Atlas of Medieval Europe (review)

Reviews 233 survive the hazards of these poUtical tides and shoals, the Buccleuch women, whist commended for their wit and courage, were tough, combative, crafty and cold, caring, it would seem, Uttle for anyone, even their children, except as potential pawns in the great game. Lee's description of Anna's life as a virtuous and neglected wife, with Uttle interest in poUtics at a dissolute court full of self-interested intrigue, is chilling. Nevertheless, she remained most of her Ufe in London and frequently at court. She Uved to be an autocratic and intransigent old lady, jealous of her independence and authority, unwiUing to hand over the reins of power to anyone. W h o , perhaps, can blame her? This is a narrative history. Some of the generaUsations about farruly and poUtics which Lee has borrowed to provide his story with a suitable background and context are doubtful and jarring. His attempts to make the acount a microcosmic Ulustration of the wider scene are not particularly convincing. Nevertheless, the story is well and clearly told in a style designed not only for the academic but for the wider educated audience. Presumably for this reason, there is an absence offootnoteswhich wiU irritate the academic. Sybil M. Jack Department of History University of Sydney Mackay, Angus, with David Ditchburn, ed., Atlas of Medieval Europe, London and N e w York, Routledge, 1997; cloth; pp. ix, 271; c.140 b/w maps; R.R.P. US$65.00, £50.00. For any serious study of medieval European history and culture, an atias is essential. Despite the general famiUarity of European geography, there is a huge amount of unfamiUar detaU—about places, people, and events—to be assimUated. Presenting this in visual form, particularly through maps, is one of the most effective ways of teaching. A n atlas of medieval Europe which combines clarity of presentation with richness of information has long been a desideratum, and Angus Mackay (University of Edinburgh) and David Ditchburn (University of Aberdeen) have n o w managed to 234 Reviews assemble such a volume, in collaboration with 35 expert contributors. Their atlas consists of 140 black and white maps, each accompanied by a short essay. The aim, carried out very successfully, is to ensure clear and uncluttered maps which achieve the right balance between detail and legibUity. The maps are grouped into three chronological sections—early, central, and late Middle A g e s — within which are separate groupings for politics, religion, culture, and government / economy / society. The coverage varies from the whole of Europe d o w n to plans of individual cities, but the differing scales are always shown. Because the maps have been designed by the same specialists w h o wrote the accompanying essays, there is a high level of integration between them, though this is somewhat spoiled by several cases where the maps and their text are not laid out on facing pages. To round out the volume, there are suggestions for further reading on the topic of each map—mostly in the form of recent, EngUsh-Ianguage works—as well as an index to people, places, events, and some broad topics mentioned in the text. The whole effect is of a careful and integrated design in which every aspect is harnessed to achieve the intended pedagogic effect. It is instructive to compare this atlas with one familiar to several generations of undergraduates: Colin McEvedy's Penguin Atlas of Medieval History, originaUy pubUshed in 1961 and issued in a revised edition in 1992. McEvedy's approach is quite different. Throughout his forty or so maps, he maintains the same base map, showing Europe and the Near East at a consistent—though undocumented— scale. His focus is on the changing picture of political divisions over the miUennium between 362 and 1478, though this is supplemented by a few maps showing trade routes, population, and the extent of the Western and Eastern Christian churches in particular years during this period. McEvedy's maps have Uttle in the way of geographical detaU, and give no account of significant events. His accompanying text is, for the most part, a poUtical chronology. Mackay and Ditchburn's atlas is...