"Bloody Crowns: A New History of the Hundred Years War" by Michael Livingston is a forceful reassessment of one of the longest and most transformative conflicts in European history. Rather than presenting the Hundred Years War as a distant medieval struggle defined only by famous battles, Livingston frames it as a living political and cultural crisis that reshaped England and France, forged national identities and redefined kingship, warfare and legitimacy.
Historically, the book’s greatest strength lies in how clearly Livingston explains the war’s origins. He moves beyond the simplified explanation of feudal claims and succession disputes to show how dynastic ambition, legal maneuvering and fragile royal authority intertwined on both sides of the Channel. Edward III’s claim to the …
"Bloody Crowns: A New History of the Hundred Years War" by Michael Livingston is a forceful reassessment of one of the longest and most transformative conflicts in European history. Rather than presenting the Hundred Years War as a distant medieval struggle defined only by famous battles, Livingston frames it as a living political and cultural crisis that reshaped England and France, forged national identities and redefined kingship, warfare and legitimacy.
Historically, the book’s greatest strength lies in how clearly Livingston explains the war’s origins. He moves beyond the simplified explanation of feudal claims and succession disputes to show how dynastic ambition, legal maneuvering and fragile royal authority intertwined on both sides of the Channel. Edward III’s claim to the French throne is treated not as a reckless gamble, but as a calculated political move rooted in medieval legal thought and aristocratic expectations. By grounding these claims in contemporary mentalities, Livingston makes the motivations of medieval rulers intelligible rather than absurd or archaic.
Livingston also excels in demonstrating how the Hundred Years War evolved over time. He resists treating it as a single continuous conflict and instead emphasizes its shifting phases, periods of intense warfare followed by uneasy truces and renewed fighting. The reader sees how tactics changed, particularly with the rise of professional armies, the use of longbowmen and the gradual decline of feudal levies. Battles such as Crécy, Poitiers and Agincourt are described with clarity and restraint, avoiding romanticism while still conveying their brutality and significance.
The book’s narrative style is one of its greatest assets. Livingston writes with the pacing of a storyteller but the discipline of a historian. Political intrigue, courtly rivalries and personal ambitions are woven seamlessly into the broader military and diplomatic narrative. Figures like Henry V, Charles V and Joan of Arc are presented as complex individuals shaped by circumstance, faith and pressure, rather than as myths or symbols. Joan of Arc in particular is handled with care, placed firmly within her religious and social context without diminishing her extraordinary impact.
As a work of history, "Bloody Crowns" is both accessible and serious. Livingston does not overwhelm the reader with unnecessary academic jargon, yet his arguments are clearly grounded in modern scholarship. The book balances analysis with narrative, making it suitable for general readers while still offering insight for those already familiar with the period.
Ultimately, "Bloody Crowns: A New History of the Hundred Years War" succeeds in showing why this conflict mattered, not only to medieval Europe, but to the development of the modern state. It is a confident, well-written and persuasive reinterpretation that brings clarity to a war often obscured by legend and oversimplification.
• Hayden Keller is a bookseller at Inklings Bookshop. He and other Inklings staffers review books in this space every week.