The last knight : the twilight of the Middle Ages and the birth of the modern era

Fourteenth century Europe was a time of great contradictions: artistic achievements and chivalrous behavior flourished amidst the Hundred Years War and the Black Death. It was a world in transition, on the verge of the Renaissance and Age of Exploration -- and John of Gaunt was its central figure. Best-selling author and historian Norman F. Cantor brings John brilliantly to life in The Last Knight. The head of the Lancastrian branch of the Plantagenet family, John of Gaunt was one of the richest men in Europe. He survived war and the Peasants' Revolt of 1381, while maintaining a lavish court and sponsoring thinkers like Geoffrey Chaucer. His death in 1399 marked the end of an era, as the intellectual brilliance of the Renaissance replaced the cherished ideals of medieval life. Norman F. Cantor (1929 -- 2004) was professor emeritus of history, sociology, and comparative literature at New York University. His many books include the New York Times best-seller In the Wake of the Plague, Antiquity, The Civilization of the Middle Ages, Medieval Lives, and Inventing the Middle Ages, which was nominated for a National Book Critics Circle Award.

there May Not Be A More Fascinating A Historical Period Than The Late Fourteenth Century In Europe. The Hundred Years' War Ravaged The Continent, Yet Gallantry, Chivalry, And Literary Brilliance Flourished In The Courts Of England And Elsewhere. It Was A World In Transition, Soon To Be Replaced By The Renaissance And The Age Of Exploration — And John Of Gaunt Was Its Central Figure.

in Today's Terms, John Of Gaunt Was A Multibillionaire With A Brand Name Equal To Rockefeller. He Fought In The Hundred Years' War, Sponsored Chaucer And Proto-protestant Religious Thinkers, And Survived The Dramatic Peasants' Revolt, During Which His Sumptuous London Residence Was Burned To The Ground. As Head Of The Lancastrian Branch Of The Plantagenet Family, Gaunt Was The Unknowing Father Of The War Of The Roses; After His Death, His Son Usurped The Crown From His Nephew, Richard Ii. Gaunt's Adventures Represent The Culture And Mores Of The Middle Ages As Those Of Few Others Do, And His Death Is Portrayed In the Last Knight As The End Of That Enthralling Period.

publishers Weekly

john Of Gaunt (1340-1399) Was One Of The Wealthiest Men Of Late-14th-century Europe And An Exemplar Of The Rough And Refined Values Of His Class. He Fought In The Hundred Years War, Was Targeted In The 1381 Peasants' Rebellion And Was A Patron Of Chaucer. By His First Wife, He Became Duke Of Lancaster And Founded The Lancastrian Branch Of The English Royal Family; By His Second, He Had A Claim To The Throne Of Castile; And By His Third, He Founded Another Family Line That Married Back Into The Royal Tudors. Cantor (in The Wake Of The Plague), A Widely Read Authority On Medieval Europe, Traces These Connections And Demonstrates How Several Strands Of European History Cross Through Gaunt. Thoroughly Dismissing Annales Emphasis On The Continuity Of Peasant Life, He Argues That It Is Aristocratic Life That Has Remained Unchanged. In Modern Terms, Gaunt Was A Multibillionaire With Free Rein To Live His Life As He Pleased, Whether Bullying Members Of Parliament, Marrying His Mistress Or Dabbling In The Heretical Teachings Of John Wycliffe. This Provocative Argument Is Undermined By Simplistic Writing And The Making Of Points By Assertion Rather Than Proof Or Argument. A Remarkably Anachronistic Imagined Defense Of Slavery Is Put Into The Mouth Of Henry The Navigator (gaunt's Grandson), The Portuguese Patron Of Exploration, And Stretches The Limits Of What Might Be Considered Gaunt's Heritage. Assumptions About Personal Motivations Based On Fragmentary Evidence Are Not Sufficient To Validate The Intimate Portrait Cantor Claims To Present. Agent, Alex Hoyt. (june 2) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

From the Publisher: There may not be a more fascinating a historical period than the late fourteenth century in Europe. The Hundred Years' War ravaged the continent, yet gallantry, chivalry, and literary brilliance flourished in the courts of England and elsewhere. It was a world in transition, soon to be replaced by the Renaissance and the Age of Exploration-and John of Gaunt was its central figure. In today's terms, John of Gaunt was a multibillionaire with a brand name equal to Rockefeller. He fought in the Hundred Years' War, sponsored Chaucer and proto-Protestant religious thinkers, and survived the dramatic Peasants' Revolt, during which his sumptuous London residence was burned to the ground. As head of the Lancastrian branch of the Plantagenet family, Gaunt was the unknowing father of the War of the Roses; after his death, his son usurped the crown from his nephew, Richard II. Gaunt's adventures represent the culture and mores of the Middle Ages as those of few others do, and his death is portrayed in The Last Knight as the end of that enthralling period There may not be a more fascinating a historical period than the late fourteenth century in Europe. The Hundred Years' War ravaged the continent, yet gallantry, chivalry, and literary brilliance flourished in the courts of England and elsewhere. It was a world in transition, soon to be replaced by the Renaissance and the Age of Exploration -- and John of Gaunt was its central figure. In today's terms, John of Gaunt was a multibillionaire with a brand name equal to Rockefeller. He fought in the Hundred Years' War, sponsored Chaucer and proto-Protestant religious thinkers, and survived the dramatic Peasants' Revolt, during which his sumptuous London residence was burned to the ground. As head of the Lancastrian branch of the Plantagenet family, Gaunt was the unknowing father of the War of the Roses; after his death, his son usurped the crown from his nephew, Richard II. Gaunt's adventures represent the culture and mores of the Middle Ages as those of few others do, and his death is portrayed in The Last Knight as the end of that enthralling period.