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Richard I (Penguin Monarchs): The Crusader King

Hardback

Main Details

Title Richard I (Penguin Monarchs): The Crusader King
Authors and Contributors      By (author) Thomas Asbridge
SeriesPenguin Monarchs
Physical Properties
Format:Hardback
Pages:128
Dimensions(mm): Height 186,Width 129
Category/GenreBritish and Irish History
ISBN/Barcode 9780141976853
ClassificationsDewey:942.032092
Audience
General

Publishing Details

Publisher Penguin Books Ltd
Imprint Allen Lane
Publication Date 22 February 2018
Publication Country United Kingdom

Description

Part of the Penguin Monarchs series- short, fresh, expert accounts of England's rulers in a collectible hardback format. Richard I's reign is both controversial and seemingly contradictory. One of England's most famous medieval monarchs and a potent symbol of national identity, he barely spent six months on English soil during a ten-year reign and spoke French as his first language. Contemporaries dubbed him the 'Lionheart', reflecting a carefully cultivated reputation for bravery, prowess and knightly virtue, but this supposed paragon of chivalry butchered close to 3,000 prisoners in cold blood on a single day. And, though revered as Christian Europe's greatest crusader, his grand campaign to the Holy Land failed to recover the city of Jerusalem from Islam. Seeking to reconcile this conflicting evidence, Thomas Asbridge's incisive reappraisal of Richard I's career questions whether the Lionheart really did neglect his kingdom, considers why he devoted himself to the cause of holy war and asks how the memory of his life came to be interwoven with myth. Richard emerges as a formidable warrior-king, possessed of martial genius and a cultured intellect, yet burdened by the legacy of his dysfunctional dynasty and obsessed with the pursuit of honour and renown.

Author Biography

Thomas Asbridge is the author of The Creation of the Principality of Antioch, 1098-1130, The First Crusade, The Crusades and The Greatest Knight- The Remarkable Life of William Marshal, the Power behind Five English Thrones. He is Senior Lecturer in History at Queen Mary, University of London. He was the historical consultant on the film Kingdom of Heaven and presented and wrote the 3 part BBC television series The Crusades.