Four Princes: Henry VIII, Francis I, Charles V, Suleiman - John Julius Norwich Audiobook

Written by John Julius Norwich
Read by Julian Elfer
Format: MP3
Bitrate: 64 Kbps
Unabridged

Four Princes: Henry VIII, Francis I, Charles V, Suleiman the Magnificent and the Obsessions that Forged Modern Europe

Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc.
Release date: April 4, 2017
Duration: 07:57:06

John Julius Norwich—who the Wall Street Journal called “the very model of a popular historian”—has crafted a big, bold tapestry of the early sixteenth century, when Europe and the Middle East were overshadowed by a quartet of legendary rulers, all born within a ten-year period.

In Europe, 1491 to 1500 was an exciting time to be alive. The entire continent was overshadowed by four rulers, all born within a ten-year period:

King Francis I of France, the most interesting of the quartet, bursting with energy and swagger, was a great patron of the arts and the personification of the Renaissance.

King Henry VIII of England—who was not born to be king but embraced the role with gusto—broke with the Roman Catholic Church, and made himself head of the Church of England.

Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, the most powerful man in the civilized world, obsessed with the religious disputes of Europe, was leader of the Spanish and then Roman Empire.

Suleiman the Magnificent, the richest of them all, stands apart as a Muslim, who brought the Ottoman Empire to its apogee of political, military, and economic power, as well as to the golden age of its artistic and architectural prowess.

Did you know that Henry VIII; Francis I of France; Charles the V, Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire; and Suleiman the Magnificent were born within 10 years of one another and that their lives intertwined? Julian Elfer’s melodic voice is perfect as narrator of this sweeping history of sixteenth-century Europe. Elfer’s unemotional narration flows steadily through political intrigue and religious changes and conflicts, dynastic marriages, military campaigns, and international explorations that bring Europe into the early modern period. He shifts accents effortlessly between English, French, German, and Turkish. Footnotes are read sotto voce, never breaking the steady narrative. Back and forth across Europe, the Mediterranean Sea, and the western realms of the Ottoman Empire, this history sheds light on a familiar yet complex period. M.B.K. � AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine