The North of England in the Age of Richard III

by A.J. Pollard (Editor), R.B. Dobson (Contributor), Rosemary C.E. Hayes (Contributor)

This volume is the product of the fifth triennial conference of the Richard III Society which was held on the weekend of 2-4 April 1993 at University College, Durham.

The history of northern England in the fifteenth century is inextricably linked with the history of Richard III. It is well established that Richard, both as Duke of Gloucester and king, enjoyed a special relationship with the region and that as a result of his rise to power the region played a brief but central role in the affairs of the kingdom. This collection of papers, delivered at the third triennial conference of the Richard III Society, offers a fresh and stimulating reappraisal of the society that Richard III described as his home, and his relationship with it. Historical analysis focuses on particular counties (Cumberland, Durham and Yorkshire), institutions (the Crown, the law and the Church), individuals (including Richard III) and Anglo-Scottish relations. The papers reflect current caution about the character of 'The North' and its distinctiveness, exploring themes which relate directly to the received image of a distant, lawless, rebellious country - the north of the fifteenth-century imagination. A particular feature is an appendix of selected, previously unpublished documents.

Contents:
1. Politics and the Church in the Fifteenth-Century North / R.B. Dobson --
2. Ancient Indictments for the North of England, 1461-1509 / Rosemary C.E. Hayes --
3. Order and Community in the North: The Liberty of Allertonshire in the Later Fifteenth Century / Christine M. Newman --
4. The Crown and the County Palatine of Durham, 1437-94 / A.J. Pollard --
5. Carlisle and the English West March in the Later Middle Ages / Henry Summerson --
6. Richard III and Scotland / Alexander Grant --
7. 'True Ornaments to Know a Holy Man': Northern Religious Life and the Piety of Richard III / Jonathan Hughes --
Appendix: Selected Documents 1. The Appeal of William Robynson, Approver, 12-14 July 1473 --
Appendix: Selected Documents 2. A Presentment Made at the Allertonshire Tourn, Thursday in Passion Week, 1485 --
Appendix: Selected Documents 3. A Letter from the King Recommending Robert Neville to Durham, 28 November 1437 --
Appendix: Selected Documents 4. Archibald Whitelaw's Address, 12 September 1484 (translated with a comment on the Latin by David Shotter).

192 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1995

About the author

Anthony James Pollard (born 1941) is a British medieval historian, specialising in North-Eastern England during the Wars of the Roses. He is considered a leading authority on the field.