To the British in 1945 the images of Bergen-Belsen concentration camp said everything necessary to illustrate and prove the extent of Nazi barbarity, yet the grim newsreel footage and radio reports did not tell the whole story. Over the following decades these potent representations became encrusted with myths and meanings that distorted the actuality of Belsen. Fifty years after the liberation of the camp, scholars and eyewitnesses can finally explore the extraordinary history of the camp, the experiences of the inmates and the work of the liberators. This volume presents the most authoritative recent scholarship on Belsen by British, American, German, French and Israeli historians. Drawing on documentary and oral sources in Yiddish, Hebrew, German, Dutch and French, often for the first time, it challenges many stereotypes about the camp, and reinstates the groups hitherto marginalised or ignored in accounts of the camp and its liberation.

To the British in 1945 the images of Bergen-Belsen concentration camp said everything necessary to illustrate and prove the extent of Nazi barbarity, yet the grim newsreel footage and radio reports did not tell the whole story. Over the following decades these potent representations became encrusted with myths and meanings that distorted the actuality of Belsen. Fifty years after the liberation of the camp, scholars and eyewitnesses can finally explore the extraordinary history of the camp, the experiences of the inmates and the work of the liberators. This volume presents the most authoritative recent scholarship on Belsen by British, American, German, French and Israeli historians. Drawing on documentary and oral sources in Yiddish, Hebrew, German, Dutch and French, often for the first time, it challenges many stereotypes about the camp, and reinstates the groups hitherto marginalised or ignored in accounts of the camp and its liberation.

The Paston family papers have long been consulted for their infomation about social history and politics in the fiftenth century, both within East Anglia and also nationally. Parts I and II of Paston Letters and Papers of the Fifteenth Century, edited by Norman Davis, were originally published by the Clarendon Press in 1971 and 1976, and were reissued with corrections by EETS in 2004. Part III completes the edition. It contains the texts of 120 additional letters and papers, many of them relating to Sir John Fastolf and his circle. These texts are previously unprinted, or printed only in part; some only came to light after the publication of Parts I and II. The texts have been edited according to the principles established by Norman Davis, and are accompanied by an Introduction and Bibliography, as well as a consolidated index to all three parts of the edition, a glossary to the entire edition,a concordance of the principal editions and origal sources, and a working chronology of the documents. Richard Beadle is Reader in English Literature and Historical Bibliography at the University of Cambridge; Colin Richmond is Emeritus Professor of Medieval History at the University of Keele.

This series [pushes] the boundaries of knowledge and [develops] new trends in approach and understanding. ENGLISH HISTORICAL REVIEW Linda S. Clark is a distinguished scholar of fifteenth-century England, best known for her important contribution to the study of the late medieval English parliament. She has served as general editor of The Fifteenth Century since 2003. This special volume in the series marks her four decades of work for the History of Parliament Trust. As is appropriate, its essays focus above all on Parliament and the personalities that served in its chambers, but they also illuminate a wider range of themes that have long concerned students of the later middle ages, including the lawlessness of the gentry and nobility, the acquisition and management of their estates, and their self-expression in pageantry and legend. Other social groups, ranging from the mercantile elite of the city of London and their Italian trading partners to England's common soldiers, also make an appearance. Several of the papers collectedhere have a geographical focus in London and East Anglia, but other regions are also represented. The collection thus pays tribute to the breadth of Dr Clark's contribution to the field, both in her own writing, and in her long-standing commitment to facilitate the publication of the original research of others. Contributors: A.J. Pollard, Simon Payling, Charles Moreton, Colin Richmond, J.L. Bolton, James Ross, Carole Rawcliffe, Elizabeth Danbury, Matthew Davies, Hannes Kleineke, David Grummitt, Caroline M. Barron

Important aspects of fifteenth-century England and Europe assessed in this new collection. A variety of new perspectives and fresh insights into people and society in fifteenth-century England and France are gathered together here. We learn from contemporary accounts of the battle of Anthon how regional politics in theDauphine were enmeshed in the broader conflict over the French throne; subtle inferences about East Anglian politics in the fifteenth century are derived not only from a detailed study of stained glass, but also from a close examination of Sir John Fastolf's papers; the motivations of members of guilds in founding almshouses in their towns, and how such establishments functioned, are presented for our deeper understanding; relations between Humphrey, dukeof Gloucester, and the citizens of London at crucial stages of Henry VI's reign are explored anew; the celebration of the accession of Edward IV by the artistic endeavours of a clerk of the staple of Calais gives our study of theperiod a new visual dimension; and a drama perhaps performed in the household of Cardinal Morton throws a new perspective on contemporary attitudes towards the nobility and Henry VII's "new men". Contributors: KATHLEEN DALY, DAVID KING, RUTH LEXTON, JONATHAN MACKMAN, CAROLE RAWCLIFFE, COLIN RICHMOND, LUCY RHYMER, ANNE F, SUTTON.

