Shakespeare's Kings - by John Julius Norwich (Paperback)

About the Book

In a fast-paced, engaging narrative, Norwich chronicles the actual events of the 14th and 15th centuries that inspired Shakespeare's history plays, from the untimely death of the heroic Black Prince and Henry Bolingbroke's ousting of Richard II to the legendary Battle of Agincourt and the notorious 18-month reign of Richard III. of full-color photos.

Book Synopsis

In a sparkling, fast-paced narrative, esteemed historian John Julius Norwich chronicles the turbulent events of fourteenth- and fifteenth-century England that inspired Shakespeare's history plays. It was a time of uncertainty and incessant warfare, a time during which the crown was constantly contested, alliances were made and broken, and peasants and townsmen alike arose in revolt. This was the raw material of Shakespeare's dramas, and Norwich holds up his work to the light of history to ask: Who was the real Falstaff? How accurate a historian was the playwright? Shakespeare's Kings is a marvelous study of the Bard's method of spinning history into art, and a captivating portrait of the Middle Ages.

Review Quotes

Anne Marie Welsh The San Diego Union-Tribune Magisterial...reads how the best history does: like a story.

David Bevington The Washington Times Delightful...a very readable companion to the plays.

Hans Werner The Toronto Star A lively jaunt through the rocky history of the Lancastrian kings from the time of the Hundred Years' War with France to the end of the Wars of the Roses....An indispensable tour guide next time you go down to Stratford.

Michiko Kakutani The New York Times Colorful....Lively....Turns the history of England in the Middle Ages into a tempestuous chronicle of family feuds and political machinations.

About the Author

John Julius Norwich is the author of A History of Venice and the renowned Byzantium trilogy. He is chairman of the World Monuments Fund in Britain and lives in London.