Britain, by Monarch & Sketch

This book is unique as it presents a concise history of Great Britain as an island kingdom from the reigns of William I in 1066 to that of Queen Elizabeth II in the present century. The preface contains an overview of the hereditary composition of the monarchy, the coronation portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, and a listing of the monarchs from 1066 to the present. The introduction contains, a brief history of the four countries -- England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales -- and how they came to be united as the Kingdom of Great Britain. The monarchy is divided into ten houses, or dynasties. A two--fold page layout describes each dynasty from the Normans to the Windsors. Each layout contains: a listing of individual monarchs and dates of reigns; depiction of coins with monarch images; listing of historical events occurring in each reign with marriage information; and two-colour sketches with narrative description of architectural buildings of the period. Thus, there is a 1000 year history of the evolution of architecture from defensive to domestic usage.