Anne Clifford's Great Books of Record

Edited by Jessica L. Malay

Publication date:

01 May 2015

Length of book:

992 pages

Publisher

Manchester University Press

Dimensions:

240x170mm

ISBN-13: 9780719091872

In her Great Books of Record Anne Clifford places herself within the dynamic history of the ancient Clifford family, providing an unbroken view into medieval and early modern life for nearly six centuries. In this annotated edition, we glimpse the lives of simple widows, traders, farmers, and labourers juxtaposed with the adventures of soldiers, lords and ladies, princes and princesses. Throughout, Anne Clifford asserts the centrality of women to the success of noble families, including the monarchy. Her Great Books draws upon medieval traditions and early modern scholarship and builds upon these through biographies of the Clifford lords and ladies, along with an extended biography of her mother Margaret Russell and her own autobiographical 'Life of Mee’. Those interested in the lives of medieval and early modern women, changes in culture, the effect of the political upon individuals, and the inspiring life of Anne Clifford will find this a rich and rewarding book.

Introduction
1. Robert de Veteripont and Idonea de Builli
2. The last Veteripont lords, Sibilla Ferrers, and Isabella Fitz Geoffrey
3. Isabella and Idonea de Veteripont
4. The early Cliffords of Herefordshire
5. Roger de Clifford III and Isabella de Veteripont
6. Robert, 1st Lord Clifford, and Maud de Clare
7. The 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Lords Clifford, Isobel Berkeley, and Euphamia Neville
8. Roger, 5th Lord Clifford, and Maud Beauchamp
9. Thomas, 6th Lord Clifford and Elizabeth Roos
10. John, 7th Lord Clifford and Elizabeth Percy
11. Thomas, 8th Lord Clifford and Joan Dacres
12. John, 9th Lord Clifford ‘The Butcher Lord’ and Margaret Bromflete
13. Henry, 10th Lord Clifford ‘The Shepherd Lord’, Anne St. John, and Florence Pudsey
14. Henry, 11th Lord Clifford and First Earl of Cumberland, Margaret Talbot, and Margaret Percy
15. Henry, 12th Lord Clifford, Second Earl of Cumberland, Eleanor Brandon, and Margaret Dacre
16. George, 13th Lord Clifford, Third Earl of Cumberland and Margaret Russell
17. Anne Clifford, Baroness Clifford, Countess Dowager of Dorset, Pembroke, and Montgomery
18. A Summary of the Records and a True Memoriall of the Life of Mee, the Lady Anne Clifford
19. Thomas Tufton, 6th Earl of Thanet, and Baron Clifford
Appendix: genealogical tables
Glossary
Bibliography
Index

'Malay's edition of the Great Books is a stupendous achievement of scholarship honouring Lady Anne Clifford's own endeavours. Firmly bound in hardback, an important practical consideration with a text that will be frequently consulted, this edition should certainly stimulate more research about her as well as increase general understanding of the times in which she lived and the infinite variety of life writing.'
Jill Burton, University of South Australia, Life Writing, May 2016

‘Malay has done a heroic job as the sole editor of a project that in many ways can be compared to the kinds of editorial projects normally overseen by a team of editors. The three sets of Great Books offer a daunting prospect for an editor, because not only is the material varied and complex, each set is distinctive with a wide variety of annotations, many but not all by Clifford herself. Malay has made a sensible series of editorial decisions… Manchester University Press deserves praise for publishing it.’
Paul Salzman, La Trobe University, Early Modern Women: An Interdisciplinary Journal Vol 11.2