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The Norman's conquering of the known world was a phenomenon unlike anything Europe had seen up to that point in history. They emerged early in the tenth century but had disappeared from world affairs by the mid-thirteenth century. Yet in that time they had conquered England, Ireland, much of Wales and parts of Scotland. They also founded a new Mediterranean kingdom in southern Italy and Sicily, as well as a Crusader state in the Holy Land and in North Africa. Moreover, they had an show more extraordinary ability to adapt as time and place dictated, taking on the role of Norse invaders to Frankish crusaders, from Byzantine overlords to feudal monarchs. Drawing on archaeological and historical evidence, Trevor Rowley offers a comprehensive picture of the Normans and argues that despite the short time span of Norman ascendancy, it is clear that they were responsible for a permanent cultural and political legacy.-- show lessTags
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For most readers, I suspect that this will provide them with as much about the Norman adventure in history as they really want to know. That said, I really picked up this book to learn about the Normans in Italy and Sicily, and it would appear that J.J. Norwich's works on that topic are still the "go to" choices to read. Also, I come away with a question I've never had before, as to what the real sources of Norman military efficiency were, considering how a pack of Viking raiders apparently managed to turn themselves into some of the most efficient cavalry troops in Europe, besides being masters of fortification.
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Author Information
24 Works 518 Members
Trevor Rowley was Deputy Director of Continuing Education at the University of Oxford for fifteen years. He is an Emeritus Fellow of Kellogg College, Oxford and a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries. He has written numerous books, including The Normans and The Welsh Borderland (THP). He lives and writes in Oxfordshire.
Series
Belongs to Publisher Series
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- The Normans
- People/Characters
- Roger II, King of Sicily; William the Conqueror
- Dedication
- For my mother
and Esther, my fellow traveller - First words
- In the English-speaking world, the Normans are almost always thought of in the context of William the Conqueror and his defeat of Harold of England at the Battle of Hastings in 1066.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)Scholars differ over the use of the term 'Norman' to describe the resulting mixture but, irrespective of nomenclature, there are few who would argue that the result was one of the most extraordinary and brilliant artistic achievements in the whole of medieval Christendom.
- Original language
- English
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 96
- Popularity
- 335,191
- Reviews
- 1
- Rating
- (3.57)
- Languages
- English, German
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 10
- ASINs
- 1
