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King John: An Underrated King
Through contextual analysis and by reassessing the chronicle evidence, ‘King An Underrated King’ presents a compelling reevaluation of the reign of King John, England’s most maligned sovereign. With its thought-provoking analysis of the key issues of John’s reign, such as the loss of the French territories, British achievement, Magna Carta, relations with the church, and civil war, the volume presents an engaging argument for rehabilitating King John’s reputation. Each chapter features both narrative and contextual analysis, and is prefaced by a timeline outlining the key events of the period. The volume also contains an array of maps and diagrams, as well as a collection of useful study questions.
244 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 2012
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April 26, 2020
Quite an impressive case for the much maligned King John. The author tries hard to compare some of King John's more brutal actions with the context of what was deemed to be acceptable in the 13th century.
John was famous for scheming and plotting against his brother King Richard. This author reminds us that Richard schemed and plotted against their father Henry II. John gets the condemnation.
Moreover John could be brutal , such as most likely being involved in the death of his nephew Arthur whilst in his custody, starving Maude de Briouze, and her son to death , the killing of 28 young Welsh hostages in 1212, the author is keen to against put these acts in context what was expected from a king at the time. It is mentioned at least twice that Richard the Lionheart ordered the deaths of 2,500 Muslim prisoners at Jaffa . This comparative approach works only to a point but has some validity.
One of the strengths of the books is looking at where John 's achievements were overlooked. His rule in Ireland, his ability to contain Scotland from invading Northern England , John's naval building programme spring to mind.
Another helpful aspect of this book is to show how John was maligned at the end of his reign and by subsequent generations for losing Normandy , Anjou and Maine to the French in 1204. And for then imposing an extensive taxation system to fund an alliance against France to regain these territories and perhaps take more .
After ten years a military campaign was launched against France, only to end in decisive French victory at Bouvines on 27th July 1214 . The alliance fell apart, John returned home, somewhat humiliated. He faced financial crisis rebellion, the Magna Carta, died in 1216 with huge swathes of England in the hands of rebel barons and Crown Prince Louis of France. The author's view is that had John's campaign in France succeeded in 1214, there would have been no baronial revolt or invasion by Prince Louis, and a lot of misgivings about certain aspect of his reign may have faded away over time. Finally should mention the 'text book' layout .....didn't have a problem with it but not all readers have approved.
John was famous for scheming and plotting against his brother King Richard. This author reminds us that Richard schemed and plotted against their father Henry II. John gets the condemnation.
Moreover John could be brutal , such as most likely being involved in the death of his nephew Arthur whilst in his custody, starving Maude de Briouze, and her son to death , the killing of 28 young Welsh hostages in 1212, the author is keen to against put these acts in context what was expected from a king at the time. It is mentioned at least twice that Richard the Lionheart ordered the deaths of 2,500 Muslim prisoners at Jaffa . This comparative approach works only to a point but has some validity.
One of the strengths of the books is looking at where John 's achievements were overlooked. His rule in Ireland, his ability to contain Scotland from invading Northern England , John's naval building programme spring to mind.
Another helpful aspect of this book is to show how John was maligned at the end of his reign and by subsequent generations for losing Normandy , Anjou and Maine to the French in 1204. And for then imposing an extensive taxation system to fund an alliance against France to regain these territories and perhaps take more .
After ten years a military campaign was launched against France, only to end in decisive French victory at Bouvines on 27th July 1214 . The alliance fell apart, John returned home, somewhat humiliated. He faced financial crisis rebellion, the Magna Carta, died in 1216 with huge swathes of England in the hands of rebel barons and Crown Prince Louis of France. The author's view is that had John's campaign in France succeeded in 1214, there would have been no baronial revolt or invasion by Prince Louis, and a lot of misgivings about certain aspect of his reign may have faded away over time. Finally should mention the 'text book' layout .....didn't have a problem with it but not all readers have approved.
Displaying 1 of 1 review