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The Fears of Henry IV: The Life of England's Self-Made King
by: Ian Mortimer

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Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours Binding: Paperback
EAN: 9781844135295
ISBN: 1844135292
Label: Vintage
Manufacturer: Vintage
Number Of Pages: 352
Publication Date: July 03, 2008
Publisher: Vintage
Studio: Vintage
Sales Rank: 15955

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Customer Reviews

Average Rating: out of 5 stars

Rating:

- Good, but not as good as "The Perfect King"
This was a good biography of a little-understood personality in late medieval England. I felt that Mortimer did build up a convincing picture of the king and what was important to him (family, honour, duty etc) and he draws good comparisons between the weak and autocratic Richard II and his more flexible, compentent cousin Henry. Having said that, I agree with the other reviewers that this was not as good as Mortimer's biography of Edward III, "The Perfect King". Mortimer does tend to over-emphasise certain points, such as Henry's descent from his less famous (in our times) grandfather, Henry of Grosmont, Duke of Lancaster, which he probably mentions about 15 times (how can Grosmont be so important in Henry's life when he died before his ... Read More:

Rating:

- Henry IV: usurper or saviour?
For many of us, Henry IV is the king who deposed Richard II, fathered Henry V and features in three of Shakespeare's historical plays. He reigned as King of England from 1399 to 1413 and while the significant events of his reign are documented in history, the man himself largely remains in the shadows.

In this book, Ian Mortimer sets out to bring Henry IV out of the shadows by providing both context and perspective for his actions. Mortimer's research and energetic writing do shed light, but it is not quite enough to infuse Henry IV with personality and life. The people around Henry IV largely remain in the shadows and it is their perspectives that would enable us to get a clearer picture of the man who was the king.

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Rating:

- Recommended!
The medieval period has a reputation for being as dark as the age that preceded it, so I was almost reluctant to read this book, but I'm glad I made the effort to pick it up. This is Shakespeare's king, but not as countless actors have played him. Ian Mortimer uses biography as a powerful tool to investigate the relationship between Richard (Henry's predecessor) and Henry - from Henry's point of view. Henry's taking the throne is often taken as the root of the Wars of the Roses, and the author shows how Richard changed his mind about his heir several times. Having become king, Henry had to sweep away almost a century of English royal practices to ensure he had a hereditary right to the throne, and although Richard did indeed make the Yorkists ... Read More:

Rating:

- A scholarly study that does not meet its self-set goals, very boring to read
I had quite enjoyed Ian Mortimer two previous books "The Greatest
Traitor: The Life of Sir Roger Mortimer, Ruler of England 1327-1330" and "The Perfect King: The Life of Edward III, Father of the English Nation". However, this book comes kind of a disappointment as it the author does not achieve his self-set goals.

King Henry IV comes with quite a lot of baggage: the usurper king and the arch-villain of Shakespeare, and eclipsed by his hero-son Henry V.
Ian Mortimer sets out to rectify this traditional picture of Henry IV and wants to get to personality of the King. Getting to the personality of late-medieval personalities is quite difficult to achieve as one is very much stuck with the actions and has less on thoughts. ... Read More:

Books : The Fears of Henry IV: The Life of England's Self-Made King