Routledge Historical Biographies are concise, accessible introductions to key historical figures. Written by experts in their fields they are designed to help students either starting out on a course, or revising before exams. Far from being dry, academic texts however, they are also perfect, affordable books for the history buff.
By Vincent Barnett
December 05, 2012
John Maynard Keynes is arguably the most important and influential economist of the twentieth century, and stands alongside Adam Smith and Karl Marx as one of the most famous economic thinkers of all time. Keynes’s radical reassessment of the accepted principles of economics led to new ways of ...
By John Matusiak
November 30, 2012
Henry V of England, the princely hero of Shakespeare’s play, who successfully defeated the French at the Battle of Agincourt and came close to becoming crowned King of France, is one of the best known and most compelling monarchs in English history. This new biography takes a fresh look at his ...
By Paula Bartley
January 10, 2003
In this well-structured, fluent and lively account, Paula Bartley uses new archival material to assess whether Pankhurst should be seen as a heroine or a tyrant, a conservative or a progressive. Emmeline Pankhurst was the most prominent campaigner for the women's right to vote and was transformed ...
By Michael Lynch
November 01, 2012
Adolf Hitler is the most notorious political figure of the twentieth century. The story of his life, how he became a dictator, and how he managed to convince so many to follow his cause is a subject of perennial fascination. Balancing narrative and analysis, this biography employs a chronological ...
By David Hipshon
December 18, 2010
Despite reigning for only a relatively short period of time, Richard III is one of England’s most controversial monarchs. His life and rule has inspired a huge amount of literature, not least Shakespeare’s great play, and controversy still surrounds his seizure of the throne in 1485, the mystery of...
By Nick Smart
August 25, 2009
Neville Chamberlain, the Conservative Prime Minister who pursued the doomed policy of appeasing Hitler, is one of the most reinterpreted of modern British Prime Ministers. Infamous on account of his declaration of having achieved ‘peace for our time’, Neville Chamberlain has often been portrayed as...
By Hannes Kleineke
October 02, 2008
The reign of King Edward IV occupies a pivotal place in late medieval English history, marking the transition from a medieval to a renaissance monarchy. The personality of the young monarch was undoubtedly a factor in this transition, yet there has been much controversy over the King's ...
By Judith M. Richards
August 20, 2008
Mary Tudor is often written off as a hopeless, twisted queen who tried desperately to pull England back to the Catholic Church that was so dear to her mother, and sent many to burn at the stake in the process. In this radical re-evaluation of the first 'real' English queen regnant, Judith M. ...
By Sean Cunningham
April 12, 2007
This biography illuminates the life of Henry VII himself, how he ran his government, how his authority was maintained, and the nature of the country over which he ruled since he first claimed the throne in 1485. Sean Cunningham explores how Henry's reign was vitally important in stabilizing ...
By Martyn Bennett
June 23, 2006
In this concise and accessible biography, Martyn Bennett examines the life of Oliver Cromwell – one of the most controversial figures in world history. This study challenges long-held perceptions of Cromwell and the Commonwealth, arguing that they need to be placed at the core of early Modern ...
By Retha M. Warnicke
March 15, 2006
"Scholars now have Warnicke to use as their chief one volume study of Mary" Julian Goodare, University of Edinburgh In this biography of one of the most intriguing figures of early modern European history, Retha Warnicke, widely regarded as a leading historian on Tudor queenship, offers a fresh ...
By Ian D. Thatcher
December 23, 2002
This new biography provides a full account of Leon Trotsky's political life, based upon a wealth of primary sources, including previously unpublished material. Ian D. Thatcher paints a new picture of Trotsky's standing in Russian and world history. Key myths about Trotsky's heroic work as a ...