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data
Product: Book
ISBN-10: 0-7432-5778-2
ISBN-13: 9780743257787
Publisher: Touchstone
Country:
Year: May 17, 2005
Size: 12.70 x 17.02 x 3.05cm
Number of pages: 336
Weight: 204gr
Binding: Paperback
ISBN-10: 0-7432-5778-2
ISBN-13: 9780743257787
Publisher: Touchstone
Country:
Year: May 17, 2005
Size: 12.70 x 17.02 x 3.05cm
Number of pages: 336
Weight: 204gr
Binding: Paperback
editions
Danny Danziger, Prof. John Gillingham
Hodder & Stoughton; 2003
Hardcover
Danny Danziger, Prof. John Gillingham
Coronet Books; 2004
Paperback
Danny Danziger, Prof. John Gillingham, Tim Piggott-Smith (reader)
Hodder & Stoughton; 2003
Audio Cassette
4.) 1215: The Year of Magna Carta
Danny Danziger, Prof. John Gillingham
Hodder & Stoughton; 2003
Audio CD
order
description
Product Description
Surveying a broad landscape through a narrow lens, 1215 sweeps readers back eight centuries in an absorbing portrait of life during a time of global upheaval, the ripples of which can still be felt today. At the center of this fascinating period is the document that has become the root of modern freedom: the Magna Carta. It was a time of political revolution and domestic change that saw the Crusades, Richard the Lionheart, King John, and –- in legend –- Robin Hood all make their marks on history.
Surveying a broad landscape through a narrow lens, 1215 sweeps readers back eight centuries in an absorbing portrait of life during a time of global upheaval, the ripples of which can still be felt today. At the center of this fascinating period is the document that has become the root of modern freedom: the Magna Carta. It was a time of political revolution and domestic change that saw the Crusades, Richard the Lionheart, King John, and –- in legend –- Robin Hood all make their marks on history.
The events leading up to King John's setting his seal to the famous document at Runnymede in June 1215 form this rich and riveting narrative that vividly describes everyday life from castle to countryside, from school to church, and from hunting in the forest to trial by ordeal. For instance, women wore no underwear (though men did), the average temperatures were actually higher than they are now, and the austere kitchen at Westminster Abbey allowed each monk two pounds of meat and a gallon of ale per day. Broad in scope and rich in detail, 1215 ingeniously illuminates what may have been the most important year of our history.
reviews
1215 Magna Carta 
This book is my first purchase here and I love it. These Authors, Danny Danziger and John Gillingham are funny, and they make it an interesting read. My friend who lives in Gillingham, England referred me to this book and purchases books here all the time. Thank you
This book is my first purchase here and I love it. These Authors, Danny Danziger and John Gillingham are funny, and they make it an interesting read. My friend who lives in Gillingham, England referred me to this book and purchases books here all the time. Thank you
Excellent short history
I learnt more about the History of Britain, Ireland and Northern Europe form this book than from all my school history lessons combined. This book is a relatively easy and entertaining read which also debunks and demystifies some of the legends around the Magna Carta, King John I and the much loved Richard Lionheart. Painting a picture of medieval western society and explaining how many of our modern day institutions, superstitions and life were forged in the past. Recommended as essential reading for all screenwriters, to ensure some authenticity in their future endeavours.
I learnt more about the History of Britain, Ireland and Northern Europe form this book than from all my school history lessons combined. This book is a relatively easy and entertaining read which also debunks and demystifies some of the legends around the Magna Carta, King John I and the much loved Richard Lionheart. Painting a picture of medieval western society and explaining how many of our modern day institutions, superstitions and life were forged in the past. Recommended as essential reading for all screenwriters, to ensure some authenticity in their future endeavours.
