A new and radically original account of the longest military conflict in European history, which challenges the conventional periodisation of the Hundred Years War to consider a much longer period of Anglo-French conflict.
Michael Livingston argues that the English lens through which the war has been viewed has led historians to define it in terms of English interests (most famously, the claim of the English Plantagenet king Edward III to be the rightful king of France), and that the events collectively labelled the Hundred Years War are best seen as a sequence of steps in Frances struggle to define itself as a nation. For much of the period, Frances primary rival was indeed England. But it was by no means the only combatant. Burgundy stood in its way, too, as did Brittany, Flanders, Navarre and other rival powers.
Viewing France as the primary engine driving the war leads Livingston to consider a much longer timespan, starting with the Anglo-French Pirate War of 1292 (which swiftly escalated into a fight over Englands feudal possessions in Gascony) and ending with the marriage of Charles VIII of France to Anne of Brittany by which Brittany was subsumed into the French realm.
Arvustused
Praise for Michael Livingston:
Fascinating and engaging, and told with clear passion for the subject. * Aspects of History * Original, insightful and revelatory. * Dan Jones * Makes the reader feel like theyre experiencing history that is fresh, new and exhilarating. * Dan Snow *
Muu info
A brand-new history of the 14th and 15th century conflicts between England and France original in approach and radical in its conclusions that significantly broadens traditional narratives of the events historians have collectively labelled the Hundred Years War.
Dr Michael Livingston teaches the military and cultural history of the Middle Ages at The Citadel, the Military College of South Carolina. He recently co-authored the textbook reader Medieval Warfare, and future works include books on the battles of Hastings and Shrewsbury. These add to previous books The Battle of Crécy: A Casebook, winner of the 2017 Distinguished Book Award from the Society for Military History, Never Greater Slaughter: Brunanburh and the Birth of England (Osprey, 2021), and Crécy: Battle of Five Kings (Osprey, 2021). He is an elected Fellow of the Royal Historical Society.
