This is the third and final volume in the trilogy by Colin Richmond on the Paston family in the 15th century, completing the sequence which began with The First Phase and continued with Fastolf's Will. This volume deals with the later years of the century and those topics and themes which arise at that point in the family's history. The principal characters are John Paston II, his younger brother John Paston III, and their mother, Margaret Paston. Richmond deals with a variety of issues, some of which have arisen in previous volumes and attempts some judgements on the role of the English gentry in the later middle ages.

The Paston family have long been famous for the large collection of letters and papers which bear their name. However, only recently have the 'Paston Letters' been used systematically by historians of fifteenth-century England: they are both attractive to read and fiendishly difficult to use as source material for the historian. This, the second volume in Colin Richmond's individual and compelling study of the Pastons, describes the bitter disputes over the will of Sir John Fastolf (d. 1459) which dogged the family for many years, and which hold a wider significance for the law, English country society, and the complex politics of the fifteenth century. Professor Richmond uses his mastery of the Paston documents to illuminate many obscurities surrounding the will, and at the same time creates an insightful and sympathetic picture of this fascinating, often troubled family.

"The Pastons of Norfolk left behind them an incomparable picture of life in fifteenth-century England in the earliest great collection of family letters in English."--BOOK JACKET. "The letters span three generations and most were written during the reigns of Henry VI, Edward IV, and Richard III, in a period of political turmoil, local anarchy and war abroad and at home. They reveal personal hopes and anxieties, and contain as well as business matters a wealth of information on leisure pursuits, education, and domestic life. The writers express themselves with a clarity and vigour that is remarkable at this early date, and the letters illustrate, as no other documents can, the state of the language in daily use immediately before and after the introduction of printing."--BOOK JACKET. "This modernized selection prepared from the original manuscripts is designed to present the full range of the Pastons' principal concerns."--BOOK JACKET.

This volume describes, in lively and original style, the beginnings of the family's gentility.

The Paston letters viewed in the context of medieval women's writing and medieval letter writing.

The Paston family have long been famous for the large collection of letters and papers which bear their name. However, only recently have the 'Paston Letters' been used systematically by historians of fifteenth-century England: they are both attractive to read and fiendishly difficult to use as source material for the historian. This, the second volume in Colin Richmond's individual and compelling study of the Pastons, describes the bitter disputes over the will of Sir John Fastolf (d. 1459) which dogged the family for many years, and which hold a wider significance for the law, English country society, and the complex politics of the fifteenth century. Professor Richmond uses his mastery of the Paston documents to illuminate many obscurities surrounding the will, and at the same time creates an insightful and sympathetic picture of this fascinating, often troubled family.

The fascinating story of the fortunes of one medieval family over the course of a century, from bestselling historians Frances and Joseph Gies. The Pastons were members of the English gentry—a tiny group of roughly 1,000 households sandwiched between the ruling nobility and the peasants, and a rough analog for the contemporary “middle class.” Their existence was fairly typical, but for the fact that it was recorded in an extraordinary collection of nearly 1,000 letters which have survived to this day. Through these letters, which cover the years from 1421 to 1484, and the lives of three generations of Pastons, bestselling historians Frances and Joseph Gies provide a rare window into the day-to-day life of this family, and the broader political and social goings-on of medieval England. A Medieval Family first tells the story of Judge William Paston (1378-1444), the patriarch of the family, a lawyer and judge who bought up land in Norfolk and left his son a sizeable estate, which was later forcibly seized by a neighboring baron. We then follow the family through its ups and downs over several generations, learning of their feuds with neighbors, the frequent instability of 15th century England, and significant historical events, such as the Siege of Caister and the Battle of Barnet. There are also many letters of more personal significance, including a series of Valentines sent to John Paston III. The work of acclaimed historians Frances and Joseph Gies has been used by George R.R. Martin in his research for Game of Thrones. In A Medieval Family, they have woven a compelling intergenerational saga that is essential reading for anyone seeking insight into the medieval period. “The Gieses, who specialize in making the Middle Ages accessible to nonspecialists, have done a wonderful job of linking and amplifying the Pastons’ words.”–New Yorker

Bibliography and collation of editions and original letters.

Essays in this collection examine the lifestyles and attitudes of the gentry in late-medieval England. Through surveys of the gentry's military background, administrative and political roles, social behavior, and education, the reader is provided with an overview of how the group's culture evolved and how it was disseminated.