History Revisited
In this book, 1215: The Year of Magna Carta, a continuation of the authors' ongoing work exploring specific points in English Medieval history as was seen earlier in the acclaimed The Year 1000, commonly-held notions about the time period are put to close examination and while sometimes confirmed and verified, popular ideas about the era are also more often stood on their head and shown as flawed. In this excellent study of England roughly at the time of Magna Carta, Danzinger delves into the everyday world of those who resided in England during the Plantagenet Dynasty. The lives of royals, peasants, townspeople, churchmen and churchwomen, soldiers, merchants, outlaws and lawyers are detailed by the masterful Danzinger, who does an excellent job of presenting the early thirteenth-century as it actually was, the good and the bad, the familiar and the foreign, the controversial and the grand. Not only does a diligent reader come away from 1215 well-versed in the time studied but Danzinger implicitly challenges his audience to think for itself and question that which is tidily accepted as factual. Among the interesting points I came away with were the fact that circa AD 1215, the height of the so-called Age of Faith, atheism and agnosticism not only existed but apparently were present among the population of western Europe to the point that various cynical comments were aroused from leading theologians who cast aspersions on the emptiness of the words of those who outwardly seemed the embodiment of virtuous obedience to Catholicism. Also the commonly-held conception of England of 1215 existing in a sort of ongoing apartheid in which the politically dominant but numerically small Norman population lived both apart from and above the unassimilated Anglo-Saxon majority is shown by Danzinger to be a fallacy, and he instead demonstrates the cohesive unity of the emerging English nation that reflected the forward-oriented Norman customs guiding a kingdom anchored by roots sunk deep into its Saxon past. 1215: The Year of Magna Carta is history at its best and it is a vibrant gaze backward into a time and place every bit as culturally rich as our own.
In this book, 1215: The Year of Magna Carta, a continuation of the authors' ongoing work exploring specific points in English Medieval history as was seen earlier in the acclaimed The Year 1000, commonly-held notions about the time period are put to close examination and while sometimes confirmed and verified, popular ideas about the era are also more often stood on their head and shown as flawed. In this excellent study of England roughly at the time of Magna Carta, Danzinger delves into the everyday world of those who resided in England during the Plantagenet Dynasty. The lives of royals, peasants, townspeople, churchmen and churchwomen, soldiers, merchants, outlaws and lawyers are detailed by the masterful Danzinger, who does an excellent job of presenting the early thirteenth-century as it actually was, the good and the bad, the familiar and the foreign, the controversial and the grand. Not only does a diligent reader come away from 1215 well-versed in the time studied but Danzinger implicitly challenges his audience to think for itself and question that which is tidily accepted as factual. Among the interesting points I came away with were the fact that circa AD 1215, the height of the so-called Age of Faith, atheism and agnosticism not only existed but apparently were present among the population of western Europe to the point that various cynical comments were aroused from leading theologians who cast aspersions on the emptiness of the words of those who outwardly seemed the embodiment of virtuous obedience to Catholicism. Also the commonly-held conception of England of 1215 existing in a sort of ongoing apartheid in which the politically dominant but numerically small Norman population lived both apart from and above the unassimilated Anglo-Saxon majority is shown by Danzinger to be a fallacy, and he instead demonstrates the cohesive unity of the emerging English nation that reflected the forward-oriented Norman customs guiding a kingdom anchored by roots sunk deep into its Saxon past. 1215: The Year of Magna Carta is history at its best and it is a vibrant gaze backward into a time and place every bit as culturally rich as our own.
Great guide to the greatest of centuries
This is a very absorbing account of life in the 13th Century. What I like especially is that the authors avoid the usual clichés of other popular historians. Most readers won't need Danziger and Gillingham to remind them that medieval people did not believe the Earth was flat. That canard was probably started by Washington Irving. But how many know that the people of the day were not as deeply religious as they are normally depicted. Some were atheists! The authors also show that there was actually some logic in legal procedures which today seem barbaric. For instance, as there was no system of law courts open to all, what better way of establishing right than a trial by combat? Most people came to an agreement long before they had to fight! After reading the book you will have a greater respect for the people of the time and won't fall for the usual stereotypes.
This is a very absorbing account of life in the 13th Century. What I like especially is that the authors avoid the usual clichés of other popular historians. Most readers won't need Danziger and Gillingham to remind them that medieval people did not believe the Earth was flat. That canard was probably started by Washington Irving. But how many know that the people of the day were not as deeply religious as they are normally depicted. Some were atheists! The authors also show that there was actually some logic in legal procedures which today seem barbaric. For instance, as there was no system of law courts open to all, what better way of establishing right than a trial by combat? Most people came to an agreement long before they had to fight! After reading the book you will have a greater respect for the people of the time and won't fall for the usual stereotypes.
HOW TO WRITE A TEXTBOOK 
A very »reader friendly« book that should become a model for other history writers. It give you ample background and description without boring you to tears with inane filler. There is enough detail, though, to make you feel you have learned something.
A very »reader friendly« book that should become a model for other history writers. It give you ample background and description without boring you to tears with inane filler. There is enough detail, though, to make you feel you have learned something.
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Kenneth O. Morgan (Eds.)
Oxford University Press, USA; 2001
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