Description
Book SynopsisDucal charters illuminate politics, external relations, and the conduct of government, and also Breton society and institutions.The indispensable charter collection for the Breton lands in the complex period of the break-up of the Angevin hegemony. ENGLISH HISTORICAL REVIEW Around 1200, sovereignty over the duchy of Brittany was disputed by the Angevin kings of England and the Capetian kings of France. With few local chronicle sources concerning Brittany in this important period, ducal charters provide crucial evidence for politics, external relations, and the conduct of government. They are also an essential source for Breton society and institutions in a period of rapid change and development. Collected here for the first time are the acts of Duchess Constance (1171-1201), her mother, dowager-duchess Margaret of Scotland, Constance's three husbands, Geoffrey, son of King Henry II, Ranulf III, earl of Chester, and Guy de Thouars, and her three children, Eleanor, Arthur of Brittany, and Alice, who succeeded in 1213 toa duchy under Capetian sovereignty. The subject matter concerns not only Brittany, but also the Breton rulers' extensive lands in England, the honour of Richmond, and even the counties of Anjou, Maine and Touraine while they wereunder Arthur's rule. The charters are also of wider general significance for the light they cast on the exercise of political power by female rulers. MICHAEL JONES is Emeritus Professor of Medieval French History at theUniversity of Nottingham.
Trade ReviewThe indispensable charter collection for the Breton lands in the complex period of the break-up of the Angevin hegemony. * ENGLISH HISTORICAL REVIEW *
Put[s] Breton history in the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries on a new footing. * FRENCH HISTORY *
Valuable and scholarly edition... salutary reminder that by dividing medieval records between 'English' and 'French' we can lose much. * NORTHERN HISTORY *
Table of ContentsCharters of Geoffrey, Duke of Brittany, Earl of Richmond, 1181-1186; charters of Constance, Duchess of Brittany, Countess of Richmond, 1181-1201; charters of Margaret, Duchess of Brittany, Countess of Richmond (d.1201); charters of Ranulf III, Earl of Chester, iure uxoris Duke of Brittany, Early of Richmond, 1188/9-1231; charters of Arthur, Duke of Brittany, Count of Anjou, Main and Touraine, Earl of Richmond, 1187 & 1199-1202/3; charters of Guy de Thouars iure uxoris Duke of Brittany, Earl of Richmond, Regent of Brittany, (1190)-1213; charters of Eleanor, Duchess of Brittany, Countess of Richmond, 1208-1241; charters of Alice, Duchess of Brittany, Countess of Richmond, 1212-1221; biographical notes - Robert d'Apigne, Reginald Boterel, Thomas de Burgh, Geoffroi de Chateaubriant, Pierre de Dinan, Alan and Richard Gemelli, Judicael de Guerande, Yves de la Jaille, Guillaume de Loheac, Guillaume des Roches, Guethenoc, Bishop of Vannes, Andre II de Vitre, Alain de Dinan-Vitre, Robert de Vitre.
