Roberti Grosseteste Episcopi quondam Lincolniensis epistolae

Originally published in 1861, these thirteenth-century Latin letters date mainly from the author's time as bishop of Lincoln.

Robert Grosseteste (Author), H. R. Luard (Edited by)

9781108042802, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 15 November 2012

626 pages, 1 colour illus.
22.9 x 15.2 x 3.5 cm, 0.91 kg

Published as part of the Rolls Series in 1861, these collected letters date mainly from 1235–53, when, as bishop of Lincoln, their author presided over the largest diocese in England. Both a scientist and a theologian, Robert Grosseteste (c.1170–1253) boasts what the medieval historian R. W. Southern describes as 'a rarely paralleled breadth of intellectual interests'. His letters are invaluably illustrative of the social conditions of the time. He writes heatedly and earnestly on such topics as the laws concerning illegitimacy, the condition of the Jews and the liberties of the Church, with a violence of opinion that was 'balanced, indeed prompted, by a deep concern for the souls of ordinary people'. Henry Richards Luard (1825–91) puts Grosseteste's writing into context in his preface, while useful summaries of each letter in the contents list, and commentary provided in the side-notes, make the Latin text accessible to modern readers.

Preface
Account of the MSS of the letters of Bishop Grosseteste, used in the present edition
Contents of the letters of Bishop Grosseteste
Roberti Grosseteste Episcopi Lincolniensis epistolae
Glossary
Index to the names of Bishop Grosseteste's correspondents
Index.

Subject Areas: British & Irish history [HBJD1]