The Hundred Years War (1337-1453) dominated life in England and France for well over a century. It became the defining feature of existence for generations. This sweeping book is the first to tell the human story of the longest military conflict in history. Historian David Green focuses on the ways the war affected different groups, among them knights, clerics, women, peasants, soldiers, peacemakers, and kings. He also explores how the long war altered governance in England and France and reshaped peoples' perceptions of themselves and of their national character. Using the events of the war as a narrative thread, Green illuminates the realities of battle and the conditions of those compelled to live in occupied territory; the roles played by clergy and their shifting loyalties to king and pope; and the influence of the war on developing notions of government, literacy, and education. Peopled with vivid and well-known characters-Henry V, Joan of Arc, Philippe the Good of Burgundy, Edward the Black Prince, John the Blind of Bohemia, and many others-as well as a host of ordinary individuals who were drawn into the struggle, this absorbing book reveals for the first time not only the Hundred Years War's impact on warfare, institutions, and nations, but also its true human cost/
About the Author
David Green is senior lecturer in British studies and history, Harlaxton College, and a regular speaker on medieval history at conferences and seminars in the U.K., Ireland, and the U.S.
Reviews
"David Green has given us a new 'Hundred Years War', taking us beyond the campaign trail and the battlefield and into the lives and cultures of the people who lived through this greatest of medieval endurance tests. Green's brilliant evocation of the period, his eye for telling detail, and his powerful narrative voice serve to transform the history of war and nationhood in later medieval England and France" – W. Mark Ormrod, author of "Edward III"
"Well-researched, meticulously referenced, and thoughtfully written, this is an absorbing contribution to the study of the 'Hundred Years War'" – David Flintham, Military History Magazine
"This is not a traditional narrative account of the Hundred Years War, but a fresh look at the vital, vibrant and brutal changes brought about by more than a century of conflict" – The Good Book Guide
"Green writes with sensitivity, intelligence and an eye for detail. He passes rapidly over the events of the war (elsewhere often recounted as a history of boys with medieval toys), before settling upon a series of themes: the worlds of thought and action; peasants; women and prisoners; and national stereotypes" – Nick Vincent, BBC History Magazine
"Green has brought together all the elements of the 'Hundred Years War'... in an eminently readable book" – Anne Curry, History Today
"...well-presented and well-researched materiel...both detailed and accessible, and further assisted by a simple chronology of events, a glossary, a note on money, two royal family trees and five clear maps" – Livia Visser-Fuchs, The Ricardian
"This is war painted on a broad canvas, analytical as well as descriptive, emphasising the social, political, military and economic effects of a long conflict in which people are never forgotten" – Christopher Allmand, author of "The Hundred Years War: England and France at War, c.1300-c.1450"
"Green holistically explores aspects of the war's effects with exceptionally thorough research on subjects as diverse as the Catholic Church, women, peasants and even language" – Kirkus Reviews, starred review
"As the subtitle indicates, Green's history of the 'Hundred Years War' is not a conventional narrative account; rather, it traces the human story of the war. Knights, clerics, women, peasants, soldiers, and kings all found their personal and institutional identities altered by the conflict. This impressive survey ought to be included in any collection on the Middle Ages or the history of England and France. Highly recommended" – CHOICE
