Blondel's Song: The Capture, Imprisonment and Ransom of Richard the LionheartOn his way back from the crusades, one of England's most famous and romantic medieval kings was ship-wrecked and stranded near Venice. Trying to make his way home in disguise, he was arrested and imprisoned and effectively disappeared. He didn't return home for another fifteen months, and at enormous cost - a quarter of the entire wealth of England was paid to win his release.The extraordinary events surrounding Richard the Lionheart's disappearance has been relegated to the nursery by generations of historians. But it also provides the background to some of the most colourful and enduring legends - Robin Hood, the Sheriff of Nottingham, the discovery of King Arthur's grave, and above all, the story of Blondel, Richard's faithful minstrel, and his journey across central Europe - singing under castle towers - until he finds the missing king.Blondel's Song tells the tale of one of the most peculiar incidents of medieval history, and the background to the real Blondel and his fellow troubadours, as well as the courts of love, the Holy Grail, emergence of gothic cathedrals like Notre Dame and Chartres, and the unique moment of tolerance in the West - when Europe shared a language, and a new culture of music, romance and chivalry.It retraces and rediscovers Richard's secret journey across the Alps in winter, and uncovers the real story of the arrest of Europe's most powerful king, two thousand miles from home, and the effects of his gigantic ransom. And it uncovers for the first time the real meaning of the legend of Blondel, the song that revealed Richard's lonely cell, and the truth about who Blondel was. |
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Page 165
... emperor - theoretically the Holy Roman Emperor was an elected position . But now Henry held this vital and lucrative pawn , or he would once he could persuade Leopold to part with the prisoner . Not only was Richard a possible financial ...
... emperor - theoretically the Holy Roman Emperor was an elected position . But now Henry held this vital and lucrative pawn , or he would once he could persuade Leopold to part with the prisoner . Not only was Richard a possible financial ...
Page 236
... emperor . - The emperor was delighted with the arrival of the first tranche of silver . He was even more pleased to hear from his emissaries of the detailed preparations being made in England to raise the rest , and of the wealth of ...
... emperor . - The emperor was delighted with the arrival of the first tranche of silver . He was even more pleased to hear from his emissaries of the detailed preparations being made in England to raise the rest , and of the wealth of ...
Page 243
... emperor's feet and turned England from an independent kingdom into an outpost of the empire and promised payments to the emperor as his vassal of £ 5,000 a year . The details of Richard's homage to the emperor were suppressed in England ...
... emperor's feet and turned England from an independent kingdom into an outpost of the empire and promised payments to the emperor as his vassal of £ 5,000 a year . The details of Richard's homage to the emperor were suppressed in England ...
Contents
The Courts of Love I | 1 |
The Age of Light | 29 |
Paris and Jerusalem | 49 |
Copyright | |
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Other editions - View all
Blondel's Song: The Capture, Imprisonment and Ransom of Richard the Lionheart David Boyle No preview available - 2006 |
Blondel's Song: The capture, Imprisonment and Ransom of Richard the Lionheart David Boyle No preview available - 2006 |
Common terms and phrases
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