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O poder e os tronos: Uma nova história da Idade Média
Uma história épica da era medieval e de como seu legado está vivo até hoje.
Com uma narrativa repleta de grandes nomes – de Santo Agostinho e Átila, o Huno, ao profeta Maomé e Eleanor da Aquitânia –, Dan Jones tece um relato envolvente do período conhecido como Idade Média, partindo da Antiguidade tardia e do Ocidente islâmico e culminando nas primeiras viagens europeias às Américas. O mundo medieval foi forjado por grandes forças presentes ainda mudanças climáticas, pandemias, migração em massa e revoluções tecnológicas. Foi a época em que as grandes nacionalidades europeias surgiram e se estabeleceram; os sistemas ocidentais de lei e governança foram codificados; as Igrejas cristãs amadureceram como instituições poderosas e reguladoras da moralidade pública; a arte, a arquitetura e a investigação filosófica e científica passaram por períodos de transformações revolucionárias. O Ocidente foi reconstruído sobre as ruínas do Império Romano para dominar o mundo. E à medida que enfrentamos um ponto de virada crítico no nosso próprio milênio, Jones mostra que conhecer nosso passado importa mais do que nunca.
Com uma narrativa repleta de grandes nomes – de Santo Agostinho e Átila, o Huno, ao profeta Maomé e Eleanor da Aquitânia –, Dan Jones tece um relato envolvente do período conhecido como Idade Média, partindo da Antiguidade tardia e do Ocidente islâmico e culminando nas primeiras viagens europeias às Américas. O mundo medieval foi forjado por grandes forças presentes ainda mudanças climáticas, pandemias, migração em massa e revoluções tecnológicas. Foi a época em que as grandes nacionalidades europeias surgiram e se estabeleceram; os sistemas ocidentais de lei e governança foram codificados; as Igrejas cristãs amadureceram como instituições poderosas e reguladoras da moralidade pública; a arte, a arquitetura e a investigação filosófica e científica passaram por períodos de transformações revolucionárias. O Ocidente foi reconstruído sobre as ruínas do Império Romano para dominar o mundo. E à medida que enfrentamos um ponto de virada crítico no nosso próprio milênio, Jones mostra que conhecer nosso passado importa mais do que nunca.
906 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 2, 2021
3182 people are currently reading
21954 people want to read
About the author
Dan Jones
58 books5,388 followersDan Jones is a historian, broadcaster and award-winning journalist. His books, including The Plantagenets, Magna Carta, The Templars and The Colour of Time, have sold more than one million copies worldwide. He has written and hosted dozens of TV shows including the acclaimed Netflix/Channel 5 series 'Secrets of Great British Castles'. For ten years Dan wrote a weekly column for the London Evening Standard and his writing has also appeared in newspapers and magazines including The Sunday Times, The Daily Telegraph, The Wall Street Journal, Smithsonian, GQ and The Spectator.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,008 reviews
August 16, 2021
I have read some of Dan Jones's works so was delighted to have received a copy of his latest book.
I did not expect to find a book on the millennium between the fall of Rome and the dawn of Renaissance so fascinating despite my respect regarding the Author. The sheer thought of covering all main events in Europe and Asia that occurred within such a period sounds most challenging, and yet Mr Jones surpassed all my expectations. The amount of information is more than massive and I do not think I will remember everything but I am especially grateful for the panorama of the times in which I take little interest. The Mongolian theme is terrific!
It is not easy to find non-fiction unputdownable, this book proved to be such for me.
I did not expect to find a book on the millennium between the fall of Rome and the dawn of Renaissance so fascinating despite my respect regarding the Author. The sheer thought of covering all main events in Europe and Asia that occurred within such a period sounds most challenging, and yet Mr Jones surpassed all my expectations. The amount of information is more than massive and I do not think I will remember everything but I am especially grateful for the panorama of the times in which I take little interest. The Mongolian theme is terrific!
It is not easy to find non-fiction unputdownable, this book proved to be such for me.
June 6, 2025
“The book you are about to read tells the story of the Middle Ages. It is a big book, because that is a big task. We are going to sweep across continents and centuries, often at a breakneck pace. We are going to meet hundreds of men and women, from Attila the Hun to Joan of Arc. And we are going to dive headlong into at least a dozen fields of history – from war and law to art and literature. I am going to ask – and I hope to answer – some big questions: What happened in the Middle Ages? Who ruled? What did power look like? What were the big forces that shaped peoples’ lives? And how (if at all) did the Middle Ages shape the world we know today…”
- Dan Jones, Powers and Thrones: A New History of the Middle Ages
The Middle Ages occupies an interesting place in the history of the western world. Sandwiched between the half-mythological glories of classical antiquity, and the vivid artistic and scientific expressions of the Renaissance, it can seem – by contrast – a rather grim place to visit: a gloomy milieu of toiling peasants in their cheerless hovels, and bickering nobles in drafty stone castles. It was a time – to steal a phrase from Hobbes – when life tended to be nasty, brutish, and short.
I hasten to add, however, that what I know about the Middle Ages can fit into the codpiece I once wore to a Ren Fair in Kansas City. It is an incomplete picture cobbled together from a few European castle tours, a half dozen stray books, and numerous movies, including Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Thus, my conception of this era is necessarily far from complete.
What I required was a mile-high overview that threaded the line between serious and not-too-serious, and that simplified things without dumbing them down.
That’s the reason why I turned to Dan Jones’s Powers and Thrones.
***
Jones is a model of the modern popular historian. He has a strong internet presence; he makes analogies to sports, especially the game the world sensibly refers to as football, and which Americans call soccer; and he seems genuinely passionate about getting paid to do what he clearly loves. The archetypal academic historian is writing for his colleagues. Jones is writing for everyone. He has an eagerness to share akin to a kindergartener at show-and-tell.
Jones’s willingness – nay, his intent – to appeal to a broad audience is a great thing in general. Yet in the area of the Middle Ages, it is especially important. That’s because medievalists are a notoriously unfun bunch, despite making a living dreaming of the past. For example, well-respected author-historians such as Barbara Tuchman and William Manchester have been slammed for encroaching on this territory, and for daring to compare then to now. There is an apparent belief in this field of study that interpreting the Middle Ages is a matter of life and death, and that everyone must act accordingly.
In Powers and Thrones, Jones wants things to be fun. Or at least as fun as anything involving the Black Death can be.
***
Not only is Jones accessible, but he has a marvelously methodical, building-block approach. This is important, because he’s trying to digest a lot in Powers and Thrones. More specifically, the tale begins in 410 AD, and ends in 1527 AD, which is a solid eleven centuries of human life.
Jones divides Powers and Thrones into four sections, each one corresponding to a specific date range. However, he is not telling a single, chronological narrative. Rather, the chapters within each section are thematic, covering topics such as knights, crusaders, merchants, and scholars. Within these chapters, Jones highlights individual characters, important events, technological advances, cultural trends, and architecture.
With so much to survey, there are inevitable highs and lows, though everything is fascinating in its own right. For instance, I found myself surprisingly engaged in Jones’s discussion on monasteries.
***
Given the scope of Powers and Thrones, Jones has to make inevitable tradeoffs in order to deliver a reasonably-sized single volume. This results in a lack of depth in some areas, and the elision of others completely.
For a starter book, though, that’s okay. In choosing this, I wanted to avoid getting lost in minutiae, or discovering that I required prerequisites to understand what was going on. From the beginning, which includes a long exploration of the fall of Rome, Jones proves an attentive tour guide.
It should also be noted that despite an acknowledged bias in favor of western Europe, Jones makes a concerted effort to provide a global snapshot. To that end, there is a chapter on the Arab conquests of the 600s, and the brief-but-spectacular emergence of the Mongol Empire in the 1200s.
***
The phrase “popular historian” is often used as a thinly veiled insult, or as a synonym for unseriousness. That’s not the impression I want to leave. Though he is often in front of a camera – especially on YouTube or Britain’s Channel 5 – and has also been known to be photographed looking self-consciously pensive while wearing a leather jacket, Jones is not an unlettered dilettante. This period of history is his thing, and he provides a long list of primary sources to back that up.
***
Whenever I branch off into a new area of history, I try to start with the biggest of big pictures. While this seems obvious, there have been times when I tried to jump into the deep end, and ended up hopelessly confused. The first time I tackled the French Revolution, for instance, the titles I chose made me feel like I was reading something that had been translated from Greek to Latin to English.
As I hoped, Powers and Thrones gave me the lay of the land. Jones did not knock me over with his prose or insights, but he provides a nice jumping-off point for further exploration. And not for nothing, he made the Middle Ages a pleasant place to visit vicariously, if not in reality.
- Dan Jones, Powers and Thrones: A New History of the Middle Ages
The Middle Ages occupies an interesting place in the history of the western world. Sandwiched between the half-mythological glories of classical antiquity, and the vivid artistic and scientific expressions of the Renaissance, it can seem – by contrast – a rather grim place to visit: a gloomy milieu of toiling peasants in their cheerless hovels, and bickering nobles in drafty stone castles. It was a time – to steal a phrase from Hobbes – when life tended to be nasty, brutish, and short.
I hasten to add, however, that what I know about the Middle Ages can fit into the codpiece I once wore to a Ren Fair in Kansas City. It is an incomplete picture cobbled together from a few European castle tours, a half dozen stray books, and numerous movies, including Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Thus, my conception of this era is necessarily far from complete.
What I required was a mile-high overview that threaded the line between serious and not-too-serious, and that simplified things without dumbing them down.
That’s the reason why I turned to Dan Jones’s Powers and Thrones.
