A. D. M. Barrell – författare

The lengthy period of the Avignon papacy in the fourteenth century created circumstances in which the burgeoning bureaucracy of the papal curia could flourish. Papal involvement in the everyday business of the church at local level reached its fullest extent in the years before the Great Schism. This book examines the impact of that involvement in Scotland and northern England, and analyses the practical effect of theories of papal sovereignty at a time when there was still widespread acceptance of the role of the Holy See. The nature and importance of political opposition, from both crown and parliament, is investigated from the standpoint of the validity of the complaints as indicated by local evidence, and a new interpretation is offered of the various statutory measures taken in England in Edward III's reign to control alleged abuses of papal power. Points of similarity and difference between Scotland and England are also given due emphasis. This is the first work to attempt to analyse the full breadth of papal involvement in late medieval Britain by utilising the rich local sources in association with material from the Vatican archives.

This is a one-volume history of medieval Scotland, concentrating on the period between the middle of the eleventh century and the Reformation and taking full account of recent scholarship. It is primarily a political and ecclesiastical study, analysing the development of the institutions of the Scottish state, conflict and co-operation between the crown and the nobility, relations with external powers, the history of the church in Scotland, and the formation of a distinctive Scottish identity. The Wars of Independence are examined in their historical context, and elements of identity and change are identified across the whole period. Particular emphasis is placed upon relations between core and periphery in medieval Scotland and on the difficulties experienced by the crown in imposing royal authority in the north and west.

This is a one-volume history of medieval Scotland, concentrating on the period between the middle of the eleventh century and the Reformation and taking full account of recent scholarship. It is primarily a political and ecclesiastical study, analysing the development of the institutions of the Scottish state, conflict and co-operation between the crown and the nobility, relations with external powers, the history of the church in Scotland, and the formation of a distinctive Scottish identity. The Wars of Independence are examined in their historical context, and elements of identity and change are identified across the whole period. Particular emphasis is placed upon relations between core and periphery in medieval Scotland and on the difficulties experienced by the crown in imposing royal authority in the north and west.