Elf Queens and Holy Friars

In Elf Queens and Holy Friars Richard Firth Green investigates an important aspect of medieval culture that has been largely ignored by modern literary scholarship: the omnipresent belief in fairyland.

He looks into the church as a major force of the changing nature of belief and the understanding of the Indigenous Fairy Faith and similar fairy like traditions across Europe. And the continual push against these indigenous beliefs as a primary force leading to the witch hunts of the renaissance.

This academic styled book looks into the connection between fairies and demons, purgatory and fairyland in medieval thought. The merging and continued understanding between both the Folk Christianity of the common people, and the Indigenous religion of the people.

This book details many folk legends that other books don’t- such as legends of King Arthur visiting Italy, and meeting Oberon. There’s a focus on Medieval Romance literature, Incubi, Changelings and Fairyland itself.

It should be noted that the middle English, and sometimes the French and Latin is often not translated.

Why we love it

This book has a truly excellent range of examples of the belief in the fair folk- not only in theory and world view, but in terms of how it shaped real-world politics and laws. The bibliography at the back is truly extensive. A great book for those truly serious about their learning of the history of the Indigenous Fairy Faith.

304 pages

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