The Greatest Knight

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A thrillingly intimate portrait of one of history s most illustrious knights William Marshal that vividly evokes the grandeur and barbarity of the Middle AgesWilliam Marshal was the true Lancelot of his era a peerless warrior and paragon of chivalry yet over the centuries, the spectacular story of his achievements passed from memory Marshal became just one name in the dusty annals of history Then, in 1861, a young French scholar named Paul Meyer made a startling discovery during an auction of rare medieval manuscripts Meyer stumbled upon the sole surviving copy of an unknown text the first contemporary biography of a medieval knight, later dubbed the History of William Marshal This richly detailed work helped to resurrect Marshal s reputation, putting flesh onto the bones of this otherwise obscure figure, yet even today William Marshal remains largely forgotten.As a five year old boy, William was sentenced to execution and led to the gallows, yet this landless younger son survived his brush with death, and went on to train as a medieval knight Against all odds, William Marshal rose through the ranks serving at the right hand of five English monarchs to become a celebrated tournament champion, a baron and politician and, ultimately, regent of the realm.Marshal befriended the great figures of his day, from Richard the Lionheart and Eleanor of Aquitaine to the infamous King John, and helped to negotiate the terms of Magna Carta the first bill of rights By the age of seventy, the once forsaken child had been transformed into the most powerful man in England, yet he was forced to fight in the frontline of one final battle, striving to save the kingdom from French invasion in 1217.In The Greatest Knight, renowned historian Thomas Asbridge draws upon the thirteenth century biography and an array of other contemporary evidence to present a compelling account of William Marshal s life and times Asbridge follows Marshal on his journey from rural England onto the battlefields of France, to the desert castles of the Holy Land and the verdant shores of Ireland, charting the unparalleled rise to prominence of a man bound to a code of honour, yet driven by unquenchable ambition.This knight s tale lays bare the brutish realities of medieval warfare and the machinations of royal court, and draws us into the heart of a formative period of our history, when the West emerged from the Dark Ages and stood on the brink of modernity It is the story of one remarkable man, the birth of the knightly class to which he belonged, and the forging of the English nation. Download The Greatest Knight author Thomas Asbridge – kino-fada.fr I ve been wanting to read this book and learnabout William Marshal for a long time now and author Thomas Asbridge didn t disappoint This readslike a work of historical fiction than history as there was never a dull moment in this fast paced book relating this unlikely tale of rags to riches.I first ran across William Marshal back in the early 1980 s when I read Thomas Costain s book The Conquering Family and The Magnificent Century Costain was clearly in awe of William Marshal and I ve been wanting to read this book and learnabout William Marshal for a long time now and author Thomas Asbridge didn t disappoint This readslike a work of historical fiction than history as there was never a dull moment in this fast paced book relating this unlikely tale of rags to riches.I first ran across William Marshal back in the early 1980 s when I read Thomas Costain s book The Conquering Family and The Magnificent Century Costain was clearly in awe of William Marshal and his many amazing deed...I confess that before I read Thomas Asbridge s THE GREATEST KNIGHT I was already curious about this new biography of William Marshal The lives of John FitzGilbert the Marshal and his son William are a lifelong study subject for me outside my novel writing career Since this work shared the title of my 2004 novel The Greatest Knight the life of William Marshal and even the same font and cloudy background as my UK cover, my interest was naturally piqued evenWilliam Marshal, circa 1246 121 I confess that before I read Thomas Asbridge s THE GREATEST KNIGHT I was already curious about this new biography of William Marshal The lives of John FitzGilbert the Marshal and his son William are a lifelong study subject for me outside my novel writing career Since this work shared the title of my 2004 novel The Greatest Knight the life of William Marshal and even the same font and cloudy background as my UK cover, my interest was naturally piqued evenWilliam Marshal, circa 1246 1219 has been called the Greatest Knight who ever lived and we know about him through a rhyming biographical poem of over 20,000 lines c...I learned a great deal from this interesting and well written book, and not only about William Marshal.The Preface of this book describes how a manuscript at Sotheby s caught a French Scholar s attention, but was then sold and disappeared from view for many years The French man pursued his search for the manuscript which turned out to be a thirteenth century biography of a knight by the name of William Marshal Be sure to read the fascinating Preface Who was William Marshal William was born i I learned a great deal from this interesting and well written book, and not only about William Marshal.The Preface of this book describes how a manuscript at Sotheby s caught a French Scholar s attention, but was then sold and disappeared from view for many years The French man pursued his search for the manuscript which turned out to be a thirteenth century biography of a knight by the name of William Marshal Be sure to read the fascinating Preface Who was William Marshal William was born in England around 1147 during the reign of King Stephen and at a time of civil war in England He was