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Empires of the Normans
- Makers of Europe, Conquerors of Asia
- Narrated by: Luke Thompson
- Length: 10 hrs and 4 mins
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Empires of the Normans
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Summary
The first global history of the Normans, who—beyond the conquest of England—came to dominate Europe, the Mediterranean and the Middle East.
How did descendants of Viking marauders came to dominate Europe, the Mediterranean and the Middle East?
It is a tale of ambitious adventures and fierce freebooters, of fortunes made and fortunes lost. The Normans made their influence felt across all of western Europe and the Mediterranean, from the British Isles to North Africa, and Lisbon to the Holy Land. In Empires of the Normans we discover how they combined military might and political savvy with deeply held religious beliefs and a profound sense of their own destiny. For a century and a half, they remade Europe in their own image, and yet their heritage was quickly forgotten—until now.
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What listeners say about Empires of the Normans
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Kuma
- 27-07-22
A Tour De Force of the Norman World
A thoroughly enjoyable and wide ranging history of the Normans. In keeping with many recent medieval histories (Dan Jones, Cat Jarman et al) the author aims to show you the whole world of their subjects, not just well known examples e.g. England's Norman Conquests or Norman Sicilly.
The book is well written, easy to read and very well balanced. It explains differing view points on events well, and the pacing of the narrative is spot on.
A great read.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Stephen Bentley
- 10-11-22
Very well read.
Very well read and a fascinating story. I knew about the Norman Kingdom of Sicily - but not in any detail, come to that aside from "1066 and all that" knew little or nothing about the Normans in Normandy or how they got there. Much better informed now and have listened all the way through twice.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- William Hayes
- 13-10-24
Interesting listen casting light on a story I only partly knew
Before listening to this I knew a little bit about the various Normal invasivions from school history and visiting Bayeaux and other tourist spots.
The book did a great job of putting Norman history into context and showing the wider world of the Normans beyond The Conqueror and Strongbow.
I was impressed at the good integration of Church History and the Reformatio movement of the time into the story. These elements are often left out, particularly in an Irish and Welsh context.
One complaint stood out, I was initially impressed by the narration and the attention to correct pronunciation, particularly in Wales and Italy. Once the story crossed into Ireland this seemed to go completely out the window!
Irish place names got mangled beyond recognition or there were comic moments such as Tuam rhyming with Guam.
Asides from that complaint it was a good book that produced a lot of "What if" moments and joined up a lot of dots.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mark
- 12-01-23
excellent
some of the best stuff out there about the Norman's scholarly without being inaccessible, and told at a pace as often history books can be unnecessarily long.
would highly recommend.
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