Church Building and Society in the Later Middle Ages: 107 (Cambridge Studies in Medieval Life and Thought: Fourth Series, Series Number 107)
Cambridge University Press, 6/11/2020
EAN 9781108827454, ISBN10: 1108827454
Paperback, 338 pages, 22.9 x 15.2 x 2 cm
Language: English
The construction of a church was undoubtedly one of the most demanding events to take place in the life of a medieval parish. It required a huge outlay of time, money and labour, and often a new organisational structure to oversee design and management. Who took control and who provided the financing was deeply shaped by local patterns in wealth, authority and institutional development - from small villages with little formal government to settlements with highly unequal populations. This all took place during a period of great economic and social change as communities managed the impact of the Black Death, the end of serfdom and the slump of the mid-fifteenth century. This original and authoritative study provides an account of how economic change, local politics and architecture combined in late-medieval England. It will be of interest to researchers of medieval, socio-economic and art history.
Introduction
1. Financing construction I
the parish
2. Financing construction II
gentry and clergy
3. Organising construction I
the churchwardens
4. Organising construction II
contracting committees and fabric wardens
5. Organising construction III
aristocracy, clergy and institutions
6. Approaches to building work.