English historians in the Middle Ages
Encyclopedia
Historians of England in the Middle Ages helped to lay the groundwork for modern historical historiography
, providing vital accounts of the early history of England
, Wales
and Normandy
, its cultures, and revelations about the historians themselves.
The most remarkable period of historical writing was during the High Middle Ages
in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, when English chronicles produced works with a variety of interest, wealth of information and amplitude of range. However one might choose to view the reliability or nature of particular works, it is from these that much of our knowledge of the Middle Ages originates.
said: "in many places in England that knowledge of the deeds of the saints has been wiped out, in my opinion by the violence of enemies..".
were a golden period for historical writing in England. The craft of history was not a professional subject taught in school, such as the scholastic
subjects of logic, theology, law and natural science, but rather something practised by well-educated men of learning, not subjected to the process of systems and procedures of Academia
. It was a realm for educated men in monasteries and the courts of kings, bishops and barons, who had the time and position and particular talents to pursue it. As a result the quality and variety of the histories from this period are highly variable, with some entertaining and appealing examples.
After the Norman Conquest there was an explosion of interest in English history. It has been theorized this was due in part to the native English desire to reclaim their cultural identity from the debacle of 1066. As well the new Norman rulers were interested in discovering who it was they had reigned over, which fuelled demand for legends of England's early Kings, such as Geoffrey’s King Arthur
.
s, and by literary histories. Chroniclers recorded events and dates of events with little prose or expansion. For example the Winchcombe Annals, by a twelfth-century monk, wrote one paragraph for each year, no matter how much or little happened, with one-sentence for each event in that year. In this way chronicles would often give as much, or more, attention to things of little importance as those things of greater importance.
Unlike chronicles, the literary histories could be classified along with other forms of medieval literature. Indeed, entertainment was considered a legitimate function of historical writing. Historical accounts of battles often included long, and entirely invented, speeches from leaders. Histories were as much a part of medieval literature as other forms, such as the romance. Most of them endeavoured to be readable, arming themselves, as Roger of Wendover does, against both "the listless hearer and the fastidious reader" by "presenting something which each may relish", and so providing for the joint "profit and entertainment of all."
Another characteristic of the histories of the period is that they borrowed heavily from other writers, often directly copying entire works as their own. For example Henry of Huntingdon
's History of the English is only one fourth original, relying in many places on Bede's Historia Ecclesiastica. This process would often be compounded as later writers would copy these works in full or part.
Bede
was highly regarded by historians of this period, and later historians lamented the fact that the 223 year period between Bede's death in 735 and Eadmer
s History of Recent Events (starting in 960) was sparsely represented. William of Malmesbury said of Bede "after him you will not easily find men who turned their minds to the composition of Latin histories of their own people". Henry of Huntingdon referred to Bede as "that holy and venerable man, a man of brilliant mind,".
For writing contemporary history, historians could draw on their own eye-witness accounts, reports from those they met and primary source documents such as letters. A good network of contacts was essential, and taking many journeys was common. Clerics assigned to the courts of Kings would often have the best access to information, such as Roger of Howden in Henry I
's reign. Although some monks, such as William of Newburgh, never left their monastery, yet he was able to obtain considerable information through the network of story-telling and gossip which existed in the theoretical seclusion and silence of monastic life.
is singled out from the list because, on the one hand, he was one of the most popular historians in England of this period. On the other hand, his Historia Regum Britanniae
(History of the Kings of Britain) was considered almost entirely fiction and was not considered authentic history by some other contemporary historians. Kings of Britain covers the legend of King Arthur as well as other Welsh legends of the early period of England, and was presented, and often accepted, as actual English history. It was extremely popular, but other contemporary historians, interested in impartiality and truth, were highly critical of Geoffrey. William of Newburgh
devotes an extended section of the preface of Historia to discredit Geoffrey, saying at one point "only a person ignorant of ancient history would have any doubt about how shamelessly and impudently he lies in almost everything". The discussion over the Historical basis for King Arthur
continues to this day.
