Customer Reviews

Arthur and the Anglo-Saxon Wars (Men-at-Arms)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Assuming that King Arthur actually existed in some form, which is still at best a problematic assumption, this book goes well outside any particular era he would have lived through; if nothing else there is a vast amount of information on the Anglo-Saxons in here, the people he supposedly fought against. Still and all, the book does a fine job on illuminating one of the darker eras of European history.

David Nicolle does his best, as always, at reading between the lines of chronicles, art, and many works that were written well after the fact to try and peice together informaion on this broad time period. His notes on weapons, armour, and tactics are very solid, not too far out on speculation, yet not so conservative to stifle any real potentiallities. "Arthur" himself makes only a fleeting appearance in these pages, which is appropriate.

Angus McBride (absolutely no relation) does his usual magnificent job of illustrating the warriors of the era. Not only does he show a fine sense of detail, but the paintings are characters, not merely "soldiers on parade" -- each of them is a unique individual and looks at home and quite comfortable (as well as one can be) in the armour worn.

I love Osprey Military books, so of course I will give this one a favorable review. The folks at Osprey understand the truth in the cliche that "a picture is worth a thousand words." It is a terribly frustrating experience to try to follow a book which is almost all text trying to convey ideas to you which really require some sort of visual representation, be it a photo, drawing, map, graph, or whatever; it is equally awful to try to make sense of a book which is almost entirely made up of illustrations and doesn't provide anywhere near adequate text to explain them. One thing I like about Osprey books is that they have a good ballance of text and illustrations which allows them to get information across to the reader in an efficient and entertaining manner. The title of this one is slightly misleading; only part of the book is spent on the Arthurian period, and the book as a whole runs all the way through the Viking period and up to the Norman Conquest. Some of the dates in the chronology section could stand to be corrected, but there is so much uncertainty in the Arhurian era, so debate is inevitable. Like other Osprey books, there are many informative illustrations and maps, and there are beautiful color plates. There is at least one major error, I think, in Nicolle's interpretation of the evidence, however: the Aberlemno Stone, a Pictish relief sculpture, shows what is clearly a battle; Nicolle interprets all that is depicted on it as typical Pict war gear, but Dan and Susannah Shadrake in _Barbarian Warriors_ point out that this stone portrays a Pictish victory over the Northumbrians, and it seems that the knights depicted as unarmored are on the Pictish side, while those with helmets are the Angles. Despite this, most of the information appears to be top-notch, drawing as much from archaeological evidence as from writen and artistic evidence. I highly recommend this book, and Osprey books in general.

Dr. Nicolle once again sheds light on an era that is foggy. Anyone interested in the peoples that rose up from the ashes of Rome will find this book stimulating. Excellent illustrations, as usual, from Angus Mcbride. Cons ( true for most of the Osprey books ): the timespan is perhaps too great for a work of this size ( 4th Century to 11th century ). Not enough concise maps. Pros: Sums up the major political trends that set the stage for the Normans. Exposed me for the first time to the real Arthur. Hence, 4 stars instead of 5.

This book is, so far, my favourite made by the "team" David Nicolle and Angus McBride; complementing a great and concise text by David Nicolle is some of the best artwork made by Angus McBride.
The text is divided in the following parts: introduction, chronology, the Arthurian age, Saxon and Celt, Britain and the Vikings.
The text provides a brief but very good introduction to the subject (Britain from the end of Roman dominion to the battle of Hastings) and is complemented by a fairly good bibliography (for further reading on the subject); perhaps this bibliography could be updated by the publishers or author (online?) as the book was published 20 years ago.
As I am an amateur illustrator I will take a little more space talking about the colour plates.
Honestly I can say that all of them are great!
When I got the book and was looking at the colour plates, every new one astonished me; the details, the composition and the atmosphere are superb in all of the illustration.
Next I will talk about each plate and present some of the best aspects of each one.
Plate A depicts a group of late roman soldiers; the faces of all of them and the helmet of figure 1;
Plate B presents some Anglo-Saxon warriors; the helmets and the entire figure 1;
Plate C (used in the cover art) is about a Romano-British warriors; the atmosphere and composition;
Plate D illustrates Pictish and north-British warriors; the atmosphere (at night) and the face of figure 3;
Plate E is about Ireland; again the faces, figure 2 and the army in the background;
Plate F (my favourite) represents a 9th century English king and a warrior and a monk; the composition, the atmosphere and details as the king's cloths;
Plate G illustrates some Scandinavians warriors; the composition and the armour of figure 1 and the tunic of figure 3;
Plate H (one of the best) the composition and the atmosphere (in battle).
Either you are interested in the subject or really like good artwork this is really a must buy book!

This book has virtually nothing to do with the 'Arthurian' period, much less literature. It generally focuses on giving a brief overview of British arms, armor, and armies between the later days of the Roman occupation to the eve of the Norman conquest. The text also briefly touches on the Irish, Scots, and Picts. Plates are good as usual, as is the text, but just not enough space.

This Osprey covers a pretty large period of time, but gives a good overview of the period in British history from the withdrawal of the Romans to the establishment of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms and Norse invasions. Great illustrations by McBride.

If you want to find out about the time of Darkness for the sceptor island after the Romans left, then here you go. If you want to learn about the once and future King then you have come to the wrong book. Wonderful pictures that help one "see" the bad old days of England.

how could you give this book anything other than a five star rating. the scholarly writing is excellant, and the art is wonderful! you cannot go wrong with David Nicolle and Angus McBride. buy this and be happy!