BOOK: Andrew RABIN (transl.), Old English Legal Writings - Wolfstan (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2020). ISBN 9780674247482, EUR 31.50

(Source: HUP)

Harvard University Press is publishing a new translation of the work of Archbishop Wulfstan of York (d. 1023).

ABOUT THE BOOK

Archbishop Wulfstan of York (d. 1023) was a powerful clergyman and the most influential political thinker of pre-Conquest England. An advocate for the rights and privileges of the Church, he authored the laws of King Aethelred and King Cnut in prose that combined the rhetorical flourishes of a master homilist with the language of law. Some works forged a distinctive style by adding rhythm and alliteration drawn from Old English poetry. In the midst of Viking invasions and cultural upheaval, Wulfstan articulated a complementary relationship between secular and ecclesiastical law that shaped the political world of eleventh-century England. He also pushed the clergy to return to the ideals of their profession.

Old English Legal Writings is the first publication to bring together Wulfstan’s works on law, church governance, and political reform. When read together, they reveal the scope and originality of his thought as it lays out the mutual obligations of the church, the state, and the common people. This volume presents new editions of the Old English texts alongside new English translations.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Andrew Rabin is a professor of English at the University of Louisville.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction

Wulfstan’s Life and Career

Political Tracts

Tracts on Ecclesiastical Governance

Royal Legislation

Appendix 1. Questionable Attributions

Appendix 2. Revisions and Reworkings

Editing Wulfstan

Acknowledgments

Political Tracts

The Laws of Edward and Guthrum

The Compilation on Status

On Sanctuary

Northumbrian Church Sanctuary

The Oath of the King

The Institutes of Polity (1)

The Institutes of Polity (2)

Tracts on Ecclesiastical Governance

On Episcopal Duties

On the Remedy of Souls

Instructions for Bishops

An Admonition to Bishops

The Canons of Edgar

Royal Legislation

5 Æthelred

6 Æthelred

7 Æthelred

7a Æthelred

8 Æthelred

9 Æthelred

10 Æthelred

Cnut’s Oxford Legislation of 1018

Cnut’s Proclamation of 1020

1 Cnut

2 Cnut

Appendix 1. Questionable Attributions

The Northumbrian Priests’ Law

The Obligations of Individuals and On Reeves

Appendix 2. Revisions and Reworkings

1 Æthelstan

1 Edmund

2 Edgar and 3 Edgar

Note on the Texts

Notes to the Texts

Notes to the Translations

Bibliography

Index

More info here