Series: Dynasties

This is a new history of the region known as Kyivan Rus', a state in eastern and northern Europe from the late ninth to the mid-sixteenth century that encompassed a variety of polities and peoples, including Lithuanian, Polish, Ottoman and others. This account for the first time focuses on the history of the region via families, which allows the discussion...

A concise history of the enormously powerful and influential Shi'i caliphate. The Fatimids (909-1171), one of the most significant and intriguing Islamic dynasties, built an empire that included North Africa, Egypt, and parts of Sicily, Syria, Palestine, and Arabia. Theirs is the only Muslim dynasty known by a female's name, Fatima, the Prophet Muhammad's daughter. The Fatimids promoted women to...

Sons of Heaven is the first accessible, newly researched account in English of the imperial family who ruled Ming China (1368-1644), one of the country's most dynamic and influential eras. Beginning with a fresh look at what a dynasty really was, the book follows the lives of emperors, empresses, relatives and those who came into the imperial orbit. Uniquely drawing...