Welsh Journals

Haigh's book is not without useful information but the author fails to identify key points that could have given his work thematic strength. The assessment of participants at Mortimer's Cross suggests an internecine struggle between the ancient marcher interest of Mortimer and Croft and parvenu earls of Wiltshire and Pembroke attached to the Principality of Wales, but the issue is not developed. Similarly, Haigh's comment that Edward IV ascribed importance to the three suns which appeared in the sky before the battle because he was 'young and impressionable' betrays his ignorance of the skill with which Edward exploited the metaphysical assumptions of the age. This is also reflected in his scant treatment of Ludford Bridge, perhaps not a battle in the strictest sense but certainly the climax to a military campaign and, given the defection of Trollope and the Calais garrison, arguably the moment at which the physical brawling of St Albans and Blore Heath merged into a spiritual battle for the kingdom. After all, when the Yorkists returned from exile in the following year they did so with a papal legate in tow, and masquerading as a crusade. Years later, the Arrivall, with its stories of miracles supplied by St Anne, cast Edward's return from exile in 1471 in much the same light. So there are many ways of contextualizing and presenting battles and these books represent anything but the last word. Writers about battles should remember what Robert the Bruce learned from the spider about fighting them. ANTHONY GROSS Royal Holloway College University of London A GUIDE TO THE RECORDS OF GREAT SESSIONS IN WALES. By Glyn Parry. National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth. Pp. 414. £ 40.00. The Court of Great Sessions in Wales was established, following the second Act of Union of 1543, to administer English law in Wales in the same manner as the central courts in London. From 1543 to 1830, it heard criminal, civil and equity cases in Wales. Having gone through many vicissitudes, the records of this important institution are now held at the National Library of Wales. They have not, however, been exploited by researchers to the degree that they might have been, mainly because of the complexities of using them. This volume has been written as a guide to the researcher by one of the staff of the National Library's Department of Manuscripts and Records.