Welsh Journals

true feeling for the unfree; in Chaucer there is a bookish view and in Gower distrust and suspicion. This is an admirable contribution by a literary scholar. John H. Harvey's 'Richard II and York' has less sub- stance, but one is intrigued by a distribution of alms to 12,040 people at York at Easter 1396. Here we are confronted by a king of 'outstanding intellect and sensibility' who seriously contemplated the permanent transference of the capital from London to York. So much for intellect! This unlikely proposition is tentatively echoed by Mrs. Barron, who examines Richard II's relations with London during 1392-97. The patient search for the causes of quarrel in 1392 remains unresolved, but it is suggested that the king's campaign may have been devised over a period of years. Perhaps 'devised' is too strong a word. One wonders whether the judgment of careful legal action in 1392 is consistent with a king walking 'the tightrope of royal absolutism'. A more favourable view of Richard is suggested by Dr. Palmer's 'English Foreign Policy, 1388-99', a somewhat misleading title as the chapter has most to say about Italy. Complex material is deftly handled, but there may be reservations about the presentation of a king who was 'responsible, consistent and hard- headed' in diplomacy. Finally (and impressively), Dr. R. R. Davies takes a searching look at 'Richard II and the Principality of Wales, 1397-9', examining its territorial composition and administration. In the process he adds to our understanding of the later Richard and of the devoted retainers who optimistically assured their king, 'Dycun, slep sicury quile we wake'. J. W. SHERBORNE Bristol. THE REIGN OF HENRY VII. By S. B. Chrimes. Eyre Methuen, London: University of California Press, Berkeley and Los Angeles, 1972. Pp. xv, 373, 16 illustrations, 6 maps, 4 pedigrees. £ 6.25. A substantial re-appraisal of Henry VII was long overdue. If the first Tudor king has recently received the accolade of his own TV series, his reign has not enjoyed a full-scale scholarly discussion since 1892. In the intervening years, considerable advances have been made in our knowledge of the reign, at least in certain of its aspects. Much research remains to be done, however, on the still formidable body of unpublished manuscript material. It is for this reason that Professor Chrimes prudently insists that his work is 'an interim report. on the existing state of our know- ledge'. No one familiar with the notable studies which the author has contributed to the constitutional and administrative history of late- medieval England will be surprised that he eschews any intention of writing a biography (for which, in any case, the materials are meagre) and instead defines his main purpose as the presentation of 'a study of the impact of Henry Tudor upon the government of England'. The organization of the book reflects this overriding concern. Henry's early career, up to his victory at Bosworth, consumes 50 pages, 'Accession, Coronation, Marriage, and Family', another 18, and the 'high politics'