http://hdl.handle.net/10034/31853 Wed, 19 Jun 2013 07:52:34 GMT 2013-06-19T07:52:34Z http://hdl.handle.net/10034/268992 Title: Northern Europe versus Rome: The use of the body in warfare Authors: Pinfold, Tom Abstract: Throughout time military commanders have relied on a combination of ‘shock and awe’ to win battles, whether they were the massed cavalry charges of the early Medieval period, the huge columns of men used by Napoleon to punch through enemy formations with drums beating and chants of ‘Vive l’Empereur’, through to the German Blitzkrieg against Poland or France, even today many counter-terrorist units such as the British SAS equip themselves in black body armour and gas masks giving them an otherworldly appearance. However, long before any of these, the Roman Legions and their Ancient British and Gallic adversaries were practicing body alteration on a grand scale, relying not only on physical strength but also ‘shock and awe’ to win battles. This dissertation is an investigation and a discussion of the techniques adopted and the motivations behind their adoption. Sun, 01 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/10034/268992 2012-01-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/10034/239772 Title: The spiral stair or vice: Its origins, role and meaning in medieval stone castles Authors: Ryder, Charles Abstract: This thesis addresses a neglected area of castles studies - the spiral stair. It studies the origins, evolution, placing, structure, role, significance and meaning of spiral stairs in medieval stone castles between 1066 and 1500, so covering the rise, zenith and decline of the castle in England and Wales. Although focussed upon England and Wales, it has a wider geographical spread across Ireland, Scotland, Europe, the Middle East and Japan with particular regard to castles and on even wider when searching for the origins of the spiral stair, encompassing the whole globe. The date range was also extended, both much earlier than 1066 when searching for these origins and very selectively beyond 1500 when exploring how the spiral was used in the later medieval and early modern periods. It is proposed that the first known spiral stair was employed in Trajan's Column in the first century AD, that it was then used more selectively in secular and later ecclesiastical buildings during the first millennium AD and that, from the eleventh century onwards, the spiral stair became a common feature of the medieval castle. From the emergence of the spiral stair in Rome, this thesis places its principal use in European elite and ecclesiastical structures. Focusing on the castle, this thesis argues that it was employed as a vertical boundary marker to signal and control movement between two different types of spaces, from a more public to a more private space and from a general or less restricted space to a space which was more restricted, often elite domestic quarters. This use of the spiral is seen in and is traced through different types of English and Welsh castles, from stronghold to enclosure and on to the so-called sham or cult castles of the late medieval period. The thesis also looks at the spiral in a range of medieval castles and other defensive buildings outside England and Wales and finds that, in the main, spirals were employed in the same way. It also explores the presence and role of the spiral within other medieval buildings, both in England and Wales and further afield, and argues that, although there are some exceptions and variations, in the main spiral stairs played the same role in those buildings. This thesis interprets the spiral stair within the medieval castle as a key component of the landscape of lordship and argues that the interpretation of this elite landscape, hitherto focused on the environs and outward appearance of the castle, should not stop at the castle gate but should move inside. Accordingly, this thesis takes a step to bring the interior of the castle deeper into research and discussion; to explore individual items and features within the castle; and to consider their placing, access and meaning within the medieval world. Tue, 01 Feb 2011 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/10034/239772 2011-02-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/10034/214630 Title: The relationship between Samuel Wilberforce and William Ewart Gladstone, 1835-73, with special reference to contemporary religious issues Authors: Whitehouse, Graham Abstract: This thesis examines the private and public relationship between Samuel Wilberforce and William Ewart Gladstone, who became great friends between 1835 and 1873. Wilberforce (1805-1873), who became Bishop of Oxford in 1845, was an outstanding preacher and diocesan, an effective speaker in parliament, and the best known Anglican clergyman of his time. Gladstone (1809-1898), who became Liberal prime minister on four occasions, was the most fervently religious prime minister of the Victorian period. The thesis is divided into two parts. Part One examines the nature and development of the private friendship between Wilberforce and Gladstone. Chapter One describes their early lives and the start of their friendship in the mid-1830s. The two men had much in common; they both came from devoutly Evangelical backgrounds, yet both became High Churchmen; both their fathers were Tory Members of Parliament, and both went to Oxford University. Chapter Two examines the consolidation of their friendship from the 1840s until Wilberforce's death in 1873. It shows their mutual respect and admiration, and enjoyment of one another's company. Their friendship reflected sympathetic and empathic responses to various family crises, including the defection of some of Wilberforce's relatives to Roman Catholicism, and the deaths of close friends and relatives. Wilberforce's ambitions for promotion were thwarted, but Gladstone was able to appoint him to the venerable bishopric of Winchester in 1869. Gladstone was clearly distraught by Wilberforce's sudden death in 1873 and fulsomely eulogised his friend. Part Two examines the public relationship between Wilberforce and Gladstone, with particular reference to contemporary religious issues in which they shared a mutual interest. Chapter Three examines the response of Wilberforce and Gladstone to problems faced by the Church of England during the mid-Victorian period, including the divisions between Evangelicals and High Churchmen, Tractarianism, Ritualism, the Broad Church and various other doctrinal disputes. On these and other issues the two friends frequently acted in tandem. Wilberforce and Gladstone both argued with the protagonists of Darwinism in the debate on Evolutional Theory, which challenged Christian belief. Chapter Four examines the views of Gladstone and Wilberforce on the difficult relationship between Church and State during the mid-Victorian period, and explores, by reference to the Hampden controversy, the Gorham Judgement, the re-establishment of Convocation and Papal Aggression, the extent to which they were mutually supportive. Finally, Chapter Five considers the parliamentary roles of Wilberforce and Gladstone regarding ecclesiastical legislation, where they frequently co-operated in the promotion of, and support for measures including the development of an independent Colonial Church and regulation of the Anglican clergy. Whilst Gladstone's aim to disestablish the Church of Ireland was initially opposed by Wilberforce, he came to accept it as a decision of the electorate and was instrumental in persuading the English and Irish bishops not to oppose the legislation promoting disestablishment in 1869. The parliamentary co-operation between Wilberforce and Gladstone also extended to some social legislation, including the question of divorce and the extension of elementary educational provision in 1870. In summary, this original thesis offers the first detailed examination of the relationship between Samuel Wilberforce and William Gladstone - a relationship hitherto largely ignored by historians - and argues that theirs was a true and enduring friendship which equated with Aristotle's criteria forphilia, despite differences in their personalities and occasional differences of opinion, and which also extended to mutual co-operation and support in their public lives. Wed, 01 Dec 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/10034/214630 2010-12-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/10034/129910 Title: Who built St Oswald's? A study of land ownership and the physical development of Chester's northern suburb from the 17th century to the present Authors: Bird, Polly Abstract: This dissertation discussed the development of the Chester suburb of St. Oswald's from 1641-1998, focusing on the physical development of the area and land ownership. Sun, 01 Nov 1998 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/10034/129910 1998-11-01T00:00:00Z