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History - European — page 8
459 public-domain history - european books, summarised. Page 8 of 10.
Old Court Life in France, vol. 2/2
Frances Minto Dickinson Elliot
Behind the gleaming gilded doors and heavy velvet curtains of the French court lies a volatile world where personal caprice dictates national destiny and devotion is routinely rewarded with betrayal.
The Alps
Arnold Lunn
Human perception of mountains has evolved from dread of dragons and high places to the deliberate pursuit of peaks for sport, insight, and self-discovery.
The Great Events by Famous Historians, Volume 06: (From Barbarossa to Dante)
Unknown
A grand, sweeping record of the High Middle Ages, this volume captures a transformed world shaped by clashing faiths, rising crowns, and the foundational tremors of modern liberty.
The War in Syria, Volume 2 (of 2)
Charles Napier
The Middle East in the mid-nineteenth century becomes a high-stakes chessboard where naval power, fragile diplomatic alliances, and the personal ambitions of local rulers collide. This account captures the complex, often chaotic transition of power in Syria and Egypt as the Ottoman Empire fights to reclaim its…
Narrative, of a five years' expedition against the Revolted Negroes of Surinam, in Guiana on the Wild Coast of South America
John Gabriel Stedman
A soldier's eyewitness account of colonial warfare, slavery, and survival in 18th-century Suriname.
The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898
Unknown
Centuries of imperial administration, missionary ambition, and colonial friction unfold through the primary records of Spain's distant Pacific outpost.
The Treaty of the European Union, Maastricht Treaty, 7th February, 1992
European Union
Twelve European nations unite to transform their economic partnership into a political union built on shared institutions, common rights, and monetary integration.
Germany before the war
baron (Eugène-Napoléon) Beyens
The European peace that defined the nineteenth century did not collapse by accident, but through the deliberate machinations of an Imperial leadership blinded by historical hubris and economic desperation.
Russia in the Shadows
H. G. (Herbert George) Wells
A seasoned observer travels into the heart of a crumbling revolutionary state, seeking to understand whether a new world is truly being built or if civilization is simply vanishing into the shadows.
An account of the principalities of Wallachia and Moldavia: with various political observations relating to them
William Wilkinson
The principalities of Wallachia and Moldavia emerge here as precarious buffers, constantly buffeted by the shifting ambitions of Russia, Turkey, and the encroaching influence of Western European powers.
Cyprus, as I Saw It in 1879
Baker, Samuel White, Sir
HOOK A seasoned explorer traverses the rugged, newly occupied landscape of 1879 Cyprus, offering a sharp-eyed, unsentimental portrait of a land caught between ancient tradition and the arrival of British administration.
Ireland and Poland: A Comparison
T. W. (Thomas William) Rolleston
The United Kingdom’s governance of Ireland stands in sharp contrast to the German Empire’s treatment of its Polish subjects, revealing the disparity between imperial reform and systemic suppression.
Account of the Romansh Language: In a Letter to Sir John Pringle, Bart. P. R. S
Joseph Planta
A scholarly investigation traces the origins and enduring isolation of the Romansh language, revealing its deep roots in the mountainous terrain of the Grisons. This work bridges the gap between ancient historical movements and the survival of a distinct linguistic identity.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Vol. 60, No. 374, December, 1846
Various
This final 1846 installment of a storied literary monthly offers a panoramic view of Victorian thought, blending political critique, historical revisionism, and the era’s restless curiosity about the wider world.
The Last Days of Pekin
Pierre Loti
This atmospheric travelogue captures the fleeting, surreal intersection of ancient imperial tradition and the destructive arrival of Western military powers in the aftermath of the 1900 Boxer Rebellion.
A School History of the Great War
Albert E. (Albert Edward) McKinley
This concise history serves as a primary source of early twentieth-century American perspective, framing the global upheaval of 1914–1918 as a moral struggle for democracy against autocracy. It offers a clear, structured window into how the Great War was explained to the American classroom as it concluded.
Russian Life To-day
Bury, Herbert, Bp.
