Edward IV: The Summer King

by A.J. Pollard

In 1461 Edward earl of March, a handsome eighteen-year old of massive charisma and ability, usurped the English throne from his vacant Lancastrian predecessor Henry VI. Ten years on, following outbreaks of civil conflict that culminated in him losing, then regaining the crown, he had finally secured his kingdom. The years that followed witnessed a period of rule that has been described as a golden age: a time of peace and economic and industrial expansion, which saw the establishment of a style of strong monarchy that the Tudors would make their own. Yet, argues A. J. Pollard, Edward, who squandered his undoubted talents in a frenzy of sexual and epicurean excess, was a man of limited vision, his reign remaining to the very end the narrow rule of a victorious faction in civil war. Ultimately, his failure was dynastic: barely two months after his death in April 1483, his young son and heir was usurped by Edward's youngest brother, Richard III.

Genres: History, Biography, Nonfiction, British Literature, Medieval History, Historical, 15th Century

119 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 28, 2016

About the author

Anthony James Pollard (born 1941) is a British medieval historian, specialising in North-Eastern England during the Wars of the Roses. He is considered a leading authority on the field.

Reviews

[Carolyn Harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short critical biography of Edward IV. Pollard judges Edward to have been resourceful in a crisis and an able military commander but a king who "did not look much beyond his immediate personal interests and desires." Pollard observes parallels between Edward IV and his grandson Henry VIII, noting that both were handsome young princes fascinated by tournaments and courtly display who became increasingly obese and self indulgent as they grew older. In contrast, Pollard provides a surprisingly positive assessment of Elizabeth Woodville as queen, noting that she fulfilled the requirements of a queen consort including motherhood, piety and patronage and arguing that she was unfairly maligned as an ambitious intriguer. Pollard concludes by noting that Edward IV belonged to a dysfunctional family, ordering the murder of his brother George then having his own children disinherited by his brother Richard III after his death. I look forward to reading the biographies of Richard III and Henry VII in this series, when they are published later in the year.

[Helene Harrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am really enjoying working my way through these Penguin Monarchs books. This is the first one I've read outside of the Tudor period, and it's a little longer than the Tudor ones. It's quite a critical view of Edward IV and how he failed to establish his dynasty and left the door wide open for the Tudors.

I know more about the relationship with Elizabeth Woodville and Warwick and the middle part of his reign, rather than how he actually became king, and the later part of his reign and building works, so it was particularly interesting for me to read these sections, which go into a surprising amount of detail for such a short book!

It's a complicated time politically with lots of players, so if you've not familiar with the basics of the Wars of the Roses and some of the people you may get a little lost, precisely because it is so detailed and raises so many important and complex issues.

The Penguin Monarchs series are all written by different historians who are eminent in their fields and I'm looking forward in the future to reading some of these books about monarchs that I know less about!

[Lois · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was short, concise, unbiased, fair and well researched.
I would suggest that readers be familiar with the players and the setting before picking this book up. This is a very complicated time politically and the author moves at a rapid pace. I think with less knowledge I mightve been a bit lost🤷🏾‍♀️

[Truls Ljungström · Rating 3 out of 5]

Intressant genomgång av en monark som jag bara hade populärhistorisk kunskap om tidigare. Edward IV kan sammanfattas som en god riddare men en mindre god person, där hans privata svagheter, framförallt i termer av omåttlighet drev honom i döden. Författaren betonar att det är sannolikt att han, om han inte hade ätit ihjäl sig, hade kunnat bli en vördad dynastigrundare. Han betonar också att Edwards sexuella omåttlighet redan under hans tidiga regering var ett internationellt problem för Englands diplomater, eftersom den gjorde kungen oberäknelig.

Sammanfattningsvis en spännande historia.

[tuhseen · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's more an account Edward's life than an analysis and is filled with information I already knew, but it gathers everything in less than 100 pages and I appreciate that. I'd recommend it for those who don't know much about the Wars of the Roses or Edward IV.

[Sally O'wheel · Rating 4 out of 5]

My only knowledge of Edward IV came from Philippa Gregory's books, The White Queen and so on. I was there fore very surprised to learn of his many shortcomings! The story about his brother George in particular was extremely disturbing! Could it be that he wasn't a thorough badun but was unfairly murdered by his crazed brother? It was good to read a considered historical account of this king and I need to read historical fiction with more discernment!

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the Penguin monarchs series. Each little volume has been written by a known historian and somebody that really knows what they're talking about, which is fab because it can't be an easy task to condense so much into just a hundred pages. Pollard covered the major events of the reign and provided both context and a little about what happened after 1483. To fit all that - a civil war, a deposition and a usurpation, a scandalous marriage, rebellion, exile, another usurpation, more rebellion, foreign policy, reassertion of strength and authority, war with France and war with Scotland and finally Edward's death and Gloucester's usurpation - in just over 100 pages takes some serious skill.

