This book is more than just a biography of the first great English monarch: it is a stunningly researched, wide-ranging, beautifully written and revelatory history of seventh-century Britain in all its aspects.

swald Whiteblade lived one of the most influential and colourful lives in early English history. Before his death in battle against the pagans of Mercia cut short his reign as king of Northumbria (634-42), he remodelled his northeastern English homeland as a Christian kingdom, founded the monastery of Lindisfarne, introduced a culture of learning which influenced all Europe, and became the most powerful ruler in Britain.

Max Adams's thrilling account rescues Oswald from Dark Age obscurity to reveal an unjustly forgotten English hero - a king whose return from exile to reclaim his birthright was the inspiration for J. R. R. Tolkien's Aragorn in The Lord of the Rings.

Contents
Welcome Page
Dedication
Maps
A note on dates and timelines
Chapter I: Queen’s move
Chapter II: The Sound of Iona
Timeline: AD 547 to 604
Chapter III: Pride and prejudice
Chapter IV: Coming of age in Dál Riata
Chapter V: Uncle Edwin
Chapter VI: King’s gambit
Timeline: AD 604 to 631
Chapter VII: Winter quarters
Chapter VIII: The return of the King
Chapter IX: Holy Islands
Chapter X: The neighbours
Chapter XI: Holy shires
Chapter XII: Oh brother, where art thou?
Timeline: AD 632 to 642
Chapter XIII: Miracles will happen
Chapter XIV: Family affairs
Chapter XV: Promises, promises
Chapter XVI: Wood and stone
Chapter XVII: The Bay of the Lighthouse
Timeline: AD 642 to 671
Chapter XVIII: Habeas corpus
Chapter XIX: Incorrupt
Chapter XX: Men of letters
Timeline: AD 672 to 735
Appendices
Appendix A: The Bernician king-list problem
Appendix B: The genealogies of the kings
Appendix C: A note on the languages of
seventh-century Britain
Glossary of Useful Words
A Note on Place-Name Elements
Picture Section
Notes to the Text
Bibliography
Acknowledgements
Picture Credits
Index
About this Book
Reviews
About the Author

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