5 comments about Richard The Lionheart: The Mighty Crusader.

1. This is the first book of Miller I have read and I was very impressed by the clarity of the text and the factual analysis. The author gives a brief but very useful introduction to the history of the previous two crusades (before Richard I set foot on the Holy Land) and then goes to the adventourous campaign of the English king, covering the lightning conquest Cyprus, the conclusion of the siege of Acre in just four weeks, the march toward Jaffa, the battle of Arsuf and of course the two failed attempts to conquer Jerusalem. The book contains also chapters on the the logistics behind Richard's moves, the sea war and the lessons Richard learned studying Vegetius' "De Re Militaris". The text is not condensed and very easy to read, featuring only 30 lines per page and the book contains some 15 black and white photographs (two of them maps)in a special section.



2. In this short book, we have an excellent study of military career of Richard the Lionheart during the Third Crusade. The entire book is basically geared toward that campaign where Richard squared off with Saladin. It pretty clear that Richard the Lionheart, may have been bad King of England but he proves to be a very able commander in battles and campaign. His ability to see the long term stratgic problems set him apart from many of his fellow European commanders. The author studied not only Richard's military efforts but his diplomatic effots as well. It bit ironic that Richard probably got along personally with his enemies better then he did with his allies, many who turned against him during the campaign and after.
   
   The book is short (only 215 pages), well written and nicely researched. The author wasn't too judgmental on Richard, choosing to look at him from the historical contemporary point of view instead of the more present politically correct perception which many modern historians falls into that trap. The book proves to be very readable because its not cluttered with overwhelming amount of information. There seem to be enough in the book to present the author's case on Richard very nicely.
   
   The book come recommended to anyone who got a close interest in the Crusades and the life of King Richard I, the Lionheart of England.
   
   Overall, a pretty interesting book that wasted no pages in bringing the reader right into the Third Crusade.



3. I would like to recommend this book, to anyone with an interest in the Crusades, Richard I, or combat leadership in general.
   I found that the focus on Richard's militay exploits to be excellent, and leaves the extraneous accusations of his activities for a reader to find else where if they're so inclined.
   I noted one date in the book that lead me to some issue and that was the reference after the battle of Hattin, the movement to and fall of Jerusalem on July 4th, 1187. If memory serves me, the battle was on July 4th, and the Holy city fell months later.
   Still all in all a great book, and a shining example for combat leaders to never ask their charges to do anything more than they would do themselves.



4. An interesting and informative read, examining Richard from a personal and politico-military perspective but also looking at the history and logistics of the Third Crusade. My only complaint is the rather naive view of the 'Saracen' army that is presented here.



5. This book is perhaps the most concise, readable book on Richard that I've come across. I would refrain from calling it a full biography, since the main focus of the book is purely on Richard's campaign in the Holy Land (and admittedly so), however, Miller uses many opportunities to dissect the tendencies and characteristics of Richard's personality.
   
   It's clear from the writing that the author served as a soldier in a previous life, and hence this book stands apart from others like it because of its heavy focus on the logistical and tactical aspects of the Third Crusade, even going as far as to specify (estimating, of course) the weight of soldier's rations, supply trains, etc. The tables and appendices are particularly valuable.
   
   In short, this is an incredibly readable book on war written from a soldier's perspective, thus making it a fascinating and quick read without ever falling into the familiar sludge where rambling historians and academics seem to get trapped. I look forward to reading other military works by David Miller.

1 comments about William: The People's Prince.

1. Ian Lloyd has succeeded in producing a book of highly enjoyable, and well taken photos, but he should have put as much time into fact checking as he did picking out pics. I'd say buy the book, but just look at the pictures. Don't bother reading the mistake riddled text.

No comments about Madame de Pompadour: Images of a Mistress.

No comments about Elizabeth: 80 Glorious Years.

4 comments about The Awful End of Prince William the Silent: The First Assassination of a Head of State with a Handgun (Making History).

1. This is a very short book about a very obscure ruler who death sent shock waves thru the ruling class of Europe with his death with a handgun,and it took two try by two different men to get the job done,you would think that after the first attempt he would have forbid guns to be in his presence,but no and that was his downfall the second try did him in and every since then assassination have plauged the famous and not so famous. Not a great way to go done in history as a trivia fact.



