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In Search of the Dark Ages: The classic best seller, fully updated and revised for its 40th anniversary

In Search of the Dark Ages: The classic best seller, fully updated and revised for its 40th anniversary

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  • Create Date：2022-06-01 06:53:06
  • Update Date：2025-09-13
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  • Author：Michael Wood
  • ISBN：1785947761
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Summary

In Search of the Dark Ages is an unrivalled exploration of the origins of English identity， and the bestselling book that established Michael Wood as one of Britain's leading historians。 Now， on the book's 40th anniversary， this fully revised and expanded edition illuminates further the fascinating and mysterious centuries between the Romans and the Norman Conquest。

Alongside portraits of Boadicea， King Arthur， Alfred the Great， Athelstan， and William the Conqueror， the story of England is expanded further to include new voices， with all-new chapters on fascinating characters such as Penda of Mercia， Aethelflaed Lady of the Mercians， Hadrian the African， Eadgyth of England， and Wynflaed。 It's an altogether richer， more varied， and inclusive study on the creation of Britain。

Just as it did when it first published 40 years ago， In Search of the Dark Ages overturns preconceptions of the Early Middle Ages as a shadowy and brutal era， showing them to be a richly exciting and formative period in the history of Britain。

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Reviews

Ed Taylor ，

Michael Wood's "In Search Of The Dark Ages" was originally published 40 years ago， and at that time was a wonderful introduction to a period of history about which little is known。 Wood writes with confidence and elegance， his style is very easy to read。This revised edition has been massively updated given recent research and current understanding of the period in question - and there has been a great deal of change in the past forty years。 There are one or two current - perhaps somewhat controv Michael Wood's "In Search Of The Dark Ages" was originally published 40 years ago， and at that time was a wonderful introduction to a period of history about which little is known。 Wood writes with confidence and elegance， his style is very easy to read。This revised edition has been massively updated given recent research and current understanding of the period in question - and there has been a great deal of change in the past forty years。 There are one or two current - perhaps somewhat controversial - theories that are not touched on here， but nevertheless this remains an excellent jumping off point for anyone who has even a passing interest in the era。 Other studies go into greater detail of specific ideas， but this is an excellent overview of the period。 。。。more

Alex Barrow ，

A brilliant and very accessible introduction to the early medieval history of England， from the end of Roman rule to the Norman invasion。 It’s a fascinating period of English history and pivotal in making the country it is today， but sadly little known by most of us。 I actually decided to pick this up after watching Vikings and really enjoyed recognising the snippets of different rulers’ and warriors’ tales captured in the book that were weaved into the character arcs in that series。

