There is surely no-one better placed than Professor David Bates to write this biography. His pedigree extends over four decades during which he has made enormous contributions to our understanding of the history of Normandy and England in the 11th century. His first major publication on the topic, Normandy before 1066 (1) identified his trajectory of research: only by having a thorough understanding of the duchy’s development would it be possible fully to appreciate the achievements of its rulers, especially duke William II. At that time he commented favourably on the value of Marie Faroux’s edition of 230 ducal charters, yet through his industry and enthusiasm in exploring the Norman archives, he has been able to find hundreds more from the 11th and 12th centuries considerably expanding knowledge in that area. This is evidenced not least by his full edition of the Regesta Regum Anglo-Normannorum (RRAN) published two decades ago, a most valuable tool for historical enquiry. Indeed, it is his expertise in identifying and exploring documentary sources that gives this volume its richness and depth. It enables him to tease out the details of who, what, when, where and why, which might otherwise remain obscure to us today. Furthermore, he has the unusual distinction of having held professorial chairs in all three countries of mainland Britain and a Visiting Professorship at Caen, in Normandy, which has afforded him a unique perspective on the Anglo-Norman world.

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征服者威廉

毫无疑问，没有人比大卫·贝茨教授更适合撰写这本传记。他的血统延续了四十多年，在此期间，他为我们对 11 世纪诺曼底和英格兰历史的理解做出了巨大贡献。他关于该主题的第一本主要出版物，1066 年之前的诺曼底 (1) 确定了他的研究轨迹：只有彻底了解公国的发展，才有可能充分欣赏其统治者的成就，尤其是威廉二世公爵。当时，他对玛丽·法鲁 (Marie Faroux) 版本的 230 份公爵宪章的价值给予了好评，但通过他探索诺曼档案的勤奋和热情，他已经能够找到数百个 11 和 12 世纪的资料，大大扩展了该领域的知识. 这一点尤其体现在他二十年前出版的完整版 Regesta Regum Anglo-Normannorum (RRAN) 中，这是历史研究最有价值的工具。事实上，正是他在识别和探索文献来源方面的专业知识赋予了这本书的丰富性和深度。它使他能够梳理出关于谁、什么、何时、何地和为什么的细节，否则这些细节今天可能对我们来说仍然是模糊的。此外，他还拥有在英国大陆所有三个国家担任教授职位和在诺曼底卡昂的客座教授职位的不寻常的区别，这使他对盎格鲁-诺曼世界有了独特的看法。正是他在识别和探索文献来源方面的专业知识使这本书具有丰富性和深度。它使他能够梳理出关于谁、什么、何时、何地和为什么的细节，否则这些细节今天可能对我们来说仍然是模糊的。此外，他还拥有在英国大陆所有三个国家担任教授职位和在诺曼底卡昂的客座教授职位的不寻常的区别，这使他对盎格鲁-诺曼世界有了独特的看法。正是他在识别和探索文献来源方面的专业知识使这本书具有丰富性和深度。它使他能够梳理出关于谁、什么、何时、何地和为什么的细节，否则这些细节今天可能对我们来说仍然是模糊的。此外，他还拥有在英国大陆所有三个国家担任教授职位和在诺曼底卡昂的客座教授职位的不寻常的区别，这使他对盎格鲁-诺曼世界有了独特的看法。