The Magnificent Century

The Plantagenets #2

by Thomas B. Costain

THE MAGNIFICENT CENTURY covers the turbulence, romance, and pageantry of Henry III's long and tumultuous reign, from 1216 to 1272. During his lifetime Henry was frequently unpopular, unreliable and inconsistent. Yet his reign saw spectacular advancement in the arts, sciences, and theology, as well as in government. Despite all, it was truly a magnificent century...

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Medieval, Medieval History, Historical, British Literature, Biography

414 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1949

About the author

Costain was born in Brantford, Ontario to John Herbert Costain and Mary Schultz. He attended high school there at the Brantford Collegiate Institute. Before graduating from high school he had written four novels, one of which was a 70,000 word romance about Maurice of Nassau, Prince of Orange. These early novels were rejected by publishers.

His first writing success came in 1902 when the Brantford Courier accepted a mystery story from him, and he became a reporter there (for five dollars a week). He was an editor at the Guelph Daily Mercury between 1908 and 1910. He married Ida Randolph Spragge (1888–1975) in York, Ontario on January 12, 1910. The couple had two children, Molly (Mrs. Howard Haycraft) and Dora (Mrs. Henry Darlington Steinmetz). Also in 1910, Costain joined the Maclean Publishing Group where he edited three trade journals. Beginning in 1914, he was a staff writer for and, from 1917, editor of Toronto-based Maclean's magazine. His success there brought him to the attention of The Saturday Evening Post in New York City where he was fiction editor for fourteen years.

In 1920 he became a naturalized U.S. citizen. He also worked for Doubleday Books as an editor 1939-1946. He was the head of 20th Century Fox’s bureau of literary development (story department) from 1934 to 1942.

In 1940, he wrote four short novels but was “enough of an editor not to send them out”. He next planned to write six books in a series he called “The Stepchildren of History”. He would write about six interesting but unknown historical figures. For his first, he wrote about the seventeenth-century pirate John Ward aka Jack Ward. In 1942, he realized his longtime dream when this first novel For My Great Folly was published, and it became a bestseller with over 132,000 copies sold. The New York Times reviewer stated at the end of the review "there will be no romantic-adventure lover left unsatisfied." In January 1946 he "retired" to spend the rest of his life writing, at a rate of about 3,000 words a day.

Raised as a Baptist, he was reported in the 1953 Current Biography to be an attendant of the Protestant Episcopal Church. He was described as a handsome, tall, broad-shouldered man with a pink and white complexion, clear blue eyes, and a slight Canadian accent. He was white-haired by the time he began to write novels. He loved animals and could not even kill a bug (but he also loved bridge, and he did not extend the same policy to his partners). He also loved movies and the theatre (he met his future wife when she was performing Ruth in the The Pirates of Penzance).

Costain's work is a mixture of commercial history (such as The White and The Gold, a history of New France to around 1720) and fiction that relies heavily on historic events (one review stated it was hard to tell where history leaves off and apocrypha begins). His most popular novel was The Black Rose (1945), centred in the time and actions of Bayan of the Baarin also known as Bayan of the Hundred Eyes. Costain noted in his foreword that he initially intended the book to be about Bayan and Edward I, but became caught up in the legend of Thomas a Becket's parents: an English knight married to an Eastern girl. The book was a selection of the Literary Guild with a first printing of 650,000 copies and sold over two million copies in its first year.

His research led him to believe that Richard III was a great monarch tarred by conspiracies, after his death, with the murder of the princes in the tower. Costain supported his theories with documentation, suggesting that the real murderer was Henry VII.

Costain died in 1965 at his New York City home of a heart attack at the age of 80. He is buried in the Farringdon Independent Church Cemetery in Brantford.

Reviews

[Judie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is history that reads like a novel.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

Whereas Thomas B. Costain’s first volume in his series on the Plantagenets covered the rulers William the Conqueror through King John, The Magnificent Century focuses solely on the 56-year reign of Henry III. In this book Costain broadens his approach to write much more about the times of the 13th century in addition to the king himself, including music, science, and architecture, alongside biographies of Roger Bacon, Stephen Langton, and, especially, Thomas de Montfort.

