Section 6:

Suggested Reading

Barraclough, Geoffrey. The Crucible of Europe (Thames and
Hudson, London. 1976)

Bautier, Robert-Henri. The Economic Development of Medieval
Europe (Thames and Hudson, London. 1971)

Becker, Carl.  The Heavenly City Of The Eighteenth Century
Philosophers. (Yale University Press, 1932).  [The essay is
called "Climates of Opinion," and contrasts medieval and
enlightenment (modern and scientific) modes of thinking.
Becker, for those of you who have never heard of him, is
probably one of the dozen or so most distinguished
historians (in any field) that the United States has ever
produced.  The essay is actually fairly simplistic, but it
is extremely well and powerfully written--it makes for a
very good introduction. KH]

Boissonnade, P. Life and Work in Medieval Europe (Harper
Torchbooks  New York. 1964)

Braudel. The Mediterranean and the Mediterranean World in
the Age of Philip II (New York, 1966)
[includes an interesting discussion of European geography
and its relation to historical development.  If you are
playing in a mediterrenean setting, the first 200 pp. or so
might be worth skimming. KH]

Braudel, Fernand. The Perspective Of The World (New York,
1979)
[pp. 89-138, for the period 1000 (or so) to 1500.  Both Duby
and Braudel are heavyweights among professional historians
(as is McNeill, for that matter). KH]

Braudel. The Structures of Everyday Life: The Limits of the
Possible (London, 1979).
[Strictly speaking this work covers the period 1500 to 1800,
but much of what he has to say applies to the medieval
period as well.  Skim through it--avoid the chapters that
obviously don't apply--you'll find it rewarding and useful.
For those of you who have never heard of him, Braudel is a
french historian, one of the most distinguished ever to
write. KH]

Cheyney, Edward P.  The Dawn Of A New Era: 1250-1453. (New
York, 1936)
[I like this book (mostly because it is well written), but I
suspect that any similar textbook/survey would do just as
well.  Cheyney was a well-respected old-style narrative
historian. KH]

Davis, R.H.C. A History of Medieval Europe (Longman, New
York. 1988)
[A good introduction to the period from Constantine to St.
Louis. Does have some flaws, particularly with Merovingian
and Carolingian "feudalism". JN]

Duby, Georges. The Early Growth Of The European Economy:
Warriors And Peasants From The Seventh To The Twelfth
Century (London, 1973)

Duby, Georges. The Three Orders:  Feudal Society Imagined,
trans. by Arthur Goldhammer (Chicago, 1980).
[I found this to be a complex and difficult book, but it is
also the best treatment of feudalism I've ever read.  It
covers medieval France only. KH]

Gies, Frances and Joseph. Life in a Medieval Castle (Harper
Perennial, 1990)
     ISBN 0-06-090674-X

Gies, Frances and Joseph. Life in a Medieval City (Harper
Perennial, 1991)
     ISBN 0-06-090880-7

Gies, Frances and Joseph. Life in a Medieval Village (Harper
Perennial, 1991)
     ISBN 0-06-092046-7

Gies, Frances and Joseph. The Knight in History (Harper
Perennial, 1984)
     ISBN 0-06-091413-0

Heer, Friedrick. The Medieval World. (Weidenfeld and
Nicolson, London. 1962)
[Covers various aspects, including towns, art and
architecture, etc. The time period is from 1050 to
1300. JN]

Holt, J.C. Magna Carta (Cambridge University Press, 1965).
[A good place to start for English LawDespite his seemingly
narrow focus, Holt includes chapters on "Government and
Society in the Twelfth Century," "Privilege and Liberties,"
and "Custom and Law," (pp. 19-104).  I've found these
chapters very useful. KH]

Hyde, J.K. Society and Politics in Medieval Italy.
(Macmillan, London. 1973.)

Keen, Maurice. The Penguin History of Medieval Europe.
(Penguin Books, London. 1969.)
[Another introductory text, this extends slightly beyond the
Hundred Years War, but has a very sketchy coverage of
history before about 1000. JN]

King, Edwin. Lionheart (Columbia Publications, 1987)
                    ISBN 0-920711-21-9
[_Lionheart_ is a gaming supplement by Columbia Games,
publishers of _Harn_. It details England in the 1190s, and
includes the best map of medieval England I've yet seen. AY]

Ladurie, Emmanuel Le Roy. Montaillou: The Promised Land of
Error (New York, 1979)
[describes the world view of a southern French village in
the early 1300s.  Ladurie is a terrific cultural historian,
and he writes elagantly.  I'd recommend this book to anybody
interested in late medieval history, or in getting a feel
for the values of "common" people. KH]

Lane, Frederic C. Venice: A Maritime Republic (Johns
Hopkins, 1973)
[Especially good. KH]

Lopez, Robert S. The Commercial Revolution of the Middle
Ages, 950-1350. (Prentice-Hall, Eaglewood cliffs, New
Jersey. 1971). [Has interesting details of the `revival of
trade and commerce'. JN]

McNeill, William. Plagues And Peoples.
[contains both an interesting (and contested) thesis about
the role of disease in history and a useful short discussion
of the Black Death.  Its a fun book to read. KH]

McNeill, William. The Pursuit Of Power. (University of
Chicago Press, 1982)
[on warfare. pp. 63-79 (pp. 1-63 interesting but optional).
KH]

McNeill, William. Venice: The Hinge of Europe (Chicago,
1974).

Pirenne, Henri. Medieval Cities. (Doubleday Anchor Books,
New York. 1925. Translated F. Halsey.)
[The classic statement on towns, is now out-of-date, but
contains many useful points
nonetheless. JN]

Reilly, Bernard F. The Medieval Spains (Cambridge England,
1993).
[This is a GREAT book--it complements Peter Hentges' IBERIA
supplement nicely. KH]

Reynolds, Susan. Kingdoms and Communities in Western Europe
900-1300. (Clarendon Press, Oxford. 1984.)

Southern, R.W. The Making of the Middle Ages. [I don't have
publishing details with me,
unfortunately. JN]

Southern, R.W. Western Society and the Church in the Middle
Ages. (Middlesex, England:  Penguin Books, 1970)
[written for a general audience and thus avoids academic
debate. KH]

Southern, R.W. Western Society and the Church in the Middle
Ages. (Penguin Books, London. 1970 previously published by
Pelican Books).
[An excellent outline of the growth and change in the
Catholic Church, surveying most major
aspects. JN]

Stenton, Doris M. English Justice Between The Norman
Conquest and the Great Charter (Philadelphia, 1964)
[somewhat technical but readable. KH]

Stenton, Doris M. English Society in the Early Middle Ages
(London, 1962).
[Stenton is an old style narrative historian, but a very
good one.  All the rest of my library on England is in
storage-- there is a lot of useful stuff out there, and I'll
post more as soon as I can dig it out. KH]

Tuchman, Barbara. A Distant Mirror.
[did a good job of evoking life in France in the 1300s,
although it was roundly criticized when it first came out.
This is not a scholarly book-- Tuchman made up portions of
the story when the documents failed her--but it is based on
a pretty thorough knowledge of the period. Well worth a
read. KH]

Waley, Daniel. The Italian City-Republics. (Longman, London.
1978 2nd ed.)
[An easy to read, slim volume with plenty of useful
information. JN]


Columbia History Of The World.
[Despite its pretentious title, this book delivers what it
promises.  Read PART II, pp. 253-478.  Its worth it.
Really.   Also, each chapter concludes with a brief
chronology, which is itself very useful. This book is
invaluable. KH]