2. Lisa Jardine has another home run! Her histories are the most readable and clear and obviously very well researched. The wheel-lock pistol had a very great influence on warfare and weapons development. And the influence and interaction of French, Dutch, English, German and Spanish interests is clearly depicted.
   
   If weapons history is of interest try "Of Arms and Men" by Robert L. O'Connell.



3. Book of a very unusual title, the author Lisa Jardine make her case in her short but informative study of the assassination of Prince William the Silent of Orange, one of the moving leaders of the Dutch Protestant rebellion against Imperial Catholic Spain. The book covers both the major events of William's life that led up to his death as well as the development of the wheel lock pistol which made such an assassination so easy. Influence of wheel lock pistol went beyond the military uses and civilians began to used themselves for protection as well as for other uses.
   
   It was interesting to note that this was the second effort on William's life by a pistol but considering how rare such an event was the first time, I don't think William took proper precaution against a second effort. In some way, this would make a great movie, a Spanish double agent worming his way into William's trust and confidence before blowing him away. Of course, the assassin's fate wasn't too pleasant but he seem to to bear it well.
   
   The author states that now that one of the leaders of Europe can be assassinated by a pistol, this make all leaders equally vulunerable. This was especially true for William's close ally, Queen Elizabeth of England which had her own Cold War with Spain going at that time and she herself, victim of many assassination plots.
   
   Book proves to be well researched and well written. Its a short book but it don't waste any pages. I did wish there was a good photo or a drawing of type of wheel lock pistol that the assassin used to killed William as well as Spanish reaction to his murder which was strangely absent.
   
   You would think that no matter who the enemies may be, foreign head of states would refained from using assassins on other foreign head of states since this will lead to copycat policies. But obviously, Hapsburgs leadership weren't thinking that way.
   
   The book come well recommended to anyone interested in the tidbit of history that had a long lasting impact. A new trend of assassination was born when William the Silent was murdered, it will be replayed in history as the author stated, in murders of Lincoln or Archduke Ferdinand (which launched the murderous World War I).



4. A small, but eloquently written study, dealing with the assassination of the Prince of Orange. Many of you may expect to read about the birth and evolution of the wheel-lock pistol, others - extremely detailed information about the day of the "red herrings", as Albert Finney (in his role as Hercule Puarot) calls the day of murder. Don't want to spoil it for you, but on the evolution of the "dag" the information is not very detailed. There are a few paragraphs speaking about the pistoleers and the change of tactics, but its mostly about the diplomatic background and the diplomatic gains and losses of the "potentati" of the period. A large part of the book deals with the impact of the Prince's violent death on the English society and diplomacy, and also gives an overview of the English intervention in the Netherlands.
   The account of the killing itself is not very extended, yet it doesn't seem to lack anything important to the common reader. A small part is dedicated to the assassin himself, but personally I would like to read a more detailed analysis of the man's character, psychology, ideology, of his connections, political, religious... (maybe what lacks here is an overview of the depositions, of the witnesses, of the inquisitorial proceedings).
   On technical issues... The language was clear and easy to read. The scholar will find it perhaps a little complicated where structure is concerned. To me it appeared that there was no clear division between the chapters, with the exception of the one that deals with the killing itself. This of course is a strictly personal opinion.
   The general impression is that this book is more about the diplomatic "game" around the killing and especially its aftermath and its results on the English policies in the Netherlands. Not a lot of information on the Spanish though, nor indeed on the French. The pistol (the wheel-lock "dag" specifically) is treated more as a revolutionary new tool of the potential assassin than a new weapon which played a part in the transformation of the way of war and tactics. The structure is a bit without a system, but its not very damaging to the contents of the book.
   In all a rather pleasant read; educative; not boring; in most cases very informative; but lacks information which even if it is less crucial, would be very useful. In two words: not bad. In another three: could be better.
   
   (this is a copy of my review of the same at the UK branch of Amazon)

5 comments about George III A Personal History.

