ABSTRACT
I thank Professor Martin Biddle of Hertford College, Oxford, for inspiring me with his lectures, lending me the typescript of his book on the Winchester Round Table, and showing much enthusiasm towards the projects of his fellow students; Howard Colvin for writing the bulk of the medieval and early Tudor volumes of The Kings Works, an incomparable quarry for the would-be medieval archaeologist: its majestic scholarship, scrupulous accuracy and unpretentious style make it a pleasure to use; Professor Karl Leyser of All Souls College, Oxford, to whom I am indebted for my (limited) understanding of early medieval European history; Dr Tom James for reading Chapter 4, for allowing me to read his The Palaces of Medieval England in advance of publication and for accompanying me on a number of visits; Dr Gerald Harriss of Magdalen College, Oxford, for reading and suggesting improvements to Chapter 2; the President and fellows of Magdalen College for allowing a former demy to spread the papers of Chapter 7 over the tables of the McFarlane Library and for hospitality on a number of occasions; the staffs of the Bodleian, Ashmolean, Magdalen College and History Faculty Libraries for their unfailing courtesy in providing books and articles.
