Twenty-seven Suffolk castles were built between 1066 and 1200. This thesis summarises the modern multi-disciplinary surveys of six of them, with the objective of identifying their location, morphology, form and function. The majority of Suffolk castles were built between the late 11th and mid-H-century and reached their largest number during the civil wars cA 135-54. However, a few remained operational after c.1200 and those that did are characterised as either royal or baronial caput castles. Moreover, almost all Suffolk castles were originally earth and timber, whereas the surviving examples were rebuilt in stone before c.1300. Therefore, those castles that survived beyond or were established after c.1200 are unrepresentative. Instead this thesis focuses on the period 1066 to 1200, when the more common sub-baronial, earth and timber Suffolk castles were evidenced. Chapter one identifies the key issues. Chapter two critiques each of the current models in castle studies before rejecting them in favour of a modified Annates model. Chapter three identifies the constraints of the tongue duree, identified as the environmental factors, defined as the climate, topography, geology, hydrology and timber supply in the vicinity of the castle. Chapter four identifies societal constraints, which are sub-divided into structural, social and cultural, and focuses on the Abbey of St Edmund's, its cult, viceroyship, ecclesiastical autonomy and barony, its relationship with the new elite and how it influenced castle building. Chapter five focuses on three of the six surveyed castle earthworks to establish the evenement level of the model, which identifies the castle building agents and the specific historical and political context in which these castles were built. Chapter six brings the different sources and levels of data together to offer a new model, a more nuanced definition of a castle and a comprehensive assessment of the conflicting demands of the catalysts and constraints operating upon the construction of castles in Suffolk. In this it is supported by over two hundred figures and plans, numerous tables, a comprehensive set of appendices and an extensive bibliography.

The main interest of the history, of the family of, Mortimer lies in its political aspects. After brief attempts at feudal rebellion in 1088 and 1155, and association with the, baronialists in 1258-69, the family reverted powerfully and decisively to the royalist aide in, the person of Roger [II], who rendered, possible its triumph at Evesham by his collaboration in, the escape of prince-Edward from Hereford on the 28th May, 1265. The, careers of his son, Roger [III), of Chirk, and grandson, Roger [IV], represent the culmination of the political aspirations of the family. Their breach with the Crown' was occasioned by the attacks of the younger Despenser upon their position in the Welsh March before 1321. After the ultimate failure of their first attempt to overthrow the Despensers in that year, the, political activities of, Mortimer of Wigmore were renewed to an excesive degree after his escape from the, Tower in August 1323. In association with queen Isabella, he invaded the realm. in September 1326, and secured the execution of both Despensers. The-predominant feature of the "revolution", thus effected was its almost wholly, personal characters involving no deep or permanent changes in national policy. Roger's arrogance and ostentation, symbolised, by his promotion to the earldom of March in October, 1328, and his merciless attack on the earl of Kent in 1330, provoked a reaction which ended in his attainder and execution.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

This thesis traces the development of political prophecy in England from the publication of Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Prophetiae Merlini (c.1136-40), to political prophecies in circulation on the eve of the Wars of the Roses. A genre endorsing and naturalising territorial claims, political prophecy was a powerful mode of communal and national address. In the construction of these rights, the authors of English political prophecy leant heavily on contemporary Welsh and Scottish counterclaims, material which was re-inscribed and employed as an endorsement of English hegemony. An assessment of cross-border influences is fundamental for a balanced study of the genre. From Geoffrey of Monmouth’s re-inscription of Welsh prophetic material, to the northern English prophecies ascribed to Thomas of Erceldoune and antecedent texts on the Anglo-Scottish border drawing on Scottish materials, and the later circulation of Erceldoune prophecies on the Anglo-Welsh border, the movement of prophetic material across national lines proved formative. In the study of these sites of re-inscription in this thesis, each text is orientated in its broader geo-political and historical context. This is a scholarly practice which presents a radical departure from a critical framework which in recent years has understood these very different works, composed and circulating in relation to different geo-political and historical factors, as monolithically ‘Celtic’. In the historical development of these prophetic traditions, as they were reapplied by consecutive groups and factions within England and on its borders, the affinities of the border aristocracy played an important role. Political prophecy functioned as a powerful hegemonic strategy, staking political-territorial claims, both regional and more recognisably national. On occasion political prophecy was drawn on directly by members of the aristocracy themselves: most prolifically, the Percy earls of Northumberland; and the Mortimer earls of March, and later Yorkist claimants to the throne.

No description available.

This thesis closely analyses the linguistic forms of aspects of non-royal charters produced c.1066-c.1250 in the north-east of England and the south-east of Scotland, namely, consent, joint grants, separate confirmations, inheritance language, leaseholds and warranty. This study identifies the preferred forms of each studied aspect as well as variants, developments and alternatives and analyses them according to a clear chronological framework and other potential causal factors such as the status and gender of participants, location and grant type. Additionally, the spread of linguistic patterns throughout the studied region, Stringer's “diplomatic transplant”, is examined. Firstly, the charter underwent tremendous development across this period of study becoming trusted evidence of landholding transactions routine at most levels of society and subjected to sophisticated scrutiny by legal professionals in landholding disputes. Secondly, charter language was introduced, modified or abandoned according to many influences, e.g. the emergence of early Common Law systems in both Scotland and England, the rise of the legal profession and the growth in written culture evidenced partly through the spread of monastic houses and increasing trust in the written word. Indeed, the introduction of significant legal reforms – in England from the 1160s and in Scotland during the second quarter of the thirteenth century – are repeatedly revealed to be the point at which linguistic patterns became noticeably more settled and variants became much rarer. Notably, the fact that the language patterns of the Northumberland houses better mirror the patterns seen in south-east Scotland demonstrates the contrast in the level of bureaucratic organisation against the neighbouring shires of Durham and Yorkshire. Thirdly, this thesis highlights the existence of preferred linguistic forms by individual religious houses, religious orders, families or groups of people within localities or larger geographical regions. In particular, religious houses were especially influential in the widespread adoption of some forms of language. Overall, developments and changes to charter language were streamlined, revised or modified with the dual aims of providing greater clarity and thus maximum legal protection; before legal reform the latter was much more dependent upon familial and seignorial ties, a factor reflected in the greater variety of linguistic forms.

Much has been written about twelfth-century chroniclers in England, but satisfactory reasons for their approaches to historical explanation have not yet been advanced. This thesis investigates how and why historians in England retold accounts of England's eleventh-century invasions: the Danish Conquest of 1016 and the Norman Conquest of 1066. The object is to illuminate the consistent historical agendas of three historians: William of Malmesbury, Henry of Huntingdon and John of Worcester. I argue that they share a view of royal responsibility independent both of their sources (primarily the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle) and of any political agenda that placed English and Norman allegiances in opposition. Although the accounts diverge widely in the interpretation of character, all three are concerned more with the effectiveness of England's kings than with their origins. Part One outlines trends in early insular narratives and examines each of the three historians' background, prose style and view of English history to provide the necessary context for understanding how and why they rewrote narratives of kings and conquest. Part Two analyzes narratives of defending kings Æthelred and Harold; Part Three conducts a parallel analysis of conquering kings Cnut and William. These sections argue that all three writers add a significant and new degree of causal and moral responsibility to English kings in their invasion narratives. Part Four discusses the implications and significance of the thesis's findings. It argues that the historians' invasion narratives follow consistent patterns in service of their projects of redeeming the English past. It contends that modern understanding of the eleventh-century conquests of England continues to be shaped by what historians wrote years later, in the twelfth. In departing from prior modes of explanation by collective sin, the three historians' invasion narratives reflect a renaissance of ancient ideas about rule.