{"product_id":"chaucers-canterbury-tales-vintage-16364","title":"Chaucer's Canterbury Tales Vintage hardback book circa 1948","description":"\u003cp\u003eCONDITION: VG- We strive to provide excellent service!\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eABOUT: 'The Canterbury Tales' by Geoffrey Chaucer (c.1345-1400) was enormously popular in medieval England, with over 80 copies in existence from the 1500s.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIts popularity may be due to the fact that the tales were written in Middle English, a language that developed after the Norman invasion, after which those in power would have spoken French.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eChaucer was born in London, around 1345, into a well-connected family of wine-merchants. As a young teenager he was taken into an aristocratic household. Still in his teens, he fought in Edward III's army in France. During an attack on Rheims, Chaucer was taken prisoner, but released after a ransom was paid, in part by the king himself.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBy 1367, he had entered royal service under the patronage of the king's son, the powerful John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster. When the duke's wife died two years later, Chaucer composed the Book of the Duchess in her memory - his first known poem.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor the rest of his life, Chaucer's fortunes were tied to the political intrigues of court life. While John of Gaunt's influence was in the ascendant he did well, obtaining generous pensions and lucrative administrative appointments, such as Comptroller of the Custom and Subsidy of Wools, Hides and Woodfells. Diplomatic duties took him to France and Italy, where he became familiar with the works of Dante, Petrarch and Boccaccio - authors who would inspire his own poetry.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhen Edward III died in 1377, he was succeeded by his young grandson, Richard II. As the new king's uncle, John of Gaunt's authority grew stronger - much to the advantage of Chaucer, who reached the top of his public career when he became one of the two knights for the county of Kent in 1386.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut a turbulent power struggle between John of Gaunt and Thomas of Woodstock, Duke of Gloucester would soon lead to a decline in Chaucer's circumstances. His last years were spent using his court connections to secure protection from his creditors as he waited for royal pensions to be paid. Chaucer died in 1400.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Vintage Bookworms","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44018240356439,"sku":null,"price":18.91,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1555\/7303\/files\/il_fullxfull.8274669753_9j9h.jpg?v=1783523231","url":"https:\/\/vintagebookworms.com\/products\/chaucers-canterbury-tales-vintage-16364","provider":"Vintage Bookworms","version":"1.0","type":"link"}