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This series includes pioneering editions of medieval historical accounts by eye-witnesses and contemporaries, collections of source materials such as charters and letters and works that applied new historiographical methods to the interpretation of the European middle ages. The nineteenth century saw an upsurge of interest in medieval manuscripts, texts and artefacts, and the enthusiastic efforts of scholars and antiquaries made a large body of material available in print for the first time. Although many of the analyses have been superseded, they provide fascinating evidence of the academic practices of their time, while a considerable number of texts have still not been re-edited and are still widely consulted.

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211 results in Cambridge Library Collection - Medieval History

Page 11 of 11

Blessed Giles of Assisi
  • Walter W. Seton
  • Published online:
    05 October 2010
    Print publication:
    26 August 2010
    First published in:
    1918
  • One of the original disciples of Saint Francis, Blessed Giles of Assisi preached a message of poverty and penance throughout Italy, the Holy Land, and North Africa before turning to a life of contemplation. His Life, here edited and translated by Walter Seton, offers valuable perspectives on this devout man, who strove not just to follow but to embody the Franciscan Rule. Seton analyses the sources for the short and long versions of the Life, arguing influentially that the Short Life represents the earlier, more authentic recension. His 1918 edition was based upon a previously unnoticed version of the Short Life contained in Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS Canonici Misc. 528. Facing-page Latin and English make the text accessible to students and experts alike. A vital addition to Franciscan studies when first published, this important work is now available to a new generation of scholars.

The Home of the Monk
  • An Account of English Monastic Life and Buildings in the Middle Ages
  • David Herbert Somerset Cranage
  • Published online:
    07 September 2010
    Print publication:
    29 July 2010
    First published in:
    1934
  • First published twice in 1926, and again in 1934 with an updated bibliography, Cranage's The Home of the Monk is a small but useful introduction for the visitor to any English monastic site. Working from surviving architectural and documentary evidence, he examines the buildings section by section, explaining how each part of an abbey was used. He briefly explains the history of the various monastic orders which existed in medieval England, and their differences from one another. He also provides plans of what constituted the typical arrangements likely to be found in Benedictine, Augustinian, Cluniac and Cistercian houses. The book provides a useful starting point for further study of medieval religious houses, and a handy guide for the occasional visitor to such sites.

A Formula Book of English Official Historical Documents
  • Volume 2, Ministerial and Judicial Records
  • Edited by Hubert Hall
  • Published online:
    07 September 2010
    Print publication:
    29 July 2010
    First published in:
    1909
  • This 1909 work forms a second supplement to Hall's Studies in English Official Historical Documents. It gives examples of a wide range of English ministerial and judicial documents from the ninth to the seventeenth centuries. These are arranged according to type and purpose, the majority in Latin. The intention is to assist the user of such archival materials, by familiarising them with the format and language used in each kind of document, and explaining why and how they were written. The 80 transcriptions were made by palaeography students at the London School of Economics, and classified and edited with extensive notes by Mr Hall. They are not literal transcriptions, as contractions have been expanded, and the punctuation and capitalisation modernised. To save space standard formulas have not been repeated each time. Despite the lack of any illustrations of originals, the book filled a need long felt by students of history.

Preaching in Medieval England
  • An Introduction to Sermon Manuscripts of the Period c.1350–1450
  • G. R. Owst
  • Published online:
    07 September 2010
    Print publication:
    20 May 2010
    First published in:
    1926
  • First published in 1926, G. R. Owst's Preaching in Medieval England has remained a seminal work on the topic of English sermons of the period 1350–1450. In studying a largely neglected but important aspect of the medieval religious experience, the author adds considerably to our understanding of the pre-Reformation church. The book is in three parts - the preachers, the circumstances of the preaching and reception, and the sermons themselves. In the first section Owst discusses the different classes of preacher, the secular clergy, monks and particularly the wandering friars, famous for their preaching. In the second part he studies the experience of sermons, how, where and when they were delivered, and to whom. The examination of the sermons covers not only their content and language, but also the surviving manuals on preaching and eloquence, and advice to preachers. This wide ranging and scholarly book remains a crucial work on medieval preaching.

The Origin of the English Nation
  • H. Munro Chadwick
  • Published online:
    07 September 2010
    Print publication:
    20 May 2010
    First published in:
    1924
  • In this 1907 work, H. Munro Chadwick (1870–1947) re-examines the early history of the English nation from a new perspective. By training a philologist, he uses the tools of ethnology, history, tradition, language, customs, religion and archaeology, to understand how the various Germanic tribes established themselves in Britain, founding new kingdoms. Despite an almost total lack of English historical documents from the period, Chadwick uses a range of historical and literary sources, from both sides of the English Channel, which relied on oral traditions. By close linguistic analysis he shows how the Saxon and other invaders retained close cultural ties with their continental kinsmen. He shows that although the Dark Ages may be obscure due to lack of contemporary sources, careful scholarly analysis of later texts can reveal a great deal about the history, culture and society of the earlier period.

