The Ely Memoranda and the Economy of the Late Anglo-Saxon Fenland

TY - JOUR

T1 - The Ely Memoranda and the Economy of the Late Anglo-Saxon Fenland

AU - Naismith, Rory George Robert

PY - 2017/7/24

Y1 - 2017/7/24

N2 - Consisting of six short Old English texts written in the early eleventh century, the Ely memoranda illustrate how a major and recently refounded Benedictine abbey managed its landed endowment. Two of the memoranda relate to generous help provided by Ely to Thorney, and four concern Ely’s own lands. The collection as a whole reveals much about interaction between monasteries, monastic perspectives on material resources and investment in them, the economy of eastern England, and the context of record-keeping. This article offers a new edition and translation of the texts, and surveys the contribution the memoranda make to understanding of cultural and economic history.

AB - Consisting of six short Old English texts written in the early eleventh century, the Ely memoranda illustrate how a major and recently refounded Benedictine abbey managed its landed endowment. Two of the memoranda relate to generous help provided by Ely to Thorney, and four concern Ely’s own lands. The collection as a whole reveals much about interaction between monasteries, monastic perspectives on material resources and investment in them, the economy of eastern England, and the context of record-keeping. This article offers a new edition and translation of the texts, and surveys the contribution the memoranda make to understanding of cultural and economic history.

U2 - 10.1017/S0263675100080327

DO - 10.1017/S0263675100080327

M3 - Article

SN - 0263-6751

VL - 45

SP - 333

EP - 377

JO - Anglo-Saxon England

JF - Anglo-Saxon England

ER -