***
Jones is a model of the modern popular historian. He has a strong internet presence; he makes analogies to sports, especially the game the world sensibly refers to as football, and which Americans call soccer; and he seems genuinely passionate about getting paid to do what he clearly loves. The archetypal academic historian is writing for his colleagues. Jones is writing for everyone. He has an eagerness to share akin to a kindergartener at show-and-tell.
Jones’s willingness – nay, his intent – to appeal to a broad audience is a great thing in general. Yet in the area of the Middle Ages, it is especially important. That’s because medievalists are a notoriously unfun bunch, despite making a living dreaming of the past. For example, well-respected author-historians such as Barbara Tuchman and William Manchester have been slammed for encroaching on this territory, and for daring to compare then to now. There is an apparent belief in this field of study that interpreting the Middle Ages is a matter of life and death, and that everyone must act accordingly.
In Powers and Thrones, Jones wants things to be fun. Or at least as fun as anything involving the Black Death can be.
***
Not only is Jones accessible, but he has a marvelously methodical, building-block approach. This is important, because he’s trying to digest a lot in Powers and Thrones. More specifically, the tale begins in 410 AD, and ends in 1527 AD, which is a solid eleven centuries of human life.
Jones divides Powers and Thrones into four sections, each one corresponding to a specific date range. However, he is not telling a single, chronological narrative. Rather, the chapters within each section are thematic, covering topics such as knights, crusaders, merchants, and scholars. Within these chapters, Jones highlights individual characters, important events, technological advances, cultural trends, and architecture.
With so much to survey, there are inevitable highs and lows, though everything is fascinating in its own right. For instance, I found myself surprisingly engaged in Jones’s discussion on monasteries.
***
Given the scope of Powers and Thrones, Jones has to make inevitable tradeoffs in order to deliver a reasonably-sized single volume. This results in a lack of depth in some areas, and the elision of others completely.
For a starter book, though, that’s okay. In choosing this, I wanted to avoid getting lost in minutiae, or discovering that I required prerequisites to understand what was going on. From the beginning, which includes a long exploration of the fall of Rome, Jones proves an attentive tour guide.
It should also be noted that despite an acknowledged bias in favor of western Europe, Jones makes a concerted effort to provide a global snapshot. To that end, there is a chapter on the Arab conquests of the 600s, and the brief-but-spectacular emergence of the Mongol Empire in the 1200s.
***
The phrase “popular historian” is often used as a thinly veiled insult, or as a synonym for unseriousness. That’s not the impression I want to leave. Though he is often in front of a camera – especially on YouTube or Britain’s Channel 5 – and has also been known to be photographed looking self-consciously pensive while wearing a leather jacket, Jones is not an unlettered dilettante. This period of history is his thing, and he provides a long list of primary sources to back that up.
***
Whenever I branch off into a new area of history, I try to start with the biggest of big pictures. While this seems obvious, there have been times when I tried to jump into the deep end, and ended up hopelessly confused. The first time I tackled the French Revolution, for instance, the titles I chose made me feel like I was reading something that had been translated from Greek to Latin to English.
As I hoped, Powers and Thrones gave me the lay of the land. Jones did not knock me over with his prose or insights, but he provides a nice jumping-off point for further exploration. And not for nothing, he made the Middle Ages a pleasant place to visit vicariously, if not in reality.
September 14, 2024
Very immersive and impressive in how Dan Jones manages to summarize a millennium of developments. The medieval age is far from boring when reading this book
Dan Jones takes us from the fall of the Roman Empire to the sack of Rome more than 1.000 years later in little over 700 pages. Still Powers and Thrones: A New History of the Middle Ages manages to achieve quite some depth and is packed with facts and insights on an age I tend to think of as quite dull. The focus is clearly European, with the whole concept of the Middle Ages being a very European concept as well (read for instance The Story of China: A Portrait of a Civilisation and Its People, where the eb and flow of civilization in the East is subject to a completely different rhythm).
The tide of power shifts so often, the metaphore of a wheel of fortune spinning feels quite adequate
Anytime there is a power established a counterpower seems to immediately manifests itself and conspires to bring down the other in a Hegelian metronome kind of fashion.
Jones manages to keep an excellent helicopter view on the subject matter and intersperses general trends with lives set in the period to make his points. All in all a very interesting read that really changed my perception of the medieval period.
Facts and observations:
- Decimation being a punishment exacted by the Romans on a legion, where 1/10th of the men, selected by lot, was stoned to death by their fellow soldiers.
- The rise of Rome coinciding with a good spell of climate between 150 BC and 200 AD.
- The displacement of the Huns caused by climate crisis (draught) in East Asia
- Pivotal role of Constantine in making Christianity the state religion and prosecutor instead of prosecuted. If he had lost the battle or saw another omen the whole history of the late Roman Empire and Europe would have been different.
- How are provinces Britain, Italy and Spain, with their natural defences like the Alps, Pyrenees and the Channel, so badly guarded by the late Romans?
- Justinian the legal reformer and sodomy condemner, dealing with climate crisis due to volcanic eruptions and bubonic plague named after him
- The dome of the rock costing 7 times the tax revenue of the entire province of Egypt
- I lack some kind of background on papal history and schisma
- Likewise the rise of the Arabs, Vikings and later on the Normans feels very sudden, and I don’t feel I completely understand what set them on the spectacular conquests
- Vikings aiding the capture of Sidon in the Levant during the first crusade and Innocent blunting the instrument by using it against the Cathars and even the Holy Roman Emperor himself
- The audacity of Venice plundering Constantinopel
- The meteoric rise of the Mongols, also partly due to favourable weather conditions on the plains and the absolute brutality and sweeping changes to the Middle-East
- Marco Polo still taking 3.5 years to get to Xanadu
- Opening up of the world and trade routes by the largest landbase empire being established, and leading Chinese and Persian innovations entering into Europe (and the Black Death)
- Merchant class rising in Italy, with banking and double accounting taking a prominent role
- Where are the guilds? Or Arabs bazars when discussing the development of commerce?
- Florentine merchant families loaning 5 times the annual tax revenue of England to the king (guessing this anywhere between 50% and 100% of GDP if they had those measures then)
- Origin of the word bond being a ransom for captured bondsmen of lords and kings, captured on the battlefield
- The takedown of the Templars by the French on Friday the thirteenth, revealing the importance of universities to interpret disputes
- The founding of the University of Bologna being partly influenced due to geography, the city being on the crossroads of legal disputes between the Holy Roman Emperor and the pope
- Cambridge profiting from censoring at Oxford by the English court
- 14th century popular revolts as response to the decrease of workforce due to the black death toll of 40%
- Portugese ships trading one horse for 9 to 14 slaves in West-Africa
- The fall of Constantinopel to the Ottomans heralding a time of westward expansion and making finding a new route to India, avoiding this new Muslim state, more important
- Bartholome Diaz taking 1.5 years to get past Africa
- Maghelan his first journey around the world leaving only 20 alive of the 300 who set out
- St Peters rebuild being so expensive a kind of ponzi-scheme, based on pumping out indulgences in Germany, being set up, indirectly contributing to the Reformation
- Henry VIII comes back in a few sentences at the end of the book, connecting this book with the world of the Wolf Hall trilogy
Dan Jones takes us from the fall of the Roman Empire to the sack of Rome more than 1.000 years later in little over 700 pages. Still Powers and Thrones: A New History of the Middle Ages manages to achieve quite some depth and is packed with facts and insights on an age I tend to think of as quite dull. The focus is clearly European, with the whole concept of the Middle Ages being a very European concept as well (read for instance The Story of China: A Portrait of a Civilisation and Its People, where the eb and flow of civilization in the East is subject to a completely different rhythm).
The tide of power shifts so often, the metaphore of a wheel of fortune spinning feels quite adequate
Anytime there is a power established a counterpower seems to immediately manifests itself and conspires to bring down the other in a Hegelian metronome kind of fashion.
Jones manages to keep an excellent helicopter view on the subject matter and intersperses general trends with lives set in the period to make his points. All in all a very interesting read that really changed my perception of the medieval period.
Facts and observations:
- Decimation being a punishment exacted by the Romans on a legion, where 1/10th of the men, selected by lot, was stoned to death by their fellow soldiers.
- The rise of Rome coinciding with a good spell of climate between 150 BC and 200 AD.
- The displacement of the Huns caused by climate crisis (draught) in East Asia
- Pivotal role of Constantine in making Christianity the state religion and prosecutor instead of prosecuted. If he had lost the battle or saw another omen the whole history of the late Roman Empire and Europe would have been different.
- How are provinces Britain, Italy and Spain, with their natural defences like the Alps, Pyrenees and the Channel, so badly guarded by the late Romans?
- Justinian the legal reformer and sodomy condemner, dealing with climate crisis due to volcanic eruptions and bubonic plague named after him
- The dome of the rock costing 7 times the tax revenue of the entire province of Egypt
- I lack some kind of background on papal history and schisma
- Likewise the rise of the Arabs, Vikings and later on the Normans feels very sudden, and I don’t feel I completely understand what set them on the spectacular conquests
- Vikings aiding the capture of Sidon in the Levant during the first crusade and Innocent blunting the instrument by using it against the Cathars and even the Holy Roman Emperor himself
- The audacity of Venice plundering Constantinopel
- The meteoric rise of the Mongols, also partly due to favourable weather conditions on the plains and the absolute brutality and sweeping changes to the Middle-East
- Marco Polo still taking 3.5 years to get to Xanadu
- Opening up of the world and trade routes by the largest landbase empire being established, and leading Chinese and Persian innovations entering into Europe (and the Black Death)
- Merchant class rising in Italy, with banking and double accounting taking a prominent role
- Where are the guilds? Or Arabs bazars when discussing the development of commerce?
