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Lord Geoffrey's Fancy
Hewing closely to historical fact, Lord Geoffrey’s Fancy presents a beautifully detailed, fast-paced study of the 13th-century and its world of knights and crusaders, courtly love, and chivalry. The hero, Sir Geoffrey de Bruyere, is the best knight in all Romanie,” and we follow him through lively hunts and brightly-colored jousting tournaments to fierce battles, as he fights for God and justice against the Turks he regards as infidels. A satisfying and thrilling medieval tale.
263 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1962
102 people want to read
About the author
Alfred Duggan
45 books44 followers"There have been few historical imaginations better informed or more gifted than Alfred Duggan’s" (The New Criterion).
Historian, archaeologist and novelist Alfred Leo Duggan wrote historical fiction and non-fiction about a wide range of subjects, in places and times as diverse as Julius Caesar’s Rome and the Medieval Europe of Thomas Becket.
Although he was born in Argentina, Duggan grew up in England, and was educated at Eton and Balliol College, Oxford. After Oxford, he travelled extensively through Greece and Turkey, visiting almost all the sites later mentioned in his books. In 1935 helped excavate Constantine’s palace in Istanbul.
Duggan came to writing fiction quite late in his life: his first novel about the First Crusade, Knight in Armour, was published in 1950, after which he published at least a book every year until his death in 1964. His fictional works were bestselling page-turners, but thoroughly grounded in meticulous research informed by Duggan’s experience as an archaeologist and historian.
Duggan has been favourably compared to Bernard Cornwell as well as being praised in his own right as "an extremely gifted writer who can move into an unknown period and give it life and immediacy" (New York Times).
Historian, archaeologist and novelist Alfred Leo Duggan wrote historical fiction and non-fiction about a wide range of subjects, in places and times as diverse as Julius Caesar’s Rome and the Medieval Europe of Thomas Becket.
Although he was born in Argentina, Duggan grew up in England, and was educated at Eton and Balliol College, Oxford. After Oxford, he travelled extensively through Greece and Turkey, visiting almost all the sites later mentioned in his books. In 1935 helped excavate Constantine’s palace in Istanbul.
Duggan came to writing fiction quite late in his life: his first novel about the First Crusade, Knight in Armour, was published in 1950, after which he published at least a book every year until his death in 1964. His fictional works were bestselling page-turners, but thoroughly grounded in meticulous research informed by Duggan’s experience as an archaeologist and historian.
Duggan has been favourably compared to Bernard Cornwell as well as being praised in his own right as "an extremely gifted writer who can move into an unknown period and give it life and immediacy" (New York Times).
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
December 23, 2015
I'm a big Duggan fan, and this is one of my favourites, though I don't think the title does the book any favours. 'Lord Geoffrey's Fancy' is a bit twee; it makes it sound like a bodice-ripper.
As usual, Duggan does a great job of getting inside the heads of his characters, in this case we follow the career of Sir William Briwerr, a young (presently landless) Norman knight who travels to the Frank territories of the eastern Mediterranean to join the mesnie of Lord Geoffrey de Bruyere, the 'best Knight in all Romanie'. Thereafter, Briwerr is witness to the slow decline of the Frank kingdoms as the local Gifons build their strength and begin to reconquer their lost lands.
The life of a knight is described in a prosaic way that reminds us that these were working soldiers and not just medieval playboys (though this term could describe Lord Geoffrey). Though Briwerr is largely stoic and unsentimental, there are some touching moments in the story. One such is when the Franks must mount a suicidal charge against overwhelming odds, meaning that everyone, able-bodied or not, has to ride into battle, including Briwerr's eight-year-old son. Not knowing what to say to him, Briwerr doesn't spend much time with the boy on the evening before the battle, but finds his son's horse and feeds it the loaf of bread he was given for his dinner, hoping it will buck the horse up the next day. It's touches like this that put a real gloss on Duggan's creations.
For me, one of the charms of the book is that the names of the various peoples, towns and territories are the ones used at the time, and there are no footnotes or maps to put them in a modern context. This makes it tricky to follow the action, but goes a long way in giving us an insight into the limited worldview of someone like Briwerr, who, for much of the story, seems to have only the sketchiest idea of the history of the lands he's defending.
One example of the antique language used is 'Escalvon' which was the medieval French word for 'Slav'. In the book, the Escalvon are a troublesome tribe inhabiting the local highlands, but I later found out that they are synonymous with the 'Melingi', a people descended from Slavs who had settled in the area centuries before.
All in all it's a terrific glimpse into a forgotten corner of history.
As usual, Duggan does a great job of getting inside the heads of his characters, in this case we follow the career of Sir William Briwerr, a young (presently landless) Norman knight who travels to the Frank territories of the eastern Mediterranean to join the mesnie of Lord Geoffrey de Bruyere, the 'best Knight in all Romanie'. Thereafter, Briwerr is witness to the slow decline of the Frank kingdoms as the local Gifons build their strength and begin to reconquer their lost lands.
The life of a knight is described in a prosaic way that reminds us that these were working soldiers and not just medieval playboys (though this term could describe Lord Geoffrey). Though Briwerr is largely stoic and unsentimental, there are some touching moments in the story. One such is when the Franks must mount a suicidal charge against overwhelming odds, meaning that everyone, able-bodied or not, has to ride into battle, including Briwerr's eight-year-old son. Not knowing what to say to him, Briwerr doesn't spend much time with the boy on the evening before the battle, but finds his son's horse and feeds it the loaf of bread he was given for his dinner, hoping it will buck the horse up the next day. It's touches like this that put a real gloss on Duggan's creations.
