The Fears of Henry IV: The Life of England's Self-Made King by Mortimer, Ian (2007) Hardcover - Hardcover

Mortimer, Ian

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0224073001 ISBN 13: 9780224073004

Publisher: Jonathan Cape, 2007

Synopsis

An author with a strong track record now tackles the turbulent reign of Henry IV, the first Lancastrian king.By 1405, King Henry IV had already survived at least eight plots to dethrone or kill him in the first six years of his reign. Henry had not always been so unpopular. The son of John of Gaunt, he was courteous, confident, well-educated, musical and spiritually fervent. In 1399, at the age of thirty-two, he was enthusiastically greeted as the saviour of the realm when he ousted from power the insecure and tyrannical King Richard II.Therein lay Henry€™s weakness. By making himself King he had broken God€™s law and left himself starkly open to criticism. Enemies everywhere tried to take advantage of his questionable right to the crown. Such overwhelming threats transformed him from a hero into a duplicitous murderer: a king prepared to go to any lengths to save his family and his throne.But against all the odds, what Henry achieved was to take a poorl

About this title

About the Author:

Ian Mortimer is the author of two other medieval biographies: The Greatest Traitor: The Life of Sir Roger Mortimer and The Perfect King: The Life of Edward III.

Review:

"[Mortimer] has an instinctive sympathy for the men about whom he writes, a real understanding of the mentalities of late medieval England, and a vivid historical imagination which lends colour and excitement to his pages" * Literary Review * "Mortimer's book is a success and tells an important story very well" -- Richard Francis * Daily Telegraph * "An arresting and original biography" -- Jessie Childs * Sunday Telegraph * "[It] possesses the rare combination of clarity, liveliness, balanced judgement, erudition without pedantry, and scholarship founded on his own research among primary sources" * Scotland on Sunday * "The book is at its most compelling in conjuring a sense of place or occasion" * Guardian *

About this edition

• Publisher: Jonathan Cape
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 0224073001
• ISBN 13: 9780224073004
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 352