Aspects of Late Medieval Government and Society: Essays presented to J.R. Lander

This collection presents essays on a rich variety of topics necessary to the writing of good Festschriften, and many methods and skills are necessary even to approach doing justice to late-medieval government and society. This necessary diversity of approach is manifested in the rage of essays included in this volume, which touch on contemporary notions about government and politics, Ockham’s teaching on natural law and how this teaching was influenced by Ockham’s knowledge of canon law and the opinions of canonists, an investigation of the practical interpretation in England of peace and justice, nationality and what it means to be a ‘subject’ or an ‘alien’, among other topics.

In sum, this collection of essays attempts to grasp these realities; each essay is significant in itself and collectively they are useful in advancing our understanding of some of the conditions of life in various areas of Europe at the end of the Middle Ages.