Historiography
Historiography refers either to the study of the history and methodology of history as a discipline, or to a body of historical work on a specialized topic...
, providing vital accounts of the early history of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
and Normandy
Normandy
Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
, its cultures, and revelations about the historians themselves.
The most remarkable period of historical writing was during the High Middle Ages
High Middle Ages
The High Middle Ages was the period of European history around the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries . The High Middle Ages were preceded by the Early Middle Ages and followed by the Late Middle Ages, which by convention end around 1500....
in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, when English chronicles produced works with a variety of interest, wealth of information and amplitude of range. However one might choose to view the reliability or nature of particular works, it is from these that much of our knowledge of the Middle Ages originates.
Early Middle Ages
Prior to the boom in historical writing in the High Middle Ages, the number and quality of works from England's earlier period is often lacking, with some notable and bright exceptions. Later historians lamented the gaps in this period and usually explained it by way of Viking invasions; in the twelfth century William of MalmesburyWilliam of Malmesbury
William of Malmesbury was the foremost English historian of the 12th century. C. Warren Hollister so ranks him among the most talented generation of writers of history since Bede, "a gifted historical scholar and an omnivorous reader, impressively well versed in the literature of classical,...
said: "in many places in England that knowledge of the deeds of the saints has been wiped out, in my opinion by the violence of enemies..".
List of historians
Listed chronologically, by author's death. Dates represent the historical period covered by the work(s). Works and authors listed are not exhaustive. These are the major and most significant historians and chroniclers of the period.- GildasGildasGildas was a 6th-century British cleric. He is one of the best-documented figures of the Christian church in the British Isles during this period. His renowned learning and literary style earned him the designation Gildas Sapiens...
, On the Ruin of Britain (De Excidio Britanniae) (died 570) - BedeBedeBede , also referred to as Saint Bede or the Venerable Bede , was a monk at the Northumbrian monastery of Saint Peter at Monkwearmouth, today part of Sunderland, England, and of its companion monastery, Saint Paul's, in modern Jarrow , both in the Kingdom of Northumbria...
, Ecclesiastical History of the English People (Historia ecclesiastica gentis AnglorumHistoria ecclesiastica gentis AnglorumThe Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum is a work in Latin by Bede on the history of the Christian Churches in England, and of England generally; its main focus is on the conflict between Roman and Celtic Christianity.It is considered to be one of the most important original references on...
) AD 1-731 - History of Britain (Historia Brittonum) 809 (falsely attributed to NenniusNenniusNennius was a Welsh monk of the 9th century.He has traditionally been attributed with the authorship of the Historia Brittonum, based on the prologue affixed to that work, This attribution is widely considered a secondary tradition....
) - AsserAsserAsser was a Welsh monk from St David's, Dyfed, who became Bishop of Sherborne in the 890s. About 885 he was asked by Alfred the Great to leave St David's and join the circle of learned men whom Alfred was recruiting for his court...
, Life of King Alfred 893 - Annales CambriaeAnnales CambriaeAnnales Cambriae, or The Annals of Wales, is the name given to a complex of Cambro-Latin chronicles deriving ultimately from a text compiled from diverse sources at St David's in Dyfed, Wales, not later than the 10th century...
, Annals of Wales 447-954 (c.970) - Æthelweard, Chronicle AD 1-975
High Middle Ages
The High Middle AgesHigh Middle Ages
The High Middle Ages was the period of European history around the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries . The High Middle Ages were preceded by the Early Middle Ages and followed by the Late Middle Ages, which by convention end around 1500....
were a golden period for historical writing in England. The craft of history was not a professional subject taught in school, such as the scholastic
Scholasticism
Scholasticism is a method of critical thought which dominated teaching by the academics of medieval universities in Europe from about 1100–1500, and a program of employing that method in articulating and defending orthodoxy in an increasingly pluralistic context...
subjects of logic, theology, law and natural science, but rather something practised by well-educated men of learning, not subjected to the process of systems and procedures of Academia
Medieval university
Medieval university is an institution of higher learning which was established during High Middle Ages period and is a corporation.The first institutions generally considered to be universities were established in Italy, France, and England in the late 11th and the 12th centuries for the study of...
