The Legitimacy of Bastards by Helen Matthews

The Legitimacy of Bastards by Helen Matthews

For the nobility and gentry in later medieval England, land was a source of wealth and status. Their marriages were arranged with this in mind, and it is not surprising that so many of them had mistresses and illegitimate children. John de Warenne, earl of Surrey, married at the age of twenty to a ten-year-old granddaughter of Edward I, had at least eight bastards and a complicated love life. In theory, bastards were at a considerable disadvantage. Regarded as filius nullius' or the son of no one, they were unable to inherit real property and barred from the priesthood. In practice, illegitimacy could be less of a stigma in late medieval England than it became between the sixteenth and late twentieth centuries. There were ways of making provision for illegitimate offspring and some bastards did extremely well: in the church; through marriage; as soldiers; a few even succeeding to the family estates. The Legitimacy of Bastards is the first book to consider the individuals who had illegitimate children, the ways in which they provided for them and attitudes towards both the parents and the bastard children. It also highlights important differences between the views of illegitimacy taken by the Church and by the English law.

It is interesting to note that Helen Matthews studied medieval history at UCL and Royal Holloway when a chance remark in a footnote inspired her to embark on the thesis on medieval bastards, on which "The Legitimacy of Bastards" is basedEnhanced for academia with the inclusion of a one page Glossary, a fifty-nine pag Anex (Dramatis Personae), a five page Bibliography, and a five page Index, "The Legitimacy of Bastards" is certain to be an enduringly appreciated and valued addition to both community and academic library English Medieval History collections and supplemental studies lists. --Midwest Book Review

Helen Matthews studied medieval history at UCL and Royal Holloway. A chance remark in a footnote inspired her to embark on the thesis on medieval bastards, on which this book is based.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781526757623
ISBN 10	1526757621
Title	The Legitimacy of Bastards
Author	Helen Matthews
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	Pen & Sword Books Ltd
Year published	2019-10-02
Number of pages	256
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
Note	Unavailable