A sympathetic observer documents his travels across a vast, changing Empire, offering an intimate window into the faith, customs, and daily rhythms of Russia on the precipice of the First World War.
The Eve of the French Revolution
Edward J. (Edward Jackson) Lowell
The French Revolution did not arrive as a sudden bolt of lightning, but as the inevitable collapse of a social and political structure that had been rotting from within for nearly a century.
McClure's Magazine, Vol. XXXI, No. 4, August 1908
Various
This collection captures the American spirit at the dawn of the twentieth century, blending urgent political inquiry with the intimate, often restless lives of those navigating a rapidly shifting social landscape.
Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science, Volume 15, No. 86, February, 1875
Various
This nineteenth-century periodical offers a panoramic window into the Victorian mind, blending travelogues, scientific inquiry, and fiction into a singular snapshot of cultural life. It serves as a fascinating repository of period perspectives, capturing the era’s preoccupations with global exploration, social…
The Campaign of Königgrätz
Arthur L. (Arthur Lockwood) Wagner
The lightning-fast military triumph of 1866 serves as a definitive case study in how modern organization and technological superiority can decisively reshape the map of Europe in mere weeks.
Account of the Russian Discoveries between Asia and America: To which are added, the conquest of Siberia, and the history of the transactions and commerce between Russia and China
William Coxe
This volume offers a meticulous survey of Russian maritime expansion into the Pacific and the establishment of overland trade with China, charting an era of ambitious discovery and frontier commerce. It acts as a comprehensive chronicle of the eighteenth-century Russian reach toward the North American coast.
Herzegovina
George Arbuthnot
This account of a 19th-century military campaign serves as both a travelogue and a focused political analysis of the Ottoman Empire’s turbulent frontier. It captures the rugged landscape and complex sectarian tensions of a region caught between imperial reform and local rebellion.
The dawn in Russia
Henry Woodd Nevinson
A eye-witness account records the violent birth of modern Russian resistance through the blood, smoke, and fragile hopes of 1905.
The German Fleet: Being The Companion Volume to "The Fleets At War" and "From Heligoland To Keeling Island
Archibald Hurd
This historical survey traces the systematic rise of German naval power, examining how the ambition for maritime supremacy transformed the nation’s geopolitical standing and irrevocably altered its relationship with Great Britain.
History of the Late Polish Revolution and the Events of the Campaign
Joseph Hordynski
An exiled Polish officer gives a direct eyewitness account of the 1830 November Uprising against Russian rule, dissecting how initial victories were derailed by timid leadership.
McClure's Magazine, Vol. XXXI, September 1908, No. 5
Various
Behind the polished facades of international diplomacy, political campaigns, and quiet personal lives lies a relentless struggle for authority, identity, and moral compromise.
Best Stories of the 1914 European War
Various
Fleeing Belgian civilians, battered French infantry, and stoic British troops converge in a raw collection of dispatches capturing the terrifying opening months of the Great War.
Old Court Life in Spain, vol. 2/2
Frances Minto Dickinson Elliot
A tragic air hangs over medieval Spain, where royalty is defined less by grace than by bloodshed and ambition.
The Caillaux Drama
John N. (John Nathan) Raphael
A dramatic act of violence in the editorial offices of a major newspaper lays bare a tangled web of political interference, press campaigns, and moral decay in pre-war Paris.
Seven years in Vienna (August, 1907-August, 1914), a record of intrigue
Anonymous
Inside the gilded saloons and police-ringed resorts of Austria-Hungary, an anonymous insider watches an imperial power structure slide toward self-destruction.
Over the Front in an Aeroplane, and Scenes Inside the French and Flemish Trenches
Ralph Pulitzer
Flying over the Western Front at eighty miles an hour, an observer peers down at a maze of white lines, struggling to distinguish the roads of France from the trenches of a world war.
The Great War and How It Arose
Anonymous
The assassination of an Archduke ignited a powder keg, yet this account reveals how deliberate diplomatic maneuvers and calculated military strategies transformed a regional crisis into a global catastrophe.
