History

James' History Page

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History is a large subject, that touches on everything we do. For the broader outline of history, there is more to know about than any one person can ever absorb.

The basic idea of this page is not to try to teach history. Instead, I hope to provide a guide to the "fun" resources about history. This is more aimed at the curious layman, or the hobbist, rather than trying to guide true scholastic studies.

With that in mind, there are a few different categories that you will see attached to the materials mentioned here. Keep in mind that as things move down the table, they are of a more serious bent, and by nature less 'fun'.

Video	A historical movie, or miniseries. Hollywood is notorious for poor history, so watch for poor ratings (see below) as an indicator of poor history.
Fiction	This is a historical novel. With a good author, these can be wonderful vessels for getting a better feel for a period.
Game	Historical games can teach you many things about a period that can't be easily understood otherwise. They should present a good 'this is what they were dealing with' feel.
General	This work is intended for general readership, and is generally written as a self-contained work.
Documentary	Which is to say, 'non-fiction video'. Most tend to fall between the 'general' and 'detailed' categories in coverage, but retain the easy accessability of visuals.
Detailed	While still meant for a non-specialist audience, it goes into a lot more detail, and is more 'heavy' reading.
Scholarly	This is getting into true historical study, although anything presented here will still be effectively a textbook treatment.
Reference	True reference works are generally out of the scope of this list, but there are still books that go beyond regular textbooks and are still quite readable, if you're motivated to study the subject.

I feel that I should note that the games appear below the videos and novels for a reason. As many, but not all, people seeing this are aware, the games here can be very complicated for the neophyte, while still being very fun. Wargaming can be a very rewarding hobby, and can help spark an interest in history, but it isn't for everyone. Also, where the table would get complicated by having a bunch of different works all on the same period, that has been broken out into its own subpage, denoted by a dark grey row.

Also, I try to give a 1-10 rating for how good of a 'feel' for an era the work produces. I'm no expert, and it's highly subjective, but I have to give some feel for well a work makes history come alive. The more detailed and scholarly works will suffer in this rating as that is not their purpose. I'll try to say something of quality on these, but remember that anything on this list is recommended.

A couple final notes: I suppose I should point out that this list is generally concerned with Western History. This is more accidental than anything else, as I mentioned before, there is more history out there than any one person can handle, and my knowledge outside of Western History is fairly limited; I'll still be putting in what recomendations I can however. Also, the current list mostly concentrates on the Ancient and Medieval periods because that is where I've done most of my reading over the last decade, and I'm avoiding some of the more chronologically challenging periods until I can rework the pages a bit. Finally, these are currently all my personal recomendations, but once I get my main structures done, I will be incorporating suggestions from several of my friends.

Years	Title	Author	Rating	Description
8000-250 BC	Civilization	Tresham	6	No, not the computer game, but a classic in the genre of board games. By nature, it is very abstract, but it still maintains a good feel for the rise of Classic civilizations in the eastern Mediterranian region. As a warning, it is long, and out of print (though not too hard to get on eBay), and many feel it is well improved by the later supplement, Advanced Civilization, which fetches high prices on eBay.
1650-1100 BC	The Myceneans	Grguric	4	Elite 310. A study of Mycenean equipment and probable tactics.
1570-1085 BC	New Kingdom Egypt	Healy	6	Elite 40. A very good basic overview the military history of the New Kingdom.
1500-200 BC	Ancient Chinese Armies 1500-200 BC	Peers	6	Men-at-Arms 218. A brief overview of the beginnings of Chinese military history. Despite being well written, it can dissovle into a series of names parading by without some general prior knowledge. However, it should be very good at establishing the wider context of a more focused study.
1500 BC-1526	A History of India	Thapar	4	Volume One. A good overview of the history of India until the coming of Western influence. It is undoubtedly a bit dated by now, but it makes for a good introduction.
~1400 BC	The King Must Die	Renault	10	A novel based around the myths of Theseus.
~1400 BC	The Bull From the Sea	Renault	10	The sequel to The King Must Die based around the myths of Theseus.