- Florentine merchant families loaning 5 times the annual tax revenue of England to the king (guessing this anywhere between 50% and 100% of GDP if they had those measures then)
- Origin of the word bond being a ransom for captured bondsmen of lords and kings, captured on the battlefield
- The takedown of the Templars by the French on Friday the thirteenth, revealing the importance of universities to interpret disputes
- The founding of the University of Bologna being partly influenced due to geography, the city being on the crossroads of legal disputes between the Holy Roman Emperor and the pope
- Cambridge profiting from censoring at Oxford by the English court
- 14th century popular revolts as response to the decrease of workforce due to the black death toll of 40%
- Portugese ships trading one horse for 9 to 14 slaves in West-Africa
- The fall of Constantinopel to the Ottomans heralding a time of westward expansion and making finding a new route to India, avoiding this new Muslim state, more important
- Bartholome Diaz taking 1.5 years to get past Africa
- Maghelan his first journey around the world leaving only 20 alive of the 300 who set out
- St Peters rebuild being so expensive a kind of ponzi-scheme, based on pumping out indulgences in Germany, being set up, indirectly contributing to the Reformation
- Henry VIII comes back in a few sentences at the end of the book, connecting this book with the world of the Wolf Hall trilogy
April 18, 2022
Everything I didn't know I wanted to know about the Middle Ages... and more.
This is the first time I had a library book expire on me and I had to put another hold on it before I could finish it. Had I enjoyed the first part more, I probably would have bought it rather than wait a couple months to get it again.
I might not have even bothered going back in the holds queue if it wasn't that I learned a lot in that first part, cumbersome though it was.
The beginning of the Middle Ages was just a bunch of people slaughtering each other: Muslims killing Christians. Christians killing Muslims, pagans, and pretty much everyone who didn't think like them and refused to "convert". Marauders from the North killing Christians and Muslims and everyone else in order to conquer their lands.
People talk about how violent the world is today. Ha! Even with the current wars going on, it's nothing compared to the Dark and early Middle Ages.
This book isn't easy reading, even aside from all that blood and gore. It's almost overdone in detail. It was a chore to get through and at times felt like a textbook, a very dense textbook.
However, some chapters had me totally enthralled: "Monks", "Merchants", "Scholars", "Builders", "Survivors", and the last chapter "Protestants". Those are more than sufficient to redeem the book from the humdrum (for me) parts.
This book focuses mostly on the West, but I was glad to note that the author pays homage to the Middle Easterners and Asians from whom we acquired knowledge and technology, something most Western authors prefer to ignore.
3.5 stars rounded up. If you enjoy reading about the Middle Ages, you'll probably want to add this book to your TBR pile.
This is the first time I had a library book expire on me and I had to put another hold on it before I could finish it. Had I enjoyed the first part more, I probably would have bought it rather than wait a couple months to get it again.
I might not have even bothered going back in the holds queue if it wasn't that I learned a lot in that first part, cumbersome though it was.
The beginning of the Middle Ages was just a bunch of people slaughtering each other: Muslims killing Christians. Christians killing Muslims, pagans, and pretty much everyone who didn't think like them and refused to "convert". Marauders from the North killing Christians and Muslims and everyone else in order to conquer their lands.
People talk about how violent the world is today. Ha! Even with the current wars going on, it's nothing compared to the Dark and early Middle Ages.
This book isn't easy reading, even aside from all that blood and gore. It's almost overdone in detail. It was a chore to get through and at times felt like a textbook, a very dense textbook.
However, some chapters had me totally enthralled: "Monks", "Merchants", "Scholars", "Builders", "Survivors", and the last chapter "Protestants". Those are more than sufficient to redeem the book from the humdrum (for me) parts.
This book focuses mostly on the West, but I was glad to note that the author pays homage to the Middle Easterners and Asians from whom we acquired knowledge and technology, something most Western authors prefer to ignore.
3.5 stars rounded up. If you enjoy reading about the Middle Ages, you'll probably want to add this book to your TBR pile.
Read
May 24, 2022Massive and wide-ranging history of the Middle Ages centring on Europe, from around 450 to 1500 CE. Covers the Middle East, Byzantium, the Mongols, some stuff on Scandinavia, Russia and Asia mostly as it relates to Europe; moves out to look at India and the Americas again mostly from the perspective of commerce/colonisation/invasion.
This is still a huge amount of stuff and it necessarily proceeds at something of a gallop while still being very long. It does manage to make a lot of the pieces fit together in an impressive way, partly by keeping a focus on themes and ongoing ideas rather than just events. I really liked the sections that focus on specific areas (monks, crusades, printing and popular revolt) rather than a country: those again give a very handy overview.
Lots of parallels drawn with modern times to varying effect including a frankly stupid section where the author talks about the oppression of new thought in universities as equivalent to 'wokeness' because it's about not letting people dissent or speak unpopular truths. Mm hmm. Because obviously 'woke' people are the ones entrenched in a position of power who don't want change, whereas the people who run universities and newspapers are the brave ones fighting against the establishment and daring to say, uh, the things they've been saying for years. Did anyone even read over this?
Which made me increasingly irritated/conscious of an authorial agenda with the other modern parallels, and increasingly aware how very much this is a history of predominantly white men, which, you know, I have read before and don't feel compelled to read again, what with other stories exist. Sorry if that makes me exactly the same as Pope Innocent III. *rolls eyes forever*
This is still a huge amount of stuff and it necessarily proceeds at something of a gallop while still being very long. It does manage to make a lot of the pieces fit together in an impressive way, partly by keeping a focus on themes and ongoing ideas rather than just events. I really liked the sections that focus on specific areas (monks, crusades, printing and popular revolt) rather than a country: those again give a very handy overview.
Lots of parallels drawn with modern times to varying effect including a frankly stupid section where the author talks about the oppression of new thought in universities as equivalent to 'wokeness' because it's about not letting people dissent or speak unpopular truths. Mm hmm. Because obviously 'woke' people are the ones entrenched in a position of power who don't want change, whereas the people who run universities and newspapers are the brave ones fighting against the establishment and daring to say, uh, the things they've been saying for years. Did anyone even read over this?
Which made me increasingly irritated/conscious of an authorial agenda with the other modern parallels, and increasingly aware how very much this is a history of predominantly white men, which, you know, I have read before and don't feel compelled to read again, what with other stories exist. Sorry if that makes me exactly the same as Pope Innocent III. *rolls eyes forever*
September 27, 2021
Published today 2-9-21
This book is a comprehensive, enjoyable and easy to read overview of the Middle Ages for the period AD 410-AD 1527. It has a strong and deliberate concentration on Western Europe with other parts of the world included only to the extent that they interacted with (and particularly if they impacted on) the West. It is also a big picture book – concentrating as the title suggests on powers and kingdoms,– this is not the book to read to get an idea of what day to day life was like for typical members of society at different points in the Middle Ages but to understand the macro forces which acted to bring about changes in society - the forces extending beyond political power to climate, disease, technology, religion and trade.
The book is in four main sections – each of four chapters of typically 40-50 pages each.
The first section is AD410-AD750:Imperium. The fours chapters are – Romans, Barbarians, Byzantines, Arabs. The first chapter is an overview of Imperial Rome – it successes and its strength almost immediately before its precipitous collapse (illustrated by the Hoxne Hoard and its connection with the collapse of Roman authority in England). This and the next chapter then looks at how climate change and associated mass migration (much of it a domino effect from other migrations – the author I think draws heavily here on Peter Heather’s brilliant “The Fall of Rome) undermined the entire basis on which the Empire was maintained. The resulting “Barbarian” realms in the West, the rise of the new Rome in Byzantium (and its interactions with the West) and the rise of Islam and its impact are then considered in turn.
The second section: is AD750 to AD1215: Dominion. The fours chapters are – Franks, Monks, Knights and Crusaders. This section is very much a study in human power – both hard power (the emerging Frankish kingdom and their revival of a pseudo-Roman Empire) but also the softer power of religious orders, the way in which the reliance on heavily armoured horse born soldiers (and the expense of supporting them) lead to the importance of Kinghthood and the invention of chivalry, and then the way in which both (together with the interaction with Byzantium and its own problem with its non-Christian neighbours) all interacted to lead to the Crusades.
The third section is AD1215 to AD1347: Rebirth. The fours chapters are - Mongols, Merchants, Scholars and Builders. The Mongols chapter features that the book calls a dramatic shift in geopolitics (caused by an Eastern Empire with a capital in what is now Bejing – with some fairly clear modern day resonances). But the rest of the chapter features some of those whose influences remain to this day – global traders and the financial devices (including banking) they developed around it, the founders of the World’s great Universities and the builders of some of its greatest buildings such as cathedrals and castles.
The fourth section is AD 1348 to AD1527: Revolution: The fours chapters are - Survivors, Renewers, Navigators, Protestants. This book is about the end of the middle ages – starting with the devastation of a global pandemic which unlike our present one caused mass mortality and transformed previously feudal economies not by lockdown but by a tragic demand/supply imbalance. The book looks at the Renaissance and the search for new worlds, before finishing with the Protestant Reformation which not just restored Christianity but finished the Middle Ages.
My thanks to Head of Zeus, Apollo for an ARC via NetGalley
This book is a comprehensive, enjoyable and easy to read overview of the Middle Ages for the period AD 410-AD 1527. It has a strong and deliberate concentration on Western Europe with other parts of the world included only to the extent that they interacted with (and particularly if they impacted on) the West. It is also a big picture book – concentrating as the title suggests on powers and kingdoms,– this is not the book to read to get an idea of what day to day life was like for typical members of society at different points in the Middle Ages but to understand the macro forces which acted to bring about changes in society - the forces extending beyond political power to climate, disease, technology, religion and trade.
The book is in four main sections – each of four chapters of typically 40-50 pages each.
