Marginal Figures
Warwick the Kingmaker. By Paul Murray. Ken- dall. (Allen and Unwin, 30s.)
MR. KENDALL gives us as complete a picture as he can of the so-called Kingmaker—though in fact he was not so much a maker of kings as one who was undone by them—but the reader hardly feels that he has got to know him at all. No portrait of the Earl of Warwick exists, so we do not know what he looked like; no letters have ever been brought to light, written by him or even to him. He is referred to repeatedly in the Paston Letters which fortunately throw so bright a light on this murky period, but that is all.
There is in this book, however, much of very
great interest that is only indirectly connected with Warwick himself. The portrait the author draws of Louis XI of France is magnificent. 'Louis had a jutting, irregular, coarse face, dominated by a pendulous nose that gave him his sardonic look. His eyes were deep-set, hooded, veiled. He had a loose wry mouth and a very long chin. His speech was thick and he talked much too fast.' Louis regarded God the Father much as he ex- pected a small French peasant would regard him, the King. He did not wish to waste his time with anyone so remote, aloof and overworked. There- fore it was to the saints that he addressed his prayers. He did not hesitate, to pester, bribe and even threaten this heavenly host, but he never cheated on the endless bargains he drove with them.
Mr. Kendall also describes superbly the Court of Burgundy in all its opulent magnificence, and Margaret of Anjou, the indomitable and restless consort of dull-witted Henry VI, who spent most of her life fleeing before Yorkist forces.
GERALD HAMILTON
Previous page
