Current

Thomas Hall was a learned author, schoolmaster and Presbyterian minister during the English civil wars and interregnum, living at King’s Norton, now a Birmingham suburb but then in Worcestershire. He described his extensive collection of books as his joy and only possessions of worth. In his autobiography, Hall tells his story from his birth into a prosperous merchant family in Worcester to his death at the age of 54 at King’s Norton as an outcast from church and school. To it he attached his last will and his bequests to three libraries in three catalogues of over 1,400 books. This is an authoritative edition of his autobiography and his will, and includes comprehensive catalogues of his book collection. 

This new and authoritative edition of what is probably the most important single source for the history of the civil war in Worcestershire includes details of the royalist administration of the county and a vivid eye-witness account of the siege of Worcester in 1646. The volume also contains an account of the early months of the Long Parliament of 1640, and journal material on national events in the 1650s and early 1660s. A scholarly Introduction, Maps and Indexes of names and places are provided.

The order book of a medieval bishop in the age of Edward III, revealing how he ruled his diocese.

Lists of sixteenth-century taxpayers in the county, which provide an indispensable guide to property and wealth. This edition will be of the greatest interest to family and social historians.

Records of the manor court at Elmley Castle, which provide ample evidence of the way a medieval community regulated its affairs and organised its agricultural work.

Provides a detailed and fascinating insight into the working of the king’s law in the forested area of south-east Worcestershire. Details of the forest economy, poaching, property holding and very large numbers of names of forest-dwellers over a wide range of parishes. Of great interest to social, economic and family historians.

The operation of the king’s principal law court held at Worcester is traced in this volume. The records for the court held in 1275 are virtually complete, and they tell us in detail about the crimes, criminals and victims of 13th century England, as well as about the legal procedures of the time. This volume is proof that violent crime and sudden death were a commonplace of everyday life in the middle ages. The edition includes comprehensive indexes of names and places.

Transcripts of 181 tithe awards and apportionments for Worcestershire parishes. Contains lists of property owners and tenants; details of field names, their size and details of how the fields were used. This CD-ROM provides a huge amount of evidence about the people who lived in mid-nineteenth century Worcestershire and how they managed the land. Those tracing their ancestors, researching the history of villages or parishes, investigating field names, seeking information on nineteenth-century farming practice or the social structure of communities will find this a great resource. Note: CD-ROM only.

This volume includes A Household Account of Edward, duke of York at Hanley Castle, 1409-10, edited by James P. Toomey; and The Visitation Court Book of Hartlebury, 1401-1598, edited by Robert N. Swanson and David Guyatt.

Expertly edited by the late James P. Toomey, the household account of the duke of York provides us with a detailed insight into life at Hanley Castle in the early 15th century. We learn what those who lived in the castle ate and drank, how they sourced their foodstuffs and other provisions, and how an upper-class household was run five centuries before 'Downton Abbey'! The Hanley Castle account includes a detailed, authoritative Introduction and a comprehensive Index.

The Hartlebury Court Book has been edited by Robert N. Swanson, a leading authority on the late medieval church. It is the record of a church court, at which the moral and spiritual failings of Hartlebury folk (including absence from church on feast days, adultery and fornication), were judged and punished. The edition includes a scholarly Introduction, Maps and full Indexes of names and subjects.