This title surveys some 60 examples of swords made and used in northern Europe during the Viking Age, from the mid 8th to the mid-11th century. It contains an illustrated overview of blade types and construction, pattern-welding, inscriptions and handle forms and Jan Petersen's classification.

Drawing on the V&A's magnificent collection, this illustrated survey examines the development of the Japanese sword in an historical and social context from the 8th to the 12th century. The development of the sword from its origins as one of the world's most effective cutting weapons in seen in the context of the emergence and development of Japan's ruling military class, the samurai, to whom it was indispensable both as a weapon and symbol of power. The book also deals with the techniques used in the making of the sword and the associated terminology. In addition to weapons from the V&A's own collections, illustrations include comparative materials from Japan's Tokyo National Museum, as well as prints showing graphic depictions of swords in action.

The Resplendent image of the medieval knight is concentrated in the symbolism of his sword. The straight, two-edged, cross-hilted knightly sword of the European middle ages was an object of vital importance, a lethal weapon on the battlefield and a badge of chivalry in that complex social code. Ewart Oakeshott draws on his extensive research and expert eye (and hand, for he has a special sense for the feel of a sword) to develop a typology for and recount the history of the sword, from the knightly successors of the Viking weapon to the emergence of the Renaissance sword - that is, roughly from 1050 to 1550. Within this time-span, two distinct groups of swords successively evolved. Problems of dating are acute, and evidence is adduced from literature and art as well as from archaeology, for a sword (or some parts of a sword) could have been in use several generations after it first saw battle. To deal with such overlap, Ewart Oakeshott develops, refines and illustrates a detailed typology of swords which takes in entire swords, pommel-forms, cross-guards, and the grip and scabbard.

In Henry V as Warlord, acclaimed historian Desmond Seward sweeps away the myths and idolatry of Henry V to reveal a cruel, intolerant bigot who thirsted for victory at any cost. Seward shows the ruthlessness of the man who called himself "the scourge of God" when reproached for a massacre; exploited the dormant Hundred Years War for his own gains; and committed atrocities in battle. Henry V's blind ambition arose from his determination to prove his tenuous claim to the throne of England, which his father had usurped. Here, Seward argues that Henry V created a deep distrust between France and England that has lasted to this day. "With precision, wit, and remarkable clarity, [Seward] chronicles the entwined lives of these 'half-savage squireens, scarcely more than peasants with coats of arms' through an all but unbelieveable saga of vanity, stupidity, and mindless greed." (The Washington Post Book World)