Blood & Roses: the Paston Family in the Fifteenth Century

BLOOD & ROSES: THE PASTON FAMILY IN THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY PDF, EPUB, EBOOK

You can lose your land to claims of others who may be the progeny of previous owners, or may be just better connected. While the book does not deal with domestic problems, there are some unmistakable facts. This is a highly unusual book. This book is also good in the way that you find out where some of the upper nobility fit into the story of the civil wars at a more local level. You can also lose it in a siege and hope that your connections are good enough to have a hearing in a court where you hope that you can to get better connected people than the insurgents on your side. On his death in some letters passed into the hands of John Ives, while many others were purchased by John Worth, a chemist at Diss , whose executors sold them in to Sir John Fenn of East Dereham. I believe this is the sort of material that's usually buried in PhD theses and never reaches a general audience. Far from the popular stereotype of the food of the wider medieval population consisting of dull cabbages and pottage, her purchasing of exotic spices, nuts and dried fruit give life and colour to the diet of the mercantile elite and aspiring gentry of East Anglia in the Middle Ages. In , Norman Davis published a new edition, which was revised and expanded by Richard Beadle and Colin Richmond in The writing is excellent and the fact the book is about a private family and their everyday lives against the backdrop of the War of the Roses intriguing. Definitely a worthwhile read if interested in 15th century England, or socio-political history. Castor has done a beautiful job bringing to life the personalities from the family, the nobility, and the numerous and reappearing kings of the 15th century. Elizabeth I : A Study in Insecurity. It is a tour de force in helping us to understand what life was like for landowners vying for power locally in deadly times. What was more interesting than the court arguments: the women had more agency than their husbands and sons. Helen Castor's writing style is impeccable. The large collection of letters and papers was acquired in from the executors of the estate of William Paston, 2nd Earl of Yarmouth , the last in the Paston line, by the antiquary Francis Blomefield. Watt, Diane, editor. The eldest, Sir John Paston — , had been knighted during his father's lifetime. There are no discussion topics on this book yet. Meanwhile, the struggle over Paston's estates continued, although in the king and council had declared that Paston's ancestors were not bondmen, and consequently that his title to his father's lands was valid. Highly compelling, and hard to put down. Amid the relentless attention to landed property, Castor tries to make the most of the lighter scenes, as when John II, in trying to enlist the support over Caister of the pregnant Duchess of Norfolk at a chance meeting in Yarmouth, pays a leaden gallantry that goes hopelessly awry. BBC News. This is the Pastons. It abounds with illustrations of public events, as well as of the manners and morals of the time, and some valuable examples of colloquial English, such as Agnes Paston's quarrel with her neighbour, Warren Harman, c. BUT the legal details became so tedious I started skipping sections, particularly in the 2nd half of the book. Ever want to know what it was like to live during the Wars of the Roses? Paston died in May , with the suit concerning Fastolf's will still proceeding in the church courts. Unfortunately she takes it out on her two sons, both of whom, also set up for failure by parental decisions, risk their lives for this family enterprise. The book begins with a list of illustrations, family trees, a discussion of the rulers of England during this time, a map of their East Anglia, as well as an author's note and some acknowledgements. I found this alternating between incredibly interesting and ploddingly dull. London: Macmillan, The Paston Letters are a collection of correspondence between members of the Paston family of Norfolk gentry and others connected with them in England between the years and Want to Read saving…. But -- for all that the book purports to be about the Pastons, it's really about the Wars of the Roses, the series of wars for the throne after the death of Henry V and the reign of "Henry VI. No wonder Margaret becomes cranky in the end. They capitalize upon the absence of husbands and sons, making the most of the wider access to commercial markets and opportunity to obtain the best value for money. Also interesting is: the combination of warring magnates, weak kings and up and coming courtiers determined to rise their status possible in a society convulsed first by the Black Death - leading to a rise in the power of the lower social classes - and then by political upheaval and revolutions in the true original sense so that loyalty and fidelity could be rewarded or backfire or often both in alternating succession ; the contemporary nature of the letters written demonstrating what people in the Paston's strata really thought; the combination of tortuous legal processes, complex inheritance law and practice with people often torn between giving all their estate to the eldest or splitting it and the willingness of powerful individuals to take possession by force and then aim for delaying tactics in the court aided by intimidation of their opponents. In , Diane Watt published The Paston Women: Selected Letters , which situates the letters in the context of medieval women's writing and medieval letter writing. It also shows the precariousness of position and property when powerful men and women decided they wanted what was not theirs, and the difficulty in withstanding those with more power and influence. Nov 01, Susan Ronald rated it it was amazing. I remember I read about pages in one go because it was very absorbing and you end up kind of rooting for the Paston family to retain their rights as you would if the story were told as fiction. Christopher Dyer notes that London was known to offer high-quality goods and products and to have a greater selection of choice p. It is writing history a Ever want to know what it was like to live during the Wars of the Roses? Margaret specifies the quantities she wishes John to obtain: he is to purchase three or four pounds of sugar and spend the change of his five shillings on the dates. Blood & Roses: The Paston Family in the Fifteenth Century Writer