1350-1200 BC	Mycenaean Citadels 1350-1200 BC	Fields	5	Fortress 22. This is effectively a beginning guide to Mycenaean archaeology, and it is best if you have some knowledge the concerns and terminology of archaeology going in. Also, while it does discuss the importance of most all the known Mycenaean fortified sites, the bulk of the attention is spent on Mycenae.
1300 BC	Qadesh 1300 BC	Healy	6	Campaign 22. Does a fairly nice job of trying to reconstruct the actual battle by teasing out the inconsistencies in Ramesses II's incriptions about it.
911-612 BC	The Ancient Assyrians	Healy	6	Elite 39. Actually, this is about the 'Neo-Assyrian' Empire, and within that, concentrates on the Sargonids (721-612 BC).
700 BC-450 AD	The Armies of Bactria	Nikonorov	4	This is more technical than most here, but is still very light, and on a subject not often seen (I had to look up Bactria). The bulk of the coverage is on the Hellenistic period from the conquest by Alexander the Great to the conquest by the Chinese (ca. 325-250 BC). Sadly, I think this is hard to locate copies of.
700 BC-AD 46	The Thracians 700 BC-AD 46	Cernenko	5	Men-at-Arms 360. A nicely written overview of what is known of Thracian tribes and their military up through when the Romans took the area over.
700-275 BC	Early Roman Armies	Sekunda & Northwood	4	Men-at-Arms 283. An attempt to reconstruct the equipment and organization of Roman armies from late Kindom phalanxes through early Republic maniples.
700-300 BC	The Scythians 700-300 BC	Cernenko	5	Men-at-Arms 137. Written in 1983, it is doubtless a bit dated now, as there have been some important finds just in the last 10 years. However, it gives a clear overview of what is known of the 'true' Scythians of the Ancient world (as opposed to several later tribes that had the name transfered onto them).
600 BC-AD 450	The Sarmatians 600 BC-AD 450	Healy	6	Men-at-Arms 373. Another in the series of overviews of the tribal groupings of the classical world.
500-323 BC	The Greek and Persian Wars 500-323 BC	Cassin-Scott	4	Men-at-Arms 69. Essentially an overview of the major battles and outline of Greek wars from the Ionian Revolt through the conquests of Alexander the Great. Only recommended for the text and photagraphy of artefacts, the color plates are lacking.
500-330 BC	The Ancient Greeks	Sekunda	6	Elite 7. A look at the evolution of Greek military organization and equipment from the beginning of the Persian Wars to just before Alexander the Great.
499-386 BC	The Greek and Persian Wars 499-386 BC	de Souza	6	Essential History 36. An excellent overview of the invasions of Darius and Xerxes, though it does use unusual transliterations for the names.
490 BC	Marathon 490 BC	Sekunda	6	Campaign 108. A good detailed reconstruction of the Battle of Marathon, with good notes about where guesses and assumptions must be made.
480-323 BC	Greek Hoplite 480-323 BC	Sekunda	6	Warrior 27. A good guide to what is known of the arms of the ancient Greek hoplite, and the social and financial framework of the Greek city-states that shaped them.
~450 BC	The Serpent's Tooth	Paxson	8	A version of King Lear set in early Iron Age Britain.
431-404 BC	The Peloponnesian War 431-404 BC	de Souza	6	Essential History 27. A good summary of the Peloponnesian War, though a little broken up in places, but gives a good view of the world around it.
431-421 BC	Song of Wrath	Lendon	7	An examination of the Archidamian War in terms of Ancient Greek culture.
359-323 BC	The Army of Alexander the Great	Sekunda	5	Men-at-Arms 148. A good overview/analysis of the structure and equipment of Alexander the Great's army, starting with the reforms started by his father, Philip II.
334-323 BC	Alexander 334-323 BC	Warry	5	Campaign 7. An overview of Alexander the Great's campaigns in Asia, concentrating on descriptions of the major battles, but with good material on the overall events between.
323-31 BC	From Alexander to Actium	Green	6	Everything about the Hellenistic world, from fashion to philosopy.
