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Summer of Blood: The Peasants' Revolt of 1381
Re-evaluation of the Peasants' Revolt of 1381. Dan Jones brings to life the squalor, drama and complex hierarchies of life in the 14th century. He examines village life and the failings of government from the perspective of the revolt's key players.
238 pages, Hardcover
First published December 4, 2009
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5481 people want to read
About the author
Dan Jones
70 books5,622 followersDan Jones is a NYT bestselling author and broadcaster. His books, which include The Templars, Henry V, The Plantagenets and Powers & Thrones, have sold more than 2 million copies and are published in 23 languages. He is the author of the Essex Dogs novel trilogy. Dan writes and hosts the popular weekly Sony Music Entertainment podcast This Is History. He has presented dozens of television documentaries, including the popular Netflix series Secrets of Great British Castles, and has executive produced and consulted on a number of films and television shows including Anne Boleyn (Channel 5/Sony Pictures Television) and Knightfall (A+E/History). His journalism has appeared in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and Washington Post; for a decade he was a columnist for the London Evening Standard. He is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and in 2025 was appointed to the Board of Trustees of Historic Royal Palaces.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 227 reviews
December 14, 2021
The Summer of 1381 was a very bad year for England. It has many names from "Peseant's Revolt" to "Wat Tyler's Revolt". It was the direct result of a poll tax instituted during 1380. As England was recovering from the Black Plague and fighting France, the situation at home for the lower classes was dim. While the poll tax of 1380 was the proverbial match to the flame, the situation was brewing for decades.
The Black Death caused a major upheaval in all of Europe. In England, it did much to prick the image of the all-mighty God and his all-mighty Church, since both the good and the just died equally horribly in the Plague. It also, due to the deaths, caused a massive labor shortage. This caused the lower classes to get more rights and higher wages, as feudal structures began to crumble due to the shortage. In 1351 the Statute of Laborers attempted to fix wages during the labor crisis. This caused a great deal of angst, all of which came to an explosion during 1381, when an alliance of the country peasants, the working classes and poor of the urban areas, disaffected merchants and even some lower end nobility into a huge uprising that threatened to destroy the King- Richard, of House Plantagenet, Second of His Name.
This book covers that entire year of conflict. From the key figures of Richard II, John of Gaunt to rebels such as Wat Tyler and John Ball, Dan Jones explains their motivations and the series of riots that culminates at Smithfield.
Well researched and well written, this small book (around 200 pages) is a great and fun read. Dan Jones is one of my favorite authors for good stories about the awesome Plantagenet family. Here we see what drove Richard II, in his later years, to become such a prick. Also a great historical note- uprisings by the "common" people (versus uprisings by the bourgeoisie) inevitably lead to mass, uncontrollable violence since they are the "mob". The mob cares nothing for politics it only seeks an orgy of destruction.
The Black Death caused a major upheaval in all of Europe. In England, it did much to prick the image of the all-mighty God and his all-mighty Church, since both the good and the just died equally horribly in the Plague. It also, due to the deaths, caused a massive labor shortage. This caused the lower classes to get more rights and higher wages, as feudal structures began to crumble due to the shortage. In 1351 the Statute of Laborers attempted to fix wages during the labor crisis. This caused a great deal of angst, all of which came to an explosion during 1381, when an alliance of the country peasants, the working classes and poor of the urban areas, disaffected merchants and even some lower end nobility into a huge uprising that threatened to destroy the King- Richard, of House Plantagenet, Second of His Name.
This book covers that entire year of conflict. From the key figures of Richard II, John of Gaunt to rebels such as Wat Tyler and John Ball, Dan Jones explains their motivations and the series of riots that culminates at Smithfield.
Well researched and well written, this small book (around 200 pages) is a great and fun read. Dan Jones is one of my favorite authors for good stories about the awesome Plantagenet family. Here we see what drove Richard II, in his later years, to become such a prick. Also a great historical note- uprisings by the "common" people (versus uprisings by the bourgeoisie) inevitably lead to mass, uncontrollable violence since they are the "mob". The mob cares nothing for politics it only seeks an orgy of destruction.
December 23, 2014
Another great medieval read from Dan Jones who is able to take a bunch of facts and dates and weave a story that moves at a fast pace.
One thing this book left me with was this: England has had many great rulers over the years and Richard II was not one of them. Granted, he was only 14 at the time of this rebellion, but he totally abandoned some of his closest circle in the Tower, they were promptly beheaded and of course, their heads were put on pikes. Weak Richard II, weak!!
Great read, recommended to fans of medieval history.
One thing this book left me with was this: England has had many great rulers over the years and Richard II was not one of them. Granted, he was only 14 at the time of this rebellion, but he totally abandoned some of his closest circle in the Tower, they were promptly beheaded and of course, their heads were put on pikes. Weak Richard II, weak!!
Great read, recommended to fans of medieval history.
March 19, 2019
Wat Tyler and John Ball may have been immortalized in songs when they led the peasant rebellion of 1381 but the story is Richard II. He was but a child when coronated and his inherited kingdom was in a certain decline. War with France, bad weather and the uncertainty of the peasant position after the Black Death had left the monarchy a bit concerned. Hoping for revenue with the time honored way of pissing off everyone: a poll tax was introduced along with certain legal caps on wages. Locals went wild, fueled by the egalitarian preaching of Ball and the charismatic leadership of Tyler. They marched on London, maintaining a relative discipline of burning—-rather than looting. Many of the mob's enemies were put to the sword including the Archbishop of Canterbury. Richard II attempted to meet with them once, heard some of their demands about summary executions and the King sagely withdrew. A more sober parley occurred between representatives and this encounter encouraged the monarch. Richard II met Wat Tyler at Smithfield. Tyler, emboldened, insulted the monarch at which point the rebel leader was attacked and killed. If initially the populace put fear into the monarch, eventually Richard II terrified the people with a harsh retribution. Somewhere between one and seven thousand were put to the sword.
June 10, 2011
This book was fantastic .Jones' style makes the book impossible to stop reading ,it's almost as if it's a novel .He perfectly captured the feeling of unrest felt by both the upper and lower classes ,and explained the difficulties that led to the revolt .He also wrote in a very objective manner ,he didn't defend the rebellion nor did he condemn it ,he simply analyzed it .I hadn't read much at all about the peasant's revolt until this book ,& after reading it I will definately look for some more material .
