William Marshal

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A good study of the subject - Rated
An excellent analysis of the sources for the Marshal's life and career, a critical evaluation of the remarkable Histoire and the evidence of charters. The more thematic last third of the book is rather dry reading, however.

A good study of the subject - Rated
An excellent analysis of the sources for the Marshal's life and career, a critical evaluation of the remarkable Histoire and the evidence of charters. The more thematic last third of the book is rather dry reading, however.

Excellent modern scholarship - Rated
I am not an academic, but I work in the field of Medieval history in my job and I know the period well. I have read all three biographies of William Marshal i.e. the Crouch, the Painter and the Duby. I have also read the Anglo Norman Text Society's translation of the Histoire de Guillaume le Mareschal and through other sources I can probably say I know the Marshal very well indeed. Professor Crouch has done a sterling job in bringing the Marshal to life and he wears his scholarship with an authoritative but light hand that non academic readers will find accessible, but which does not stint on integrity. It's a 'proper' biography (unlike some of Alison Weir's offerings for example). If I digress in some of my opinions of the Marshal with professor Crouch, then it's just a case of personal interpretation and agreeing to differ. I would say he is too cynical. He would probably call me over-romantic!
I wouldn't put this book above the Painter, but would say read them side by side for an excellent, balanced overview. Well deserving of 5 stars.
Oh, and take the Duby with a large pinch of salt. If you only read one of the 3 Marshal biogs, then Crouch is the one.

A medieval history enthusiast's opinion. - Rated
I would recommend this book to anyone who has already read Sidney Painter's 1937 biography. Dr Crouch updates Painter with modern research and addresses new questions that have arisen since it was written. The appendices are particularly useful.

I would not recommend this book to someone who had not done any other reading on the twelfth century, because Dr Crouch assumes background knowledge of the history of the period and his book is not as detailed as Dr Painter's.

I also find some of his variations from Painter bemusing, but it is difficult to judge who is right because there is no edition of their source, the 'Histoire de Guillaume le Mareschel' available to the lay reader, in translation or otherwise.

Hopefully Dr Crouch and his colleagues will remedy this soon. It is only 140 years overdue.

William Marshall - Rated
I own a paperback version. If you read Ivanhoe at school then you will find that William Marshall defied the odds to live to an old age and to me is the Ivanhoe of real life. A must for those studying life times of a Knight, managing to survive 3 Kings if memory serves me well.