A Traveller's History of England

by Christopher Daniell

This book gives a comprehensive and enjoyable survey of England's past from prehistoric times right through to the present. All the major periods of English history are dealt with, including the Roman occupation, and the invasions of the Anglo-Saxons, Vikings and Normans, and the power struggles of the medieval kings. The reformation, the Renaissance and the Civil Wars are discussed, as well as the consequences of the Industrial Revolution and urbanism, and the establishment of an Empire, which encompassed a quarter of the human race. In the 20th century the Empire has been transformed into the Commonwealth, two victorious, but costly, World Wars have been fought, the Welfare State was established, and membership of the European Community was finally achieved.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Travel, British Literature, London

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1991

Reviews

[Preetam Chatterjee · Rating 5 out of 5]

পাঠপ্রতিক্রিয়া: A Traveller’s History of England – Christopher Daniell:--

ইতিহাস যখন শুধু রাজাদের শাসনকালের সংখ্যা নয়, বরং একেকটা গন্ধ, রং, শব্দ ও অনুভবের নাম হয়—তখনই সে হয়ে ওঠে স্মরণযোগ্য। Christopher Daniell-এর এই বইটি সেই স্মরণযোগ্য ইতিহাসচর্চার একটি অনন্য দৃষ্টান্ত।

‘A Traveller’s History of England’ কোনো ক্লান্তিকর টাইমলাইন নয়—এটা যেন এক রোমাঞ্চকর টাইম মেশিনে চড়ে ইংল্যান্ডের অতীতকে ছুঁয়ে দেখার সুযোগ। ব্রিটেনের প্রাগৈতিহাসিক যুগ থেকে শুরু করে রোমান, অ্যাংলো-স্যাক্সন, নর্মান, টিউডর, স্টুয়ার্ট, এবং আধুনিক যুগ পর্যন্ত এই বইটি এক মনোমুগ্ধকর যাত্রা।

বইটি কেন উপাদেয়?

প্রথমত, Daniell ইতিহাসকে লেখেন গল্পের মতো করে—তবু তা তথ্যপূর্ণ, প্রামাণ্য এবং ভারসাম্যপূর্ণ।

দ্বিতীয়ত, তিনি কেবল রাজনীতি বা যুদ্ধ নয়, তুলে ধরেছেন সামাজিক রীতিনীতি, অর্থনীতি, ধর্ম, সংস্কৃতি—যেগুলো সত্যিই একটা জাতির আত্মাকে গড়ে তোলে।

ভ্রমণপিপাসু পাঠকের জন্য বিশেষভাবে উপযোগী: কারণ প্রতিটি ঐতিহাসিক জায়গার পেছনের গল্পকে জীবন্ত করে তোলেন তিনি, যা যেকোনো পর্যটকের ভ্রমণকে বহু গুণে সমৃদ্ধ করে তোলে।

Daniell যেমন তথ্য দেন, তেমনই একটি নিরপেক্ষ দৃষ্টিভঙ্গিও রাখেন। ইংল্যান্ডের গৌরবময় মুহূর্ত যেমন উঠে এসেছে, তেমনই দাসত্ব বা উপনিবেশবাদের মতো প্রশ্নবিদ্ধ অধ্যায়গুলোর দিকেও চোখ ফেরাননি। এক কথায়, তিনি ইতিহাসকে চাটনির মতো করে পরিবেশন করেন—টক, ঝাল, মিষ্টি সব একসাথে!

বইটি পড়ে মনে হয়, যেন একসময় সত্যিই সেখানেই ছিলাম—রানী এলিজাবেথের দরবারে, অথবা ক্যান্টারবুরি ক্যাথেড্রালের পাশ দিয়ে হেঁটে যাচ্ছি, কিংবা শুনছি কোনো শিল্পী নতুন করে শেকসপিয়ারের নাটক মঞ্চস্থ করছেন।

মোটকথা, ইতিহাস-প্রেমীদের কাছে এই বইটা যেন এক টিকিট—ইংল্যান্ডের অতীতে ঘোরাফেরা করার জন্য, কিন্তু এইবার কোনো ঝামেলা ছাড়াই, এক কাপ চা হাতে নিয়ে!

পড়ে দেখুন একবার। একেই বলে পপ্যুলার হিস্ট্রি !!

[Elena · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great summary, both accurate and entertaining.

[Monica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read in preparation for a visit to England, it helped to highlight thoughtful ways to travel and places to visit during my trip.

[Emmalyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book was very educational, but extremely inaccessible to the average reader. I read it in preparation for a family trip to England and found that it didn’t quite explain political parties, events, or other important parts of English history in an easily understandable way. Since reading it and whilst reading it, i picked up so many other English travel and history books that I enjoyed so much more than this one. This felt pedantic and yet not even educational. A walk through England’s history while consistently painting the colonized countries that couldn’t escape the “white mans burden” as the bad guys. Attempts at pointing out the flaws in England’s escapades were made, but all fell flat. I consistently had to refer back to previous things or research mentioned events on my own in order to process what the author was attempting to teach. Difficult book to read, and not because it’s a nonfiction/historical guide, but because the writing itself seems forced and uninterested.

Additional note: i couldn’t stand how the end of this book had the audacity to call England a “peaceful people” after covering all the different countries it massacred and went to war with for the advancement of the English empire.

