History in Flames: The Destruction and Survival of Medieval Manuscripts
By Robert Bartlett
Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 978-1-009-45715-6
Many medieval materials survived for centuries, only to be lost in more recent times to war and violence. This book tells the story of some of Europe’s most important collections that have since vanished.
Excerpt:
This book explores cases in which large numbers of such manuscripts were destroyed in a day, not by accident of fire or flood but by human destructive force – arson, shelling and bombing. The first part of the book analyses the conditions for the production and survival of manuscripts: writing materials, script, speed of scribes, storage in libraries and archives, and discusses speculative survival rates. Then, after a look at some important manuscripts that survived by the narrowest of chances (we almost had a world without Grendel or Grendel’s mother), the focus turns to the main subject: destruction of manuscripts and the loss of historical knowledge this entailed. Chapters 6 to 10 consist of detailed case studies, from France, Ireland, Italy and Germany, between 1870 and 1944, in which human violence resulted in massive destruction of medieval material (and later material, too, but I am writing as a medievalist). I have selected five spectacular cases which have common issues. Each chapter describes the political and military events that led up to the moment of destruction, the nature of the material that was lost and how it came to be where it was. Finally, more cheerfully, there is discussion of the heroic efforts made by scholars and archivists to save something from those catastrophes.
Who is this book for?
Although many medievalists may find this a sobering read, it remains a fascinating and accessible one. The author’s engaging writing style will appeal even to general readers with an interest in history. Scholars focused on medieval Ireland, Naples, or cartography will also find chapters of particular relevance.
“Bartlett’s story is not, however, simply a grim sequence of destruction. He uses each of the five episodes as a perch from which to survey some aspect of medieval culture: the production of maps of the known world, for example, or the registers that documented the activities of the Angevin kings of southern Italy. He also devotes a good deal of attention to the heroic efforts to recover some of what has been lost. By piecing together singed fragments or hunting down the notes of an early-modern antiquary, we can sometimes get a sense of the contents of a lost manuscript or document. This is painstaking and unfashionable work, but Bartlett treats it with real sympathy and sensitivity.” ~ review by George Woudhuysen in Engelsberg Ideas
“I recommend this book not just to those interested in medieval history or carrying out historical research but also to those interested in the past, in what has survived to explain it, and in how things at present can be preserved for the future.” ~ review by Murray Smith in History Ireland.
The Author
Robert Bartlett is Professor of Mediaeval History Emeritus at the University of St Andrews. He has a wide range of interests related to the Middle Ages and has produced several highly acclaimed books.
History in Flames: The Destruction and Survival of Medieval Manuscripts
By Robert Bartlett
Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 978-1-009-45715-6
Many medieval materials survived for centuries, only to be lost in more recent times to war and violence. This book tells the story of some of Europe’s most important collections that have since vanished.
Excerpt:
This book explores cases in which large numbers of such manuscripts were destroyed in a day, not by accident of fire or flood but by human destructive force – arson, shelling and bombing. The first part of the book analyses the conditions for the production and survival of manuscripts: writing materials, script, speed of scribes, storage in libraries and archives, and discusses speculative survival rates. Then, after a look at some important manuscripts that survived by the narrowest of chances (we almost had a world without Grendel or Grendel’s mother), the focus turns to the main subject: destruction of manuscripts and the loss of historical knowledge this entailed. Chapters 6 to 10 consist of detailed case studies, from France, Ireland, Italy and Germany, between 1870 and 1944, in which human violence resulted in massive destruction of medieval material (and later material, too, but I am writing as a medievalist). I have selected five spectacular cases which have common issues. Each chapter describes the political and military events that led up to the moment of destruction, the nature of the material that was lost and how it came to be where it was. Finally, more cheerfully, there is discussion of the heroic efforts made by scholars and archivists to save something from those catastrophes.
Who is this book for?
Although many medievalists may find this a sobering read, it remains a fascinating and accessible one. The author’s engaging writing style will appeal even to general readers with an interest in history. Scholars focused on medieval Ireland, Naples, or cartography will also find chapters of particular relevance.
“Bartlett’s story is not, however, simply a grim sequence of destruction. He uses each of the five episodes as a perch from which to survey some aspect of medieval culture: the production of maps of the known world, for example, or the registers that documented the activities of the Angevin kings of southern Italy. He also devotes a good deal of attention to the heroic efforts to recover some of what has been lost. By piecing together singed fragments or hunting down the notes of an early-modern antiquary, we can sometimes get a sense of the contents of a lost manuscript or document. This is painstaking and unfashionable work, but Bartlett treats it with real sympathy and sensitivity.” ~ review by George Woudhuysen in Engelsberg Ideas
“I recommend this book not just to those interested in medieval history or carrying out historical research but also to those interested in the past, in what has survived to explain it, and in how things at present can be preserved for the future.” ~ review by Murray Smith in History Ireland.
The Author
Robert Bartlett is Professor of Mediaeval History Emeritus at the University of St Andrews. He has a wide range of interests related to the Middle Ages and has produced several highly acclaimed books.
You can learn more about this book from the publisher’s website.
You can buy this book on Amazon.com | Amazon.ca | Amazon.co.uk
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