Settlements of the Doomed

Settlements of the Doomed is part of the Pocket History series, which opens a window onto a selection of remarkable stories, characters and themes from the past. History they say is written by the winners. We read about the first settlers arriving in Sydney Cove with modern icon the Opera House in our minds. But the world is scattered with the remnants of other, forgotten settlements. Here in Settlements of the Doomed are twelve tales from the annals of history's many failures that have as much to tell us about human nature as anything that smacks of success.

Ed Wright is the author of History's Greatest Scandals, Celebrity Family Trees, A Left-Handed History of the World, Lost Explorers and Ghost Colonies.