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Media type:
E-Article
Title:
Bede's Agenda in Book IV of the ‘Ecclesiastical History of the English People’: A Tricky Matter of Advising the King
Contributor:
HIGHAM, N. J.
imprint:
Cambridge University Press (CUP), 2013
Published in:The Journal of Ecclesiastical History
Language:
English
DOI:
10.1017/s0022046913000523
ISSN:
1469-7637;
0022-0469
Origination:
Footnote:
Description:
<jats:p>Bede's preoccupations in the later years of his life have recently come under close scrutiny. This article will set out the argument to this point, then explore how the <jats:italic>Ecclesiastical history</jats:italic> conforms to more general perceptions of Bede's purposes. It will conclude that this work was designed to address just one part of his wider reform agenda, as that pertained to the Northumbrian king of the day, Ceolwulf. To this end, Bede painted a picture of the current situation within the Church which is far more optimistic than that on offer in the <jats:italic>Letter to Ecgberht</jats:italic> just a few years later. It must be concluded that his specific purposes as regards any particular work, and the audience at which that work was aimed, exercised a considerable influence over his strategy, which varies enormously from one part of his output to another.</jats:p>