The Mentor: Russian Music, Vol. 4, Num. 18, Serial No. 118, November 1, 1916
Henry T. Finck
This concise survey captures the rise of a distinct national voice in music, tracing the journey from imported Italian operas to the daring, avant-garde innovations of a new Russian century.
The Religious Persecution in France 1900-1906
J. Napier (Jane Napier) Brodhead
This chronicle examines the systematic dismantling of Catholic influence in France at the dawn of the twentieth century, framing the era’s political maneuvering as a deliberate, state-sponsored campaign to de-Christianize the nation.
The German War
Arthur Conan Doyle
The modern era was born in the trenches of 1914, and these urgent, contemporary essays capture the fevered pulse of a civilization realizing it is being dismantled by a power it failed to understand.
The Second Funeral of Napoleon
William Makepeace Thackeray
The return of Napoleon Bonaparte’s remains from St. Helena to Paris in 1840 serves as the stage for a meditation on the nature of history, the vanity of pomp, and the absurdity of hero-worship.
History of the Scottish expedition to Norway in 1612
Thomas Michell
This examination of a 17th-century military disaster strips away centuries of romanticized legend to uncover the mundane, bureaucratic reality of a doomed mercenary expedition. It balances archival records against local folklore to provide a clear, historical perspective on a pivotal moment in Norwegian memory.
Austria-Hungary
G. E. (Geraldine Edith) Mitton
This guide to the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy serves as a comprehensive travelogue and historical primer for a vanished empire. It captures the spirit of early 20th-century Central Europe, balancing imperial politics with the intimate, rugged beauty of its diverse provinces.
Germany, Bohemia, and Hungary, Visited in 1837. Vol. II
G. R. (George Robert) Gleig
This account captures a nineteenth-century pedestrian tour through the heart of Europe, blending lighthearted travelogue with keen observations of rural life, local customs, and historical landmarks. It offers a rare, intimate look at the Bohemian landscape as it appeared in 1837.
The Yser and the Belgian Coast: An Illustrated History and Guide
Pneu Michelin (Firm)
This historical volume maps the harrowing landscape of the Great War’s Belgian front, blending evocative battlefield accounts with the practical, turn-by-turn guidance of a dedicated touring manual.
Italian Yesterdays, vol. 2
Fraser, Hugh, Mrs.
This collection of historical sketches offers a tapestry of Italian life, weaving together the sanctity of early church founders, the dramatic intrigues of the Neapolitan court, and the quiet, persistent grace of ordinary people. It captures a land where the weight of centuries informs every street corner and stone…
The Evidence in the Case: A Discussion of the Moral Responsibility for the War of 1914, as Disclosed by the Diplomatic Records of England, Germany, Russia
James M. (James Montgomery) Beck
This legalistic examination of the 1914 diplomatic crisis strips away the fog of war to assign moral culpability, arguing that Germany and Austria acted with calculated, deceptive intent.
Waterloo
Hilaire Belloc
HOOK This study of the 1815 Waterloo campaign examines the strategic interplay between political necessity and military failure, arguing that the battle’s outcome was determined long before the final shots were fired.
The Crime Against Europe: A Possible Outcome of the War of 1914
Roger Casement
This polemic argues that the British Empire is a global tyranny maintained by the subjugation of Ireland, and that Irish liberation is the essential catalyst for a balanced European peace.
Connaught
Stephen Lucius Gwynn
Bleak limestone terraces, storm-scoured bays, and ruined abbeys frame a western Irish landscape shaped by centuries of endurance, quiet humor, and deep local memory.
Chronicle of the Cid
Robert Southey
A warrior rides across medieval Spain, winning kingdom after kingdom for an ungrateful monarch while forging an unshakeable legacy of honor.
Narrative of the Most Remarkable Events Which Occurred in and near Leipzig Immediately Before, During, and Subsequent to, the Sanguinary Series of Engagements Between the Allied Armies of the French, from the 14th to the 19th October, 1813
Frederic Shoberl
Trapped in the crossfire of the Battle of Nations, a devastating nineteenth-century conflict lays waste to a historic German city, leaving its citizens to endure the horrors of occupation, plunder, and total war.