Medievalbookshop — AHD0037 Menuge, Medieval English Wardship in Romance and Law

Bargain books on the Middle Ages and all related subjects


Secondhand book for sale

Scanned image of the book’s front cover

Noël James Menuge.
Medieval English Wardship in Romance and Law.
Published Cambridge: D. S. Brewer, 2001.
ISBN 0859916324;
ISBN-13: 9780859916325.
Binding: hardback, stitch bound; issued without dustjacket.
Size: 159x240x14mm.
Page count: viii,149pp.
Main language: English.
Unused bargain.


This item £6.50
P&P inc. within the UK
(delivery outside the UK not currently available)

[Publisher’s price £50.00/$75.00]
Weight without packaging: 436g.

How to order this book


Studies of wardship in medieval England have so far only seriously concentrated on legal concerns, thus overlooking the intricacies and subtleties of wardship discourse as they are revealed in romance literature. Menuge explores how wardship literature in romance may be used in studies of wardship, and how it may complement an understanding of legal history. Wardship discourse is examined in a variety of sources — legal treatises, cases, and romance — and is discussed in the light of medieval and current perceptions of wardship. Questions are raised as to why and how wards, guardians, lords and families are constructed in the sources, and how these may be read as 'narrative fictions' to tell us more about wardship construction and perception in author and audience alike. The issues addressed are those to do with inheritance, waste, legal age, marriage and guardianship care, while the dominant theme is the importance of the father and his legacy to the ward within this discourse.

Contents: Wardship & the ideological father — meanings & contexts — using Gamelyn to understand Glanvill; Inheritance — conflicts & resolutions; Historical interpretations — Gamelyn & the issue of waste; Gamelyn as diabolical & as desirable; Ward as outlaw — symbolising infancy; Females wards & marriage — question of consent; Controlling behaviour — mothers as guardians.

Translations: Middle English quoted in the original without translation; other languages quoted in English translation
Notes: at foot of page
Tables: no
Illustrations: no
Maps & plans: no
Genealogies: no
Chronology: no
Glossary: no
Bibliography: 16pp
Index: yes

[BML/UB]

See also | History of law | Romance |

Bookmark and Share
(please note: this page and image will be deleted when the book is sold)

See the “book descriptions” page for explanations of the criteria used in this listing.


Back to previous page

Return to the used books welcome page


Use these scrollbars to navigate the attic…

You need javascript switched on for these scrollbars to work. If you can't see see them, there's a full set of links below.


Primary sources | anthologies | anononymous | facsimile | A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

Secondary sources | journals & partworks | author unknown | exhibition guides & ephemera | A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | Mc | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

Browse by subject | A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

Reference books | Reference index | general reference | bibliographies | biographical dictionaries | catalogues: auctions | catalogues: exhibitions | catalogues: museums & collections | chronology & dating | genealogy & heraldry | guides & gazetteers | lexical: concordances, dictionaries, glossaries | maps & atlases | medievalism | name & place-name studies | pass notes & study guides | numismatics

Medievalism | main page | general non-fiction | reference books | biography & autobiography | travelogues | arcana | folklore | arts and crafts | kid's books | fiction | poetry | drama | humour

Other stuff | browse by publisher | browse by series | browse by language | gift books | kids' stuff | incomplete sets | shop returns | signed copies | unused bargains | useful non-medieval | new books (with Amazon links)