A dramatic archaeological find at Windsor Castle reveals Edward III's 'House of the Round Table', designed to show off Edward's power and prestige at a crucial moment in his attempts to lay claim to the throne of France.

The second of these annual volumes contains five wide-ranging pieces. In the medieval field, Neil Wright examines Geoffrey of Monmouth's use of Gildas; Beate Schmolke-Hasselmann contributes an important illustrated essay on the Round Table; and Fanny Bogdanow looks at Chretien de Troyes' use of troubadour ideals. Mary Wildman contributes to a bibliography of 20th-century creative literature on Arthur. Finally, Toshiyuki Takamiya and Andrew Armour present a translation of Soseki's Arthurian story 'Kairo-ko: A Dirge', the only known Arthurian novel in Japanese, dealing with the eternal triangle...

Books define the character of a publishing house better than any account of its business transactions or its organisation. This selection of forty books to mark the fortieth anniversary of Boydell & Brewer reflects the evolution of the company and the changing focus of its activities. It began as the Boydell Press, a very small and very general operation and is now a group of primarily academic imprints. The story of the company's progress and development is told through the books, with a strong emphasis on authors and supporters and the occasions linked to the books. Reading Beowulf by...

Geoffrey le Baker's chronicle covers the reigns of Edward II and Edward III up to the English victory at Poitiers. It starts in a low key, copying an earlier chronicle, but by the end of Edward II's reign he offers a much more vivid account. His description of Edward II's last days is partly based on the eyewitness account of his patron, Sir Thomas de la More, who was present at one critical interview. Baker's story of Edward's death, like many other details from his chronicle, was picked up by Tudor historians, particularly by Holinshed, who was the source for Shakespeare's history plays....

Geoffrey le Baker's chronicle covers the reigns of Edward II and Edward III up to the English victory at Poitiers. David Preest's new translation includes extensive notes and an introduction by Richard Barber.