323-305 BC	Successors	Berg	7	A very fun game dealing with the situation after the death of Alexander the Great.
311-241 BC	Carthage	Berg	7	The Ancient World Volume II. A fairly serious, if high level, game, with scenarios centering around the First Punic War.
300 BC-AD 100	Celtic Warrior 300 BC-AD 100	Allen	5	Warrior 30. Shows the equipment and society around Celtae (Celtic) warriors.
265-146 BC	The Armies of the Carthaginian Wars 265-146 BC	Wise	5	Men-at-Arms 121. An overview of the various contingents of the Carthaginian armies, and the evolution of the organization of the Roman legions during the period.
264-146 BC	The Punic Wars	Bagnall	6	Essential History 16. A good initial introduction to the subject, including a good look at what caused the initial collision.
248 BC-AD 637	Rome's Enemies (3): Parthians and Sassanid Persians	Wilcox	4	Men-at-Arms 175. A very broad overview. Light on details, but gives the general military history of a region often not paid enough attention to in the West.
241-183 BC	Hannibal	Lamb	7	Harold Lamb's excelent biography of Hannibal Barca.
218-19 BC	Rome's Enemies (4): Spanish Enemies 218-19 BC	Treviño	4	Men-at-Arms 180. A look at the native tribes of Iberia, and the wars fought against Roman domination.
216 BC	Cannae 216 BC	Healy	5	Campaign 36. The description of the battle itself is short, but it gives a good overview of what lead up to it, and a good discussion of problems with the Roman accounts of the campaign.
210-104 BC	Republican Roman Army 200-104 BC	Sekunda	5	Men-at-Arms 291. A fairly light overview, but gives the basics of how the classic Roman Legion worked, as well as some hints to its evolution in the Republic era.
168-145 BC	The Seleucid Army	Sekunda	3	Seleucid and Ptolemaic Reformed Armies 168-145 BC. Volume 1. An excerpt of a longer work (I don't know if the full version got published), it examines the available evidence for the 'Romanization' of the Seleucid army after the Third Macedonian War.
168-145 BC	The Ptolemaic Army	Sekunda	3	Seleucid and Ptolemaic Reformed Armies 168-145 BC. Volume 2. An excerpt of a longer work (I don't know if the full version got published), it is largely involved with the examination of a set of grave stelae from ancient Antioch.
157 BC-AD 73	Warriors of Rome	Simkins	5	A broad overview of some of the campaigns of the Roman military. However, it also has good reference of Roman equipment, including photographs of several of the author's reconstructions.
146 BC-AD 633	Rome's Enemies 5: The Desert Frontier	Nicolle	5	Men-at-Arms 243. Covers the various desert tribes and nomads of North Africa, Sudan, Arabia and Syria. It is a very general overview, but there are not a lot of good sources for some of the subjects.
110-100 BC	The First Man in Rome	McCullough	9	Book 1 of Masters of Rome. An excellent novel of Ancient Rome and the start of series that covers the transition from the Republic to the Empire.
109 BC-AD 313	Roman Battle Tactics	Cowan	6	Elite 155. A fairly thourough look at something there is just not enough evidence about.
100 BC-AD 200	Gladiators 100 BC-AD 200	Wisdom	6	Warrior 39. A good basic guide to the different types of gladiators, their equipment, and how gladitorial events were run.
100 BC-AD 200	Roman Military Clothing (1)	Sumner	3	Men-at-Arms 374. A study in detail of late Roman Republic and early Empire military clothing, concentrating on tunics, and colors.
99-86 BC	The Grass Crown	McCullough	9	Book 2 of Masters of Rome. Not as good, or as independent as the first volume, but still a very good work that is well worth reading.
83-69 BC	Fortune's Favorites	McCullough	9	Book 3 of Masters of Rome. I feel it's still somewhat downhill here, but some of that is that I don't like Sulla as much, and some is the fact that McCullough is getting into better-documented periods that tie her hands more.
68-58 BC	Caesar's Women	McCullough	9	Book 4 of Masters of Rome.
