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Lädt ... The Rise & Fall of Thomas Cromwell: Henry VIII's Most Faithful Servantvon John Schofield
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Melde dich bei LibraryThing an um herauszufinden, ob du dieses Buch mögen würdest. Keine aktuelle Diskussion zu diesem Buch. I've seen many people mentioning that this book was dry and I can't agree. It might be the fact that I am used to reading historical theory books or that my definition of dry is closer to Suimption's, exquisitely detailed and masterfully researched, Hundred Years War series, but I found this book lively and easy to read. It is true that Schofield reaches some hagiographic moments in his defence of Cromwell, but I think that is to be expected when writing about a man so often slandered with such little reason. Like others, I've came to this books after reading Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies and I have always liked Thomas Cromwell, so I am of course biased. But we all are, in the end, and I think Schofield's description of CRomwell's last months show that he was, indeed, capable of doing morally reprehensible things. Two things I loved about this books. The first was the clear explanation on Lutheran theology which, being raised in a Catholic family and a Catholic country and having attended a Catholic university was never too clear for me. The second is the abundance of sources and reference works. Too often one finds history books and biographies that make statements without citing their sources, which is frustrating at best and bad research at worst. But Schofield's book has a great bibliography section and his statements are backed up by evidence; a gift for those of us who want to keep reading on the subject. An interesting exercise was going back to Wolf Hall and Bring Up The Bodies to compare and contrast how Schofield and Mantel tell the same events and Schofield's influence is pretty clear, something I really enjoyed and allowed me to understand some parts of the novels better. All in all, I loved the book and I'll be re-reading it often. The ‘Rise and Fall of Thomas Cromwell’, by John Schofield, was a very enjoyable biography of Henry V’s right hand man. It’s interesting how few people have heard of Cromwell — when I’ve mentioned the subject it has generally been assumed that this book refers to Oliver Cromwell. The book seems to be very well researched but the copious cross references don’t get in the way of the narrative for a casual reader. I do harbour a suspicion that Schofield got too close to his subject and was drawn to him. He sometimes appears too eager to dismiss the possibility that Cromwell influenced Henry over matters such as the fall of Ann Boleyn and the Cleves marriage. He acknowledges Cromwell’s subtle influence over Lutheran reforms but dismisses that he could influence the King in these other ‘Great Matters’ where he is often cited as the Machiavellian prime mover. This minor quibble aside, I found this book fascinating without being over-academic. I certainly learned a great deal about Tudor England as a result of reading it. Zeige 4 von 4 keine Rezensionen | Rezension hinzufügen
Thomas Cromwell was a man of humble origins and outstanding intellect who rose up to become Henry VIII's chief minister and right-hand man during the English Reformation. He wielded enormous power while he retained the king's favour, but the failure of Henry's marriage to Anne of Cleves, which Cromwell had arranged, led to his swift downfall and execution. In this biography, John Schofield reveals that the popular image of Cromwell as a blood-stained henchman is largely fictional. Detailed research into contemporary sources illuminates his brilliant mind and his love for and patronage of the arts and humanities, while short case studies shed new light on his relations with, and his reputation among, Henry VIII's subjects. In his conclusion, Schofield narrates the drama of Cromwell's downfall and highlights the king's posthumous exoneration of the 'most faithful servant he ever had'. - See more at: http://www.thehistorypress.co.uk/index.php/the-rise-and-fall-of-thomas-cromwell-25741.html#sthash.bUkuX3dS.dpuf Keine Bibliotheksbeschreibungen gefunden. |
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Google Books — Lädt ... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)942.052History and Geography Europe England and Wales England 1485-1603, Tudors Henry VIII 1509-47Klassifikation der Library of Congress [LCC] (USA)BewertungDurchschnitt:
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This is a much better book than Robert Hutchinson’s book on the same subject. Schofield actually seems to have done his research and not just rehashed the same old material which portrays Cromwell as a tyrant, bully etc.
Most of the things that Cromwell gets the blame for either started before he entered the King’s service or before he was high enough up the food chain to influence them, most of the evidence against Cromwell comes from the Spanish Chronicle which should be discounted as it has some very important details wrong e.g. it has Cromwell investigating the accusations of adultery against Catherine Howard which would be fine if he hadn’t been executed the year before.
Schofield does a very good job of presenting Cromwell as a human being, warts and all. This is a very good read for anybody interested in Cromwell’s life, it is a real page turner. I couldn’t put it down.
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