Lost Heirs of the Medieval Crown

When it comes to the lives of the rich and famous, we can never get enough. When it comes to royal history, the older the better. The Lost Heirs of the Medieval Crown delves into the lives of the medieval heirs were never assured, and this book goes into great detail on many of the rulers that would never be. This book was the best when it comes to lining out what happened to the would-be monarchs who never came to be.

Publish Date: Available now

Publisher: Pen and Sword Books

Star Rating: 5/5

Goodreads.com Excerpt:

When William the Conqueror died in 1087 he left the throne of England to William Rufus ... his second son. The result was an immediate war as Rufus's elder brother Robert fought to gain the crown he saw as rightfully his; this conflict marked the start of 400 years of bloody disputes as the English monarchy's line of hereditary succession was bent, twisted and finally broken when the last Plantagenet king, Richard III, fell at Bosworth in 1485.

The Anglo-Norman and Plantagenet dynasties were renowned for their internecine strife, and in Lost Heirs we will unearth the hidden stories of fratricidal brothers, usurping cousins and murderous uncles; the many kings - and the occasional queen - who should have been but never were. History is written by the winners, but every game of thrones has its losers too, and their fascinating stories bring richness and depth to what is a colorful period of history. King John would not have gained the crown had he not murdered his young nephew, who was in line to become England's first King Arthur; Henry V would never have been at Agincourt had his father not seized the throne by usurping and killing his cousin; and as the rival houses of York and Lancaster fought bloodily over the crown during the Wars of the Roses, life suddenly became very dangerous indeed for a young boy named Edmund.

My Review of Lost Heirs of The Medieval Crown

Medival history is full of death and uncertainty. Death did not discriminate from poor or rich when it came to who lived or died. In fact, the path to the crown could often be more deadly than those who did not have such high ambitions. Whether accidental, sickness or downright homicide, death could come in all forms.

Each chapter in this book starts out with a breakdown of the family, who fits where, and what was going on at the time. All of this plays into each of the chapters that will follow. The bloodiest dynasty in medieval history was not coined without cause, and this book breaks that down.

I really enjoyed the read. Each of the characters was familiar to me, through historical studies. However, the breakdown and clarification on a lot of smaller details were quite helpful. The chapters were not super long, which kept me engaged and attentive throughout the entire read. I was impressed with the amount of research, and the depth of the knowledge that the author portrayed in their writing.


If you enjoy history, I definitely recommend this book!