Sjoerd Levelt

The little-known author Jan van Naaldwijk, whose two early sixteenth-century Dutch chronicles of Holland are preserved in autograph manuscripts in the British Library, wrote at a moment reputed to be the turning point between medieval and Renaissance modes of historical writing. While he primarily relied on the medieval historical tradition of Holland, he expanded it in ways that allow us to appreciate the broader impact of innovations occurring at the same time in more 'professional' scholarly circles. This is the first in-depth study of these chronicles and their relation to their sources, placed in the wider context of history writing running from the mid-fourteenth century into the eighteenth, providing new insights into the continuities and transitions that characterized the historical tradition of Holland from the late middle ages well into the early modern period. An accompanying cd-rom contains transcriptions of both Jan's chronicles. Winner of the Society for Renaissance Studies Book Prize 2012 Short-listed for the Royal Historical Society Gladstone Prize 2012.

Continuity and Transformation in the Historical Tradition of Holland during the Early Sixteenth Century

Jan van Naaldwijk’s Chronicles of Holland

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This richly illustrated book tells the story of cultural exchange between the people of the Low Countries and England in the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, and reveals how Anglo-Dutch connections changed the literary landscape on both sides of the North Sea.Ranging from the Norman Conquest of 1066 to the 'Glorious Revolution' of 1688, it examines how Dutch-speaking immigrants transformed English culture, and it uncovers the lasting impact of contacts and collaborations between Dutch and English speakers on historical writing, map-making, manuscript production and early printing. The literary heritage of Anglo-Dutch relations is explored and lavishly illustrated through the unique collection of manuscripts, early prints, maps and other treasures from the Bodleian Library in Oxford. The book sheds new light on the literature and art of a pivotal period in European history.

Sjoerd Levelt

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