Costain is a charming storyteller, just as effective with the smaller day-to-day events as with the formation of Magna Carta and the battles of Lewes and Evesham.

[Tony · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Magnificent Century is rather different than Costain's first book on the Plantagenets. While the initial installment focused on the personalities and careers of the earliest Plantagenet monarchs, this volume is a comprehensive chronicle of life in Britain during the reign of Henry III. Readers will very likely find some of the topics covered to be more interesting than others. The less engaging sections coupled with the absence of an overall narrative make the book, as a whole, a bit of a slog.

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

First sentence: October 19, 1216. King John was dead.

Premise/plot: The Magnificent Century is the second volume in Thomas B. Costain's history of the Plantagenets. The first volume is The Conquering Family.

The first volume focused mainly on the royal family itself over several generations--centuries. The second volume has a much broader--yet narrower focus. (Narrower in that it just covers the reign of one king, Henry III. Broader in that it goes way beyond the royal family.) History. Religion. Science. Architecture. Politics. King vs. Parliament. Wars. Costain believes the thirteenth century to be a MAGNIFICENT century. In this volume, readers learn about Henry III and his family, the Marshal family, Hubert de Burgh, Simon de Montfort, and Roger Bacon.

My thoughts: I was less familiar with this time period. I was not equally interested in ALL the chapters. The chapters on war and civil war confused me a bit. I'm not sure if that's because war interests me less than other subjects of if Costain's narrative was unclear. Either is possible.

My absolute favorite chapter was probably "Queen's Men, King's Men, and the Villain of the Piece." Apparently there was a LOT of strife caused in England by the king's extended family. Namely Henry III's half brothers who came to England from France AND his in-laws. Henry's wife was unpopular, but his his wife's family was REALLY unpopular. Everyone WANTED something from Henry.

[Robert C. · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book for those who like storytelling and aren't too worried about accuracy or invention. As a kid, I loved Costain's historical fiction, THE BLACK ROSE, and as a traveler found novels like RIDE WITH ME, BELOW THE SALT and THE SILVER CHALICE fitting the bill for railroad cars, airport waiting rooms and hotels in hot countries where you don't go out during the day and the television is not in English (if there's a TV at all). I've worked my way through the first two of "The Plantagenet" series under similar circumstances: easy to read, easy to pickup or put down, more than a little inspirational to actually read a more factual account of the events described. So... those are the parameters. Start with Book 1 and go on to #2 and #3 - don't put too much reliance on their interpretation of events - and enjoy.

[Bettie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read By: David Case
Genre: History
Publisher: Books on Tape
Series Name: The Pageant of England
Position in Series: 2
Abridged: No

Book Description Blurb
================
THE MAGNIFICENT CENTURY, the second volume of Costain's A History of
the Plantagenets, covers Henry III's long and turbulent reign, from
1216 to 1272. During his lifetime Henry was frequently unpopular, unreliable and inconsistent, yet his reign saw spectacular advancement in the arts, sciences and theology, as well as in government. Despite all, it was truly a magnificent century.

[Lady of the Lake · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great place to begin if you want to get all the facts from the PLANTAGENET'S FAMILY you will understand more what you are reading! I would say this is great for ones starting out as it is easy to follow and isn't a dry read for a non-fiction. But for those with more experience there isn't anything really NEW that you wouldn't already know but it it was fun to hear it all again like a quick refresher course! LOL

[K.S. Trenten · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lively account of the events and individuals active during the 13th century, centering around England and its ruler, Henry III. From his turbulent regency to the rage engendered by Henry’s mood swings, his lovely, yet unpopular queen, and a detailed, tragic retelling of the uprising of Simon de Montfort, this book brings to life the major players during this time and in other parts of the world, whose actions had an impact on England.

