San Antonio College Library

Robert Bartlett explores the impact of the Normans on southern Europe and the Middle East. The Normans spread south in the 11th century, winning control of southern Italy and the island of Sicily. There they created their most prosperous kingdom, where Christianity and Islam co-existed in relative harmony and mutual tolerance. It became a great centre of medieval culture and learning. But events in the Middle East provoked the more aggressive side...

"This book examines the emergence of the Normans, their characteristics as a group, and their various achievements in war, culture and civilization." "The Normans were a product of history rather than a natural ethnic or regional group. This book explores what they believed made them a distinct people and how they constructed their identity. Marjorie Chibnall examines the enigma of the Northmen who first settled around the Seine estuary and built...

This book tells in simple outline, the story of the political evolution of 12th & 13th century Ireland. During this period Ireland was brought by her princes and bishops into the mainstream of events in north-western Europe. A ferment of new thinking was modifying inbred traditions even before the arrival of the Anglo Normans. In turn their initial successes provoked an involvement of England with Ireland, the consequences of which are with us to...

In the second of this three-part series, Professor Robert Bartlett explores the impact of the Norman conquest of Britain and Ireland. Bartlett shows how William the Conqueror imposed a new aristocracy, savagely cut down opposition and built scores of castles and cathedrals to intimidate and control. He also commissioned the Domesday Book, the greatest national survey of England that had ever been attempted. England adapted to its new masters and both...

The events of 1066 are perhaps the most famous in English history, and their consequences for the British Isles and for Europe as a whole were profound. In this book, the author provides the most accessible, challenging and up to date introduction to the subject available. It contains a strong blend of political, economic, social and cultural history; excellent chronology of key dates and a guide to further reading, and engages with recent historiographical...