French Medieval

Embark on an enthralling journey through the heart of Medieval England in this captivating exploration of one of history's most dynamic periods. Delve into the lives of kings and queens, knights and peasants, as the story of England unfolds against the backdrop of feudalism, chivalry, and religious upheaval. Experience the turbulence of the Magna Carta, the devastation of the Black Death, and the intrigue of the Wars of the Roses, all of which shaped the destiny of England.

She was born to be a queen… but never meant to be heard. Catherine of Valois was a princess of France, raised among power, war, and expectation. But when she is sent to England to marry King Henry V, her life becomes something else entirely— a silent role in a kingdom that does not belong to her. Widowed young and surrounded by a court that watches, controls, and decides her future, Catherine is expected to fade into history. She does not. Told through the eyes of her loyal maid, The French Rose reveals the woman history overlooked— her quiet strength, her hidden choices, and the ...

The millennium between the breakup of the western Roman Empire and the Reformation was a long and hugely transformative period - one not easily chronicled within a single book. Yet distinguished historian Chris Wickham has taken up the challenge in this landmark book, and he succeeds in producing the most riveting account of medieval Europe in a generation.

Uncover the Epic Conflict That Forged Modern Europe The Hundred Years' War was a turning point that melted down old orders and built new nations. This was a period that forever reshaped warfare, power dynamics, and even our understanding of nationhood. Tired of dry, academic history? This book is your accessible guide to understanding this pivotal era. No jargon, just clarity and captivating insights. Here’s just a fraction of what you can expect inside: The spark that ignited a century of conflict: How a royal dispute escalated into Europe's longest war. The revolutionary longbow: ...

‘Small, very talkative, ready enough to do evil, shrewd and jocular, extremely cruel and daring.’ Orderic Vitalis on Mabel de Belleme. Mabel is the daughter of William de Belleme, known as Talvas, the Hard Shield, for his fierceness in battle…and at home. When William murders Mabel’s mother, he is expelled from his castle into exile—but Mabel follows him loyally, despite what he has done. As the Belleme fortunes gradually return, Mabel is married to an upstanding young lord, Roger de Montgomery, a close friend of the new Duke of Normandy—William, who will one day become the ...

Paris, 1393. Recent widow Christine de Pizan became a scribe to support her family, but when she is called to the palace to work, she dreads going. There, everyone fears the king's attacks of unreason and they believe the charlatans who claim they can cure him with vile potions. But when a mysterious book of magic leaves a trail of real murdered bodies in its wake, Christine has more than black magic to worry about. Then one of the king's favorites, Hugues de Precy, is found murdered and his wife Alix de Clairy is blamed.

In a world where honor and passion collide, red-haired Dangereuse de l'Isle Bouchard believes her marriage to Viscount Aimery is her greatest achievement. But everything changes when she encounters William, Duke of Aquitaine—his court a whirlwind of music and revelry. Drawn into a secret affair, Dangereuse finds herself abducted to Poitiers, living in a tower designed just for her. As tensions rise with William's vengeful family, she takes charge, orchestrating a marriage that will change history. Witness the rise of a granddaughter destined to become the fierce Eleanor of Aquitaine. Love...

France, the mid-fourteenth century. The war with England has been running for a generation, and in the intervals between campaigns something worse has filled the countryside: the Free Companies, bands of mercenary soldiers with no master and no restraint, taking what they need from whoever cannot stop them. Into this world a man must make his way on the strength of what he can do, because what he was born to — the wrong side of his father's bloodline, the legal nowhere of the bastard son — gives him nothing. His name is Mauléon. He has his father's blood and none of his father's rights...

Uncover the Epic Saga that Forged Two Nations Two manuscripts in one book: The Hundred Years’ War: An Enthralling Guide to the Epic Struggle for Dominance Between England and France Joan of Arc: An Enthralling Guide to a Peasant Girl’s Rise in Medieval France and Her Timeless Legacy as a National Heroine The Hundred Years' War was a crucible that melted down old orders and built the very foundations of modern France and England. This definitive guide takes you deep into the heart of Europe’s longest war, revealing how a royal dispute reshaped warfare, power, and national identity ...

Bloomsbury presents The Two Hundred Years War by Michael Livingston, read by Rupert Farley. A new and radically original account of the longest military conflict in European history, which challenges the conventional periodisation of the ‘Hundred Years War’ to consider a much longer period...