Certain details weren’t included in this, certain personalities weren’t fleshed out which hoped would be during Henry’s regency, which disappointed me. The rise and fall of Simon de Montfort, however, was vivid in its magnificent relation. Costain has a talent for taking figures maligned by history, giving them an almost romantic flush of sympathy, while sticking to the facts as he knows them. I found myself emphasizing and grieving for de Montfort, even while the more rational side of my brain warned me that less flattering facts were being glossed over. Henry III was depicted in accusing, unsympathetic detail. The truth of Costain’s account of Henry I didn’t doubt, yet I felt part of Henry’s story had been left out. Some of the events I’d read about Henry’s minority in another history volume involving Peter des Roches and Falkes de Bréauté, which I was really hoping would be offered in more detail in this book were missing. Those moments might have illuminated and enriched Henry’s character, offering another dimension to it, along with a reason for his often irrational loathing of certain powerful contemporaries of his. Despite those missing scenes, this historical account was powerful, exciting, and brought 12th century England to life through its players. It’s well worth reading.

[K.S. Trenten · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lively account of the events and individuals active during the 13th century, centering around England and its ruler, Henry III. From his turbulent regency to the rage engendered by Henry’s mood swings, his lovely, yet unpopular queen, and a detailed, tragic retelling of the uprising of Simon de Montfort, this book brings to life the major players during this time and in other parts of the world, whose actions had an impact on England.

Certain details weren’t included in this, certain personalities weren’t fleshed out which hoped would be during Henry’s regency, which disappointed me. The rise and fall of Simon de Montfort, however, was vivid in its magnificent relation. Costain has a talent for taking figures maligned by history, giving them an almost romantic flush of sympathy, while sticking to the facts as he knows them. I found myself emphasizing and grieving for de Montfort, even while the more rational side of my brain warned me that less flattering facts were being glossed over. Henry III was depicted in accusing, unsympathetic detail. The truth of Costain’s account of Henry I didn’t doubt, yet I felt part of Henry’s story had been left out. Some of the events I’d read about Henry’s minority in another history volume involving Peter des Roches and Falkes de Bréauté, which I was really hoping would be offered in more detail in this book were missing. Those moments might have illuminated and enriched Henry’s character, offering another dimension to it, along with a reason for his often irrational loathing of certain powerful contemporaries of his. Despite those missing scenes, this historical account was powerful, exciting, and brought 12th century England to life through its players. It’s well worth reading.

[Jason Adams · Rating 3 out of 5]

How does one write narrative history about an uninteresting King?

I have enjoyed Costain’s narrative so far. However, in his desire to cover the length and breadth of the Plantagenet kings, he has hit a speed bump. Henry III ruled for too long (50+ years) to ignore, but his character and slight achievements make him a singularly uninteresting subject. While it’s true that a bad king can often yield juicy stories (see Henry’s father John) this bad king never had an epic fall. Instead he muddled along. He would do terrible things and somehow remain king. He might lose a few prerogatives, but he would muddle about and retain his crown.
So Costain made the decision to focus on the individuals around the king, none of whom feel like they were truly improved by their association with him. This, however, makes this narrative history fragmented. As interesting individuals enter the orbit of the “good enough” king, the author digresses to fill in the blanks on the history and relationships of that new player on the stage (often using the terms, “now we digress”). The result is a story that jumps through time. By placing the less interesting royal at the center of the tale, the overall narrative suffers. As an example, about thirty pages of the final chapters are a round robin of interesting anecdotes that explain why the author chose the title “Magnificent Century.” It feels weirdly interposed between a discussion of the king’s ham handed treatment of rebellious barons and his death.
Costain is a charismatic writer and his mid 20th century sensibilities and innate charisma make for a unique perspective and enjoyable read. In this case, though, his subject does not rise to the occasion.

[Gerry · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the second of Costain’s series on the Plantagenets. Since this covers the reign of only one of them, and there were ten more before giving over to the Tudors, I have a feeling someone’s going get scant coverage in the next two books.

