John Gillingham

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Britain and Ireland 1066–1485

Conquests, Catastrophe and Recovery

Last Queen of England

Anne (Penguin Monarchs)

Treason and Trust

Henry VII (Penguin Monarchs)

The Afflicted King

Henry IV (Penguin Monarchs)

Madness and Majesty

George III (Penguin Monarchs)

The Father of His People

Henry I (Penguin Monarchs)

An Evil King?

John (Penguin Monarchs)

The North Sea King

Cnut (Penguin Monarchs)

Not Just a British Monarch

George II (Penguin Monarchs)

The Sainted King

Edward the Confessor (Penguin Monarchs)

A Failed King?

Richard III (Penguin Monarchs)

A King at Sea

William IV (Penguin Monarchs)

The Terrors of Kingship

Edward II (Penguin Monarchs)

A Simple and God-Fearing King

Henry III (Penguin Monarchs)

The Summer King

Edward IV (Penguin Monarchs)

King in Waiting

George IV (Penguin Monarchs)

A Study in Insecurity

Elizabeth I (Penguin Monarchs)

The Crusader King

Richard I (Penguin Monarchs)

The Reign of Anarchy

Stephen (Penguin Monarchs)

The Phoenix King

James I (Penguin Monarchs)

The Failed King

Aethelred the Unready (Penguin Monarchs)

William II (Penguin Monarchs)

The Red King

'To provide splendid settings for their displays of majesty, kings had great halls built, and none more so than Rufus' 
 
William II, or William Rufus, son and successor to William the Conqueror, is most famous for his death: killed by an arrow while out hunting. Was it accident or murder? John Gillingham cuts through the prejudices of earlier accounts to bring this enigmatic figure out of father's shadow and reveal him as one of England's most effective and colourful warrior-kings.

John Gillingham is Emeritus Professor of Medieval History at the London School of Economics. His books include a biography of Richard I, The Angevin Empire and The English in the Twelfth Century.

William II (1087-1100), or William Rufus, will always be most famous for his death: killed by an arrow while out hunting, perhaps through accident or perhaps murder.  But, as John Gillingham makes clear in this elegant book, as the son and successor to William the Conqueror it was William Rufus who had to establish permanent Norman rule.  A ruthless, irascible man, he frequently argued acrimoniously with his older brother Robert over their father's inheritance - but he also handed out effective justice, leaving as his legacy one of the most extraordinary of all medieval buildings, Westminster Hall.

William II (Penguin Monarchs)

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John Gillingham

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