A Source Book of Mediæval History / Documents Illustrative of European Life and Institutions from the German Invasions to the Renaissance

Transcriber's Note:
Obvious typographical errors have been corrected. Inconsistent spelling and hyphenation in the original document have been preserved.
EDITED BY FREDERIC AUSTIN OGG, A.M. ASSISTANT IN HISTORY IN HARVARD UNIVERSITY AND INSTRUCTOR IN SIMMONS COLLEGE
NEW YORK · : · CINCINNATI · : · CHICAGO
AMERICAN BOOK COMPANY
Copyright, 1907, by FREDERIC AUSTIN OGG
Entered at Stationers' Hall, London W. P. 4

This book has been prepared in consequence of a conviction, derived from some years of teaching experience, (1) that sources, of proper kind and in carefully regulated amount, can profitably be made use of by teachers and students of history in elementary college classes, in academies and preparatory schools, and in the more advanced years of the average high school, and (2) that for mediæval history there exists no published collection which is clearly adapted to practical conditions of work in such classes and schools.
It has seemed to me that a source book designed to meet the requirements of teachers and classes in the better grade of secondary schools, and perhaps in the freshman year of college work, ought to comprise certain distinctive features, first, with respect to the character of the selections presented, and, secondly, in regard to general arrangement and accompanying explanatory matter. In the choice of extracts I have sought to be guided by the following considerations: (1) that in all cases the materials presented should be of real value, either for the historical information contained in them or for the more or less indirect light they throw upon mediæval life or conditions; (2) that, for the sake of younger students, a relatively large proportion of narrative (annals, chronicles, and biography) be introduced and the purely documentary material be slightly subordinated; (3) that, despite this principle, documents of vital importance, such as Magna Charta and Unam Sanctam , which cannot be ignored in even the most hasty or elementary study, be presented with some fulness; and (4) that, in general, the rule should be to give longer passages from fewer sources, rather than more fragmentary ones from a wider range.