A History of the Abbey of Bury St Edmunds, 1182-1256

"The abbey of Bury St Edmunds was one of the wealthiest and most highly privileged religious houses in central England, closely involved with central government, its history an integral part of the history of England. This account of the abbey's affairs is exceptionally valuable for combining both religious and economic detail, and for its focus on the thirteenth century, a period of particular interest in the abbey's history, and one which has received less attention from ecclesiastical historians." "The religious, cultural and intellectual life of the abbey, the monks' writings, book collection and archives, are fully described. There are four appendices, two of them substantial: one examines the mid-thirteenth century accounts which give a unique and detailed picture of the organisation and economy of the abbey's estates in West Suffolk, and the other is concerned with the abbey's watermills and windmills. The book is based on evidence from the abbey's records (over forty registers, many of them hefty, survive); the many books from its library, now dispersed; and material held in the National Archives, much of it unpublished. A full bibliography is provided."--Jacket.