The subject matter is not to be forgotten either. Edward IV might just be my favourite English king, and so often he is overlooked. As Pollard states in the first chapter, he wasn't even deemed important enough to warrant his own history play by Shakespeare, who just splits Edward's reign between Henry VI part 3 and Richard III. Pollard presents us with the Edward IV who restored England's finances after bankruptcy, who restored royal authority after Henry VI had all but demolished it. He shows us the man who brought back the royal image that Henry VI had neglected, and the king that brought influences from Burgundy to England, helping to close the gap between the medieval and early modern periods way before 1485. He was also lazy, and only acted when it suited him. His failure to marry off his children contributed in no small way to the complete downfall of his dynasty and when his brother was charged with treason, the trial was completely for show. He was not perfect by any means, but anything after Henry VI would have been an improvement, and the Edward Pollard presents us with is one that has been overlooked for too long, a middle-man in the Wars of the Roses, who deserves to occupy a much larger space than he currently does.

[David Watson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This 100-page biography does what it sets out to do - give an informative account of this monarch's life within the brevity of the format. It took me just under two hours with one break two-thirds of the way through. Becoming King while the Wars of the Roses were raging was never going to be easy for a monarch who was just shy of 20 when he took the throne; given the wars, and sometimes duplicitous nobles around him, it has to be said Edward IV didn't do too bad a job in his 22-year reign. England's finances were stabilised and law and order improved to a degree; prosperity returned in the latter years of his reign after recessionary times earlier. But as Pollard notes, he didn't really unify England, but rather imposed his side of the York-Lancaster rivalry on the realm. And his attempts to emulate his famous forebear Henry V in France came to almost nothing. He had a mean streak, executing his own brother after a plot against him, and having others beheaded. And he was what today would be called a sex addict, and a glutton later in life. Tragically, when he died, his own son was young enough to need a regent and into this vacuum Edward's brother Richard Duke of Gloucester inserted himself.
All the intrigues of Edward IV's reign are concisely documented by Pollard, who notes that in historians' views over the centuries, Edward has ranged almost from hero to zero and back again.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this! A quick recap of who Edward IV was as a man, a leader - someone who was smart and strategic and tactical when it came to military crises, but who also preferred to spend a lot of his time in downtime and indulgence, letting his advisors (and later, trusted family and few friends only) take are of the minutiae of government. I think an interesting point mentioned in this book is that this could have worked, and this approach may have lead to the success of his regime had he only stayed alive for at least four more years. However, he caught sick, and his untimely death left the gov in such a state that left room and reason for Richard III to condemn his rule and (lack of) accomplishments and fulfillment of promises. This was a concise and reasonable account of his life. You could tell the author really knew what he was talking about, and gave a great overall, big picture view of an (in my opinion) underrated monarch.

[me · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book, easy to get through and covers the main points without being too much of a standard retread of the Wars of the Roses. Being used to reading about the women of the era I did notice the lack of attention to Elizabeth Woodville, Cecily Neville, etc but it's a short book I suppose, and the Penguin Monarchs books don't as a rule spend much (or sometimes any) time on consorts. The summing up at the end was good, having a look back at Edward's virtues and failings and the sheer bad luck of a few unpredicatable twists of fate.

[David Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quick read. I wasn’t looking for a deep dive into Edward IV. Really needed the big picture so to speak. I had started a much bigger biography on him and it was almost too much detail. This one cut to the important facts and highlights - without going deep into the backstory on all the characters. It’s very useful to cover this era and then if you wish to dive deeper with another biography. All the important dates and facts are in the book. Enjoy.

[Ben Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

A level-headed and critical take of a rather underrated king. Very much enjoyed this.

[Abbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this book! Nice, short and rich in detail about Edward IV. Just what I was looking for

[Ian · Rating 4 out of 5]

lovely little bio of one of my favourite monarchs

[Ivan Monckton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another well written an interesting volume in the Penguin Monarchs series. Edward IV became king as a handsome youth with intentions of ‘cleaning up’ his country, but died 22 years as an obese lethargic king with a reputation of brilliance in military matters coupled with a streak of cruelty and disregard for their law. He was also considered an addicted womaniser, even at a time when it was considered the norm for landed gentry to keep mistresses.

[Georgina · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very insightful ook into the reign of edward iv

[Tony Bertram · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good introduction to Edwards’s life. Explains the inability of the York Dynasty to survive.

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good summary of Edward IV from his strengths and ultimate weaknesses