We've all been taught about kings and queens, great battles and the rise and fall of empires. The term historians have coined for this is `history from above'. But what about the ordinary folk? What about almost everybody who ever existed? What about the places where no earth-shattering events have ever occurred?


This book is comprised of fascinating stories and anecdotes throughout history, such as how a Bristol merchant may have played a part in giving America its name; why a First World War naval battle was fought in a jungle, and how Sir David Attenborough helped to solve a Victorian murder mystery.