Author Description
The Historians of Angevin England is a study of the explosion of creativity in historical writing in England in the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries, and what this tells us about the writing of history in the middle ages. Many of those who wrote history under the Angevin kings of England chose as their subject the events of their own time, and explained that they did so simply because their own times were so interesting and eventful. This was the age of Henry II and Thomas Becket, Eleanor of Aquitaine and Richard the Lionheart, the invasion of Ireland and the Third Crusade, and our knowledge and impression of the period is to a great extent based on these contemporary histories. The writers in question - Roger of Howden, Ralph of Diceto, William of Newburgh, Gerald of Wales, and Gervase of Canterbury, to name a few - wrote history that is not quite like anything written in England before. Remarkable for its variety, its historical and literary quality, its use of evidence and its narrative power, this has been called a 'golden age' of historical writing in England. The Historians of Angevin England, the first volume to address the subject, sets out to illustrate the historiographical achievements of this period, and to provide a sense of how these writers wrote, and their idea of history. But it is also about how medieval intellectuals thought and wrote about a range of topics: the rise and fall of kings, victory and defeat in battle, church and government, and attitudes to women, heretics, and foreigners.
Menrva's Summary
THE THESIS
This book investigates the surge of historical writing in England during the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries to determine how these texts shaped medieval understanding of the Angevin era. Michael Staunton, a scholar of medieval history, analyzes the works of contemporary chroniclers to demonstrate how their narratives functioned as both records of political events and reflections of intellectual life. By examining the methodologies and thematic concerns of writers like Roger of Howden and Gerald of Wales, the author argues that this period represents a distinct evolution in the craft of history-writing.
THE SCOPE MAP
What You Will Find
- Analysis of historical writing during the reigns of Henry II, Richard the Lionheart, and their contemporaries.
- Examination of specific chroniclers including Roger of Howden, Ralph of Diceto, William of Newburgh, Gerald of Wales, and Gervase of Canterbury.
- Exploration of medieval intellectual perspectives on kingship, church governance, and social attitudes toward foreigners and women.
Scope Limits
- The study is geographically restricted to England and the Angevin sphere of influence.
- The analysis focuses primarily on the historiographical output of the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries rather than a general political history of the period.
THE AUTHORITY PERSPECTIVE
Scholars and historians recognize this work as a foundational text for understanding the development of medieval historiography. Readers frequently note the academic density of the prose, which provides a rigorous examination of how medieval intellectuals documented their own volatile era.
Page Count:
414
Publication Date:
2017-01-01
Publisher:
OUP Oxford
ISBN-10:
0191082643
ISBN-13:
9780191082641
History
Historiography
European History
British History
Historians
Literary Criticism