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The Church and Vale of Evesham, 700-1215
Lordship, Landscape and Prayer
Language:
English
Published/Copyright:
2015
About this book
A comprehensive account of the abbey of Evesham and its surroundings, demonstrating its full significance in the wider history of the time.
Provides a fine contribution to the rich history of the region, showing Evesham's place in the life of the medieval kingdom of England. Professor Ann Williams.
In c.701, a minster was founded in the lower Avon Valleyon a deserted promontory called Evesham. Over the next five hundred years it became a Benedictine abbey and turned the Vale of Evesham into a federation of Christian communities. A landscape of scattered farms grew into one of open fields and villages, manor houses and chapels. Evesham itself developed into a town, and the abbots played a role in the affairs of the kingdom. But individual contemplation and prayer within the abbey were compromised by its corporate aspirations. As Evesham abbey waxed ever grander, exerting a national influence, it became a ready patron of the arts but had less time for private spirituality. The story ends badly in the prolonged scandal of Abbot Norreis, a libertine whose appetites caused religion to collapse at Evesham before his own sudden downfall.
This book integrates the evidence of archaeology, maps, and documents in a continuous narrative that pays as much attention to religious and cultural life as to institutional and economic matters. It provides a complete survey over one of the most important and wealthy Benedictine abbeys and its landscape, a stage on which was enacted the tense interplay of lordship and prayer.
Dr David Cox, FSA, was until his retirement county editor of the Victoria History of Shropshire and lecturer at Keele University.
Provides a fine contribution to the rich history of the region, showing Evesham's place in the life of the medieval kingdom of England. Professor Ann Williams.
In c.701, a minster was founded in the lower Avon Valleyon a deserted promontory called Evesham. Over the next five hundred years it became a Benedictine abbey and turned the Vale of Evesham into a federation of Christian communities. A landscape of scattered farms grew into one of open fields and villages, manor houses and chapels. Evesham itself developed into a town, and the abbots played a role in the affairs of the kingdom. But individual contemplation and prayer within the abbey were compromised by its corporate aspirations. As Evesham abbey waxed ever grander, exerting a national influence, it became a ready patron of the arts but had less time for private spirituality. The story ends badly in the prolonged scandal of Abbot Norreis, a libertine whose appetites caused religion to collapse at Evesham before his own sudden downfall.
This book integrates the evidence of archaeology, maps, and documents in a continuous narrative that pays as much attention to religious and cultural life as to institutional and economic matters. It provides a complete survey over one of the most important and wealthy Benedictine abbeys and its landscape, a stage on which was enacted the tense interplay of lordship and prayer.
Dr David Cox, FSA, was until his retirement county editor of the Victoria History of Shropshire and lecturer at Keele University.
Author / Editor information
Contributor: David Cox
DAVID COX, PhD, FSA, was formerly Editor of the Victoria History of Shropshire and Lecturer in History at Keele University, UK.
Topics
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Frontmatter
i -
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Contents
vii -
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List of illustrations
ix -
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Preface
x -
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Timeline
xii -
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List of abbreviations
xiii - Part I. From minster to abbey (701–1078)
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1 Æthelred and Ecgwine
1 -
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2 A land of promise
14 -
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3 A waiting people
24 -
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4 Ecgwine and the first abbots
33 -
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5 Decay and revival
42 -
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6 On the defensive
50 -
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7 Abbot Ælfweard and King Cnut
58 -
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8 Abbot Manni, the town, and the Vale
68 -
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9 Abbot Æthelwig under English and Norman rule
78 - Part II. Abbot Walter (1078–1104)
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10 A new regime
89 -
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11 God’s work
99 -
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12 The estates under threat
109 -
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13 Protecting the future
118 - Part III. Twelfth-century themes (1104–1215)
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14 Interested parties
129 -
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15 Order and governance
140 -
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16 Economic realities
149 -
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17 Investment
158 -
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18 Worship
167 -
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19 Learning and writing
176 -
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20 Religious buildings
184 -
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21 Collapse and renewal
193 -
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Afterword
205 -
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Appendix: The abbots of Evesham to 1215
209 -
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Select bibliography
210 -
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Index
215
Publishing information
Pages and Images/Illustrations in book
eBook published on:
February 19, 2024
eBook ISBN:
9781782046400
Original publisher:
Boydell Press
Pages and Images/Illustrations in book
eBook ISBN:
9781782046400
Keywords for this book
Church; Vale of Evesham; Lordship; Landscape; Prayer; Abbey; Medieval; History; Christian Communities; Religious Life
Audience(s) for this book
For an expert adult audience, including professional development and academic research
