The Greatest Traitor: The Life Of Sir Roger Mortimer, 1St Earl Of March

Ian Mortimer

ISBN 10: 0712697152 / ISBN 13: 9780712697156

Published by Pimlico, 2004

About this Item

The first biography of the evil genius and rebel baron who deposed and murdered Edward II One night in August 1323 a captive rebel baron, Sir Roger Mortimer, drugged his guards and escaped from the Tower of London. With the king's men-at-arms in pursuit he fled to the south coast, and sailed to France. There he was joined by Isabella, the Queen of England, who threw herself into his arms. A year later, as lovers, they returned with an invading King Edward II's forces crumbled before them, and Mortimer took power. He removed Edward II in the first deposition of a monarch in British history. Then the ex-king was apparently murdered, some said with a red-hot poker, in Berkeley Castle. Brutal, intelligent, passionate, profligate, imaginative and Sir Roger Mortimer was an extraordinary character. Foxing; spine cracked. 377 pages.

Seller Inventory # 1575827

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Greatest Traitor: The Life Of Sir Roger Mortimer, 1St Earl Of March
• Publisher: Pimlico
• Publication Date: 2004
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0712697152
• ISBN 13: 9780712697156
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: Fair
• Seller catalogs:
  • General

About this title

Synopsis

One night in August 1323 a captive rebel baron, Sir Roger Mortimer, drugged his guards and escaped from the Tower of London. With the king's men-at-arms in pursuit he fled to the south coast, and sailed to France. There he was joined by Isabella, the Queen of England, who threw herself into his arms. A year later, as lovers, they returned with an invading army: King Edward II's forces crumbled before them, and Mortimer took power. He removed Edward II in the first deposition of a monarch in British history. Then the ex-king was apparently murdered, some said with a red-hot poker, in Berkeley Castle. Brutal, intelligent, passionate, profligate, imaginative and violent: Sir Roger Mortimer was an extraordinary character. It is not surprising that the queen lost her heart to him. Nor is it surprising that his contemporaries were terrified of him. But until now no one has appreciated the full evil genius of the man. This first biography reveals not only the man's career as a feudal lord, a governor of Ireland, a rebel leader and a dictator of England but also the truth of what happened that night in Berkeley Castle.

About the Author

Ian Mortimer has BA and PhD degrees in history from Exeter University and an MA in archive studies from University College London. From 1991 to 2003 he worked in turns for Devon Record Office, Reading University, the Royal Commission on Historical Manuscripts, and Exeter University. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society in 1998. In March 2006, the second of his medieval biogrpahies, The Perfect King: The Life of Edward III, Father of the English Nation was published by Jonathan Cape. He was awarded the Alexander Prize (2004) by the Royal historical Society for his work on the social history of medicine. His The Fears of Henry IV: The Life of England's Self-Made King will be published by Cape in 2007. He lives with his wife and three children on the edge of Dartmoor.