Books on the Hundred Years' War & the Wars of the Roses

Dear brethren,

I would appreciate recommendations of the very best history books on the Hundred Years' War and the Wars of the Roses.

I'm not sure about that, but I just watched the new American Experience documentary covering WW1 - wow it was a crazy war!

To understand the War of Roses you almost have to memorize the genealogies of several English families. Then you have to examine some of the leading figures of the day. Here are four books, that I would suggest to get you started. I am not sure how many of these are in print.

John of Gaunt: The Exercise of Princely Power in 14th Century Europe by Anthony Goodman

England in the Later Middle Ages by M. H. Keen

English Longbowman 1330 - 1515 by Clive Bartlett

False, Fleeting Pejur'd Clarence: George Duke of Clarence 1449-1478 by Michael Hicks

yeutter said:

To understand the War of Roses you almost have to memorize the genealogies of several English families. Then you have to examine some of the leading figures of the day. Here are four books, that I would suggest to get you started. I am not sure how many of these are in print.

John of Gaunt: The Exercise of Princely Power in 14th Century Europe by Anthony Goodman

England in the Later Middle Ages by M. H. Keen

English Longbowman 1330 - 1515 by Clive Bartlett

False, Fleeting Pejur'd Clarence: George Duke of Clarence 1449-1478 by Michael Hicks

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I am already somewhat familiar with the period and the major characters and families, etc., but I would like to have a more in-depth knowledge. For example, if there is a book that discusses details like economics, troop recruitment, religious issues, etc. I would be very interested. (Something along the lines of Frank Stenton's book on Anglo-Saxon England.) I'm not sure if such a comprehensive book exists, though. In any case, thank you for your recommendations. I will see what is available.

In addition to the The English Longbowman, I would suggest you consult

The Medieval Soldier in the War of the Roses by Andrew Boardman

Have you seen Terry Jones' Medieval Lives the BBC documentary that came out more than a decade ago. It gets into some of the areas you are interested in. I think he also did a book by the same title.

A family that often gets overlooked in the study of English history is the House of Percy. They are up in Yorkshire. They are not one of the main families contesting as claimants for the throne. They seem more preoccupied with the Scots than what is happening in southern England. And still they are an important part of the Medieval English tapestry.
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Kings of the North: The House of Percy in British History by Alexander Rose gives a lot of information that is not quickly found elsewhere. Read the section that deals with 1300 to 1480 and it fills in some gaps.

I note that a comparatively new book has been published on the other great family of the North, the House of Neville. I have not read it, but it comes highly recommended. The postscript to the title is a bit over the top.

The Nevills of Middleham: England's Most Powerful Family in the War of the Roses by K. L. Clark

Surprisingly I have not found a modern scholarly treatment of the House of Parr. They are an important family in England in the same period. I probably have just not been looking in the right places

Reginald Pecock, [AKA Reginald Peacock] was Bishop of Chichester from 1450 until he was found guilty of heresy and deposed in 1461. Bishop Pecock wrote several books; in which he opposed and interacted with Lollard ideas. His appeal to reason, in addition to an appeal to the Bible, got him in trouble with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Bourchier, and the hierarchy of the English Church by, seemingly, setting aside an appeal to ecclesiastical infallibility, thereby undercutting the primacy of episcopal authority.

All of this shows that the Lollards were still an important religious force in England at the time of the War of the Roses. After Bishop Pecock was deposed we do not hear much about the Lollards for several years, until the end of the War of the Roses. Why? Were both the civil and ecclesiastical authorities too consumed by the civil conflict to be worried about them?