Barbarossa: An Historical Novel of the XII Century

Bolanden, Conrad von, 1828-1920Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 2.7
Word count
656K words
Chapters
66

Tags

English Originals Historical Fiction Imperial Rise and FallMilitary StrategyLegendary LivesCourt IntriguePower GameBarbarossa LegendHeroismMedieval EuropeTurbulent EraTwelfth Century

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Barbarossa; An Historical Novel of the XII Century. by Conrad von BolandenAuthor: Bolanden, Conrad von, 1828-1920,Language: English, Class: PT: Language and Literatures: Germanic, Scandinavian, and Icelandic literatures, Release Date: Aug 22, 2010

Editor's review

This historical novel is set against the backdrop of the twelfth century, in the age of Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I (Barbarossa), and belongs to the tradition of German historical fiction as introduced to English-language readers. Its author, Conrad von Bolanden, was a nineteenth-century German popular historical novelist of Catholic background whose works often take the conflicts between the medieval Empire and the Papacy as their narrative core. Through the fates of fictional characters linked to a series of real historical events, the book lets readers experience the political landscape, chivalric culture, castle life, and religious atmosphere of twelfth-century Europe as the story unfolds. As a public-domain e-book from Project Gutenberg, its value lies in offering Chinese readers a window onto the narrative style of nineteenth-century European historical fiction, and it is also suitable as accessible companion reading for enthusiasts of medieval history. One caveat: the English original bears the linguistic traces of its era and its narrative pace differs from that of modern novels, so readers would do well to enter it expecting an immersion in historical setting rather than plot suspense.

Who it's for

A good fit for

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Reading tips

  1. First look up the background of Frederick I and the twelfth-century Empire–Papacy conflict, then enter the story.
  2. Distinguish fictional characters from real historical figures, and take notes on character relationships as you read.
  3. Slow down when you encounter long sentences, and pay attention to the narrator's descriptions of medieval customs and scenes.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

Contents

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FAQ

Is this book a work of history or a novel? It is a historical novel, framed by the real historical background and figures of the twelfth century, but its plot and main characters include fictional elements and it should not be used as a work of historical scholarship.
How much medieval history do I need to know before reading? It is not required, but a prior grasp of the basic outlines of Frederick I, the Holy Roman Empire, and its relations with the Papacy will make the political conflicts and character motivations in the story easier to understand.
How difficult is the English original? As a nineteenth-century work, its sentences tend to be long and its narrative pace slow, with vocabulary characteristic of its era; readers at intermediate level or above will find it smoother going with the help of annotations.

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About the author

Bolanden, Conrad von, 1828-1920 Author · German · 1828–1920

Conrad von Bolanden (1828–1920) was a German Catholic novelist whose real name was Joseph Bischoff. Public information about his early life and education is limited; his literary reputation rests mainly on two kinds of writing, historical fiction and religious fiction. Two of his works are held in this collection: the historical novel Barbarossa: An Historical Novel of the XII Century, set against the turbulent events of the twelfth century, and the religious work The Progressionists, and Angela, which centers on the tension between faith and the currents of the age. His writing carries a distinct Catholic standpoint, using historical settings and human destinies to express religious concerns, and he occupies a place in nineteenth-century German popular fiction and Catholic reading. His subjects lean toward history and faith, and his narrative style is accessible and plain, aimed at a broad readership.