62-51 BC	Druids	Llywelyn	7	The story of the Roman conquest of Gaul from the Celtic perspective. The main character is Vercingetorix's (convienient) fictional main advisor.
58 BC-AD 69	Roman Legionary 58 BC-AD 69	Cowan	5	Warrior 71. Describes the general organization, training, equipment, and fighting style of the early Imperial Roman Army. Does a very good job on the general tactics.
55 BC-AD 1485	The Birth of Britain	Churchill	4	Volume I of A History of the English-Speaking Peoples. Yes, that Churchill. An excellent overview of British history through the Wars of the Roses.
54-48 BC	Caesar	McCullough	9	Book 5 of Masters of Rome.
49-44 BC	Caesar's Civil War 49-44 BC	Goldsworthy	6	Essential History 42. A good guide to the end of the Roman Republic, with a discussion of the forces that led to its end.
48-43 BC	The October Horse	McCullough	9	Book 6 of Masters of Rome. This one swings back up in terms of quality. Her bias in favor of Caesar is also quite visible in this volume, but understandable given the nature of the series.
40-30 BC	Throne of Isis	Tarr	9	A novel of the famously tragic relationship between Cleopatra and Mark Anthony.
32 BC-AD 305	The Praetorian Guard	Rankov	5	Elite 60. An overview of the history and equipment of the most politically active branch of the Roman military.
26 BC-AD 100	City: A Story of Roman Planning and Construction	Macaulay	6	Macaulay's fictional Roman city of Verbonia is a classic visual guide to Roman archetechture, construction techniques and city planning.
9-1241	The Barbarians	Newark	5	A look at the various peoples who, in turn, each threatened 'civilized' Europe from the Germans to the Mongols. A fairly nice overview, with good observations on the contemporary European reactions.
150-552	History of the Goths	Wolfram	3	A very weighty work, it is nonetheless well-presented, and well worthwhile for anyone wanting a detailed study of a part of the decline of the Roman Empire in the west.
161-284	Imperial Roman Legionary	Cowan	5	Warrior 72. An examination of the Roman legions of the mid-Empire, with attention to arms and equipment.
170-750	The World of Late Antiquity	Brown	5	Library of World Civilization. A very good look at how the Ancient world went from a single Mediterranean culture to the three-way split of Catholic Western Europe, Orthodox Eastern Europe, and Muslim Near East.
175-177	Island of Ghosts	Bradshaw	10	An excellent novel of Roman Britain, and probably my favorite novel on this list.
200-471	How Rome Fell	Goldsworthy	4	A look at the collapse of the western Roman Empire.
200-400	Roman Military Clothing (2)	Sumner	3	Men-at-Arms 390. A study in detail of later Roman Empire clothing, concentrating on tunics, and colors.
220-651	Sassanian Armies	Nicole	4	The Iranian Empire early 3rd to mid-7th centuries AD. A good look at what is known of the structure of the Sassanian military.
236-565	Late Roman Infantryman	MacDowall	5	Warrior 9. An examination of late Roman infantry, with attention to arms, equipment, and training.
236-565	Late Roman Cavalryman	MacDowall	5	Warrior 15. An examination of late Roman cavalry, with attention to arms, equipment, and training.
236-568	Germanic Warrior	MacDowall	5	Warrior 17. A look at the likely arms and equipment of the various German tribes during the breakup of the western Roman Empire.
293-696	Rome at War AD 293-696	Whitby	5	Essential History 21. An overview of the period that transformed the Roman Empire from the pagan master of the Mediterrean to a much reduced Near Eastern Orthodox state.
297-841	Pictish Warrior AD 297-841	Wagner	5	Warrior 50. Given the sparseness of evidence, a great introduction to Pict history from their first mention to their final defeat by the Scots.
300-1000	Early Medieval Europe	Collins	4	A wonderful introductory work on the period from the decline of the western Roman Empire to the breakup of the Carolignian Empire.
304-1206	Attila and the Nomad Hordes	Nicolle	4	Elite 30. A look at the various nomad tribes of Europe and Asia and a run-down of the changing empires created by them.