November 20, 2022
Summer of Blood is a detailed and vivid account of the Peasants' Revolt of 1381. Jones masterfully explains the social and political situation that led to the uprising and paints a vibrant picture of the actual insurgency. However, like the rebellion itself, the narrative peters out after Smithfield.
May 25, 2025
A tale as old as time and one still prevalent today. The poor believing the propaganda fed to them that the rich and organized religion have their best interests at heart (And wield their wealth to protect and benefit said poor). The poor realizing that the rich and the church don’t give a shit about them as people, their well-being, their existence and only care about, not only maintaining their wealth but, acquiring more more more at any and all detriments to those the rich consider their lessers.
It would appear the message hasn’t quite been pounded through enough rich folk’s heads given the way our own modern society somehow sells the same propaganda pablum to us. More rich heads (Secular and church) need to be on more poor pikes, simple as.
It would appear the message hasn’t quite been pounded through enough rich folk’s heads given the way our own modern society somehow sells the same propaganda pablum to us. More rich heads (Secular and church) need to be on more poor pikes, simple as.
January 25, 2022
I was sure this was going to be an interesting non fiction but I wasn't prepared of how much I ended up liking it. It was an interesting audiobook with a lot of interesting facts that was told in such a way that didn't feel too "info dumpy" but something that get invested in. Not sure if I had read any from Dan Jones from previous but need to look up of there is more non fictions by him.
November 6, 2023
The recommendation from David Starkey on the front cover was a clear indication of the kind of history in this, a history which forcibly inserts thoughts into its subjects' minds, always tells the story from the point of view of the powerful, and has absolutely no time for any ideology that isn't the status quo, then or now. I did not enjoy this.
December 15, 2020
The True Commons!
This is a fun history, effectively written as a thriller, as a near daily account in and around the summer of 1381. Reading it at the end of 2020. It is also a cautionary tale of the pitfalls of subsequent popular revolts, including the ones happening recently. The writing is an exciting blend of colorful prose, intimate character development, and chronological accuracy. Histories, I imagine, are tough to write in a way that make such effective use of suspense and imagery. Dan Jones is able to make this look easy, giving us a blow-by-blow account of the events of 1381, while setting a thrilling pace in a modest amount of pages (250 or so). It is the successful history that can make the reader realize how we can still live with the repercussions of now obscure, mostly forgotten events.
Richard II cuts a surprisingly tragic figure, a teenage king under guardianship of (apparently) one of the great villains of English History (John of Gaunt), and essentially powerless around the financial and political considerations of what is now known as the hundred years war, suddenly barricaded in a London being overrun without any clear strategy as to how to proceed. Hard to pity a Monarch, but if you ever were inclined to do so, he would make a strong candidate (especially considering how his reign ultimately ended).
Wat Tyler, and his fellow leaders, start out as exciting and popular figures that are hard to cheer against. Raising the commons was no easy task, and even if there was a fair amount of violent coercion involved, it is easy to forgive them for such transgressions given the circumstances, at least initially. Notwithstanding some questionable methods, the description of the march on London was awe-inspiring, especially considering how primitive the means were.
As the summer drags on, we start to see why this, and so many other, popular revolts so often fail. The relatively modest aims that caused the revolt are supplanted by the ambitions of those who lead it. The once concrete demands start to become more ethereal. It becomes unclear what society looks like if the rebels take over. It is almost as if the success of the movement would be its ultimate demise. Fragile to begin with, fracturing occurs and gains momentum and then more immediate aims of personal gain, in this case primarily looting and personal retribution start to become the focus of the rebellion, and what started as hope ends as despair.
This of course isn’t always how these movements end. As the author points out, the events of 1381 were almost a prelude to another revolt of notoriety to the English nobility: the American revolution. Perhaps a reading six hundred years later allows for the perspective of this one revolt to fit into a larger, longer, historical movement toward the more idealistic aims of the “true commons.” Perhaps in the end, at least some of the Commons’ demands would be met in ways so complete they would have never been able to imagine it.
Rarely is a history written equally entertaining and informative as it is here. Highly recommend as an introduction into the history of popular revolts as well as an introduction to medieval English history!
This is a fun history, effectively written as a thriller, as a near daily account in and around the summer of 1381. Reading it at the end of 2020. It is also a cautionary tale of the pitfalls of subsequent popular revolts, including the ones happening recently. The writing is an exciting blend of colorful prose, intimate character development, and chronological accuracy. Histories, I imagine, are tough to write in a way that make such effective use of suspense and imagery. Dan Jones is able to make this look easy, giving us a blow-by-blow account of the events of 1381, while setting a thrilling pace in a modest amount of pages (250 or so). It is the successful history that can make the reader realize how we can still live with the repercussions of now obscure, mostly forgotten events.
Richard II cuts a surprisingly tragic figure, a teenage king under guardianship of (apparently) one of the great villains of English History (John of Gaunt), and essentially powerless around the financial and political considerations of what is now known as the hundred years war, suddenly barricaded in a London being overrun without any clear strategy as to how to proceed. Hard to pity a Monarch, but if you ever were inclined to do so, he would make a strong candidate (especially considering how his reign ultimately ended).
Wat Tyler, and his fellow leaders, start out as exciting and popular figures that are hard to cheer against. Raising the commons was no easy task, and even if there was a fair amount of violent coercion involved, it is easy to forgive them for such transgressions given the circumstances, at least initially. Notwithstanding some questionable methods, the description of the march on London was awe-inspiring, especially considering how primitive the means were.
As the summer drags on, we start to see why this, and so many other, popular revolts so often fail. The relatively modest aims that caused the revolt are supplanted by the ambitions of those who lead it. The once concrete demands start to become more ethereal. It becomes unclear what society looks like if the rebels take over. It is almost as if the success of the movement would be its ultimate demise. Fragile to begin with, fracturing occurs and gains momentum and then more immediate aims of personal gain, in this case primarily looting and personal retribution start to become the focus of the rebellion, and what started as hope ends as despair.
This of course isn’t always how these movements end. As the author points out, the events of 1381 were almost a prelude to another revolt of notoriety to the English nobility: the American revolution. Perhaps a reading six hundred years later allows for the perspective of this one revolt to fit into a larger, longer, historical movement toward the more idealistic aims of the “true commons.” Perhaps in the end, at least some of the Commons’ demands would be met in ways so complete they would have never been able to imagine it.
