A hilarious and entertaining compendium of historical trivia from Dan Snow and the creators of History Hit: the ultimate gift for fans of The Rest is History. Hours of fun for all aspiring historians this summer 2025!

‘History is a bottomless reservoir of all the bonkers, heroic, awful and weird things we eccentric humans have ever done. We can’t help generating extraordinary stories . . . Most importantly, like all the best stories, they are true.’ – DAN SNOW

Have you ever wondered who the third man on the moon was? Did you know that Dick Whittington really was the medieval Mayor of London? Why was a pigeon a hero to the American army? What’s the difference between a dolmen and a barrow? Who were the Wu, Wei and Shu Han? Was Napoleon really small? Who said ‘Pardon me, sir, I didn’t mean to’ just before they were executed? When was the oldest known shark attack?

The answers to all these questions and so much more are contained within this wonderful miscellany of historical facts, figures and fascinating finds which will enthral, entertain and inform everyone who loves history and wants to know more about more.

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WHAT READERS ARE SAYING:

‘Full of facts . . . some eye wateringly funny and some jaw-droppingly astonishing’ ?????

‘Easy to pick up and hard to put down’ ?????

‘I learnt something new from almost every entry. Highly recommended reading for all history lovers and fact fans!’ ?????

‘Full of interesting historical facts and my husband loved this as a Christmas gift’ ?????