The first section is AD410-AD750:Imperium. The fours chapters are – Romans, Barbarians, Byzantines, Arabs. The first chapter is an overview of Imperial Rome – it successes and its strength almost immediately before its precipitous collapse (illustrated by the Hoxne Hoard and its connection with the collapse of Roman authority in England). This and the next chapter then looks at how climate change and associated mass migration (much of it a domino effect from other migrations – the author I think draws heavily here on Peter Heather’s brilliant “The Fall of Rome) undermined the entire basis on which the Empire was maintained. The resulting “Barbarian” realms in the West, the rise of the new Rome in Byzantium (and its interactions with the West) and the rise of Islam and its impact are then considered in turn.
The second section: is AD750 to AD1215: Dominion. The fours chapters are – Franks, Monks, Knights and Crusaders. This section is very much a study in human power – both hard power (the emerging Frankish kingdom and their revival of a pseudo-Roman Empire) but also the softer power of religious orders, the way in which the reliance on heavily armoured horse born soldiers (and the expense of supporting them) lead to the importance of Kinghthood and the invention of chivalry, and then the way in which both (together with the interaction with Byzantium and its own problem with its non-Christian neighbours) all interacted to lead to the Crusades.
The third section is AD1215 to AD1347: Rebirth. The fours chapters are - Mongols, Merchants, Scholars and Builders. The Mongols chapter features that the book calls a dramatic shift in geopolitics (caused by an Eastern Empire with a capital in what is now Bejing – with some fairly clear modern day resonances). But the rest of the chapter features some of those whose influences remain to this day – global traders and the financial devices (including banking) they developed around it, the founders of the World’s great Universities and the builders of some of its greatest buildings such as cathedrals and castles.
The fourth section is AD 1348 to AD1527: Revolution: The fours chapters are - Survivors, Renewers, Navigators, Protestants. This book is about the end of the middle ages – starting with the devastation of a global pandemic which unlike our present one caused mass mortality and transformed previously feudal economies not by lockdown but by a tragic demand/supply imbalance. The book looks at the Renaissance and the search for new worlds, before finishing with the Protestant Reformation which not just restored Christianity but finished the Middle Ages.
My thanks to Head of Zeus, Apollo for an ARC via NetGalley
November 24, 2021
Lots of interesting events and obscure historical details, but the scope of the book is just too broad to be anything other than a race through history. The book covers the medieval world from AD 410 to AD 1527. I listened to the audiobook read by the author. He did a fine job with the narration, but I missed having footnotes and/or a bibliography so I could go deeper into a topic that interested me.
Among the subjects that were galloped through were: the Romans, Huns, Byzantines, Arabs, plagues, Vikings, crusades, Mongols, Marco Polo, impact of climate change, Renaissance, exploration, trade, printing press, Protestant reformation and many, many wars, conflicts and usurpations. The stated goal of the author was to inform and entertain. While I enjoyed the book, this was just too much to cover in a single book.
Among the subjects that were galloped through were: the Romans, Huns, Byzantines, Arabs, plagues, Vikings, crusades, Mongols, Marco Polo, impact of climate change, Renaissance, exploration, trade, printing press, Protestant reformation and many, many wars, conflicts and usurpations. The stated goal of the author was to inform and entertain. While I enjoyed the book, this was just too much to cover in a single book.
June 13, 2022
I am giving this book 4 stars though I should probably give it 3. That's not to be construed in any way that I was dissatisfied with the book because I was not. The fact is I was totally satisfied and that is what I expect from reading anything by Dan Jones. For me 3 stars means the book was good and worth the expense of time and money I devoted to it. After thinking about it, however, I decided to up the rating to 4 stars. I did this because Jones has done something here that is rather extraordinary. He has made a history of the Middle Ages readable. Can you imagine a more boring area of history than the Middle Ages? Really. Can a time period be imagined that could more quickly put a high school history class to sleep instantly? I think not. Nevertheless, Jones succeeds in keeping the reader turning pages and there are 578 pages to turn before the reader reaches the end. Dan Jones is that very rare historian that clearly writes with the belief that his books will be read by the average reader and not just other academics. This book is a marvelous display of that talent as well as Jones' wry sense of humor. My god a historian with a sense of humor actually displayed in print how did he escape academia with that jewel still in his possession?
As for the book itself it is long and heavy. My wife wanted to use it as a weight for her yoga class but I rejected that sacrilege. A good history is precious and should be respected. Of course one should expect a history of the Middle Ages to be a book of some length and this one covers a time period from roughly the Third Century C.E. to the 16th century and near the end of the Renaissance. Most histories of this period cover this subject chronologically concentrating on the power centers as they shifted geographically. They also then treat the various medieval tribal influences that affected the power centers. Jones treats the subject in a different manner that is more comprehensive and gives the reader a better appreciation of the period. In addition to covering the Romans, Byzantines, the medieval tribes, and the Arabs he also focuses on cultural, social, religious, and commercial influences that existed and affected the evolution of medieval society. The Middle Ages as rendered by Dan Jones is not as dark, depressing, and violent as what we may have been introduced to in school. Of course there is plenty here that is dark, depressing, and violent and Jones's sense of humor makes this more palatable. Reading a footnote of how some ancient personage met his end can be darkly funny to some. Maybe Jones and I have similar senses of humor. Anyway, an unexpected footnote concerning a rather insignificant bit of trivia has a way of keeping a reader's interest as well as lightening the subject matter. So if you'd like to view the Middle Ages in an entirely new light then this is a book that can give that to you. Enjoy.
As for the book itself it is long and heavy. My wife wanted to use it as a weight for her yoga class but I rejected that sacrilege. A good history is precious and should be respected. Of course one should expect a history of the Middle Ages to be a book of some length and this one covers a time period from roughly the Third Century C.E. to the 16th century and near the end of the Renaissance. Most histories of this period cover this subject chronologically concentrating on the power centers as they shifted geographically. They also then treat the various medieval tribal influences that affected the power centers. Jones treats the subject in a different manner that is more comprehensive and gives the reader a better appreciation of the period. In addition to covering the Romans, Byzantines, the medieval tribes, and the Arabs he also focuses on cultural, social, religious, and commercial influences that existed and affected the evolution of medieval society. The Middle Ages as rendered by Dan Jones is not as dark, depressing, and violent as what we may have been introduced to in school. Of course there is plenty here that is dark, depressing, and violent and Jones's sense of humor makes this more palatable. Reading a footnote of how some ancient personage met his end can be darkly funny to some. Maybe Jones and I have similar senses of humor. Anyway, an unexpected footnote concerning a rather insignificant bit of trivia has a way of keeping a reader's interest as well as lightening the subject matter. So if you'd like to view the Middle Ages in an entirely new light then this is a book that can give that to you. Enjoy.
March 7, 2025
Classic top notch DJ. If you need a starter on The Middle Ages, check this out.
February 16, 2024
Широкообхватна, както и темата предполага, достъпна, на места доста увлекателна, макар и не без слабости.
От една добра книга за Средновековието бих очаквала освен класическото лиенарно представяне на основните събития, и един свестен анализ на феномени и концепции. Дан Джоунс ни поднася и двете – периодът от падането на Римската империя до началото на Реформацията, заедно с поотделното представяне на рицари кръстоносци, монаси, книжовници, пътешественици, епидемията от чума, замъците и катедралите, както и народите, които са населявали тези пространства – византийци, араби, франки, монголи и техните по-късни производни. На пръв поглед това струпване изглежда объркващо, но Джоунс успява да държи читателя на гребена в морето от факти, макар и понякога на косъм. Като се има предвид колко сложен е разглежданият период, колко бързо се променят територии, държавни граници и имена на цели държави, това не е дребно постижение.
Както много често се случва напоследък в съвременните исторически книги, ме подразни технократския език и някои много пресилени, но претендиращи за оригиналност препратки към съвремието. Някои описания на исторически личности се базират на твърде субективни мнения на съвременници или са представени от самия автор с приказни, почти инфантилни прилагателни. Но положителното усещане от добре организираната информация, която, почти като в добър учебник, извежда основните положения и ги затвърждава и на други места, надделява. Научих много, избистрих си в общи линии картината, и макар че периодът като цяло не ме запленява, изчезна предишната ми неприятно усещане към него.
Книгата успешно преодолява досегашните исторически клишета за онези тъмни безпросветни времена, в които човекът е презряна твар, малко по-висша от плъх. Хуманността, красотата и благородството не са запазена марка само на Ренесанса, нито пък самият Ренесанс е бил единствено цъфтеж и великолепие. Написана с много внимание и уважение към периода, „Власти и престоли“ ме накара да съчувствам на човека от Средновековието и да ценя настоящето.
От една добра книга за Средновековието бих очаквала освен класическото лиенарно представяне на основните събития, и един свестен анализ на феномени и концепции. Дан Джоунс ни поднася и двете – периодът от падането на Римската империя до началото на Реформацията, заедно с поотделното представяне на рицари кръстоносци, монаси, книжовници, пътешественици, епидемията от чума, замъците и катедралите, както и народите, които са населявали тези пространства – византийци, араби, франки, монголи и техните по-късни производни. На пръв поглед това струпване изглежда объркващо, но Джоунс успява да държи читателя на гребена в морето от факти, макар и понякога на косъм. Като се има предвид колко сложен е разглежданият период, колко бързо се променят територии, държавни граници и имена на цели държави, това не е дребно постижение.
Както много често се случва напоследък в съвременните исторически книги, ме подразни технократския език и някои много пресилени, но претендиращи за оригиналност препратки към съвремието. Някои описания на исторически личности се базират на твърде субективни мнения на съвременници или са представени от самия автор с приказни, почти инфантилни прилагателни. Но положителното усещане от добре организираната информация, която, почти като в добър учебник, извежда основните положения и ги затвърждава и на други места, надделява. Научих много, избистрих си в общи линии картината, и макар че периодът като цяло не ме запленява, изчезна предишната ми неприятно усещане към него.
