The Long Patrol

The hares of the Long Patrol, my lads,
Love friendship more than gold.
We'll share long days, and tread hard ways,
Good comrades, brave and bold!
To run with the Long Patrol, to join the legendary army of fighting hares who serve Cregga Rose Eyes, Ruler of Salamandastron - this is young Tammo's dream.

The Ruler Portraits of Anglo-Saxon England

Analysis of a group of images of kingship and queenship from Anglo-Saxon England explores the implications of their focus on books, authorship and learning.

This is a fresh account of Julius Caesar - the brilliant politician and intriguing figure who became sole ruler of the Roman Empire.

Catherine the Great of Russia
In Moscow's Tretyakov Gallery hangs perhaps the most well-known picture of Russia's most well-known ruler. Dimitri Levitsky's 1780 'Portrait of Catherine the Great in the Justice Temple' depicts Catherine in the temple burning poppies at an altar, symbolising her sacrifice of self-interest for Russia. Law books and the scales of justice are at her feet, highlighting her respectful promotion of the rule of law. But menacingly, in the background an eagle crouches, suggesting the means to use brutal power where necessary. This was one of many images that Catherine commissioned that demonstrated her skill at manipulation and reinvention.
For an obscure, small town, German princess her ambition was large - the transformation of a semi-barbaric country into a model of the ideals of the French 18th century Enlightenment. How far was Catherine able to lead her country into full participation in the political and cultural life of Europe? Was she able to liberate the serfs? And should she be remembered as Russia's most civilised ruler or a megalomaniacal despot?