Geoffrey le Baker's chronicle covers the reigns of Edward II and
Edward III up to the English victory at Poitiers. David Preest's
new translation includes extensive notes and an introduction by
Richard Barber. Geoffrey le Baker's chronicle covers the reigns of
Edward II and Edward III up to the English victory at Poitiers. It
starts in a low key, copying an earlier chronicle, but by the end
of Edward II's reign he offers a much more vivid account. Baker's
description of Edward II's last days is partly based on the
eyewitness account of his patron, Sir Thomas de la More, who was
present at one critical interview. This story of Edward's death,
like many other details from his chronicle, was picked up by Tudor
historians, particularly by Holinshed, who was the source for
Shakespeare's history plays. The reign of Edward III is dominated,
not by Edward III himself, but by Baker's real hero, Edward prince
of Wales. His bravery aged sixteen at Crecy is presented as a
prelude to his victory at Poitiers, a battle which Baker is able to
describe in great detail, apparently from what he was told by the
prince's commanders. It is a rarity among medieval battles, because
- in sharp contrast to the total anarchy at Crecy - the prince and
his staff were able to see the enemy's manoeuvres. Throughout the
chronicle there are sharply defined vignettes which stay in the
mind - the killing of the Scottish champion on Halidon Hill, the
drowning of Sir Edward Bohun, the earls of Salisbury and Suffolk as
prisoners carried in a cart, the death of Sir Walter Selby and his
two sons, the bravery of Sir Thomas Dagworth against a cobbler's
son, the duel between Otho and the duke of Lancaster, John
Dancaster and the lewd washerwoman. Baker writes in a complex Latin
which even scholars find problematic,and David Preest's new
translation will be widely welcomed by anyone interested in the
fourteenth century. There are extensive notes and an introduction
by Richard Barber. DAVID PREEST has also translated The Chronica
Maiora of Thomas Walsingham, a Choice Outstanding Academic Title;
RICHARD BARBER's recent book Edward III and the Triumph of England
draws heavily on Geoffrey le Baker's work for the first twenty
years of Edward'sreign.
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