Regardless, it’s a good read. It’s not for the scholar; there are no footnotes. Costain is telling a story about a long-reigned and disappointing monarch. There is a lot of name-dropping. The reader reads a little of such—legends?—as Willikin of the Weald, Falkes de Bréauté, Eustice the Monk and others and maybe would like to learn more, but is going to have to look elsewhere. William the Marshal, Louis IX, Hubert de Burgh, and especially Simon de Montfort and the future King Edward I are the main guest stars here. One does wish the author included a bibliography.

The book’s title comes from Costain’s contention that, despite the king’s mismanagement and the conflicts it caused, Deare Olde England progressed and prospered; or, if not the lot of plain John Goodfellow, the arts and what was started under Magna Charta did. He sums this up in Chapter XXIX. If the reader also looks carefully, and he doesn’t have to read far, there may be the beginning of England’s appreciation of seapower.

[Justin Neville · Rating 3 out of 5]

As some others have pointed out, this 1951-published second volume of Costain's Plantagenet history is somewhat dryer than the previous book - because it essentially just covers one monarch and possibly not the most exciting - at least compared to the Matilda/Stephen civil war and Henry II and his unruly brood.

However, Henry III (while a useless king and, in this telling, a fatuous and spineless individual) remained on the throne for 56 years (a medieval record), which makes his reign fascinating in many years - even if weren't for the emergence of a parliamentary democracy under Simon de Montfort.

No doubt Costain's history is not the most reliable, certainly with another 70 years of scholarship under the bridge. And he can be a bit over-flowery (using archaic terms that don't seem to appear almost anywhere else). But, overall, it's a good and enlightening read.

As for the title of "The Magnificent Century", he seems to have forgotten about it till the very end of the book. He suddenly says yes life was pretty awful for almost everybody in that period, but the 13th century did see some flowering of the arts and what we would now call science. I wish he'd made a bit more of that rather than shoehorning in a few pages at the end of the book.

[Romulus · Rating 5 out of 5]

Znakomita druga część tetralogii o Plantagenetach. Ta skupia się na okresie panowania syna Jana Bez Ziemi, Henryka III. Władca równie mierny jak jego ojciec, z powodu swojej chwiejności, słabości i niekonsekwencji. Ale i tak lepszy od Jana ponieważ mniej szkód uczynił. Jego długie, trwające pięćdziesiąt sześć lat panowanie to, poza początkiem, spokojny i dostatni okres w historii Anglii. Zaczęło się burzliwie i burzliwy miało koniec (bunt pod wodzą idealistycznego Szymona de Montfort).

Costain pisze tak, że żal się od książki odrywać. Ubarwia historię szczegółami, dzięki temu nie jest to tylko sucha, historyczna relacja. Jeśli chodzi o przystępność dla czytelnika to Costain prezentuje mistrzowski poziom i to wzór popularyzowania historii.

Książka kończy się wstąpieniem na tron Edwarda I, zwanego Długonogim, jednego z najwybitniejszych władców w dziejach Anglii, fałszywie i jednostronnie przedstawionego w "Braveheart". Nie mogę się doczekać trzeciej i czwartej części.

Dodać należy, że przekład ma szczęście do tłumaczki, która prostuje błędy autora, na szczęście nieznaczne.

[Binston Birchill · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book covers the reign of Henry III, a reign that brought about the beginnings of self rule for the people of England, largely because of the poor job that Henry did as king. I didn't enjoy it as much as the previous book in the series, mainly because the personalities and events were simply less compelling, which is no fault of the author. The style is exactly the same as the previous book, short biographies of important people, a description of what life was like for the common people, of religion, of science, etc... all set alongside the history of England during Henry's poor attempt at ruling. Forgot to mention in the previous review but also holds for this one.... no sources are noted, which is both weird and disappointing, mine is a boxed set and it's possible other editions are different.

