Conscience of the King (Phoenix Press) [Paperback]

Alfred Duggan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2007 | Series: Phoenix Press

Cerdic Elesing, King of Wessex and ancestor of all subsequent British monarchs, narrates in this fictional biography how he murdered, cheated, looted and lied his way to the great position he ultimately held - and in the process served with the great Roman leader Ambrosius and the Saxon warlord Aella, and was the foe Arthur defeated at Mount Badon.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Alfred Duggan was born in Argentina in 1903. He was educated at Eton College and Oxford. He worked for the British Natural History Museum collecting specimens and travelled extensively pursuing his job for the museum. From 1938-1941, when he was discharged as medically unfit, he served in the London Irish Rifles and saw active service in Norway. His first book was published in 1950.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Phoenix (April 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0304366463
• ISBN-13: 978-0304366460
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,517,816 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Didn't want a large kingdom, just an absolute one., June 5, 2004

By 

William S. Kalenborn (Rochester, MN USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Conscience of the King Pb (Methven's Classic Historical Novels) (Paperback)

This novel is the "autobiography" of Cerdic, founder of the kingdom of Wessex, root of the British royal family tree. The interesting thing about the conscience of the king is that he has none. He starts as a Roman, with a desire for absolute power and no scruples, and ends up with his own small kingdom. I'm very fond of Alfred Duggan's work.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Autobiography of a fascinating, wicked man, in a wicked time., December 22, 2009

By 

WeHaveSixFeet (Montreal, Quebec Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Conscience of the King (Phoenix Press) (Paperback)

Alfred Duggan's CONSCIENCE OF THE KING is a marvelous tale of the founding ruler of Wessex, the kingdom of the West Saxons. It's marvelous because he is a wicked man, a backstabber and a traitor. And yet you find yourself rooting for him, even when Artorius shows up trying to save Britain for the British. Such is the power of a narrator to win you over to his side no matter how wrong that side is.

Like the best of historical novels, it's a visit to another time and other ways of thinking. Cerdic is born around 500 AD, the same time more or less as THE CIRCLE CAST. He's born a Roman but of Saxon descent, and his journey takes him from Roman Britain to Saxon Britain to Saxony and back. It's the Dark Ages of Britain, when Roman civilization is collapsing without any Saxons civilized enough to take it over. Alfred Duggan captures the nostalgia his hero feels for the comforts of civilization even as he's destroying it for his own reasons.

CONSCIENCE OF THE KING is not a passionate book; Duggan's hero is a conniver who barely feels much sentiment for his own son, and doesn't regret his murders. But it is a fascinating book. I'm looking forward to his other two Saxon novels, THE KING OF ATHELNEY, about Alfred the Great, and THE CUNNING OF THE DOVE. He really brings another time and place to life, and with tremendous historical accuracy. It is hard to find a movie that does that.

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent page-turner, September 11, 2006

By 

Book Nut (Ottawa, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Conscience of the King (Phoenix Press) (Paperback)

This is a fantastic read. Despite being several decades old, the writing style is fresh, the plot rivetting, the characters, intriguing.