Judith Green was Professor of Medieval History at the University of Edinburgh and Queen's University, Belfast, prior to her retirement. She is the author of several works on the history of England and Normandy between the tenth and twelfth centuries, including The Aristocracy of Norman England (Cambridge, 2002) and Henry I: King of England and Duke of Normandy (Cambridge, 2006). She is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society.

• 1. Introduction; 2. Contexts; 3. Kings; 4. Lay lords: an age of aristocracy; 5. Archbishops, bishops and abbots; 6. Individuals, communities and networks; 7. Power and place; 8. London: the making of a capital city; 9. A patchwork kingdom; Conclusion.

'History is inevitably a matter of power: who possessed it, who lost or gained it, from where could it be acquired, and how was it best exercised? Judith Green takes us into the hidden engine rooms of the medieval English state. With an eye for detail and a willingness to challenge consensus, she suggests ways in which power was contested and transmitted. In the process, England developed institutions and traditions subtly distinct from those of other parts of medieval Europe. This is a thought-provoking book that deserves a wide readership.' Nicholas Vincent, University of East Anglia