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The Last Apocalypse: Europe at the Year 1000 A.D.
 
 
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The Last Apocalypse: Europe at the Year 1000 A.D. (Paperback)

~ James Reston Jr. (Author) "THE BATTLE AT MALDON was but a minor way station in the already heroic life of a huge and athletic young prince of Norway known..." (more)
Key Phrases: moot field, last apocalypse, King Olaf, Olaf Trygvesson, Svein Forkbeard (more...)
3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (31 customer reviews)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

With the turn of the century approaching, talk of the apocalypse runs rampant. In The Last Apocalypse, James Reston reminds us that such talk is nothing new. At the previous turn of the millennium, Vikings, Moors, and Hungarian Magyars beseiged Europe with wanton cruelty and violence, spreading fear and destruction wherever they went and leading many to believe that the end of the world was near. Such colorful characters as Sigrid the Haughty, Svein Forkbeard, Ethelred the Unready, and Al-Mansor the Illustrious Victor were the heroes and villains of the era.

Reston, author of previous works that include Galileo: A Life and Sherman's March, evokes the historical essence of the time using limited legal and church documents, archaeological artifacts, and rare contemporary literary accounts. Reston's history reads like an engrossing novel, carefully crafted without getting bogged down in dry details. He skillfully interweaves the complex story of how each European country dealt with these changes, bringing the period back to life.

Reston portrays A.D. 999 as a profound turning point for mankind, mapping out the fate of each country as the Christian kingdoms, unified in belief, brutally conquered and imposed the will of Christianity upon heathen Europe. In the space of 60 years, the established ruling elite were slaughtered or forced to succumb to the turning religious tide. By A.D. 1050, the sign of the cross fell like an ominous shadow across Europe, paradoxically signifying the dawn of peace under Christian unity. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.



From Publishers Weekly

Reston theorizes that the year A.D. 999?the focus of this highly colorful narrative?was a turning point in history, marking the Christian West's joining of forces against the triple heathen threat of Vikings, Hungarian Magyar tribes and the Moors in Spain. His popular history actually shuttles back and forth from the early eighth century to the death of Hungary's Christianizing King Stephen in 1038. Biographer (Galileo), television writer and journalist, Reston draws liberally from period poems, folktales, sagas, myths, legends and holy chronicles to stitch together an entertaining tapestry replete with revenge, murder, treachery, carnal lusts, rape, geopolitical royal matchmaking and snatches from Norse lyrics. Most memorable are the odd, outsize characters such as Swedish pagan queen Sigrid the Strong-Minded, who burned her spurned suitors to death in a beer hall. Reston also evokes a Byzantine court rife with conspiracy, a corrupt papacy, the end-of-the-millennium broodings of Christians and heathens alike and the cosmopolitan culture of Moorish Spain.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 336 pages
  • Publisher: Anchor (February 16, 1999)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0385483368
  • ISBN-13: 978-0385483360
  • Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.2 x 0.9 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #54,728 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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    #2 in  Books > Literature & Fiction > History & Criticism > Movements & Periods > Medieval
    #60 in  Books > History > World > Medieval

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Customer Reviews

31 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
3.9 out of 5 stars (31 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars Hard to discern historical fact from Reston's imagination, April 6, 1999
By Susan Zuckerman (Vancouver, BC Canada) - See all my reviews
Reston writes a highly entertaining, "popular" history, although I have some definite quibbles with his interpretations. It seems Reston wants to cash in on a "millenium" book, and has construed history to conform to this theme. At the turn of the millenium in which we are now living, most people on the planet are abundantly aware of this as an event. Not so in much of Europe around the year 1000. In particular, much of Northern Europe, still being pagan, did not follow the Julian Calendar. Even those who were aware of the 1000th anniversary since the birth of Christ, may have seen little significance in that number, as a full circle was seen as being divided into 1/12ths, and thus multiples of 12 were more "complete" and significant numbers than multiples of 10. The questions that are begged, therefore, are: How significant is a purely symbolic event if folk are not aware of it as anything special? Might an apocalyptic interpretation be cast over just about any time in history? Regardless, Reston's book is an entertaining read, and will give a vivid, imaginative sense of that period in Europe, as long as you don't count on it for historical accuracy.
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating and Balanced, December 10, 1999
I found this entertaining and informative book quite useful in researching my own book. What I liked most about it-outside of the fascinating stories-was that Reston pretty much lets his readers form their own conclusions about the causes of change during the last millennial transition.