. It was a realm for educated men in monasteries and the courts of kings, bishops and barons, who had the time and position and particular talents to pursue it. As a result the quality and variety of the histories from this period are highly variable, with some entertaining and appealing examples.
After the Norman Conquest there was an explosion of interest in English history. It has been theorized this was due in part to the native English desire to reclaim their cultural identity from the debacle of 1066. As well the new Norman rulers were interested in discovering who it was they had reigned over, which fuelled demand for legends of England's early Kings, such as Geoffrey’s King Arthur
King Arthur
King Arthur is a legendary British leader of the late 5th and early 6th centuries, who, according to Medieval histories and romances, led the defence of Britain against Saxon invaders in the early 6th century. The details of Arthur's story are mainly composed of folklore and literary invention, and...
.
Characteristics
The works of this period are often categorized by chronicleChronicle
Generally a chronicle is a historical account of facts and events ranged in chronological order, as in a time line. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and local events, the purpose being the recording of events that occurred, seen from the perspective of the...
s, and by literary histories. Chroniclers recorded events and dates of events with little prose or expansion. For example the Winchcombe Annals, by a twelfth-century monk, wrote one paragraph for each year, no matter how much or little happened, with one-sentence for each event in that year. In this way chronicles would often give as much, or more, attention to things of little importance as those things of greater importance.
Unlike chronicles, the literary histories could be classified along with other forms of medieval literature. Indeed, entertainment was considered a legitimate function of historical writing. Historical accounts of battles often included long, and entirely invented, speeches from leaders. Histories were as much a part of medieval literature as other forms, such as the romance. Most of them endeavoured to be readable, arming themselves, as Roger of Wendover does, against both "the listless hearer and the fastidious reader" by "presenting something which each may relish", and so providing for the joint "profit and entertainment of all."
Another characteristic of the histories of the period is that they borrowed heavily from other writers, often directly copying entire works as their own. For example Henry of Huntingdon
Henry of Huntingdon
Henry of Huntingdon , the son of a canon in the diocese of Lincoln, was a 12th century English historian, the author of a history of England, Historia anglorum, "the most important Anglo-Norman historian to emerge from the secular clergy". He served as archdeacon of Huntingdon...
's History of the English is only one fourth original, relying in many places on Bede's Historia Ecclesiastica. This process would often be compounded as later writers would copy these works in full or part.
Bede
Bede
Bede , also referred to as Saint Bede or the Venerable Bede , was a monk at the Northumbrian monastery of Saint Peter at Monkwearmouth, today part of Sunderland, England, and of its companion monastery, Saint Paul's, in modern Jarrow , both in the Kingdom of Northumbria...
was highly regarded by historians of this period, and later historians lamented the fact that the 223 year period between Bede's death in 735 and Eadmer
Eadmer
Eadmer, or Edmer , was an English historian, theologian, and ecclesiastic. He is known for being a contemporary biographer of his contemporary archbishop and companion, Saint Anselm, in his Vita Anselmi, and for his Historia novorum in Anglia, which presents the public face of Anselm...
s History of Recent Events (starting in 960) was sparsely represented. William of Malmesbury said of Bede "after him you will not easily find men who turned their minds to the composition of Latin histories of their own people". Henry of Huntingdon referred to Bede as "that holy and venerable man, a man of brilliant mind,".