324-1453	Lost to the West	Brownworth	5	A readable and enjoyable history of the Byzantine Empire.
324-886	Romano-Byzantine Armies 4th-9th Centuries	Nicolle	4	Men-at-Arms 247. A good overview of later Roman armies, though there's barely room to scratch the surface.
378	Adrianople AD 378	MacDowall	4	Campaign 84. A very good examination of the Battle of Adrianople and the events leading up to it.
400-1450	Medival Society 400-1450	Cantor & Werthman eds.	5	The Structure of European History II. A set of essays that are actually segements of influental historical works from the first half of the 20th century.
400-640	Roman Military Clothing (3)	D'Amato	3	Men-at-Arms 425. A study in detail of very late Western Roman Empire, and early Eastern Empire, clothing, with B/W photographs of surviving examples.
409-652	British Forts in the Age of Arthur	Konstam	5	Fortress 80. A study of British fortifications after the Roman withdrawl.
410-1066	Arthur and the Anglo-Saxon Wars	Nicolle	4	Men-at-Arms 154. A look at the general organization and equipment of the various peoples of post-Roman, pre-Norman Britain.
421-1797	A History of Venice	Norwich	4	While the rest of the Venitian Empire appears, mostly this is a history of the city itself.
449-1066	Anglo-Saxon Thegn 449-1066 AD	Harrison	5	Warrior 5. A look at the arms, equipment, and organization of the Germanic warrior class of pre-Norman England.
450-1260	European Medieval Tactics (1)	Nicolle	5	Elite 185. A good look at early Medival tactics with several illustrated battles.
450-751	The Merovingian Kingdoms	Wood	4	A look at the entire Merovingian period and area of influence.
475-751	Before France & Germany: The Creation & Transformation of the Merovingian World	Geary	2	A good short survey of the era, and a very good introduction to the subject. Sadly, very little is available on this period in English.
500-1400	Cathedral, Forge and Waterwheel	Gies & Gies	4	The latest and best-written of the Gies' treatments of the Middle Ages, it is a wonderful guide to the new developments that appeared throughout the period, and explodes the myths about how much was actually "lost" durring 'the not so Dark Ages'.
500-1500	Marriage and the Family in the Middle Ages	Gies & Gies	3	An examination of family and home life in the Middle Ages. While not strictly written for a technical audience, it is pretty heavy going, and is best for research purposes.
550-1087	Anglo-Saxon England	Stenton	4	A complete look at the history of Britain from the founding of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms through the aftermath of the Norman Conquest.
590-1260	Imperial Chinese Armies (2)	Peers	4	Men-at-Arms 295. A whirlwind tour of the last few Chinese dynasties before the Mongols. Too broad for details, but provides a partial framework.
600-1453	Byzantium at War AD 600-1453	Haldon	5	Essential History 33. A primer on the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire's military history through the fall of Constantinople.
632-1086	The Armies of Islam 7th-11th Centuries	Nicolle	3	Men-at-Arms 125. A centuries-long overview, looking at the changing tactics and styles of Islamic armies.
632-861	Armies of the Muslim Conquest	Nicolle	3	Men-at-Arms 255. A look at the styles of arms, and general tactical units of the early Muslim armies.
636	Yarmuk 636 AD	Nicolle	4	Campaign 31. A look at the Musim conquest of Syria.
643-1492	The Moors: The Islamic West 7th-15 Centuries AD	Nicolle	3	Men-at-Arms 348. An overview of the Iberian and African Islamic kingdoms from the conquest of North Africa through the fall of Granada.
750-1250	Armies of Medieval Russia 750-1250	Nicolle	3	Men-at-Arms 333. A short look at the history and equipment of the early Rus.
750-1000	The Age of Charlemagne	Nicolle	4	Men-at-Arms 150. A summary of the evolution of warfare in Western Europe from the Pippinids to the beginning of the Holy Roman Empire.
789-1066	The Vikings	Heath	4	Elite 3. Vikings from England to Russia to Stamford Bridge.
793-1066	Viking Hersir 449-1066 AD	Harrison	4	Warrior 3. A look at the arms, equipment, and society of the Scandiavian warrior class.
