This study of the administrative 'revolution' of the thirteenth-century papacy investigates the background and career of Honorius III, who was deeply involved in the developing administration of Chamber and Chancery from the late twelfth century, and reveals a picture of evolution rather than revolution in the papal offices of state. Honorius's Chancery is subjected to a vigorous examination. Valuable appendices list all the known papal scribes and provide diplomatic commentaries. Tables indicate details about the registers and the registrative system. The central machinery is shown in action, particularly in dealing with English affairs and petitioners and Honorius's place in the development of canon law is discussed in relation to the English background and experience.

In Honorius III et l'Orient (1216-1227), Pierre-Vincent Claverie offers a large-scale study of the oriental policy developed by Pope Honorius III at the time of the Fifth Crusade. His book is enriched by 150 unpublished bulls presenting Honorius III as a worthy successor of Innocent III and a constant defender of the Holy Land. Its scope embraces also the relations of the Holy See with the Latin clergy in the East, the different oriental christian faiths and the military orders.

An 'internal' crusade is defined as a holy war authorized by the pope and fought within Christian Europe against those perceived to be foes of Christendom, either to recover property or in defense of the Church or Christians. This study is therefore not concerned with those crusades authorized against Muslim enemies in the East and Spain, nor with crusades authorized against pagans on the borders of Europe. Up to now these crusades have attracted relatively little attention in modern British scholarship. This in spite of their undoubted European-wide significance and an increasing recognition that the period 1198-1245 marks the beginning of a crucial change in papal policy underpinned by canon law. This book discusses the developments through analysis of the extensive source material drawn from unregistered papal letters, placing them firmly in the context of ecclesiastical legislation, canon law, chronicles and other supplementary evidence. It thereby seeks to contribute to our understanding of the complex politics, theology and rhetoric that underlay the papacy's call for crusades within Europe in the first half of the thirteenth century.

This book is a continuation of The Heads of Religious Houses: England and Wales 940–1216, edited by Knowles, Brooke and London (1972), continuing the lists from 1216 to 1377, arranged by religious order. An introduction examines critically the sources on which they are based.

The "Dutch Review of Church History" is a long-established periodical, primarily devoted to the history of Christianity. It contains articles in this field as well as in other specialised related areas. For many years the "Dutch Review of Church History" has established itself as an unrivalled resource for the subject both in the major research libraries of the world and in the private collections of professors and scholars. Now published as an annual the "Dutch Review of Church History" offers you an easy way to stay on top of your discipline. With an international circulation, the "Dutch Review of Church History" provides its readers with articles in English, French and German. Frequent theme issues allow deeper, cutting-edge discussion of selected topics. An extensive book review section is included in every issue keeping you up to date with all the latest information in the field of Church history. Contributors to vol. 84 include: Brenda Bolton, E.P. Bos, Amy Nelson Burnett, Riemer A. Faber, Wim Francois, Sarah Hamilton, R. Ward Holder, J. Andreas Lowe, Herbert Migsch, Arie L. Molendijk, Jaap van Moolenbroek, Andrew Pettegree, M.B. Pranger, Arnold Provoost, Peter Raedts, Frans Pieter van Stam, Mirjam G.K. van Veen, J. Vree, and Anton G. Weiler.

The Fifth Crusade represented a cardinal event in early thirteenth-century history, occurring during what was probably the most intensive period of crusading in both Europe and the Holy Land. Following the controversial outcome of the Fourth Crusade in 1204, and the decrees of the Fourth Lateran Council in 1215, Pope Innocent III's reform agenda was set to give momentum to a new crusading effort. Despite the untimely death of Innocent III in 1216, the elaborate organisation and firm crusading framework made it possible for Pope Honorius III to launch and oversee the expedition. The Fifth Crusade marked the last time that a medieval pope would succeed in mounting a full-scale, genuinely international crusade for the recovery of the Holy Land, yet, despite its significance, it has largely been neglected in the historiography. The crusade was much more than just a military campaign, and the present book locates it in the contemporary context for the first time. The Fifth Crusade in Context is of crucial importance not only to better understand the organization and execution of the expedition itself, but also to appreciate its place in the longer history of crusading, as well as the significance of its impact on the medieval world.

The first comprehensive study of a bitter dispute which occupied the archbishops and monks of Canterbury throughout the 1180s and 1190s. For fifteen years the monks of Christ Church Canterbury waged a war against their archbishop, over a plan to build a church to provide funds for their administration, dedicated to Thomas Becket. Fearing the loss of their most beloved (and lucrative) saint to this new institution, the monks embarked on a course of action which saw rioting in the streets of Canterbury, their excommunication, and the cathedral placed under siege by the archbishop. Although at first glance an internal dispute between the archbishop and his cathedral chapter, it had a wide-ranging impact. The monks travelled thousands of miles in support of their cause, enlisting the backing of popes, cardinals, and the elites of Europe. In England, the kings during the period took a personal interest in the dispute, sometimes attempting to resolve it and sometimes hindering any chance of peace. This book, the first full account of the conflict, draws on the huge collection of letters it provoked (one of the largest compiled in the twelfth century), alongside other sources such as monastic culture, to offer a detailed narrative of this complicated feud between Archbishops Baldwin of Forde, Hubert Walter and their cathedral monks; it also considers the continuations of the dispute in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. In addition, it analyses the key themes of the conflict: the role of royalty, travel, and the deployment of Thomas Becket.

A Companion to the Medieval Papacy brings together an international group of experts on various aspects of the medieval papacy. Each chapter provides an up-to-date introduction to and scholarly interpretation of topics of crucial importance to the development of the papacy’s thinking about its place in the medieval world and of its institutional structures. Topics covered include: the Papal States; the Gregorian Reform; papal artistic self-representation; hierocratic theory; canon law; decretals; councils; legates and judges delegate; the apostolic camera, chancery, penitentiary, and Rota; relations with Constantinople; crusades; missions. The volume includes an introductory chapter by Thomas F.X. Noble on the historiographical challenges of writing medieval papal history. Contributors are: Sandro Carocci, Atria A. Larson, Andrew Louth, Jehangir Malegam, Andreas Meyer, Harald Müller, Thomas F.X. Noble, Francesca Pomarici, Rebecca Rist, Kirsi Salonen, Felicitas Schmieder, Keith Sisson, Danica Summerlin, and Stefan Weiß.

"The Popes and the Baltic Crusades" examines the formulation of papal policy on the crusades and missions in the Baltic region in the central Middle Ages and analyses why and how the crusade concept was extended from the Holy Land to the Baltic region.