1. Nice overview of the times. The fact that George III was just as determined to maintain the credibility of the British empire as that other George was at finding a way to separate from it. A renewal of the more believable story of 'mad king george'.



2. This very well-written and researched book provides a wealth of detail on the life of Britain's King George III and his family.
   
   The last British king of the American colonies, George III directed the ill-advised war against his independence-minded colonies. Long and terribly destructive, the war saw the defeat of George's armies and navies in North America. Still, having spent eight years fighting the Americans, the King quickly decided to lay the foundations of a lasting peace and friendship between the two countries.
   
   Hibbert depicts King George as a constitutionally-minded monarch and a competent ruler. Initially detested by his people, he ended his life and reign greatly loved. Certainly his greatest challenges revolved around his large and dysfunctional family and his fight with porphyria and insanity.
   
   "George III" is a scholarly work. Though not an easy read, it is an interesting one!



3. Christopher Hibbert is one of those historians that seems to write about everything. Peter Gay is another that comes to mind. Hibbert provides us a very readale account of George's life. The early years are a bit confusing keeping track of the lineage and order of succession in the Royal family. Many biographies of monarchs suffer from this problem because there are so many family connections to keep track of. Once we get past this point and the young george becomes king, the book starts to pick up.
   
   What becomes apparent is that George III was extremely fare and decent man for his time. We should have such politicians today with this kind of integrity! The emphsasis in this bio is on George's private life. His dealings with his German Queen Charlotte, his son and sucessor the future George IV, who was a continual source of stress for him. The chapters on his dealings with the colonies provided a much less bias account than one normally hears from most US historians. The King was willing to come to any reasonable settlement short of independence. This book shows how he tried to grapple with the American problem, but that it just got out of control.
   
   His dealings with the various parliamentry governments provides a classic example of how personalities shape governments. Petty likes and dislikes lead to complete policies that are often inane. Still, the British people stuck by their old George, espesically when the excesses of the French Revolution became known.
   
   The book gives a good account of some of the other Royals, including George IV, the Duke of York, etc. Most come across as aristocratic fopps and losers, but some manage to have some merit. Over all a great book which chronicles both the life and times of Georgian England. The life of George III was indeed that of England in its heyday. A great read for the time and persoanlities concerned.



4. I used this book extensively for a research paper I wrote on George III. This book does a great job at dispelling the myths about George III and his character.



5. Who was the English King at the time of The American Revolution? I dunno!!! Well, now I do know and, furthermore, I now know something about his private and public life before and after The American Revolution. He reigned for over 50 years and the last years of his reign were about 200 "short" years ago. One thing that impressed me was the sorry state of "the medical art" even in those days. Taking blood from sick people was supposed to cure them. Giving arsenic was supposed to cure certain ailments. Today, we are way ahead of these primitive practices....all we do is give medicines that are "poison" such as depression medication and cold medicine and "antibiotics" for viruses which have no effect.....and doctors do unnecessary surgeries frequently so they can get money from the naive and trusting patients. But, that's another story and another book! Read about King George 3rd; you'll find it interesting. Boland7214@aol

4 comments about Isabel of Burgundy: The Duchess Who Played Politics in the Age of Joan of Arc.

1. Interesting subject and time. I found the biography a bit dry. Would have welcomed further comments on the court of her birth, Portugal, and the development of her court by marriage. Ms Taylor gives us good information on the economics of the French, English and Burgugundian relations and the negociations between these courts,but the insights into the personalities are too shetchy. Never the less a book that makes you want to know more about persons who most historians seem to have forgoten.



2. Princess Isabel of Portugal was the only daughter of King John. She was bought up as the pampered daughter of the kingdom, but also to assume the financial responsibilities of the prudent royal. At what was considered a late age, 33, she married Phillip the Good, Duke of Burgundy.

   Duke Philip was the most powerful non-crowned person in Europe at the time and was an extremely suitable match for Isabel rank-wise. For the next 40 years Isabel played a decisive role in the Dukedom of Burgundy, mostly in diplomatic and financial roles. Isabel was related to the English house of Lancaster and spent most of those 40 years trying ally Burgundy to England and offset the influence of the French kings in the affairs of Burgundy in order to safeguard he son Charles's inheritance. Something she only had mixed success in as her husband had an almost blind faith that the French Kings would "do right" by Burgundy.

