“No scutage nor aid [i.e. forms of medieval taxation] shall be imposed on our kingdom, unless by common counsel of our kingdom [which is the beginning of Parliament], except for ransoming our person, for making our eldest son a knight, and for once marrying our eldest daughter; and for these there shall not be levied more than a reasonable aid. In like manner it shall be done concerning aids from the city of London.”
– English translation of Magna Carta (1215), originally written in Medieval Latin, which was forcibly signed by King John, one of the Plantagenet kings
Backstabbings, assassinations, and civil wars: The story of Britain’s bloodiest dynasty
“The story of the Plantagenets,” says the box for this DVD, “is the real Game of Thrones.” Although I’ve not seen the show “Game of Thrones,” I know its reputation, and so this may actually be a good comparison – although this program, thankfully, has no sex scenes in it; while the show “Game of Thrones” does. The Plantagenet story is filled with violence, both on the personal and national levels. On the personal level, kings were murdered by those in their own families who were next in line for the throne – sometimes in clear ways, and other times in ways that were merely suspicious; but which raised more than a few eyebrows at the time. And on the national level, the struggles to control the throne often sucked in the rest of the country as well, dragging England into multiple civil wars. This was one of the surprises for me, that there were multiple civil wars just during the Plantagenet reign. The most well-known are the fifteenth-century “Wars of the Roses,” which I cover in a different blog post. But there were others as well, showing that monarchy is actually a fairly unstable form of government. Ironically, the supporters of monarchy have often defended it as the most stable form of government imaginable, but the story of the Plantagenets tends to suggest otherwise, with a fairly high body count by the time that their reign was concluded in 1485.
Edward the First
Episode 1: “The Devil’s Brood”
The first episode is called “The Devil’s Brood.” It gives the origins of the Plantagenets, in “Geoffrey, Count of Anjou.” Geoffrey was a French-born ruler, but he married into England’s royal family back in 1128. This would eventually lead to the creation of the Plantagenet dynasty in England. Later on, his son Henry II was the first Angevin ruler of England. England had been ruled by French speakers since the Norman Conquest – a subject that this same presenter covers in still another BBC documentary, entitled “The Normans.” But this was the first time that England had been ruled from this specific part of France. Henry the Second is especially known for two of his sons – Richard the Lionheart and “John,” who was later derided as “Prince John” in the Robin Hood legends. This documentary gives a fairly negative portrayal of both men, and it is admitted that this is probably deserved. Richard the Lionheart would eventually rebel against his father in a struggle for the throne, although he is better known today for his involvement in the Crusades – and, of course, for his being depicted in the Robin Hood legends. “Prince John” would later become “King John,” and was such a bad ruler that he was forced to sign the Magna Carta in 1215. This was a document that limited what kings would now be allowed to do. This was the beginning of a tradition of limits upon England’s royal power, and would later have an effect upon the distant shores of America. (But that’s a subject for another post, more focused on the critical Magna Carta.)
Henry the Second
Episode 2: “An English Empire”
One of the surprises for me was how long England was politically intertwined with France. This is a theme that continues into the second episode, which is entitled “An English Empire.” The Plantagenets lost most of their land in France, and were limited to ruling England instead. This might seem ironic, given that the Plantagenets then continued to be French speakers – much like their Norman predecessors. Thus, they did not speak the English language of the country that they then ruled. But they tried to win back their land in France a number of times. This is a major theme in this episode. This film also talks about the Plantagenets expanding their power into the rest of the British Isles, as they invaded Wales and Scotland and Ireland. Many of the Plantagenets of this era were formidable warrior kings, which may be why there’s a certain air of romanticism with their military exploits. They were backstabbing murderers at times, but they were not rulers to be trifled with, and knew how to fight for their territories.