It is a tour de force in helping us to understand what life was like for landowners vying for power locally in deadly times. William IV c. In 15th century England, there is no title insurance. Amid the relentless attention to landed property, Castor tries to make the most of the lighter scenes, as when John II, in trying to enlist the support over Caister of the pregnant Duchess of Norfolk at a chance meeting in Yarmouth, pays a leaden gallantry that goes hopelessly awry. There are many layers to discover here! He was frequently at the court of Edward IV , but afterwards favoured the Lancastrian party, and, with his younger brother, also named John, fought for Henry VI at the Battle of Barnet. Read more I started the book hoping a lot and ended up by forcing myself to finish it. It is writing history at its best. I liked the author before reading this from seeing her two television series. Retrieved 9 June Also interesting is: the combination of warring magnates, weak kings and up and coming courtiers determined to rise their status possible in a society convulsed first by the Black Death - leading to a rise in the power of the lower social classes - and then by political upheaval and revolutions in the true original sense so that loyalty and fidelity could be rewarded or backfire or often both in alternating succession ; the contemporary nature of the letters written demonstrating what people in the Paston's strata really thought; the combination of tortuous legal processes, complex inheritance law and practice with people often torn between giving all their estate to the eldest or splitting it and the willingness of powerful individuals to take possession by force and then aim for delaying tactics in the court aided by intimidation of their opponents. At times I got confused and wearied by the incessant ups and downs of the family's fortune--but this book brought the period to life for m Wow!!! A great deal of the middle part of the book drags because John I Paston is such a self-righteous prig that he manages to screw up his family's acquisitions by getting himself jailed on multiple occasions and alienating a lot of potential allies by being unwilling to see things from any perspective of his own. Castor's exhaustive research shows as she reconstructs the history of the Paston family and its attempts to climb the social ladder of the landed gentry. Robert's son William — , who married a natural daughter of Charles II , was the second earl, and, like his father, was in high favour with the Stuarts. Although John Paston, whose correspondence with his wife Margaret is the best-known element in the Paston story, is not a particularly sympathetic character, several members of his family behave quite heroically. Owing to his carelessness and extravagance, the family lands were also diminished by sales, but nevertheless when he died unmarried in November he left a substantial inheritance to his younger brother John. Burney Collection. The Pastons themselves are a very interesting family. This book is hard evidence for the truth of the saying that "Truth is stranger than fiction". It is not a private letter. The disorder revealed by the Paston Letters reflects the general condition of England during this period. The tale is interesting for what it reveals of life at this time, but it is overly long in detail. More filters. I remember I read about pages in one go because it was very absorbing and you end up kind of rooting for the Paston family to retain their rights as you would if the story were told as fiction. You can lose your land to claims of others who may be the progeny of previous owners, or may be just better connected. Blood & Roses: The Paston Family in the Fifteenth Century Reviews

