Stephenson Carl. Medieval History Europe from the Second to the Sixteenth Century

Harper and Row Publishers, 1962. — 644 p.The book includes encyclopedic information on nearly every aspect of the Middle Ages; however, again it contains encyclopedia knowledge on nearly every aspect of the Middle Ages. Nothing groundbreaking or necessarily insightful. As to the Medieval period itself Professor Stephenson is usually generous. The book is dedicated to Charles Homer Haskins and rarely moved beyond his monumental research in The Renaissance of the Twelfth Century or The Rise of Universities and The Cambridge Medieval History. The book is a little tilted towards the earlier period, with a protracted recap on the Roman Empire. The Byzantine world is peripheral to the study and likewise Stephenson is frequently overly generous to the contributions of the Islamic world to the Middle Ages, crediting the Islam world and Byzantines with every and any advance in Medieval Christendom, irrespective of the evidence.