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

Robert Bartlett (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0199251010 | ISBN-13: 978-0199251018 | Publication Date: October 3, 2002

This lively and far-reaching account of the politics, religion, and culture of England in the century and a half after the Norman Conquest provides a vivid picture of everyday existence, and increases our understanding of all aspects of medieval society. There are colourful details of the everyday life of ordinary men and women, with their views on the past, on sexuality, on animals, on death, the undead, and the occult. The result is a fascinating and comprehensive portrayal of a period which begins with conquest and ends in assimilation.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Words of praise the author applies to the historians of his period can well be applied to this work, 'The quantity , quality, and variety are all alike impressive.'"--Albion

"startlingly clear and often unusual images of life under the Norman and Angevin kings." -- B.R. O'Brien, CHOICE Nov. 2000, Vol.38, No.3.

About the Author

Robert Bartlett is Wardlaw Professor of Medieval History at the University of St Andrews

Product Details

• Paperback: 808 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (October 3, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0199251010
• ISBN-13: 978-0199251018
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 1.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #753,908 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent coverage of a complex and exciting period, August 11, 2001

By 

Atheen M. Wilson "Atheen" (Mpls, MN United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: England Under the Norman and Angevin Kings, 1075-1225 (New Oxford History of England) (Hardcover)

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.

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Effortless transportation through time, January 10, 2005

By 

Stephen Balbach (Ashton, MD United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: England Under the Norman and Angevin Kings, 1075-1225 (New Oxford History of England) (Paperback)

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."

19 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An ambitious overview of an interesting period, April 13, 2000

By 

Richard C Davidson (Salt lake city, utah) - See all my reviews

This review is from: England Under the Norman and Angevin Kings, 1075-1225 (New Oxford History of England) (Hardcover)

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.