The Oxford Illustrated History of Medieval England

by Nigel Saul (Editor)

From the departure of the Roman legions, to the battle of Bosworth and the rise of the Tudors, the world of medieval England was one of profound diversity and change. Now, in The Oxford Illustrated History of Medieval England , readers have an authoritative and stimulating overview of this
pivotal period in British history. Lavishly illustrated with over a hundred pictures--including twenty-four pages of color plates--this attractive volume brings together leading scholars who illuminate the history and culture of medieval England.
The book brims with information on the social, cultural, and religious life of the period, covering topics as varied as the nature of national identity, the character of urban life, the great works of art and architecture, the details of religious practice, and the development of a vernacular
literature. The heart of the book explores the main political changes in the time-span ranging from the Anglo-Saxon period, to the rule of the Normans and Angevins, to the late middle ages. Here we see the rise of a united polity and rapid institutional growth, in a time when war was of primary
importance in both stimulating change and shaping national identity. In economic terms, the age was characterized by long, and rapid, population growth followed by severe contraction, sparked by the famines of 1315-17 and the Black Death. A consequence of the steep fall in population, however, was a
higher per capita the splendid churches and fine vernacular architecture of the period bear witness to the wealth and variety of lay patronage.
The middle ages have always held a special fascination for readers of history and this superb volume offers a gold mine of information on the period. With numerous illustrations, family trees, a chronology, guides to further reading, and a full index, this is an indispensable guide to England
in the middle ages.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Medieval, Medieval History, British Literature, Research

308 pages, Hardcover

First published May 15, 1997

About the author

Professor Nigel Saul (born 1952) is a British academic who was formerly the Head of the Department of History at Royal Holloway, University of London (RHUL). He is recognised as one of the leading experts in the history of medieval England.

Professor Saul has written numerous books including Knights and Esquires, The Gloucestershire Gentry in the Fourteenth Century (Oxford, 1981), and The Oxford Illustrated History of Medieval England (Oxford, 1997). His major biography Richard II (Yale, 1997) was the product of ten years' work and was acclaimed by P. D. James as "unlikely to be surpassed in scholarship, comprehensiveness, or in the biographer's insight into his subject's character".

Within Royal Holloway, Professor Saul is known for his somewhat right-wing political views. He has served as Honorary President of the college's Conservative Future Society.

Reviews

[iosephvs bibliothecarivs · Rating 5 out of 5]

I find a special joy in this type of hardback medieval history book published by UK houses between perhaps 1980 and 2000: the topic, of course (see contents below), and the expertise of the academic authors, but also the format and design (fonts, illustrations, layout). That feeling is surely due to the particular books on Medieval England that I found in my public and school libraries as a youth and is therefore infused with nostalgia. This is a supreme example: both interesting and beautiful.

Contents:
1. Medievel England: Identity, Politics, and Society by Nigel Saul
2. Anglo-Saxon England, c.500-1066 by Janet L. Nelson
3. Conquered England, 1066-1215 by George Garnett
4. Late Medieval England, 1215-1485 by Chris Given-Wilson
5. The Economy and Society by Christopher Dyer
6. Piety, Religion, and the Church by Henrietta Leyser
7. The Visual Arts by Nicola Coldstream
8. Language and Literature by Derek Pearsall
Editor's Postscript
Further Reading
Chronology
Family Trees
Illustration Sources
Index

[Brendan Steinhauser · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not the best book I've read on the medieval period, but I did find it somewhat interesting.

[steven gorman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely best read with some basic prior knowledge of medieval England/Europe - I wouldn’t consider this book a great starting point for most readers.

This book contains chapters from different authors that each present a specific topic or time period - for example chapter 2 broadly covers Anglo-Saxon England from years 500-1066, whereas chapter 5 focuses on societies and their economic structures across several different eras. Some chapters are a bit dry and a slog to read through, even if you are genuinely interested in the subject matter; however there are lots of interesting visual illustrations throughout to break up the book so you aren’t just bombarded with walls of informative text. A further reading list is at the back of the book, sorted by the same chapter-topics presented throughout.

Overall a decent read, and a useful text to help direct further research.

[Ryan Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

different authors give medieval history of england with different focus (monarchic succession, religion, art, community, and language). 4 stars because i just found the art section boring as hell

[Stephen Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

A compilation of chapters by several authors/scholars, some of whom write more lucid and engaging prose than others. Covers roughly a thousand years in England from 500 to 1500, glossing over politics, religion, economy, visual arts, and literature. Obviously, squeezing a millennium into less than three hundred pages is not an easy feat, and sometimes the text can be both dense and cursory, and frustratingly so. Some of the authors are better than others at turning the history into an intriguing narrative, but even so they're not afforded ample space. The murder of Thomas Beckett, for example, is alluded to twice, but then only receives two sentences of explanation when the actual event is covered. Still, a very worthwhile introduction to the subject.

[Linniegayl · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an edited volume and the chapters varied for me in terms of interest and information as well as readability. I liked the three chapters that focused on the chronology of the time (Chapter 2 -- 500-1066; Chapter 3 -- 1066-1215; and Chapter 4 -- 1215-1485). I also enjoyed the chapters on The Visual Arts (Chapter 7) and Language and Literature (Chapter 8). I would probably give all of these chapters 4 stars, but the remaining chapters were of less interest to me, and I'd probably give them 2 stars, so on balance this ends up 3 1/2 stars.

However, I should note that throughout the book there are absolutely gorgeous color prints, making this a beautiful book.

[Betty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Without illustrations, this book would have been too dense for anyone but the most serious scholar. Even so, the reader should be highly interested in gaining an overview of 1000 years of English history. Helpfully separates out discussions of governance, economy, church, arts and language. The vocabulary used by the scholars is precise and includes terms not in common usage.