Reviews for William the Conqueror

The average rating for William the Conqueror based on 2 reviews is 4.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2019-03-13 00:00:00 Barbara Gil C’est une monumentale biographie qui paraît chez Flammarion, dans la bien-nommée collection Grandes biographies. Parue pour la première fois en 2016 chez Yale University Press, elle a exigé à son auteur, David Bates, pas moins de cinquante ans de travail. Cinquante ans tout d’abord depuis ses recherches pour sa thèse de doctorat. Durant ces années, seize ans ont été nécessaires pour en tirer un manuscrit, puis encore trois ans pour approfondir différents angles de recherche. Guillaume le Conquérant, roi d’Angleterre de 1066 jusqu’à sa mort en 1087, fut également duc de Normandie dès l’âge de 8 ans. On a pu lui reprocher une naissance obscure, qui lui a valu le surnom de Guillaume le Bâtard. En effet, ses parents, le duc de Normandie Robert le Magnifique  et sa maîtresse, Arlette de Falaise, ne se sont jamais mariés. Ce qui ne l’a pas empêché de s’imposer comme l’un des plus grands rois d’Angleterre. A quelques jours du Brexit, cette biographie, qui a pour objectif de proposer une perspective très large de ce destin exceptionnel, replace cette figure majeure de la France et de l’Angleterre dans notre Histoire commune. David Bates a mené des recherches poussées des deux côtés de la Manche, notamment en Normandie. L’auteur, avec beaucoup de lucidité, nous livre un portrait dense, cru, fouillé et sans complaisance sur celui qui a été à l’origine à travers sa conquête, selon lui, d’une tragédie humaine. Agrémentée de photographies, dont des images de la fameuse Tapisserie de Bayeux qui a contribué à la légende, cette biographie se révèle passionnante de bout en bout.

Review # 2 was written on 2014-07-15 00:00:00 Darby Wilson This is a very balanced view of William I. It's well-researched, referencing contemporary (or near contemporary) accounts, and noting the variances between them when recounting events. The author does not lionize William, admitting that William ruthlessly and violently exploited the England for his and his followers personal gain. Nor does he demonize him, pointing out his remarkable accomplishments, his initial attempts at a peaceful assimilation and devoting a chapter to his relationship with the church. Unfortunately, while we have his political motivations clear, in this book we know little of him personally so William is more of a force of nature than a personality. However, this is the first biography of William I I have read, so perhaps this is the best we can know of him, given the sources. The only issues I had were that a couple times the author made oblique references to events not covered in the text, as if they were common knowledge everyone should know. Perhaps these were things every English school child learns, but for an American it was a bit confusing. He also never covered the remarkable story of William and Mathilda's engagement. I really wanted to know if that was true or not. There was also William's onerous annexation of the forests for personal hunting which I believe was merely mentioned. This was an issue that had a great negative impact on the native population and became a huge issue in English medieval politics, so it deserved more than a sentence or two. But as an overview of William the Conqueror, it is still good. It is not dry, yet it's very informative.