Description

Consciously modelling himself on the Venerable Bede, William of Malmesbury (c.1090-c.1142) was one of the most learned of all the medieval chroniclers. His monumental Gesta regum anglorum ('Deeds of the English Kings') is a model of historical scholarship, written in engaging, fluid Latin. First completed around 1125, it was later revised and extended. Volume 1 of this two-volume set, originally published between 1887 and 1889, presents the first two books of the Gesta, which cover events from the arrival of the Anglo-Saxons to the Battle of Hastings. Volume 2 presents the last three books, covering post-Conquest events up to the reign of Henry I. This is followed by the Historia novella ('Modern History'), a later work in annalistic form which covers events from 1128 to 1142, including the 'anarchy' of King Stephen's reign. Editor William Stubbs (1825-1901) provides substantial analysis of William's life and work in his prefaces.