Scott Thompson Smith - Land and Book: Literature and Land Tenure in Anglo-Saxon England

LAND AND BOOK:
LITERATURE AND LAND TENURE
IN ANGLO-SAXON ENGLAND

Literature and Land Tenure
in Anglo-Saxon England

SCOTT THOMPSON SMITH

University of Toronto Press 2012
Toronto Buffalo London
www.utppublishing.com
Printed in Canada

ISBN 978-1-4426-4486-1

Printed on acid-free, 100% post-consumer recycled paper with vegetable-based inks.

Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication

Smith, Scott Thompson
Land and book: literature and land tenure in Anglo-Saxon England /
Scott Thompson Smith.

(Toronto Anglo-Saxon series)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-4426-4486-1

1. Land tenure in literature. 2. Land tenure England History To 1500. 3. Land tenure Law and legislation England History. 4. English literature Old English, ca. 450-1100 History and criticism. 5. Latin literature, Medieval and modern England History and criticism. I. Title. II. Series: Toronto Anglo-Saxon series.

PR179.L35S65 2012 829093553 C2012-903934-9

University of Toronto Press gratefully acknowledges the financial assistance of the Centre for Medieval Studies, University of Toronto, in the publication of this book.

University of Toronto Press acknowledges the financial assistance to its publishing program of the Canada Council for the Arts and the Ontario Arts Council.

University of Toronto Press acknowledges the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Book Fund for its publishing activities.

To Dad, in loving memory

Many individuals have kindly lent their support toward the completion of this book. I am grateful for all the invaluable guidance and assistance which I have received over the years from so many mentors, colleagues, friends, and family. Any mistakes or missteps which remain are entirely my own.

This project began at the University of Notre Dame, an excellent place (with an amazing library) for work in medieval studies. I am deeply indebted to Michael Lapidge and Katherine OBrien OKeeffe for their expert guidance and steady encouragement both then and now they have set a professional standard to which I will always aspire and for which I will always be grateful. I am truly fortunate to have had such mentors. Thanks are also due to Thomas Hall, Maura Nolan, Thomas F.X. Noble, and Drew Jones for their assistance early in the project. I am grateful as well for the camaraderie of a number of colleagues at Notre Dame, namely Matt Brown, Julie Bruneau, Rebecca Davis, Shannon Gayk, Misty Schieberle, Paul Patterson, Jonathan Davis-Secord, Jacqueline Stodnick, Kathleen Tonry, Rene Trilling, Miranda Wilcox, and Corey Zwikstra.

I am also thankful for the support I have received from my colleagues at the Pennsylvania State University. Robin Schulze and Mark Morrisson provided steady encouragement as my department chairs, while medievalist colleagues Robert Edwards, Caroline Eckhardt, and Benjamin Hudson have been ready supporters and advisors. I am also thankful to Richard Page for his guidance as my faculty mentor. These several individuals, and a great many others like them, have made Penn State a wonderful place to begin my career. I should also express my appreciation to the College of the Liberal Arts for granting me a one-semester teaching release which allowed the time and focus to complete the manuscript.

Many colleagues, both at Penn State and elsewhere, have read and commented upon parts of this book at various stages: Julianne Bruneau, Jonathan Eburne, Robert Edwards, Charlotte Eubanks, Shannon Gayk, Debra Hawhee, Thomas Hall, Kit Hume, Drew Jones, Michael Lapidge, Garrett Sullivan, Rene Trilling, and Michael Van Dussen. I am grateful to all these readers for their many productive suggestions and questions. In addition, Rosamond Faith, Susan Kelly, and Simon Keynes graciously responded to various research queries, while Nicholas Brooks, Stephanie Clark, Susan Kelly, David Pelteret, and Samantha Zacher kindly shared forthcoming work. Drew Jones, Michael Lapidge, and Stephen Wheeler also offered their expertise on matters of Latin translation at various stages. The final product has greatly benefited from the generous contributions of all these scholars.

At the University of Toronto Press, I wish to thank editors Suzanne Rancourt and Barbara Porter for their help in guiding this book toward publication. I am also grateful to the anonymous readers for their many insightful comments and valuable suggestions, all of which have benefited this book a great deal. Finally, Katherine MacIvor has provided welcome assistance in copyediting and formatting the book for publication. UTP has proven a model of professionalism and efficiency throughout the review and production process and I feel fortunate indeed to have them as a publisher for this book.

I am also grateful to my family for the many ways in which they have given moral support over the years. My parents and siblings especially have always welcomed and encouraged my interests, no matter how idiosyncratic they might have seemed. Finally, I owe a very special thanks to my wife Emily and our young sons Wren and Erik for their steadfast love and patience. The three of you have inspired and fortified me throughout the long process of writing this book in immeasurable ways.

Part of appeared in an earlier form as Marking Boundaries: Charters and the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle in Reading the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: Language, Literature, History, published by Brepols in 2010. It appears here with the permission of Brepols Publishers.