So, I would take mild exception with the reviewer who indicated that Reston gives too much credit to the year-1000 rollover. That reviewer pointed out that "At the turn of the millenium in which we are now living, most people on the planet are abundantly aware of this as an event. Not so in much of Europe around the year 1000. In particular, much of Northern Europe, still being pagan, did not follow the Julian Calendar." While it's true that most of Europe was probably not aware that they were living 1,000 years after the birth of Christ, I don't recall Reston ever saying that the changes that occurred around the year 1000 had anything to do with millennial concern. He simply points out that many highly significant changes did, in fact, occur during this time frame. He leaves it up to the reader to deduce how much of this had anything to do with concern over the year 1000.

So, I think it's a well balanced and intriguing book.

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14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Required reading for all Christians, June 1, 1999
This is an excellent book about a largely ignored chapter of European history. Filled with stories about the Vikings, Moors, Magyars, and the Papacy, Reston paints a facinating picture about the consolidation of christian power in Europe. Filled with facinating annecdotes, and quite a few horrifying atrocities this is one of the few historical texts I can give a universal reccomendation to. Especially reccomended to readers of Scandinavian or Hungarian descent; whose history by myth or generally ignored. The history of the Papacy has to be read to be believed; a good groundwork for understanding the crusades and the turbulent history of christianity is laid in those chapters. Ironically, the accesible nature of this book, and it's wonderful readability, may make it seem like a frivilous catalog of mutilation, but this is a well researched work and absoloutely worth reading.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars A very good read
What happened in history, of course, depends on whom you ask. Mr. Reston launches a gripping and provocative title, "The Last Apocalypse," and quickly lets you know that if you're... Read more
Published 5 hours ago by Seth Davidson

4.0 out of 5 stars Readable Popular History
James Reston illustrates how, at the end of the first millennium, Europe became more decidedly Christian than it had been before. Read more
Published 20 days ago by Loves the View

4.0 out of 5 stars Fun history, flawed premise
This was the first of Reston's history books that I have read, and I was quite impressed. Reston is quite skilled at making history enjoyable to read, and he is, in general,... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Jesse Rouse

4.0 out of 5 stars Not just readable; enjoyable history! - 4.5 stars
A little over a thousand years ago, In less than 50 years, Europe went from a chaotic, pagan, tribal backwater, to a collection of slowly progressing, (at least nominally)... Read more
Published 9 months ago by M. J. Keel

5.0 out of 5 stars Very interesting
Just recently, when the Second Millennium ended in 2001, there was a great deal of retrospection. In this book, author James Reston, Jr., looks back... Read more
Published 10 months ago by Kurt A. Johnson

3.0 out of 5 stars Entertainment over history
The three- and one-star reviewers here are most on target, although one star is a harsh rating. This work suffers from the most common plague of freshman term papers: the thesis... Read more
Published 11 months ago by Joe Cicero

5.0 out of 5 stars Reston is the best
When it comes to reviewing history and religion's influence on it's progression, James Reston, Jr. is the best there is. Read more
Published on June 4, 2007 by William V. Powell

4.0 out of 5 stars An enjoyable read, but jumped around a bit
I enjoyed most of the way this book was written. The chapters follow a main character around for the extent of his/her life, which was an enjoyable way to tell the story of the... Read more
Published on June 1, 2007 by A. Berke

1.0 out of 5 stars Error-ridden.
I agree with those who say this book seems written to fill a perceived sales-niche. If you know anything about medieval history, you'll find errors in this book. Read more
Published on May 10, 2007 by Dragonslayer

3.0 out of 5 stars Engaging, if stretched.
In this volume Reston demonstrates his talent for readable popular history. There's nothing new in his story of close of the first millenium. Read more
Published on May 5, 2004 by M. Seidl

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