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The Bright Ages by Matthew Gabriele and David Perry review – the colourful side of the dark ages
This revisionist history of medieval Europe takes apart the myth of a savage, primitive period, but there are so many more great stories to be told
The middle ages are a sort of paradox, write the authors of this engaging history.
- Peter Frankopan
- The Guardian
“When people want to kick a current problem back into the past – whether Islamic terrorism, bungled responses to Covid-19, or even the process for getting a driver’s licence (it involves a lot of bureaucracy) – they call it ‘medieval’.’’
So too do white supremacists, who look to the middle ages to seize on “golden and glorious artefacts, big castles and cathedrals when they want to claim an…