William the Conqueror [Paperback]

Hilaire Belloc (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1992

A short, broad-shouldered northern Frenchman, approaching his fortieth year, a man with long arms, powerfully built, and famous for the strength of his hands, clean-shaven, square jawed, obese, vigorous-all that-decided, at about five o'clock of an autumn evening,the destinies of England and, in great part, of the the world. (Page 1).   In William the Conqueror the great Catholic historian Hilaire Belloc describes everything that led up to and followed from the momentous battle which took place at Hastings in England in the year 1066 A.D. - an event which was to have a profound effect on the whole of Europe from that time forward - and eventually upon the world. Belloc shows that the Conquest of England which began with William's victory at Hastings should not rightly be called a conquest in our sense of the word-nor can the great Duke William of Normandy be styled a Conqueror in the usual understanding. For William had crossed the Channel to England as one enforcing a rightful claim. Moreover, the ties between England and French Normandy on the Continent had long been very close-ties of blood, of marriage, of rule, of culture and of the Catholic Faith.   For several lifetimes previous-as Belloc details-England had been undergoing an internal struggle between, on the one hand, the half-Christianized Danes, with their smoldering traditions of cruelty, and on the other hand, English and Norman Chris-tians, whose civilization was epitomized in the gentle, enlightened rule of St. Edward the Confessor (1043-1066) and who were the bearers of the ancient Christian and Roman civilization. With William's conquest, the latter side won out. England was thence-forward to be knit ever the more closely into the unity of European Christian civilization-not a political unity, but a unity of culture and civilization, of which the soul was the Catholic Faith. Within a hundred years from Hastings, this civilization would stretch from Scotland in the Wes

Product Details

• Paperback: 76 pages
• Publisher: T A N Books & Publishers (December 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0895554682
• ISBN-13: 978-0895554680
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 6.1 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #709,391 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #11 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > History > World > Medieval
  • #64 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Religion & Spirituality > Religious Studies > History
  • #92 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > History > Europe > England > General

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful Belloc Prose, November 20, 2005

By 

Michael Tozer (San Antonio, Texas United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: William the Conqueror (Paperback)

Hilaire Belloc is perhaps the premier popular historian. His works are beautifully crafted and almost poetic. And this, his ode to William, the Conqueror, is no exception.

Herein, Belloc teaches us that William's conquest of England was really the exercise of a legitimate claim to the throne through heredity and, more importantly, represented a struggle between half-Christianized Danes and the great Catholic tradition of England and Normandy. With this great act, culminating in the epoch making Battle of Hastings, William's line established England in a Catholic tradition that was to survive until Ann Boleyn turned the head of the weak will Henry VIII and became the pivot of the English Reformation, a topic also wonderfully dealt with by Belloc in "How the Reformation Happened".

Belloc's writings are to savored, reflected upon, and quoted by his many fans. Prolific though he was, we always wish that he had written even more, and that his great works were more available. This particular work is made available through TAN publishers of Rockford, Illinois, a great little company that needs and deserves much support. Take care, and God bless.

4.0 out of 5 stars A short introduction to William the Conquueror, September 2, 2011

By 

John Kalinowsky "JK" (Danbury, CT) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: William the Conqueror (Paperback)

I just finished reading this book, my fourth from this author (along with The Crusades: The World's Debate, How the Reformation Happened, and The Great Heresies). I found this to be the easiest to read so far, perhaps because I am becoming accustomed to Belloc's writing style. I am by no means a scholar or extremely well read, but there is a certain rhythm to his writings that I struggled with at first, but has since become very enjoyable to read.

I picked up this book solely because I enjoy reading Belloc, not out of any particular interest in William The Conqueror. However, before long I had become completely engrossed in the subject and eager to learn more. As other reviewers have said, the book traces the history and genealogy that resulted in William's seat on the throne of England. It starts with a brief description of the societal structure at the time and culminates with William's victory at the Battle of Hastings. The last 15 pages or so tell of William's time as King, although I'm certain that this abridged version leaves quite a bit out. Being only 76 pages long, the telling of the story is fairly brief, but there is a lot of information within those 76 pages.

Belloc incorporates the part that the Church played throughout the story, but I would have liked to have read more about this. One reason I enjoy Belloc is because of his unforgiving Catholic perspective, and I don't feel like this came through in this book as much as in the others that I have read.

Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone interested in English/French history of this era (1050-1075) and especially in William the Conqueror's role. It's brief nature would serve as a good introduction to anyone with no prior knowledge of the subject, and I'm sure those already familiar with it will discover something new.

12 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars For the serious history buff, April 11, 2004

By 

Sam Adams "Catholic teen" (MA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: William the Conqueror (Paperback)

I don't see how anyone who isn't a serious history fan would like to read this. It is another Belloc masterpiece, although, not his best. It is only 76 pages and could be about 15 pages shorter. It would make a great teaching aid.

However, it is very lacking in the footnotes or bibliography.