The Historian's Toolbox -- Book Review

A Student's Guide to the Theory and Craft of History
Third Edition
Robert C. Williams
M.E. Sharpe, Armonk, New York
2012

I finished The Historian's Toolbox and am very happy to say that I really liked it. The conversational tone of the book and the very interesting examples used ensured that it was never a dull read. The topics are carefully organized by sections and subsections and discuss various aspects of doing history from the types of history that can be found, writing a paper, the various evidences that can be used to support a claim, the different ways that history can be told, to how history is still relevant today.

It is a handy reference book since the sections are broken down into subsections by logical sequence. The easy to follow layout makes it simple to look up specific topics. Although short, each section is concise, yet informative. Many topics are covered, but the pace of the book is quick due to the straightforward writing style.

In addition, The Historian's Toolbox can also be used as a textbook in the classroom. Historical examples are used to illustrate the current topic which helps to reinforce the relevance of the topic under discussion. There are also some black and white pictures to enhance the story. A few of them are a little fuzzy, but they are clear enough to get the point across. Some of the sections end with a "Task." These tasks consist of questions or exercises designed to review the topic discussed. They are great starting points for class discussions and exercise critical thinking skills.  In addition, there are plenty of books recommended for further reading, in case the reader's interest is piqued by the examples used.

While reader is learning about some of the tools used by historians, he is also learning how they are actually used in practice through history examples. For the new historian, it is a very good resource for methodology. If I were teaching a core history class, I would not hesitate to include it as a requirement for my course.

Bede: EHEP—Book I—Chapter 33

The Ecclesiastical History of the English People—Book I—Chapter 32

With Aethelberht's help, Augustine restores a church in Canterbury that was built during the time of the Roman occupation and adds living quarters for himself and his successors. In addition, he builds the monastery of St. Peter and St. Paul which was to be the final resting place for archbishops and the kings of Kent.

Church of Sts Peter and Paul

Rotunda and nave

Photo by Ealdgyth

In this miracle story, Bede relates the story of Peter who was the first abbot of St. Peter and St. Paul monastery. Peter drowned during a voyage to Gaul in the sea of Ambleteuse and was not honorably buried. When the inhabitants noticed that a "heavenly light" appeared above his grave, the realized that he was a saint and moved him to a church in Bologna where he was buried with proper ceremony befitting his person.

Bede: EHEP—Book I—Chapter 32

The Ecclesiastical History of the English People—Book I—Chapter 32

Chapter 32 contains a copy of a letter that Pope Gregory sent to King Aethelberht in which Gregory urges Aethelberht to expand the Christian faith throughout his kingdom. In contrast to chapter 30, this chapter shows Pope Gregory's radical approach to the destruction of pagan temples. In Book 1—Chapter 30, in a letter to Abbot Mellitus, Gregory states that "after long deliberation about the English people... the idol temples of that race should by no means be destroyed, but only the idols in them." The shrines were to be reconsecrated with holy water and used for Christian worship. Two chapters later, in this chapter, Aethelberht is told to "suppress the worship of idols" and "overthrow their buildings and shrines... by exhorting them, terrifying, enticing, and correcting them." However, it is interesting to note that the letter to Abbot Mellitus (Chapter 30) was dated on the 18th of July and the letter to Aethelberht (Chapter 32) is dated earlier on the 22nd of June. Both letters were written in 601, "the nineteenth year of the reign of our most religious emperor Maurice Tiberius." With this in mind, it appears that Pope Gregory shifted from a radical view to a more conservative one in regard to pagan temples.

Noted

• Why did Bede not order the letters chronologically? It would not have been difficult to do so. Since he also included the dates in the closing of the letters, it does not appear that he was trying to misrepresent anything.

• Why did Gregory change his original stance regarding the temples? It does not seem that he became moderate because they were not gaining converts, since the letter against Augustine's pride was supposedly written at the same time as the letter to Abbot Mellitus. Also, when Bede says that something happened "at the same time," the event may have been a month or more apart. Chapters 30-32, on first glance, seems to have happened simultaneously, but as noted by the dates in the letters, the events took place in June and July. It is important to be aware of dates when reading EHEP because terms like these can set astray the reader's sense of time. 

• Gregory is appealing to Aethelberht's sense of glory and imagination when he draws a comparison between the King and Constantine. Like Constantine, the first Christian emperor, Aethelberht is expected to be instrumental in converting followers of the old religion to the new faith. He is advised by Gregory to consult with Augustine since Augustine has a closer connection to God than the King.

• Gregory closes the letter by mentioning that he has included "some small gifts which will not be small to you, because you will receive them with the blessing of St Peter the Apostle," however Bede does not mention what these mysterious gifts are. Could these gifts be some physical and symbolic representations of the Aethelberht's connection with the Christian faith and the Church of Rome?

• Aethelberht is now addressed as if he is now part of the spiritual ecclesiastical family. Gregory addresses him as his son and expects him to follow his advice, as well as Augustine's. Although it is tempered by familial forms of address, there is clearly a hierarchy of authority.

• At the same time, Pope Gregory seems concerned about wining Aethelberht's favor: "Pope Gregory...sent a letter to King Aethelberht, as well as numerous gifts of every kind...anxious to glorify the king with temporal honours."