Книгата успешно преодолява досегашните исторически клишета за онези тъмни безпросветни времена, в които човекът е презряна твар, малко по-висша от плъх. Хуманността, красотата и благородството не са запазена марка само на Ренесанса, нито пък самият Ренесанс е бил единствено цъфтеж и великолепие. Написана с много внимание и уважение към периода, „Власти и престоли“ ме накара да съчувствам на човека от Средновековието и да ценя настоящето.
October 5, 2024
This book was a swashbuckling journey through the sweep of medieval history, and I have to admit, it left me both fascinated and a bit worn out by the end. I found myself drawn into this book for its grand scope and Jones’ knack for storytelling, but I’d be lying if I said it was an easy read from start to finish. It’s the kind of book that pulls you in with its vivid descriptions but can sometimes bog you down with the sheer weight of its subject matter.
One of the things I really liked about this book is how Jones breathes life into a time period that can feel very distant and foreign. He avoids the typical dry, academic approach to medieval history, opting instead to weave in the human element.
The stories of rulers, warriors, and everyday people are told with a sense of drama that makes them feel alive. Too often, books about this era devolve into lists of dates, battles, and coronations, but Jones brings a touch of humanity to the historical figures, making their triumphs and failures relatable, even if they lived centuries ago.
What Jones does really well is give us a sense of how fragile our knowledge of the past actually is. The deeper we go into history, the fewer documents we have to rely on. In the medieval period, most of what was written down came from the elite—bureaucrats, the aristocracy, and the clergy—which means we get a very skewed picture of events. Jones acknowledges this and does his best to fill in the gaps, but it’s clear that much of the history we have from that time is told from the top down. The average person’s experience is often missing, which gives you a real sense of how the masses lived in silence, their suffering largely ignored.
That said, while Jones excels at injecting drama into these ancient stories, the brutality of the time period can be overwhelming. So many of these kings and rulers claimed to be divinely appointed and built their legitimacy on piety, only to turn around and commit horrific atrocities. The hypocrisy is staggering.
They’d spend hours praying in magnificent cathedrals, only to order the slaughter of entire villages or raise taxes on a populace already suffering from plague and poverty. The violence feels unrelenting at times, and after a few chapters, it can start to feel repetitive.
If I have one complaint about the book, it’s that there were moments when the details felt a bit too dense. While I loved how Jones brought these historical figures to life, there were times when I felt lost in the weeds of complex political alliances and endless military campaigns. It’s easy to get bogged down by the sheer amount of information, and I found myself needing to take breaks from the book to process everything. It’s not a book you can race through—at least, not without losing some of the nuance.
Overall, though, this book is a solid read for anyone interested in medieval history. It’s got a good balance of drama, intrigue, and historical detail, and Jones has a way of making even the most distant events feel relevant. It’s not a light read by any means, but if you’re up for a challenge and want to learn more about this pivotal period in history, I’d definitely recommend it. Just be prepared to wade through some pretty dark moments along the way.
One of the things I really liked about this book is how Jones breathes life into a time period that can feel very distant and foreign. He avoids the typical dry, academic approach to medieval history, opting instead to weave in the human element.
The stories of rulers, warriors, and everyday people are told with a sense of drama that makes them feel alive. Too often, books about this era devolve into lists of dates, battles, and coronations, but Jones brings a touch of humanity to the historical figures, making their triumphs and failures relatable, even if they lived centuries ago.
What Jones does really well is give us a sense of how fragile our knowledge of the past actually is. The deeper we go into history, the fewer documents we have to rely on. In the medieval period, most of what was written down came from the elite—bureaucrats, the aristocracy, and the clergy—which means we get a very skewed picture of events. Jones acknowledges this and does his best to fill in the gaps, but it’s clear that much of the history we have from that time is told from the top down. The average person’s experience is often missing, which gives you a real sense of how the masses lived in silence, their suffering largely ignored.
That said, while Jones excels at injecting drama into these ancient stories, the brutality of the time period can be overwhelming. So many of these kings and rulers claimed to be divinely appointed and built their legitimacy on piety, only to turn around and commit horrific atrocities. The hypocrisy is staggering.
They’d spend hours praying in magnificent cathedrals, only to order the slaughter of entire villages or raise taxes on a populace already suffering from plague and poverty. The violence feels unrelenting at times, and after a few chapters, it can start to feel repetitive.
If I have one complaint about the book, it’s that there were moments when the details felt a bit too dense. While I loved how Jones brought these historical figures to life, there were times when I felt lost in the weeds of complex political alliances and endless military campaigns. It’s easy to get bogged down by the sheer amount of information, and I found myself needing to take breaks from the book to process everything. It’s not a book you can race through—at least, not without losing some of the nuance.
Overall, though, this book is a solid read for anyone interested in medieval history. It’s got a good balance of drama, intrigue, and historical detail, and Jones has a way of making even the most distant events feel relevant. It’s not a light read by any means, but if you’re up for a challenge and want to learn more about this pivotal period in history, I’d definitely recommend it. Just be prepared to wade through some pretty dark moments along the way.
May 8, 2022
This was a long one but very well researched and written.For whatever reason I was only particularly drawn to certain chapters that were of interest to me such as Romans,Barbarians, Byzantines,Arabs,Monks,Knights,Merchants and Builders.Some chapters I got a little lost in the unfamiliar names and stories.Overall though I learned new to me information and I would definitely pick up this author again.
March 22, 2024
To write a single-volume lively history of the Middle Ages (spanning the years 410-1527) is certainly a daunting task—but Dan Jones has done an admirable job with this one. Besides being academically respectable, it is also a page-turning, engaging read. Much is covered, with particular focus on some subjects at the expense of others, but that sort of selective approach seems unavoidable—a historian dealing with so many topics deserving attention has to make choices and live with them (or simply write more than one book).
The book is laid out in topical chapters, which are mostly chronological. It begins with the downfall of the Roman Empire, and ends with the Protestant Reformation. Of the most interest to me personally were the chapters on the Romans, Mongols, Scholars, and Navigators, but I enjoyed and learned from every single chapter.
In the introduction, Jones unapologetically lets the reader know that this is history viewed through a Eurocentric lens, and points out that, in fact, “…the very notion of the Middle Ages is one that is specific to western history.” p. xviii. So, my advice is to keep that perspective in mind and just enjoy the historical ride!
Like the best survey histories, this one functions very well as a springboard to further reading on many a topic. 4.5 stars (rounded up to 5).
The book is laid out in topical chapters, which are mostly chronological. It begins with the downfall of the Roman Empire, and ends with the Protestant Reformation. Of the most interest to me personally were the chapters on the Romans, Mongols, Scholars, and Navigators, but I enjoyed and learned from every single chapter.
In the introduction, Jones unapologetically lets the reader know that this is history viewed through a Eurocentric lens, and points out that, in fact, “…the very notion of the Middle Ages is one that is specific to western history.” p. xviii. So, my advice is to keep that perspective in mind and just enjoy the historical ride!
Like the best survey histories, this one functions very well as a springboard to further reading on many a topic. 4.5 stars (rounded up to 5).
September 1, 2025
Nothing ever wrong with Jones work…he writes like he’s sitting with you telling a story from his mind’s eye…
…and excellent primer on the medieval world…
…and excellent primer on the medieval world…
abandoned
December 7, 2022This year I have begun with high hopes several of these giant historical surveys, books that cover a millennium or more in a single volume, and none of them have lived up to my hopes. Three weeks and 178 pages later, this one too is a nope. While the author’s style is readable, it’s your standard overview of political history: the status of empires, what battles were fought, etc., ultimately not that different from what you’d find in any textbook. I’d love to have a better understanding of the medieval period as a whole, but I suppose what I’m really looking for is a social history, or one that focuses more on fundamental differences between countries and centuries in terms of political organization, religious thought and so on. Something with a stronger point-of-view or argument, and less simply spinning the reader through the same old facts. It’s not that I wasn’t learning anything here, but it became a slog.
For a book focused on European history, this one does spend more pages than usual on events in other places (the Arab world in particular, and it counts the Byzantine Empire as part of Europe while most western authors seem to ignore it), so there is that. But if you’re at all interested in Muslim history, you should definitely read Destiny Disrupted instead—a book so good I blame it for all my disappointing attempts to read giant overviews since.
For a book focused on European history, this one does spend more pages than usual on events in other places (the Arab world in particular, and it counts the Byzantine Empire as part of Europe while most western authors seem to ignore it), so there is that. But if you’re at all interested in Muslim history, you should definitely read Destiny Disrupted instead—a book so good I blame it for all my disappointing attempts to read giant overviews since.
July 22, 2021
Very readable, entertaining with irony, humor and a panoramic view of the period from the 400's to the 1500's. Highly recommended
August 4, 2024
Dan Jones has once again created an informational text that is also very accessible. Covering over 1000 years from the fall of Rome through the reformation all the while introducing readers to the lives of well known and surprising new characters. This timespan is broken up into 4 parts with each part containing 4 chapters covering from North Africa, Asia, Europe and at the end some parts of the Americas.
I have enjoyed previous works by Dan Jones but I’m always surprised at how easy it is to read and how engaging he makes the content. The book is mostly Europe focused with an emphasis, I felt, specifically on Britain and France. Yet he did manage to include major themes from other areas such as the rise of Islam in Africa and the Middle East, and the rise of the Mongols in Asia and their sweep across into Europe.
Because this work covers so much in such a relatively smaller page space, it’s not as in-depth as say a book focused on each specific section. Yet I learned a lot and felt that Jones was able to cover and explain the main concepts and key landmarks of each section.