For writing contemporary history, historians could draw on their own eye-witness accounts, reports from those they met and primary source documents such as letters. A good network of contacts was essential, and taking many journeys was common. Clerics assigned to the courts of Kings would often have the best access to information, such as Roger of Howden in Henry I
Henry I of England
Henry I was the fourth son of William I of England. He succeeded his elder brother William II as King of England in 1100 and defeated his eldest brother, Robert Curthose, to become Duke of Normandy in 1106...
's reign. Although some monks, such as William of Newburgh, never left their monastery, yet he was able to obtain considerable information through the network of story-telling and gossip which existed in the theoretical seclusion and silence of monastic life.
List of historians
Listed chronologically, by authors death. Dates represent the historical period covered by the work(s). Works and authors listed are not exhaustive. These are the major and most significant Historians and Chroniclers of the period.- EadmerEadmerEadmer, or Edmer , was an English historian, theologian, and ecclesiastic. He is known for being a contemporary biographer of his contemporary archbishop and companion, Saint Anselm, in his Vita Anselmi, and for his Historia novorum in Anglia, which presents the public face of Anselm...
, History of Recent Events (Historia novorum) 960-1109 - John of WorcesterJohn of WorcesterJohn of Worcester was an English monk and chronicler. He is usually held to be the author of the Chronicon ex chronicis.-Chronicon ex chronicis:...
Chronicon ex chronicis 0-1140 - William of MalmesburyWilliam of MalmesburyWilliam of Malmesbury was the foremost English historian of the 12th century. C. Warren Hollister so ranks him among the most talented generation of writers of history since Bede, "a gifted historical scholar and an omnivorous reader, impressively well versed in the literature of classical,...
, Deeds of the English Kings (Gesta regum Anglorum) 449-1120 - Symeon of DurhamSymeon of DurhamSymeon of Durham was an English chronicler and a monk of Durham Priory. When William of Saint-Calais returned from his Norman exile in 1091, Symeon was probably in his company...
, History of the Kings (Historia regum) 616-1129 - Henry of HuntingdonHenry of HuntingdonHenry of Huntingdon , the son of a canon in the diocese of Lincoln, was a 12th century English historian, the author of a history of England, Historia anglorum, "the most important Anglo-Norman historian to emerge from the secular clergy". He served as archdeacon of Huntingdon...
, History of the English (Historia Anglorum) 55BC-1129 - Alfred of Beverley, Annales sive Historia de gestis regum Britanniae 0-1129
- Orderic VitalisOrderic VitalisOrderic Vitalis was an English chronicler of Norman ancestry who wrote one of the great contemporary chronicles of 11th and 12th century Normandy and Anglo-Norman England. The modern biographer of Henry I of England, C...
, Ecclesiastical History (Historia Ecclesiastica) 1-1141, - Anglo-Saxon ChronicleAnglo-Saxon ChronicleThe Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is a collection of annals in Old English chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The original manuscript of the Chronicle was created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alfred the Great...
1-1154 - Deeds of King StephenDeeds of King StephenDeeds of King Stephen or Acts of Stephen or Gesta Stephani is a mid-12th-century English history by an anonymous author about King Stephen and his struggles with his cousin Matilda of England, also known as the Empress Maud...
(Gesta Stephani) 1-1154 - William of NewburghWilliam of NewburghWilliam of Newburgh or Newbury , also known as William Parvus, was a 12th-century English historian and Augustinian canon from Bridlington, Yorkshire.-Biography:...
, History of English Affairs (Historia rerum Anglicarum), 1066-1198 - Gervase of CanterburyGervase of CanterburyGervase of Canterbury was an English chronicler.- Life :...
, Chronicle (Chronicon), 1135-1199 - Ralph of Diceto, Images of History (Imagines Historiarum), 1148-1202
- Roger of Howden, Chronicle (Chronicon) 732-1201
- Walter MapWalter MapWalter Map was a medieval writer of works written in Latin. Only one work is attributed to Map with any certainty: De Nugis Curialium.-Life:...
