Stories of three famous kings under one cover . Each of them in their own way reached the end ... and some crossed it . JOHN (1167-1216), nicknamed Landless. He was a loser no one loved, especially after the reign of his noble brother Richard the Lionheart. He lost two great wars: with the French, he lost half of his possessions; with his own subjects, he lost almost half of his royal power. The same king who signed the prototype of modern constitutions - the Magna Carta Edward (131277), hero and lucky man, nicknamed the Third. He began the Hundred Years' War with France, in several glorious battles the color of the French nobility was interrupted, and his reign was called the "golden age" of English history. RICHARD (1367400) might have been nicknamed the Prince of Denmark if Hamlet had been written two hundred years earlier. He lost his father early, at first he was dependent on his mother and old advisers, and then he relied on his peers' friends, who betrayed him, overthrew him and murdered him in prison. He is said to have been an impulsive and irritable handsome man, but not as neurotic as his brilliant playwright drew him. Following Shakespeare, Alexandra Marinina tried to understand the life stories and psychological portraits of these rulers. And with what words does she finish her book? "Truly royal hypocrisy!" Why? This can be learned from fascinating and witty historical sketches.