Overall this is a great book for both someone new to European medieval history and to someone who has more experience with this time period. I found myself learning more in the rise of Islam chapter and about the specific knights like Él Cid in Spain than I did in other chapters.
I have enjoyed previous works by Dan Jones but I’m always surprised at how easy it is to read and how engaging he makes the content. The book is mostly Europe focused with an emphasis, I felt, specifically on Britain and France. Yet he did manage to include major themes from other areas such as the rise of Islam in Africa and the Middle East, and the rise of the Mongols in Asia and their sweep across into Europe.
Because this work covers so much in such a relatively smaller page space, it’s not as in-depth as say a book focused on each specific section. Yet I learned a lot and felt that Jones was able to cover and explain the main concepts and key landmarks of each section.
Overall this is a great book for both someone new to European medieval history and to someone who has more experience with this time period. I found myself learning more in the rise of Islam chapter and about the specific knights like Él Cid in Spain than I did in other chapters.
April 1, 2022
An interesting book with a rather misleading title: this is not a book about kings and dynasties, power or thrones, but more a theme-based tale about various topics during the middle ages. Themes include, amongst other, science, monastery life, the rise of the Mongols and the rise of Islam. It starts with the sacking of Rome and ends with Columbus's discovery of the America's. All in all an enjoyable read and a nice (new?) perspective on the Middle Ages.
September 10, 2021
I'll post a review soon - as soon as I've got a bit more time. I really enjoyed this book though, but it's looong XD
September 2, 2021
Powers & Thrones takes a comprehensive, captivating and entertaining look at the enduring legacy of the Middle Ages in the form of supremely talented historian, broadcaster and award-winning journalist Dan Jones’ narrative nonfiction. This is an epic reappraisal of the medieval world--and the rich and complicated legacy left to us by the rise of the West. When the once-mighty city of Rome was sacked by barbarians in 410 and lay in ruins, it signalled the end of an era--and the beginning of a thousand years of profound transformation. In a gripping narrative bursting with big names--from St Augustine and Attila the Hun to the Prophet Muhammad and Eleanor of Aquitaine--Dan Jones charges through the history of the Middle Ages. Powers and Thrones takes readers on a journey through an emerging Europe, the great capitals of late Antiquity, as well as the influential cities of the Islamic West, and culminates in the first contact between the old and new worlds in the sixteenth century.
The medieval world was forged by the big forces that still occupy us today: climate change, pandemic disease, mass migration, and technological revolutions. This was the time when the great European nationalities were formed; when our basic Western systems of law and governance were codified; when the Christian Churches matured as both powerful institutions and the regulators of Western public morality; and when art, architecture, philosophical inquiry and scientific invention went through periods of massive, revolutionary change. At each stage in this story, successive western powers thrived by attracting--or stealing--the most valuable resources, ideas, and people from the rest of the world.
The West was rebuilt on the ruins of an empire and emerged from a state of crisis and collapse to dominate the region and the world. Every sphere of human life and activity was transformed in the thousand years of Powers and Thrones. As we face a critical turning point in our own millennium, the legacy and lessons of how we got here matter more than ever. A richly informative, magnificent and eminently readable history of the Middle Ages in which Jones takes present-day preoccupations and analyses them, playing them out in a different time. Just as A Distant Mirror was about the calamities of the twentieth century reflected in the fourteenth century, this focuses on twenty-first-century preoccupations, things like climate change, big migrations of people, big technological changes, the emergence of nations and the relationship between individual states and big dominant superstructures. It is looking at all of the things we think about now, concerning the Middle Ages. Highly recommended.
The medieval world was forged by the big forces that still occupy us today: climate change, pandemic disease, mass migration, and technological revolutions. This was the time when the great European nationalities were formed; when our basic Western systems of law and governance were codified; when the Christian Churches matured as both powerful institutions and the regulators of Western public morality; and when art, architecture, philosophical inquiry and scientific invention went through periods of massive, revolutionary change. At each stage in this story, successive western powers thrived by attracting--or stealing--the most valuable resources, ideas, and people from the rest of the world.
The West was rebuilt on the ruins of an empire and emerged from a state of crisis and collapse to dominate the region and the world. Every sphere of human life and activity was transformed in the thousand years of Powers and Thrones. As we face a critical turning point in our own millennium, the legacy and lessons of how we got here matter more than ever. A richly informative, magnificent and eminently readable history of the Middle Ages in which Jones takes present-day preoccupations and analyses them, playing them out in a different time. Just as A Distant Mirror was about the calamities of the twentieth century reflected in the fourteenth century, this focuses on twenty-first-century preoccupations, things like climate change, big migrations of people, big technological changes, the emergence of nations and the relationship between individual states and big dominant superstructures. It is looking at all of the things we think about now, concerning the Middle Ages. Highly recommended.
June 21, 2022
Dan Jones is a talented writer, but, in this work, he attempts to cover far too much material. The result--especially in the book's early chapters--is often a barrage of names and events that resonates only with those who already know the subject matter. However, such knowledgeable readers will find little of interest in this superficial overview. The narrative does improves later in work when Jones shifts from a chronological to a topical approach. The section on the age of exploration is particularly well done.
March 30, 2024
Средновековието живее сред нас и до днес: https://knigolandia.info/vlasti-i-pre...
Обичам да чета такива мащабни обобщаващи изследвания, но после мъчно се накарвам да седна да пиша за тях, ей го, почти месец се търкулна, откакто завърших „Власти и престоли. Нова история на Средновековието“ на Дан Джоунс. От една страна, не е лесно да сумираш вкратце колко много информация е събрана в нея, от друго, щателното водене на записки всъщност ми изиграва лоша шега, защото само преписването на цитати и ключови моменти всъщност се превръща в многочасова тегоба. В крайна сметка Средновековието е общопознато, нали, какво толкова има да научим за него… ами, много, защото отвъд познатата хронологична рамка всъщност се крие както много история, така и безброй интересни детайли. От рано трябва да ви предупредя, че българите не присъстваме в тази книга, много може да се спори защо това е така, след като военната ни история е в общи линии единственото, за което като народ сме на едно мнение, но ще оставя този щекотлив въпрос отворен. Разбира се, още в началото трябва да спомена една друга изключителна книга, посветена на периода – „Цивилизацията на средновековния Запад“ на Жак льо Гоф, като разликата между двете е, че Джоунс набляга повече на политическата история на европейския Запад, а Льо Гоф – на икономическата и културната.
Издателство "Лабиринт"
https://knigolandia.info/vlasti-i-pre...
Обичам да чета такива мащабни обобщаващи изследвания, но после мъчно се накарвам да седна да пиша за тях, ей го, почти месец се търкулна, откакто завърших „Власти и престоли. Нова история на Средновековието“ на Дан Джоунс. От една страна, не е лесно да сумираш вкратце колко много информация е събрана в нея, от друго, щателното водене на записки всъщност ми изиграва лоша шега, защото само преписването на цитати и ключови моменти всъщност се превръща в многочасова тегоба. В крайна сметка Средновековието е общопознато, нали, какво толкова има да научим за него… ами, много, защото отвъд познатата хронологична рамка всъщност се крие както много история, така и безброй интересни детайли. От рано трябва да ви предупредя, че българите не присъстваме в тази книга, много може да се спори защо това е така, след като военната ни история е в общи линии единственото, за което като народ сме на едно мнение, но ще оставя този щекотлив въпрос отворен. Разбира се, още в началото трябва да спомена една друга изключителна книга, посветена на периода – „Цивилизацията на средновековния Запад“ на Жак льо Гоф, като разликата между двете е, че Джоунс набляга повече на политическата история на европейския Запад, а Льо Гоф – на икономическата и културната.
Издателство "Лабиринт"
https://knigolandia.info/vlasti-i-pre...
August 22, 2021
It should come as no surprise that Jones has decided to take on 1000 years of history and condense it into one tome.
To be perfectly blunt, I can take or leave Jones as an author - its nothing personal. I've read his books and find them entertaining enough, but to be honest he is not one of my "go to" authors - I don't go all "fan girl" when I see his books.
Having said that, this is quite a good, well-rounded read, that will appeal to the masses. It is broken down into four parts, and four sub topics, that flow in a linear timeline. The focus encompasses both Roman Empires (East & West), Europe and the UK. Its only when discussing the Arabs and Mongols does Jones veer from a predominantly Euro-centric narrative.
The aim here is to entertain and inform, and Jones does this remarkably well; and there is - of course - plenty of notes and references for the avid history buff to go exploring further on their own.
I would recommend this to anyone looking for a slightly different take on the history narrative - and for all fans of Jones!
Edit: see fuller review @ Melisende's Library wherein I break down the chapters.
To be perfectly blunt, I can take or leave Jones as an author - its nothing personal. I've read his books and find them entertaining enough, but to be honest he is not one of my "go to" authors - I don't go all "fan girl" when I see his books.
Having said that, this is quite a good, well-rounded read, that will appeal to the masses. It is broken down into four parts, and four sub topics, that flow in a linear timeline. The focus encompasses both Roman Empires (East & West), Europe and the UK. Its only when discussing the Arabs and Mongols does Jones veer from a predominantly Euro-centric narrative.
The aim here is to entertain and inform, and Jones does this remarkably well; and there is - of course - plenty of notes and references for the avid history buff to go exploring further on their own.
I would recommend this to anyone looking for a slightly different take on the history narrative - and for all fans of Jones!
Edit: see fuller review @ Melisende's Library wherein I break down the chapters.
