Living in Medieval England cover art

Living in Medieval England

The Turbulent Year of 1326

 Preview

Get 30 days of Standard free

£5.99/mo after trial. Cancel monthly.
Try for £0.00
More purchase options
Buy Now for £14.20

Buy Now for £14.20

About this listen

1326 was one of the most dramatic years in English history. The queen of England, Isabella of France, invaded the country with an army of mercenaries to destroy her husband's powerful and detested lover, Hugh Despenser the Younger, and brought down her husband, King Edward II, in the process.

It was also a year, however, when the majority of English people carried on living their normal, ordinary lives: Eleyne Glaswreghte ran her own successful glass-making business in London; Jack Cressing the master carpenter repaired the beams in a tower of Kenilworth Castle; Alis Coleman sold her best ale at a penny and a half for a gallon in Byfleet; and Will Muleward made the king "laugh greatly" when he spent time with him at a wedding in Marlborough. England sweltered in one of the hottest, driest summers of the Middle Ages; a whale washed ashore at Walton-on-the-Naze; and the unfortunate John Toly died when he relieved himself out of the window of his London house at midnight, and lost his balance.

Living in Medieval England: The Turbulent Year of 1326 tells the true and fascinating stories of the men and women alive in England in this most eventful year, narrated chronologically with a chapter devoted to each month.

©2020 Kathryn Warner (P)2023 Tantor Europe Great Britain Medieval England Middle Ages Royalty Tudor
All stars
Most relevant
Narrator needs to research pronunciations a little more. Voice more suited to romance novels but not unpleasant. Historical facts entertaining for those interested in social and economic history. However I found it less enjoyable as the synopsis is misleading.

historical accuracy

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This isn't a book on medieval life in England, or court of Edward II, as the title suggests. It is a simple retelling, point by point, of the entries in the King's Chamber accounts for the year 1236, a sort of household expenses. The author doesn't even say in which library the document is held. The book reads as paragraphs about multiple people engaging in an activity on a particular day, completely disjoined and not connected to the next paragraph or the next group of people she will mention. She can't recreate a story out of the document, can't set the scene, and possibly doesn't even understand that one doesn't write a book based on just one source.

The narration is bad too, for some reason the reader extends the endings of the words, Reading such a book is a thankless task for any narrator though. However well one can read it, what is being read just does not make sense. I have to return it after just a few minutes, something that almost never happens.

random people, random facts

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
If you like your history properly researched from the primary sources (i.e. the original documents from the period) and excellently written (both as a historical narrative and in writing style) then Kathryn Warner is a mediævalist not to be missed!

Meticulous research, top writing

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.