I have to admit I love a good chivalrous tale and when it is a true story even more enticing.  The life of William Marshal is quite literally the stuff of legends-young captive of King Stephen, impoverished younger son, tournament champion, loyal to 5 Angevin Kings and instrumental in the Magna Carta. I first learned of William Marshal through Elizabeth Chadwick’s two works The Greatest Knight and Scarlet Lion-this non fiction work is as engrossing as the fictionalized accounts. Granted Marshal is an exceptional character to work with but  Thomas Asbridge does a great job of presenting a balanced view of his life and even when done you are still in awe of the subject.