Böcker av Michael Sheane

In 1588, a fleet of Spanish ships carrying an army of soldiers sailed towards England. After meeting up with the Duke of Parma in Flanders, their aim was to land an invasion force on English soil and depose the Protestant Queen Elizabeth.This fascinating book from Michael Sheane explores Ireland's part in the Armada. With a Catholic population, Ireland was seen as a safer place to drop anchor, obtain provisions and repair the ships that had been pummelled by the wind, waves and the English Navy. However, the Emerald Isle was full of troops that were loyal to the crown, and coming ashore was nowhere near as simple a task as the Spanish had hoped. With a lack of knowledge of the seas around Ireland's north, west and south coasts, many Spanish ships became wrecks which live on in today's memory through the naming of the locations at which they met their dreadful end.

Grace O'Malley, better known in Ireland as Granuaile, was a pirate queen infesting the coast of Eirinn and further afield in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. Powerful on both land and sea, she commanded a large fleet of ships as well as leading her own army into battle.This fascinating book from Michael Sheane explores the reality behind the myths and legends that have been told about O'Malley - a story that is no less amazing once fact becomes separated from fiction. From her earliest days learning the ways of the sea to her death in the same year as England's Queen Elizabeth, this book shines a spotlight on the incredible life of Gráinne Mhaol, as she is still known as in Irish Folklore to this day.

The Picts of the Scottish Highlands in the seventh century, with a king emerging to lead them to victory.

When Octavian became the first Roman emperor, Augustus, in 27BC, Roman influence already extended over much of Europe. Under his leadership the power of Rome continued to expand. Roman innovations in construction, agriculture, industry and warfare transformed the lives of millions more, from Syria to Spain and from the Nile to the Rhine.