Rarely is a history written equally entertaining and informative as it is here. Highly recommend as an introduction into the history of popular revolts as well as an introduction to medieval English history!
August 7, 2022
Really disappointed by this, tbh. I was hoping for a balanced view that did not buy into the contemporary and depressingly still current paradigm that casts oppressed people seeking an end to their state of oppression and exploitation as “thugs” and damage to property as “violence” while still not ignoring the broad streak of xenophobia in the long history of the English Commons that here led to the murder of innocent Flemish weavers in London.
I genuinely thought a more of Dan Jones as a historian than this depressingly uninterrogated parroting of the fears of the powerful written in the Chronicles of the time. Far more time is given to contradictory castigations of Wat Tyler, who Jones manages to cast as both a Machiavellian schemer and an unhinged dreamer within the same paragraph, than into exploring the xenophobia arising from the oppression of the common people. And the palpable disgust and dehumanisation in his description of the peasant marchers for…being dirty after a long journey on foot and being forced to sleep outdoors is genuinely disturbing.
Deeply disappointing. I do not think I will be looking to buy more of Dan Jones’ work in future - this book genuinely speaks very badly of both his skill and objectivity as a historian.
I genuinely thought a more of Dan Jones as a historian than this depressingly uninterrogated parroting of the fears of the powerful written in the Chronicles of the time. Far more time is given to contradictory castigations of Wat Tyler, who Jones manages to cast as both a Machiavellian schemer and an unhinged dreamer within the same paragraph, than into exploring the xenophobia arising from the oppression of the common people. And the palpable disgust and dehumanisation in his description of the peasant marchers for…being dirty after a long journey on foot and being forced to sleep outdoors is genuinely disturbing.
Deeply disappointing. I do not think I will be looking to buy more of Dan Jones’ work in future - this book genuinely speaks very badly of both his skill and objectivity as a historian.
March 6, 2014
This is just so boring - it reads like a text book for twelve year olds. It'll stay on my shelves as a reference book but in all honesty there is nowt on this dry level that Wiki cannot supply me with.
Maps
Author's Note
Foreword
Introduction
Finally, Part I kicks off on page 25
Maps
Author's Note
Foreword
Introduction
Finally, Part I kicks off on page 25
September 22, 2024
Summer of Blood, coming in at under three hundred pages, moves swiftly through the 1381 Peasants' Revolt. In typical Dan Jones fashion, it's lively, engaging, and told with a bit of a dramatic flair. You get a good sense of the two opposing sides, particularly the leading representatives; there are many interesting figures to delve into here. Furthermore, it doesn't overstay its welcome by being filled with unnecessary detail or irrelevant tangents.
I'll admit that Summer of Blood didn't leave a huge impression on me, but it certainly expanded on what I knew of the revolt. I always just associated it with Wat Tyler, but much still happens after his death. For how informative this is while still being relatively brief, I would recommend it.
I'll admit that Summer of Blood didn't leave a huge impression on me, but it certainly expanded on what I knew of the revolt. I always just associated it with Wat Tyler, but much still happens after his death. For how informative this is while still being relatively brief, I would recommend it.
November 16, 2025
One of the reasons I picked up this book is because when people are ignorant of their history, they often repeat it. Unfortunately, we in the western world seem to have forgotten some of our history, as yet another reason I picked up this book is because of how similar those times were to our current times. Just to name some similarities:
- Financing a foreign war with taxpayer money.
- Taxing the poor more heavily than the rich.
- Those who were keepers of justice abusing that justice.
- Keepers of justice not giving due justice.
- Foreigners getting privileges from the government which the citizens did not.
- Corrupt officials in power.
- The elites doing everything they can to retain their power and push the common man down (sumptuary laws, for example).
- An originally righteous cause (fighting for equality) morphing into one of anarchy and bloodshed.
- Criminals joining the ranks of normal people to create chaos to get their way.
- A lack of respect for authority and God.
- Racism against foreigners.
- People taking justice into their own hands/creating their own “justice” (revenge on anyone one didn’t like or had a dispute against, for example).
- A twisting of the meaning of certain religious phrases and/or passages to further one’s own goals.
- The quiet majority being frightened into silence, tolerance or even participation.
All of these things either prompted, contributed to, or resulted from the Rebellion of 1381 (or Wat Tyler’s Rebellion, whichever name you prefer). And it’s fascinating to see how unarmed, untrained, and uneducated people who were largely dismissed by their government as “less than” and pushovers, could create such chaos that ended the lives of several prominent government officials.
To me, it’s also a stark warning against natural human behavior. The rebellion started off as an honorable thing. People were being taxed to the point of starvation for a war they didn’t even care about, their daughters assaulted by tax collectors hoping to get more money from them, and their basic human rights being squelched. They saw criminals escaping justice while those supposed to protect the people grew fat off their tax money, foreigners being treated better than citizens, and the rich wanting the poor to finance their hobby wars. The rebellion began as a fight for equality and justice—for everyone, whether rich, poor, noble, peasant, citizen or foreign, to be treated equally and given due justice.
Even the more violent parts of the rebellion at first were well-controlled. Nobody was killed. Nothing was stolen. Houses, legal records, and property of so-called unjust and corrupt overlords were destroyed, but this was the only way the common people felt they could make a statement, as there was no one they could voice their complaints to and be taken seriously.
A dark foreshadowing for what was to come, however, did spring up overtime. Common people who did not want to join the rebels were pressed into the rebellion by the threat of losing their homes and livelihood. There were also some people taken captive. But in light of the future behavior of the rebels, this was by no means violent and it was well-policed by the rebel leaders (one man who tried to steal a silver cup from the Savoy Palace, for example, was thrown into the flames as punishment for breaking the no-stealing policy).
Ironically enough, it was King Richard II himself who (probably accidentally) prompted the most violent parts of the rebellion. At the first meeting at Mile End, the rebels only requested freedom from serfdom and a limit to the price landlords could set for rent. Richard agreed—but then went a step further by giving the rebels permission to catch traitors and bring them to him for judgement—therefore legalizing murder as executions and treachery as justice. Granted, Richard was only fourteen and probably awed by his own power (a fatal flaw of his for the entirety of his life), but still, it created chaos. Instead of listening to the latter part of his instructions (bringing the traitors to him for judgement) the rebels took things into their own hands.
