The story of Louis XI (1461–1483) is the story of a man who knew how to impose his decisions, keep his mind on constant alert, adjust events to his plans, be twice as smart and three times as fast as his opponents, and hide his true feelings. This book presents us with a picture of a man of exceptional ability, with a varied and complex personality. Some considered him "the smartest man in the world." However, soon after his death it was said of him that during his last illness he drank the blood of newborn babies, killed his brother and listened with pleasure to the cries of his tortured victims. Abandoning legends to expose the truth of life, Paul Murray Kendall (1911–1973) reveals The true character of this man, in a biography that makes a significant contribution to the history of the 15th century, while remaining an easy and entertaining read.