The Two Hundred Years War

Name: The Two Hundred Years War
Price: 59.99 AUD
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ISBN: 9781035906369

The Bloody Crowns of England and France, 1292–1492

Dr Michael Livingston

$59.99

Hardback

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English

Head of Zeus
01 February 2026

History; British & Irish history; Early history: c 500 to c 1450&1500; Medieval history; Military history

A new and radically original account of the longest military conflict in European history, which challenges the conventional periodisation of the ‘Hundred Years War’ to consider a much longer period of Anglo-French conflict.

Michael Livingston argues that the English lens through which the war has been viewed has led historians to define it in terms of English interests (most famously, the claim of the English Plantagenet king Edward III to be the rightful king of France), and that the events collectively labelled the ‘Hundred Years War’ are best seen as a sequence of steps in France’s struggle to define itself as a nation. For much of the period, France’s primary rival was indeed England. But it was by no means the only combatant. Burgundy stood in its way, too, as did Brittany, Flanders, Navarre and other rival powers.

Viewing France as the primary engine driving the war leads Livingston to consider a much longer timespan, starting with the Anglo-French ‘Pirate War’ of 1292 (which swiftly escalated into a fight over England’s feudal possessions in Gascony) and ending with the marriage of Charles VIII of France to Anne of Brittany by which Brittany was subsumed into the French realm.

By: Dr Michael Livingston
Imprint: Head of Zeus
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 236mm, Width: 158mm, Spine: 44mm
Weight: 740g
ISBN: 9781035906369
ISBN 10: 1035906368
Pages: 496
Publication Date: 01 February 2026
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming

Dr Michael Livingston is a Citadel Distinguished Professor and teaches the military and cultural history of the Middle Ages at The Citadel, the Military College of South Carolina. In 2024 he was shortlisted for the Crown Award for Agincourt: Battle of the Scarred King. He co-authored the textbook reader Medieval Warfare, winner of the 2020 Distinguished Book Prize. These add to previous books The Battle of Crécy: A Casebook, winner of the 2017 Distinguished Book Award from the Society for Military History, Never Greater Slaughter: Brunanburh and the Birth of England (Osprey, 2021), and Crécy: Battle of Five Kings (Osprey, 2021). He is an elected Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and former Secretary-General for the United States Commission on Military History.

Reviews for The Two Hundred Years War: The Bloody Crowns of England and France, 1292–1492

Praise for Michael Livingston: Fascinating and engaging, and told with clear passion for the subject. * Aspects of History * Original, insightful and revelatory. * Dan Jones * Makes the reader feel like they’re experiencing history that is fresh, new and exhilarating. * Dan Snow *