Social Life in Britain from the Conquest to the Reformation
  • G. G. Coulton
  • Published online:
    07 September 2010
    Print publication:
    29 July 2010
    First published in:
    1918
  • First published in 1918, and re-issued with forty pages of illustrations in 1919, Social Life in Britain marked a turning point in Coulton's writings. Although a rigorous academic who stressed the importance of using primary sources, Coulton was skilled at making medieval history accessible to a wider audience, by dealing with ordinary lives. He played an important role in encouraging interest in the study of social and economic, rather than political and military, history of the Middle Ages among younger scholars. In the present work, he used his extraordinarily wide reading of historical and literary sources to cover all aspects of ordinary life in medieval Britain. These include birth and childhood, education, town life, food and drink, the Church and medical methods. He also deals with aspects of women's lives, travelling, and bizarre superstitions which were widely held. A fascinating book to dip into, with a wealth of material.

Ten Medieval Studies
  • with Four Appendices
  • G. G. Coulton
  • Published online:
    07 September 2010
    Print publication:
    29 July 2010
    First published in:
    1930
  • This 1930 edition includes essays from both the first and second series of Coulton's Medieval Studies, together with appendices. Although an academic who stressed the importance of using primary sources, Coulton was skilled at making medieval history accessible to a wider audience. He played an important role in encouraging interest in the study of social and economic history of the Middle Ages among younger scholars. These ten essays, all on aspects of religion, were somewhat controversial in their day. Coulton believed that sectarian bias frequently caused a distorted view of history, and he was highly critical of Roman Catholic interpretations of the medieval church. In the appendices he gives a detailed critique of Cardinal Francis Gasquet's historical writings, listing what Coulton regards as errors or deliberate falsifications. Even where Coulton himself appears guilty of bias, his wide knowledge of sources makes his writings still valuable to modern readers.

Studies in Church Life in England under Edward III
  • K. L. Wood-Legh
  • Published online:
    07 September 2010
    Print publication:
    20 May 2010
    First published in:
    1934
  • Studies in Church Life in England under Edward III was first published in 1934 as part of the Cambridge Studies in Medieval Life and Thought series. Wood-Legh has chosen five topics of church history which frequently occur in the Patent Rolls of Edward III. Chancery documents were valuable sources of information on aspects of the medieval church, but had seldom been systematically studied by church historians before this. The five essays cover royal administration of religious houses, the visitation of hospitals, the application of the Statute of Mortmain, chantry chapels, and the appropriation of parish churches by religious houses. All of these topics are then related to three themes, public opinion of the church, the effects of the Black Death on the church, and the relationship between the church and central government. The book is a splendid example of how administrative sources can shed light on all aspects of history.

A History of the Inquisition of the Middle Ages
  • Volume 2
  • Henry Charles Lea
  • Published online:
    29 August 2010
    Print publication:
    10 June 2010
    First published in:
    1888
  • This comprehensive three-volume history of the medieval Inquisition by the influential American scholar Henry Charles Lea, first published in 1888, was firmly based on primary sources, and adopted a rationalist approach that departed from the pious tone of earlier histories of the middle ages. Lea was convinced that the Inquisition was not arbitrarily devised and implemented but was an inevitable consequence of forces that were dominant in thirteenth-century Christian society. In Volume 2 Lea focuses mainly on the Inquisition in France, Iberia, Italy and Germany. He delves into the relationship between religion and State in the Languedoc region and describes how the University of Paris obstructed the Inquisition's activity. Lea notes that there was almost no Inquisition presence in Portugal, while in Italy sporadic popular opposition to the Inquisition was noticeable. He also explains how the Bohemian reformer John Huss fell victim to the Inquisition in Germany.

A History of the Inquisition of the Middle Ages
  • Volume 1
  • Henry Charles Lea
  • Published online:
    29 August 2010
    Print publication:
    10 June 2010
    First published in:
    1888
  • Henry Charles Lea's comprehensive three-volume history of the medieval Inquisition, first published in 1888, was firmly based on primary sources. Lea was convinced that the Inquisition was not arbitrarily devised and implemented but was an inevitable consequence of forces that were dominant in thirteenth-century Christian society. In order to give as full a picture of the Inquisition as possible he examines the jurisprudence of the period. In Volume 1 he presents background information, giving a general account of the Catholic Church in the twelfth century and exploring the events that prompted the Church to set up the Inquisition. He explains the prevalent medieval understanding of the roles of the Church and government in society, and looks at medieval concepts of the relationships between individuals and the Church, the government, one another, and God. Lea shows how these views formed the basis of the Inquisition's structure, organization and processes.

A History of the Inquisition of the Middle Ages
  • Volume 3
  • Henry Charles Lea
  • Published online:
    29 August 2010
    Print publication:
    10 June 2010
    First published in:
    1888
  • This comprehensive three-volume history of the medieval Inquisition by the influential American scholar Henry Charles Lea, first published in 1888, was firmly based on primary sources, and adopted a rationalist approach that departed from the pious tone of earlier histories of the middle ages. Lea was convinced that the Inquisition was not arbitrarily devised and implemented but was an inevitable consequence of forces that were dominant in thirteenth-century Christian society. In Volume 3 Lea focuses on particular aspects of the Inquisition. He considers the impact of the Inquisition on scholarship and intellectual life and on faith and culture, and describes how movements including the Franciscans and the Fraticelli gained prominence. He shows how the concept of political heresy was used by the Church and the State, and argues that belief in sorcery and witchcraft in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries was stimulated by the Church authorities.

Page 11 of 11