Carlton ，

This 40th anniversary edition of the book to accompany a 1980’s BBC television series has been updated and expanded from the original， but retains the overall structure of the original， and this is the fundamental weakness of the book compared to later works， such as Marc Morris’ The Anglo-Saxons and Max Adams The First Kingdom。 The book covers the history of England from the Roman invasion through to the Norman conquest through chapters looking at the lives of specific individuals。 This approac This 40th anniversary edition of the book to accompany a 1980’s BBC television series has been updated and expanded from the original， but retains the overall structure of the original， and this is the fundamental weakness of the book compared to later works， such as Marc Morris’ The Anglo-Saxons and Max Adams The First Kingdom。 The book covers the history of England from the Roman invasion through to the Norman conquest through chapters looking at the lives of specific individuals。 This approach allows for excellent narrative storytelling of particular periods， but is necessarily disjointed。The first chapter skilfully recounts the rebellion of Boudica in the early years of Roman occupation。 I enjoyed this history of Roman Britain， but it isn’t about the “Dark Ages”。There follows five chapters comprising about a third of the book broadly covering the period from 400 to 850 （ie more than two thirds of the period nominally under discussion）， which deal with:• King Arthur - the real “Dark Ages” （about 410-600） period when we don’t know how the Germanic tribes from Europe settled in South and Eastern Britain。• Sutton Hoo - a pagan burial in the kingdom of the East Angles， probably of King Rædwald （early 600s）• Penda （died 655） - the last pagan king of a major kingdom （Mercia）• Theodore of Tarsus and Hadrian the African - an archbishop of Canterbury and abbot of Canterbury in 670 onwards， initiating a “renaissance” in learning， but feeling a bit politically correct perhaps as an added chapter， as they were originally a Syrian and an African （from now Libya）。• Offa （reigned 757 to 796） - who created a significantly enlarged kingdom of Mercia that claimed overlordship of other kingdoms （West Saxon， East Angles， Kent） and had diplomatic links with Charlemagne。The chapters on Penda and Theodore & Hadrian are additions in this updated edition。The book now switches to the more successful West Saxon （Wessex） dynasty with chapters on:• Alfred the Great （lived 848-899） - who ruled Wessex from 871， resisting the Vikings who had first raided Britain in 753 （Thanet， and more famously Lindisfarne in 793）， and uniting the Anglo-Saxons against the Viking invaders from 886• Aethelflaed （lived about 870 to 918） - who was Alfred’s daughter and ruled in Mercia， with her brother Edgar ruling in Wessex， consolidating the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of Wessex and Mercia • Athelstan （lived 894 to 939） - grandson of Alfred who expanded the Anglo-Saxon kingdom， as King of the Anglo-Saxons from 924 to 927 and King of the English from 927 to his death in 939， after conquering the Viking kingdom of Northumbria （York）。• Lady Wynflaed （died mid-tenth century） - a rich widow whose Will is analysed to provide details of her life - see https://blogs。bl。uk/digitisedmanuscri。。。• Eadgyth Princess of Wessex， Queen of Germany （lived 910-946） - a granddaughter of Alfred the Great， who at 19 married Otto， a German prince， who became king （East Francia）。 Although written records are mainly German， this chapter discusses how royal princesses were part of the medieval diplomatic alliance process。The chapters on Aethelflaed， Lady Wynflaed and Eadgyth are further additions in this updated edition。The Anglo-Saxon kingdom is then disrupted by Vikings again and this is examined by looking at the life of Eric Bloodaxe （died 954）， who ended his life after twice being King of Northumbria （c。 947–948 and 952–954）。The Anglo-Saxon kings are again looked at through the reign of Ethelred the Unready （reigned 978 to 1013 and again 1014 until his death in 1016）， who was overthrown by Sweyn of Denmark in 1013-1014。 Although mainly told through extracts from the contemporary Anglo-Saxon Chronicles， this chapter failed to illuminate Ethelred’s character for me。 Although succeeded by his son Edmund “Ironside in 1016， Edmund was killed by Sweyn’s son Cnut （also king of Denmark and Norway） and an Anglo-Saxon rule was not reimposed until 1042， when the last Anglo-Saxon king， Edward “the Confessor” ruled to 1066。The final chapter looks at how William “the Conqueror” came to have a claim to the English crown and the battles of 1066 that allowed him to take the crown。Overall， this book is very readable and provides engaging portraits of individuals who lived during the long period covered by the history， but feels more like a series of snapshots。I received a Netgalley copy of this book， but this review is my honest opinion。 。。。more

Helen Frost ，

This is a historical period I did not have much prior knowledge about so I was thrilled to read this detailed account。 The level of information is exquisite and very accessible to the uninitiated layman such as myself。 I was aware the England has a rich tapestry of history during these times， with a multitude of influences but not to the extent covered。 It was deeply satisfying that such a level of detail is known and preserved as part of our history and I now have a much better insight and know This is a historical period I did not have much prior knowledge about so I was thrilled to read this detailed account。 The level of information is exquisite and very accessible to the uninitiated layman such as myself。 I was aware the England has a rich tapestry of history during these times， with a multitude of influences but not to the extent covered。 It was deeply satisfying that such a level of detail is known and preserved as part of our history and I now have a much better insight and knowledge。 I particularly enjoyed the sections which mention Icknield Way as I live on a section of this， historically important， road so the information felt particularly relevant and poignant to me。 It was also good to know personal detail and tragedy about the kings， queens and leaders as it painted them in a very relatable and human light。Seriously fascinating reading， everyone should take the opportunity to read about our colourful and culturally rich past。 Absolutely recommend。 。。。more

