About:
The Plantagenets: The Warrior Kings and Queens Who Made England by Dan Jones traces the formidable dynasty through its trials and tribulations. Mr. Jones is a British historian and journalist.
- 560 pages
- Publisher :Viking
- Language :English
- ISBN-10 : 9780670026654
My rating for The Plantagenets– 5
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Thoughts:
I previous wrote about the author’s biography ofHenry Vin which he talks a bit about this book. Both books are colorful and gripping, supplying not just historical facts, but important context to tell a complete story.
The Plantagenets by Dan Jones brings to life Plantagenet kings like Richard the Lionheart, King John (both made famous by the tales of Robin Hood), Henry II, Edward I “Longshanks” and more. The author tries to psychoanalyze the kings from afar. King John was a cruel man like the Robin Hood tales, and Edward I persecuted each and every person who dared to disagree with him, as well as expelling the Jews in 1290 to, of course, had more to do with taxation to cover war debt than any other reason (and a part of a larger anti-Semitic movement in Europe at the time.
Mr. Jones doesn’t hide his bias toward the Kings and Queens. I could tell if he loves or hates those he writes about. Unfortunately, he sometimes errs on the side of length, as he mentioned in the introduction. I would have liked to spend more times with some of them, especially those that seem to be important but have been marginalized in history or popular culture.
As long as this book, it’s very engaging and very readable. The prosperity of England seemed more to do with the luck of who’s in charge than long term familial planning. England thrived under competent , predictable technocrats, in that sense not much has changed when it comes running a country.
Buy The Plantagenetsfrom Amazon.com*
More Books by Dan Jones*
Zohar — Man of la Book
Disclaimer:I bought this book.
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