   This is the first biography of Isabel and one of the very few available in English of any of Burgundy's Duchesses. The author has produced a lively portrait of a very active woman and gives a clear outline of the political and financial influences that prompted many of Isabel's decisions. This book covers the age of Joan of Arc and the early to late middle years of the Wars of the Roses in England. Although these large political events took place outside Burgundy they did have a direct influence on Isabel's life.

   If you have any curiosity about Medieval and early Renaissance Burgundy then this book is a must.




3. The sort of book that gives women's history a bad name, Taylor's biography of Isabel is a melodramatic rehash of previously published material (all secondary sources and chronicles, rarely footnoted), combined with hyperbolic insights into Isabel's thoughts, actions, and sentiments that the author cannot possibly have discovered on her own, given that all of the duchess' letters and private papers have long since vanished. At times, Taylor succeeds in portraying Isabel as an important player on the European scene and as a skilled diplomat more sensitive than her husband, Duke Phillip the Good (an opinion shared by historians such as Vaughn), to Burgundy's best interests, yet all that is negated by her choice of a title, which seems to suggest that the duchess was merely dabbling for her own amusement in the political turmoil of the times. Taylor does fill an important gap left by Richard Vaughn's biographies of the Burgundian dukes, depicting in detail the trial of Joan of Arc that Vaughn completely ignores, yet there too her writing style, better suited perhaps to a romance novel, undermines the narrative, and Taylor does not really take advantage of opportunities to directly compare Isabel with other powerful women of the time, such as Margaret of Anjou, the wife of England's Henry VI. Taylor presents as fact scenes of Isabel pacing through her palace (peering out windows, no less!), studying with her future daughter-in-law, musing on the character of Louis XI, or riding through the forests, yet she presents no footnotes to suggest where her information originates. Isabel of Portugal is a fascinating person who deserves a good and comprehensive biography; this, unfortunately, is not it.



4. It is surprising that Isabel of Burgundy has never had a biography before this book. Admittedly, the biography is a bit too full of speculation of how Isabel might have felt about her husbands philandering, her son's impetuosity that ended up destroying Burgundy's chances for independence, or the rebellious nature of her Flemish burghers. The lack of personal papers for this important Renaissance lady means that the book largely proceeds based on reasonable speculations and lots of carriage rides filled with jostling along the poorly paved roads of her duchy. The book is a quick read, and full of interesting comments, though the title is a bit of a misnomer (Joan of Arc doesn't play a huge role in the book, except as the stalking horse for French military might and the threat of the French to Burgundy, but might help the book sell a few more copies). Mostly, the book is about the fascinating way in which a strong and capable woman can help to improve the situation of her realm without unduly offending her powerful husband, a lesson which many modern women would do well to imitate.

5 comments about Royals and the Reich: The Princes von Hessen in Nazi Germany.

1. A VERY WELL DOCUMENTED BOOK REGARDING THE RELATIONS BETWEEN GERMAN PRINCELY FAMILIES AND THE NAZI REGIME FOCUSING PRIMARILY ON THE HESSEN-KASSEL BRANCH.
   
   UPON READING IT WE CAN SEE HOW THE PROMISES OF THE REICH AND THEIR DEFINITE HOSTILITY TOWARDS COMMUNISM MADE THESE PRINCES SUCEPTIBLE TO THE NAZI REGIME. AFTER ALL ON THE WAKE OF THE DISASTER OF WW I, THEY WERE DISPOSSED OF THEIR TITLES, POSITIONS AND IN MANY CASES THEIR SOURCE OF WEALTH.
   
   HOWEVER, IT IS NOT QUIET CLEAR IF THEIR ASSOCIATION WAS A MEANS OF SURVIVAL AND FINANCIAL BETTERMENT (OR AT LEASE A STATUS QUO) OR AN ACTUAL POLITICAL/ECONOMIC CONVICTION BY THEM OF THE NAZI RPHILOSOPHY AND REGIME.
   
