Medieval Britain By Henry Loyn & Alan Sorrell This book brings to life the history of Britain in the Middle Ages. The society, the economy and the cultural and intellectual life of this fascinating period are all covered by the clear, informative text and detailed illustrations. Illustrated by Alan & Richard Sorrell. ISBN-13: 9780718821531 Specifications: 250x200mm, 50pp, Hardback with b&w illustrations Price: £12.50 • US$28.50 Publication: July 1977 Order this Title Now

About this Book

On June 15, 1215, King John set his seal to the draft of a great charter - the Magna Carta - which asserted a principle of supreme importance in the history of monarchy: that the king should govern the realm according to the law. What part, then, were the people to play in the making of that law, and how was the law to be enforced if a monarch tried to set it aside?

Medieval Britain saw periods of great social, political and economic change. Throughout the 13th, 14th and 15th centuries, barons and bishops, knights and merchants, townsmen, even village people, were caught up in the struggle to claim effective roles in the government of the country. From the civil and national wars of medieval Britain, the pattern of Tudor government was eventually to emerge.

Henry Loyn's text traces the story of this struggle, commenting on the social and economic changes which influenced it, the cultural developments which grew from it, and the recurrent outbreaks of war and conflict in which it was expressed.

The drawings by Alan and Richard Sorrell illuminate and extend our appreciation of this fierce and complex period.

About the Author

Henry Loyn, DLitt, FSA, FRHistS, is Professor of Medieval History at University College, Cardiff. He is President of the Historical Association and a past Vice-President of the Society for Medieval Archaeology.

Alan Sorrell, who died in 1974, was a distinguished draughtsman and painter who is undoubtedly best known to the general public for his reconstruction drawings which appear at archaeological sites all over the country. His drawings of the Welsh castles, the great monastic establishments, manors and palaces of the Middle Ages, will be familiar to all students of the period. A the time of his death he had finished ten for the drawings for this book, and roughs for all the rest. His son Richard Sorrell has since carried the work to completion.

Richard Sorrell, draughtsman and painter, studied at the Royal Academy Schools. His work includes landscapes, portraits and imaginary compositions. His drawings for the Museum of London have also established for him a reputation in the field of historical reconstruction.