to become not only a knight of g...A knight there was, and he a worthy man,Who, from the moment that he first beganTo ride about the world, loved chivalry,Truth, honour, freedom and all courtesy.Full worthy was he in his liege lord s war,And therein had he ridden nonefar As well in Christendom as heathenesse,And honoured everywhere for worthinessThe Canterbury Tales Chaucer Relying on L Histoire de Guillaume le Mar chal, the first and only biography known to describe the life of a medieval knight, written by John ofA knight there was, and he a worthy man,W...First off I won this in the First Reads here at Goodreads but this in no way effected this review.From a military and political stand point this was like having a front row seat to the reigns of five english kings.William Marshall served these kings with honor,dignity and bravery as this book shows throughout.Despite that I received an uncorrected copy with the occasional left out word or out of order sentence it was filled with detail on most every aspect of his long career.I especially enjoyed First off I won this in the First Reads here at Goodreads but this in no way effected this review.From a military and political stand point this was like having a front row seat to the reigns of fi...Having read Chadwick s books on William Marshal a few years ago, I enjoyed reading and revisiting this non fiction book on his amazing life Some who have read Chadwick made comments.that there is no way this happened and the author just had a love affair with William Well, at first read I thought the same, so I investigated Well, it s there written in a medieval biography that was almost lost to history We are lucky that a French scholar came across this rubbish aka hidden jewel at an a Having read Chadwick s books on William Marshal a few years ago, I enjoyed reading and revisiting this non fict...If you are a devotee of Medieval English historythan likely you have a crush on William Marshal if you are interested in men This man is everything that the stereotype of a knight in shining armor entails even though shiny armor plates didn t exist yet loyalty, bravery, and chivalry The question is whether William Marshal truly encompassed these traits or if that is an exaggerated portrayal in hindsight Acclaimed author and medieval studies lecturer Thomas Asbridge highlights the If you are a devotee of Medieval English historythan likely you have a crush on William Marshal if you are interested in men This man is everything that the stereotype of a knight in shining armor entails even though shiny armor plates didn t exist yet loyalty, bravery, and chivalry The question is whether William Marshal truly encompassed these traits or if that is an exaggerated portrayal in hindsight Acclaimed author and medieval studies lecturer Thomas Asbridge highlights the life of this much loved warrior in, The Greatest Knight The Remarkable Life of William Marshal The Power Behind Five English Thrones.Let s make one thing clear before even diving into details regarding the content of Asbridge s work One would expect The Greatest Knight to be a full blown biography or manifesto highlighting the life of William Marshal Sadly, The Greatest Knight is not that The content of Asbridge s pages mostly discuss the surrounding political and soc...What was it like to be a knight in the age of chivalry What was it like to be up close and personal to Henry II, his Queen Eleanor and their sons Thomas Abridge brings it all to life in this engagingly written biography of William Marshall.While born a noble, William Marshall was not a first son His father supported King Stephen s cousin s claim to the throne and was willing to make William a hostage in the 14 year civil war William survived execution orders and the general poor and uncertai What was it like to be a knight in the age of chivalry What was it like to be up close and personal to Henry II, his Queen Eleanor and their sons Thomas Abridge brings it all to life in this engagingly written biography of William Marshall.While born a noble, William Marshall was not a first son His father supported King Stephen s cousin s claim to the throne and was willing to make William a hostage in the 14 year civil war William survived execution orders and the general poor and uncertain conditions of being a hostage Perhaps he survived because he was adorable child or maybe because King Stephen was as a sympathetic monarch.Freed upon King Steven s death, the young William was sent to a rel...I received this book as part of GoodReads First Reads giveaway And I read an Uncorrected Proof copy.Edited I originally quibbled about the lack of references but I only did not see them because I read an uncorrected proof so I have no qualms or reservations about this book It s a straight up great book, very informative and extremely interesting.Well that was fascinating This boo...One of the most fascinating characters in English history, the knight William Marshall, is thoroughly examined in this marvelous work from historian Thomas Asbridge Working primarily from an obscure medieval document dubbed the History bought at auction in the late 19th century, Asbridge reconstructs the life of a knight who was not only considered one of the best of his day, but lived at a time when his achievements and involvement in the greater political arena of the Angevin dynasty helped t One of the most fascinating characters in English history, the knight William Marshall, is thoroughly examined in this marvelous work from historian Thomas Asbridge Working primarily from an obscure medieval document dubbed the History bought at auction in the late 19th century, Asbridge reconstructs the life of a knight who was not only considered one of the best of his day, but liv...

The Greatest Knight
  • English
  • 19 August 2017
  • Hardcover
  • 464 pages
  • 006226205X
  • Thomas Asbridge
  • The Greatest Knight