The Maid of Orléans is a historical autobiography told in the imagined voice of Joan of Arc. Drawing closely on trial records, letters, and contemporary testimony, this book traces her life from Domrémy to Orléans, from coronation at Reims to trial and execution at Rouen. Written with restraint and reverence, it presents Joan not as legend or martyr alone, but as a young woman of faith, courage, and human doubt whose obedience altered the course of France. This is the story of how her voice was condemned, silenced, and—years later—vindicated.

Uncover the sweeping French history and Gothic architectural brilliance of a Parisian sanctuary surviving war and fire. Perfect for immersive armchair travel or an educational daily commute, this evocative non-fiction narrative charts the transformation of a muddy island in the Seine into the...

Bloomsbury presents Conquered by Eleanor Parker, read by Kristin Atherton. "Outstanding." – The Sunday Times "Beautifully written." The Times "Superbly adroit." The Spectator "Excellent." BBC History Magazine The Battle of Hastings and its aftermath nearly wiped out the leading families of...

A servant who gives everything. A hunter condemned by prophecy. A queen who demands a prophet's head. Three Tales brings together the final masterwork of Gustave Flaubert — three stories that span the breadth of human history and the depths of the human soul. In A Simple Heart, Félicité, an illiterate Norman servant, outlives everyone she loves — the children she raised, the nephew she adored, the parrot that became, in her failing mind, an image of the Holy Spirit itself. Hers is a life without drama or recognition, rendered by Flaubert with devastating tenderness. In The Legend of ...

The Arthurian Romances by Chrétien de Troyes form the wellspring of the legend of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Stories of knightly valour in the Welsh Marches had existed before the 12th century, but it was the magnificent poetry and imagination of Chrétien, the 12th century...

What if a single gamble on the battlefield could change the fate of nations? In 1415, King Henry V of England marched into France with an army weakened by disease, hunger, and exhaustion. Outnumbered and hemmed in by the French, his chances of survival seemed impossibly slim. Yet on a rain-soaked field near the village of Agincourt, his leadership and strategy turned certain defeat into one of the most remarkable victories in medieval history. The Agincourt Gamble: Henry V’s Bold Strategy that Shaped Medieval History brings this extraordinary story to life, taking you beyond the clash of ...

Durtal has been to the edge. He has investigated Satanism in Paris, attended Black Masses, and emerged from the experience spiritually homeless — unable to accept what he witnessed and equally unable to return to the comfortable materialism of modern life. Now, ten years later, something is shifting. He finds himself drawn — against his better judgment, against his entire formation as an aesthete and a skeptic — toward the Catholic Church he abandoned in youth. But wanting to believe and being capable of believing are not the same thing. And Durtal, with his hypersensitive contempt ...

King Richard is dead, and John is king, a ruler ever-ready for more money in his treasury whether it comes there honestly or not. When the Baron Eric mysteriously disappears, the moody Sir Basil, distant relative and heir, has taken over the castle - and would not be pleased if Eric should ever return. In an unguarded moment of genuine gratitude, Sir Basil invites young Martin to come to the castle as a page and squire. Martin is swiftly drawn into Rosamund's troubles and into a few of his own before the tale reaches its dramatic climax.

Elen Burnard is determined to reclaim the land that was stolen from her family one hundred years ago by the Forrests of Rancoff Castle. When her sister is kidnapped by her adversary's brother, Lady Dunblane leads her men in heated pursuit—bringing home as her prize the Lord of Rancoff himself. Now all that remains is to barter Forrest Munro's life for her sister's safe return. But first she must overcome her unexpected emotions. Desire stirs Elen's virgin heart as she feels the heat of him.

Louis VII inherited the sacred crown of France, but not the power to command the kingdom in full. Raised as a second son and shaped by piety, Louis was thrust into kingship after the sudden death of his elder brother. His marriage to Eleanor of Aquitaine seemed to promise a transformed French monarchy, binding the Capetian crown to one of the greatest duchies in Europe. Instead, the union collapsed, Aquitaine slipped from his hands, and Eleanor’s remarriage to Henry Plantagenet helped create the vast Angevin power that overshadowed France for a generation. Louis’s reign was marked by ...