For the only time in its existence, the Tower of London was breached by a mob. Several of the rebels main targets hid within, and were dragged out and killed. The future Henry IV, Richard’s cousin who was his same age, survived only by the compassion of a rebel who helped hide him from the bloodthirsty mob. Hundreds of foreigners were also murdered, and people were dragged from the sanctuary of chapels and cathedrals which were supposed to have protected them to their doom. Other people made false claims to property and extorted payment from the real owners to keep them from burning and looting.
It seems here the rebel leaders, who had thus far policed and kept their men in line with the original righteous principles of the rebellion, became overconfident and drunk on power. Now they lost all restraint and started talking as anarchists, wanting no government save for the person of the king. There were also rumors of the rebels kidnapping the king. And when Wat Tyler met Richard for the second round of talks at Smithfield, his overconfidence was the end of him—and the beginning of the end of the rebellion.
Many of the rebels just went home. Others attempted to continue rebelling, but several wealthy men and nobles gathered forces and completely decimated them. Townspeople rose up against the rebels attempting to bully them into submission and joining their ranks. Richard himself revoked several of the agreements he’d made with the rebels under distress. Those caught who had took part in the grisly murders in London were themselves put to death, with several of the widows of the murdered foreigners executing their husbands’s killers themselves.
One must wonder what would have happened had Richard agreed to the rebels’s requests at Mile End without tacking on that last bit about rounding up rebels, because it seems after that point that the rebels lost all restraint. Perhaps things would have been different. Perhaps the radical rebels still would have pursued their course of action with the same result. Perhaps lives would have been saved.
Whatever might have happened, one thing came from the rebellion. The upper classes now knew that the common people were politically literate and could, if pressed, rise in revolt against them with dramatic success. They also had to know that even though this was the first rebellion of the commons, it would not be the last.
I highly recommend this book to any history lovers, but especially those who enjoy medieval history, stories of historical rebellions, and those who like to see how history sometimes mirrors modern day life.
Rating: 4.75/5 Stars
(I dock a fourth a star only because a few lines were difficult for me to read and understand.)
- Financing a foreign war with taxpayer money.
- Taxing the poor more heavily than the rich.
- Those who were keepers of justice abusing that justice.
- Keepers of justice not giving due justice.
- Foreigners getting privileges from the government which the citizens did not.
- Corrupt officials in power.
- The elites doing everything they can to retain their power and push the common man down (sumptuary laws, for example).
- An originally righteous cause (fighting for equality) morphing into one of anarchy and bloodshed.
- Criminals joining the ranks of normal people to create chaos to get their way.
- A lack of respect for authority and God.
- Racism against foreigners.
- People taking justice into their own hands/creating their own “justice” (revenge on anyone one didn’t like or had a dispute against, for example).
- A twisting of the meaning of certain religious phrases and/or passages to further one’s own goals.
- The quiet majority being frightened into silence, tolerance or even participation.
All of these things either prompted, contributed to, or resulted from the Rebellion of 1381 (or Wat Tyler’s Rebellion, whichever name you prefer). And it’s fascinating to see how unarmed, untrained, and uneducated people who were largely dismissed by their government as “less than” and pushovers, could create such chaos that ended the lives of several prominent government officials.
To me, it’s also a stark warning against natural human behavior. The rebellion started off as an honorable thing. People were being taxed to the point of starvation for a war they didn’t even care about, their daughters assaulted by tax collectors hoping to get more money from them, and their basic human rights being squelched. They saw criminals escaping justice while those supposed to protect the people grew fat off their tax money, foreigners being treated better than citizens, and the rich wanting the poor to finance their hobby wars. The rebellion began as a fight for equality and justice—for everyone, whether rich, poor, noble, peasant, citizen or foreign, to be treated equally and given due justice.
Even the more violent parts of the rebellion at first were well-controlled. Nobody was killed. Nothing was stolen. Houses, legal records, and property of so-called unjust and corrupt overlords were destroyed, but this was the only way the common people felt they could make a statement, as there was no one they could voice their complaints to and be taken seriously.
A dark foreshadowing for what was to come, however, did spring up overtime. Common people who did not want to join the rebels were pressed into the rebellion by the threat of losing their homes and livelihood. There were also some people taken captive. But in light of the future behavior of the rebels, this was by no means violent and it was well-policed by the rebel leaders (one man who tried to steal a silver cup from the Savoy Palace, for example, was thrown into the flames as punishment for breaking the no-stealing policy).
Ironically enough, it was King Richard II himself who (probably accidentally) prompted the most violent parts of the rebellion. At the first meeting at Mile End, the rebels only requested freedom from serfdom and a limit to the price landlords could set for rent. Richard agreed—but then went a step further by giving the rebels permission to catch traitors and bring them to him for judgement—therefore legalizing murder as executions and treachery as justice. Granted, Richard was only fourteen and probably awed by his own power (a fatal flaw of his for the entirety of his life), but still, it created chaos. Instead of listening to the latter part of his instructions (bringing the traitors to him for judgement) the rebels took things into their own hands.
For the only time in its existence, the Tower of London was breached by a mob. Several of the rebels main targets hid within, and were dragged out and killed. The future Henry IV, Richard’s cousin who was his same age, survived only by the compassion of a rebel who helped hide him from the bloodthirsty mob. Hundreds of foreigners were also murdered, and people were dragged from the sanctuary of chapels and cathedrals which were supposed to have protected them to their doom. Other people made false claims to property and extorted payment from the real owners to keep them from burning and looting.
It seems here the rebel leaders, who had thus far policed and kept their men in line with the original righteous principles of the rebellion, became overconfident and drunk on power. Now they lost all restraint and started talking as anarchists, wanting no government save for the person of the king. There were also rumors of the rebels kidnapping the king. And when Wat Tyler met Richard for the second round of talks at Smithfield, his overconfidence was the end of him—and the beginning of the end of the rebellion.
Many of the rebels just went home. Others attempted to continue rebelling, but several wealthy men and nobles gathered forces and completely decimated them. Townspeople rose up against the rebels attempting to bully them into submission and joining their ranks. Richard himself revoked several of the agreements he’d made with the rebels under distress. Those caught who had took part in the grisly murders in London were themselves put to death, with several of the widows of the murdered foreigners executing their husbands’s killers themselves.
