TY  - BOOK
AU  - Spencer,Charles Spencer
TI  - The White Ship
SN  - 9781004038312 (pbk.) :
AV  - DA198 
U1  - 942.023 SPE 23
PY  - 2021///
CY  - Rearsby
PB  - Clipper Large Print Books
KW  - Henry
KW  - European history
KW  - thema
KW  - Large type books
KW  - History
KW  - ukslc
KW  - Great Britain
KW  - Henry I, 1100-1135
KW  - Stephen, 1135-1154
N1  - Standard print edition originally published: London: William Collins, 2020; Includes bibliographical references and index
N2  - The sinking of the White Ship is one of the greatest disasters in English history. Here, Charles Spencer tells the real story behind the legend to show how one cataclysmic shipwreck changed England's course; The sinking of the White Ship on the 25th November 1120 is one of the greatest disasters that England has ever suffered. Its repercussions would change English and European history for ever. King Henry I was sailing for England in triumph after four years of fighting the French. Congregating with the king at the port of Barfleur on that freezing November night was the cream of Anglo-Norman society: three of his children, including the only legitimate male heir to the throne, as well as the flower of the aristocracy, famous knights, and mighty courtiers. By 1120, Henry was perhaps the most formidable ruler in Europe, with an enviable record on the battlefield, immense lands and wealth, and unprecedented authority in his kingdoms. Everything he had worked so hard for was finally achieved, and he was ready to hand it on to his beloved son and heir, William theling. Henry I and his retinue set out first. The White Ship - considered the fastest afloat - would follow, carrying the young prince. Spoilt and arrogant, William had plied his comrades and crew with drink from the minute he stepped aboard. It was the middle of the night when the drunken helmsman rammed the ship into rocks. There would be only one survivor from the gilded roll call of passengers. Written to commemorate the 900th anniversary of the shipwreck, Charles Spencer evokes the harsh and brutal story of the Normans from Conquest to Anarchy. With their heir dead, a civil war of untold violence erupted, a game of thrones which saw families turned in on each other with English and Norman barons, rebellious Welsh princes and the Scottish king all playing a part in a bloody, desperate scrum for power. "A terrific book . written like a thriller . Once you start reading it you're completely gripped" BILL BRYSON "Here is the story, marvellously told, of the post-Conquest kings - and one almost-queen - of England: unpredictable, violently dramatic, and never less than compelling" HELEN CASTOR
ER  -