England and its Rulers 1066 - 1307

This is an updated and expanded edition of a classic introduction to medieval England from the reign of William the Conqueror to Edward I.

• Includes a new chapter on family and gender roles, revisions throughout to enhance the narrative flow, and further reading sections containing the most up-to-date sources
• Offers engaging and clear discussion of the key political, economic, social, and cultural issues of the period, by an esteemed scholar and writer
• Illustrates themes with lively, pertinent examples and important primary sources
• Assesses the reigns of key Norman, Angevin, and Plantagenet monarchs, as well as the British dimension of English history, the creation of wealth, the rise of the aristocracy, and more

Michael Clanchy is Professor Emeritus of Medieval History at the Institute of Historical Research, University of London, UK, and a fellow of the British Academy.  He taught previously at Glasgow University, and is considered to be one of the leading medieval scholars of his generation.  His publications include From Memory to Written Record: England 1066–1306  (3rd edition, Wiley Blackwell, 2012) and Abelard: A Medieval Life (Wiley Blackwell, 1999).

Preface to the Fourth Edition ix

List of Abbreviations x

Maps

1. England and France xi

2. England and the Mediterranean xii

3. Edward I’s kingdom in Britain in 1305 xiii

1 England’s Place in Medieval Europe 1

England and its conquerors 3

Europe and the world 6

England’s destiny 10

Interpretations of English history 15

England and Britain 18

Part I The Normans (1066–1135) 23

2 The Norman Conquest (1066–87) 28

Immediately after the Conquest 28

Debates about the Conquest 31

English feelings about the Normans 35

Names and languages 39

Domesday Book 42

3 Norman Government (1087–1135) 47

William Rufus and Henry I 48

The development of institutions 54

The Exchequer 56

Feudalism 60

4 Church Reform 65

The Anglo-Saxon church 65

Lanfranc and Norman control 68

Anselm and religious perfection 73

Monastic expansion 77

5 The Creation of Wealth 83

Competition between churches and towns 84

Markets and money 89

What was wealth? 92

Did the Normans make a difference? 95

Part II The Angevins (1135–99) 99

6 Struggles for the Kingdom (1135–99) 106

Property and inheritance 107

Stephen and Matilda 110

Henry II’s ancestral rights 113

Henry II and his sons 118

Richard I 120

7 Law and Order 125

The law and feudalism 126

The system described by Glanvill 128

Henry II’s intentions 131

Bureaucracy 133

Why did England develop a system of its own? 136

8 The Twelfth-century Renaissance 140

England’s place in this Renaissance 142

Curiales and Latinists 145

The Owl and the Nightingale 148

Artists and patrons 150

9 The Matter of Britain 155

Arthur and Merlin 158

Wales – defining an allegiance 162

Modernization in Scotland 167

Civilization in Ireland 174

10 Family and Gender 182

Gender 185

Clerics and the family 188

The law of marriage 191

House and home 194

Part III The Poitevins (1199–1272) 198

11 King John and the Minority of Henry III (1199–1227) 203

The Poitevin connection 203

The record of King John 207

Magna Carta 210

The regency of William the Marshal 214

Implications of the minority 219

12 The Personal Rule of Henry III (1227–58) 223

Contemporary rulers 224

The return of Peter des Roches 228

Henry’s style of kingship 232

Henry’s European strategy 239

The ‘Sicilian business’ 243

13 National Identity 248

National feeling in Henry III’s reign 248

The papacy and internationalism 251

The identity of England 253

The use of the English language 257

From lordship to nation state 260

The expulsion of the Poitevins 263

14 The Commune of England (1258–72) 267

The confederates of 1258 268

The idea of the commune 271

The Provisions of Oxford 273

Henry III’s recovery 276

Monarchy versus community 278

The king and Westminster abbey 281

15 Lordship and the Structure of Society 284

Homage and honour 287

Women and lordship 291

Lords, freemen and serfs 294

Lordship and management 298

Epilogue 304

16 Edward I (1272–1307) 304

Assessing the king’s character 306

The enforcement of royal rights 310

The conquest of Wales 315

The subjection of Scotland 320

English law and nationalism 324

Genealogical Tables

Normans and Angevins 331

Angevins and Poitevins 332

The Savoyards 333

Suggestions for Further Reading 334

Index 343

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