This is a much-revised version of Professor Cottret's acclaimed study of the Huguenot communities in England, first published in French by Aubier in 1985. The Huguenots in England presents a detailed, sympathetic assessment of one of the great migrations of early modern Europe, examining the social origins, aspirations and eventual destiny of the refugees, and their responses to their new-found home, a Protestant terre d'exil. Bernard Cottret shows how for the poor weavers, carders and craftsmen who constituted the majority of the exiles the experience of religious persecution was at once personal calamity, disruptive of home and family, and heaven-sent economic opportunity, which many were quick to exploit. The individual testimonies contained in consistory registers contain a wealth of personal narrative, reflection and reaction, enabling Professor Cottret to build a fully rounded picture of the Huguenot experience in early modern England. In an extended afterword Professor Emmanuel Le Roy Ladurie considers the Huguenot phenomenon in the wider context of the contrasting British and French attitudes to religious minorities in the early modern period.

An instructive history, this remarkable work recounts the causes leading to the persecution of the French Protestants and traces their emigration from France to England and Ireland. An interesting feature of the work, to the genealogist, is the collection of 300 biographies of noted Huguenot refugees who settled in Britain. Additionally, the work contains an important section on the Huguenots in America by G. P. Disoway

Probate inventories provide an unparalleled and intimate glimpse into the lives of the inhabitants of early modern England. After death, the items within the deceased’s home would frequently be itemised and valued room-by-room. As well as providing invaluable information about the rich diversity and value of domestic material culture, the inventories also offer insights into the different tastes, domestic arrangements and range of activities that took place within the early modern home. Inventories also enable scholars to reconstruct the informal social and business networks that are crucial for understanding this period, but which might otherwise remain hidden. By offering a critical introduction to the use of probate inventories for historical research, and by providing transcriptions of inventories from French immigrants to early modern London, this book provides a new and important resource for students and researchers interested in the early modern household, material culture studies, and the domestic lives of the Huguenot refugees. The book begins with a detailed introduction that provides historical background on the French immigrant community in London. This is followed by an original analysis of the key differences that existed between French and English domestic interiors during this period, along with a discussion of how these trends are visible within the included inventories. The book subsequently provides a critical discussion of the issues and challenges involved in studying probate inventories and the difficulties in their interpretation. Following a description of the methodology used for the current study and the general characteristics of the sample included, the volume provides transcriptions of ninety-two probate inventories from members of London’s Huguenot community. In addition, the book contains a fully referenced historical glossary of the items of early modern material culture listed within the inventories. Taken together, the book ha