From the bestselling author of The Templars and Powers and Thrones, Dan Jones returns with Castles: a gripping history of the world told through over three thousand years of iconic strongholds.

Castles have been built to defend humanity for millennia – from the walls of Troy 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, Castles 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.

Epic in scope and lavish in detail, Jones tells the story of human history through the most dramatic ruins we have. * Paul Cooper *
CASTLES is a book Dan Jones was born to write: his childhood infatuation, followed by profound scholarship and garnished with superbly engaging prose has produced a wonderful history of the strongholds that still excite our imagination and command our respect. * Andrew Roberts *

Dan Jones is a bestselling historian, TV presenter and award-winning journalist. His non-fiction books, which have sold more than a million copies worldwide, include the Sunday Times bestsellers THE PLANTAGENETS, THE TEMPLARS, POWERS AND THRONES and HENRY V. His fiction includes the acclaimed Essex Dogs trilogy, set during the Hundred Years War, concluding with LION HEARTS. Dan has written and presented numerous TV series including Secrets of Great British Castles, Britain’s Bloodiest Dynasty: The Plantagenets and London: 2000 Years of History. He writes and hosts the Sony Music podcast This is History. For a decade Dan was a weekly columnist for the London Evening Standard; he has also contributed to dozens of newspapers and magazines worldwide, including the New York Times, Sunday Times, Telegraph and Spectator. He is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and a Trustee of Historic Royal Palaces.