PREFACE 1 THE present work is a shortened form of the author's History of England and Greater Britain, brought up to the beginning of 1919. Four chapters have been added, two of which aim to re-survey the relations between the Mother Country and the Self-governing Dominions beyond the seas and British foreign relations from 1870 to 1914, and two of which seek to describe the activities of Britain and Greater Britain in the World War, as well as the problems of government and administration which the War involved. In treating of the causes which drew the British into the War it has been necessary, for the sake of completeness, to repeat much that has of late been frequently well described and is now oppressively familiar. Unfortunately the Kautsky documents and the latest Austrian Red Book which would have caused the writer to modify his statements concerning the Kaiser's alleged conference and the respective responsibility of the German and Austro-Hungarian Governments in the negotiations following Serajevo, were not at hand when his chapter went to press. However, the first part of the story has been admirably told, in the light of the new evidence, by Professor S. B. Fay in the American Historical Review for July, 1920, and the second part is promised in October. In revising and condensing the earlier parts of the book the writer has confined his abbreviating largely to the political narrative, retaining the surveys of social, industrial, intellectual and religious conditions with comparatively little curtailment. He wishes to repeat his thanks to those who have so kindly assisted him in his first undertaking, and further to express his obligations to his colleagues Professors Campbell Bonner, A. E. R. Boak and W. R. Frayer for very helpful suggestions. UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN, August, 1920. ARTHUR LYON CROSS. TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE I VI. THE ANGLO-NORMAN KINGS (1066-1154). THE STRENGTHENING VII. HENRY II (1154-1189). THE RESTORATION OF THE ROYAL POWER AND THE RISE OF THE ENGLISH COMMON LAW. VIII. RICHARD I (1189-1199) AND THE TRANSITION FROM ABSOLUTE IX. THE REIGN OF JOHN (1199-1216). THE LOSS OF NORMANDY, THE QUARREL WITH THE CHURCH, THE BARONIAL REVOLT, X. HENRY III. THE STRUGGLE OF THE BARONS TO MAINTAIN THE CHARTER, TO EXPEL FOREIGN INFLUENCE, AND TO CONTROL XI. EDWARD I AND EDWARD II (1272-1327). THE COMPLETION OF THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE ENGLISH CONSTITUTIONAL SYSTEM III XII. THE REIGN OF EDWARD III (1327-1377). THE BEGinning of the HUNDRED YEARS' WAR. CHIVALRY AT ITS HEIGHT. THE GROWING IMPORTANCE OF THE COMMONS. THE INCREASE OF XV. THE HOUSE OF LANCASTER IN THE ASCENDANT. HENRY IV XVI. THE FALL OF THE HOUSE OF LANCASTER. HENRY VI (1422-1461) 168 XVII. THE YORKIST KINGS AND THE END OF THE WARS OF THE ROSES. XXIII. THE ENGLISH COUNTER-REFORMATION. MARY (1553-1558) 236 |