Ralph Houlbrooke
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198208761
- eISBN:
- 9780191678134
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198208761.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Early Modern History, Social History
The interest and importance of the social history of death have been increasingly recognized during the last thirty years. This book examines the effects of religious ...
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The interest and importance of the social history of death have been increasingly recognized during the last thirty years. This book examines the effects of religious change on the English ‘way of death’ between 1480 and 1750. It discusses relatively neglected aspects of the subject, such as the deathbed, will making, and the last rites. It also examines the rich variety of commemorative media and practices and describes the development of the English funeral sermon between the late Middle Ages and the 18th century. The book shows how the need of the living to remember the dead remained important throughout the later medieval and early modern periods, even though its justification and means of expression changed.Less
The interest and importance of the social history of death have been increasingly recognized during the last thirty years. This book examines the effects of religious change on the English ‘way of death’ between 1480 and 1750. It discusses relatively neglected aspects of the subject, such as the deathbed, will making, and the last rites. It also examines the rich variety of commemorative media and practices and describes the development of the English funeral sermon between the late Middle Ages and the 18th century. The book shows how the need of the living to remember the dead remained important throughout the later medieval and early modern periods, even though its justification and means of expression changed.
Ralph Houlbrooke
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198208761
- eISBN:
- 9780191678134
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198208761.003.0005
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Early Modern History, Social History
This chapter discusses changes in the practice of will-making between the 15th and 18th centuries. The will ceased to be something in which the clergy ...
More
This chapter discusses changes in the practice of will-making between the 15th and 18th centuries. The will ceased to be something in which the clergy had an important part to play. By 1750 the attorney had replaced the clergyman as the main source of professional expertise in matters of testamentary. Between the Reformation and the 18th century, the previously close connection between will-making and death was loosened. The will became a more secular document and its making more private.Less
This chapter discusses changes in the practice of will-making between the 15th and 18th centuries. The will ceased to be something in which the clergy had an important part to play. By 1750 the attorney had replaced the clergyman as the main source of professional expertise in matters of testamentary. Between the Reformation and the 18th century, the previously close connection between will-making and death was loosened. The will became a more secular document and its making more private.
Ralph Houlbrooke
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198208761
- eISBN:
- 9780191678134
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198208761.003.0006
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Early Modern History, Social History
This chapter discusses the gradual shrinking of the religious functions of the will during the centuries following the Reformation. Wills have been the ...
More
This chapter discusses the gradual shrinking of the religious functions of the will during the centuries following the Reformation. Wills have been the subject of close analysis and much controversy in recent decades. They have been studied for the light they throw upon the development of religious opinions, the changing nature of charitable bequests, and the strength of individual relationships with families and neighbours. Research has tended to focus on particular communities or topics. The chapter takes a broad and long view of the evolution of the will as a document drawn up in preparation for death.Less
This chapter discusses the gradual shrinking of the religious functions of the will during the centuries following the Reformation. Wills have been the subject of close analysis and much controversy in recent decades. They have been studied for the light they throw upon the development of religious opinions, the changing nature of charitable bequests, and the strength of individual relationships with families and neighbours. Research has tended to focus on particular communities or topics. The chapter takes a broad and long view of the evolution of the will as a document drawn up in preparation for death.
