Books published by Boydell & Brewer Ltd

Publishedby Boydell & Brewer Inc.

An overlooked aspect of the iconography of the Annunciation investigated - Mary's book.

Offers a full introduction to and survey of runes and runology: their history, how they were used, and their interpretation.

A fresh approach to the construction of "Anglo-Saxon England" and its depiction in art and writing.

Pioneering investigation of the popular "double tomb" effigies in the Middle Ages.

An investigation into three of the best-known cases tried under the Court of Chivalry reveals much about gentry military society.

Explores the dimensions of the coming-of-age novel in the Spanish-speaking Caribbean and Brazil, focusing on works by eight major Afro-Latin American writers

Restores the first German feminist film, long neglected, to its rightful status as a classic forebear of more recent cinefeminism, demonstrating that the film is as relevant today as it was upon its 1968 release.

Examines the creation, context, and significance of the first and only East German feature film about homosexuality.

The first comprehensive history of marine insurance transacted in London from the industry's beginnings, to the early-nineteenth-century, when legislative change ended parliamentary monopolies over the business.This book describes the development and evolution of the customary, legal, and commercial institutions of marine insurance, alongside its developing organisational structures. It analyses major market interventions during the period, including state-sponsored initiatives in the late sixteenth century, the introduction of new corporate forms in the early eighteenth century, and the formation and maturation of Lloyd's of London. The book examines the impact of crises such as the Smyrna catastrophe of 1693 and the South Sea Bubble, and makes comparisons with developments in other marine insurance markets. In revealing how the London insurance market changed over centuries, the book discusses issues of risk and uncertainty, the financial revolution, the development of trade, and the reciprocal developmental roles of markets and the state. Overall, it highlights the ways that efficient and effective marine insurance capable of adapting according to circumstance was vital to the growth of trade and the economy.

Provides a comprehensive overview of the activities of the British navy in the Indian and Pacific Oceans from the earliest times to the present.

Reconstructs the socio-political history of the heroic in music through case studies spanning the middle ages to the twenty-first century

Takes the recent wave of German autobiographical writing on illness and disability seriously as literature, demonstrating the value of a literary disability studies approach.

Crucial texts from ninth- and tenth-century Wales analysed to show their key role in identify formation.

Examines relations between centre and localities in seventeenth century England by looking at early Stuart government through the lens of provincial towns.

Hereford Cathedral is proud of its four stained-glass windows commemorating Traherne, but these volumes are as glorious a memorial. DAILY TELEGRAPH [Christopher Howse]

An exploration of small early folk communities prior to the eleventh century, showing their development and sophistication.All communities have a strong sense of identity with the area in which they live, which for England in the early medieval period manifested itself in a series of territorial entities, ranging from large kingdoms down to small districts known as pagi or regiones. This book investigates these small early folk territories, and the way that they evolved into the administrative units recorded in Domesday, across an entire kingdom - that of the East Saxons (broadly speaking, what is now Essex, Middlesex, most of Hertfordshire, and south Suffolk). A wide range of evidence is drawn upon, including archaeology, written documents, place-names and the early cartographic sources. The book looks in particular at the relationship between Saxon immigrants and the native British population, and argues that initially these ethnic groups occupied different parts of the landscape, until a dynasty which assumed an Anglo-Saxon identity achieved political ascendency (its members included the so-called "e;Prittlewell Prince"e;, buried with spectacular grave-good in Prittlewell, near Southend-on- Sea in southern Essex). Other significant places discussed include London, the seat of the first East Saxon bishopric, the possible royal vills at Wicken Bonhunt near Saffron Walden and Maldon, and St Peter's Chapel at Bradwell-on-Sea, one of the most important surviving churches from the early Christian period.

First ever large-scale study of Crecy and its context, bringing out its true importance in English and French history.

Discussion of original performance conventions of Bach's sacred works - cantatas, Passions, masses - by practising musician and director of Taverner choir.

Aspects of the turbulent rule of Richard II freshly examined.

First full-length study of the use and perception of deceit in medieval warfare.Deception and trickery are a universal feature of warfare, from the Trojan horse to the inflatable tanks of the Second World War. The wars of the Central Middle Ages (c. 1000-1320) were no exception. This book looks at the various tricks reported in medieval chronicles, from the Normans feigning flight at the battle of Hastings (1066) to draw the English off Senlac Hill, to the Turks who infiltrated the Frankish camp at the Field of Blood (1119) disguised as bird sellers, to the Scottish camp followers descending on the field of Bannockburn (1314) waving laundry as banners to mimic a division of soldiers. This study also considers what contemporary society thought about deception on the battlefield: was it a legitimate way to fight? Was cunning considered an admirable quality in a warrior? Were the culturally and religious "e;other"e; thought to be more deceitful in war than Western Europeans? Through a detailed analysis of vocabulary and narrative devices, this book reveals a society with a profound moral ambivalence towards military deception, in which authors were able to celebrate a warrior's cunning while simultaneously condemning their enemies for similar acts of deceit. It also includes an appendix cataloguing over four hundred incidents of military deception as recorded in contemporary chronicle narratives.