   THE BOOK IS VERY WELL DOCUMENTED...BUT A BIT TEDIOUS READING. NOT SOMETHING YOU READ FOR ENJOYMENT BUT FOR ITS SCHOLARLY INFORMATION.
   
   STILL, AN INTERESTING BOOK ON AN INTERESTING CHAPTER IN HISTORY.



2. Philipp and Christoph von Hessen-Kassell were great-grandsons of Queen Victoria and nephews of Kaiser Wilhelm II. They were born into the highest circles of wealth and privilege in pre-World War I Germany, living in a variety of palaces and castles and secure within a wide family circle which extended into nearly every royal dynasty in Europe. Petropoulos' central story examines how such men could have been seduced into participating in the highest levels of one of the most thuggish regimes in modern times.
   
   The Hessen family, like other royal/noble clans, was severely shaken by World War I. Although they did not lose all their property (or their lives) as so many of their relations did, Philipp and Christoph's family saw their status slip and some of their wealth vanish. This, along with the terrible suffering more ordinary Germans underwent in the post-World War I period, made the Hessen princes prime targets for the appeal of Nazism: militarism, aggressive nationalism, revenge for past defeats.
   
   After Hitler's coming to power in 1933 and the establishment of the Third Reich, the Nazi Party made a concerted effort to win the support of highly placed individuals and families. Much of the German aristocracy and many members of former royal houses joined the Party, and while they may have privately sneered at the lumpenproletariat side of the Nazis and contrasted it with their own urbane sophistication, they were not above working for and doing the bidding of those they considered so uncouth. Philipp and Christoph were two prime examples. Philipp assisted Hitler in cultural affairs and, since he was married to a daughter of the Italian king, often served as an envoy to Mussolini. Christoph ran one of the Nazi intelligence agencies and served as a fighter pilot in World War II. Both were members of the SS, and both were used by Hitler to try to win influence with their cousins, the British royal family.
   
   Having so much access to Hitler meant making a lot of moral compromises for the Hessens. Neither was particularly anti-Semitic (at least by the standards of the time) and had Jewish friends, but both were silent participants in the early stages of the Final Solution and similar atrocities. Both were artistic and fairly well educated by the standards of their caste, but neither protested the Nazi book-burnings or the destruction of art deemed insufficiently Aryan. Petropoulos does a good job contrasting this lack of action by the Hessens with the opposition of such aristocrats as Crown Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria, who with his family suffered enormously because he refused to collaborate.
   
   As so often happens to those who cooperate with evil, Philipp and Christoph became victims themselves. Philipp and his wife (the beautiful Princess Mafalda of Savoy) ended up in concentration camps where Mafalda died after terrible sufferings. Christoph was killed in a suspicious plane crash after he too lost the Nazis' favor. After the war Philipp spent time in POW camps and went through a long drawn out denazification process before being allowed to retire, poorer and hopefully wiser, to what was left of his estates.
   
   Petropoulos had the cooperation of many members of the Hessen family and other German nobles as well as that of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, who was Christoph's brother-in-law. He does a good job depicting the two men as the cultivated, charming cosmopolitans they were, and the reader is left with a disturbing question: If men such as these could be corrupted by the Nazis, is anyone really safe from similar extremism?



3. Petrouplos'has a remarkable knack for gathering valuable hisotrical information, not to mention wangling an interview with the formidable Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. He is a serious academic historian and his work includes a list of previous books he's written about the Nazi era and the holocaust. His fluency in German, and his academic background, put him in a league of his own among royalty writers. The book is written with the stiff prose of an academic research paper, but on its face, it may appeal as much to royalty buffs as to historians of World War II and the Nazi movement.Often the sensational facts underlying the story are dulled by the musty language. However, the reluctance to sensationalize gives the book more credibility. Petroupols downplays the sizzling hot genealogy of the principal players, Christoph and Philipp von Hessen. Even the family tree fails to branch out as far as it could, straight into the heart of the living royal family of England. A typical royalty writer such as Kitty Kelley would have put the facts in big bold font: the Duke of Edinburgh, husband of the Queen of England, had three sisters and three brothers-in-law who became members of the Nazi party. The facts are interesting, if deplorable. Petroupolus seeks to lay out the facts objectively, looking at root causes. Maybe there is enough distance between us and the Nazi era to admit with some calmness the appeal of the movement. Royalty buffs may want to turn their idols into saints, but this book makes it evident that some royals backed Hitler long and enthusiastically. One vivid passage in the book quotes a conversation between Phillip von Hessen and Hitler, and the Prince sounds both subservient and fanatical: 'Jawohl, mein Fuherer!'he says, several times in one minute.
   
