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A c k n o w l e d g m e n t s The word historian conjures images of a lonely, earnest scholar scribbling away amid the dark stacks of an old library or archive. I have certainly sometimes found myself in that situation. But I can also say, with gratitude, that the work of researching and writing this study was encouraged and eased by a host of colleagues and friends. The faults of the final product are my own, but many of its virtues are theirs. First, my deepest gratitude to Thomas Bisson. The intellectual debts I owe him are obvious throughout this book. But I am also keenly aware of, and grateful for, his unfailing professional generosity and wise counsel as this project evolved. My work also benefited from fair and exacting early readings by Michael McCormick. Katharine Park, Luis Girón Negrón, and Alan Cooper lent much-needed expertise and encouragement. I was fortunate to be part of a talented and supportive community of medieval and early modern scholars at Harvard, including Adam Beaver, John Gagne, Amy Houston, Jonathan Conant, Clare Gillis, and Emily Wood. My colleagues at the University of Maryland, College Park, have provided a rich and stimulating intellectual environment as well as expert advice. I am particularly grateful to Ken Holum, Art Eckstein, Phil Soergel, Marsha Rozenblit, Richard Price, Rick Bell, Antoine Borrut, and Erika Milam; and to Jeannie Rutenberg, whom I deeply wish I had known longer. In Spain, I benefited greatly from the kindness and counsel of Esther Pascua, Ana Rodrı́guez López, Juan José Garcı́a González, and Luis Martı́nez Garcı́a. The staff of the Archivo Histórico Nacional in Madrid, especially Isabel Nuño Calvo, made me feel much more like a colleague than a guest. The staff at the Biblioteca General de Humanidades del CSIC, the Archivo de la Catedral de Burgos, and the Archivo de la Catedral de León likewise set a new standard for courtesy and professionalism. 350 acknowledgments My research in Spain—and therefore this project—was supported by grants from the Fulbright Association, the Medieval Academy of America, the Program for Cultural Cooperation Between Spain and United States Universities , the Real Colegio Complutense, the University of Maryland’s General Research Board, and Harvard University’s Department of History, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and Graduate Student Council. My debt to them appears on every page and in every note. Thanks also to Jim Todesca and Marie Kelleher; to Simon Doubleday and Theresa Earenfight for their thoughtful and constructive critiques; and to Jerry Singerman, Caroline Winschel, and Alison Anderson at University of Pennsylvania Press. Most of all, I thank my family—especially my wife, Natka, and our wonderful boys, Leo and Alec. Filii dulcissimi, gloria mea et gaudium meum uos estis. ...

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