Evan MacDonald ，

If I could use one word to describe this book， I would say "Meh"I found myself sludging through the content of this book， and perhaps I would have enjoyed it more if I knew any Anglo-Saxon history， but alas I do not。I don't recommend this book to anyone unless you know a lot of Anglo-Saxon history If I could use one word to describe this book， I would say "Meh"I found myself sludging through the content of this book， and perhaps I would have enjoyed it more if I knew any Anglo-Saxon history， but alas I do not。I don't recommend this book to anyone unless you know a lot of Anglo-Saxon history 。。。more

Mrs Karen Bull ，

Great book very informative Well written and worth buying 40th anniversary of this book and really is an impressive book learnt things I didn't know Great book very informative Well written and worth buying 40th anniversary of this book and really is an impressive book learnt things I didn't know 。。。more

Bill ，

This book is well-written and approachable。 The premise is if manuscripts， archeology， folklore， coinage， etc。， are broadly studied more can be extracted about the dark ages than we previously knew; then the author does this。 Most of the facts in the book were new to me as I never studied this period。 I thought it was well worth the effort。

Data ，

Readable history。 Covers a period that I have little knowledge of， so just guessing that the information is good and relatively current。

Robert Kenny ，

There was definitely some interesting content， but because it covered such a broad span of time， it wasn’t able to flesh things out properly or bring historical figures to life。

Richard ，

This book is a great introduction to that foundational period of British history referred to as the Dark Ages。 The BBC series of programmes the book is based on are still available on YouTube and well worth watching - not just for Michael Wood's early 80s fashion style！I appreciated the way the author sets out the range of types of sources relied upon when attempting to construct an authentic understanding of the movers and shakers of the Dark Ages; namely， written sources （often compiled many y This book is a great introduction to that foundational period of British history referred to as the Dark Ages。 The BBC series of programmes the book is based on are still available on YouTube and well worth watching - not just for Michael Wood's early 80s fashion style！I appreciated the way the author sets out the range of types of sources relied upon when attempting to construct an authentic understanding of the movers and shakers of the Dark Ages; namely， written sources （often compiled many years later） contemporary charters， archaeological finds and coinage。 From Boudica to William the Conqueror each chapter takes a cursory look at each source of information in trying to construct the stories behind the names。 This is a relatively short book for the ground it covers and therefore serves as an excellent primer for anyone who would like to begin to engage with this intriguing period of British history。 。。。more

Tim Chamberlain ，

Exemplary writing by an exemplary historian。 The television series was fantastic too。

Simon ，

A long journey through this fascinating book， I got bogged down at one stage and even did a bit of my own reading round the subject separately。 Still， an interesting progression from the Roman occupation of Britain， right through to the Norman Conquest， emphasising the longevity of the political， legal， language and social structures that endured to a greater or lesser extent to the present day。 For me， a worthwhile read， filling in the gaps in my traditional education in British and especially， A long journey through this fascinating book， I got bogged down at one stage and even did a bit of my own reading round the subject separately。 Still， an interesting progression from the Roman occupation of Britain， right through to the Norman Conquest， emphasising the longevity of the political， legal， language and social structures that endured to a greater or lesser extent to the present day。 For me， a worthwhile read， filling in the gaps in my traditional education in British and especially， English history。 It underlines why virtually everyone born in this country has Scandinavian DNA as part of their overall make-up。 It took me a while to read this， admittedly but it was definitely worth the effort。 。。。more

