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This topic has appeared in the English Wikipedia rankings 1 time. It first appeared on 2026-05-29 and was most recently seen on 2026-05-29.
Cultural depictions of the Anarchy, a long-running civil war in England between 1135 and 1153, has furnished the background of some major fictional portrayals. These include:Charles Macfarlane's novel A Legend of Reading Abbey (1845) is an early novel about the conflict.
George Shipway's novel Knight in Anarchy (1969) centres on a knight sworn to Geoffrey de Mandeville as he tries to gain power in the Anarchy.
Cecelia Holland's The Earl, also published as Hammer for Princes (1971), gives a vivid description of the last year of the struggle, Prince Henry's invasion of England and his eventual recognition as King Stephen's heir.
Graham Shelby's 1972 novel The Oath and the Sword, focuses on Empress Matilda's faithful supporter Brien FitzCount, Lord of Wallingford, through the years of the Anarchy.
Jean Plaidy's Passionate Enemies from her multi-volume treatment of the British monarchy, captures the mood of the period and the personalities of Matilda and Stephen.
Ellis Peters set her series of Brother Cadfael books against the background of the Anarchy.
The 1978 BBC production The Devil's Crown opens with a scene depicting the Treaty of Wallingford.
Diana Norman's novel Morning Gift follows the trials of a Norman noblewoman as she struggles to keep safe her lands, her young son, and her people during the period of the Anarchy.
Ken Follett's novel The Pillars of the Earth is set during this time, and was adapted to an eight-part TV miniseries debuting in the U.S. on Starz and Canada on The Movie Network/Movie Central on July 23, 2010. It premiered in the UK on Channel 4, October 16, 2010, and on CBC Television January 8, 2011. The book's plot is less concerned with the war as such, and more with how the weakening of Royal authority gave a free hand to various aristocrats, such as the book's particularly rapacious Earl.
Sharon Kay Penman's 750-page novel When Christ and His Saints Slept gives a comprehensive and informative view of the entire power struggle.
The Anarchy is depicted in the 2011 Elizabeth Chadwick novel about Empress Matilda, Lady of the English.
Elizabeth Chadwick's A Place Beyond Courage is set during the Anarchy, focusing on the life of John FitzGilbert the Marshal. Her most recent novel The Lady of the English focuses on Matilda and on Henry's young wife Adeliza.
The Anarchy is the background for the historical novel Winter Siege (2014) by Ariana Franklin and Samantha Norman.
Doppelgangster's The Anarchy (1138-53) by Tobias Manderson-Galvin and Kerith Manderson-Galvin is a postdramatic experimental theatre work set in a walk-through guide to an eponymous video game set during the Anarchy
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