W. L. WarrenCritiques

5VWKSEFS

Being surely the definitive account of the life and polity of Henry II. The book begins and ends with a chronological narrative, with a middle dominated by an account of church-state relations during his reign, inevitably concentrating on his conflict with Archbishop Thomas Becket, his one-time crony. Another major theme is his ambition of establishing his sons in their own positions in the government of his vassal states on the continent, and their fitful allegiance to him which ultimately called the whole endeavor into question. The author has a high opinion of Henry, but this is conjoined with a recognition of his limitations and faults. He specifically does a good job of setting out the Becket arguments and placing them in the context of papal policy of the day, which he sees as rather different. The book obviously was not written with recreational reading in mind, and the account of church-state relations in particular is laden with far too much detail on the canon law of the time to be easily gotten through. Otherwise I was consistently interested by the account, which is one of high drama, as world theater and cinema have recognized for at least a half-century.

His greatest achievement, indeed, was not that he created a vast dominion, nor even that he held on to it and largely tamed it, but that he introduced to it the art of government.

Huge effort to capture the essence of a tireless soul whose struggled to standardize and thus modernize the English realm. Perhaps growing up during such instability forged his resolve. His famous mother Matilda escaping the clutches of King Stephen, a winter walk for posterity. Despite there being precious little that we can instantly identify as being English in the chauvinistic sense, Henry worked to anchor relations with the Scots, Welsh and Irish. reigned in the barons and addressed the church. Under Henry's tutelage, many steps were taken along the road to Common Law. His friends and family appeared as ambitious as he was, often with disastrous or at least minatory consequences. In fact he dropped dead after refusing to fight one of his sons Richard who had again chafed at reality and bared his sword. This is an exhaustive look at policy and posterity. There isn't an abundance of personality within.

This is an excellent account of Henry II's life and times, the man himself and the empire he ruled, containing an amazing amount of information. It is a serious historical work which shines for the painstaking research and attention to detail that went into it. At the same time, it is an enjoyable read with an engaging narrative. Maps and photos, as well as a glossary and 30 pages of bibliography complete the picture. The book was published in 1973, so it's not the latest, but I wished some historian today would take note and take a leaf out of this author's book - this is how it should be done!

Oh, so little known, so little studied yet, in my opinion, King John covers an interesting moment in the history of relations between England and France and is well worth a read. The reader enters the story towards the end of John’s reign as King Philip requests that John step down and give the crown to the rightful owner, Arthur, John’s nephew. Not doing so will result in war between the two countries. The battlefield will be Angier’s an area located in France yet under English rule. The savvy citizen’s of Angier’s will not allow the gates of their city to be opened to allow either King into their domain and devise a remedy to their perilous situation. Peace is short lived however for Rome has entered the fray and asks that France aid the Catholic Church in their cause for John did not appoint the pope’s chosen man as Archbishop of Canterbury and must be excommunicated. Thus war ensues and the winner, in the end, does not win at all.½

This classic biography provides a fascinating and authoritative look into the life of one of medieval England's most infamous rulers. Warren expertly illuminates the entirety of Henry's life and reign, including his tumultuous relationships with his queen, his sons, and Archbishop Becket. Part of the English Monarchs Series.

Very scholarly and well researched, but not really narrative history and not the biography per se of its subject that I was expecting, unlike the author's King John, which is a more straightforward biography. Stopped reading half way through but will retain for reference.

A readable and interesting biography of this most maligned of kings who has, to some extent at least, been unfairly judged due to an over-reliance on the word of one particular non-contemporary chronicler, Roger of Wendover. While John's petty tyrannies towards the barons and character flaws are manifest, he was also a much sought after and judicious arbiter in legal proceedings involving ordinary men and also effectively founded the English navy. Up to a point it seems odd that John, unlike the equally but somewhat unfairly maligned Richard III, has no organised defenders today.

wonderful book