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Richard I (Penguin Monarchs) Paperback – October 1, 2019

by Thomas Asbridge (Author)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 108 ratings
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Richard I's reign is both controversial and seemingly contradictory. One of England's most famous medieval monarchs and a potent symbol of national identity, he barely spent six months on English soil during a ten-year reign and spoke French as his first language. Contemporaries dubbed him the 'Lionheart', reflecting a carefully cultivated reputation for bravery, prowess and knightly virtue, but this supposed paragon of chivalry butchered close to 3,000 prisoners in cold blood on a single day. And, though revered as Christian Europe's greatest crusader, his grand campaign to the Holy Land failed to recover the city of Jerusalem from Islam.

Seeking to reconcile this conflicting evidence, Thomas Asbridge's incisive reappraisal of Richard I's career questions whether the Lionheart really did neglect his kingdom, considers why he devoted himself to the cause of holy war and asks how the memory of his life came to be interwoven with myth. Richard emerges as a formidable warrior-king, possessed of martial genius and a cultured intellect, yet burdened by the legacy of his dysfunctional dynasty and obsessed with the pursuit of honour and renown.

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  1. Part of series
    Penguin Monarchs
  2. Print length
    128 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    Penguin
  5. Publication date
    October 1, 2019
  6. Dimensions
    7.13 x 4.37 x 0.35 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    0141989939
  8. ISBN-13
    978-0141989938
  9. See all details
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About the Author

Thomas Asbridge is a historian of the Middle Ages specializing in the study of the crusades, knighthood and chivalry, and is Reader in Medieval History at Queen Mary, University of London. He is the author of The Crusades: The War for the Holy Land, The First Crusade: A New History and The Greatest Knight: The Remarkable Life of William Marshal, the Power behind Five English Thrones. He also wrote and presented the landmark three-part BBC Two television series The Crusades.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Penguin; Reprint edition (October 1, 2019)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 128 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0141989939
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0141989938
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 3.17 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.13 x 4.37 x 0.35 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 108 ratings

About the author

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Thomas Asbridge

Thomas Asbridge

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Thomas Asbridge is Reader in Medieval History at Queen Mary, University of London, and the author of 'The Greatest Knight: The Remarkable Life of William Marshal, the Power Behind Five English Thrones' (2014), 'The Crusades: The War for the Holy Land' (2010) and 'The First Crusade: A New History' (2004). He studied for a BA in Ancient and Medieval History at Cardiff University, and then gained his PhD in Medieval History at Royal Holloway, University of London.

Thomas wrote and presented a BBC documentary, 'The Greatest Knight: William Marshal', and a landmark three-part documentary series 'The Crusades' for the BBC, filmed on location across the Near East and Europe. He has also appeared in many other internationally broadcast television documentaries and radio programs, and has worked as a historical consultant for HBO and Company Pictures. He now lives in southern England.

For more information visit: www.thomasasbridge.com

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
108 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

The Huntington Book Depository
5.0 out of 5 stars Love the Penguin Monarchs series - an excellent portrait of the near mythical figure
Reviewed in the United States on June 8, 2020
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I'm a huge fan of the Penguin Monarchs series, which I first encountered in a bookstore on a trip to London and have been trying to assiduously cobble together a set off of Amazon as they come available. Each short book is done by a different author, which leads to some ups and downs depending on the content and structure chosen by the individual author for the particular monarch in question.

