William Clarke

Little is known about William Clarke, the author of this 1819 survey of libraries in Britain, though hints in the opening pages suggest that he was acquainted with the activities of the Roxburghe Club. His object is 'to assist … the collector in his pursuit of valuable editions of rare books'. A short survey of the major libraries of Europe is followed by descriptions of the collections which make up the British Museum's library, the great 'public' libraries, including those of Oxford and Cambridge, and the libraries of learned societies. Private libraries covered include those of Sir Joseph Banks, William Beckford, and the duke of Marlborough. The final portion of the work describes the content of some great library sales (a fuller list of sales having been given earlier in the book), from the seventeenth century to Clarke's own time. This remains a useful source for bibliographers and those interested in the provenance of books.

This volume is an extremely readable guide to the world of international finance by two former City Editors of The Times. It is designed for people who want to understand something of the world’s financial affairs and learn how to follow jargon on the City pages of newspapers or money programmes on radio and television. Starting with the basic facts, the authors gently guide you through the world’s money maze – so that by the time you have reached the last chapter you should be able to understand the newspaper extracts printed at the end of the book.The World’s Money aims to answer some of the many questions of the times in which it was published: Why had there been so many monetary crises? How were they caused? What is the role of gold in international finance? How do exchange rates, the IMF, the World Bank, the eurodollar market work? What is the new World Money? How was the pound devalued? Can 1929 recur? The material is equally suitable for students, sixth-formers, economists and the armchair reader. Contemporary events are used as examples and illustrations, the history and the future of money discussed, so that the book is at once topical for its times and of lasting value.

When World War I broke out in 1914 Russia's Romanov dynasty was among the world's richest families. Yet ever since the Bolsheviks executed Tsar Nicholas II, his wife Alexandra and their children at Ekaterinburg, the mystery of what happened to their wealth has remained unsolved. This book is an account of the authors' answers to the Tsar's lost fortune.

This book starts with an overview of the design, development and classification of modern warship types and it studies the constructors' original models. The book then turns to scale modelling with detailed chapters on choosing a subject, a scale, methods of construction, materials and techniques and the details of fittings and painting.

Bitingly satirical, sometimes scandalous, these short stories are full of political and social allegories and allusions, as relevant today as they were when they were first published in 1830.

When Wilkie Collins died in 1889, he shocked Victorian society by dividing his estate equally between two mistresses, Caroline Graves and Martha Rudd, and acknowledging Martha's three children as his own. Clarke pieces together the truth behind this menage a trios to brings to life one of the Victorian age's most colourful characters.