Shake n' Vac ，

My copy is the original paperback version （all of £3。95 when I got it from new）， and it is a book that follows his TV series of the same name。 I watched the series again the other day and re-read the book - and the two work very well together， indeed， often the script is mirrored exactly in the book。 Wood is theatrical as a presenter - bringing the page to life in his effervescent way， but the book also fills in details from the films and also has an extra chapter on Sutton Hoo。 Wood makes his s My copy is the original paperback version （all of £3。95 when I got it from new）， and it is a book that follows his TV series of the same name。 I watched the series again the other day and re-read the book - and the two work very well together， indeed， often the script is mirrored exactly in the book。 Wood is theatrical as a presenter - bringing the page to life in his effervescent way， but the book also fills in details from the films and also has an extra chapter on Sutton Hoo。 Wood makes his subject easy for the general reader， using archaeology and history， which is an achievement considering how little is really known about many he seeks to tell the story of （Offa still has no biographer）。 His stories are individual， helped by the fact he misses out figures like Edward the Elder and Edward the Confessor so as to build them into the stories of others and avoid massive overlap。 A fun but enlightening read， especially useful if you then progress to a more academic tome （Foot's Aethelstan， Barlow's Confessor or Douglas' Billy the Conk）。 。。。more

James Kelly ，

When truth becomes legend， print the legend。 I love Michael Wood。 he is honest and open and witty as any historian， and a great scholar both of history and the human heart。 These were his breakthrough shows for his TV series and were then collected into these essays。 The show was what started my love affair with history， and he has been a guide to me all my life。 Wonderful book。

Thomas Wright ，

While being a very informative， this book runs at sometimes break-neck speed through the history of Anglo-Saxon England。 This is perfect for anyone with a vague interest in the period to get started， however it lacks in a couple of areas。 Firstly it focuses way too much on the high politics of the period with little to no discussion about people other than Kings and Ealdorman （this may be partly because of a lack of sources but it is very apparent at the lack of attention given to the peasantry） While being a very informative， this book runs at sometimes break-neck speed through the history of Anglo-Saxon England。 This is perfect for anyone with a vague interest in the period to get started， however it lacks in a couple of areas。 Firstly it focuses way too much on the high politics of the period with little to no discussion about people other than Kings and Ealdorman （this may be partly because of a lack of sources but it is very apparent at the lack of attention given to the peasantry）。 。。。more

Stephen John ，

It's a good book， but a bit dated and the title is misleading as it is not really about searching for the Dark Ages in the round。 Rather it is a political history of the Anglo Saxon kingdoms。 It's a good book， but a bit dated and the title is misleading as it is not really about searching for the Dark Ages in the round。 Rather it is a political history of the Anglo Saxon kingdoms。 。。。more

Ashley Lindsay ，

Superb writing on one of the most fascinating eras of the West。 Michael Wood will always remain my favorite historian。 For his dedication to truth， and the infectious delight with which he shares it with us。

Emg ，

Source references would have been helpful especially for those casual statements used to support arguments and more obscure （to me） people and events。

Lee Williams ，

Enjoyed the book slow in parts however very informative on kings and historical events

Andrew McAuley ，

An interesting history covering about 1000 years of British history。 Its very general， anyone with a particular interest in a particular age， reign or region may be disappointed that many subjects are skimmed over as a mattwr of necessity to fit it all in。The author has a casual and easy to read style free of scholarly pretentiousness。 An ideal read for anyone looking for a general overview of early Britain with a view to picking out peices of particular interest for more indepth scrutiny。 I'd r An interesting history covering about 1000 years of British history。 Its very general， anyone with a particular interest in a particular age， reign or region may be disappointed that many subjects are skimmed over as a mattwr of necessity to fit it all in。The author has a casual and easy to read style free of scholarly pretentiousness。 An ideal read for anyone looking for a general overview of early Britain with a view to picking out peices of particular interest for more indepth scrutiny。 I'd recommend the book to anyone with an interest in British history unless they're pretty thoroughly well read on the period between roman and norman conquests。 。。。more

Lebenator ，

3。5 stars。 He gives insightful comments on the Catholics and the slave trade （the Vikings enslaving the British）。

AJS ，

Very intriguing older （1980s） work about the English middle ages。 An area of history I have always been intrigued by， but which I had not read much about yet。 Traces the flow of historical events from the ending of Roman civilization up to the Norman conquest。 Helped fill in a lot of gaps from what I already knew about partial arcs of that history （Viking invasion， the in-fighting in milled England and all its small kingdoms）。 Excellent read for an introduction to the era。