800-1066	Viking Longship	Durham	3	New Vanguard 47. An overview of the evolution of Skandinavian shipbuilding, and a study of the ships of the Viking age.
900-1500	The Knight in History	Gies	6	A look at the role and evolution of the knight in mideval society (and later).
911-1204	The Normans	Nicolle	4	Elite 9. A look at the history of the Normans in France, Englanc, Italy, and Syria.
940-1600	The Samurai	Bryant	5	Elite 23. A quick tour of Japanese military history and study of changing armor styles.
950-1204	Norman Knight 950-1204 AD	Gravett	5	Warrior 1. A look at the arms, equipment, and society of the Norman warrior.
968-984	The Eagle's Daughter	Tarr	9	A very well-written novel of of the beginings of the Holy Roman Empire.
1000-1568	Hungary and the Fall of Eastern Europe	Nicolle	4	Men-at-Arms 195. The military and fall of the early medieval states of the Balkans.
1000-1300	French Medieval Armies 1000-1300	Nicolle	4	Men-at-Arms 231. The military organization of northern and southern France (considered somewhat separately).
1000-1300	German Medieval Armies 1000-1300	Gravett	4	Men-at-Arms 310. The military organization of the German empire.
1000-1300	Italian Medieval Armies 1000-1300	Nicolle	4	Men-at-Arms 376. The military concerns of Medieval Italy.
1050-1492	El Cid and the Reconquista	Nicolle	4	Men-at-Arms 300. A look at the military organization of Christian and Muslim Spain.
1066-1650	Castles of the British Isles	Fry	2	An overview history of castles in Britain. The bulk of the book is a gazetteer of all the sites in England, Wales and Scotland.
1066	Hastings 1066	Gravett	4	Campaign 13. An account of the Battle of Hastings, with looks at the situation in England before and after the Norman Conquest.
1066-1073	Sherwood	Godwin	9	The Robin Hood legend is really collected from stories about a variety of different outlaws ranging over the course of much of English history. This is effectively a (very good) novel of the Norman Conquest, using the Robin Hood cast as the main characters.
1095-1302	The Crusades	Nicolle	6	Essential History 1. A too short overview of the Crusades in the Middle East, but a very good initial introduction to the subject.
1095-1302	The Crusades	Nicolle	5	Elite 19. A look at the Crusades with an eye to origins of Crusader equipment and the pattern of cultural influences on it.
1095-1100	The First Crusade and the Foundations of the Kingdom of Jerusalem	Runciman	6	Vol I of A History of the Crusades. A good detailed history of the First Crusade and its background in the Near East.
1096-1291	The Crusades Through Arab Eyes	Maalouf	5	A very readable narrative entirely from the arab point of view.
1097-1192	Onward, Christian Soldiers	Berg	9	Covers the first three Crusades in separate scenarios. Gives a good feel for medieval warfare by making battles very chaotic and chancy affairs, and pays attention to the problems of attrition caused by the harsh climate. No provision is given to show the campaigns between Crusades.
1100-1306	Knight Hospitaller (1)	Nicolle	5	Warrior 33. A look at the arms, equipment, organization, and rules of the Hospitallers.
1100-1300	Saladin and the Saracens	Nicolle	4	Men-at-Arms 171. An overview of the major Islamic empires of the 11th-12th Centuries.
1100-1187	The Kingdom of Jerusalem and the Frankish East	Runciman	6	Vol II of A History of the Crusades. A good detailed history of the Crusader states from after the First Crusade to the rise of Nur el-Din and the Battle of Hattin.
1118-1565	The Knights of Christ	Wise	4	Men-at-Arms 155. A quick look at all the various militant orders of the Christian Church.
1118-1461	Byzantine Armies	Heath	4	Men-at-Arms 287. The history of Byzantium from the death of Alexius I to the fall of Trebizond.
1120-1216	The Conquering Family	Costain	7	Vol. 1 of The History of the Pantagents. Covers from Henry I to the death of King John. Stands on its own as a very readable history.
