Terry Breverton

Nicholas Culpeper's The English Physitian: or an Astrologo-physical Discourse of the Vulgar Herbs of This Nation is more commonly known as Culpeper's Complete Herbal. It was first printed in September 1653 (Culpeper died in January 1654) and immediately became a classic reference that is as fascinating today as it was over 350 years ago. Breverton's Complete Herbal is a reworking of Culpeper's classic text for a modern day audience. Arranged alphabetically, this book describes over 250 herbs and spices as well as feature entries on scented herb/medicinal gardens, the great herbalists and New World Herbs not included in Culpepper's original text. Each entry provides a description of the herb: its appearance and botanical features, a brief history of its uses in medicine, dyeing and cuisine to bizarre remedies and concoctions designed to get rid of all manner of real and imaginary ailements. As informative as it is entertaining, this incredibly diverse compendium contains just about everything you'll ever need to know about the properties and provenance of herbs and spices of the world. From amara dulcis to yarrow, all-heal to viper's bugloss, Breverton's Complete Herbal is a modern day treasury of over 250 herbs and their uses.

A superbly illustrated guide to the mysteries of myth, legend, and-gulp!-real life.

And you thought unicorns were fabulous? Well, of course they are, but did you know how many other weird and wonderful mythical beasts are out there waiting to be discovered?From dragons and wyverns to vampires, werewolves and mischievous gremlins, pixies and fairies, Breverton's Phantasmagoria is a unique compendium of over 250 mythical animals. Prepare to revisit familiar myths, such as vampires, werewolves and the Loch Ness Monster, the Minotaur and Medusa from Greek legend, and Biblical beasts such as Behemoth and Leviathan. Discover new mysterious animals like the giant serpents of Central America, the lethal Mongolian death worm, and the Ennedi tiger in Africa, and investigate the evidence for sightings of Bigfoot and the reclusive Yeti. Packed with quirky line illustrations and a wealth of weird and wonderful information, Breverton's Phantasmagoria surveys the globe to uncover over 250 imaginary creatures passed down from generation to generation.

A comprehensive and authoritative gazetteer of Wales's 1000 best heritage sites. Fabulously illustrated with over 100 colour photographs. Includes castles, churches, chapels, houses, archaeological sites, gardens, battlefields, libraries, historic industrial sites and landscapes. From today's most prolific writer upon the heritage of Wales, we have his selection of the places that symbolise the history and culture of the nation. From the oldest mineral mines in Europe, prehistoric megaliths, Iron Age hill forts, through the Roman occupation, sixth-century holy wells to the greatest density of medieval castle-building in the world, we arrive at today's industrial heritage. Wales has a history unknown to the rest of the world, for instance the longest unbroken period of Christianity in Europe; a thousand saints from the so-called 'Dark Ages' of the fifth to seventh centuries whose names are still imprinted on the landscape; the highest density of castles and Iron Age hill forts in the world; the greatest density of places of worship in the world; and it was the veritable cradle of the global Industrial Revolution. The 1000 best sites to understand Welsh history and culture have been chosen for this book from Elizabethan gardens, the oldest monastery in the British Isles to a human treadmill.

Breverton's Nautical Curiosities is arranged into thematic chapters:1) 1) The ocean environment - animals, geography, geology, weather, coasts, islands2) 2) Ship types and parts - from the first boat to the latest cutting-edge technology1) 3) People - heroes, heroines, pirates, sailors, captains 2) 4) Disasters, battles, wars3) 5) Literature - stories, myths, legends, proclamations, acts, orders 4) 6) Nautical sayings and slang Breverton's Nautical Curiosities is about ships, people and the sea. However, unlike many other nautical compendiums, the focus of this book is on the unusual, the overlooked or the downright extraordinary. Thus, someone most of us do not know, Admiral William Brown, is given equal coverage to Admiral Nelson. Without Admiral Brown releasing Garibaldi, modern Italy might not exist. And without the barely known genius John Ericsson designing the Monitor, the Confederacy might have won the American Civil War. Readers will be stimulated to read more about the remarkable men - explorers, admirals and trawlermen - who have shaped our world. The sea has had a remarkable effect upon our language.We hear the terms 'steer clear of', 'hit the deck', 'don't rock the boat', 'to harbour a grudge' and the like, and give little thought to them. In the pages of this book, the reader will find the origin of 'bumpkin', a 'brace of shakes', 'born with a silver spoon', 'booby prize', 'to take on board', 'above board', 'bombed' (in the sense of being drunk), the 'blues', 'blind-side', 'blind drunk', 'the pot calling the kettle black', 'reach the bitter end', 'wasters', 'ahoy', 'all at sea', 'to keep aloof', 'piss-artist', 'taken aback', 'barbecue" and 'bamboozle'. Other colourful terms, which have passed out of common usage, such as 'bring one's arse to anchor' (sit down), 'belly timber' (food) and 'bog orange' (potato) are also included, as well as important pirate haunts, technical terms, famous battles, maritime inventors and ship speed records.

A compendium of fascinating information about the great waters that cover two-thirds of our Earth and the men and women that sailed them.Breverton's Nautical Curiosities is about ships, people and the sea. However, unlike many other nautical compendiums, the focus of this book is on the unusual, the overlooked or the downright extraordinary. Someone most of us do not know, Admiral William Brown, is given equal coverage to Admiral Nelson. Without Admiral Brown releasing Garibaldi, modern Italy might not exist. And without the barely known genius John Ericsson designing the Monitor, the Confederacy might have won the American Civil War. Readers will be stimulated to read more about the remarkable men - explorers, admirals and trawlermen - who have shaped our world. The sea has had a remarkable effect upon our language. We hear the terms 'steer clear of', 'hit the deck', 'don't rock the boat', 'to harbour a grudge' and the like, and give little thought to them. In the pages of this book, the reader will find the origin of 'bumpkin', a 'brace of shakes', 'born with a silver spoon', 'booby prize', 'to take on board', 'above board', 'bombed' (in the sense of being drunk), the 'blues', 'blind-side', 'blind drunk', 'the pot calling the kettle black', 'reach the bitter end', 'wasters', 'ahoy', 'all at sea', 'to keep aloof', 'piss-artist', 'taken aback', 'barbecue'' and 'bamboozle'. Other colourful terms, which have passed out of common usage, such as 'bring one's arse to anchor' (sit down), 'belly timber' (food) and 'bog orange' (potato) are also included, as well as important pirate haunts, technical terms, famous battles, maritime inventors and ship speed records.

A new and uniquely accessible history of Wales. This comprehensive and authoritative companion to Wales, its people and its millennia of history can be enjoyed by armchair travellers and tourists alike. The respected historian Terry Breverton presents the characters, events, buildings and institutions that have shaped Wales over the ages, from its earliest origins to the present day. The nation has the oldest national flag in the world, one of the oldest languages in existence, the longest unbroken Christian heritage in history, and has somehow retained a fierce sense of independence and nationality despite its proximity to England. The book takes us from the earliest recorded human burial in the world (at Paviland Cave) through the battles against the invading Romans, Vikings, Picts, Saxons, Normans and the Anglo-French kings to the present-day status of the country. Its people have changed the history of Britain and the United States, with the Tudor Dynasty giving Britain its European identity and Thomas Jefferson and others founding the breakaway union of American states. The book comes in an accessible, comprehensive, illustrated dictionary format, from an author who has written more than twenty entertaining and informative books upon the Welsh and their achivements.