[Michael Bully · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have only recently started reading up on Henry III . Found this book intense and demanding, not so much due to its style but rather my own lack of knowledge made me re- read several sections Obviously with such a long reign, there are many people to write about and events to explain. . Well foot noted and will read the book again in the near future. And keep as a reference work. Not sure if I would recommend it to someone as their first biography of Henry III.
Like other reviewers, I am not sure about the title 'Great' . Henry's reign saw massive taxation , unsuccessful war with France and of course the war with Simon de Montfort and other rebel barons in 1265- 1266. The actual battles of Evesham and Lewes are not dealt with in any great detail.
The author stresses what he regards as Henry's qualities, charity , art, culture. building projects including Westminster Abbey.

[Angelma'at · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting history, but one with many digressions onto all kinds of topics - often in the middle of the main story. It's also less objective than most history books I've read. His opinions and preferences are varying and obvious. Of course other historians are often just less forceful about what they think of the events they are writing and yet still write in their own biased viewpoint making it seem more "This is what WAS" and less "This is my opinion of what WAS." So perhaps, as long as you keep in mind that this is one man's view of events and even his view of what was important in the century he's writing about, you will still find much of interest in the book as I did.

[Aparajita · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unlike the books before and after this one, the author spends an entire book with ONE ruler much to the book's benefit. The follies, whims and idiocy of Henry III presented lucidly and clearly. At the same time his redeeming features ( a lover of learning, patronof architecture, and a doting husband and father ) are lovingly presented and give us a rounded , complete, human picture of the man.
And a fantastic portrayal of Simon De Montfort and a very sympathetic portrayal of Richard of Cornwall. Crushing on these two now.
My favourite in the series.

[Don Siegrist · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are fan of English history Thomas B. Costain is a must read. This one is about the 56 year reign of King Henry III in the 13th century. He writes like a novelist (which he is) so his non-fiction almost veers into historical fiction but he thankfully stays true to the facts, but embellishes with some interesting conjecture. Makes what are often stiff historical characters (now 800 years old) come alive as relatable people.

[Ryan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book 2 in this series was wildly different than book 1. Maybe book 1 just had more interesting things happen, and Henry III's time just isn't that interesting, compared to Matilda and Stephen, etc. The actual story with H3 is pretty good, it's just all the rest. So many characters that unless you are just really interested in the 13th century, you probably don't need to know about. But overall, not terrible for a book written in the 50s.

[Aloysius · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good look at the 13th century - the High Middle Ages- through the reign of one king who was around for most of it: Henry III of England. Learned quite a bit, particularly about Simon de Montfort and Bacon. I most certainly agree with Costain's assertion that this was a magnificent century.

[Kana Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Costain does not pretend to be an objective academic in his treatment of “the weathercock king” Henry III... With the delightful result that his impish sense of humor, snarky commentary, sarcastic asides, and embarrassing anecdotes keep this history quite lively!

[Anthony D Albers · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great series

A bit dated but still a fascinating read. I first read this series in my early teens almost five decades ago and it is still enjoyable to pull out and reread every dozen years or so.

[William Yandell · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book mostly covering the actions of bad kings. I liked the line about how if England had better kings then our democratic traditions wouldn't be so well established. Its a point I had never really considered but modern democracy my owe alot to the cruelty and stupidity of Englands kings.

[Stacy Rogers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read, but this is more about King Henry. There are very few pages about why the thirteenth century was so magnificent. If you're interested in reading about the after effects of King John, it's worth it.

[Diane · Rating 3 out of 5]

An older book of popular history, clarifying very well a complicated period of time. I liked it and think it worth reading if you like medieval history.

[Burma · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m a history lover, particularly of Great Britain, and have been a fan of Costain for decades. His books aren’t quick reads, but are worth it to those who are of a like mind.

[Marti Martinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nation let this damn family play them like that? I don't know who I despise more.

[Kaye · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one appealed to be me slightly less than the first one in the series. Henry III is not the most interesting king. Lots of battles. Roger Bacon got only one small chapter.

[Barbara Clifford · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a very interesting read to me. Learning about some lesser known history is fun.

[Rosanne Randall · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful second book in the Plantagenet series.