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A review by zelanator
William Marshal: Knighthood, War and Chivalry, 1147-1219 by David Crouch
5.0
This is an excellent and concise biography of William Marshal. Marshall was a young knight of little means that through political maneuvering, prowess at tournaments, and astute battlefield command found himself advancing upward in English aristocracy until he served as the King's Regent in England c. 1218-1219 before his sudden death. Much of what we know about Marshal comes from the thirteenth-century HISTORY that records his life and accomplishments. Crouch relies extensively on this HISTORY and leans on the work of other modern scholars who have written more extensive and lengthier treatments of the Marshal.
David Crouch writes a strong biography that in the first three chapters walks the reader through William Marshal's narrative, birth through death, with a general focus on his military and political accomplishments. The second part, and the strongest in my opinion, offers three thematic chapters that explore how William Marshal's life intersected with socio-political transformations during twelfth century English history: the transition from older Medieval feudalism to "bastard feudalism" where the relationship between barons and their retinue of knights was established upon the latter's personal self-interest and not upon feudal and kin obligations for fealty and service; the redefinition of knighthood as both a military occupation and an esteemed social class; the emergence of the "preudomme," or the "tried and tested" man who was discrete, honorable, loyal, and jealous of his reputation.
Crouch's major achievement, in 1990, was using William Marshal's posthumous biography and Marshal's charters to open a window onto the complexities of twelfth century aristocratic advancement, ideas about chivalry, and the affinity between lords and their military household. This is a fine example of how 'military history' and 'biography' (both fairly disparaged sub-fields of history) can offer amazing insights into the economic, social, and political arrangements of a period.
Highly recommended.
David Crouch writes a strong biography that in the first three chapters walks the reader through William Marshal's narrative, birth through death, with a general focus on his military and political accomplishments. The second part, and the strongest in my opinion, offers three thematic chapters that explore how William Marshal's life intersected with socio-political transformations during twelfth century English history: the transition from older Medieval feudalism to "bastard feudalism" where the relationship between barons and their retinue of knights was established upon the latter's personal self-interest and not upon feudal and kin obligations for fealty and service; the redefinition of knighthood as both a military occupation and an esteemed social class; the emergence of the "preudomme," or the "tried and tested" man who was discrete, honorable, loyal, and jealous of his reputation.
Crouch's major achievement, in 1990, was using William Marshal's posthumous biography and Marshal's charters to open a window onto the complexities of twelfth century aristocratic advancement, ideas about chivalry, and the affinity between lords and their military household. This is a fine example of how 'military history' and 'biography' (both fairly disparaged sub-fields of history) can offer amazing insights into the economic, social, and political arrangements of a period.
Highly recommended.