This is the first full-length study of Scottish royal government in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries ever to have been written. It uses untapped legal evidence to set out a new narrative of governmental development. Between 1124 and 1290, the way in which kings of Scots ruled their kingdom transformed. By 1290 accountable officials, a system of royal courts, and complex common law procedures had all been introduced, none of which could have been envisaged in 1124. The Shape of the State in Medieval Scotland, 1124-1290 argues that governmental development was a dynamic phenomenon, taking place over the long term. For the first half of the twelfth century, kings ruled primarily through personal relationships and patronage, only ruling through administrative and judicial officers in the south of their kingdom. In the second half of the twelfth century, these officers spread north but it was only in the late twelfth century that kings routinely ruled through institutions. Throughout this period of profound change, kings relied on aristocratic power as an increasingly formal part of royal government. In putting forward this narrative, Alice Taylor refines or overturns previous understandings in Scottish historiography of subjects as diverse as the development of the Scottish common law, feuding and compensation, Anglo-Norman 'feudalism', the importance of the reign of David I, recordkeeping, and the kingdom's military organisation. In addition, she argues that Scottish royal government was not a miniature version of English government; there were profound differences between the two polities arising from the different role and function aristocratic power played in each kingdom. The volume also has wider significance. The formalisation of aristocratic power within and alongside the institutions of royal government in Scotland forces us to question whether the rise of royal power necessarily means the consequent decline of aristocratic power in medieval polities. The book thus not only explains an important period in the history of Scotland, it places the experience of Scotland at the heart of the process of European state formation as a whole

The Shape of the State in Medieval Scotland, 1124-1290 (Oxford Studies in Medieval European History)

History

TAYLOR, Alice

Europe

Oxford University Press

This is the first full-length study of Scottish royal government in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries ever to have been written. It uses untapped legal evidence to set out a new narrative of governmental development. Between 1124 and 1290, the way in which kings of Scots ruled their kingdom transformed. By 1290 accountable officials, a system of royal courts, and complex common law procedures had all been introduced, none of which could have been envisaged in 1124.\nThe Shape of the State in Medieval Scotland, 1124-1290 argues that governmental development was a dynamic phenomenon, taking place over the long term. For the first half of the twelfth century, kings ruled primarily through personal relationships and patronage, only ruling through administrative and judicial officers in the south of their kingdom. In the second half of the twelfth century, these officers spread north but it was only in the late twelfth century that kings routinely ruled through institutions. Throughout this period of profound change, kings relied on aristocratic power as an increasingly formal part of royal government. In putting forward this narrative, Alice Taylor refines or overturns previous understandings in Scottish historiography of subjects as diverse as the development of the Scottish common law, feuding and compensation, Anglo-Norman 'feudalism', the importance of the reign of David I, recordkeeping, and the kingdom's military organisation. In addition, she argues that Scottish royal government was not a miniature version of English government; there were profound differences between the two polities arising from the different role and function aristocratic power played in each kingdom.\nThe volume also has wider significance. The formalisation of aristocratic power within and alongside the institutions of royal government in Scotland forces us to question whether the rise of royal power necessarily means the consequent decline of aristocratic power in medieval polities. The book thus not only explains an important period in the history of Scotland, it places the experience of Scotland at the heart of the process of European state formation as a whole.

The "Country Series" aims to combine photographs with light, but authoritative commentary on the chosen themes, which cover art, architecture, travel, local history, the countryside, topography, gardens and rural life. New in paperback, this photographed survey chronicles the appeal and charm of the cottage in Ireland. Photographs capture these simple structures, often in wild and spectactular settings, in all their variety and elemental beauty. Alice Taylor's foreword paints a moving portrait of traditional cottage life, while the main text offers an analysis of a peculiarly evocative idiom.

Irish Cottages (Country Series)

PFEIFFER, WALTER

Shaffrey, Maura

Orion Publishing Co

A childhood memoir captures a lost world, a time of cutting hay and preparing meals, tending to animals and visiting with friends in the Irish countryside, and delightful characters of a vanished era

To School Through the Fields: An Irish Country Childhood

Biographies & Memoirs

Historical

St Martins Pr

Quench the Lamp

The author relates memories from her childhood in the Irish countryside, describing a vanished pattern of life that revolved around the farm, family, and neighbors, and the slow changes that marked Ireland's movement toward the future

If ever a voice has captured the colors, the rhythms, the rich, bittersweet emotion of a time gone by, it is Alice Taylor's. Her tales of childhood in rural Ireland transcend their landscape, which explains why, on its initial publication in 1989, Taylor's first memoir, To School Through the Fields, became the biggest bestseller in Ireland's history.

To School Through the Fields

St.Martin's Press

The Village

The author continues her biography as she comes to Innishannon as a bride and describes her life there and the characters she comes in contact with as a keeper of the post office

Memoirs

If ever a voice has captured the colors, the rhythms, the rich, bittersweet emotions of a time gone by, it is Alice Taylor's. Her tales of childhood in rural Ireland hark back to a timeless past, to a world now lost, but ever and fondly remembered. The colorful characters and joyous moments she offers have made her stories an Irish phenomenon, and have made Alice herself the most beloved author in all of the Emerald Isle.

Quench The Lamp

Community & Culture

St. Martin's: Griffin

If ever a voice has caputured the colors, the rhythms, the rich, bittersweet emotions of a time gone by, it is Alice Taylor's. Her tales of childhood in rural Ireland hard back to a timeless past, to a world now lost, but ever and fondly remembered. The colorful characters and joyous moments she offers have made The School Through the Fields in Irish phenomenon, and have made Alice herself the mose beloved author in all of the Emerald Isle.

Literature & Fiction

Short Stories & Anthologies

Part of an attractive set of new releases by Taylor from St. Martin's--including To School Through the Fields and Quench the Lamp--this wonderful memoir is sure to please Taylor's legion of fans and beckon new readers to her world. "Poignant."--The Los Angeles Times.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by TAYLOR, Alice. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by TAYLOR, Alice

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by TAYLOR, Alice. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

The Shape of the State in Medieval Scotland, 1124-1290 (Oxford Studies in Medieval European History)

The Shape of the State in Medieval Scotland, 1124-1290 (Oxford Studies in Medieval European History)

Irish Cottages (Country Series)

To School Through the Fields: An Irish Country Childhood

Quench the Lamp

To School Through the Fields

The Village

Quench The Lamp

To School Through the Fields: An Irish Country Childhood

The Village