Publications
De Montfort's Squire: A Story of the Battle of Lewes, by Frederick Harrison, published 1909 (S. P. C. K.) accessible at: & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries
Simon de Montfort, by Margaret Wade Labarge, published 1 January 1962 (312 pp., Eyre & Spottiswoode) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/503929] & East Sussex Libraries
Battle Royal: A New Account of Simon de Montfort's Struggle against King Henry III, by Tufton Beamish, published 1965 (285 pp., London: Frederick Muller Ltd.) accessible at: & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries
Review by C. H. L. in Sussex Notes and Queries, November 1965:This book is the story of the events which led to the Barons' War, the Battle of Lewes, and the aftermath which resulted in the establishment of a more representative government in England. The author steers his reader through the political currents, cross-currents, and rapids of the turbulent reign of Henry III. The book contains a wealth of detail, the fruit of much research, always informative and never boring. In the political portions of the book the touch is sure; but unfortunately Chapter VII, in which the battle is described, does not reach the same standard. Differences of opinion on how it was fought are inevitable, for there are two schools of thought; one that of Ramsay and Burne that it was fought, or at any rate begun, on Offham Hill, and the other, that of Oman and Blaauw, that it was fought on the outskirts of the town. But whatever theory is put forward the reader is entitled to a reconstruction which gives full consideration to the ground, logistics, psychology of commanders, and such definite evidence as grave pits. Would the pious Simon de Montfort, thoroughly imbued with the doctrine of the divine right of kings, have struck first against his anointed sovereign? Would his mail-clad horsemen, not too well mounted, have been able to make a night march in separated bodies over largely trackless country, scale the onein-six northern slopes of Offham Hill in the dark, and at dawn reach a rendezvous successfully on the flat top? De Montfort is described as being 'without question an outstanding military commander of his day,' yet he orders his untrained Londoners to march unsupported on the Castle, against the elite of the Royal Army who annihilate them. ' De Montfort,' we are told, 'can hardly have hoped that he could storm the castle on foot . . . perhaps he actually intended them as a decoy.' As no satisfactory reason is given why de Montfort employed such extraordinary tactics, one might be pardoned for concluding that he did not do so.
The Londoners, who are observed by foragers, march five furlongs (which would take them about 12 minutes) to the Wallands (site of the secondary modern school). There they meet the Lord Edward's cavalrymen, who, we are asked to believe, had been alerted, equipped themselves, saddled their horses, turned out, formed up, and also marched five furlongs, all in the same 12 minutes. There are some more strange logistics when the king makes his sortie from the Priory.
The pen-portraits of the chief actors in the drama are well drawn; that of Simon de Montfort forming a slight corrective to the exaggerated eulogies he has sometimes received. One feature of the book is a brilliant translation by Jane Hodlin of the too little known Song of Lewes, and another, the very interesting collection of illustrations from medieval documents which enliven the narrative.
The inclusion of quotations from a comic history of England as chapter headings may not appeal to some, but is certainly original. Sir Charles Petrie writes the foreword to this most informative book.
The Londoners, who are observed by foragers, march five furlongs (which would take them about 12 minutes) to the Wallands (site of the secondary modern school). There they meet the Lord Edward's cavalrymen, who, we are asked to believe, had been alerted, equipped themselves, saddled their horses, turned out, formed up, and also marched five furlongs, all in the same 12 minutes. There are some more strange logistics when the king makes his sortie from the Priory.
The pen-portraits of the chief actors in the drama are well drawn; that of Simon de Montfort forming a slight corrective to the exaggerated eulogies he has sometimes received. One feature of the book is a brilliant translation by Jane Hodlin of the too little known Song of Lewes, and another, the very interesting collection of illustrations from medieval documents which enliven the narrative.
The inclusion of quotations from a comic history of England as chapter headings may not appeal to some, but is certainly original. Sir Charles Petrie writes the foreword to this most informative book.
