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I highly recommend this for anyone interested in British medieval history. Edward I did terrible things: expelled all Jews from England, used trickery and atrocities to conquer Scotland, and subjugated the Welsh and forced them to fight in his wars, to name a few. But there is no question he was an exceptionally strong, effective king and a brilliant strategist. Morris lays out a very good case that his reign forged Britain as we know it. 👇

I am rating this so-so because of my feelings towards Edward I. Marc Morris‘ book is clearly well researched and I liked his chronology approach to telling story of Edward‘s life and reign. A great King he was-for territories he gained, his prowess in war, and understanding of when to be lenient and fair-but I am too darned prejudiced against him to ever be a fan. Also, this was a lengthy read that exceeded my interest. Glad it‘s over. 3.5/5

I‘m a knitter and reading the switching of allegiances Gilbert de Clare, the Duke of Gloucester, did between Montfordian and royalist sides reminds me of a wandering cable .... there is more to gain here, so I will go to Montfort, but I do not like him/style/I want more so I will go to the royalist side, but Henry III word can‘t be trusted, but then Edward says .... so I will recommit myself here ... wait it‘s Monday, I will go here; exhausting!

"A bigoted man, he lived in a bigoted age, and was king of a bigoted people"

I think this quote is quite brilliant, it recognises that in his dealings with the Jewish community, Edward l acted in a way that was completely acceptable and normal for his time, while never using it to justify his actions.

It does what we all should do and looks at the man in the context of his era and then criticises him and the era accordingly.

I bought this book thinking it was historical fiction, then found that it was more a biography. To my immense surprise it was easy to read and I enjoyed it enormously. Morris takes you on a journey through Edward the 1st's life from his frustratingly controlled teenage years to his slaughter of the Scots, and while in no way condoning his most vile actions he does show how the events of Edward's life led him to become a great and terrible king.

Do you ever get on a genre binge? I think I am in the midst of a nonfiction binge. First a memoir, then a history of/current events analysis of Facebook and now this book. Light summer reading. Lol
Looking forward to reading this book. I don't know much about Edward Longshanks other than what I saw in Braveheart