The Danelaw, 9th-11th century

The Danelaw, 9th-11th century

Dr Alexander Thomas introduces the Danelaw; an 11th-century name for the areas of Northern and Eastern England in which the laws of the Danish Viking empire from the late 9th century until the early 11th century.

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Elizabeth Elstob’s excerpts from Textus Roffensis 1712

Elizabeth Elstob’s excerpts from Textus Roffensis 1712

Elizabeth Elstob made a facsimile of Textus Roffensis (c.1123), in two parts. Here, Dr Christopher Monk explores her handwritten copies of the three Old English Kentish law codes, unique to Textus, and her copy of the foundation charter of Rochester Cathedral with its marvellous decorated initial.

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Bishop Hamo of Hythe (c.1275-1352)

Bishop Hamo of Hythe (c.1275-1352)

Perhaps second only to Gundulf in shaping the medieval Cathedral and St Andrew’s Priory, there is some evidence to suggest it may be down to Hamo and the turbulent times in which he lived that resulted in the two halves of Textus being bound together in the mid-fourteenth century.

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Slaves and the Unfree in the Laws of Æthelberht

Slaves and the Unfree in the Laws of Æthelberht

Content Warning

The twelfth-century collection of laws preserved in Textus Roffensis, the ‘Rochester Book’, illuminates the position of those who were slaves during the Anglo-Saxon period.

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Textus Roffensis origins

Textus Roffensis origins

Dr Christopher Monk explores the origins of Ethelbert’s law-code, foundational document of the Early English Laws portion of the ‘Rochester Book’.

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Elizabeth Elstob (1683-1756)

Elizabeth Elstob (1683-1756)

Bishop’s Chaplain Lindsay Llewellyn-MacDuff discusses the centrality of Elizabeth Elstob to our understanding of and access to Anglo-Saxon history.

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Index of texts in Textus Roffensis

Index of texts in Textus Roffensis

Index of contents in the Textus Roffensis by Dr Christopher Monk.

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Reading Old English

Reading Old English

Dr Christopher Monk explores Anglo-Saxon characters and reads from a selection of Old English from the Textus Roffensis: King Æthelberht’s Code from the turn of the seventh century, Alfred’s Domboc (‘Book of Laws’) from the late ninth century, and a charm for stolen livestock possibly from the late tenth to the early eleventh century.

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The Main Scribe of Textus Roffensis (fl. 1123)

The Main Scribe of Textus Roffensis (fl. 1123)

Dr Christopher Monk explores the scribal practices in Textus Roffensis.

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William Lambarde (1536–1601)

William Lambarde (1536–1601)

In 1573, the scholar William Lambarde came to Rochester Cathedral to examine Textus Roffensis. He was amazed to find that its opening document, Æthelberht’s law-code, was one he thought no longer survived. Moved by the importance of his discovery, he added a comment in the right margin, urging others to take note.

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