October 21, 2023
This book is fairly well written and researched as far as it went but it was reminiscent of history written before historians realized that women and others played an important role. Jones wrote very little about the indigenous people in the America's that were so badly treated and beyond a bit on Joan of Arc, virtually nothing on women during the Middle Ages. There were some formidable queens and would be queens but it was as if they did not exist. One would have thought that people like Matilda, Eleanor of Aquitaine, and Catherine de Medici would have been worthy of a mention. Because her cousin Steven of Blois usurped the crown, Matilda, the rightful heir never ascended to the crown and nearly twenty years of war resulted. For me, the omissions in this book constitutes a major error at a time when most historians are trying to be more inclusive in their writing.
March 4, 2025
In this masterful work, Dan Jones provides a grand tour of the Middle Ages, spanning over 1,000 years, from the end of the western Roman Empire to the Reformation. The book is generally chronological but is also organized within a framework of thematic chapters, such as barbarians, builders, merchants, and navigators.
The book expands on an Anglocentric or western European viewpoint to include what was going on in central and eastern Europe as well as the Near East during these years. Within this sweeping scope, Jones injects the narrative with fascinating stories of many of the people who rose to prominence in their times and influenced events in major ways - people from Mohammad to Joan of Arc to da Vinci to Luther. And he shows how interconnected people were from across this wide geographical range by virtue especially of commerce, crusades, and religious conflict.
A central premise is that the Middle Ages are worth knowing about because in many ways we stand on the shoulders of the people who lived then. In ways both big and small, our experiences reflect theirs. While it can be a stretch to draw a straight line from then to now, it can be said that powerful forces that impacted people of that time impact us in some iteration today - climate change, mass migration, war, global pandemics, technological advances, and changing cultural values to name a few.
I’m super impressed with Dan Jones as a historian and a thinker and as someone who can convey accurate, insightful information in a very engaging and accessible style of writing.
The book expands on an Anglocentric or western European viewpoint to include what was going on in central and eastern Europe as well as the Near East during these years. Within this sweeping scope, Jones injects the narrative with fascinating stories of many of the people who rose to prominence in their times and influenced events in major ways - people from Mohammad to Joan of Arc to da Vinci to Luther. And he shows how interconnected people were from across this wide geographical range by virtue especially of commerce, crusades, and religious conflict.
A central premise is that the Middle Ages are worth knowing about because in many ways we stand on the shoulders of the people who lived then. In ways both big and small, our experiences reflect theirs. While it can be a stretch to draw a straight line from then to now, it can be said that powerful forces that impacted people of that time impact us in some iteration today - climate change, mass migration, war, global pandemics, technological advances, and changing cultural values to name a few.
I’m super impressed with Dan Jones as a historian and a thinker and as someone who can convey accurate, insightful information in a very engaging and accessible style of writing.
April 18, 2024
Very impressed with this. I don't read much non-fiction but I am a history buff and the Middle Ages intrigues me. This a well done overall view of a long time period covering many different topics. That he packed so much information into only 600 pages is impressive. It neither feels too detailed nor too high level. And while it's not a narrative it is also not a dry listing of names and dates. Instead you get a real feel for the people and places and oftentimes bloody events. It is true that history is grimdark. Any one of a number of historical events discussed here might be considered too extreme by some readers if written into a fantasy novel. Also, I want to give Dan Jones credit for playing it very straight with the facts and not doing any editorializing or making of political or moral judgments of historical figures based on 21st century sensibilities.
July 29, 2021
I received a free digital ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.
(I complained on Twitter about not getting approved or denied so maybe Dan Jones told them to give me a copy just so I would shut up about it.)
Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I know, I know.
I obviously can't be objective because it's Dan Jones, is what you're all thinking.
Well, I CAN!
This book is just THAT GOOD.
Literally all of my favorite people, places, and things from history, in one ginormous volume, covering roughly 1,000 years of everything that happened from the Fall of Rome to those Tudors coming in and shaking things up.
We're talking this one might be rivalling The Plantagenets: The Warrior Kings and Queens Who Made England as my most fave Dan Jones book. That's HUGE. I first learned about Eleanor of Aquitaine from The Plantagenets so Dan Jones basically named my baby. (Side note: I always remind Eleanor that she is so lucky that I learned about Eleanor of Aquitaine BEFORE Boudicca, or she might have a very different name.)
BUT THIS ONE IS SO GOOD.
You also might be thinking, "Do we need ANOTHER book about the Middle Ages?"
Again, the answer is yes.
What Jones has managed to do once again is combine his massive amount of knowledge, tying it all together across place and time, and present it in a highly informative yet highly readable way.
I was lucky to have teachers who really made history come alive for me, even going back to middle school. History has been my love for as long as I can remember. I get that non-fiction is not for everyone. A lot of people don't even give it a chance because history was taught to them in a boring recitation of facts and dates and names.
This book though, is something different; an extraordinary feat that Jones should 100% be proud of. (And I assure you he is, because who wouldn't be?)
He brings these historical figures to life and makes them real once more. It's hard sometimes to think about people this way, to imagine them living and working and dying in a world so different from our own. But Jones has the skill to share this knowledge and research in such an engaging way that you feel as though you could actually reach back in time and walk along Hadrian's Wall (which you actually can do if you're in the UK, which I am not and that is sad), to sit in a Great Hall and take in all the sights and sounds and smells of life at a royal court, to race along the Asian Steppes with Genghis Khan, watch as Rome is sacked time and again (six altogether in this span that Jones covers), and more.
SO MUCH MORE.
Really, truly. I was actually nervous about how I was even going to write up this review because there is so much material to address. Otherwise I would have had it up days ago.
I really love how Jones divided up each section. First there is Imperium, Latin for what amounts to absolute power, which Rome once had, which covers 410-750. Here we find chapters on the Romans, Barbarians, Byzantines, and Arabs.
Next comes Dominion, spanning 750-1215, with sections entitled Franks, Monks, Knights, and Crusades.
Third is Rebirth, 1215-1347, detailing the time as it related to the Mongols, Merchants, Scholars, and Builders.
Last comes Revolution, 1348-1527. We learn of Survivors, Renewers, Navigators, and Protestants.
As you might expect, there is an extensive section of notes and from Jones you should expect no less. The text ended at 77% in my advanced digital copy, with notes taking up the next 13% of the content. Primary sources cover another 4%, with journal articles and theses ending at 96%. The remainder right up to 100% is footnotes.
I can promise that if you pick this one up and settle in for a good bit of reading time, you will not be disappointed. Powers and Thrones: A New History of the Middle Ages is the new standard against which to measure all others books covering the same topics.
Without a doubt, this is the best book of 2021 for me and I don't believe that anything the rest of the year can top it.
Highly, highly, highly recommended.
******************************************
OBVIOUSLY.
EDIT 7-18-21: I have no idea how on earth I’m actually going to review this book because how do I review a book that encompasses 1000 years of history, including every person place and thing I love to read about all in one volume. Fantastic. Review to come.
Text ends at 77%
Notes ends at 90%
Primary sources ends at 94%
Journal articles/theses ends at 96%
Footnotes 96%-100%
(I complained on Twitter about not getting approved or denied so maybe Dan Jones told them to give me a copy just so I would shut up about it.)
Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I know, I know.
I obviously can't be objective because it's Dan Jones, is what you're all thinking.
Well, I CAN!
This book is just THAT GOOD.
Literally all of my favorite people, places, and things from history, in one ginormous volume, covering roughly 1,000 years of everything that happened from the Fall of Rome to those Tudors coming in and shaking things up.
We're talking this one might be rivalling The Plantagenets: The Warrior Kings and Queens Who Made England as my most fave Dan Jones book. That's HUGE. I first learned about Eleanor of Aquitaine from The Plantagenets so Dan Jones basically named my baby. (Side note: I always remind Eleanor that she is so lucky that I learned about Eleanor of Aquitaine BEFORE Boudicca, or she might have a very different name.)
BUT THIS ONE IS SO GOOD.
You also might be thinking, "Do we need ANOTHER book about the Middle Ages?"
Again, the answer is yes.
What Jones has managed to do once again is combine his massive amount of knowledge, tying it all together across place and time, and present it in a highly informative yet highly readable way.
I was lucky to have teachers who really made history come alive for me, even going back to middle school. History has been my love for as long as I can remember. I get that non-fiction is not for everyone. A lot of people don't even give it a chance because history was taught to them in a boring recitation of facts and dates and names.
This book though, is something different; an extraordinary feat that Jones should 100% be proud of. (And I assure you he is, because who wouldn't be?)
He brings these historical figures to life and makes them real once more. It's hard sometimes to think about people this way, to imagine them living and working and dying in a world so different from our own. But Jones has the skill to share this knowledge and research in such an engaging way that you feel as though you could actually reach back in time and walk along Hadrian's Wall (which you actually can do if you're in the UK, which I am not and that is sad), to sit in a Great Hall and take in all the sights and sounds and smells of life at a royal court, to race along the Asian Steppes with Genghis Khan, watch as Rome is sacked time and again (six altogether in this span that Jones covers), and more.
SO MUCH MORE.
Really, truly. I was actually nervous about how I was even going to write up this review because there is so much material to address. Otherwise I would have had it up days ago.
I really love how Jones divided up each section. First there is Imperium, Latin for what amounts to absolute power, which Rome once had, which covers 410-750. Here we find chapters on the Romans, Barbarians, Byzantines, and Arabs.
Next comes Dominion, spanning 750-1215, with sections entitled Franks, Monks, Knights, and Crusades.
Third is Rebirth, 1215-1347, detailing the time as it related to the Mongols, Merchants, Scholars, and Builders.
Last comes Revolution, 1348-1527. We learn of Survivors, Renewers, Navigators, and Protestants.
As you might expect, there is an extensive section of notes and from Jones you should expect no less. The text ended at 77% in my advanced digital copy, with notes taking up the next 13% of the content. Primary sources cover another 4%, with journal articles and theses ending at 96%. The remainder right up to 100% is footnotes.