1122-1204	Eleanor of Aquitaine	Weir	6	Not so much a biography, as a 'life and times' of Eleanor of Aquitaine.
1147-1525	The Northern Crusades	Christiansen	3	A heavier, more scholarly work than this list is meant for, but there's not a lot written in English about the Crusades that created the Baltic states.
1150-1600	Knights at Tournament	Gravett	4	Elite 17. The history and evolution knightly tounaments over the centuries.
1172-1227	Genghis Khan	Lamb	9	A very readable and enjoyable biography of Genghis Kahn.
1172-1175	A Wind in Cairo	Tarr	6	A fantasy with a strong historical backdrop of Egypt under Saladin and his conquest of Syria.
1176	Alamut	Tarr	7	A historical fantasy novel dealing with the Kingdom of Jerusalem and the Assassins.
1183-1600	Battles of the Samurai	Turnbull	5	Nine important battles from Japanese history.
1185-1638	Samurai Heraldry	Turnbull	4	Elite 82. A quick tour of Japanese flags and standards.
1187	Hattin 1187	Nicolle	7	Campaign Series 19. As usual, a good solid description of the battle of Hattin as well as the campaign that led up to it.
1187-1464	The Kingdom of Acre and Later Crusades	Runciman	6	Vol III of A History of the Crusades. A good detailed history of the Third Crusade, the fall of the Crusader states and the end of the Crusading movement.
1194	Ivanhoe	Scott	8	Sir Walter Scott's classic tale of all the tropes of the Middle Ages with knights, tournaments, seiges and romance. Also resposible for the fixing Robin Hood right after the Third Crusade.
1200-1670	The Venetian Empire	Nicolle	5	Men-at-Arms 210. The history of Venice's overseas possessions, and Terra Firma.
1200-1300	English Medieval Knight 1200-1300	Gravett	5	Warrior 48. Covers the changes in equipement, and often circumstances, of English knights through the 13th Century.
1206-1294	The Mongols	Turnbull	5	Men-at-Arms 105. A quick guide to the history of the Mongol conquests, and how their army worked.
1216-1272	The Magnificent Century	Costain	7	Vol. 2 of The History of the Pantagents. Covers the reign of Henry III. Stands on its own as a very readable history.
1223	Kalka River 1223	Nicolle	4	Campaign 98. Gives a look at the entire Mongol Campaign from the Caucasus to the battle, and a look at medieval Russia.
1230-1466	Crusader Castles of the Teutonic Knights (1)	Turnbull	6	Fortress 11. A guide to the brick castles of Prussia.
1250-1400	The Scottish and Welsh Wars	Rothero	5	Men-at-Arms 151. From the initial troubles with the Welsh to the second Scottish War of Independce, with a look at the tactics used.
1260-1500	European Medieval Tactics (2)	Nicolle	5	Elite 189. A good look at later Medival tactics with several illustrated battles.
1272-1377	The Three Edwards	Costain	7	Vol. 3 of The History of the Pantagents. Edward I through Edward III.
1296-1305	Braveheart	Gibson	8	There are some creative liberties taken (like the lack of a bridge at the Battle of Stirling Bridge), but overall a very good effort, and gives a good idea of what the period was like.
1300-1774	Armies of the Ottoman Turks	Nicolle	5	Men-at-Arms 140. Not detailed, but talks about the types of troops employed and where they came from.
1300-1500	Medieval European Armies	Wise	5	Men-at-Arms 50. An informative, if whirlwind, look at the evolution of Medieval warfare in Western Europe.
1300-1500	Medieval Warfare	Wise	5	A good introductory survey of warfare in the later part of the middle ages, but necessarily breif in its overview.
1300-1500	Italian Medieval Armies	Nicolle	4	Men-at-Arms 136. A look at Italian armies through much of the condottiere period, and a summary of a few campaigns.
1300-1500	German Medieval Armies	Gravett	5	Men-at-Arms 166. A quick tour of the various areas of the Holy Roman Empire, and which groups dominated military organization, with a summary of a few campaigns.
