Counsel was a fundamental element of the theoretical framework and practical workings of medieval and early modern government. Good rule was to be ensured by governors hearing wise advisers. This process of counsel assumed particular importance in England and Scotland between the 14th and 17th centuries because of the close adherence to ideas of the common good, commonwealth, and community in this period. Yet this era saw major changes in who gave counsel and how it operated. This volume identifies both patterns and moments of change while also recognising continuities. It examines counsel in the context of Anglo-Scottish warfare and unions, the Reformations, and early colonising ventures, as well as in the contingent circumstances of individual reigns and long-term evolutions in the nature of government. Depicting counsel as ubiquitous yet archivally elusive, this volume uses government records, pamphlets, plays, poetry, histories, and oaths to establish a new framework for understanding advice. As it shows, a widespread belief in good counsel masked fundamental tensions between accountability and secrecy, inclusive representation and political cohesiveness, and between upholding and restraining sovereign authority.
Reviews
The book has been well planned, with thirteen substantive chapters and a very long and valuable introduction. There is extensive cross-referencing, and evidence of discussion among contributors at the workshops that preceded the book. This book thus gives political historians much to ponder. It is particularly thought-provoking to see counsel placed, as it often is here, in a broader context. * Julian Goodare, History *
this is a superbly-edited collection that makes an excellent addition to the scholarship on counsel in medieval and early modern England and Scotland * Aidan Norrie, The University of Warwick, Parergon *
a valuable selection of work on the interlinking thoughts on, and mediums of, counsel that breaks several conceptual and chronological boundaries and one that should form an indispensable resource for those interested in the theories, practices and problems of authority in medieval and early modern Britain. * Matthew Raven, Reviews in History *
This book thus gives political historians much to ponder. It is particularly thought-provoking to see counsel placed, as it often is here, in a broader context. * Julian Goodare, History *



Book Information
ISBN 9780197266038
Author Jacqueline Rose
Format Hardback
Page Count 350
Imprint Oxford University Press
Publisher Oxford University Press
Weight(grams) 686g
Dimensions(mm) 242mm * 168mm * 25mm