"There is an excellent selection of monochrome illustrations, an Appendix of Wat Tylerrelated
ballads, and an extensive Bibliography."

The Folklore Society

Reviewed in

The Journal of Kent History

“…the book is devoted to the study of how the legend of Wat Tyler has been received through the ages, and in fact this enquiry proves to be both entertaining and enlightening … the author has contrived to pursue a single theme throughout in both a scholarly and entertaining fashion.”

“Stephen Basdeo’s book is a fascinating study of the cultural impact of one of England’s most famous rebels: Wat Tyler, who was a key figure in the Great Revolt of 1381”.

“Basdeo wrote his doctoral thesis on the legend of Robin Hood and resolved to write a similar piece on the legend of Wat Tyler … he provides an interesting chapter on historical novels featuring Wat.”

Geste of Robin Hood website

As mentioned in

Warfare Magazine

This book should appeal to scholars of medievalism, to those interested in English folk-traditions, and to the general reader

Read the full review here

Robin Hood Scholars Blog

Stephen Basdeo's book is a fascinating study of the cultural impact of one of England's most famous rebels: Wat Tyler, who was a key figure in the Great Revolt of 1381.

See the full review here

ResoluteReader Blog

**** Something for history lovers of any period
This book gives a history of the Peasants' Revolt of 1381, led by Wat Tyler, before going on to investigate Wat's portrayals in literature in subsequent ages. Stephen's account of the revolt is fairly short and snappy & he acknowledges that it is not his intention to say anything new about the revolt itself. Where the book really gets interesting is when the author talks about Wat's portrayals in popular culture after the middle ages, and how Wat Tyler's memory was invoked by radicals and socialists in the 18th and 19th century to give a historical grounding for their own cause. in fact the best chapters are 'The Eighteenth Century', 'Romanticism and Revolution', 'Radicalism and Chartism', and 'Wat Tyler in the Nineteenth-Century Novel'. This is where stephen really gets into the teeth of textual analysis and shows off his skills as a eighteenth and nineteenth-century medievalist. The earlier chapters on early modern period depictions of Wat, while well-researched, do at times feel like an interlude between the account of the actual revolt in 1381, and his chapters on the 18thc. onwards. But all in all an enjoyable read.

Amazon Review

This not a book of mediaeval history. It begins with a brief account of what is known about Wat Tyler, leader of the Peasants’ Revolt in 1381, and then follows his legend through succeeding centuries as each generation reinvents him for its own reasons.

Basdeo wrote his doctoral thesis on the legend of Robin Hood and resolved to write a similar piece on the legend of Wat Tyler. Unlike Robin Hood, we know Wat Tyler actually existed and when, but otherwise all we know is his dramatic death at Smithfield. This has not prevented folktales gathering around him, such as the story of the taxman who molested his daughter. At first Wat’s story was used as a Royalist warning to would-be rebels and then in the 18th century he became a Radical hero, in the 19th century a Chartist hero and later a hero of the Gothic revival. Basdeo provides an interesting chapter on historical novels featuring Wat.

Historical Novels Review

There is much to admire in this book, containing as it does material from a forgotten cultural history, and showing the way the literature of different ages have responded to the legend. Basdeo has an easy reading style, and although the theme is by its very nature somewhat repetitive, there is plenty of interest in these often forgotten literary pieces, and the author has contrived to pursue a single theme throughout in both a scholarly and entertaining fashion.

Read the complete review here.

Magonia

Article: Following the legend of our son Wat Tyler by Alan Smith as featured by

Kent Messenger (Maidstone), 19th April 2018

As featured by

Ripperologist, February/March 2018 – reviewed by Paul Begg