This is a study of the expansion, retention and exercise of the territorial, political and military power of the premier earldom of England in the most crucial century of its history. The history of the Earls of Shrewsbury has been approached in four parts, the first two covering the genealogical and-political history of the family, the second exploring aspects of the material bases of its power. The study begins with a survey of the position of Ankaret, Lady Talbot, widow of the fourth Lord, over the turn of the century and the baptism of her elder sons in war in Wales. It carries through the history of her family until the succession of her second son, John, to the combined inheritances of Talbot, Le Strange and Furnival in 1422. The second chapter traces the fortune of this inheritance under John, concentrating particularly on the two great disputes, one with Lord Berkeley over the possession of the barony of Berkeley, and the other with his own heir over the partition of the inheritance, in which he involved his family. The third chapter considers the fortunes of the second and third Earls in the Wars of the Roses. It is argued in this that John, second Earl of Shrewsbury is to be numbered among the moderate Lancastrians in the years 1453-60 and that Edward IV, with eventual success, took advantage of long minorities during his reign to reconcile the Talbots to his regime. The second part is devoted to the career of the principal founder of the family fortunes, John, 1st Earl of Shrewsbury. In one chapter the intervention of him and his brother Richard, Archbishop of Dublin, in the affairs of Ireland is described and in a second his long war career in France, which ended after thirty-three years on the field of Castillon, is traced and the legend that grow up around his name is assessed. The third and fourth parts look beyond the surface of genealogical and political history to examine the foundations of. the family's power and influence in its estates and affinity in the time of the first Earl. One chapter considers the composition of the first Earl's following and the influence maintained through it, particularly in Shropshire, in spite of his continued absence abroad. A second examines the composition of his retinues of war in Normandy and reveals that there were only very loose connections between these and his English following. And a third reconstructs the administration of the Talbot estates in his time, examines his finances and finally assesses his profits of war. The fourth and last part is a detailed study of the economic history of the largest of the Talbot estates in Shropshire, the lordship of Blackmere or Blackmere over the whole of the later middle ages
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:488666 |
| Date | January 1969 |
| Creators | Pollard, A. J. |
| Publisher | University of Bristol |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | http://hdl.handle.net/1983/1fee55ee-a389-44b7-960f-11c185c4c4d0 |
Page generated in 0.0019 seconds