Mary McAuliffe

Clash of Crowns

William the Conqueror, Richard Lionheart and Eleanor of Aquitaine

Conflict between England and France was a fact of life for centuries, but few realize that its origins date from the time of the Vikings.

Conflict between England and France was a fact of life for centuries, but few realize that its origins date from the time of the Vikings, when a Norse chieftain named Rollo established himself and his progeny in Normandy. In this compelling and entertaining history, Mary McAuliffe takes the reader back to those dark and turbulent times when Rollo's descendants, the dukes of Normandy, asserted their dominance over the weak French monarchy — a dominance that became especially threatening after Duke William conquered England in 1066. McAuliffe offers colorful insights into Richard Lionheart and Eleanor of Aquitaine as well as lesser-known monarchs, especially Philip II of France, whose cutthroat rivalry with Richard not only created fatal divisions within the Third Crusade but culminated in an incendiary faceoff at Richard's newly built Château-Gaillard.