British Academy

David Michael Smith

B. R. Kemp

Philippa Hoskin

This latest edition to the English Episcopal Acta series brings together for the first time edited versions of all the extant charters issued by the bishops of Durham between 1241 and 1283: Nicholas Farnham, Walter Kirkham, Robert Stichill and Robert of Holy Island (the last two, unusually at this date, monastic bishops). The surviving charters provide insights into episcopal administration and estate management in the mid-thirteenth-century diocese. A full introduction considers the lives of these little-studied bishops and the diplomatic of their charters, as well as the unusual structure of the episcopal households here. The bishops' itineraries are also given in an appendix. This volume complements EEA 24IR (0-19-726234-1) and EEA 25 (0-19-726235-X), which contained the acta from 1153 onwards.

Durham 1241-1283

English Episcopal Acta 29

Christopher Harper-Bill

Marie Lovatt

Geoffrey, the illegitimate son of Henry II, was successively archdeacon and bishop-elect of Lincoln, royal chancellor, and (for 23 years) archbishop of York, finally dying in exile during the Interdict following his opposition to John's imposition of the 13th. His enduring loyalty to his father, which inspired the subsequent mistrust of his royal half brothers after Henry's death, placed him at the very centre of late twelfth and early thirteenth century politics, especially during John's rebellion during the early years of the Third crusade. Moreover, during most of his time as archbishop his turbulent personality brought him into direct opposition to his cathedral chapter at York, which in turn throws further light on the ecclesiastical politics of the period. He also endured two long periods of exile, and he remains one of the very few bishops in the medieval English church for whom even a partial contemporary biography survives. This edition collects together for the first time Geoffrey's acta as archbishop, and Dr Lovatt's introduction provides a much needed modern account of this intriguing character.

English Episcopal Acta 27, York 1189-1212

Martin Brett

Joseph Gribbin

This volume presents almost 100 Acta which as a whole comprise the largest assemblage of Acta to survive in England from before 1136. The Acta date from the appointment of Lanfranc, the first archbishop appointed by William the Conqueror, until shortly after the death of Henry I, when William of Corbeil was archbishop.

English Episcopal Acta 28 Canterbury 1070-1136

These early13th-century documents contain a wealth of information on the religious, ecclesiastical, and parochial life of the diocese of Salisbury, which comprised Berkshire, Dorset, and Wiltshire. Diverse types of actum include grants of indulgence and significations to the king of recalcitrant excommunicates.

English Episcopal Acta 36, Salisbury 1229-1262

British Library Manuscripts, Egerton 3031, Harley 1708, and Cotton Vespasian E XXV

Reading Abbey Cartularies

This latest EEA volume publishes the acta of the bishops of Salisbury 1078-1217, during which period the see was located at Old Sarum. This distinguished sequence of five bishops includes Roger, Henry I's chief minister, and Hubert Walter, afterwards archbishop of Canterbury and justiciar. The acta contain a wealth of fascinating detail about the churches, monasteries, and clergy of the diocese.

B. R. Kemp

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