When Sir Henry Samuel’s nephew, Sir Matthew, has to go to the crusades with Henry of Almain he does so reluctantly. The crusade that was almost a disaster did not begin well. With an ageing king and ageing regent left to rule England, it is left to lords like the Earl of Cleveland to put […]
1217: The Battles That Saved England by Catherine Hanley
In 1215 King John had agreed to the terms of Magna Carta, but he then reneged on his word, plunging the kingdom into war. The rebellious barons offered the throne to the French prince Louis and set off the chain of events that almost changed the course of English history. Louis first arrived in May […]
1217 and the ideals of chivalry
In 1217 a man known as ‘the greatest knight’ broke a treaty to, as he saw it, save England from French rule. Catherine Hanley asks: did he go against the ideals of chivalry? “What, then, is chivalry?” This question is posed in the History of William Marshal, a 13th-century biography of a man who is […]
War Cry by Ian Ross
It’s 1265, and England has a new master. Simon de Montfort’s victory at the Battle of Lewes has made him king in all but name. He has vowed to restore the rights and liberties of the kingdom, but now even his friends grow wary of his power. As old alliances break down, new rebellions gather […]
The Hunt by Griff Hosker
The Battle of Stirling Bridge is a haunting memory for King Edward I. When Scottish rebels threaten his northern borders the king acts swiftly to quash it. William Wallace remains a threat and hiding across the seas he sends his hunter to fetch him back. Sir Gerald Warbow is no longer a young man and […]
Battle Song by Ian Ross
1264, and storm clouds are gathering as Simon de Montfort and the barons of the realm challenge the power of Henry III. The barons demand reform; the crown demands obedience. England is on the brink of civil war. Adam de Norton, a young squire devoted to the virtues of chivalry, longs only to be knighted, […]
Blessed are the Dead by CB Hanley
In April, 1219, Edwin Weaver finds himself at Tickhill Castle under false pretences. Earl Warenne wants Tickhill for himself and is convinced that a royal order for the castle to be handed over has been hidden, so he’s sent Edwin to find it and told him not to come back until he does. Frantic with […]
Two Houses, Two Kingdoms by Catherine Hanley
The 12th and 13th centuries were a time of personal monarchy, when the close friendship or petty feuding between kings and queens could determine the course of history. The Capetians of France and the Angevins of England waged war, made peace, and intermarried. The lands under the control of the English king once reached to […]