The Paston letters - written by members of a rising Norfolk family during the turbulent 15th century - give a fascinating insight into the period, including into all the difficulties minor gentry had in holding on to their lands when legal title could be easily challenged and more powerful players might seize them by force. You can lose your land to claims of others who may be the progeny of previous owners, or may be just better connected. At times I got confused and wearied by the incessant ups and downs of the family's fortune--but this book brought the period to life for m Wow!!! Based on a rare trove of family letters that is over six hundred years old, the author weaves the story of a family whose fortunes went up and down with dizzying speed along with the fortunes of ordinary people all over England during the War of the Roses. Dec 28, James Loftus rated it it was amazing. Most of the letters discuss their real estate and an inheritance, which the family finally wins after many years. Primarily, it details a fight for property in order to retain their respectability and the defense of their origin. Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read. The trials and tribulations of a family on the make, their fortunes tied to whoever is head of the family at a certain point in time. However, a lot of the book was about the Pastons legal battles over estates and wills. Feb 07, Johannes rated it it was ok. The convoluted ties of medieval society are more complex than I'd imagined and this in the Paston's case for instance leads them to have to shift sides during the Wars of the Roses and then worry about the consequences when there is a reversal. Her battle scenes - Barnet, Towton and Bosworth field - are tremendous. It is a tour de force in helping us to understand what life was like for landowners vying for power locally in deadly times. The book begins with a list of illustrations, family trees, a discussion of the rulers of England during this time, a map of their East Anglia, as well as an author's note and some acknowledgements. To summarize, unless the subject is of your truly interest, you would get you bored eventually, in fact, the only way I could get myself to the end was, by actually skipping most of the extracts, especially on the second half of the book. That is certainly true nowadays and was even more true in the periods the book discusses where people had to choose which royal pretenders to back with potentially fatal consequences in terms of death in battle or being dispossessed after picking the wrong contender, or even dying in prison as John Paston did. If you read anything about the Wars of the Roses or the early Tudors, you are bound to run into the Pastons. After that the book begins with the origins of the Pastons in a prologue, the rise of William I Paston in the law, which earned the family a fair amount of money and their first estates and a rise in position that came with struggles and the search for friends as well as the resistance against enemies. Category Commons. Shrewd shopping forms part of the family strategy to maintain wealth while keeping up appearances with their contemporaries. This testimony works to the favor of the younger sons which essentially sets John up for failure. Castor does a good job making these long dead characters leap from the page - John Paston I annoyed me so much I was practically shouting at the page! Read more It wasn't until that the Pastons recovered the castle. Refresh and try again. May 15, Melissa rated it liked it Shelves: history. There are and always have been tough decisions made as to how family resources should be allocated, and how acquisitive one should be in a fiercely competitive society where estates gave money and status to those who held them but where it was not always easy to secure title and enforce rents on one's tenants in the face of competition among other would-be elites. The Pastons themselves are a very interesting family. On his death, William left a large and valuable inheritance to John Paston , the eldest of his five sons, who was already married to Margaret d. In , Norman Davis published a new edition, which was revised and expanded by Richard Beadle and Colin Richmond in And when you finally get to talk to them, you find them to be delightful people. Community Reviews. Dec 26, Michael Cayley rated it it was amazing Shelves: history. Castor has done a An incredibly interesting and well-written narrative which fleshes out the larger story, both of the Pastons and contemporary England, from the late 14th through the early years of Henry VII. The coins with which Margaret and the Pastons would have shopped. Lists with This Book. A vast stock of correspondence from the Paston family, who's fortunes swing from the upper peasantry into respected gentry, have survived which give personal insights into the thoughts and feelings of these characters that we don't have for even some of the most famous historical figures. What did endure was a cache of family letters discovered fortuitously in the 18th century, edited lovingly and published. Worth reading if you have any interest in this period William II — It isn't until p. Burney Collection. Rating details. Average rating 3. However, most of the extracts could have been easily skipped by, which I did, and focus just on interpretation of the story rather than the letters themselves. Through the morass of legal battles and by liberally and directly quoting from the letters, Castor's goal is to shake us from the false mythology about the medieval age.

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From William, and his wife Agnes, there are just a handful of letters. Their letters are occasionally quoted by books of nonfiction about the era; they lives were representative of a class of people, and they were also swept up into the turbulence of the time on several occasions. John I — It isn't until p. However, most of the extracts could have been easily skipped by, which I did, and focus just on interpretation of the story rather than the letters themselves. He found a heap of family letters, many going back to the Wars of the Roses three centuries earlier, and, as he wrote to the late Earl's executors, "of good consequence in history". Many of the letters were written by Margaret to her husband in London. Dec 17, Nathan Albright rated it really liked it Shelves: challenge Though not the only English family papers from the time, nor even the oldest, they are by far the most circumstantial. And it also highlights just how 'ordinary' peoples lives were so wound up in what was happening politically to the exclusion of their worries and legal situations. The Pastons were tarred by their enemies with villeinage - that Clement was just a "churl from Gimingham" near Paston - which theoretically disbarred them from holding manors. However, a lot of the book was about the Pastons legal battles over estates and wills. Beudeker Collection. Anglophiles and law students alike will find light enjoyment and great depth in this polished work. Essentially, there are roughly 1, letters that have survived to and from a single family, the Pastons, who rose to prominence in East Anglia centered in Norwich during the final years of the Hundred Years War and fought for their socio-political survival during the Wars of the Roses. Refresh and try again. They are always in financial straights, but are ordering clothing lots of detail on items the modern reader cannot identify , shopping, entertaining and hiring soldiers and servants. Dec 20, English rated it really liked it. Yet the Paston letters show how supple and expressive the English vernacular could be. Far from the popular stereotype of the food of the wider medieval population consisting of dull cabbages and pottage, her purchasing of exotic spices, nuts and dried fruit give life and colour to the diet of the mercantile elite and aspiring gentry of East Anglia in the Middle Ages. Her most recent book, Joan of Arc , was dubbed 'a triumph of history' Guardian. Books by Helen Castor. I knew that they were important, that we don't often have medieval letters--personal ones especially--to read. She directed studies in History at Sidney for eight years before deciding to concentrate on writing history for a wider readership. Category Commons. This remarkable, well-researched history is a real page turner, more suspenseful than a thriller. Included in these letters are numerous shopping lists sent by the Paston women, located in Norfolk, to their male relatives living and working in London. Nobility fought a civil war. This is far better than some glammed-up Showtime Tudors series. The Paston women employ their husbands and sons as their agents to shop by proxy, in a reversal of their own appointments as deputy estate managers by their husbands.

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