The Prince of Darkness (Plantagenet Saga #4)
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- Synopsis
- With the untimely death of Richard Coeur de Lion there were two contenders for the throne--one was Richard's nephew Arthur and the other was his youngest brother, John. With misgivings the leading barons chose John, for although already his reputation was not one to recommend him, Arthur had never lived in England and was regarded there as a foreigner. John's unpleasant character was soon revealed and his unbridled sensuality, his fierce and terrible temper, his cruelty, his slothfulness and indifference to duty, his injustice and cynical methods of taxation were, in time, to drive the barons to revolt. John's passion for the beautiful and voluptuous Isabella of Angouleme and his abduction of her when she was a girl of twelve and betrothed to the powerful Hugh de Lusignan was to prove one of the factors which led to the loss of his overseas dominions. When it became obvious that Arthur was a real menace to his position, John devised the cruellest means of preventing his nephew's taking the crown, and although he was foiled in this by the noble Hubert de Burgh, Arthur later disappeared mysteriously and John was suspected of his murder--a suspicion from which he was never allowed to escape and which proved to be a rallying cry for his enemies. These were some of the darkest days of England's history when the country was under the Interdict and the King excommunicated, when John all but lost his crown and there were foreign invaders on English soil. At the heart of the tragedy was John--the King whom all his subjects feared until they defied him, exposed his weakness and forced him to Runnymede where he had no choice but to sign the famous Magna Carta. His cruelty, the callous manner in which he inflicted suffering on his enemies caused people to believe the legend that the House of Anjou had been infected by the Devil's blood. In John the satanic characteristics were intensified, and many of those who suffered at his hands believed that he was the Prince of Darkness, the Devil himself.
- Copyright:
- 1978
Book Details
- Book Quality:
- Excellent
- Book Size:
- 322 Pages
- ISBN-13:
- 9780709154044
- Publisher:
- Robert Hale Limited
- Date of Addition:
- 10/29/12
- Copyrighted By:
- Jean Plaidy
- Adult content:
- No
- Language:
- English
- Has Image Descriptions:
- No
- Categories:
- History, Literature and Fiction
- Submitted By:
- Julia Kulak
- Proofread By:
- Sue Stevens
- Usage Restrictions:
- This is a copyrighted book.