Last Apocalpyse

James Reston produces, in this book, one of the most fascinating reads of the Christian co-optation of Medieval Europe yet penned. The Catholic Church, political personalities (Pagan, Islamic, and Christian), and rumors of Apocalypse rush forward to meet at an uncertain intersection point behind Europe's "Veil of Tears." As a writer (here, at least,) of historical fiction, Reston is relieved of that most onerous of the Historian's burdens, presentation of absolute truth. Despite this, his references are superb, and point to an eye for quality of sources, while also revealing a knack for using legend as a springboard for research.This jump into historically dicey water reveals the book's only problem, which is where, exactly, the border between fact and fiction lie within a "Holy See" of narrative. However, as is explained in the forward, the point of "The Last Apocalypse" is not to present a comprehensive history, but rather a unique intersection of fact and legend. The resulting "story" is quite the opposite of dry, and tends to produce (even in the dank and shackled minds of College Undergraduates, of which I am one,) a urning to learn more about the period. Reston's unique approach allows him to paint a vivid picture not possible with simple factual renderings. For this, I thank him. HST 205 would have been a true trial without such a book to light the way to the birth of a new era; the summer of '00.

Reston's "The Last Apocalypse" is a pleasure to read and very entertaining. He vividly describes the historical figures who lived (and often died) at the turn of the first millennium. Their names alone promise a good story: Olaf Trygvesson, Thorgeir the Lawspeaker, Queen Sigrid the Haughty, Svein Forkbeard, Ethelred the Unready, Gerbert the Wizard, and Otto the Dreamer, to name a few. As Reston tells it, these people were the protaganists in a grand struggle by which Europe was converted to Christianity.Reston tries to be historically accurate, but he allows that "in portraying this dark and illiterate age, the oral tradition is the stuff of our history. In this work, I embrace it." And so the broad outlines of known events are colored in with poetry and saga. Still, that's not a bad approach--Reston is careful to distinguish between history and legend, and his use of oral tradition makes his subjects come alive despite one thousand years of distance.If you like this book, I think you'll also enjoy "The Year 1000: What Life was Like at the Turn of the First Millennium," by Robert Lacey and Danny Danziger, which is a short but fascinating description of English life in and around 1000 AD. Another promising book is David Howarth's "1066: The Year of the Conquest," which I recently purchased but have not yet read carefully.

I found this entertaining and informative book quite useful in researching my own book. What I liked most about it-outside of the fascinating stories-was that Reston pretty much lets his readers form their own conclusions about the causes of change during the last millennial transition.So, I would take mild exception with the reviewer who indicated that Reston gives too much credit to the year-1000 rollover. That reviewer pointed out that "At the turn of the millenium in which we are now living, most people on the planet are abundantly aware of this as an event. Not so in much of Europe around the year 1000. In particular, much of Northern Europe, still being pagan, did not follow the Julian Calendar." While it's true that most of Europe was probably not aware that they were living 1,000 years after the birth of Christ, I don't recall Reston ever saying that the changes that occurred around the year 1000 had anything to do with millennial concern. He simply points out that many highly significant changes did, in fact, occur during this time frame. He leaves it up to the reader to deduce how much of this had anything to do with concern over the year 1000.So, I think it's a well balanced and intriguing book.

This is an excellent book about a largely ignored chapter of European history. Filled with stories about the Vikings, Moors, Magyars, and the Papacy, Reston paints a facinating picture about the consolidation of christian power in Europe. Filled with facinating annecdotes, and quite a few horrifying atrocities this is one of the few historical texts I can give a universal reccomendation to. Especially reccomended to readers of Scandinavian or Hungarian descent; whose history by myth or generally ignored. The history of the Papacy has to be read to be believed; a good groundwork for understanding the crusades and the turbulent history of christianity is laid in those chapters. Ironically, the accesible nature of this book, and it's wonderful readability, may make it seem like a frivilous catalog of mutilation, but this is a well researched work and absoloutely worth reading.

With the new millennium quickly approaching, it has become obvious that the populace of today's world has no fear, or any thought that there may be an apocalyptic event in the year 2000. I am not Nostrodamus, so I am not saying that there will be. I am just observing the fact that people today are looking at the year 2000 as a big party. Cruises are being booked; Hotels are sold out for the New Years Celebration; People are basically optimistic about the year 2000. The only catastrophic event we have to look forward to is the Y2K computer glitch and another presidential election. However, our ancestors of a 1,000 years ago faced the four riders of the apocalypse, death, famine, war and pestilence on a daily basis. In The Last Apocalypse, James Reston reminds us of a not so simple time when Viking hoards from Norway and Denmark, Muslim Moors and Hungarian Magyars had most of Europe under siege. Violence and cruelty were rampant and the invaders were spreading fear and destruction among the people of Europe. Leading many to believe that the proverbial end was at hand. And where was this new God of Christianity? 950 years have past since the death of Jesus and the pagans were running rampant in Europe. Where was the Church in this time of need?Reston answers these questions and more in the 287 pages of the book in which he enchants the reader with an absorbing saga of the end of Europe at the last millennium. As the year 1000 approaches Christianity is seen in a battle for its existence against pagan and Muslim enemies, which were on the brink of conquering the Christian Kingdoms. The Vikings had a stranglehold on England, Ireland and France, the Magyars were laying waste to Germany and Italy and the Moors were chipping away at the last remnants of Charlemagne's empire in Spain. In the meantime, corruption and internal conflict are undermining the Church, rendering it useless against the rising tide of pagans and Muslims. Yet by 1000 AD, the Church has pulled its act together and got its! house in order. It managed to convert the ruthless Vikings and the Hungarian Magyar Chiefs from their pagan ways to Christianity. It also checked the Muslim advance in Spain with the First Crusade, keeping them from reaching into the heart of Europe.Reston convincingly argues that it was the conversion of pagan rulers to Christianity that truly made possible the transformation of the embattled kingdoms of 10th century Europe into the familiar history that we know today. He brings to life legendary leaders and warriors from King Ethelred the Unready of England, to the Moor Al-Mansor the Illustrious Victor to the abiding genius of the age, Pope Sylvester II, all bringing this strife-torn period to vibrant life with each page.Reston begins the book visiting the site of the Battle of Muldon, wandering about Northy Island in Britain, referencing a tattered copy of The Battle of Muldon, an Old English epic poem of the last great battle between the Vikings an