Imatge de l'autor

Gerald of Wales (–1223)

Autor/a de The Journey Through Wales and The Description of Wales

21+ obres 1,068 Membres 12 Ressenyes 3 preferits

Sobre l'autor

Obres de Gerald of Wales

The Description of Wales (2004) 17 exemplars

Obres associades

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Etiquetat

Coneixement comú

Altres noms
Cambrensis, Giraldus
Gymro, Gerallt
Data de naixement
1145 (c.)
Data de defunció
1223
Gènere
male
Nacionalitat
UK
País (per posar en el mapa)
Wales, UK
Lloc de naixement
Manorbier Castle, Pembrokeshire, Wales
Llocs de residència
Gloucestershire, England
Paris, France
Llanddew, Wales
Educació
Abbey of St Peter, Gloucester
University at Paris
Professions
Archdeacon of Brecon
Court Chaplain
writer
Organitzacions
University of Paris
Biografia breu
(Norman-French and Welsh ethnic descent)

Membres

Ressenyes

The take away for me of this book was the reassurance that "It (Ireland) has no dragons". This must have come as a great comfort to any medieval traveller contemplating a trip to Ireland.
 
Marcat
Northlaw | Hi ha 5 ressenyes més | Mar 31, 2016 |
The Journey through Wales / The Description of Wales by Gerald of Wales

Gerald of Wales wrote such a detailed account of his travels through Wales in 1188 that scholars are still using his material as primary documentation. Added to The Journey is The Description of Wales highlighting the daily living, social and economic conditions of people in Wales at this time.

Gerald’s ambition was to become Archbishop of Wales; this never came to fruition. He knew everybody that there was to know in Wales and England of the day. Although he was born in Wales, there does not seem to be any record of Gerald being able to speak Welsh. When he preached in Wales, he used Latin and French not Welsh. What about when he had dealings with the Welsh princes? Wales was not a backwards as many historians like to imagine and many of the more important Welsh rulers could communicate effectively in either Latin or French as well as in English and Welsh. Therefore, I am sure that any dealings between the two parties would have been conducted easily.

I found The Journey to be an interesting travel diary kept by Gerald on his missionary travels. I found The Description equally interesting, as this is a firsthand account of what life was like in Wales in the late 1180s during the reign of Richard the Lionhearted. I usually find primary documents boring and mind numbing to read yet these two books found a special place in my heart. Maybe that is the Welsh pride coming out.

The Journey and The Description both almost read like a Who’s Who of medieval England and Wales. Archbishop Baldwin of Canterbury, Saint Thomas Becket, Cadwaladr ap Gruffyd ap Cynan, Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd, Bishop David FitzGerald of St. David’s, Gruffydd ap Rhys ap Tewdwr, William Longchamp, Empress Matilda, Earl Hugh Montgomery of Shrewsbury, and so many others.

Overall, if you have any interest in Wales in particular or medieval English history in general, then I would suggest you give this a good read.

Happy Reading,
… (més)
 
Marcat
jcprowe | Hi ha 4 ressenyes més | Sep 20, 2014 |
This book is a reminder that modern travel books are often better organized than their ancestors. Gerold had an axe to grind, feeling that the Welsh are better than the Irish, and a book I read on the Norman Conquest... err...Invasion of Ireland has a good deal to say about Gerald's connections with the Norman warlords involved in that action. It's a fun book, but should not be used by the serious historian
½
 
Marcat
DinadansFriend | Hi ha 5 ressenyes més | Jan 12, 2014 |

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Estadístiques

Obres
21
També de
4
Membres
1,068
Popularitat
#24,100
Valoració
½ 3.7
Ressenyes
12
ISBN
42
Llengües
2
Preferit
3

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