Description
Book SynopsisPioneer catalogue for one of the most important collections of English legal manuscripts.The English legal manuscripts in Cambridge University Library form one of the most important collections in the world. The principal treasures derive from the renowned library, containing over 230 volumes, collected by John Moore(d.1714), Bishop of Ely, presented to the University by King George I in 1715. It includes some of the old manuscripts collected by Francis Tate (d.1616), and the working manuscript library of Mr Justice Nicholas (d.1667). The collection also contains medieval statute-books, year-books, medieval and early modern readings and moots in the inns of court, and law reports from the Tudor period down to the reign of Charles II, together with examples of every other major type of manuscript law book in use in England prior to the eighteenth century. As well as being an essential finding-aid, this new catalogue includes a description of the contents of each manuscript, bibliographicalnotes on the text (listing hundreds of related manuscripts in other libraries), and full codicological descriptions of the medieval manuscripts by Dr Jayne Ringrose. No similar catalogue of English legal manuscripts has ever beenpublished before. Professor J.H. BAKER is Professor of English Legal History at Cambridge University.
Trade ReviewThis catalogue of the remarkable collection...is endlessly suggestive, leaves many questions to be answered, and at the same time takes us forward at s4everal leaps in appreciating...how legal manuscripst, and therefore legal history, may be studied in a bibliographical way. -- D McK * BOOK COLLECTOR *
A prodigious task... As well as the catalogue itself, and the numerous indexes, appendixes and other tabular aids accompanying it, Professor Baker has contributed an introduction which is in itself a substantial essay on the importance of the manuscript tradition as an indicator of the manner in which education in English law was pursued during the middle ages. * ECCLESIASTICAL LAW JOURNAL *
Of particular interest is [the] introduction, in which [Baker] connects the contents of the manuscripts to what is known about the teaching of law. * MANUSCRIPTA *
Table of ContentsPart 1 The university library and the common-law tradition - some principal categories of legal manuscript 1250-1700: medieval statute-books and their contents; instructional material in the medieval books; mnemonic notes; later developments in law teaching; language; formularies; reports of cases. Part 2 Some notes on provenance: the old library; the Royal library - John Moore's collection; William Fletewoode (d.1594); Francis Tate (1560-1616); Geoffrey Palmer (1598-1670); Robert Nicholas (1595-1667); Bulstrode Whitelocke (1605-75); early ownership inscriptions. Appendices: Some constituent legal collections in the Royal library; the English legal manuscripts collected by John Moore; manuscripts in other collections held by the university library. Note on editorial method; the catalogue; table of statutes; tables of law reports - chronological table of reports, index of names of reporters, table of cases mentioned; table of incipits and titles; index of previous owners; index of names; index of subjects.
