This book is a study of the relations between tow outstanding contemporaries of whom an acquaintance wrote shortly after the two friends were dead.
Erasmus, the glory of our times, lived in the heart of More. More, the sole light of Britain, his country, lived in the heart of Erasmus. The one exchanged life with the other; each lived a life not his own. It is no marvel that, with the death of More, Erasmus wished for death,unwilling to live longer. The author knows the history of this era intimately and through his previous books, notably his account of The Trial of St. Thomas More , has established a reputation for his ability to narrate history in a way that constantly maintains a high level of interest in his readers. The accent in this book falls contrapuntally, now on Erasmus, now on More, as the author follows the intertwining threads of two full and lively careers, treating in well-documented detail the main events in the lives of each and relating the men and their work to the personalities, ideas and happenings of the time. The result is a historical reconstruction of social, religious, academic and literary life in fifteen and sixteen century Europe that could be of real interest to a very wide readership.