Asbridge does a tremendous job here of describing the world of Richard I and in doing so sketches out a complex portrait of the man known mainly in the United States for appearing at the end of a Robin Hood movie. Richard I is a great man as defined by his particular time, having to live and thrive in the complex world of his father Henry II, the challenges of Anglo-French dynamics, and the call to the Crusades. A well done short biography which hits all of the main points of Richard I's reign, and it will leave you with a greater appreciation of both the monarch and his times. Heartily recommend!
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Heart O'Mine
1.0 out of 5 stars A rather Cliff Notes history
Reviewed in the United States on July 24, 2020
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Not worth the price.
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Mr Tim Cole
5.0 out of 5 stars New Allen Lane Penguin Monarchs Title; King Richard I - 'The Crusader King' by Thomas Asbridge
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 17, 2018
Verified Purchase
This latest Allen lane penguin Monarchs Title Focuses upon the dramatic life of Richard the Lionheart one of the most famous Kings in our history and a legendary warrior of the crusades. Richard only spent six months of his entire ten year reign actually in England! Richard's' focus on life was essentially European in fact he was born in Aquitaine, France in 1157 then part of his Father's' vast Angevian Empire! Richard's' family was notoriously unstable and Richard and his two eldest brothers all rebelled against their Father King Henry II without any huge success. Furthermore, their parents marriage collapsed and Eleanor of Aquitaine sided with her sons and was imprisoned by her husband for the last sixteen years of his reign.This dramatic upbringing steeled Richard into a supremely able soldier and he became renowned for his chivalry and honour throughout Europe! Richard's' guiding ambition was to take the holy land of Jerusalem back from its Arab forces led by his great adversary the mighty Saladin. It was his lifetimes work and yet he ultimately failed to win back his ultimate ambition! Richard married in 1191 to Berengaria of Navarre but the union proved loveless and barren.Richards reign was dramatic and he had to contend constantly with his younger brother John's' repeated attempts to seize his throne! also in 1192, Richard was kidnapped by Leopold of Austria on his way home from the Crusades, he spent over a year in prison and the huge ransom paid by his mother for his release almost bankrupted the kingdom of England! Richard's' rule was not a success and the kingdom was blighted with instability and baronial discord! Richard lived as he had died fatally wounded at Chalus in France which turned Septic and from which he died a few days later at the age of 42 to be succeeded by his treacherous brother John. Renowned medieval historian,Thomas Asbridge's'paints a vivid, engrossing portrait of the real Richard, less glamorous then history would have you believe but nonetheless engrossing and completely absorbing of the great legend that is Richard 'The Lionheart'. I would urge you to order your copy from Amazon now you will not be disappointed by this little gem of a book!
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Andreas Oberender
5.0 out of 5 stars Richard I. von England - Ritter, Kreuzfahrer, Kriegerkönig
Reviewed in Germany on April 17, 2018
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Seit Herbst 2014 bringt der Penguin-Verlag eine Buchreihe heraus, die "Penguin Monarchs". Es handelt sich um Kurzbiographien aller englischen und britischen Könige und Königinnen seit dem 11. Jahrhundert. Die Reihe beginnt mit den letzten angelsächsischen Herrschern vor der normannischen Eroberung. Auch Oliver Cromwell ist ein Band gewidmet. Mittlerweile sind mehr als drei Viertel der 45 geplanten Bände erschienen. Bald wird die Reihe vollständig sein. Die Bücher sind kleinformatig (13x18,5 cm) und umfassen maximal 150 Seiten. Sie enthalten farbige Abbildungen, Stammtafeln und kommentierte Literaturhinweise. Auch wenn eine entsprechende Angabe fehlt, ist davon auszugehen, dass sich die Bände an historisch interessierte Laien richten, die sich rasch über das Leben der englischen Monarchen informieren wollen. Als Konkurrenz zur renommierten Biographienreihe "Yale English Monarchs", deren Bände eher für den wissenschaftlichen Gebrauch in Frage kommen, sind die "Penguin Monarchs" nicht gedacht. Interessant ist die Reihe dennoch, denn der Verlag hat zahlreiche bekannte Historikerinnen und Historiker als Autoren gewonnen. Damit ist sichergestellt, dass sich die einzelnen Kurzbiographien auf der Höhe des heutigen Forschungsstandes bewegen.

Obwohl er die Krone nur für zehn Jahre trug, gehört Richard I. (1157-1199), genannt Löwenherz, zu den bekanntesten englischen Königen. Seit Jahrhunderten gilt er als Inbegriff des hochmittelalterlichen Rittertums. Auch außerhalb Großbritanniens erfreut sich Richard I. großer Popularität. Auf dem deutschen Buchmarkt gibt es Bücher über Richard zuhauf, darunter die Biographien von Ulrike Kessler (1995), Robert Tarek Fischer (2006) und Dieter Berg (2007). Das ist sehr ungewöhnlich für einen englischen Herrscher, zumal einen des Mittelalters. Warum strahlt Richard I. noch immer eine so große Faszination aus? Der britische Historiker Thomas Asbridge, bekannt geworden als Experte für die Geschichte der Kreuzzüge, betont in seinem Buch, dass Richard schon zu Lebzeiten eine legendenumwobene Gestalt war. Der König beeindruckte seine Zeitgenossen als Ritter und Heerführer, als Kriegerkönig (rex bellicosus). Kämpfe und Kriege prägten Richards Leben: Zuerst der familiäre Zwist mit seinem Vater, Heinrich II., dann der Dritte Kreuzzug, schließlich das Ringen mit Philipp II. von Frankreich um die Besitztümer des Hauses Anjou-Plantagenet auf französischem Boden. Nur knapp sechs Monate verbrachte Richard in England. Asbridge nimmt ihn gegen den altbekannten Vorwurf in Schutz, er habe England vernachlässigt und für die Finanzierung seiner "Abenteuer" im Heiligen Land und auf dem europäischen Kontinent ausgebeutet.