   I admit to being a royalty buff, and I bought this book because my current obsession is the house of Hesse. I found mayself seeing Princess Margaret of Hesse-Kassel in a new light. A daughter of Victoria, the English Empress of Germany, who was herself the eldest daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, Margaret and her husband became devout fans of Hitler and Nazism. The root cause seems to have been a hatred of Communism and an admiration for the German economic and social renaissance ushered in by the Nazis. True, many German nobles gradually or quickly became disillusioned by the regime as it showed its profoundly evil side...and suffered military defeat. One can't help wondering how one would have acted in the same circumstances. And how our own reaction to the policies of the current administration will be viewed.
   
   We all get caught in our times. Petroupolos's book doesn't convey this vividly, and it is not a miracle of literature. But the facts he discloses resonate long after the last page is turned.



4. A rich account with impeccable sholarship of a German royal family's historical roots, European connections, and role in the Third Reich.



5. 
   Petropoulos goes where no one has gone before. I had often wondered about the rumors surrounding the Windsors for which JP carefully separates facts from fiction. I had also wondered about what had become of the many royal houses of pre-Weimar Germany. With this book, I understand a lot more about their post WWI history.
   
   This is not just a story of the von Hessen princes, while they are the focus, they are used as a benchmark for many royals in this period.
   
   The devastation of Germany in WWI (22% of its young men killed) was followed by a new governance and the Weimar Republic arose. It exiled the Kaiser, rescinded royal titles, and voted on the status of lands formerly owned by a patchwork of royal sovereignties now abolished. While this vote on the lands failed passage, it was alarming to the aristocracy.
   
   Noting this, and perhaps the fate of the Romanovs, and the socialistic/communistic aspects of the times, the royals and aristocrats were seduced by Hitler's message. They joined the Nazi party earlier and in greater proportion than any other demographic.
   
   The prose in this book is heavy, and for someone like me, without much background in the history of Germany in this period was a slow read. It was, nevertheless, a page turner. Because I didn't know this family, what they did, nor their fate, I was glued to it. A map would be useful for readers, like me, with little background in Germany and its geography.
   
   You came to understand the thinking and the loss which would compel the royals to do something, anything, following their loss of status and wealth. The Nazi party with its militaristic overtones was a match for their feudal ideals. JP documents the anti-Semitism of the aristocracy. He also notes that while their childhood training taught them their role above others, it also inculcated a sense of honor which should have precluded the activites they later got caught up in.
   
   Philipp and Christoph, perhaps typical of royals and aristocrats, were deeply entrenched in the party as it turned homicidal. Phillipp either approved or ignored the conversion of the former mental hospital to a torture and/or elimination facility in the town over which he presided. As the author notes, due to the heavy censorship of the times, and his inability to confide, we don't know the disposition of Phillipp (and the other royals and aristocrats in similar situations, nor their feelings and motivations as the party turned on them) as events careened into deeper madness. We do have Philipp's denazificaiton testimony, which of course is steered to his defense.
   
   A debt is owed to not just the author for assembling this massive amount of material, but to the von Hessen family who provided full access to their personal papers.

2 comments about Queen Elizabeth I (Historic Lives).

1. This slim volume is only 144 pages including index. Susan Doran has written a complete, if brief, biography of Elizabeth I that hits all the main points of her life and rule. Nothing important seems to have been left out, and the narrative seems unhurried. One could read this book in a fairly short time, and have an understanding of Elizabeth's reign. However, for those who would like a bit more elaboration, Doran includes a Further Reading List at the end.

