Lords of the Sea revises our understanding of the epic political, economic, and cultural transformations of Japan’s late medieval period (ca. 1300–1600) by shifting the conventional land-based analytical framework to one centered on the perspectives of seafarers who, though usually dismissed as "pirates," thought of themselves as sea lords. Over the course of these centuries, Japan’s sea lords became maritime magnates who wielded increasing amounts of political and economic authority by developing autonomous maritime domains that operated outside the auspices of state authority. They played key roles in the operation of networks linking Japan to the rest of the world, and their protection businesses, shipping organizations, and sea tenure practices spread their influence across the waves to the continent, shaping commercial and diplomatic relations with Korea and China. Japan's land-based authorities during this time not only came to accept the autonomy of "pirates" but also competed to sponsor sea-lord bands who could administer littoral estates, fight sea battles, protect shipping, and carry trade. In turn, prominent sea-lord families expanded their dominion by shifting their locus of service among several patrons and by appropriating land-based rhetorics of lordship, which forced authorities to recognize them as legitimate lords over sea-based domains. By the end of the late medieval period, the ambitions, tactics, and technologies of sea-lord mercenary bands proved integral to the naval dimensions of Japan’s sixteenth-century military revolution. Sea lords translated their late medieval autonomy into positions of influence in early modern Japan and helped make control of the seas part of the ideological foundations of the state.

Presents a history of the epic battles, the indomitable ships, and the men--from extraordinary leaders to seductive rogues--who established Athens' supremacy, taking readers on a tour of the far-flung expeditions and detailing the legacy of a forgotten maritime empire.

The escalation of piracy in the waters east and south of Somalia has led commentators to call the area the new Barbary, but the Somali pirates cannot compare to the three hundred years of terror supplied by the Barbary corsairs in the Mediterranean and beyond. From 1500 to 1800, Muslim pirates from the Barbary Coast of North Africa captured and enslaved more than a million Christians. Lords of the Sea relates the history of these pirates, examining their dramatic impact as the maritime vanguard of the Ottoman Empire in the early 1500s through their breaking from Ottoman control in the early seventeenth century. Alan Jamieson explores how the corsairs rose to the apogee of their powers during this period, extending their activities from the Mediterranean into the Atlantic and venturing as far as England, Ireland, and Iceland. Serving as a vital component of the main Ottoman fleet, the Barbary pirates also conducted independent raids of Christian ships and territory. While their activities declined after 1700, Jamieson reveals that it was only in the early nineteenth century that Europe and the United States finally curtailed the Barbary menace, a fight that culminated in the French conquest of Algiers in 1830. A welcome addition to military history, Lords of the Sea is an engrossing tale of exploration, slavery, and conquest.

Tattooed mer-shifters are climbing out of the secret depths to claim their soul mates and save their race. Determined warlord Torun cannot wait to claim Lucy, who mistook him for a shipwreck survivor and pulled his injured body from the ocean. All his instincts tell him she is his soul mate. Now she must join with him and give him a child. Lucy can't believe the words coming out of this dominant male. He insists her destiny is to become a mermaid queen and mother to his future children. The one thing "destiny" forgot to mention was that Lucy's a broke divorcee who can't even have a child. It's really too bad, because his gorgeous lips are all too kissable, and she'd love to see his iridescent gold tattoos moving as he flexed those broad, hard pectorals under the water... But Torun's in more immediate danger than a bad bump to the head, and Lucy is the only one who can save him. Their choices will either save the entire race of mermen, or destroy it. This is a complete novel with a happy ending. Also, it features steamy mer shifter love scenes, underwater gun fights, and a giant female octopus named Mr. Huggles. Fall in love with these men of the sea!

European traders and soldiers established a foothold on Timor in the course of the seventeenth century, motivated by the quest for the commercially vital sandalwood and the intense competition between the Dutch and the Portuguese. Lords of the Land, Lords of the Sea focuses on two centuries of contacts between the indigenous polities on Timor and the early colonials, and covers the period 1600-1800. In contrast with most previous studies, the book treats Timor as a historical region in its own right, using a wide array of Dutch, Portuguese and other original sources, which are compared with the comprehensive corpus of oral tradition recorded on the island. From this rich material, a lively picture emerges of life and death in early Timorese society, the forms of trade, slavery, warfare, alliances, social life, and so forth. The investigation demonstrates that the European groups, although having a role as ordering political forces, were only part of the political landscape of Timor. They relied on alliances where the distinction between ally and vassal was moot, and led to frequent conflicts and uprisings. During a slow and complicated process, the often turbulent political conditions involving Europeans, Eurasians, and Timorese polities, paved the way for the later division of Timor into two spheres of roughly equal size.

The Vikings roamed and raided the known world, always returning to their beautiful, sacred realm. Now, a young Christian woman is forced into this land—by a Viking lord with a secret he dares not reveal . . . From Istanbul to Ireland, Rorik of Vargfjell is legendary for the battles he has fought, the wealth he has amassed, and the women he has loved. So when a Northumbrian Earl refuses to pay tribute, and even burns one of Rorik’s ships, the Viking seizes the earl’s daughter—and will hold her for ransom. Or so was his plan. At home in Northumbria, Elfwynn had experienced agonizing losses—including the peaceful world she was born into. Now she stands face to face with a towering, chiseled Viking in his wondrous kingdom. With her gift of music, her unworldly beauty and strange courage, Elfwynn will prove to be very different than any woman Rorik has known. And for a man who lords over sea and land, what she demands will be the greatest challenge of all . . . “Lord of the Mountains will mesmerize you from the first page . . . Jarema’s in-depth knowledge of Norwegian customs makes this story believable.” —RT Book Reviews, 4 stars

Habab polity was, within living memory, one of a lord (Shumagalle) and serf (Tigre) relationship. In the 1870s/1880s, the Habab were subjected to pressures from the strong characters ruling in the surrounding lands: Ras Alula in the Hamasien, the Mahdist Emir Osman Digna, Colonel Kitchener, Governor of the Anglo-Egyptian enclave of Suakin, and in Massaua the Egyptians and later the Italians. In 1887, the Kantibai of the Habab signed a treaty of Protection with the Italians. In the period from 1887 to 1895, the Habab, in a fraught process, had to come to terms with the European concept of sovereignty. Anthony D'Avray's work is primarily based on documents left by Italian administrators based at Nakfa in Eritrea in the late 19th century. They reported matters of current importance, and also the extensive oral traditions of the Habab and other peoples of the Red Sea coasts. Other primary sources, notably from the Public Record Office in London supplement the Nakfa documents.