'Speculum Britanniae' : 'Regional Study, Antiquarianism, and Science in Britain to 1700 / Stan A. E. Mendyk.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Mendyk, Stanley G., Author.

Series:

Heritage

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Antiquarians--Great Britain.

Antiquarians.

Science--Great Britain--History--16th century.

Science.

Science--Great Britain--History--17th century.

Great Britain--Historiography.

Great Britain.

Great Britain--Intellectual life--16th century.

Great Britain--Intellectual life--17th century.

Genre:

History.

Electronic books.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (385 pages)

Place of Publication:

Toronto : University of Toronto Press, [2020]

Language Note:

In English.

Summary:

Local history has been studied in Britain for at least 500 years. In this comprehensive study Stan Mendyk examines many of the first county and regional histories compiled in Britain (focusing especially on England) up to about 1700. Mendyk considers first the precedent set by the ancients, such as Strabo and Ptolemy, in firmly establishing chronographical (i.e., topographical-historical) investigation, and then within that framework explores the work of a number of British historians: Bede, Gildas, William of Worcester, John Leland, William Camden, and William Lambarde. He offers summaries of the contents of their works, an identification of the authors and their connections with one another, and explanations of the means used to collect information. He notes trends within the works, such as the infusion of a patriotic element into history and they role of insularity in shaping them. Placing these works in a broader context, Mendyk discusses some of the changes in the study of history during this period and assesses their impact on local historiography: the conflict between ancients and moderns, the development of natural history and geo-history as fields of study, and the overall development of natural history and geo-history as fields of study, and the overall development of historiography in the Tudor-Stuart period. Political and social upheaval each play a part, as do a number of other factors: the voyages of discovery, the work of Sir Francis Bacon and the Royal Society in promoting the new science, and the continuing interest in such non-scientific endeavours as alchemy and astrology. Mendyk presents an approach that integrates history, geography, historiography, and science to expand the boundaries of conventional interpretations of local history, and in so doing illuminates a remarkable body of early work in the field.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

Preface

ILLUSTRATIONS

CHAPTER ONE. Introduction: 'Where the Choir Was ...'

CHAPTER TWO. 'A Hole Worlde of Thinges Very Memorable'

CHAPTER THREE. Speculum Britanniae

CHAPTER FOUR. Removing the 'Eclipse from the Sunne'

CHAPTER FIVE. 'Rapidly Thinning Wisps and Patches'

CHAPTER SIX. 'Men Wake As from Deep Sleep'

CHAPTER SEVEN. Metamorphosis

CHAPTER EIGHT. 'To Serve the Commonwealth of Learning'

CHAPTER NINE. 'This Secret Call'

CHAPTER TEN. Remedying 'Chief Defects'

CHAPTER ELEVEN. 'Learning So Much Neglected'

CHAPTER TWELVE. 'Industrious Searchers into the History of Nature'

CHAPTER THIRTEEN. Conclusion: 'Rust of Old Monuments'

NOTES

SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY

INDEX

Notes:

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 24. Apr 2020)

ISBN:

1-4875-7971-3

OCLC:

1153537108