The Correspondence of Reginald Pole: Volume 4 A Biographical Companion: The British Isles (St Andrews Studies in Reformation History)

"Reginald Pole (1500-1558), cardinal and archbishop of Canterbury, was at the centre of reform controversies in the mid 16th century - antagonist of Henry VIII, a leader of the reform group in the Roman Church, and nearly elected pope (Julius III was elected in his stead). His voluminous correspondence - more than 2500 items, including letters to him - forms a major source for historians not only of England, but of Catholic Europe and the early Reformation as a whole. In addition to the insight they provide on political history, both secular and ecclesiastical, and on the spiritual motives of reform, they also constitute a great resource for our understanding of humanist learning and cultural patronage in the Renaissance. Hitherto there has been no comprehensive, let alone modern or accurate listing and analysis of this correspondence, in large part due to the complexity of the manuscript traditions and the difficulties of legibility. The present work makes this vast body of material accessible to the researcher, summarising each letter (and printing key texts usually in critical editions), together with necessary identification and comment. The first three volumes in this set will contain the correspondence; the fourth and fifth will provide a biographical companion to all persons mentioned, and will together constitute a major research tool in their own right. This first volume covers the crucial turning point in Pole's career: his protracted break with Henry and the substitution of papal service for royal. One major dimension of this rupture was a profound religious conversion which took Pole to the brink of one of the defining moments of the Italian Reformation, the writing of the 'Beneficio di Christo'."--Provided by publisher "Reginald Pole (1500-1558), cardinal and archbishop of Canterbury, was at the centre of reform controversies in the mid-16th century -- antagonist of Henry VIII, a leader of the reform group in the Roman Church, and nearly elected pope (Julius III was elected in his stead). His voluminous correspondence -- nearly 2400 items -- forms a major source for historians not only of England, but of Catholic Europe, Italy in particular, and the early Reformation as a whole. In addition to the insight they provide on political history, both secular and ecclesiastical, and on the spiritual motives of reform, they also constitute a great resource for our understanding of humanist learning and cultural patronage in the Renaissance. Hitherto there has been no comprehensive, let alone modern or accurate listing and analysis of this correspondence, in large part due to the complexity of the manuscript traditions and the difficulties of legibility. The present work makes this vast body of material accessible to the researcher, summarising each letter (and printing key texts), together with necessary identification and comment."--Jacket Pole (1500-58) was cardinal and archbishop of Canterbury, an antagonist of Henry VIII, a leader of the reform group in the Catholic Church, and nearly elected pope. The third volume of his correspondence extends over the bulk of his final legation for the reconciliation of England to Rome, and thus includes a much larger number of official documents than the previous volumes. Therefore, Mayer (history, Augustana College, Illinois) found some compression necessary. He particularly touches only lightly on topics not directly related to Pole, such as reports of Wyatt's rebellion, especially when the full texts are available in other collections. On the other hand, he has tried to include every act naming English clergymen and any foreigners with whom Pole had dealings. At least one more volume is projected. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR Cover 1 Half Title 2 Title Page 4 Copyright Page 5 Table of Contents 6 Abbreviations 8 Introduction 30 A 42 B 64 C 142 D 194 E 220 F 228 G 240 H 270 I–J 326 K 342 L 354 M 374 N 408 O 418 P–Q 424 R 464 S 494 T 550 U–V 574 W 578 Y–Z 636 Errata/Corrige 642 Addenda 646 Volume 4 A Biographical Companion: The British Isles