For almost 600 years Richard I was regarded as one of England's greatest kings - the standard that other kings strove to emulate or were measured against, not only in England but across Europe. Admired or envied by his Muslim and European opponents and contemporaries, Richard the Lionheart cast a long shadow.

Unfortunately, revisionist historians beginning in the eighteenth century - including Hume and Gibbon - judged him harshly by the standards of their own eras. Over time, the orthodox position became "bad son, bad husband, bad king." Later historians would echo these criticisms and add unfounded rumors of their own.

Since the 1970's medievalists have consistently found that the data disproves much of the negative history. Gillingham's solid history gathers this information into one narrative, refuting unfounded accusations, supporting the accurate, and admitting where the historical record is silent. Richard is evaluated as a statesman, administrator, leader, strategist, tactician, warrior, husband, son, and believer. Additionally, Gillingham explains the standards of the times by which Richard and his contemporaries felt his responsibilities and duties lay and whether they viewed his efforts as worthwhile, frivolous, successful, or short.

The writing style is excellent and moves quickly, although all the Henrys, Johns and Hughs can become confusing. Gillingham's arguments are logical and straightforward and the text's organization reflects this. Extensive footnotes are at the bottom of each page. I found no typos or errors, misplaced pages or other mistakes. ( )

John Gillingham would make an excellent Don Quixote. He's always tilting at windmills.

This is Gillingham's third book on Richard I, and it is the fullest and best. Clearly it is meant to be his fullest and final word on the subject. There are few stones left unturned as he seeks out information about the king and legend.

But at the beginning Gillingham makes a very curious concession: "Whatever we now think of going on crusade, the aim here is to study Richard as a twelfth-century rule, as a king who depended for his successes and failures of his contemporaries..." (p. 14). In other words, Gillingham isn't interested in Richard's effect on history, just on how the people of the time saw him.

This is, of course, a very important element in assembling a biography or a history. But it is not, in itself, either biography or history. Which is more important, that a contemporary called Abraham Lincoln an ape, or that Lincoln freed the slaves? That a contemporary called William Shakespeare a "shake-scene," or that he was Shakespeare? It is the effects of a person's actions that matter. And the effects of Richard's reign are pretty clear: He went on a crusade which had some success but did not found a permanent Crusading state. He bankrupted England, sowing the wind that his brother John would reap. He gave up his overlordship of Scotland. Then he got himself killed out of greed. Did he become a legend? Sure. Did he accomplish anything useful? It's hard to see what.

It seems pretty clear that Gillingham had an intense, emotional respect for Richard, and had been burned for it, and so he tried to cover it up by changing the purpose of this volume.

In other words, this is a book to be taken with a lot of grains of salt.

That being said, Gillingham's books on Richard have supplied some useful debunking. He has countered the widespread myth that Richard was homosexual, which may be true but cannot be proved and became received doctrine in the absence of good evidence. He gives a strong explanation for why Richard married Berengeria of Navarre. He explains other aspects of Richard's seemingly inexplicable acts.

Any student of Richard's times will find this an important and useful book. It's just that it can't be the only book on the shelf. ( )

An extremely well researched biography in which the author uses a range of sources, English, French and Middle Eastern. At times, the torrent of detail slows down the narrative somewhat, but this is an excellent, balanced and judicious account. ( )