How long does it take to read Katherine Swynford?
the story of John of Gaunt and his scandalous duchess
Katherine Swynford by Alison Weir takes about 6 hours 43 minutes to read at 250 words a minute.
About 6 hours 43 minutes
A weekend read
First published 2007. 366 pages, about 100,650 words.
14 days at 30 minutes a day
Estimate based on 275 words per page.
At other speeds
| Slow, 150 words a minute | 11 hours 11 minutes |
| Average, 250 words a minute | 6 hours 43 minutes |
| Fast, 400 words a minute | 4 hours 12 minutes |
The page count is the median across 3 editions, so your copy may differ. How we calculate.
About the book
In her remarkable new book, Alison Weir recounts one of the greatest love stories of medieval England. It is the extraordinary tale of an exceptional woman, Katherine Swynford, who became first the mistress and later the wife of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster. Katherine Swynford’s charismatic lover was one of the most powerful princes of the 14th century, the effective ruler of England behind the throne of his father Edward III in his declining years, and during the minority of his nephew, Richard ll. Katherine herself was enigmatic and intriguing, renowned for her beauty, and regarded by some as dangerous. Her existence was played out against the backdrop of court life at the height of the age of chivalry and she knew most of the great figures of the time — including her brother-in-law, Geoffrey Chaucer. She lived through much of the Hundred Years War, the Black Death, and the Peasants’ Revolt. She knew loss, adversity, and heartbreak, and she survived them all triumphantly. Although Katherine’s story provides unique insights into the life of a medieval woman, she was far from typical in that age. She was an important person in her own right, a woman who had remarkable opportunities, made her own choices, flouted convention, and took control of her own destiny — even of her own public image.
Subjects: Court and courtiers, Biography, Nobility, History, Nobility, great britain
