Katherine Swynford: The Story of John of Gaunt and His Scandalous Duchess - Rilegato

Weir, Alison

Rilegato

ISBN 10: 0771088574 ISBN 13: 9780771088575

Casa editrice: McClelland & Stewart Ltd, 2008

Riassunto

In her remarkable new book, Alison Weir recounts one of the greatest love stories of medieval England. It is the extraordinary tale of an exceptional woman, Katherine Swynford, who became first the mistress and later the wife of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster.

Katherine Swynford’s charismatic lover was one of the most powerful princes of the 14th century, the effective ruler of England behind the throne of his father Edward III in his declining years, and during the minority of his nephew, Richard ll. Katherine herself was enigmatic and intriguing, renowned for her beauty, and regarded by some as dangerous. Her existence was played out against the backdrop of court life at the height of the age of chivalry and she knew most of the great figures of the time ― including her brother-in-law, Geoffrey Chaucer. She lived through much of the Hundred Years War, the Black Death, and the Peasants’ Revolt. She knew loss, adversity, and heartbreak, and she survived them all triumphantly. Although Katherine’s story provides unique insights into the life of a medieval woman, she was far from typical in that age. She was an important person in her own right, a woman who had remarkable opportunities, made her own choices, flouted convention, and took control of her own destiny ― even of her own public image.

Weir brilliantly retrieves Katherine Swynford from the footnotes of history and gives her life and breath again. Perhaps the most dynastically important woman within the English monarchy, she was the mother of the Beauforts and through them the ancestress of the Yorkist kings, the Tudors, the Stuarts, and every other sovereign since ― a legacy that has shaped the history of Britain.

Su questo libro

Recensione:

“Alison Weir has perfected the art of bringing history to life. There is a breadth of vision to her research and writing that provides a sense of time and place as well as consequence.”
— Chicago Tribune

“Alison Weir is one of our greatest popular historians.”
— The Daily Mail

“Weir provides immense satisfaction. She writes in a pacy, vivid style, engaging the heart as it does the mind.”
— The Independent

“Alison Weir’s hugely popular history books are as gripping as novels.”
— The Times of London

“Fast-paced, lively and boldly coloured, Weir’s book gives us a vivid portrait of courtly life.”
— Sunday Times (U.K.)

L'autore:

Alison Weir is one of the world’s foremost popular historians. Her books include The Six Wives of Henry the Eighth, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Mary Queen of Scots, and most recently the novel Innocent Traitor. Weir lives in the U.K.

Su questa edizione

• Editore: McClelland & Stewart Ltd
• Data di pubblicazione: 2008
• ISBN 10: 0771088574
• ISBN 13: 9780771088575
• Rilegatura: Copertina rigida
• Numero di pagine: 366