In 1926 the Bibliographical Society published the first edition of A Short-Title Catalogue of Books Printed in England, Scotland and Ireland and of English Books Printed Abroad 1475-1640. Now universally known as 'STC', it has become indispensable to historians, literary scholars, and bibligraphers, whose work involves printed sources before the Civil War. The second part of this edition was the first to be published in 1976: volume I covering A-H now completes the main text; it will be followed by a third volume, containing the addenda that ten years of use have already produced, detailed indexes of printing and booksellers, with dates and places of business, concordance with other lists and catalogues, and other supplementary material.
King James is well known as the most prolific writer of all the Stuart monarchs, publishing works on numerous topics and issues. These works were widely read, not only in Scotland and England but also on the Continent, where they appeared in several translations. In this book, Dr Stilma looks both at the domestic and international context to James's writings, using as a case study a set of Dutch translations which includes his religious meditations, his epic poem The Battle of Lepanto, his treatise on witchcraft Daemonologie and his manual on kingship Basilikon Doron. The book provides an examination of James's writings within their original Scottish context, particularly their political implications and their role in his management of his religio-political reputation both at home and abroad. The second half of each chapter is concerned with contemporary interpretations of these works by James's readers. The Dutch translations are presented as a case study of an ultra-protestant and anti-Spanish reading from which James emerges as a potential leader of protestant Europe; a reputation he initially courted, then distanced himself from after his accession to the English throne in 1603. In so doing this book greatly adds to our appreciation of James as an author, providing an exploration of his works as politically expedient statements, which were sometimes ambiguous enough to allow diverging - and occasionally unwelcome - interpretations. It is one of the few studies of James to offer a sustained critical reading of these texts, together with an exploration of the national and international context in which they were published and read. As such this book contributes to the understanding not only of James's works as political tools, but also of the preoccupations of publishers and translators, and the interpretative spaces in the works they were making available to an international audience.
At first glance A Guide to English Literature may seem to be no more than a short bibliography of English literature with perhaps rather more extensive--and certainly more outspoken--comments on the principal editions, commentaries, biographies, and critical works than bibliographies usually provide. But it is something more: this guide contains long "inter-chapters" that provide reinterpretations of the principal periods of English literature in the light of modern research, as well as two final sections summarizing in unusual detail the literary criticism that exists in English and recent scholarship in the field. The purpose of this book, then, is to provide the reader with convenient access to a disciplined study of the texts themselves. This guide proposes itself as a new kind of literary history. The conventional history of literature has often tended to become a substitute for the reading of the literature it describes: the better the history, the greater the temptation to substitute it. The present combination of reading lists and inter-chapters cannot be a substitute for anything else. Meaningless as literature in themselves, they nevertheless provide the necessary preliminary information to meaningful reading. Since oddities of arrangement derive from these assumptions, the authors are not arranged alphabetically. Instead there are chronological compartments--with the divisions circa 1500, 1650, and 1800--in which authors succeed each other in the order of their births. This pioneering handbook is primarily a bibliographical laborsaving device. It is meant mostly for students and the general reader in that it stops where original research by the reader is expected to begin. However, the last chapter on literary scholarship is devoted specifically to the research specialist and provides indispensable equipment for the reader. There is also a general section on literary criticism which will be of use to all. F.W. Bateson (1901-1978) was University Lecturer in English Literature at Oxford and a Fellow and Tutor of Corpus Christi College. Founder and editor of the periodical Essays in Criticism, he is also editor of the four-volume Cambridge Bibliography of English Literature and the author of a number of critical studies of English poetry and drama.
War should be recognised as one of the defining features of life in the England of Henry VIII. Henry fought many wars throughout his reign, and this book explores how this came to dominate English culture and shape attitudes to the king and to national history, with people talking and reading about war, and spending money on weaponry and defence.
Introduction -- I. The Pamphlet and its Purpose -- II. The Form and Style -- III. The Author and the Audience -- IV. The Occasion and the Results -- The Text -- Explanatory Notes -- Appendices -- A. Textual Notes -- B.A Typescript of Act IV of the Play -- C.A Typescript of the Ballad -- D.A Modern Typescript of the Text -- Bibliography
These two volumes, published early in 1987 will now be made available for purchase, at a special price, as a Set. They list the contents of two hundred private libraries, as recorded in inventories presented for probate in the Vice-Chancellor's Court at the University of Cambridge between 1535 and 1760. Most of the books listed (as well as the maps and instruments, scientific and musical) reflect the flowering of the late English Renaissance as it affected all levels of the University community from academic potentates to the humblest student. The first volume presents the lists themselves, with brief biographical details of the books' owners, and appendices which include extracts from early wills; the second volume catalogues by author and title the books listed in Volume I, and is further supplied with an index, under broad subject-headings, of the authors represented. Dr. Leedham-Green has assembled one of the largest collections of private book-holdings ever published for this period in this country, comprising some 20,000 titles.
Following the format of Fitzroy Dearborn's highly successful International Dictionary of Historic Places and International Dictionary of University Histories, the International Dictionary of Library Histories provides basic information for each institution - location and holdings - followed by an extensive (1,000-5,000 word) essay on its history as well as a Further Reading list. In addition, the dictionary includes introductory articles on the history of various types of libraries and a library history in various regions of the world. The dictionary profiles more than 200 institutions from around the world, including the world's most important research libraries and other libraries with globally or regionally notable collections, innovative traditions, and significant and interesting histories. The essays take advantage of the growing scholarship of library history to provide insightful overviews of each institution, including not only the traditional values of these libraries but their innovations as well, such as developments in automated systems and electronic delivery. The profiles will emphasize the unique materials of research in these institutions - archives, manuscripts, personal and institutional papers. The introductory articles on types of libraries include topics ranging from theological libraries to prison libraries, from the ancient to the digital. An international team of more than 200 leading scholars in the field have contributed essays to the project.