[Larkin Tackett · Rating 4 out of 5]

We're traveling to London next month and this "Complete History of England," which read more like a very long series of Wikipedia entries, helped me understand the complex role of religion, politics, economics, monarchy and other institutions, and geography shaped the large island nation. My eyes and mind gravitated towards the treatment of Jews (in 1290 King Edward 1 expelling them and in 1653 Oliver Cromwell welcomed them back); the overall importance and intersection of religion, politics, and conflict; and the first Prime Minister in the world in 1701. "What is remarkable about England is the traditional stability and permanence of institutions. Instead of the violent revolutions witnesses in Europe and elsewhere, the English people have generally proven that changes can be made peacefully.... The English have generally had little time for theory of for violent innovation. They remain essentially peaceful, law-abiding, and tolerant, good at making thing work, persistent in desiring compromise rather than confrontation."

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book works as essentially a survey or intro-level course history for England. It is concise and provides all of the basic details without delving deep into any one area of the country's history. This is for readers specifically looking for these things. If you are seeking insight into a particular era in England's history or a detailed analysis, this will not be for you. One other thing to keep in mind is the book was published in 1991, so its history ends right before. Very helpful for what I was looking for.

[Niranjan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A whirlwind tour of 1200+ years of England's history, for those unfamiliar with it. It was an excellent reference prior to and during a recent trip to the UK, especially since it involved visiting places of historical interest. I wish it were a little more detailed, though to be fair there's only so much one can fit into a ~200 page book that intends to provide you with a 'traveler's' history.

[Tyler · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very concise and excellent history of England. I highly recommend it for anyone who would like a general survey of English history that hits key events, themes, and people without getting too bogged down in the details. This book is a great first introduction to English history before diving more deeply into any particular part of the field of study.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Интересно написанная краткая история Англии, мне очень понравилось. К сожалению, в книге есть неточности в датах, орфографические ошибки. Невнимательная работа редакторов несколько портит впечатление.

[Patricia · Rating 3 out of 5]

My copy ends with 2005 so it needs an update. Also it is very focused, especially in the beginning, on the royals. But it's good for a traveller who is planning a trip to England.

[Sebastian Walther · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short entertaining book about the broad lines of Britain's history. Approx. 290 pages.
Alltogether worthwhile.

[Kirk Simpson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Alrighty then! Let’s go to London!

[Charles Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really concise and enjoyable history of England that anyone interested in the monarchy is sure to enjoy. Daniell does well to describe the social and political changes from the early Roman origins of Britain to the Cold War. It’s not a groundbreaking or extremely academic book but it paints a great if not biased picture of the English which I thoroughly enjoyed.

[Jan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I needed this book. It is an interesting (not riveting) short approach to the whole history of England. Glad I read it. Hope I remember it all when I'm there!

[Elena · Rating 4 out of 5]

• Henry II Plantagenet (1154-1189) replaced trial by ordeal with trial by a jury of 12 men in 1179.
• In 1215, King John (1199-1216) was forced by the barons to sign the Magna Carta. The meeting took place in a meadow near Windsor. Some of the most important clauses are that no one could be imprisoned without trial, no one could buy or deny justice, and the most revolutionary principal that even a monarch was subject to the law. One of the 4 original copies is on display in Salisbury Cathedral.
• Architecture: Norman (or Romanesque style) with small windows and large pillars which made the interiors dark (e.g. Durham Cathedral). Gradually it was replaced by the Gothic style where the walls and pillars were less thick and the windows became larger (e.g. Canterbury Cathedral).
• The growth of Parliament: “From the 1230s a new term, Parliament (from the French ‘parley’, to talk, discuss), had been increasingly used to describe an assembly of nobles and administrators who offered advice to the king. Edward I (1272-1307) had summoned lords he cared to consult, but by Edward’s II reign (1307-1327) the chief nobles insisted that they had a right to be summoned. At first Parliament’s main duty was dispensation of justice, and it came to regard itself as the highest court in the land. Parliament could try any noble and in 1388 even the king’s advisers were successfully tried. In the later XIV century, representatives from towns and counties started to be summoned. The king met them separately from the nobles. It became accepted practice that statutes agreed to by the Lords were passed on to the Commons”.
• The Civil War (1642-1649). The north, Midlands, Wales and the south-west supported the king, while the south, East Anglia and London supported Parliament. Catholics, supporters of the Church of England, the aristocracy tended to follow the king; Puritans, farmers and merchants tended to follow Parliament. The Civil War was humane and there were never the excesses of power. Defeated troops were not massacred and there was little destruction of the property.
• Bank of England was founded in 1694, which was a major innovation for that time. An important side effect was that investors wanted internal stability and became unwilling to back efforts to overthrow the government by violent means. In 1800 there were over 400 small banks around the country (including Lloyds and Barclays).

[Baden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great Book! Wow! Between 1945 and 1950 20% of the private sector became apart of the public sector (health care, coal mining, power plants, telecomunications, etc).

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good refresher

[Siddharth Bagaria]

This book is great book to lean about england

[Asia Nadolna · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe if I were reading it because I like it, it would be grat book. But... under threat that I can fail the exam without reading this book, I must say: I did't enjoy it :(

[Anastasia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is good.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great summary of English history....

[Ramona · Rating 4 out of 5]

Basic overview of England's History. A good starter book.

[Barbc]

No

[Ricardo Batista · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting book to understand the full English history. Bigger focus on more recent events.