Emilie Amt - Medieval England, 500–1500: A Reader

The new edition ofMedieval England, 500-1500, edited by Emilie Amt and Katherine Allen Smith, spans several centuries in 102 documents that present the social and political history of England. The documents include constitutional highlights and records such as the Magna Carta and FroissartsChronicles, as well as narrative sources describing the lived experiences of a range of historical actors. These narratives fit into thematic clusters covering topics such as the Anglo-Saxon monarchy, lay piety, later medieval commercial life, queenship, and Jewish communities.
Thirty-nine new sources discuss significant events like the conquest of Wales, the Gregorian mission, and the Viking invasions. They also allow for multiple examples of particular genres, such as wills and miracle collections, to facilitate comparative analysis. Introductions and questions situate each source in the historical landscape and facilitate engagement with the text, inspiring readers to delve into the medieval past. The book also features 40 illustrations, a map, and an index of topics. Additional resources, including essay questions, web resources, and a timeline, can be found on the History Matters website (www.utphistorymatters.com).
CONTENTS
List of Illustrations
Acknowledgments
Introduction
A Note on Medieval English Money
Map of Medieval England and its Neighbors
Chapter One: The Anglo-Saxon World, ca 5001066
1. Gildas on the Coming of the Anglo-Saxons (*)
2. Letters on the Gregorian Mission (*)
3. Laws of thelbert of Kent (*)
4. Bede on the Conversion of King Edwin of Northumbria (*)
5. An Anglo-Saxon Burial: The Ely Princess (*)
6. Riddles from the Exeter Book (*)
7. Slavery in Anglo-Saxon England (*)
8. Treaty between King Alfred the Great and Guthrum (*)
9. Alfred the Greats Preface to the Pastoral Care (*)
10. The Battle of Maldon (*)
11. Labor and Daily Life from lfric of Eynshams Colloquy
12. Anglo-Saxon Wills
13. The Cotton Anglo-Saxon World Map (*)
14. The Wolfs Sermon to the English (*)
15. Laws of Cnut
16. Cnuts Letter to the English People
17. Praise of Queen Emma
18. The Life of King Edward Who Rests at Westminster
Chapter Two: The Norman Era, 10661154
19. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle on the Norman Conquest
20. The Text of the Bayeux Tapestry
21. Doing Penance for the Norman Victory (*)
22. Castles in Norman England (*)
23. Domesday Book
24. Orderic Vitaliss Account of His Life
25. Anselm of Canterbury on His Feud with William Rufus (*)
26. Gilbert Crispins Disputation of a Jew with a Christian (*)
27. Church Reform: The Council of Westminster (*)
28. Henry Is Coronation Charter
29. Eadmers Account of Queen Edith-Matilda
30. The Founding of the Gilbertine Order (*)
31. William of Malmesbury on the Civil War between Stephen and Matilda
32. The Battle of the Standard (*)
Chapter Three: The Angevin Era, 11541216
33. Gerald of Waless Description of Henry II
34. The Constitutions of Clarendon
35. The Murder and Miracles of Thomas Becket
36. Glanvilles Treatise on the Laws and Customs of the Kingdom of England
37. Jocelin of Brakelond on the Misfortunes of Henry of Essex
38. The Political Career of Eleanor of Aquitaine (*)
39. The Cult of King Arthur (*)
40. Town Charters
41. William fitzStephens Description of London
42. Thomas of Monmouths Life of Saint William of Norwich
43. Reginald of Durhams Life of Saint Godric, Hermit of Finchale
44. The History of William Marshal
45. John of Salisburys Policraticus
46. Richard of Devizes on the Third Crusade
47. Enforcing the Forest Law (*)
48. Letters of Innocent III and King John
49. Roger of Wendovers Account of the Rebellion against King John
50. Magna Carta
Chapter Four: The Thirteenth Century, 12161299
51. Letters of Queen Isabella of Angoulme
52. Henry de Bractons Notebook: Cases from the Royal Courts
53. Persecution and Expulsion of English Jews (*)
54. The Ancrene Wisse
55. Thomas of Eccleston on the Coming of the Friars Minor to England
56. The Baronial Cause: The Song of Lewes
57. The Miracles of Simon de Montfort (*)
58. The Household Roll of Countess Eleanor of Leicester (*)
59. Summonses to Parliament
60. London Coroners Rolls
61. Plan of the Village of Wharram Percy (*)
62. Manorial Life, from the Hundred Rolls
63. The Statutes of Merton College, Oxford
64. Roger Bacons Account of His Academic Career
65. The Conquest of Wales (*)
66. Edward Is Confirmation of Charters
Chapter Five: An Age of Disasters, 13001399
67. Parish Life in the Diocese of Exeter (*)
68. Correspondence of the Queen with London
69. The Manner of Holding Parliament
70. A Chronicle of the Great Famine
71. The Royal Response to the Famine
72. Manor Court Rolls
73. A Proof of Age Inquest (*)
74. London Craft Guild Ordinances
75. Urban Environmental Problems and Regulations
76. Articles of Accusation against Edward II (*)
77. Dispute between an Englishman and a Frenchman (*)
78. Jean Froissart on the Battle of Crcy
79. Thomas Bradwardines Victory Sermon after Crcy (*)
80. The Black Death (*)
81. Post-Plague Wage and Price Regulations
82. Chronicle Accounts of the Peasants Revolt
83. A Peasants Revolt Trial
84. Ordinances of the Guild of Saint Katharine at Norwich
85. Robert Manning of Brunnes Handlyng Synne
86. The Growth of Lollardy (*)
87. The Deposition of Richard II
Chapter Six: The Fifteenth Century, 13991500
88. Chronicle of the Reign of Henry V
89. Statutes of the Order of the Garter (*)
90. Financing the Agincourt Campaign (*)
91. Order of the Pageants of the York Corpus Christi Play
92. Poems about Raising Children
93. London Wills (*)
94. Apprenticeship Documents
95. Visitations of Monasteries
96. A London Chronicle on the Wars of the Roses
97. The Cely Letters
98. The Accession of Richard III (*)
99. The Battle of Bosworth
100. The Rediscovery of Richard III
101. Polydore Vergils Account of Henry VII
102. An Italian Relation of England
Sources
Index of Topics
(*) = New to this Edition