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Home / New releases / November 2026 / Castles: A Fortified History of the World
Castles: A Fortified History of the World by Dan Jones book coverOut in 17 days
HistoryNonfictionMedievalWorld HistoryMedieval HistoryHistorical

Castles: A Fortified History of the World

by Dan Jones

NOV3Tue
Publishes Tuesday 3 November 2026Hardcover · Viking · 416 pagesSee everything out in November 2026 →
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About the book

From the publisher

From the bestselling author of The Templars and Powers and Thrones, Dan Jones returns with The Castle: a gripping history of the world told through twenty iconic strongholds.

Castles have been built to defend humanity for millennia – from the walls of Troy over three thousand years ago and the desert bastion of Krak des Chevaliers in Syria; to Windsor Castle and the Tower of London; to Himeji in Japan and the Maginot Line in the Second World War. They have inspired terror and ambition, foiled conquering forces, and been deployed as the ultimate expression of wealth, status and supremacy.

Jones leads readers on a journey through centuries and across continents as each castle tells a unique story of power, politics and survival, revealing the shifting tides of warfare, the rise and fall of empires, the resilience of people under siege and the flourishing of new ideas.

Blending rich storytelling, cutting-edge research and beautiful original illustrations, The Castle is an epic story of how humans first came to build fortifications and how they expanded into powerfully capturing our imagination. With Jones's trademark scholarship and flair, he shows how defiance, endurance and imagination have been carved into the landscapes we've inherited.

Description supplied by the publisher.

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