King John cover art

King John

Treachery, Tyranny and the Road to Magna Carta

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King John

By: Marc Morris
Narrated by: Ric Jerrom
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About this listen

The brilliantly compelling new biography of the treacherous and tyrannical King John, published to coincide with the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta.

Authoritative and dramatic, Marc Morris' King John offers a compelling portrait of an extraordinary king whose reign marked a momentous turning point in the history of Britain and Europe. King John is buried in Worcester Cathedral.

©2015 Marc Morris (P)2015 Audible, Ltd Europe Great Britain Historical Royalty England Funny Tudor Middle Ages

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All stars
Most relevant
This might help anyone who wants to avoid wrestling with the sequence in which
the chapters are presented and to read/listen in a chronological order.
Certainly with the audio chapters, unnamed as they are, you would quite easily get lost
(still Audible - how difficult can this be ?)


Audio Chapter - Print Chapter

1 - Introduction
2 - 1 Under Attack 1203
3 - 2 The Family Empire 1120–1189
4 - 3 Refusing to Rally 1204–1205
5 - 4 A Pact from Hell 1189–1194
6 - 5 Stemming the Tide 1205–1206
7 - 6 Our Happy Success 1194–1202
8 - 7 King versus Pope 1207–1208
9 - 8 A Deed of Shame 1202–1203
10 - 9 The Enemy Within? 1208–1210
11 - 10 Tyrannical Will 1210–1212
12 - 11 The Hermit’s Prophecy 1212–1213
13 - 12 Ready for Battle 1213–1214
14 - 13 Runnymede 1214–1215
15 - 14 Fire and Sword 1215–1216
16 - Conclusion
17 - Magna Carta, 1215: A Translation

Audio chronologically :
1,3,5,7,9
2,4,6,8
10...

Tips for Listening/Reading

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Without the context before King John's reign, without an understanding of how he alienated his barons, and his attempts to break the Magna Carta afterwards, students of history simply understood John to be a poor king, and a dishonorable man. This book takes our understanding of the making of that man, the specifics of the barons grievances, and the risks these men took to secure a degree of judicial independance and the suffrage of 25 noblemen. Many times in the future kings would forget the oaths and obligations of the Magna Carta. In Henry VII and VIII's cases they got away with it. In Charles I a king paid the ultimate price. James II ultimately ensured the Magna Carta was updated and improved by the Bill of Rights in 1689 under Mary II. John is not alone as a disappointing ruler, they are the rule, not the exception, and a better understanding of his brother Richard's poor home record reduces the contrast which other historians have attempted to make between the good and the bad brothers. Henry II had 4 spoiled sons whose ruthless quests for power present us with an uncomfortable image. Rather than of a fight between good and evil, a lionheart and a villain, we see a long line of disappointing men who have brought so much misery to the populace. In each case the mistaken view that the populace serve them, rather than the other way round sits at the heart of the problem. Our present Queen stands almost alone in history in her understanding of the true nature of this relationship.

More than just the Magna Carta

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Whilst I may disagree with the author that king John is one of the most well-known of England's Monarch's, even for the mediaeval period I would say that William the Conqueror, Henry the second and Johns own brother Richard the lion heart, are all more well-known than the subject of this biography. In fact, the only thing that most people would probably know about King John is Magna Carta. This is however only a minor criticism. A slightly more important criticism from my perspective, was the decision by the author to jump backwards and forwards in time from chapter to chapter. I found this a little disruptive when reading the book. Nonetheless, an excellent introduction to the subject. King John was clearly a ruthless Monarch, but then so to were his brother and his father and his grandfather. But unlike them is rain can hardly be described as successful. All in all an enjoyable and informative read!

An interesting account of one of England's lesser-known kings

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I thought this was an excellent book, well balanced and well researched. Very good narration.

Afmos

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Well-written & researched, with alternative chapters looking at King John's reign from different periods - a truly dynamic approach!

Excellent treatment of this pivotal period

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