James Crossley, Spectres of John Ball: The Peasants’ Revolt in English Political History, 1381–2020. Sheffield and Bristol, UK: Equinox Publishing, 2020, 537 pp.

Very little is known about the historical figure of John Ball, the twice-excommunicated priest whose words formed the rallying cry for England’s most famous revolt against the feudal system, otherwise associated with the peasant Wat Tyler. This new book adds nothing about John Bull himself; however, it sets the few existing facts and texts in their proper historical context, which has been obscured over the centuries. The revolt occurred during the unhappy reign of the boy-king Richard II, whose father Edward III had rather successfully balanced the claims of English peasants and their feudal overlords. Richard was 13 years old when the revolt led by Wat Tyler broke out in January 1381 and had been king for less than four years. He sympathized with the peasants and met with them at least twice. He even agreed to end serfdom and to free nonviolent protestors. However, he was opposed by political and religious leaders who had their own agendas. His reign was always uneasy and he was deposed, imprisoned, and killed at the age of 33, bringing the Plantagenet dynasty to an end.