The Central Middle Ages

Short Oxford History of Europe

by Daniel Power (editor)

The period from the late tenth to the early fourteenth centuries was one of the most dynamic in European history. Latin Christendom found a new confidence which has left its mark upon the landscape in the form of the great cathedrals and castles, while thousands of new towns and villages were founded. The continent was carved up into dynastic kingdoms and principalities from which the European state system would evolve. An age of great religious enthusiasm, it developed a darker side in the form of the Crusades and the persecution of heretics and Jews.

In this book seven experts in the field examine how Europe was transformed in the Central Middle Ages. Thematic chapters analyse the political, social, economic, religious and intellectual history of Latin Christendom, and trace its expansion to the north, south and east. As well as many familiar topics the authors discuss less well known aspects of the period such as the popular experience of religion or the new kingdoms of east-central Europe. The book includes a chronology of developments, a glossary, maps, illustrations and guidance for further reading.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Medieval, Medieval History

320 pages, Hardcover

First published December 24, 2005

About the author

"Daniel Power studied at Selwyn College, Cambridge, from 1987, and held a research fellowship at Trinity Hall, Cambridge, from 1993. In 1996 he was appointed to a lectureship in the Department of History at the University of Sheffield, where he was promoted to Senior Lecturer in 2005 and Reader in 2007. He took up the post of Professor of Medieval History at Swansea University in September 2007. He is currently the Head of the Department of History and Classics.

Professor Power’s research concerns the history of France and the British Isles in the Central Middle Ages (especially the Anglo-Norman realm, the Angevin Empire, and Capetian France) and medieval frontier societies. His publications include The Norman Frontier in the Twelfth and Early Thirteenth Centuries (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004), and he has edited The Central Middle Ages (Short Oxford History of Europe (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006) and (with Naomi Standen) Frontiers in Question: Eurasian Borderlands 700-1700 (Basingstoke: Macmillan Press, 1999). His recent publications include a study of participants in the Albigensian Crusade, but they mainly concern the Anglo-Norman aristocracy in the 13th century, after the end of the Anglo-Norman realm in 1204, for which he established the database The ‘Lands of the Normans’ in England (1204-44); he is also preparing a critical edition of the 400 charters of the Hommet family, constables of Normandy in the 12th and 13th centuries.

Professor Power is the Director of MEMO, Swansea University’s Centre for Medieval and Early Modern Research. He is a Member of the Société de l'Histoire de France, and a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries (of London) and the Royal Historical Society."

Source: http://www.swansea.ac.uk/staff/academ...

Reviews

[A.E. Chandler]

Written by some top academics as an introduction to the central medieval period. This isn't a general history book or a casual read. There are some wonderfully obscure details. Each contributor takes on a different topic in their chapter, bringing their years of study and specialized knowledge.

[Jenny Mitchell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Engaging, and great maps!

[Ancillar Bradingus · Rating 1 out of 5]

Sadly, this book has really good maps. I say "sadly" because in every other conceivable respect, it's fucking awful. Necessary compromises on scope and detail are universally poorly chosen. There is no narrative, only a collection of generalized, mind-numbingly boring lists of facts about spans of time stretching decades or centuries. I've seen second-grade book reports with better instincts concerning readability. HORRID. Oxford should be ashamed.

[Patty · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good overview of an admittedly huge span of time and space. Seven chapters written by seven different experts cover a wide variety of topics (religion, economy, kingship, the expansion of Christendom into Eastern Europe, etc). There's not enough time to get deep into anything, of course, but the bibliography points to an incredibly wide range of sources.