Papers reflecting current research on orthodox religious practice and ecclesiastical organisation from c.1350-c.1500. This book derives from a conference held in 1989. It reflects current research on ecclesiastical organisation and on aspects of religious belief from the Black Death to the English Reformation. On the wider front, there is an account of the diplomatic relations between the Pope and those who ruled for the infant Henry VI. Regional studies focus on Carthusians in Somerset, and the continued attraction of the eremitical life; on the canons of Exeter cathedral and on the foundation of chantries and the endowment of churches. Taken together, these essays show how late medieval religious belief was undermined by a variety of factors, and point up the contrast between the humanity and sensitivity of medieval religion and the nature of the faith which replaced it. Contributors: CLIVE BURGESS, ROBERT W. DUNNING, MICHAEL J. HAREN, MARGARET HARVEY, D.N. LEPINE, COLIN RICHMOND, ROBERT N. SWANSON, BENJAMIN THOMPSON.

Wide-ranging essays engaging with all aspects of medieval romance, from textual studies to historical sources. The essays in this volume reflect the range and diversity of approach and of critical stance which have characterised romance studies in recent years. Amongst the areas of interest addressed are those of generic definition; the role of romance in relation to emergent ideas of nationalism; the complex associations between gender and genre, and between historical events and their expression in literature. Other issues explored are the transmission and reception of texts; the nature of the audiences; and the implications of critical theory for the reading of medieval romance. Contributors: MALDWYN MILLS, J.A. BURROW, DONNA CRAWFORD, A.S.G. EDWARDS, ARLYN DIAMOND, JOCELYN WOGAN-BROWNE, JOHN J. THOMPSON, THORLAC TURVILLE-PETRE, DIANA SPEED, JOHN SCATTERGOOD, COLIN RICHMOND, CAROL M. MEALE.

John Hopton's adult life spanned the years between 1430 and 1478, reputedly one of the most turbulent periods in English history. He, however, neither seems to have been troubled by the 'Wars of the Roses', nor to have displayed those attitudes normally attributed to the upper classes of the time: unflagging self-esteem, brutal ambition, grasping competitiveness. If his vices were not extravagant, his virtues too were unexceptional, those perhaps of a type of country gentleman we usually associate with a later age. Colin Richmond's book is an attempt to place a particular English gentleman in the framework of the world he knew. It opens with the story of this landless Yorkshireman's acquisition of rich properties in Suffolk, and a discussion of those estates themselves, how they were managed and their yield; it continues with a description of John, his remarkable second wife Thomasin, their family, and their life at Blythburgh.

The Pastons of Paston, Norfolk, are famous for the collection of letters and papers which bear their name. In particular ‘the Paston Letters’ have been well known since the time of Horace Walpole, although until now they have never been used systematically by historians of fifteenth-century England: they are both immensely attractive to read and fiendishly difficult to use as source material from which to write history. This volume describes, in lively and original style, the beginnings of the family’s gentility and sets out some of the major themes of their history between 1400 and 1500. Many of the themes are common to all gentry families of the later Middle Ages, a period critical in the formation of the English polity. It might also be said that the Pastons epitomize a class which since the later Middle Ages has dominated the English state, English society and English culture.

The Paston family are famous for the large collection of letters and papers that bear their name. This, the second volume in Colin Richmond's individual and compelling study of the Pastons, describes the bitter disputes over Sir John Fastolf's will, which hold a wider significance for the law, English society, and the complex politics of the fifteenth century. Professor Richmond's mastery of the Paston documents illuminates many obscurities surrounding the will, while creating an insightful and sympathetic picture of this fascinating family.

Medieval East Anglia - one of the most significant and prosperous parts of England in the middle ages - examined through essays on its landscape, history, religion, literature, and culture. East Anglia was the most prosperous region of medieval England; far from being an isolated backwater, it had strong economic, religious and cultural connections with continental Europe, with Norwich for a time England's second city. The essays in this volume bring out the importance of the region during the middle ages. Spanning the late eleventh to the fifteenth century, they offer a broad coverage of East Anglia's history and culture; particular topics examined include its landscape, urban history, buildings, government and society, religion and rich culture. Contributors: Christopher Harper-Bill, Tom Williamson, Robert E. Liddiard, P. Maddern, Brian Ayers, Elisabeth Rutledge, Penny Dunn, Kate Parker, Carole Rawcliffe, James Campbell, Lucy Marten, Colin Richmond, T. M. Colk, Carole Hill, T.A. Heslop, A.E. Oliver, Theresa Coletti, Penny Granger, Sarah Salih