Medieval Bishops' Houses in England and Wales FROM THE PUBLISHER
From 1133 to 1536 there were 17 bishops' sees in England and four in Wales. Two of these 21 sees had two cathedrals: Bath and Wells and Coventry and Lichfield. At each cathedral the bishop had a house or palace. The book describes the surviving medieval remains there and the far more numerous manor houses and castles owned by the bishops, as well as their London houses. An attempt is made to describe how these buildings relate to the way of life of the bishops in relation to their duties and their income and how in particular the dramatic social changes of the later middle ages influenced their form.
The book includes over a hundred plans, sections and photographs of the surviving parts of bishops' residences, with a survey of 1647 of the Archbishop's palace at Canterbury before demolition. It will be of interest to architectural historians, of course, and its social-cultural approach makes it equally valuable to students of medieval history and literature.
FROM THE CRITICS
Booknews
Includes over 100 plans, sections, and photographs of the surviving parts of the official residences of the 21 bishops, as well as the many manor houses and castles they owned and their town houses in London. Describes how the buildings relate to the bishops' way of life, duties, and income. Also considers the work of the great bishop castle-builders of the 12th century and shows how social change in the later middle ages influenced the form of the buildings. The social- cultural approach might interest students of medieval history and literature as well as historians of architecture. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.
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