Asbridge zeigt, dass Richard als König von England und als Gebieter über das weitläufige Angevinische Reich Sachzwängen unterlag und bestimmten Rollenbildern gerecht werden musste. Die Weigerung, am Kreuzzug teilzunehmen, hätte seinem Ansehen schwer geschadet. Für jeden Fürsten seiner Zeit war es eine selbstverständliche Pflicht, im Heiligen Land zu kämpfen, mochten damit auch enorme Kosten und Anstrengungen verbunden sein. Asbridge zufolge kann keine Rede davon sein, dass Richard sich nicht um England gekümmert habe. Der König traf gründliche Vorkehrungen für die Zeit seiner Abwesenheit. Auch der jahrelange Krieg mit Philipp II. von Frankreich war ohne Alternative. Ein kampfloser Verzicht auf die Territorien des Hauses Plantagenet in Frankreich wäre für Richard genauso blamabel gewesen wie die Weigerung, ins Heilige Land zu ziehen. Zeitlebens war Richard auf die Verteidigung seiner Ehre und seiner Herrschaftsrechte bedacht. Die zentralen Werte des Rittertums – Ehre, Kampfesmut, Tapferkeit – hatte er tief verinnerlicht. Asbridge lässt keinen Zweifel daran, dass Richard zu den fähigsten Heerführern seiner Zeit gehörte. Breiten Raum nimmt der Dritte Kreuzzug ein. Richard errang im Heiligen Land beachtliche Erfolge, doch sein Hauptziel, die Rückeroberung Jerusalems, erreichte er nicht. Der Bewunderung seiner Zeitgenossen tat das keinen Abbruch. Schon bald nach seinem Tod wurde Richard I. zu einer mythischen Gestalt. Fakten und Fiktionen sind in der mittelalterlichen Richard-Literatur nicht immer leicht auseinanderzuhalten.

Im Großen und Ganzen zeichnet Asbridge ein wohlwollendes Bild von Richard I. Der König war ein energiegeladener und tatendurstiger, wagemutiger und risikofreudiger Mann. Eine ungeheure Dynamik ging von ihm aus. Asbridge verzichtet nicht auf Kritik: Richard behandelte die Frage seiner Nachfolge mit sträflicher Laxheit. Seine Kinderlosigkeit bekümmerte ihn nicht. Nach seinem Tod fiel die Krone seinem unfähigen jüngeren Bruder Johann zu. Johann verspielte den Festlandsbesitz der Plantagenets und stürzte die englische Monarchie in eine ihrer schwersten Krisen. Kaum 20 Jahre nach dem Tod Heinrichs II. und wenige Jahre nach dem Tod Richards I. war das Angevinische Reich von der Landkarte verschwunden. Einmal mehr erweist sich Asbridge als kenntnisreicher Erzähler. Er arbeitet Richards Stärken und Schwächen heraus und zeigt ihn als Sohn seiner Zeit und der ritterlichen Kultur des 12. Jahrhunderts.
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Mr Happy
5.0 out of 5 stars A most enjoyable and informative read
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 15, 2021
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Thomas Asbridge is an excellent historical author. I bought this book after reading The Greatest Knight, another of his fabulous works. Clear and well written, this book is interpreted from contemporary chronicles, and where editorial licence is called upon, supported with reasoned supposition. This is a very good book indeed; for any interested in medieval history and the life and doings of the ultimate warrior king, this is a must-read.
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Dr W. H. Konarzewski
5.0 out of 5 stars Highly readable yet scholarly
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 23, 2020
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Thomas Asbridge gives us a lively account of the Lionheart, dissecting the truth about the great warrior king from the fanciful legends that abounded after his death, such as his encounter with Robin Hood and the story of the Minstrel Blondin. Richard Couer de Lion emerges as a great warrior and general, and a shrewd politician who was primarily concerned about achieving fame and glory, but who probably neglected England and only spent 6 months of his ten year reign actually in England.

This book is commendably short (104 pages) but tells us a useful amount about one of our most charismatic monarchs. Recommended.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 27, 2018
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This book was very enlightening. Wonderfully written Thomas Ashworth who writes his beginnings as loyal supporter of King Henry II but who rebelled to claim the throne. He then goes on to describe his epic battles and sieges in the Levant and why this was the making of him. Finally, the author details his military campaigns to win back his French lands signed away by his brother John.
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