The Thirty Years War in thirty seconds
Winder has a pithiness about him that condenses decades of internecine squabbling and violence into a snappy summary of the...
Maps meet Frankenstein
The re-making of maps as Frankenstein collage. How much havoc has torn harmony apart with such unrelated stitchings together?
‘It...
Soft-palmed servants
How to spot an aristo in disguise and on the run? Check servants for implausibly soft hands. Dead give away.
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Daft and marginal
I liked this description of a region being 'daft-and-marginal' before splitting in two, with one half somehow managing to rule...
Map-fuelled idiocy
Beware the map-mad-man. Grappling with the shifting boundaries and complexity of German, let alone European history, needs maps. I am...
Salt-raddled farmland
Scientists are developing plant species that can cope with 'salt-raddled farmland', called 'halophytes'.
See the quote-mosaic review of this...
Mead-crazed ancestors
Since ancient Britain was steeped in German genes, not to mention mead, I fear these may be my ancestors too....
Dietrich as satellite dish
One of the best film reviews I’ve ever read, so bewitching. I must seek out The Scarlet Empress, Dietrich as...
As easy as …
A fun simile to sum up wiping out your enemies with ease and efficiency.
For a while...
Beer mats and memory
I wish more writers would show their personal connection to their subjects. This warmth and quirk does nothing to detract...
Intellect as desert
Prince Albert’s interests outshining his fellow royals to such a stark extent suggests an alarming intellectual aridity. Reminds me of...
Woad-covered Britons
Definitely my ancestors, no getting away from it.
See the quote-mosaic review of this wonderful, lively, engaging book.
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