William II (Penguin Monarchs): The Red King Hardcover – 27 Aug. 2015

Here we have a hard cover well researched, beautifully written, fair minded, well balanced, unbiased, factual and very readable account of the life and reign of William II also known as William Rufus. It includes helpful coloured illustrations and a useful map. Mercifully it's totally devoid of the waffling around the subject all too often found in historical works. Best of all, it reinstates Rufus among the best of England's monarchs. It seems he was given a bad name by the clerics writing about him because he was not afraid to stand up to the Church over such matters as not allowing the clergy to marry, which was a new rule beginning to take shape at the time. He thought they should be allowed to marry and that the Church was too powerful.We simply do not known how or why Rufus was shot to death by an arrow whilst hunting in the New Forest and it having been a bona fide accident cannot be ruled out. The work includes a genealogical table, map, eight chapters, notes, a further reading list, picture credits, acknowledgements and a helpful index. The chapters are: 1: The Personality of the King:Evidence and Interpretations. 2: Taking the Throne. 3: The English Church. 4: Sex in Court. 5: Nowmandy, Maine and Britain. 6: Secular Society. 7: At War on Land and Sea. 8: Assassination. The work also presents a picture of what life was like during the reign of this often unfairly maligned monarch.

Just one or two silly long words. Otherwise a refreshingly easy going read.I'm investigating these early kings. I found this book to be just the job for William the second.Well recommended by this reader.

Perfectly easy summary of the King, ideal for A level revision in the Anglo Saxon period. Would recommend. . .

Very short but providing detailed information on the ruler. It makes you wish that the author could have been given a chance to provide a longer history of the period.

A good brief biography of William 2nd

Great book if learning history is your hobby, like me. It doesn’t go intro great detail but there is definitely enough to give you a good overview of William II life.

Accessibly written and a quick read - but very sketchy and frustratingly lacking in detail.

An excellent overview of Rufus' reign. Author has a pleasing writing style and crams a fair bit of detail into a 100 page book.