One must wonder what would have happened had Richard agreed to the rebels’s requests at Mile End without tacking on that last bit about rounding up rebels, because it seems after that point that the rebels lost all restraint. Perhaps things would have been different. Perhaps the radical rebels still would have pursued their course of action with the same result. Perhaps lives would have been saved.
Whatever might have happened, one thing came from the rebellion. The upper classes now knew that the common people were politically literate and could, if pressed, rise in revolt against them with dramatic success. They also had to know that even though this was the first rebellion of the commons, it would not be the last.
I highly recommend this book to any history lovers, but especially those who enjoy medieval history, stories of historical rebellions, and those who like to see how history sometimes mirrors modern day life.
Rating: 4.75/5 Stars
(I dock a fourth a star only because a few lines were difficult for me to read and understand.)
April 4, 2023
“When Adam delved and Eve span,
Who, then, was the gentleman?”
The summer of 1381 England experienced a near anarchy as the commons rose up against their royal, noble, and ecclesiastical betters. Jones strings together original sources and supposition to explore the causes, development, and results of the revolt.
“After a whole day spent in such detestable actions, they were at last exhausted by their labours and the drinking of so much more wine than usual; thus in the evening you could see them lying scattered about on the streets and under the walls, sleeping like slaughtered pigs.” Thomas Walsingham
Hardly a scholarly work because Jones depends on his imaginings to connect the dots between the ancient sources. To be fair, we don’t know as much about seven centuries ago as we think. Maps and illustrations help.
The people had frightened their king, and now the king would frighten his people.
Who, then, was the gentleman?”
The summer of 1381 England experienced a near anarchy as the commons rose up against their royal, noble, and ecclesiastical betters. Jones strings together original sources and supposition to explore the causes, development, and results of the revolt.
“After a whole day spent in such detestable actions, they were at last exhausted by their labours and the drinking of so much more wine than usual; thus in the evening you could see them lying scattered about on the streets and under the walls, sleeping like slaughtered pigs.” Thomas Walsingham
Hardly a scholarly work because Jones depends on his imaginings to connect the dots between the ancient sources. To be fair, we don’t know as much about seven centuries ago as we think. Maps and illustrations help.
The people had frightened their king, and now the king would frighten his people.
December 26, 2016
I just read the Summer of Blood directly after finishing Sir Charles Oman’s book about the Peasants’ Revolt of 1381. I was surprised to see that these two interpretations of the same event were at opposite ends of the spectrum, so to speak. Whereas Oman took especial notice of how reasonable and restrained the government acted in the reprisal stage, Dan Jones told us that they went overboard in brutal retribution. Although both authors blamed an ineffectual and unprepared government for the pathetic response to the rioting, Jones put much of the onus on Richard himself. It just goes to show me that even in a well-documented society such as this one, we can never really uncover that elusive Truth.
This book was written about five years before The Plantagenets, and I believe the author was still honing his skills. The action phase of the book read very well—up to his later standards—but the early section, leading up to the rioting, dragged quite a bit. Nonetheless, we get a lot of background, which is necessary. Once the revolt gains momentum, we start to realize that not all of the participants are enthusiastic; in fact, we learn that “there was a ‘with us or against us’ mentality that had dire consequences for those opposed”. If you didn’t go along, your own house would probably be burnt to the ground. Well, this certainly puts a new face on the revolt; perhaps some of those unwilling supporters were the first ones to turn around and go home once Richard promised his charter of liberties. Even their social betters were coerced into participating, “which tells us something important about the rebel mindset: they aimed not to overturn or transform society, but to correct it from the top down”. Dan Jones spent a lot of time trying to figure out just what they were trying to accomplish, and in the end he felt that it showed the roots of a sophisticated political movement which influenced future generations.
The description of the terrifying three days when London was under siege—and worse—was well done and satisfying to read. We saw the timidity of Richard’s advisors, and I marveled that the teen-aged king could accomplish anything at all. However, when we got to the key aspect of Richard’s crowd manipulation, I think the author fell into a contradiction. Confronting the rebels, the king agreed to all their demands as a policy of appeasement: “If he had ended his Mile End speech with that, Richard would have played his hand perfectly.” But he did not stop there: “Either drunk on the calming effect his words seemed to have on the rebels, or else feeling an inexperienced negotiator’s urge to push compromise too hard, he told the commons that in addition to the charters, they were all free to go across the realm of England catching traitors…” This was a major blunder, Jones claimed, and “changed the whole character or the revolt.” Apparently the mob took this as a carte blanche to go after any officials, aristocrats, foreigners and personal enemies they saw as a threat to their movement. Uncontrolled rioting broke out all over the city and it was Richard’s fault. But twenty pages later, the author stated “The day and night of chaos that followed the Mile End conference had demonstrated the terrible error of the appeasement strategy Richard had pursued on the advice of his more timorous nobles.” Wait a minute: was the appeasement strategy effective or not? Did Richard act on his own accord, or on bad advice? To me, this makes a big difference, since the author gave us the impression overall that Richard was blameworthy all the way to the end: “it is not hard to imagine that Richard himself was ultimately responsible for the character of the revolt’s legal suppression. There seems to have been no check on his youthful instinct to wipe out, rather than to mollify or discipline, his enemies.” Not hard to imagine? There seems to have been…? This is speculation on his part, designed to support an argument that Richard was bad to the bone. I'm just not sure he can be held accountable for all the actions of the government, since he hadn't even come of age yet.
My takeaway from this book is that the events themselves were described very well, but I don’t think the author was entirely fair in his depiction of Richard II. I would not use this as the only source to read about the Peasants’ Revolt. It definitely gave a lot of details missing from the Oman account, but by itself I found this book too biased. Now I need to find a third account to balance it out!
