This classic volume in the renowned Oxford History of England series examines the birth of a nation-state from the death throes of the Middle Ages in North-West Europe. John D. Mackie describes the establishment of a stable monarchy by the very competent Henry VII, examines the means employed by him, and considers how far his monarchy can be described as "new." He also discusses the machinery by which the royal power was exercised and traces the effect of the concentration of lay and eccleciastical authority in the person of Wolsey, whose soaring ambition helped make possible the Caesaro-Papalism of Henry VIII.

Women and the Reformation gathers historical materials and personal accounts to provide a comprehensive and accessible look at the status and contributions of women as leaders in the 16th century Protestant world. Explores the new and expanded role as core participants in Christian life that women experienced during the Reformation Examines diverse individual stories from women of the times, ranging from biographical sketches of the ex-nun Katharina von Bora Luther and Queen Jeanne d’Albret, to the prophetess Ursula Jost and the learned Olimpia Fulvia Morata Brings together social history and theology to provide a groundbreaking volume on the theological effects that these women had on Christian life and spirituality Accompanied by a website at www.blackwellpublishing.com/stjerna offering student’s access to the writings by the women featured in the book

The work of G. R. Elton has inspired its own 'Tudor Revolution' in the historiography of Tudor and Stuart government and society. In this volume a distinguished gathering of eighteen historians, all now resident in North America, pay tribute to Professor Elton's broad influence in shaping modern interpretations of the sixteenth- and seventeenth-century constitution. Each contributor to this volume has addressed, directly or indirectly, some aspect of that tempestuous age which has been dubbed 'Elton's era', and each of the sections relates directly to particular problems or topics which have figured prominently in Professor Elton's own work. Most extend his findings in new directions and with new evidence from archival researches. Others take issue with some of his tentative conclusions, though admitting the extent to which his work has made such advances possible.

Few periods of English history have been so subject to `revisionism' as the Tudors and Stuarts. This volume offers a full introduction to the complex historiographical debates currently raging about politics and religion in early modern England. It * draws together thirteen articles culled from familiar and also less accessible sources * embraces revisionist and counter-revisionist viewpoints * combines controversial works on both politics and religion * covers Tudor as well as early Stuart England * includes helpful glossary, explanatory headnotes and suggestions for further reading. These carefully edited and introduced essays draw on the new evidence of newsletters and ballads and ritual, as well as the more traditional sources, to offer a new and broader understanding of this transformative era of English history.