A cast of the tomb effigy of Henry III in Westminster Abbey, circa 1272
Episode 3: “The Death of Kings”
The third and final episode is called “The Death of Kings.” It focuses on some of the civil wars within the family, culminating in the fifteenth-century “Wars of the Roses.” This is a topic that I have covered in another post, more focused on the Wars of the Roses. Suffice it to say here that these struggles over the throne could involve a lot of bloodshed, and often sucked in the rest of the country as well. One side of this conflict was symbolized by the “White Rose of York,” while the other side was symbolized by the “Red Rose of Lancaster.” This is why this conflict is known by the strange title of the “Wars of the Roses.” The presenter waits until later to call attention to this odd title, since he’s more focused on what happened in this conflict. But suffice it to say that his coverage is quite good, and helps to bring this forgotten period to life. Dr. Bartlett certainly understands the power of documentaries to tell stories, and tells some extremely interesting stories in this program.
Richard the Second
Comparisons with “Britain’s Bloodiest Dynasty: The Plantagenets”
There is another documentary on the Plantagenets, which is entitled “Britain’s Bloodiest Dynasty: The Plantagenets.” This latter documentary is by a presenter named Dan Jones. On the positive side, Mr. Jones has some good re-enactments and thunderous battle segments. On the negative side, he includes some sex scenes in his film, which bring some further parallels with the television series “Game of Thrones.” By contrast, this BBC documentary is handled more tastefully, and films both the actual locations and the actual images from the period. With this discussion of their respective styles concluded, I will now comment briefly on what they cover. Dan Jones focuses more on certain specific episodes in Plantagenet history, and does not attempt an overview of their entire reign. By contrast, Professor Robert Bartlett surveys their entire history, and tells many interesting stories that Dan Jones was forced to omit in his coverage. Both series have their advantages; but in general, I prefer Robert Bartlett’s coverage for the BBC. His understated style actually adds much to the drama, while Dan Jones sometimes borders on overstatement. Nonetheless, both are good, if you can skip the sex scenes that Dan Jones often includes in his films.
Comparisons with “Britain’s Bloody Crown,” and “The Wars of the Roses: A Bloody Crown”
Dan Jones also did another Plantagenet documentary called “Britain’s Bloody Crown.” In contrast to his other film, the film entitled “Britain’s Bloody Crown” is focused on the Wars of the Roses – or rather, it’s focused on certain episodes in the Wars of the Roses. This was a relief in some ways, since Mr. Jones’ film “Britain’s Bloodiest Dynasty: The Plantagenets” did not attempt to cover any of these wars. If you want a more comprehensive overview, you’d be better off sticking with the BBC coverage from Professor Bartlett, which may actually be more interesting to boot. Nonetheless, the true Plantagenet enthusiast may have interest in all of them, depending on their feelings about these films’ respective styles.
This is the best overview of the Plantagenets, with fascinating human stories
There is one other documentary worth examining here, which I have reviewed elsewhere. This is simply entitled “The Wars of the Roses: A Bloody Crown.” It attempts to give an overview of the entire Wars of the Roses – in contrast to the Dan Jones coverage, which focuses only on specific parts of that conflict. To me, “The Wars of the Roses: A Bloody Crown” is more interesting than either of the films by Dan Jones, and is much closer to the storytelling quality of Professor Bartlett and the BBC. More about that here, for anyone who is interested. For now, suffice it to say that “The Wars of the Roses: A Bloody Crown” is a great film, and so is the BBC’s “The Plantagenets” from Professor Robert Bartlett. These have better (and more interesting) information, and tell some great stories to boot. They belong on the shelf of the British history buff, or of any medieval enthusiast.
“… all Pleas which shall be pleaded in [any] Courts whatsoever, before any of his Justices whatsoever, or in his other Places, or before any of His other Ministers whatsoever, or in the Courts and Places of any other Lords whatsoever within the Realm, shall be pleaded, shewed, defended, answered, debated, and judged in the English language [formerly French], and that they be entered and inrolled in Latin … ”
– “Pleading in English Act” (1362), as passed by the relatively-new Parliament of England
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