This book was written about five years before The Plantagenets, and I believe the author was still honing his skills. The action phase of the book read very well—up to his later standards—but the early section, leading up to the rioting, dragged quite a bit. Nonetheless, we get a lot of background, which is necessary. Once the revolt gains momentum, we start to realize that not all of the participants are enthusiastic; in fact, we learn that “there was a ‘with us or against us’ mentality that had dire consequences for those opposed”. If you didn’t go along, your own house would probably be burnt to the ground. Well, this certainly puts a new face on the revolt; perhaps some of those unwilling supporters were the first ones to turn around and go home once Richard promised his charter of liberties. Even their social betters were coerced into participating, “which tells us something important about the rebel mindset: they aimed not to overturn or transform society, but to correct it from the top down”. Dan Jones spent a lot of time trying to figure out just what they were trying to accomplish, and in the end he felt that it showed the roots of a sophisticated political movement which influenced future generations.
The description of the terrifying three days when London was under siege—and worse—was well done and satisfying to read. We saw the timidity of Richard’s advisors, and I marveled that the teen-aged king could accomplish anything at all. However, when we got to the key aspect of Richard’s crowd manipulation, I think the author fell into a contradiction. Confronting the rebels, the king agreed to all their demands as a policy of appeasement: “If he had ended his Mile End speech with that, Richard would have played his hand perfectly.” But he did not stop there: “Either drunk on the calming effect his words seemed to have on the rebels, or else feeling an inexperienced negotiator’s urge to push compromise too hard, he told the commons that in addition to the charters, they were all free to go across the realm of England catching traitors…” This was a major blunder, Jones claimed, and “changed the whole character or the revolt.” Apparently the mob took this as a carte blanche to go after any officials, aristocrats, foreigners and personal enemies they saw as a threat to their movement. Uncontrolled rioting broke out all over the city and it was Richard’s fault. But twenty pages later, the author stated “The day and night of chaos that followed the Mile End conference had demonstrated the terrible error of the appeasement strategy Richard had pursued on the advice of his more timorous nobles.” Wait a minute: was the appeasement strategy effective or not? Did Richard act on his own accord, or on bad advice? To me, this makes a big difference, since the author gave us the impression overall that Richard was blameworthy all the way to the end: “it is not hard to imagine that Richard himself was ultimately responsible for the character of the revolt’s legal suppression. There seems to have been no check on his youthful instinct to wipe out, rather than to mollify or discipline, his enemies.” Not hard to imagine? There seems to have been…? This is speculation on his part, designed to support an argument that Richard was bad to the bone. I'm just not sure he can be held accountable for all the actions of the government, since he hadn't even come of age yet.
My takeaway from this book is that the events themselves were described very well, but I don’t think the author was entirely fair in his depiction of Richard II. I would not use this as the only source to read about the Peasants’ Revolt. It definitely gave a lot of details missing from the Oman account, but by itself I found this book too biased. Now I need to find a third account to balance it out!
May 26, 2023
I have read two books by Dan Jones back-to-back for the past two weeks:
This is the 2nd one, the 1st one was “Magna Carta: The Birth of Liberty”, and I am mind-blown, enthralled and fascinated and in complete shock and excitement of what I have discovered and learned thanks to these books.
I am a huge fan of History, but Dan Jones makes reading History extra-enjoyable in such a way that the process of reading about these events puts you on the edge of your seat and compels you to do nothing but to keep reading more and more and more.
What is also worth noting is that this was Dan Jones' first published book; it humbly shows him as a natural great History-teller with a promising talent & future.
This is the 2nd one, the 1st one was “Magna Carta: The Birth of Liberty”, and I am mind-blown, enthralled and fascinated and in complete shock and excitement of what I have discovered and learned thanks to these books.
I am a huge fan of History, but Dan Jones makes reading History extra-enjoyable in such a way that the process of reading about these events puts you on the edge of your seat and compels you to do nothing but to keep reading more and more and more.
What is also worth noting is that this was Dan Jones' first published book; it humbly shows him as a natural great History-teller with a promising talent & future.
September 3, 2018
I learned more about the Peasant's Revolution from this book than the brief facts learned in high school. Reads like a novel, an enjoyable history lesson.
October 22, 2024
Fine commute book but a little dull at times. Dan Jones has vastly improved as a writer
May 4, 2018
Author Dan Jones never fails – he takes History as recorded and makes it all palatable for the 21st century. This book did not let me down any more than any of his other works have to this point. The thing I appreciate the most out of all his works, is that when completed – the Epilogue wraps everything up in context and the Notes on Sources provide an excellent guide for further reading.
Maps and photos of paintings were not disappointing and provided additional value to the book – it certainly brought the story to life for me. The power behind this event, as recorded in 1381 is the impact it had for “peasant classes” ever since. Admittedly, the revolt sort of fizzed out but continued – retribution could have been subdued, but as I look at this from the point of May 2018, May-June of 1381 is nearly a millennial away. It has been and continues to be through the centuries since all too easy for revisionists to embellish, undermine, and/or otherwise make claims that played to the times they later supported. Dan Jones simply keeps to the historical facts and provides a swath of information of both the upper and lower classes, the struggles, the slaughter, the pillaging (and all manner of things associated with the same.) He does this in his normal good-natured style of also attempting to educate a world of people that have little to no interest in the topic.
Having read “The Plantagenet’s” and “The War of the Roses” helped me have a knowledge base of the period in advance of this work. This way I was able to keep (for the most part) names of people straight as I read the book. For people interested in this era, I would suggest you pick up the works of Dan Jones and read for yourself what he recreates for our modern times of an era seemingly forgotten.
Maps and photos of paintings were not disappointing and provided additional value to the book – it certainly brought the story to life for me. The power behind this event, as recorded in 1381 is the impact it had for “peasant classes” ever since. Admittedly, the revolt sort of fizzed out but continued – retribution could have been subdued, but as I look at this from the point of May 2018, May-June of 1381 is nearly a millennial away. It has been and continues to be through the centuries since all too easy for revisionists to embellish, undermine, and/or otherwise make claims that played to the times they later supported. Dan Jones simply keeps to the historical facts and provides a swath of information of both the upper and lower classes, the struggles, the slaughter, the pillaging (and all manner of things associated with the same.) He does this in his normal good-natured style of also attempting to educate a world of people that have little to no interest in the topic.
Having read “The Plantagenet’s” and “The War of the Roses” helped me have a knowledge base of the period in advance of this work. This way I was able to keep (for the most part) names of people straight as I read the book. For people interested in this era, I would suggest you pick up the works of Dan Jones and read for yourself what he recreates for our modern times of an era seemingly forgotten.
March 20, 2022
I am falling in love with Dan Jones' work, and this book was no exception.