For me, one of the charms of the book is that the names of the various peoples, towns and territories are the ones used at the time, and there are no footnotes or maps to put them in a modern context. This makes it tricky to follow the action, but goes a long way in giving us an insight into the limited worldview of someone like Briwerr, who, for much of the story, seems to have only the sketchiest idea of the history of the lands he's defending.
One example of the antique language used is 'Escalvon' which was the medieval French word for 'Slav'. In the book, the Escalvon are a troublesome tribe inhabiting the local highlands, but I later found out that they are synonymous with the 'Melingi', a people descended from Slavs who had settled in the area centuries before.
All in all it's a terrific glimpse into a forgotten corner of history.
January 9, 2014
It was like looking at the medieval world through medieval eyes. From the POV of an impoverished English knight who sought his fortune in the east and ended up in the princedom of Lamorie (the Peloponnese of 'Frankish Romania') fighting fellow 'Franks', the Byzantine Greeks ("Griffons") and their Turkish mercenaries ("Heathens & Infidels"). The author understood the how the people of that time and origin thought of their world and it is well incorporated into the story. Incredibly, all the main events and characters in the book are historical, truth being stranger than fiction again.
February 15, 2016
I had no idea that there was a Frankish crusader kingdom in Greece in the 1200's. The author uses all of the old 13th Century names for the country, the places and the populace which is brilliant, but also makes it difficult to follow exactly where things are happening and exactly who is fighting whom. That said I did eventually catch up and can recommend this book whole heartedly. The characters are brilliant if a little idealised, and the pace is perfect.
March 1, 2023
Lord Geoffrey’s Fancy is a by-the-numbers example of the plotless historical ride-along, but somehow also an excellent novel. Told in the first person by the fictional William Briewerr, a landless young English knight who spends 16 years in the service of the eponymous Lord Geoffrey de Bruyere observing and participating in the twilight years of the Grecian crusader state of Lamorie, it manages to replace having a plot of its own with a period of war and politics and other people’s drama without forfeiting its claim to be a novel. There are convenient coincidences and expository dialogue on every page. But that dialogue manages to feel consistently natural and interesting, and the characters, major and minor, are vivid and compelling. William himself is a true Everyman, entirely a product of his circumstances but never unsympathetic. His wife Melisande is perhaps too sensible a woman to truly belong to any era, but she’s a wonderful character.
What sets the story apart is Duggan’s attitude and the story’s unique setting. Its narrator, and, clearly, its author, share a blithe self-assurance and a pleasant, buoyant, gung-ho outlook. Duggan takes a side and has a great time, but never pretends there’s any such thing as a “good side”. And the book’s single greatest draw is its thorough exploration of the ways the Franks of Lamorie see themselves and their allies and enemies, mainly the Byzantine ‘Grifons’. They’ve made themselves a society, that, by their own specific standards, borders on an ideological Utopia. As the book goes on, it develops more and more into an incisive examination, yet never quite a criticism, of knighthood and warrior culture. Though the story remains a straightforward narrative of politics and war, we also see this society built on careless dreams gradually, inevitably spiral into a banal yet total destruction, and it’s remarkably well done.
What sets the story apart is Duggan’s attitude and the story’s unique setting. Its narrator, and, clearly, its author, share a blithe self-assurance and a pleasant, buoyant, gung-ho outlook. Duggan takes a side and has a great time, but never pretends there’s any such thing as a “good side”. And the book’s single greatest draw is its thorough exploration of the ways the Franks of Lamorie see themselves and their allies and enemies, mainly the Byzantine ‘Grifons’. They’ve made themselves a society, that, by their own specific standards, borders on an ideological Utopia. As the book goes on, it develops more and more into an incisive examination, yet never quite a criticism, of knighthood and warrior culture. Though the story remains a straightforward narrative of politics and war, we also see this society built on careless dreams gradually, inevitably spiral into a banal yet total destruction, and it’s remarkably well done.
November 10, 2020
I enjoyed reading this book. A good portrait of medieval life for a knight and his family. This is a historical fiction book based upon true events in history. I would like to read more of this author's books.
January 28, 2016
Not really my sort of thing - children's historical fiction, written by an over educated Englishman in the early twentieth century.
On the other hand, it's fairly reasonable for what it is. It's not great literature, but the events in the story actually happened, and the setting (western knights in Byzantium on a crusade) is reasonably novel. The author knows the history well - among other things, he was an archeologist.
Somebody could probably write a really interesting straightforward history of the same general time / place.
Would say 3 stars, but I'm not the target audience.
On the other hand, it's fairly reasonable for what it is. It's not great literature, but the events in the story actually happened, and the setting (western knights in Byzantium on a crusade) is reasonably novel. The author knows the history well - among other things, he was an archeologist.
Somebody could probably write a really interesting straightforward history of the same general time / place.
Would say 3 stars, but I'm not the target audience.
October 6, 2015
I liked it, not least for its unusual setting. I've seen very few historical novels set in Frankish Greece, and seeing Greece through the eyes of a medieval Westerner was a new experience.
The narrator is an engaging fellow, and his wife is an example of medieval noblewomen at their best.
The narrator is an engaging fellow, and his wife is an example of medieval noblewomen at their best.
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July 30, 2011Lukewarm effort...Would love to have some period maps of the areas covered in Duggan's books. I am interested in learning more about who the Griffons were and who they became.
June 1, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews