A medieval family
Subtitle: the Pastons of fifteenth-century England
By: Frances and Joseph Gies.
Contributors: Gies, Joseph.
Edition: 1st ed.
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers; Harpercollins
Published: 1998
Place of publication: New York, NY
Language: eng
Number of pages: 392
Subjects: Fastolf, John, Sir, 1378-1459; Paston family -- Correspondence; Paston letters; Middle class -- England -- History -- To 1500 -- Sources; Family -- England -- History -- To 1500 -- Sources; Manuscripts, Medieval -- England -- Norfolk; English letters -- History and criticism; Letter writing -- History -- To 1500; Great Britain -- History -- Wars of the Roses, 1455-1485 -- Sources; England -- Social life and customs -- 1066-1485
First sentence: The Paston Letters, written by a fifteenth-century family of the Norfolk landed gentry, their friends, and their associates, comprise more than a thousand letters and documents.
Description: The Paston family of Norfolk, England, has long been known to medieval scholars for its large collection of personal correspondence, which has survived five centuries.

Revealing a wealth of information about the manners, morals, lifestyle, and attitudes of the late Middle Ages, the letters also tell the story of three generations of the fifteenth-century Paston family that reads like a historical novel full of memorable characters: Margaret Paston, the indomitable wife and mother who fought the family's battles; her husband, John Paston I, tough, hardheaded, and thrice confined to Fleet Prison but never yielding to his enemies; daughter Margery, who scandalized family and friends by falling in love with the Paston bailiff, Richard Calle; lighthearted, chivalric Sir John; and cheerful, sensible John III, who against all odds succeeded in marrying for love.

A Medieval Family traces the Paston history from 1420, through the stormy Wars of the Roses, to the early 1500s.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 363-367) and index.