I can promise that if you pick this one up and settle in for a good bit of reading time, you will not be disappointed. Powers and Thrones: A New History of the Middle Ages is the new standard against which to measure all others books covering the same topics.
Without a doubt, this is the best book of 2021 for me and I don't believe that anything the rest of the year can top it.
Highly, highly, highly recommended.
******************************************
OBVIOUSLY.
EDIT 7-18-21: I have no idea how on earth I’m actually going to review this book because how do I review a book that encompasses 1000 years of history, including every person place and thing I love to read about all in one volume. Fantastic. Review to come.
Text ends at 77%
Notes ends at 90%
Primary sources ends at 94%
Journal articles/theses ends at 96%
Footnotes 96%-100%
July 5, 2022
I like Dan Jones. I don't agree with the vast majority of his conclusions but as a historian his research is solid and I think he presents history in an interesting way.
Early in this book he states that he will be telling this from a 'eurocentric' point of view. I had to laugh because all the history he's ever presented has been eurocentric, which is why I say his conclusions can't be trusted.
This book, however, is largely Islamaphobic which isn't the same as eurocentric.
He portrays the spread of Islam as violent, which it was. However he neglects to mention that at the EXACT same time that Islam is being spread via conquest and domination, Christianity is being spread the same way and using the EXACT same methods.
He never mentions the tools that Charlemagne uses to spread Christianity across large swaths of Europe.
All he had to do was present Christianity as it actually existed and was spread historically at the EXACT same time as Islam was being spread.
Or not mention Islam and instead focus on the eurocentric history he promised to tell🤷🏾♀️
I HATE this disingenuous racist bullshit.
Christianity was spread using just as much and, honestly, objectively MORE violence than was used to spread Islam.
Yet white folks maintain this bullshit rhetoric that Islam is a religion of war and play ignorant about how most of the world was forced via genocide into christianity. Colpnialism spread xtianity using unspeakable violence and causing mass genocide. So if we're gonna tell the truth, the truth is historically xtianity is significantly and measurably MORE harmful than Islam🤷🏾♀️
I'm sick unto death of this white supremacist narrative being passed off as 'eurocentric'.
It's racist.
Dan Jones is better than this and I'm disappointed that post 2020 and the education that followed the 'Black Lives Matter' global uprising he was unable to beg, borrow or steal or clue.
This is outright racist and ahistorical in places.
So I'd freely ignore ALL information in this that's offered about folks who aren't white and xtian.
Everyone else is viewed via a traditionally racist white supremacist lens.
Disappointing
Early in this book he states that he will be telling this from a 'eurocentric' point of view. I had to laugh because all the history he's ever presented has been eurocentric, which is why I say his conclusions can't be trusted.
This book, however, is largely Islamaphobic which isn't the same as eurocentric.
He portrays the spread of Islam as violent, which it was. However he neglects to mention that at the EXACT same time that Islam is being spread via conquest and domination, Christianity is being spread the same way and using the EXACT same methods.
He never mentions the tools that Charlemagne uses to spread Christianity across large swaths of Europe.
All he had to do was present Christianity as it actually existed and was spread historically at the EXACT same time as Islam was being spread.
Or not mention Islam and instead focus on the eurocentric history he promised to tell🤷🏾♀️
I HATE this disingenuous racist bullshit.
Christianity was spread using just as much and, honestly, objectively MORE violence than was used to spread Islam.
Yet white folks maintain this bullshit rhetoric that Islam is a religion of war and play ignorant about how most of the world was forced via genocide into christianity. Colpnialism spread xtianity using unspeakable violence and causing mass genocide. So if we're gonna tell the truth, the truth is historically xtianity is significantly and measurably MORE harmful than Islam🤷🏾♀️
I'm sick unto death of this white supremacist narrative being passed off as 'eurocentric'.
It's racist.
Dan Jones is better than this and I'm disappointed that post 2020 and the education that followed the 'Black Lives Matter' global uprising he was unable to beg, borrow or steal or clue.
This is outright racist and ahistorical in places.
So I'd freely ignore ALL information in this that's offered about folks who aren't white and xtian.
Everyone else is viewed via a traditionally racist white supremacist lens.
Disappointing
September 5, 2021
‘This book covers more than a thousand years, and its geographical scope encompasses every continent save Australasia and Antarctica.’
The book has sixteen chapters divided across four parts: Imperium (c 410 AD – 750 AD); Dominion (c 750 AD – 1215 AD); Rebirth (c 1215 AD – 1347 AD) and Revolution (c 1348 AD – 1527 AD). This history takes us on a journey between the sacks of Rome in 410 AD and 1527 AD. Within this structure, Mr Jones identifies three key themes that have underpinned the success of the west: conquest, commerce, and Christianity.
It is an epic history, covering the period between the retreat of the Roman Empire in the west and the 16th century Reformation. What makes this book particularly interesting is that it ventures beyond the political timeline. In addition to the power struggles between emperors, kings and tribal leaders, Mr Jones also writes of the impacts of pandemics, of demographic changes, and of climate change. Exploration, religious conquest, commercial growth, decline, and rejuvenation are all part of the history. I am reminded of the power of the Byzantine Empire, diminished after the 7th century but still standing until the fall of Constantinople in 1453, of the impact of the Mongol invasion in the 13th century, of the rise of commerce. There’s a lot to consider. I could get lost in reading about William Marshal, Sir Richard (Dick) Whittington, El, Cid and Leonardo da Vinci, or the impact of printing on the power of the Catholic Church.
I would recommend this book to anyone looking to expand their knowledge (and appreciation) of the period we in the west refer to as the Middle Ages.
Note: My thanks to NetGalley and Head of Zeus/Apollo for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review purposes.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
The book has sixteen chapters divided across four parts: Imperium (c 410 AD – 750 AD); Dominion (c 750 AD – 1215 AD); Rebirth (c 1215 AD – 1347 AD) and Revolution (c 1348 AD – 1527 AD). This history takes us on a journey between the sacks of Rome in 410 AD and 1527 AD. Within this structure, Mr Jones identifies three key themes that have underpinned the success of the west: conquest, commerce, and Christianity.
It is an epic history, covering the period between the retreat of the Roman Empire in the west and the 16th century Reformation. What makes this book particularly interesting is that it ventures beyond the political timeline. In addition to the power struggles between emperors, kings and tribal leaders, Mr Jones also writes of the impacts of pandemics, of demographic changes, and of climate change. Exploration, religious conquest, commercial growth, decline, and rejuvenation are all part of the history. I am reminded of the power of the Byzantine Empire, diminished after the 7th century but still standing until the fall of Constantinople in 1453, of the impact of the Mongol invasion in the 13th century, of the rise of commerce. There’s a lot to consider. I could get lost in reading about William Marshal, Sir Richard (Dick) Whittington, El, Cid and Leonardo da Vinci, or the impact of printing on the power of the Catholic Church.
I would recommend this book to anyone looking to expand their knowledge (and appreciation) of the period we in the west refer to as the Middle Ages.
Note: My thanks to NetGalley and Head of Zeus/Apollo for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review purposes.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
March 26, 2023
A Hefty Thematic Approach to the Middle Ages Across Many Continents and Centuries
This is an ambitious attempt at a coherent, thematically-based overview of the Middles Ages in the British Isles, the kingdoms of Northern/Southern Europe, Arabian, Persian, and Turkish nations, and the Huns and Mongols, all in the engaging, entertaining, and understandable style that has made Dan Jones the Neil de Grass Tyson the of the history world, popularizing the incredibly tangled web of that period, looking at events not just through the deadly-dull litany of names, battles, successions, dynasties, alliances, and territories, but trying to draw out coherent themes such as the environmental, political, religious, scientific, and cultural elements that permeate all human history.
Is it all too much to digest? In my case I’ve been listening to history audiobooks covering most of the periods and regions and events that Dan Jones covers, so in a way it was a nice review and broader overview of what I had been learning about in discrete segments. He freely admits he has to breeze though hundreds of subjects that each are subject to whole fields of study, so has to summarize the most important themes and events without getting bogged down in the details, but still include loads of anecdotes on notable individuals and events to keep it relatable and interesting, and that is Dan Jones’ forte. I was able to follow things and really put together the big picture, as much as that is possible.
However, if you are keen to know about individual empires or periods or leaders or religious movements, it’s probably better to pick books with a narrower focus. If you just enjoy the way Dan Jones can clarify the convoluted mess that is history, you’ll find this well worth a read/listen.
This is an ambitious attempt at a coherent, thematically-based overview of the Middles Ages in the British Isles, the kingdoms of Northern/Southern Europe, Arabian, Persian, and Turkish nations, and the Huns and Mongols, all in the engaging, entertaining, and understandable style that has made Dan Jones the Neil de Grass Tyson the of the history world, popularizing the incredibly tangled web of that period, looking at events not just through the deadly-dull litany of names, battles, successions, dynasties, alliances, and territories, but trying to draw out coherent themes such as the environmental, political, religious, scientific, and cultural elements that permeate all human history.
Is it all too much to digest? In my case I’ve been listening to history audiobooks covering most of the periods and regions and events that Dan Jones covers, so in a way it was a nice review and broader overview of what I had been learning about in discrete segments. He freely admits he has to breeze though hundreds of subjects that each are subject to whole fields of study, so has to summarize the most important themes and events without getting bogged down in the details, but still include loads of anecdotes on notable individuals and events to keep it relatable and interesting, and that is Dan Jones’ forte. I was able to follow things and really put together the big picture, as much as that is possible.
However, if you are keen to know about individual empires or periods or leaders or religious movements, it’s probably better to pick books with a narrower focus. If you just enjoy the way Dan Jones can clarify the convoluted mess that is history, you’ll find this well worth a read/listen.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,008 reviews