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A Great and Terrible King
- Edward I and the Forging of Britain
- Narrated by: Ralph Lister
- Length: 18 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged Audiobook
- Categories: Biographies & Memoirs, Historical
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Publisher's Summary
Brought to you by Penguin.
This is the first major biography for a generation of a truly formidable king. Edward I is familiar to millions as 'Longshanks', conqueror of Scotland and nemesis of Sir William Wallace ('Braveheart'). Edward was born to rule England, but believed that it was his right to rule all of Britain. His reign was one of the most dramatic of the entire Middle Ages, leading to war and conquest on an unprecedented scale and leaving a legacy of division that has lasted from his day to our own.
In his astonishingly action-packed life, Edward defeated and killed the famous Simon de Montfort in battle, travelled across Europe to the Holy Land on crusade, conquered Wales, extinguishing forever its native rulers and constructed - at Conwy, Harlech, Beaumaris and Caernarfon - the most magnificent chain of castles ever created. After the death of his first wife, he erected the Eleanor Crosses - the grandest funeral monuments ever fashioned for an English monarch.
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What listeners say about A Great and Terrible King
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 10-27-21
Great stuff
One of the best books I have listened too! Brilliantly read I totally recommend this book.
2 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Jake
- 03-22-22
Colourful and informative
Thoroughly enjoyed the narration, and found something very addictive about the overall narrative.
I would have liked a little more of the authors speculation and illustration to some key famous events, as it did get a little “fact upon fact” at times. Overall a great character and brilliant timeline construction and execution throughout.
1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- A. J. Taylor
- 10-17-21
Marc Morris’ Masterpiece
This book is Morris’ Sistine Chapel, an absolute heavier hitter in historical biography. It is extremely well written and reads like a novel at times. The text is thoughtful and supported by strong argument and a deep knowledge of the 13th century. It contains everything you would want and need to know about Edward I, from why he was called Edward, why he’s considered ‘the First’ to what his contemporaries thought of him after his death. Society, politics, coinage, economy, diplomacy are all covered which add the relevant context to understand this great English king. Morris offers fair analysis of Edward’s actions in their time and why history played out the way it did. It was structured as I feel books like this should, from birth to death with a solid conclusion. Something which Morris’ King John book unfortunately lacks. It’s my second read and I’ll definitely be revisiting again. I could not stop, an absolute masterpiece! Loved it.
1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 04-24-22
Entertaining and informative
A balanced and extremely well researched work. If only Mel Gibson could have listened to this book before he made Brave Heart, in the unlikely event he was interested in history!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Andrew Goodson
- 03-06-22
A marvellous story
This is a marvellous story, very well told, and very well read. Since it is all in chronological order it is easy to follow. Suffice it to say that the life of Edward I is absolutely fascinating and has many echoes in the present day. From the clear narration I learnt more than in all the history lessons I had at school. It left me with an appetite to look out for more such narratives to fill in my knowledge of other periods of history.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Terence Quinn
- 12-27-21
History with a very English slant.
If your Irish, Welsh or Scottish and have a good grasp of your own history you will probably find the Anglo-centric view in this book unpalatable to some degree.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- S.Attenborough
- 10-03-21
Annoying Narration Spoils a Good Book
I’ve never had a book SHOUTED at me. The narrator appears to be literally beside himself with hysteria throughout. So annoying I deleted this book half way through.
1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- MJ Doherty
- 11-14-21
Excellent
Loved the narrator’s enthusiasm! As always, this author’s content was meticulously detailed, very interesting and enjoyable. Highly recommended.
