lew@ihuxr.UUCP (Lew Mammel, Jr.) (02/24/84)
Bob Warren mentioned the list of supplies for the "third English invasion of France". I wonder if he isn't thinking of the French preparations for an invasion of England that never came off. This was about 2/3 of the way through, and was longish. I found it quite interesting though, because it showed that the preparations were on a truly big time scale. They created a whole economy, sort of like today's space efforts. Besides, you wouldn't want to miss hearing about the pre-fab 10 mile perimeter fort, would you? Actually, I must admit that I almost pooped out with about 100 pages to go. (I found the Italian politics to be the most dreary.) I didn't read it for a few days, but when I picked it back up, one of the first thing I came across was the "Bal des Ardents". This was an incident in the court of Charles VI wherein the king and some of his pals dressed up as "men of the woods" by covering themselves with resin and feathers. The were cavorting around the court when the king's brother, the Duc de Orleans, came in with a torch and set a couple of them on fire (oops.) This caused a national scandal. The Bal des Ardents (dance of the flamers!) reminds me very much of an incident in the Vincent Price movie, The Masque of the Red Death. There a courtier dressed in an ape suit is set on fire and hoisted on a chandelier. I think it probable that it was inspired by this historical event. Anyway, I felt amply compensated for whatever intervals of tedium I endured. Lew Mammel, Jr. ihnp4!ihuxr!lew
sr@u1100a.UUCP (Steven Radtke) (02/24/84)
I read this book several years ago. It's one of the best I've ever read. If one has never understood what relevence the study of medieval history has to modern politics and foreign policy, this is the book to read. Yes, its long. Some things worth saying cannot be said in a few words. another vote for A Distant Mirror! from S. Radtke u1100a!sr