Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book engages explicitly and implicitly with Linda Fowler-Magerl’s methodologies, and are invariably supported by her now indispensable Clavis. Friends and colleagues of Linda will be familiar with her stories of spending time at the home of the late historian of medieval canon law, Gerard Fransen. The evolution of Linda's Kanones database through to the Clavis canonum has revolutionised the way historians now work on pre-Gratian canon law. Linda’s contribution to the field of medieval canon law is about far more than her scholarly publications. No tribute can fail to emphasise Linda’s unwavering professional generosity to friends, colleagues, scholars and students alike in terms of advice, answering questions, supplying texts, microfilms, annotated photocopies and especially distributing successive versions of Kanones and the Clavis.