Kerry Hennigan ，

First published in 1981 to accompany his TV series of the same name， Michael Wood’s In Search of the Dark Ages tackles the fascinating part of British history known as the Dark Ages。 The stories of these times are told through their best-known political figures， whether semi-mythical， like Arthur， or real， like Alfred and Athelstan。 In the wake of Arthur， if he existed， England became Anglo-Saxon， and it is their story that is told here。 Even since this 2005 updated paperback edition was publish First published in 1981 to accompany his TV series of the same name， Michael Wood’s In Search of the Dark Ages tackles the fascinating part of British history known as the Dark Ages。 The stories of these times are told through their best-known political figures， whether semi-mythical， like Arthur， or real， like Alfred and Athelstan。 In the wake of Arthur， if he existed， England became Anglo-Saxon， and it is their story that is told here。 Even since this 2005 updated paperback edition was published there have been developments that add to the story， even beyond what Wood has included in his Postscript to this edition。 This is an important reality about history – the story as we know it is always evolving thanks to the work of archaeologists who continue to unearth evidence that supports， disproves or augments the written records。 The dominance of the Anglo-Saxon kings comes to an end with Harald who succumbs to William the Conqueror from Normandy in 1066。 But， as with those whose power William usurped at Hastings， the Normans too would flourish for a time， then likewise merge with the broader landscape of history。 。。。more

Lee ，

Good book

John ，

It was fun comparing it to the Vikings Tv show and trying to sort out was true and what was not。 I have been familiar with Queen Boudica through a history documentary （love the Celts） and now I had a chance to read about her and I had also heard of some of these theories about the real King Arthur。 Trying to read more history。 Enjoyed this book！

Mike Biles ，

I love this book。 Maybe part of the reason is that I find the whole period so fascinating。 Michael Wood is a great presenter， easy on the ear， and that style translates to this book， in which he offers his own take on nine personalities from Boudica to William the Conqueror。 the others are King Arthur， Sutton Hoo man， Offa， Alfred the Great， Athelstan， Eric Bloodaxe and Ethelred the Unready。 Wonderful stuff。

George Foord ，

This book gives a good general overview of the so called dark ages。 I just wish it was more in depth as there is only a few pages on each subject

J。P。 Harker ，

Very informative and easy to read。 I'd hoped for a little more about the period between the Romans leaving and the Saxons arriving， but I accept there's not a great deal of source info to work from。 What was there was good however， and the rest of the book was an interesting overview of Anglo-Saxon Britain。 （Anyone reading the Uhtred books should beware btw - spoilers abound！） I'd recommend this to anyone starting off a study of Saxon Britain。 It's full of interesting info and well set out in bi Very informative and easy to read。 I'd hoped for a little more about the period between the Romans leaving and the Saxons arriving， but I accept there's not a great deal of source info to work from。 What was there was good however， and the rest of the book was an interesting overview of Anglo-Saxon Britain。 （Anyone reading the Uhtred books should beware btw - spoilers abound！） I'd recommend this to anyone starting off a study of Saxon Britain。 It's full of interesting info and well set out in bitesized chunks that are ideal for not getting bogged down in reams of text。 。。。more

Shane Bernard ，

Despite the title， the book is about the Dark Ages in England。 But that's actually what I wanted。 Have been a fan of historian/filmmaker Michael Wood since the 1980s， when I saw In Search of the Trojan War and read the companion book。 Despite the title， the book is about the Dark Ages in England。 But that's actually what I wanted。 Have been a fan of historian/filmmaker Michael Wood since the 1980s， when I saw In Search of the Trojan War and read the companion book。 。。。more

Anthony Fitton ，

Sections on Eric Bloodaxe and Ethelred the Unready not of the same quality as the earlier sections onmup to Athelstan or the final section on Harold/William the Conqueror。 Its as if he lost focus half way through the book and then had a last effort at finishing it。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=In Search of the Dark Ages: The classic best seller, fully updated and revised for its 40th anniversary

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=In Search of the Dark Ages: The classic best seller, fully updated and revised for its 40th anniversary&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,In Search of the Dark Ages: The classic best seller, fully updated and revised for its 40th anniversary&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0