An Historical Introduction to the Land Law

Holdsworth, Sir William. An Historical Introduction to the Land Law. London: Oxford University Press, 1927. xxiv, 339 pp. Reprinted 2004 by The Lawbook Exchange, Ltd. LCCN 2002025949. ISBN 1-58477-262-X. Cloth. $95. * Sir William Holdsworth [1871-1944] was one of the most distinguished historians of English common law. Written to provide students of Real Property with a concise history of the field, Holdsworth believed this knowledge necessary as contemporary land law was difficult to understand without an understanding of its roots. Fifoot commends this book in his English Law and its Background for its history of the rules against perpetuities (121). The Law Quarterly Review noted that "every beginner will certainly have to read [this] book before he reads anything else" (44:105). Both sources cited in Marke, A Catalogue of the Law Collection at New York University (1953) 773.