Published on October 29, 2025 (Episode 430)
Introduction
The young King was determined to strike. His throne and power had been taken from him; now he would seize them both back. As his chosen men entered the castle where he was a virtual prisoner—under the watchful eyes of his mother and her lover—he led their rush to the Queen Mother’s apartments. There they seized those who had prevented Edward III from truly ruling as King of England.
Those dramatic events, which occurred in Nottingham Castle, are only one of the extraordinary episodes in Michael Livingston’s Bloody Crowns: A New History of the Hundred Years War. From the conflict’s murky origins to its last bitter acts, Livingston traces not just the rivalry between England and France, but the ways that all Europe was drawn into two full centuries of war. His “Two Hundred Years War,” stretching from 1292 to 1492, reveals how dynastic ambition, chivalric honor, and new technologies of violence combined to transform the continent.
About the Guest
Michael Livingston is Citadel Distinguished Professor at The Citadel and author of numerous books on medieval military history. A former secretary-general of the U.S. Commission on Military History, he lives in Charleston, South Carolina.
For Further Investigation
Michael Livingston, Bloody Crowns: A New History of the Hundred Years War (St. Martin’s Press, 2024)
—, Agincourt: Battle of the Scarred King (Osprey, 2022)
—, Crécy: Battle of Five Kings (Osprey, 2021)
Jonathan Sumption, The Hundred Years War (5 vols., University of Pennsylvania Press, 1999–2025)
Anne Curry, The Hundred Years War (Macmillan, 2003)
Clifford J. Rogers, War Cruel and Sharp: English Strategy under Edward III, 1327–1360 (Boydell, 2000)
Related Episodes
“A People’s History of the Hundred Years’ War”—this same subject, but from a slightly different perspective
“The First French Revolution”—Justine Firnhaber-Baker on the Jacquerie, the revolt in the north of France following the King’s capture at Poitiers
“House of Lilies”—Justine Firnhaber-Baker on the Capetian dynasty; how it ended is of particular importance to the [Two] Hundred Years’ War.
“Two Houses, Two Kingdoms”—Catherine Hanley on the intermingled life of the Capetians of France and the Angevins/Plantagenants of England.
“The Allure of Battle”—Cathal Nolan on why
battles are rarely decisive in determining who wins a war
Reflection Questions
Why does Michael Livingston redefine the Hundred Years War as a “Two Hundred Years War”?
How does his new chronology alter our understanding of Europe’s medieval conflicts?
What does this war reveal about the emergence of the early-modern state?
Tags: Michael Livingston; Bloody Crowns; Hundred Years War; Medieval Warfare; England and France; Longbow; Gunpowder; Historically Thinking
