{"product_id":"border-land-ryan-lavelle-9780300259582","title":"Border Land: Frontiers of Early England","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAn innovative and thought-provoking exploration of the edges of England from their earliest days to the Norman Conquest\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe earliest written record of a political boundary in England dates from around 880, when King Alfred and Danish warlord Guthrum formalised a legal treaty to divide lands between them. How did Alfred and his descendants think about the borders of \"English\" territory? And what can these markers tell us about the English kingdom itself?\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRyan Lavelle takes readers on a journey around the borders and edges of early medieval England. From an oak tree used as a marker by St Augustine, through Alfred's famous treaty, to 1066 and beyond, Lavelle explores how land was divided and the ways in which boundaries were perceived. He argues that there was no one unified \"England\" until after the Norman Conquest--and in fact the lands were divided several times between the death of  thelstan and the invasion of William the Conqueror. This is a fascinating account that reshapes our thinking about the origins of the \"lands of the English.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Ryan Lavelle\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0300259581\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780300259582\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Yale University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 11\/10\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 416\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover","brand":"Ryan Lavelle","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":48517098275071,"sku":"9780300259582","price":40.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_3849dd6a-f024-4591-b5e3-f8c0ff42a902.jpg?v=1778729888","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/border-land-ryan-lavelle-9780300259582","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}