Hotspur 

So when we think of the knights of the medieval period, we think of skilled fighters, diplomats and men of virtue and chivalry. By all accounts then you are thinking of Sir Henry Percy.

Sir Henry Percy led a brilliant career as a soldier, leader, nobleman, diplomat and courtier for both King Richard II and Henry IV. He was also siezed upon later by William Shakespeare who seems to have singled him out as the depiction of Medieval chivalry.

This book serves not just as a history but more like a biography of this man. I found the writing style really easy to read, in places it felt more like a fictional book, easy to read and transported to the battlefields of Scotland. Thats not a bad thing by the way, it just makes the book more easy to digest. And there is a lot to digest.

The book is broken down into acts – much like a Shakespeare play I guess…

The book analyses Percy’s decision to rebel against the King , and is killed by an archer at the Battle of Shrewsbury – This in itself raises an interesting question as the author talks about archers trained to stalk and pick off important targets, pretty much like a modern day sniper – They waited until the target did something to allow an attack such as remove their visor to drink or take breath. Not thought about that before.

The appendices are interesting reading too. I especially like the 2nd Appendix – the art of war in Hotspur’s day. I aslo found the glossary useful. Didn’t know what an ‘abbatis’ was until today.

If you are looking at understanding chivalry and the complexities of being a Knight in Medieval England, this is possibly the book you need to read.

You can buy the book here from Pen and Sword books.

Please note I was not paid to write this review but was sent a review copy of the book. All comments are my own, and the publishers have not amended the review in any way.

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