The Story

Welcome to France, around 1415–1422. The Hundred Years' War is about to hit a new low. Monstrelet, a medieval chronicler (not a novelist), just writes down what he sees: the English army, led by King Henry V, is wrecking French towns. But inside France, it’s even worse. The French king Charles VI is going mad. Two noble families—the Burgundians and the Armagnacs—are at each other’s throats. They’re murdering each other in Paris, kidnapping each other, and acting like the English are an aftershock. Monstrelet documents the squabbles: a noble gets captured for ransom, a treaty is signed then shredded, peasants starve. It’s like a news feed from hell that never issues an advertisement.

Why You Should Read It

Because history is not polite. This volume hits like a cold stone: no nostalgia, no heroic soundtrack. It’ll make you think about my own tribe mentality. Look at how leaders treat people as chess pieces. The Armagnacs and Burgundians act like it’s a personal feud, and regular folks pay the price. There’s nothing neat—no chosen one, no medal scene. Just people swallowing pride until the last bread runs out. That made reading immersive, even painful. Monstrelet views war with an ice-cold eye; no one is right or wrong. They’re just hungry, scared, or scheming. I liked how conversational this feels. No fancy vocab. Just a dude telling me what happened: “And so they burned the bridge” type sentences. You’ll whisper ‘oof’ a couple times.

Final Verdict

This is perfect for patient history buffs looking for anti-cheese. Historical fiction can fake tension, but Monstrelet serves the real stuff: drench, tedium, gossip, disasters. If you’ve watched The Last Kingdom or read Barbara Tuchman’s “A Distant Mirror,” you’re already one foot in. Also good for anyone who wants to understand why modern France kept fighting forever. Slow warning — this is old French whining, no plot formula. But if you push past the dates, the rawness might change how you think about credit and destiny. Finished feeling scuffed, but wiser.