, Trifles of the Court (De Nugis Curialium) (died 1209) - Gerald of Wales, Itinerarium Cambriae 1191, Descriptio Cambriae 1194
- Ralph of CoggeshallRalph of CoggeshallRalph of Coggeshall , English chronicler, was at first a monk and afterwards sixth abbot of Coggeshall, an Essex foundation of the Cistercian order....
, Chronicle (Chronicon) 1066-1224 - Roger of WendoverRoger of WendoverRoger of Wendover , probably a native of Wendover in Buckinghamshire, was an English chronicler of the 13th century.At an uncertain date he became a monk at St Albans Abbey; afterwards he was appointed prior of the cell of Belvoir, but he forfeited this dignity in the early years of Henry III,...
, Flores HistoriarumFlores HistoriarumThe Flores Historiarum is a Latin chronicle dealing with English history from the creation to 1326 . It was compiled by various persons and quickly acquired contemporary popularity, for it was continued by many hands in many manuscript traditions...
1202-1235 - Matthew ParisMatthew ParisMatthew Paris was a Benedictine monk, English chronicler, artist in illuminated manuscripts and cartographer, based at St Albans Abbey in Hertfordshire...
, Chronica Maiora (died 1259) - Piers LangtoftPiers LangtoftPeter Langtoft, also known as Peter of Langtoft was an English historian and chronicler who took his name from the small village of Langtoft in the East Riding of Yorkshire....
, Langtoft's Chronicle (Chronicon) (died 1307) - Nicholas TrivetNicholas TrivetNicholas Trivet was an English Anglo-Norman chronicler.Trivet was born in Somerset and was the son of Sir Thomas Trevet , a judge who came of a Norfolk or Somerset family...
, Annales sex regum Angliae 1135-1307 - Robert MannyngRobert MannyngRobert Manning was an English chronicler and Gilbertine monk. Mannyng provides a surprising amount of information about himself in his two known works, Handlyng Synne and a Chronicle...
, ChronicleMannyng's ChronicleMannyng's Chronicle is a chronicle written in Middle English by Robert Mannyng in about 1338.Mannyng began writing his chronicle at the beginning of Edward III’s reign in 1327 and probably finished it in 1338, dated at the end of the second part. The chronicle consists of two parts...
(Chronica) (translations of earlier work, through 1338)
Geoffrey of Monmouth
Geoffrey of MonmouthGeoffrey of Monmouth
Geoffrey of Monmouth was a cleric and one of the major figures in the development of British historiography and the popularity of tales of King Arthur...
is singled out from the list because, on the one hand, he was one of the most popular historians in England of this period. On the other hand, his Historia Regum Britanniae
Historia Regum Britanniae
The Historia Regum Britanniae is a pseudohistorical account of British history, written c. 1136 by Geoffrey of Monmouth. It chronicles the lives of the kings of the Britons in a chronological narrative spanning a time of two thousand years, beginning with the Trojans founding the British nation...
(History of the Kings of Britain) was considered almost entirely fiction and was not considered authentic history by some other contemporary historians. Kings of Britain covers the legend of King Arthur as well as other Welsh legends of the early period of England, and was presented, and often accepted, as actual English history. It was extremely popular, but other contemporary historians, interested in impartiality and truth, were highly critical of Geoffrey. William of Newburgh
William of Newburgh
William of Newburgh or Newbury , also known as William Parvus, was a 12th-century English historian and Augustinian canon from Bridlington, Yorkshire.-Biography:...
devotes an extended section of the preface of Historia to discredit Geoffrey, saying at one point "only a person ignorant of ancient history would have any doubt about how shamelessly and impudently he lies in almost everything". The discussion over the Historical basis for King Arthur
Historical basis for King Arthur
The historical basis of King Arthur is a source of considerable debate among historians. The first datable mention of King Arthur in a historical context comes from a Latin text of the 9th century - more than three centuries after his supposed floruit in 5th to early 6th century Sub-Roman Britain...
continues to this day.