The remarkable treasure of gold and silver from England and France which Richard II had amassed by the end of his reign in 1399 is fully revealed for the first time in this richly illustrated book. The author explores the nature of the objects themselves, their provenance and later fate, and examines the crucial role the treasure played in diplomacy and in financing the Hundred Years War, especially at the time of Agincourt.
This fresh analysis is based on the discovery in the National Archives at Kew of a roll over 28 metres long, compiled around the time of Richard's deposition. English courtiers and Valois princes are named as the donors of many gifts. Concealed among the treasure are valuables Richard seized from the magnates he executed or exiled in 1397. Publication in full of this exceptional inventory leads to completely new perspectives on Richard II's court and on its splendour in the last years of the fourteenth century.
Jenny Stratford began her career in the Department of Manuscripts, the British Library. Her books include The Bedford Inventories (1993). She is a Senior Research Fellow of the Institute of Historical Research, University of London.
Details
First Published: 21 Feb 2013
13 Digit ISBN: 9781843833789
Pages: 528
Size: 29.7 x 21
Binding: Hardback
Imprint: Boydell Press
Subject:
Medieval HistoryBIC Class: HBLC1
Details updated on 22 May 2013