Growing up, I always thought that the Medieval era was boring, and so I didn't care to learn much about it. It wasn't until I got hooked on the ASoIaF series (and realizing that much of it is set in "real" history, with some fantasy elements and twists thrown in) that I became interested in actually studying it. Adding The Last Kingdom to the mix only made me want to learn about it more.
Jones has a talent of taking something that happened hundreds of years ago and making it fresh, interesting, and relevant to today (this event, in particular, rings true to current events - who can't relate to the lower classes feeling the sting of additional taxes while the upper classes just gather more wealth for themselves?). I love his writing style, and the book hooked me from the first pages. I knew nothing about the Peasant Revolt of 1381 before coming into this book, and now I just want to learn as much as I can about Wat Tyler and John Ball and the events leading up to it.
It is helpful to have a very basic understanding of the various British monarchy dynasties (particularly the Plantagenets - as an American, I never learned about this stuff in school, so I found myself referring to Wikipedia a few times to set myself straight), but it isn't necessary, because much of the information you need is on the page. And the section on notes - well, I may have tracked down a few out of print books from there already because I NEED to read more. ;)
I am definitely looking forward to reading my way through the rest of Jones' catalog of books!
Growing up, I always thought that the Medieval era was boring, and so I didn't care to learn much about it. It wasn't until I got hooked on the ASoIaF series (and realizing that much of it is set in "real" history, with some fantasy elements and twists thrown in) that I became interested in actually studying it. Adding The Last Kingdom to the mix only made me want to learn about it more.
Jones has a talent of taking something that happened hundreds of years ago and making it fresh, interesting, and relevant to today (this event, in particular, rings true to current events - who can't relate to the lower classes feeling the sting of additional taxes while the upper classes just gather more wealth for themselves?). I love his writing style, and the book hooked me from the first pages. I knew nothing about the Peasant Revolt of 1381 before coming into this book, and now I just want to learn as much as I can about Wat Tyler and John Ball and the events leading up to it.
It is helpful to have a very basic understanding of the various British monarchy dynasties (particularly the Plantagenets - as an American, I never learned about this stuff in school, so I found myself referring to Wikipedia a few times to set myself straight), but it isn't necessary, because much of the information you need is on the page. And the section on notes - well, I may have tracked down a few out of print books from there already because I NEED to read more. ;)
I am definitely looking forward to reading my way through the rest of Jones' catalog of books!
June 12, 2023
Always up for Dan Jones telling me about English history with his dry wit that makes me laugh out loud and his really descriptive and slightly focused intention and detail on gruesome deaths. And boy did they know how to kill someone back in the day; don't do it like they used to, that's for sure.
One of his earlier books, his knowledge and love of the english royalty shines through and his style, like his image (is he a hot model rock star or a historian? You just may think both) adds an element of storytelling you rarely get from other non fiction writers. If you are curious about this history and want something with a little pizazz along with name and date drab, pick him up you will not be disappointed.
Why 4 stars? Because now i have to read another few books on Richard II. Thanks for whetting my appetite and not serving the meal, Dan Jones! :) In all serious this is a quick read and a great intro for those who want to learn a bit about the end of the Plantagenets. I mean, a few hundred years before Henry VIII summarily killed off the bloodline with hundred of executions. Get into it with me!
One of his earlier books, his knowledge and love of the english royalty shines through and his style, like his image (is he a hot model rock star or a historian? You just may think both) adds an element of storytelling you rarely get from other non fiction writers. If you are curious about this history and want something with a little pizazz along with name and date drab, pick him up you will not be disappointed.
Why 4 stars? Because now i have to read another few books on Richard II. Thanks for whetting my appetite and not serving the meal, Dan Jones! :) In all serious this is a quick read and a great intro for those who want to learn a bit about the end of the Plantagenets. I mean, a few hundred years before Henry VIII summarily killed off the bloodline with hundred of executions. Get into it with me!
August 10, 2017
Picked this up looking for a quick introduction to the Peasants' Revolt of 1381, and in that Jones is relatively in his detailing of source materials the book served that purpose. Those looking for a more serious history of the Revolt, especially for more details on the peasants themselves, should look elsewhere. I don't think Dan Jones set out to write a serious piece of historical scholarship with this book anyway, so it would be unfair to judge him based on those criteria. That being said...
The last third of the book (apart from a five page bit in the epilogue) reads like a love letter to the English nobility of the period. At times, Jones lionizes figures like Bishop Despenser to the point where things become hardly readable. The peasants are always dull, violent, uneducated rabble, and the aristocracy are valiant, virtuous, righteous, etc. I was looking for a bit less bias in the writing, and a more straightforward account of the events - but this is narrative history, after all, so I'm being unfair.
The last third of the book (apart from a five page bit in the epilogue) reads like a love letter to the English nobility of the period. At times, Jones lionizes figures like Bishop Despenser to the point where things become hardly readable. The peasants are always dull, violent, uneducated rabble, and the aristocracy are valiant, virtuous, righteous, etc. I was looking for a bit less bias in the writing, and a more straightforward account of the events - but this is narrative history, after all, so I'm being unfair.
September 30, 2017
I heart Dan Jones. I admire an author who can take things that I am interested in, things that some people might find boring, and weave a story of facts and figures so fantastically. Full review to come.
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See my complete review at my blog http://allthebookblognamesaretaken.bl... or www.facebook.com/AllTheBookBlogNamesA...
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See my complete review at my blog http://allthebookblognamesaretaken.bl... or www.facebook.com/AllTheBookBlogNamesA...
December 3, 2021
Many basic aspects of the Peasants' Revolt of 1381 will never be clear, thanks to the nature of our source materials, so that even the date and circumstances of rebel leader Wat Tyler's death are uncertain. As a result, Jones's seamless and sometimes pulpish narrative of the uprising might seem misleading. But it is based on sound scholarship and makes for very stimulating reading.
March 25, 2024
Enjoyed this at the time that I read it, but in hindsight I ignored a bunch of weirdly monarchist sentiment? I was just reading for information, but the author was antagonistic to the idea that lordship could be abolished, and treated it like a completely ridiculous notion. Kind of wild.
October 13, 2023
My dad and brother both read this before passing along to me. A highly readable if bloody romp through a little-known (to me) chapter of medieval English history. Makes me want to check out his other books.
