Angus Konstam

Often romanticised in print and on the silver screen, real-life pirates were a brutal menace that plagued the high seas. In this book, Angus Konstam separates myth from reality, tracing the history of piracy through the centuries, from the pirates who plagued the Ancient Egyptians to the Viking raids and on to the era of privateers. He discusses the so-called 'Golden Age of Piracy' and colourful characters such as Blackbeard and Captain Kidd, before...

During both world wars the devasting firepower of artillery accounted for a huge proportion of casualties, killing and maiming hundreds of thousands. But how did we reach this point given that in the Middle Ages it was little more than an princely novelty? Using gunpowder weapons was initially something of a black art, but over the centuries gunnery became a science, a dependable method of breaching fortifications, or overcoming an enemy on the battlefield....