Synopses & Reviews
- William Marshal is a figure of prime importance in medieval history
- Colourful evocation of a real and well-documented medieval life
- Full of all the medieval obsessions: the tournament, warfare, greed, love and lordship
- Remarkable insight into the political minefields of the courts of Henry II, Richard the Lionheart and King John
- Authoritative reconstruction of medieval tournament and military life
- 'a tour de force'; 'a refreshingly readable book'; 'Written in a racy, accessible, idiosyncratic style' - quotes from some of the glowing reviews of the first edition.
- Written very much as a trade book - accessible and pacy in it's style
- The translation of the original French biography into English and other new discoveries mean that the time is ripe for a new look at the Marshal's life
THE knight of all knights: this is William Marshal as portrayed by David Crouch in his classic biography of 'the Marshal'. International sportsman, career courtier and highly capable and professional soldier, William Marshal challenges many of our assumptions about boneheaded and unfeeling warrior knights. This illustrated new edition expands and upgrades William Marshal's epic life-story in light of recent discoveries about his career and character.
David Crouch is Professor Medieval History at the University of Hull and author of several books including The Reign of King Stephen 1135-54 (2000) and The Normans: The Story of a Dynasty (2002).
Synopsis
'a tour de force.....The world of the Angevin court is splendidly recreated, and Dr Crouch succeeds admirably in explaining the reality of the chivalric ethos. For him, the celebrations after a battle had more in common with the atmosphere in the bar of a rugby club than with that of the enclosures at Henley or the ski-slopes of Klosters - Dr. Crouch is adept at finding striking modern parallels'.
History Today
'a refreshingly readable book, it makes a contribution to medieval studies quite out of proportion to its size'
TLS
' Crouch resurrects a lost world in fluent, economic and readable prose, often enlivened by colloquialisms and contemporary parallels'
Southern History
'Written in a racy, accessible, idiosyncratic style, which might have appealed to the Marshal himself, it should be read by everyone interested in medieval people, politics and society'
Archives
William Marshal is the one medieval knight who had a contemporary biography written about him. He was THE knight of all knights as far as we are concerned today. He is the only medieval man whose authentic experience of aristocratic military life is preserved for us.
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. 209-212) and index.
About the Author
David Crouch is Professor Medieval History at the University of Hull and author of several books including The Reign of King Stephen 1135-54 (2000) and The Normans: The Story of a Dynasty (2002).
Table of Contents
List of Maps and Tables
Editor's Preface
Preface
Introduction
Old Work and New Questions
The Problems of the Sources
1. Childhood and Squirehood
John Marshal: Father and Son
William de Tancarville: the ‘Good Master'
2. The Household Knight
The Device of Tancarville
Patrick, Earl of Salisbury
The Royal Household
3. The Making of a Magnate, 1186-1205
The Household of Henry ii, 1186-89
Lord of Striguil
King Richard on Crusade, 1190-94
King Richard's Captain and Courtier, 1194-99
Losing Normandy and Royal Favour, 1199-1205
4. The Making of a Regent
Humiliation, 1205-1207
The Irish Problem, 1207-13
The Marshal and the Barons' War
Protector of the King and the Kingdom
The Battle of Lincoln (1217) and its aftermath
The Marshal's Government
Resignation, Death and Afterwards
5. The Marshal's Men
The Knights
The Clerks
The Hidden Household
6. Love and Lordship
Love and Loyalty
Lordship and Affinity
The Marshal and Money
7. The Chivalry of the Marshal
The Tournament
The Battlefield
8. La Bone Fin va out
appendix i The Knights of William Marshal
appendix ii The Marshal and the Earl Marshal
General Bibliography
Maps
Genealogical Tables
Index