1303-1399	A Distant Mirror	Tuchman	8	A century of war, plauge, religious infighting, and rebellion, mostly told though following the life of Enguerand VII of Coucy.
1364-1477	Armies of Medieval Burgundy	Michael	5	Men-at-Arms 144. A good outline of the organization of the armies of Valois Burgundy.
1377-1485	The Last Plantgenets	Costain	7	Vol. 4 of The History of the Pantagents. Mostly concentrates on Richard II, and the prinicple characters of the Wars of the Roses.
1401-1500	The Fifteenth Century: The Prospect of Europe	Aston	6	The transition from the Middle Ages and 'Christendom' to the Renaissance and 'Europe'.
1431-1476	In the Shadow of Empires	Jens	6	The story of the actual Vlad Dracula, King (Voivode) of Wallachia.
1455-1487	The Wars of the Roses	Wise	5	Men-at-Arms 145. A good outline of the fighting in the Wars of the Roses, and some information on the equipment.
1483-1530	Babur the Tiger	Lamb	7	Harold Lamb's biography of Babur, the founder of the Mogul Empire in India.
1485	Bosworth 1485	Gravett	5	Campaign 66. The last stages of the Wars of the Roses. Slightly outdated.
1507	The Fourth Part of the World	Lester	7	How the Waldsemuller Map came to call the New World "America".
1512-1589	The Ottoman Age of Exploration	Casale	7	The Ottoman Empire's attemt to acheive dominance in the Indian Ocean.
1517-1555	Here I Stand	Beach	8	A very solid game that does a good job with the interplay between religious and political events in the Sixteenth Century.
1521-1571	Empires of the Sea	Crowley	7	The grand sweep the the struggle for dominance in the Mediterranian in the Sixteenth Century.
1559-1598	Virgin Queen	Beach	8	A solid game of the Elizabethan Era.
1600-1947	Iron Kingdom	Clark	7	The story of Brandenberg and the disparate possessions that became Prussia.
1642-1645	Unhappy King Charles!	Vassey	8	Covers the English Civil War from a strategic point of view, and makes an effort to bring the right feel to warfare of the era.
1786-1789	Origins of the French Revolution	Doyle	4	A lighter textbook dealing with the financial crisis and social pressures that sparked the French Revolution.
1787	Miracle at Philadelphia	Bowen	6	The story of the Constitutional Convention.
1850-1914	Dreadnought: Britain, Germany, and the Coming of the Great War	Massie	7	The subtitle is a far better indication of the subject of the book. In the mid-19th Century, Britain was committed to a policy of staying away from Continental affairs, and the royal family was of German extraction. Massie examines the half-century that ended up with Britain allying with it's traditional enemy (France) against the European country they were most closely related to (Germany). Massie goes into wonderful detail, creating a rich portrait of the personalites involved.
1861-1865	The American Civil War
1866	There Must Be A Victory	Rohrbaugh	7	The naval part of the Seven Weeks War, with the Battle of Lissa and the campaign that led to it.
1879	Zulu	Endfield	8	A good, fairly simple film of the Battle of Rorke's Drift during the Anglo-Zulu War. Not entirely accurate, but generally quite acceptable.
1896-1899	The River War	Churchill	6	A study of the campaign to supress the rebellion in the Sudan. Much of the last section of the book changes markedly in tone, as Churchill was there for that part of the war, and he's giving his eyewitness account. There is a bias of the most marked Imperialsist sort, but this is also useful as lens into the thinking of the era.
1914-1918	Pursuit of Glory	Stock & Stock	7	A game on WWI in the Balkans and Middle East. The game itself is good and will give a good overview of the situation, and there is a host of notes included about the actual history surrounding the design of the game.
1937-1939	The Dreamer	Eisner	8	A fictionalized autobiographical account of the beginnings of the the comic book industry.
1939-1945	World War II
1965-1978	Playing at the World	Peterson	5	A massive and thourough look at the creation of Dungeons & Dragons.
1970	Apollo 13	Howard	10	A excellent film that gives a slightly fictionalized account of the ill-fated Apollo 13 mission. The technology and people are exceptionally well depicted.