April 23, 2020
Dan Jones, for me, is the master story-teller of history. Specifically for a period of history that has not been written in a hugely accessible way. Until now. Dan Jones brings to life and opens the door on a really vibrant, thriving world and not the muddy, dreary world that text books over the past 50 years would have us believe.
Dan makes people from 650 years ago relatable, and understandable. You get their anger and their day to day problems, and why they did what they did. And then Dan makes you relate to the nobility and what they were juggling with. You understand two vastly different groups of society, nothing quite like which exists today, and then once that wizardry has been performed, weaves a fantastic narrative of the events as they unfolded, as well as the aftermath and long term consequences. This pivotal moment in the history of the little island of England. This few months over the summer of 1381 is but a date to people today, in which stuff happened which probably should be learned for a test. Yet, Dan shows you the people. He shows you that they had wants and fears and plans..and that the tragedy of death was the same then as compared to now. Back then it was seemingly the end of the world to the normal citizens. Murder, fire, riots and robbery were widespread. Law and order had fallen.
This book makes you realise how immensely terrifying this period was for the people living through it. It also shows that times like these do, eventually end and pass. In this case by December 1381. People (hopefully) come out the other side, learned, and wiser to the world. With current world conditions, this was even more relatable, and in a strange way, almost comforting (I just hope the current situations is dealt with absolutely no state executions.....*ahem ahem*...looking at you Richard II).
Read this book. It isn't that long. It is vibrant, exceptionally interesting and fascinatingly brutal, Dan does not pull any punches on the details. Oh yeah and it's one of my favourite history books ever written.
P.S. I'm not even a historian. Just a weirdly diversely keen biologist.
Dan makes people from 650 years ago relatable, and understandable. You get their anger and their day to day problems, and why they did what they did. And then Dan makes you relate to the nobility and what they were juggling with. You understand two vastly different groups of society, nothing quite like which exists today, and then once that wizardry has been performed, weaves a fantastic narrative of the events as they unfolded, as well as the aftermath and long term consequences. This pivotal moment in the history of the little island of England. This few months over the summer of 1381 is but a date to people today, in which stuff happened which probably should be learned for a test. Yet, Dan shows you the people. He shows you that they had wants and fears and plans..and that the tragedy of death was the same then as compared to now. Back then it was seemingly the end of the world to the normal citizens. Murder, fire, riots and robbery were widespread. Law and order had fallen.
This book makes you realise how immensely terrifying this period was for the people living through it. It also shows that times like these do, eventually end and pass. In this case by December 1381. People (hopefully) come out the other side, learned, and wiser to the world. With current world conditions, this was even more relatable, and in a strange way, almost comforting (I just hope the current situations is dealt with absolutely no state executions.....*ahem ahem*...looking at you Richard II).
Read this book. It isn't that long. It is vibrant, exceptionally interesting and fascinatingly brutal, Dan does not pull any punches on the details. Oh yeah and it's one of my favourite history books ever written.
P.S. I'm not even a historian. Just a weirdly diversely keen biologist.
June 12, 2023
I’ve read pretty much all of Dan’s work at this point. He has mentioned the peasants revolt in his other books such as the Plantagenets in passing but I was excited to see how he wrote about this period specifically.
I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. Dan Jones has the ability to take real historical events but make you feel like you are reading the best historical fiction/fantasy ever. I’ve read a lot of history books but no one makes medieval England come across as exciting as Dan.
Whilst I love his larger works where he delves into many characters across a vast time period. This book felt incredibly special in its specificity. I loved its depth and detailed insight into what was really a few weeks on history. His discussions on Tyler and Ball were brilliant. Moreover, who doesn’t love a bit of Dan Jones Richard the 2nd bashing that we’ve all come to know and love.
I would really recommend this to anyone starting out with Dan’s work, who may be worried about the scale of his bigger books. I hope it would show you how Dan can turn any history into, in my eyes at least, a block buster movie or tv show!
I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. Dan Jones has the ability to take real historical events but make you feel like you are reading the best historical fiction/fantasy ever. I’ve read a lot of history books but no one makes medieval England come across as exciting as Dan.
Whilst I love his larger works where he delves into many characters across a vast time period. This book felt incredibly special in its specificity. I loved its depth and detailed insight into what was really a few weeks on history. His discussions on Tyler and Ball were brilliant. Moreover, who doesn’t love a bit of Dan Jones Richard the 2nd bashing that we’ve all come to know and love.
I would really recommend this to anyone starting out with Dan’s work, who may be worried about the scale of his bigger books. I hope it would show you how Dan can turn any history into, in my eyes at least, a block buster movie or tv show!
April 3, 2022
4.5*
The revolt of 1381, caused in part by the effects of the Black Death, the war(s) against the French, as well as the numerous taxes imposed on the population, was sparked by Chancellor and Archbishop Simon Sudbury's efforts to collect the poll tax agreed at the Parliament of November 1380, thus rebellions started at first in Essex and Kent, spreading countrywide.
The Peasants' Revolt proved to be the turning point in the life of 14 year-old King Richard II, marking his transition from boyhood to adulthood. The bloody reprisals after the fateful showdown at Smithfield with Wat Tyler, the leader of the rebellion, firmly validate this point.
Buildings burned, heads rolled (including Simon Sudbury's) and terror was unleashed in England, as this series of events encapsulates most of all the failure of the ruling class to fulfil its feudal duties (as in a social contract) to the lower classes, and the fact that a poll tax is simply unjust.
The revolt of 1381, caused in part by the effects of the Black Death, the war(s) against the French, as well as the numerous taxes imposed on the population, was sparked by Chancellor and Archbishop Simon Sudbury's efforts to collect the poll tax agreed at the Parliament of November 1380, thus rebellions started at first in Essex and Kent, spreading countrywide.
The Peasants' Revolt proved to be the turning point in the life of 14 year-old King Richard II, marking his transition from boyhood to adulthood. The bloody reprisals after the fateful showdown at Smithfield with Wat Tyler, the leader of the rebellion, firmly validate this point.
Buildings burned, heads rolled (including Simon Sudbury's) and terror was unleashed in England, as this series of events encapsulates most of all the failure of the ruling class to fulfil its feudal duties (as in a social contract) to the lower classes, and the fact that a poll tax is simply unjust.
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