Philippe IV, informally known as the titular Iron King because of his iron will and cruelty, "the impassive and cruel ruler" who "harbored the dream of the greatness of France as a nation" and managed to turn it into a force to be reckoned with (but, at the same time, the land of incredibly heavy taxes and cruel tyrannical attitude to anyone from whom the king could get the money to finance his dream of absolute power) and also the place where "everyone had to obey, bend their backs, or break their foreheads on the granite of the monarchical rule".
'Sir, you have turned the fractured land into a united country that is beginning to have a single beating heart.'
Philippe the Fair - as in 'pretty', and not 'just') - and into the thick of the events that eventually precipitated the Hundred Years' War between England and France. This book, the first in the Accursed Kings series, drops the reader smack into the middle of French palace intrigues that surrounded the last year (1314) of the reign of Philippe IV (a.k.a. I *inhaled* these books (figuratively) at the age of 11, completely entranced by the fascinating world of historical intrigue, for the first time having realized that history is not just the boring collection of dates, names and battles - that the wheel of history can be turned by people who are very much unaware of the overarching implications of their actions and scheming. ¹ Actually, 'read' is an incorrect description. Well, for once I'm the cool kid (ahem, I mean, nerdy overachiever, of course) who can say - Well, I first read¹ these books years ago, having spent every penny of my sparse pocket money on these tomes. Which pretty much means that soon everyone and their grandma will be reading these. Martin has apparently called The Accursed Kings, a seven-book historical novel series by Maurice Druon, 'the original game of thrones'.
"During his reign, France was a great country, and the French were the most miserable of all people."George R.R.
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