The is a full-length analysis of the machinery and men of government
under Henry I, which looks in much greater detail than is possible for
other contemporary states at the way government worked and at the
careers of royal servants. Royal government in England in the early
twelfth-century was developing fast under political and military
pressures. At the centre, above all during the king's long absences in
Normandy, new ways of supervision were found, especially in the
financial field. Government also provided distinct opportunities in
administration, and for the first time it is possible to identify a
number of men who were effectively professional administrators. The book
will therefore become essential reading on the reign of Henry I and on
the general development of English government in the twelfth century.