John Barratt – författare

This book was originally published in 1990, as part of the Cambridge Studies in International Relations series, a joint initiative of Cambridge University Press and the British International Studies Association (BISA). In a far-reaching and fascinating study of foreign policy in South Africa, Barber and Barratt begin by looking at the post-war challenges faced by the government of South Africa, and the effect that the establishment of apartheid also had on foreign policy. Their study then goes on to explore the effects that Sharpeville, and the repercussions of various periods of success and upheaval, had on South African international relations up until the late 1980s. This exceptionally thorough study of South African foreign policy and the factors influencing its formation will be of interest to scholars of South Africa in particular, and international relations and policy making in general.

The appalling effects of civil war are often suffered most horrifically by the ordinary men, women and children involuntarily caught up in it, as it tears asunder the very fabric of their lives. Such was the fate of the citizens of Chester, who for almost four years found themselves at the centre of the battle between King and Parliament. Chester's inhabitants withstood the terrors of bombardment and the rigours of starvation, in one of the most fiercely contested sieges of the Civil War. Using myriad contemporary sources it is possible for the first time to present a detailed picture of the part played in the siege by the 'common sort', the 'forgotten voices' of Chester: ordinary citizens forced by their employers to enlist in the City Regiment, their brutal introduction to the realities of war and their gallant defence of Chester.

The opening years of the fifteenth century saw one of the most bitterly contested political and military convulsions in the history of the British Isles, a conflict that is too-often overlooked by military historians. Henry IV, who had overthrown and probably murdered his predecessor Richard II, fought a protracted and bloody campaign against the most powerful nobles in the land. This war is the subject of John Barratts gripping study.The Percy family, the Kings of the North, and their most famous leader Sir Henry Percy Hotspur,whose fiery nature and military prowess were immortalized by Shakespeare stood out against Henrys rule. And the beleagured king also had to contend with a range of other unrelenting opponents, among them Owain Glyn Dwr, who led the Welsh revolt against English supremacy.In this graphic account of the first, deeply troubled years of Henry IVs reign, John Barratt concentrates on the warfare, in particular on the setpiece pitched battles fought at Homildon Hill, Pilleth and Shrewsbury.