In 1907, Henri Stein published his Bibliographie Générale des Cartulaires Français ou Relatifs ... l'Histoire de France, a work quickly hailed by reviewers as an 'indispensable bibliographic tool' in the study of Francophone medieval history. More than 4,500 entries list extant cartularies found not just within the national boundaries of France but in medieval French-speaking and French-influenced regions - including present-day western Switzerland, Belgium, Germany west of the Rhine, and parts of Spain. Stein includes cartularies of religious as well as civic provenance, and for each entry provides detailed manuscript information, where known, and publication history, when applicable. Two extensive tables list all the foundations, ecclesiastic and civil, included. Meticulous in execution and ambitious in scope, Stein's Bibliographie Générale remains one of the most important and complete guides to the cartulary genre, and a central resource for scholars interested in the economic and political history of the region.