   Doran's style is clear, engaging, and very readable. This seems to be a book intended for an adult reader, but it would be an excellent introduction for high school students (or even precocious middle schoolers), as well. The only spot where the narrative jars is when Doran briefly compares Elizabeth to Diana, Princess of Wales. Charismatic celebrities exist in every generation, and in twenty years, this reference may seem dated.

   This is also an attractive book, apparently one of the first in a new series by The British Library. It includes many color photographs of portraits and documents throughout.




2. Elizabeth I (The British Library, Historic Lives Series) by Susan Doran is a really superb book! Though I have read many books about Queen Elizabeth this one, though concise, thoroughly captures the essence of the history of Elizabeth and her England. Susan Doran provides us a captivating glimpse into the complicated world facing Elizabeth both in her personal and majestic life as she confronts the dynamic political and religious world developing around her and the England she loves. Elizabeth I was a complex person ruling in a complicated world. In a very even handed way, Susan Doran presents how a dynamic Queen Elizabeth, at her best and worst, navigates as best she can, through the perils and complexities confronting her and England. Susan Doran gives us an Elizabeth who is real. She shows Elizabeth as a Queen who has human frailities, who is adept in propaganda, can be as cruel as she is rewarding, yet whose monarchy enthralls and inspires us to this day. Susan Doran's adept use of a superb collection of illustrations throughout the book really provides a wonderful dimension to her protrayal of Elizabeth as a dynamic queen of England. This is a book I recommend to anyone who has an interest in Elizabeth I, Queen of England.

3 comments about Alfred the Great: War, Culture and Kingship in Anglo-Saxon England (The Medieval World).

1. I bought this book on the recommendation of a professor of mine when embarking upon my senior thesis this spring, and though Abel's book did not end up playing a large part in my paper, I went back to this book after the term was over. This book was an easy, quick, and absorbing read, while informative, cohesive, and clear in its aims and the points it was trying to express. My only criticism might be a minor one -- As an English major, I am more interested in the ideological, cultural, or literary influence or views of an individual. Naturally, as a history professor, Abels interests were not the same as mine. He devotes a lot of the book to details of Alfred's battles with the Vikings, and at times, this failed to hold my attention. This criticism, as a result, is only the result of a personal preference.



2. I enjoyed this book and, unlike some others, was engrossed by the military expeditions of Alfred the Great. The author gives enough information that one can well imagine how incredible it was indeed to fight off the Vikings. Further, the defensive works and the creation of the burghs led to modern economic England, and this point is brought out quite well.



3. Alfred, being the only English monarch styled "the Great", is a notoriously difficult subject to write history about. The Victorian cult of Alfred made him a marked man for the debunkers of the Dead White European Male focus of history. Attempts at an even-handed review of the Wessex king's life are fraught with peril.

   This book does the job magnificently. Alfred the warrior, ruler, innovator, strategist, and moralist are all presented well within the context of a 9th century Anglo-Saxon world. Alfred the pious and Alfred the ruthless are both shown as parts of the same man.

   While concluding that Asser's "Life" is a legitimate source of biography for Alfred, the author does not limit himself. Extensive use and comparison between versions of the "Anglo-Saxon Chronicle" is combined with what limited charter evidence survives, archaeological discoveries and an examination of coinage patterns to round out the picture of Alfred and his times.

   One major strength of this work is its very careful comparisons of Alfred and his activities to those of predecessor kings of Wessex and successor kings of the Anglo-Saxons. Alfred's reign is not studied in isolation. How Alfred was both traditional and innovative in contrast to his father and brothers helps place Alfred in the context of his times. The legacy which Alfred left his descendants (to become kings of all England) is given special attention.

   The author is circumspect in trying to get inside of Alfred's head. Alfred's physical afflictions are examined with an eye to a modern medical diagnosis and their effects on Alfred's personality. Using the marginalia in Alfred's own translations from Latin into the vernacular, the author tries to see inside Alfred the man - all the while cognizant that such a review is only speculative.

   This is a great book and a very good read.