'';Extensive and intelligent . . . a guide to the nature of British intellectual curiosity'' Spectator

The reign of Queen Elizabeth I ushered in an unprecedented age of exploration and discovery. Over 500 years that saw '';the greatest expansion of ideas and knowledge the world has ever seen'', a small island nation, for centuries a cultural backwater, asserted itself as a world power.

Breathtaking in scope, embracing literature, science, art, religion, philosophy and politics, The British Imagination brings to life those centuries between Elizabeth I and II, and asks the provocative question are we stillliving in a British ''metaphysical empire''?

From the acclaimed author of The German Genius and The French Mind, this is a lively and deeply researched history of the most influential personalities and ideas that made modern Britain.

'';Intriguing insights about the contemporary Anglosphere . . . nuanced and appreciative'' Financial Times

'';Peter Watson has form when it comes to probing a nation''s psyche . . . Ambitious and stimulating'' Country Life