JOHN JOLLIFFE

The journal of Benjamin Haydon was, Max Beerbohm reported to Siegfried Sassoon, the best diary Beerbohm had ever read. Harold Acton declared Haydon a more exciting figure than Ruskin. H.H. Asquith compared him favourably with Rousseau, while Aldous Huxley declared that Never was anyone more clearly cut out to be an author. Today Haydons portraits and monumental historical paintings hang in almost all Britains major collections. However in his own time (1786-1846) his reputation was less secure. Although an intimate of Wordsworth and Walter Scott, on friendly terms with lords and politicians, Haydon was also well acquainted with debtors prison. Still he remained throughout a witty, brilliant diarist, vividly evidenced by this volume, expertly edited by John Jolliffe, which gathers opinions on everything from the Elgin Marbles and Turners landscapes to Napoleons digestion and Queen Victorias complexion.

The Chronicles of Jean Froissart (1337-1410) are universally acknowledged as the most vivid and faithful account of 14th century events and ideas. This medieval collector of intelligence travelled widely from Scotland and Wales to France, Italy and the Netherlands, conversing with gentlemen of rank everywhere and developing a tremendous skill for persuading those about him to divulge their secrets. These Chronicles offer an unrivalled picture of the age of chivalry, drawn by a contemporary, with a verve that recalls Chaucer. Fresh, vivid, immediate and laced with a certain disrespect for the Establishment, they tell of acts of gallantry, tournaments, feasts and wars that make for fascinating reading, abetted by John Jolliffes translation that renders Froissart into highly accessible modem English.