He is married and has two daughters and grandchildren. He has had a lifelong interest in the study of history and for well over thirty years has concentrated on the history of Great Britain and its empire. For as long, he has been an avid collector of cigarette and trade cards that have been organized on a thematic basis covering the regal, political, military, social and geographic aspects of Britain and the British Empire. It is from this extensive collection that he has drawn the research material for this book. Dr. Mazansky also had a large collection of British military swords that he and his wife donated to Brown University in Rhode Island. He has written a book on British Basket-Hilted Swords published by the Royal Armouries of Great Britain.