Battle Royal: A New Account of Simon de Montfort's Struggle against King Henry III, by Tufton Beamish, published 20 November 1978 (reprint, 285 pp., London: Frederick Muller Ltd., ISBN-10: 0584100183 & ISBN-13: 9780584100181)
Simon de Montfort and the Mise of Lewes, by David Carpenter, published May 1985 in Institute of Historical Research (vol. 58, issue 137, article, pp.1-11) View Online
Simon de Montfort: The First Leader of a Political Movement in English History, by David Carpenter, published February 1991 in History: The Journal of the Historical Association (vol. 76, issue 246, article, pp.3-23)
Simon de Montfort and the historians, by Daniel Waley, published 2002 in Sussex Archæological Collections (vol. 140, article, pp.65-70) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 15109] & The Keep [LIB/500299] & S.A.S. library View Online
Abstract:The career and personality of Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester (c. 1208- 1265), the leader of the baronial revolt against King Henry III, provides a striking exemplar of the malleability of historiographical opinion. Montfort has been treated as hero and villain and (misleadingly) as 'the founder of the House of Commons'. The attitudes of the writers discussed in this article should be interpreted in the light of their own times ? for instance, the English Civil War, the Jacobite risings, the French Revolution and nineteenth-century Liberalism. The emphasis in the article is on the importance to the historian of his historical background rather than on his exploitation of new sources.
The Second Barons' War: Simon de Montfort and the Battles of Lewes and Evesham, by John Sadler, published 15 October 2008 (xxv + 160 pp. & 8 pp. of plates, Barnsley: Pen & Sword Military, ISBN-10: 1844158314 & ISBN-13: 9781844158317) accessible at: British Library & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries
Abstract:For two years in the mid-thirteenth century England was torn by a bloody civil war between the king and his nobles. For a short time, the country came close to unseating the monarchy, and the outcome changed the course of English history. Yet this critical episode receives far less attention than the Wars of the Roses and the English Civil Wars that followed.
John Sadler, in this highly readable and perceptive study of the Barons' War, describes events in vivid detail. He explores the leading personalities, whose bitter quarrel gave rise to the conflict - Henry III, his son Prince Edward, later Edward I, and their most famous opponent, Simon de Montfort, whose masterful charisma galvanized support among the discontented nobility. The clash of interests between the king and his 'overmighty' subjects is reconsidered, as are the personal and political tensions that polarized opinion and tested loyalties to the limit. But the main emphasis of John Sadler's account is on events in the field, in particular the two major campaigns that determined the course of the war and indeed the future government of England - the battles fought at Lewes and Evesham.
John Sadler, in this highly readable and perceptive study of the Barons' War, describes events in vivid detail. He explores the leading personalities, whose bitter quarrel gave rise to the conflict - Henry III, his son Prince Edward, later Edward I, and their most famous opponent, Simon de Montfort, whose masterful charisma galvanized support among the discontented nobility. The clash of interests between the king and his 'overmighty' subjects is reconsidered, as are the personal and political tensions that polarized opinion and tested loyalties to the limit. But the main emphasis of John Sadler's account is on events in the field, in particular the two major campaigns that determined the course of the war and indeed the future government of England - the battles fought at Lewes and Evesham.
Lewes and Evesham 1264-65: Simon de Montfort and the Baron's War, by Richard Brooks and illustrated by Graham Turner, published 20 July 2015 (96 pp., Osprey Publications, ISBN-10: 147281150X & ISBN-13: 9781472811509) accessible at: East Sussex Libraries
Abstract:At the crescendo of the Second Barons' War were the battles of Lewes and Evesham. It was an era of high drama and intrigue, as tensions between crown and aristocracy had boiled over and a civil war erupted that would shape the future of English government. In this detailed study, Richard Brooks unravels the remarkable events at the battles of Lewes and Evesham, revealing the unusually tactical nature of the fighting, in sharp contrast to most medieval conflicts which were habitually settled by burning and ravaging. At Lewes, Simon de Montfort, the powerful renegade leader of the Baronial faction, won a vital victory, smashing the Royalist forces and capturing Henry III and Prince Edward. Edward escaped, however, to lead the Royalist armies to a crushing victory just a year later at Evesham. Using full color illustrations, bird's eye views and detailed maps to generate an arresting visual perspective of the fighting, this book tells the full story of the battles of Lewes and Evesham, the only pitched battles to be fought by English armies in the mid-13th century.