King John (The Medieval World) - Hardcover

Turner, Ralph V.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0582067278 ISBN 13: 9780582067271

Publisher: Addison-Wesley Longman Ltd, 1994

Synopsis

This book is part of a series which provides the student, scholar and general reader with authoritative short studies of key aspects and personalities in the medieval world. This book provides a re-assessment of the life and reign of King John (1167-1216, r.1199-1216). John's reign was a turning-point in the development of England: it saw the loss of Normandy, bitter conflict with the papacy, baronial rebellion, and the granting of Magna Carta with all its consequences for the future. Turner sets John in his full personal context, as a member of the turbulent Angevin family; in his full political context, as ruler of Normandy, Anjou, Aquitaine and Ireland as well as England; and in the context of his time, since contemporary values and expectations of kingship were very different from our own today. He aims to present a more balanced picture of John than the older view that condemned him on the grounds of his personal immorality and the more recent rehabilitations of his reputation based on his supposed administrative genius. The book makes use of a new historical field - the history of childhood - to understand the flaws in John's adult personality (though avoiding the speculative excesses of psycho-history). It also incorporates recent advances in our economic knowledge of the times, which have revealed how John's finances were bedevilled by inflationary pressures which were beyond the understanding of him and his contemporaries and it gives due weight to John's continental dominions and his role on the European stage.

About this title

From the Publisher

King John long ago acquired the epithet "Bad," and he is reputed to be the worst of England’s kings. Before his death in 1216, his desperate exploitation of his subjects for ever more money had turned him into the mythical monster of Hollywood legend—even though the fictional Robin Hood was invented much later. Born in 1166 the youngest of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine’s sons, only the untimely deaths of his elder brothers, Henry, Geoffrey of Brittany, and Richard the Lionheart propelled him to the English throne. In contrast to his brother Richard, he appeared incompetent in battle, failing to defend Normandy in 1202-04, and was unsuccessful in recovering his lost lands in 1214. A continuing crisis was a constant need for money, forcing John to drain England of funds for campaigns in France, demanding unlawful and oppressive new taxes. Adding to his evil reputation was an ill-tempered personality and a streak of pettiness or spitefulness that led him to monstrous acts, including murdering his own nephew. King John’s unpopularity culminated in a final crisis, a revolt by the English baronage, 1215-16, aimed at subjecting him to the rule of law, that resulted in his grant of Magna Carta.

About the Author

Ralph V. Turner was until his retirement Professor of History at Florida State University in Tallahassee. His other books include the recently published Magna Carta. He lives in Tallahassee.

Edition details

• Publisher: Addison-Wesley Longman Ltd
• Publication date: 1994
• ISBN 10: 0582067278
• ISBN 13: 9780582067271
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 306