This considerable volume presents an extremely careful and thorough study of the house of Leofwine: one of the two most prominent dynasties of eleventh-century England alongside the much more well-studied house of Godwine.

Stephen Mossman, Medium Aevum 2010

...offers a penetrating examination of lordship in late Anglo-Saxon England.

Early Medieval Europe

For a first book,The Earls Mercia is remarkably confident and mature in its judgements and exposition, and is written with clarity and precision. Based on intimate knowledge of a relatively small but thoroughly problematic range of sources... it provides an interpretation of this period which will change significantly the way in which future historians view the late Anglo-Saxon polity and its destruction at the hands of the Normans.

Judges of the Whitfield Prize 2007

Se alle

This book is a significant contribution to the history of late Anglo-Saxon England... Its author author is to be applauded for asking such big questions; and the publication of this book undoubtedly signals the arrival of a significant young historian on the early English scene.

Pauline Stafford, The English Historical Review.

This book constitutes a major reappraisal of the late Anglo-Saxon state on the eve of its demise. Its principal focus is the family of Ealdorman Leofwine, which obtained power in Mercia and retained it throughout an extraordinary period of political upheaval between 994 and 1071. In doing so it explores a paradox: that earls were extraordinarily wealthy and powerful yet distinctly insecure. The book contains the first extended treatment of earls' powers in late Anglo-Saxon England and shows that although they wielded considerable military, administrative and political powers, they remained vulnerable to exile and other forms of political punishment including loss of territory. The book also offers a path-breaking analysis of land tenure and the mechanics of royal patronage, and argues that the majority of earls' estates were held from the king on a revocable basis for the duration of their period in office. In order to compensate for such insecurities, earls used lordship and religious patronage to construct local networks of power. The book uses innovative methods for interpreting the representation of lordship in Domesday Book to reconstruct the affinity of the earls of Mercia. It also examines how the house of Leofwine made strategic use of religious patronage to cement local power structures. All this created intense competition between the earls of Mercia and their rivals for power, both at court and in the localities, and the book explores how factional rivalry determined the course of politics, and ultimately the fate of the late Anglo-Saxon state.
Les mer
Focusing on the family of Ealdorman Leofwine, which retained power throughout an extraordinary period of political and dynastic upheaval, Stephen Baxter reassesses fundamental elements of late Anglo-Saxon government and society, offering a fresh interpretation of the structure of the late Anglo-Saxon polity and the origins of the Norman Conquest.
Les mer
1. Introduction ; 2. The Identity of the House of Leofwine ; 3. The Extent, Nature and Limits of the Leofwinesons' Power ; 4. The Leofwinesons' Land ; 5. The Earls and the Monasteries of Mercia ; 6. Lordship and the House of Leofwine ; 7. Conclusions: The Fall of the House of Leofwine, 1066?1071
Les mer
This considerable volume presents an extremely careful and thorough study of the house of Leofwine: one of the two most prominent dynasties of eleventh-century England alongside the much more well-studied house of Godwine.
Les mer
Offers a fresh interpretation of factional politics in England between the reign of King Æthelred 'the Unready' and the Norman Conquest Contains the first extended treatment of the nature and limits of earls' power in the late Anglo-Saxon state Uses innovative methods for interpreting Domesday Book to refine understanding of pre-Conquest land tenure and lordship
Les mer
Offers a fresh interpretation of factional politics in England between the reign of King Æthelred 'the Unready' and the Norman Conquest Contains the first extended treatment of the nature and limits of earls' power in the late Anglo-Saxon state Uses innovative methods for interpreting Domesday Book to refine understanding of pre-Conquest land tenure and lordship
Les mer

Produktdetaljer

ISBN
9780199230983
Publisert
2007
Utgiver
Vendor
Oxford University Press
Vekt
594 gr
Høyde
220 mm
Bredde
145 mm
Dybde
25 mm
Aldersnivå
U, 05
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Innbundet
Antall sider
384

Forfatter