Tag: knights

Book Review: “The Templars: The Rise and Fall of God’s Holy Warriors” by Dan Jones

On By hmalagisiIn Book ReviewsLeave a comment

The TemplarsThe Crusades were a series of wars between Christian and Muslim warriors for the right to control the Holy Lands of the Middle East. Many men on both sides earned legacies that would surpass their earthly bodies during bloody battles. It created many bands of knights that would last for generations, such as the Hospitallers and the Teutonic Knights. The Templars were the most famous of these knight groups, who may have lasted only for less than two hundred years, but whose legacy would turn into myth. Dan Jones has taken on the arduous task of discerning fact from fiction about the Templars in his book, “The Templars: The Rise and Fall of God’s Holy Warriors.”

I have heard of the Templars from other books that I have read about the Plantagenets and the Crusades, plus the myths of Templar gold and Friday the 13th, but that was the extent of my knowledge about the knightly order. I am a fan of Dan Jones and his books, so I have wanted to read this book for a while now.

Jones’ tome about the Templar knights is broken down into four sections; the origins of the order, how they earned their reputation as soldiers, how they transitioned to the world of banking, and finally the abrupt fall due to greed and rumors of sexual misconduct. The Order of the Temple of Jerusalem, also known as the Templars, was created by Hugh of Payns in 1119 as an order of warriors who lived in poverty, were strictly celibate, and swore oaths to protect innocent Christian pilgrims. Slowly, this rag-tag group of warriors was recognized by the Pope and began to fight battles during the Crusades.

The Templars were known for their willingness to fight until the last man in brutal battles to defend the pilgrims and regain the holy lands for Christianity. There were men like Richard the Lionheart of England and James of Maille, who gained tremendous reputations for their association with the Templars; then there were men like Frederick II Hohenstaufen, the Holy Roman Emperor, who chose to fight with the Templars and ended up fighting against the knights after disputes. The Templars’ greatest threats during the Crusades were the Mamluk sultan Baybars and the Kurdish sultan of Egypt and Syria Saladin, however, the greatest threat to the order was closer to home.

King Philip IV of France, a man who ruthlessly persecuted the Jews in France and fought against Pope Boniface III, turned his greedy eyes on the Templars. He created false charges against the order over sexual misconduct between the knights and forced members of the order, including James of Molay, the last Templar master, to admit to the charges through torture. The death of James of Molay and his fellow Templar warriors marked the end of the order, but the legacy lived on through the present day.

Jones has done it again and delivered a meticulously researched behemoth of a book that is accessible for novices and experts alike. He truly cared about telling the compelling tale of the Templars, full of bravery amid bloody battles and treachery amongst men that they thought supported their cause. A brilliantly engaging book, “The Templars: The Rise and Fall of God’s Holy Warriors” by Dan Jones is the perfect book for anyone interested in this order of knights and their impact on history.

Book Review: “Educating the Tudors” by Amy McElroy

On By hmalagisiIn Book Reviews1 Comment

63112680._SX318_ (1)When we think of the word “education,” images of sitting in school rooms for hours, listening to lectures, and doing endless homework pop into our minds. Our modern education system tends to focus on math, science, language arts, and history as the core subjects we study, with music and physical education as something that we in America call an “elective.” But have you ever wondered what education looked like in the past? How did the Tudors pass on their knowledge to future generations? What subjects did the Tudors consider essential, and how did the amount of education you received change depending on your class? Amy McElroy explores these questions in her book, “Educating the Tudors.”

Thank you, Pen and Sword Books and Net Galley, for sending me a copy of this book. When I heard about this book, it grabbed my attention because although many books about the Tudors have talked about elements of education, I have yet to see a book about Tudor education. I was curious to see how the rise of humanism would affect Tudor education throughout the 16th- century.

Before we dive into the differences in classes regarding education, McElroy gives her readers a breakdown of the different types of schools and what subjects each school teaches, including the trivium and quadrivium. She then dives into the Tudor monarchs and their education, starting with King Henry VIII, the first monarch in England to receive a humanist education. With royal children and their education, we are introduced to their royal tutors, like Giles Duwes, Bernard Andre, John Palsgrave, Roger Ascham, Desiderius Erasmus, and John Picton.

McElroy takes her readers on an educational journey through the different social classes, like nobility, gentry, and knights, to the common people. As she points out, the lower you get on the social ladder, the less critical education is to have a career. With the introduction of the printing press and the Reformation, the way students were taught and discussed religious issues changed throughout the 16th century. I loved learning about the popular books of the time, the different instruments and dances that were enjoyed, and what games were played during down times.

For McElroy’s first book, I found it very educational, informative, and easy to read. Her passion for humanism and the evolution of Tudor education exudes on each page. I took pages of notes about this book, and I learned so much from this debut. I cannot wait to see what Amy McElroy will write about next. To learn more about how the Tudors approached education and humanism, you should check out “Educating the Tudors” by Amy McElroy.