England Under the Norman and Angevin Kings, 1075-1225 (New Oxford History of England)

Rating:
Summary: Excellent coverage of a complex and exciting period
Review: Anyone familiar with the Cambridge History collection will be familiar with the format of this book. Essentially Bartlett's work is an expansion of an epoch of English history from, roughly, 1066 to 1200 and covers the reigns of William the Conqueror and the generations of Norman and Angevin kings succeeding him on the throne. Like the Cambridge History series, England Under the Norman and Angevin Kings dissects the period, examining life from nearly every aspect: military events of each reign, relations between king and nobility, king and commoner and king and heirs, social strata, cost of armaments, land holding and land use, cost of living and inflationary trends, law courts, rise of a merchant middle class, growth of cities, etc. The volume is incredibly thorough in its coverage of the period, and its bibliography is impressive. Original documents are described and cited throughout the book, providing the dedicated reader with primary sources with which to follow up his/her interests. It would be an excellent secondary source book for someone doing research on the period. It is however very deep and detailed and takes considerable time to read. Light reading it isn't, even for the history buff, but it is worth doing for anyone interested in this very active, very complex period.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent coverage of a complex and exciting period
Review: Anyone familiar with the Cambridge History collection will be familiar with the format of this book. Essentially Bartlett's work is an expansion of an epoch of English history from, roughly, 1066 to 1200 and covers the reigns of William the Conqueror and the generations of Norman and Angevin kings succeeding him on the throne. Like the Cambridge History series, England Under the Norman and Angevin Kings dissects the period, examining life from nearly every aspect: military events of each reign, relations between king and nobility, king and commoner and king and heirs, social strata, cost of armaments, land holding and land use, cost of living and inflationary trends, law courts, rise of a merchant middle class, growth of cities, etc. The volume is incredibly thorough in its coverage of the period, and its bibliography is impressive. Original documents are described and cited throughout the book, providing the dedicated reader with primary sources with which to follow up his/her interests. It would be an excellent secondary source book for someone doing research on the period. It is however very deep and detailed and takes considerable time to read. Light reading it isn't, even for the history buff, but it is worth doing for anyone interested in this very active, very complex period.

Rating:
Summary: Effortless transportation through time
Review: Bartlett acts as a wonderful guide through the many layers of Medieval life. As he says in the Preface this is an "entry-point of the understanding of processes only slowly unfolding, sometimes across centuries". The book has a very narrow focus in both place and time, yet goes very deep in detail covering all aspects of medieval life. It is a long book that could easily be read in chapters in no particular order, but I read it straight through cover to cover hopeing it would not end for want of Bartletts engaging prose and wealth of fascinating source material. Perhaps the best compliment of all is my desire to want to learn more.

It is an academic book and not always easy with some sections that are fairly boring (economic production figures, calculations of the number of sheep in the country), but overall the balance of interesting material outweighs these sections and makes the effort well worth the veins of gold. Most of all, it is highly trustworthy and authoritative; Bartlett is one in a long line of English historians who endeavored to be readable, arming themselves, as Roger of Wendover (13th C) says, against both "the listless hearer and the fastidious reader" by "presenting something which each may relish," and so providing for the joint "profit and entertainment of all."

Rating:
Summary: An ambitious overview of an interesting period
Review: Bartlett tries to cover practically every aspect of life during his period, from court politics to village religious life to sexual mores. He does a nice jobe of balancing the general and the specific, reinforcing his general conclusions with interesting anecdotes. Some parts are more tedious than others, depending on your tastes - since he deals with so many issues, some are bound to interest the reader more than others.

Rating:
Summary: An ambitious overview of an interesting period
Review: Bartlett tries to cover practically every aspect of life during his period, from court politics to village religious life to sexual mores. He does a nice jobe of balancing the general and the specific, reinforcing his general conclusions with interesting anecdotes. Some parts are more tedious than others, depending on your tastes - since he deals with so many issues, some are bound to interest the reader more than others.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent overview
Review: This book is one that I reach for constantly when I need to check something; in addition Bartlett writes in an effortless style that makes him a pleasure to read. He's a master of the primary sources; the only think missing from this book is a good bibliography of secondary, specialized material.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent overview
Review: This book is one that I reach for constantly when I need to check something; in addition Bartlett writes in an effortless style that makes him a pleasure to read. He's a master of the primary sources; the only think missing from this book is a good bibliography of secondary, specialized material.