The kingdoms of France and England were for many centuries military, economic, cultural and colonial rivals. This is particularly true of the early modern period which witnessed the rise of French military hegemony and the expansion of English commerce. Dealing with the period 1420-1700, this collection offers a snapshot of Anglo-French relations across the three centuries from established historians and younger scholars from France, Britain and Luxembourg. Based broadly on 'diplomatic' history, but incorporating wider perspectives from cultural and social or gender history; each essay uncovers the fascinating and complex arrangements that characterize Anglo-French relations in this period. Competition and hostility between the two kingdoms there certainly was, but it took a surprising variety of forms and often proved intellectually productive for one side or the other and sometimes for both. The chapters mix treatments of broad themes and particular circumstances or individuals and each makes specific comparisons with French and English experience across the early-modern period. In so doing they elaborate and go beyond the evidence of Anglo-French hostility to explore evidence of political co-operation and cultural influences, highlighting just how close early modern England's connections with France were, even at times of crisis.

**** The original edition cited in BCL3 was written during the presidential campaigns of 1976 and published in 1977. Printed on acidic paper. Cloth edition (unseen), $25.00. Essays reflect a new interest in and current revisions of the Renaissance. Loosely placed in three sections, the first deals with the shifting line between the study of Renaissance history and literature. The second section pertains to the psychology expressed in the works of French writers of that period, and the final section deals with the non-dramatic works of Shakespeare, especially his sonnets. Paper edition (unseen), $24.95. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Contending For The Kingdom unfolds the secrets of victory, which have become elusive in the modern day. This book is for champions. It is educative, practical and edifying. It highlights the principles of victorious living and shows the reader how to move from the valley to mountaintop. Students in the school of prayer and spiritual warfare will benefit immensely from the author's unique approach. It is a must read for those who are bent on climbing the ladder of victory.

The central argument of The Formation of the English Kingdom in the Tenth Century is that the English kingdom which existed at the time of the Norman Conquest was defined by the geographical parameters of a set of administrative reforms implemented in the mid- to late tenth century, and not by a vision of English unity going back to Alfred the Great (871-899). In the first half of the tenth century, successive members of the Cerdicing dynasty established a loose domination over the other great potentates in Britain. They were celebrated as kings of the whole island, but even in their Wessex heartlands they probably had few means to routinely regulate the conduct of the general populace. Detailed analysis of coins, shires, hundreds, and wapentakes suggests that it was only around the time of Edgar (957/9-975) that the Cerdicing kings developed the relatively standardised administrative apparatus of the so-called 'Anglo-Saxon state'. This substantially increased their ability to impinge upon the lives of ordinary people living between the Channel and the Tees, and served to mark that area off from the rest of the island. The resultant cleft undermined the idea of a pan-British realm, and demarcated the early English kingdom as a distinct and coherent political unit. In this volume, George Molyneaux places the formation of the English kingdom in a European perspective, and challenges the notion that its development was exceptional: the Cerdicings were only one of several ruling dynasties around the fringes of the former Carolingian Empire for which the late ninth, tenth, and eleventh centuries were a time of territorial expansion and consolidation.