Summary of In a Dark Wood Wandering
“In a Dark Wood Wandering” is a historical novel about the life of Charles of Orléans, a French prince and poet of the late Middle Ages (15th century). The novel follows Charles’s youth at the court of the mentally unstable King Charles VI of France, amid the intrigues and power struggles between the King’s brother, Louis of Orléans (Charles’s father), and the King’s uncle, Philip the Bold of Burgundy. These tensions ultimately lead to the assassination of Louis by John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy, in 1407. Charles is only thirteen when his father is murdered — a sensitive and bookish boy, more interested in poetry than in warfare. Yet he is forced by circumstances to lead the Armagnac faction (the supporters of the House of Orléans) against the rival Burgundians in the French civil war of the early 15th century. At the same time, the Hundred Years’ War against England is raging. After the Battle of Agincourt in 1415, Charles is captured and spends twenty-five years as a prisoner in England. During his long captivity he writes the poetry and chansons for which he is still remembered in France today.
Reasons to read In a Dark Wood Wandering
“In a Dark Wood Wandering” is widely regarded as one of the finest historical novels about the late Middle Ages in France. It vividly recreates both the Hundred Years’ War and the French civil war between the Armagnacs and the Burgundians. But the novel is much more than a – historically accurate – chronicle of political and military events. Haasse brings to life the splendour of the French and Burgundian courts, as well as Charles’s emotional life and inner transformation. At its heart, the book is about identity and self-acceptance, with Charles coming to realise that he cannot fulfil the expectations placed upon him. He is, above all, a poet — not a politician or a warrior. The title of the book refers to one of Charles’s poems, “En la forest de longue attente”, presenting life as a journey through a dark and mysterious forest. Hella S. Haasse was one of the most important Dutch authors of the twentieth century, but she remains little known among English speakers. Her reputation rests largely on her historical novels — including “In a Dark Wood Wandering” and “The Scarlet City” — as well as on her Indonesian novels such as “Oeroeg” and “The Tea Lords”.
Setting: Paris and Blois (France)
The novel is set in various places in France, chiefly Paris (especially the royal palace Hôtel Saint-Pol in today’s 4th arrondissement) and the Château of Blois in the Loire Valley. A significant part of the book also takes place in England during Charles’s long captivity, including the Tower of London, Bolingbroke Castle and Pontefract Castle.
Original title: Het woud der verwachting
Year of publication: 1949
Nr of pages: 590
