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meganbmooreThese two volumes cover the life of William Marshal, who served a multitude of Plantagenets and was regent for another at the end of his life. The first book covers 1167 to 1194, from William being given as a hostage to King Henry (His father promptly said “I have more sons, go ahead and kill him while I make like a merry rebel. Henry kept him instead.) to his becoming one of the most powerful men in England, and the second covers from 1197 to 1219, focusing primarily on his troubles with King John and his eventual regency, and ending just after his death.
Both are heavy on the history, with The Greatest Knight focusing largely on the rise of a young knight, and battles and adventure, and The Scarlet Lion is more focused on the politics, and shifts much of the perspective from William to his wife, Isabelle, who was twenty years younger than him and liked to do things like manage William’s lands while he was away and hold off his enemies when they tried to take advantage of his absence and face off with them while extremely pregnant. Unsurprisingly, I have a preference for The Scarlet Lion, despite realizing that The Greatest Knight is actually the more exciting of the two.
Chadwick keeps the attitudes true to history, while keeping her own sensibilities evident, but not judgmental. Some liberties are taken with history, but as far as I know, only to avoid having six Johns and in three Williams (for example) in a room at once, or to fill in holes in what’s recorded. The two books are largely independent. The Greatest Knight wraps up all of its plotlines and doesn’t need a sequel to be complete. The Scarlet Lion benefits from having read The Greatest Knight first, but it isn’t necessary. Chadwick’s next book (likely already out in the UK) is about William and Isabelle’s daughter, Mahelt, but I’m not sure if it’s considered strictly connected to these two. (They had ten kids, and while I’m not familiar with their fates, only one is really explored in The Scarlet Lion, so I suspect Chadwick could write about the Marshals for some time if she wanted.)