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| Publisher: JOHNATHAN CAPE |
| Publication Date: 05/07/2007 |
| Format: Hardback |
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A blood-spattered Lancastrian red rose
During the first six years of his reign, Henry IV, the first monarch of the House of Lancaster, survived at least eight plots to dethrone or kill him. The acclaimed author of The Perfect King considers Henry’s turbulent time on the throne.
Henry IV was the son of John of Gaunt. In his youth he was well-educated, generous and devoted to his family. In 1399, at the age of 32, he ousted the tyrannical King Richard II from power.
But therein lay Henry's weakness. In making himself king he had broken God's law. His former supporters now plotted against him and transformed him into a desperate, duplicitous murderer.
That legacy has almost entirely obscured his achievements. Henry's reputation in the 16th century was such that merely to write about him was to risk imprisonment in the Tower. Nonetheless, against all the odds, he took a poorly ruled nation and established a new Lancastrian dynasty. His story is one of violence, bravery and above all survival.
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RRP £18.99
JOINING PRICE £1.50
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