in the Third Reich. Perhaps less familiar are Carin and Emmy Goering, Magda Goebbels, Margaret Himmler, Lina Heydrich, Gerda Bormann and Ilse Hess. These are the women behind the infamous men - complex individuals with distinctive personalities who were captivated by Hitler and whose everyday lives were governed by Nazi ideology. Throughout the rise and fall of Nazism these women loved and lost, raised families and quarrelled with their husbands and each other, all the while jostling for position with the mighty Führer himself. And yet they have been treated as minor characters, their significance ignored, as if they were unaware of their husband's murderous acts, despite the evidence that was all around them: the stolen art on their walls, the furniture made from human skin and bones stashed in the attic, the slave labour in their homes, and the produce grown in concentration camps on their tables. Births, weddings, funerals were inextricably linked to Nazi ideology. Relationships with family members were terminated abruptly and friendships jettisoned; their behaviour was a factor in the struggles within the Nazi elite. Falling out of favour with the Fuhrer would have serious implications for their husbands' careers. Yet their story offers important insights into the nature of Nazi rule and the psychology of its leaders, providing a fresh perspective on the key events that shaped its rise and fall. While they enjoyed luxury lifestyles they also endured broken marriages, cheating husbands, suicide, assassination, desertion, impoverishment and incarceration, but despite these trials, that commitment to Hitler's cause never wavered. Photos, 288 pages.